John Krygelski - The Aegis Solution

Elias still did not respond, waiting to learn exactly how insightful Wilson was.

“That only leaves one possible explanation. You have come here with a purpose. You have not, yet, told me what that might be. But, whatever it is, it is worthy of banishing yourself to this place for the balance of your life so that you may accomplish it. And, frankly, there are very few things in life people find worthy of that kind of sacrifice — God, country, and a loved one.

“Aegis is an abomination. There is no doubt about that. It probably is an offense against the Almighty, but I don’t believe that you are an angel sent down from the heavens to right this particular wrong.

“Aegis was created by our government, and I believe that it serves its purposes as it is; therefore, I think I can tentatively drop country from the list, as well. That leaves a loved one.”

Wilson’s eyes bored into Elias as he spoke. “Be it a rapist, a killer, or some other vile and wretched subhuman specimen, I can easily see that you would follow that person through the ‘gates of hell’ for your revenge.”

Elias struggled to appear as if he were painfully coming to the decision he had reached earlier. “Your fame is well deserved. You’re right. I am after someone.”

“I knew it!” Wilson exclaimed, slapping the top of his knee. “Who is it and why?” He took a deep breath to stifle his reaction and, in a more calm voice, added, “Not that it is any of my concern, of course.”

“Wilson, I think that if I tell you the who, the why might be evident.”

“Very well, who might it be?”

“No doubt you have heard the name Rudy Kreitzmann.”

Elias expected a strong reaction, receiving none.

“Of course I have, but that is old news.”

“You know he’s here?”

“Certainly. We’ve spoken.”

“You’ve…?”

“Elias, are you telling me that it is Kreitzmann you’re after?”

Elias nodded.

“For what purpose? Oh! You’ve come to kill him, haven’t you?”

Hesitating, unsure of Wilson’s feelings about his fellow scientist, Elias said, “No.”

“You hesitated. Of course, you must be wondering if he and I are friends. Let’s just say, if any value deserves to be removed from the equation, it is Rudy.”

Shaking his head, Elias grinned. “I surely cannot figure you out, Wilson. I guess that I don’t share your Holmesian abilities.”

“Who does?” Wilson remarked immodestly.

Laughing, Elias pressed, “You said you’ve spoken with him. What about?”

“Before I answer, would you care for more tea? I made a full pot.”

“No, thanks. I’ve still got half a cup.”

Wilson stood and returned to the interior of the shack, coming out in less than a minute with his mug again full.

“He thought I would be a good addition to his team.”

“Team? Kreitzmann recruited you?”

“Attempted to. I declined. He was persistent, though.”

“I thought you were living in Aegis incognito. How did he find you?”

Wilson shrugged. “I don’t know. As to my past on the outside, you are only the second person I’ve told. But he did find me. Walked straight in the door, as did you, and invited me to his lab. That was where he first asked me to join him. I turned him down that day, and he continued to arrive here unannounced, not taking no for an answer. He finally gave up weeks ago.”

Confusion clouded Elias’ thoughts. “I’m afraid I don’t understand. He has a lab. He tried to bring you into his fold several times. He gave up weeks ago. It just doesn’t add up.”

“What doesn’t add up?”

“That’s a lot for someone to accomplish in three months.”

“Three months? What is the significance of that period of time?”

Elias stared at Wilson for a moment before telling him, “That’s when Kreitzmann came to Aegis.”

“No, it’s not! You’re mistaken. Rudy has been here for at least five years.”

Elias was speechless. This piece of news was the last thing he expected to hear. The moment he did, his stomach began to churn. The implications of what Wilson told him created an entirely new set of potential scenarios, none of which were pleasant, and not the least of those was that Faulk had misled him for some reason.

He saw that Wilson was watching him closely, no doubt continuing to gather clues in his probably unbreakable habit of obtaining and analyzing data. Elias found that his paranoia was percolating at a higher level than normal, certain that this strange man could almost read his mind. Deciding to review the available facts at a later time, when the privacy of his own mind might be more sacrosanct, Elias resumed the conversation. “You said he has a lab. What is he doing there?”

“His usual offenses against God and nature.”

“Human experiments?”

“Of course! And since he is operating within the cloistered environs of Aegis, he is unfettered in his experiments.”

A distinct chill shivered Elias’ spine.

Wilson continued, “And operating within Aegis provides him with a solution to a problem he has struggled with for most of his purulent career.”

Listening to the words, the pieces fell into place for Elias, and the picture created was monstrous. “Supply,” he said simply, his voice flat.

“Precisely. As he developed his field of expertise, nation after nation, at the very minimum, ejected him from their borders and, at the most extreme, attempted to prosecute Rudy for his work. But now that he operates within a setting which is essentially lawless, he is no longer hounded. And, more important, there is an ever-increasing flow of new subjects walking through that revolving door — people who, from the moment they enter, are cut off from everyone and everything. It is almost as though Aegis was created for the sole reason of suiting his insidious purposes.”

“No one will miss them,” Elias said. “No one on the outside will know that they’ve become his lab rats.”

“And no one on the inside will even be aware that they’ve arrived and been nabbed, to use the vernacular.”

“When I got here, I was jumped almost immediately by a group of ZooCity goons.”

Wilson nodded. “That has been a fairly recent development at Aegis.”

“Are they working for Kreitzmann?”

“No. At least to the best of my knowledge. They’ve begun grabbing the new arrivals, stripping them of anything they might consider to be valuable in Aegis, and then using them for, well, rather sordid purposes.”

Elias did not share what he had learned from his surveillance. “So they’ve been interrupting the supply chain to Kreitzmann.”

Nodding, Wilson replied, “I guess you could say they have. I hadn’t really thought about that. How did you get past them?”

“I had some help.”

Wilson’s eyebrow arched questioningly.

“They had the drop on me. I’m not sure what I expected as I came inside Aegis; I guess I wasn’t expecting an organized attack. But at the point where the punks had me down, some thing intervened. All I saw was a sudden blur of motion; I don’t know how else to describe it.”

As he said this, Elias was paying close attention to his host’s face. There was no change of expression.

“I don’t know what it was or where it came from. But one moment I was lying helplessly on the floor about to be killed, and the next moment my attackers were either dead or running away.”

“However, you were left untouched?”

“Yes.”

“Most odd.”

“Do you have any idea what that thing was?”

“I suppose that I might,” Wilson answered, pausing to sip from his tea.

“Well?”

“During the incessant entreaties to join him, Rudy felt a need to impress me with his work. His arrogance only allows him to believe that awe, rather than revulsion, would be the reaction from a fellow scientist.”