Dawn, at Dover Castle did not bring an arrival. It was a triumph. The chilly golden light swept over the Channel overpowering the deep blue darkness and illuminating the timeworn stone walls with a sharpness that seemed reproachful. Arthur Cooper gazed out from the window of the Aerie his private study located at the uppermost livable section of the keep. The silver detailing on his black velvet jacket absorbed the light shining like hoarfrost. Below him, the castle—a maze of Norman masonry and hidden, state-of-the-art laboratories—stirred.
The band, on his finger the winged emblem of the Quadrumvirate felt like a burn.
"The Council has gathered in the White Chamber, Chairman." The voice echoed from the entrance. Silas, his security chief and among the individuals whose faces didn't clench with disdain at his tactics stood holding a tablet. His demeanor was calm. His eyes conveyed caution. "They have… inquiries."
"They consistently ask questions Silas " Arthur remarked, his eyes fixed on the line where ocean touched the sky. "Today they will receive responses they'd rather avoid."
The stroll from the Aerie, to the center of the wing felt like traversing a contradiction. Gothic arches encased biometric readers. Tapestries illustrating archangels were positioned next to screens presenting live genetic sequencing information. A.G.L.'s motto, engraved in Latin above the White Chamber's entrance caught the sunlight: EX ALTITUDINE, CUSTODIA. From the Heights, Guardianship.
He forced the doors to swing open.
The White Chamber was inaccurately named. It was a space made of light grey marble and steel illuminated by strips of cold, synthetic light. Around a crescent-shaped table sat the five individuals of the A.G.L. Executive Council. They represented the heritage the guardians of the Project's prudent vision. To them Arthur Cooper was a revolutionary, a poet dabbling with sacred flames.
"Chairman. We hope the meeting proved… fruitful." The person speaking was Alistair Vance, the oldest, with silver, cropped hair and a stark black suit. He led Ethical Compliance, a position he exercised like a weapon. His eyes stayed fixed on the ring adorning Arthur's finger.
"It had to be done " Arthur answered, settling into his spot at the apex of the crescent. He provided no explanation. The affairs of the Quadrumvirate were exclusively, under his jurisdiction.
"Essential?" Dr. Anya Sharma, Director of Genomic Integration pushed her glasses up. Her intellect was equaled by her deep traditionalism. "We've tracked the surge, in energy from Windsor's containment fields. Edgar Walker is driving his demonkin to levels of hostility.. You were seated with him at the table. You've implicated us in that intensification."
"We have always been involved in it Anya " Arthur said calmly. "We simply chose to observe from afar. That privilege has ended. Seraph-1 altered everything. Now we are participants, not onlookers."
A third councilor, Lionel Graves, Oversight of Resources rapped a report, on the table. "This leads us to the share. You sent a part of the Harmonic Resonance Sequence to our… competitors. Without involving this council. That sequence is the basis of our Phase Three stability."
"It was an act. A token of truce that guarantees our existence."
"Peace?" Alistair Vance's tone was as arid, as dirt. "Peace does not exist in this line of work Arthur. It's merely a balance maintained by fear. You've handed them a device. What if they transform it into a weapon? Convert our unity into a magnifying glass for their disorder?"
Arthur inclined toward him his blue diamond eyes reflecting the glow, from the panels. "Then they have misunderstood it. The Sequence isn't a weapon. It's a concept. A reality. It can be disregarded,. It cannot be tainted." He stopped briefly allowing the statement to resonate. "However that isn't what really disturbs you is it? You don't fear their misuse of it. You fear their mastery of it. That our uniqueness, our superiority will be weakened."
The quiet was rigid validating his suspicion.
Elara, the councils member and a prodigy overseeing Phenotypic Expression cleared her throat. "Chairman, respectfully… the chance of being exposed has increased dramatically. With four factions, all speeding up? The London Sanctum remains safe yet field missions, resource thefts and data spying… the network is unraveling. The general public is not oblivious."
"The outside world perceives what it anticipates " Arthur remarked. "Fans of style, at a castle. Geological research. Meteorological tests. Our disguise is interlaced with the threads of the ordinary." He rose, moving towards a holoprojector set into the table. With a motion he switched it on.
A rotating 3D diagram of a helix emerged, glowing with gentle golden light at its junctions—the amplified Harmonic Sequence. "This goes beyond stability, ladies and gentlemen. This represents the gateway, to Phase Four. The Progenitor Stage. Seraph-1 is not just stable. It is progressing. Its cellular resonance is starting to influence its surroundings. Cleansing of pathogens spontaneous alignment of light particles… subtle yet quantifiable."
Anya Sharma gazed, her thirst, for knowledge clashing with her fear. "Environmental impact? That was hypothetical. The moral consequences are—"
"—the cause we have to guide " Arthur cut in his tone sharpening. "Picture that influence expanded. Not as a weapon. As a sanctuary. An entity that can purge illness from a space soothe a mind evoke clarity over terror. That is our angel. Not a combatant from any scripture. A protector, from a beginning."
Lionel Graves appeared pale. "The assets needed for a Progenitor project... It would necessitate reallocating, from our defense mechanisms, our intelligence activities. We would be exposed."
"We are exposed as it is!" Arthur's fist struck the table not harshly. With a clear precise knock. The noise reverberated. "Edgar Walker would tear us piece by piece. Alexa Solara would challenge her orc's power against our defenses for amusement. Felicya Aurora would break down our efforts into data points for her archive. Concealing ourselves here refining our science in dread leads to becoming outdated.. Ultimately, to annihilation."
He gazed at each individual his intensity, within the sterile room. "I did not assume the Fourth Seat to plead for leftovers from their feast. I claimed it to construct an one. The Council's role is to counsel. To warn. I have heard. Now I am taking action. All non-critical projects are halted. Resources must be directed towards the Progenitor Initiative. Seraph-1 is our focus. It stands as our evidence, our defense and our destiny."
Alistair Vance stood up gradually his face pale, with fury. "You are leading us to disaster, Arthur. You talk about harmony. This is conceit. Acting as a god with an entity we hardly comprehend."
Arthur locked eyes with him. Briefly the surroundings faded away. Only the gap between the era and the future he was set on creating remained. "We moved beyond 'playing god' years ago Alistair. Now the choice, before us is what type of creators we want to be. Are we caretakers trimming every fresh sprout?. Are we designers of an elevated realm?"
He didn't pause for a reply. He spun around. Headed to the doors. "The commands are, in your systems. Execute them. Council is dismissed."
He abandoned them in the White Chamber surrounded by marble chill light and the burden of a future they dreaded to comprehend. Silas took up position beside him in the hallway.
"They will oppose " Silas said softly.
"Let them be " Arthur answered without halting his pace. He looked through a window, at the hidden courtyard where the exclusive helipad was situated. "Their defiance is outdated. Get the 'Dawnrunner' ready. I'm heading to the Aviary. I must witness it firsthand. Not the information. The creature."
As he moved toward the descent, the morning sun finally cleared the eastern battlements, flooding the hallway. It caught the silver wings on his ring, setting them ablaze. The dawn over Dover Castle was indeed a conquest. And Arthur Cooper had just fired the first shot in a war for the soul of his own house. The war with the other chairs was a distant thunder. The war within his walls had just begun.