The Wanderer - 273 (Patreon)

Chapter 273 – Flash Drive

[2009 – October – Saturday]

Destroying a whole world in revenge for a single attack? Well, her brother was ruthless enough, alright, Emma thought to herself while taking a breath and calming her agitation.

She truly found it hard to wrap her head around such a concept though.

What did it entail to destroy a whole planet? What kind of force was necessary to do such a thing? Explosions always seemed violent and destructive from up close but from a planetary perspective, even a nuclear warhead was but a stronger gust of wind.

Knowing about Realm Lords was one thing but trulyunderstanding the power that each and every one of them wielded was another.

It reminded her of what Elijah had done a few days ago, using his mind to show her how he experienced the world around him for just a few seconds.

Emma had nearly been suffocated by the intensity of the sensory perception, her mind straining to endure the sheer inflow of information. This alone had been enough to show her that her younger brother truly belonged to a group of beings that had reached a transcendent state, and everyone that had not, was but an ant in front of those beings.

Calming down quickly, her agile mind moved with exceptional efficiency as she narrowed her eyes for a moment while pondering over something.

“Do you expect HYDRA to retaliate for the attack?”, Emma asked, unsure of the answer.

She half-guessed that this might be the reason why Elijah had come to find her and told her why he had done what he had done without her inquiry into the matter. She had planned to ask him since this was not a matter that could be taken lightly.

HYDRA most certainly knew that it was her younger brother who had attacked their bases and killed their 'god' and Emma had already placed the security of the Hellfire Club's bases into a state of alert.

Even the giant security apparatus of Frost International around the world was on high alert, guarding against possible attacks.

Obviously, rationality dictated that HYDRA wouldn't do something as suicidal as attacking Elijah or anyone that had any connection with him ever again, given the result of their attempt to capture Laura was as devastating as it was.

But desperation seldom agreed with rationality.

Her younger brother had killed their 'god', so who could tell what those truly fanatic believers were going to do next?

To her surprise, Elijah just smiled softly, something dark and utterly inhuman swimming in the shadows of his verdant eyes as he voiced out faintly: "Let them try. I will make my last attack look like a gentle caress."

Even as the Ice Queen, Emma could feel the blood in her veins run cold for a moment as she heard those words. She had seen the recordings of Elijah's massacre and to describe the aftermath of his gruesome bloodbath as hellish would be flattering.

He had slaughtered so many that the blood had run along the floor like a small stream.

Still, Emma had blood on her hands too, and her own ruthlessness needed not be mentioned. She recovered her bearings near-instantaneously, her lips curving up faintly as well while her crystal eyes fell on Elijah with a hidden but affectionate glow in them.

She knew very well for whom her younger brother fought and killed, and his words weren't just meant as a threat to others but also as a promise of protection to her and others he cared for.

“Then what other reason do you have for coming to find me here, Elijah?”, she questioned curiously, an enchanting smile spreading on her lips as she saw the tiny featherling inside Elijah's collar wake up and open her eyes sleepily.

Being as adorable as ever, Arya subconsciously rubbed her little head against the side of her younger brother's neck, her affection for and dependence on him coming from a pure and untainted place.

Elijah caressed the owlet's little back with the tips of his fingers seemingly on instinct alone as he answered her, his stark green eyes carrying a single part of softness and nine parts of dancing darkness.

"I damaged HYDRA's vitality but I didn't extinguish it. They still have some strength and a chance at survival, but I don't intend to let them off just yet.", he stated before reaching into his pocket and taking out something.

Turning over his palm, Elijah presented her with a black flash drive as he continued explaining: “I didn't kill those high-ranking HYDRA members that have the eye of the public on them or those that act as sleeper agents in SHIELD and other agencies.”

“If I had done so as a member of the mutant race, the backlash would not be something that the mutant race can withstand without me shielding them, which I have no intention of doing. Still, that doesn't mean that I can't kill with another man's blade.”

"On this flash drive is a list of all the members of HYDRA. I extracted it from … Well, I guess you could call him a 'relic' of sorts … Either way, I know of at least one man that would give his remaining good eye to get his hands on that list.", he ended, leaving her a bit shocked and in deep thought for a moment.

Even as one of the most powerful telepaths on this planet, getting her hands on the information on that flash drive was an almost impossible task given the many different branches and strict hierarchy of HYDRA.

The complex internal structure of the paramilitary organization was one of the main reasons why it had managed to survive until now as even the upper echelons of HYDRA did not necessarily know the full dimensions of their own organization.

Also, the most difficult to sniff out were without a doubt the sleeper agents, and Elijah was naturally right that simply killing them might have drastic consequences for the mutant race.

Even if she found some of them through her telepathy, Emma would also have to think twice about acting since nothing was ever simple when it came to politics and public perception. Even if HYDRA was officially acknowledged as a terrorist organization, that didn't mean that those in power had any positive feelings towards mutantkind.

A mutant slaughtering humans in broad daylight? Well, the question of motive wouldn't even be asked before orders to capture and very possibly kill would be given.

Elijah may have been angered by HYDRA's attempt to capture Laura but he was also one of the most intelligent and thoughtful people that Emma had ever encountered, so he had naturally thought about this even while wrath clouded his mind.

And while he had already made it clear that he didn't want to act as a guardian figure for mutantkind, he obviously wouldn't push their race into the abyss if there were other options.

Like herself, Elijah wasn't a selfless saint who acted only with the well-being of others in mind. Emma did have ambitions when it came to leading the mutant race but she would never sacrifice herself for such a goal.

Still, despite being a ruthless, manipulative, and cold-hearted person, Emma would also not actively harm mutantkind as she did have a bottom line, even if most people didn't believe so. And Elijah was very similar to her in those aspects.

In any case, her younger brother's actions against HYDRA had already been extreme enough, any more and even she could not predict how the world would react to what he had done. Elijah obviously understood this, which was why he had stopped his exceptionally bloody hunt.

And like he had said, for a lot of people, simply knowing of the existence of the list on the flash drive would be enough to make them expand every resource to get their hands on it, especially for a man like Nicholas Fury.

As the Director of SHIELD, it was natural for Emma to know about him, especially since Logan could be considered an 'acquaintance' of his.

Fury was an extremely intelligent and ruthless man, and while most of the world believed HYDRA to be a thing of the past, Emma was sure that he had at least some inkling about the truth of the situation.

Still, HYDRA knew how to hide in plain sight extremely well, so finding them was an almost impossible task for one man. This also wasn't a job that could be casually assigned to some agents, only those that he could trust without a shadow of a doubt could be confided in such secrets.

As such, Emma had no doubt that the Director thirsted for such a list even in his dreams.

Taking the flash drive from her younger brother's hand, she continued to ponder for a few seconds and frowned lightly, still looking gorgeous while doing so.

“You want me to make a deal with the Director of SHIELD?”, Emma finally questioned softly, looking up at the charming young face of her brother, not quite understanding why he presented her with such a valuable opportunity.

She knew that Elijah didn't want to be involved in her ambitions, so this action of his was unlike him.

Sighing faintly, Emma saw Elijah turn his head towards the right side, gazing at the bustling megacity below for a few long moments before turning his gaze back to her.

"SHIELD isn't any better than HYDRA. Both of them are human organizations that don't care in the slightest for mutantkind. And while I want to see the latter exterminated, there is no reason to let SHIELD reap the benefits of my vengeance so easily.", he stated with a shake of his head, his shadowed eyes glowing with wisdom and power from within.

"This list is all Fury needs to forge SHIELD into a weapon that can be used against the mutant race at any moment. And even if that is not his current agenda, he isn't to be trusted. For now, with HYDRA sleeper agents still lingering amongst them, his actual power and authority is still crippled."

"Still, he obviously has to get his hands on the list, or at least parts of it, but not on his conditions.", Elijah explained his intentions.

"I am not a negotiator and would most likely just kill him if I have to strike a deal with him as I am not too fond of him. And since neither Charles nor Erik can't be trusted with power like this, you are the only one that can use this list to benefit mutantkind in some way or another."

Somewhat astonished by Elijah's words, Emma still understood the reasons behind them. Even if the alliance between Charles, Erik, and her hadn't reached the breaking point, this list couldn't be entrusted to the other two mutant leaders.

Chances were that Charles might just gift Fury the list in good faith, placing his hopes in the non-existent moral character of the other party. Erik, on the other hand, would surely use it to launch targeted attacks as he hated humanity too much to consider working together like this.

As such, Emma was without a doubt the most suited to negotiate for benefits with Fury and not get taken advantage of.

"You are the only one I trust with this, Emma.", Elijah ended, his eyes carrying a sincere and intimate look that captivated her.

"You expect too much from me, Elijah.", Emma replied but couldn't help but smile sweetly to herself while leaning against the elevator glass, her crystal eyes shining softly as she looked at her younger brother.

A somewhat boyish smile spreading on his lips, Elijah gave a shrug and teased: "Well, you are the infamous White Queen, so if anyone can beat Fury at his own game and let him bleed, it's you."

Snorting softly, Emma raised her nose for a moment as if expressing her disdain for such obvious sweet talk. Still, her smile couldn't be hidden, and neither could her warm gaze while she pretended to be unaffected by Elijah's flattery.

Returning to being serious again a few seconds later, Emma held up the flash drive and promised: “I will take care of this.”

“I know you will.”, Elijah responded lightly, not a hint of doubt in his tone or expression.

Silently remembering this moment and locking it away in the depths of her heart, Emma thought to mention something else as she parted her full lips and asked: "So, who is the man for whom you arranged to stay in one of the company's apartments?"