A Subtle Agency Omnibus Read online

  A SUBTLE AGENCY OMNIBUS

  THE METAFRAME WAR: PART ONE

  Graeme Rodaughan

  Published by System Zero Productions Pty Ltd, 2020

  Copyright © 2020 Graeme Rodaughan

  The moral right of the author has been asserted.

  All rights reserved. This publication (or any part of it) may not be reproduced or transmitted, copied, stored, distributed or otherwise made available by any person or entity (including Google, Amazon or similar organizations), in any form (electronic, digital, optical, mechanical) or by any means (photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise) without prior written permission from the author.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Trade Paperback ISBN-13: 978-0-6487843-0-2

  Cover art by Huw Jones

  For Linda, for her unfailing love and support that always leaves me in awe.

  I would like to thank a number of people who have assisted with my progress as an author, including Alex, Tim, Lisa, Lena, Marie, Eldon, Michael, Christopher, Perry, Nick, Andrew, Laura, Daniel, Ginger, Jody, and the regular crew of Beta and ARC readers at the Castle Dracula group and my many friends and followers on Goodreads. You have all contributed more than you know to my craft and your support and encouragement are invaluable for this journey

  Books by Graeme Rodaughan

  The Metaframe War Series

  A Subtle Agency

  A Traitor’s War

  The Dragon’s Den

  The Day Guard

  The Crane War

  A Subtle Agency Omnibus (containing A Subtle Agency, A Traitor’s War, and The Dragon’s Den in one volume)

  Contents

  Dramatis Personae

  Glossary

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Interlude One

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Interlude Two

  Interlude Three

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty One

  Chapter Twenty Two

  Chapter Twenty Three

  Chapter Twenty Four

  Chapter Twenty Five

  Chapter Twenty Six

  Chapter Twenty Seven

  Dramatis Personae

  The Ancients

  Ahknaton, Ruler of the Southern Realm, High Priest of the Temple of Thoth. Master Architect. Ramp Master.

  Hakron, Second prince of the Southern Realm. Master Scribe. Ramp Master. Ahknaton’s brother

  Mekra, Princess, Ahknaton’s wife.

  The Vampire Dominion

  Cornelius Crane, King of the Vampire Dominion

  Chloe Armitage, General, The Americas, ex Order of Thoth and Crane’s chief enforcer

  Haras Mosule, General, Middle East, ex Red Empire warrior of the 3rd rank

  Dieter Franz, General, Western Europe

  Clayton Maze, General, Africa

  Shen Zhen, General, East Asia

  Marcus Drake, Chloe’s aide de camp

  Rawlings, Centurion, praetorians

  The Order of Thoth

  Ramin Kain, Head of the Order of Thoth

  Samuel Luther, Ramin’s chief of staff and aide de camp

  The Exiles

  Arthur Slayne, (Exiled) Master Strategist, Force Leader, Weapons Grandmaster, Speed Talent.

  Anna Slayne, (Exiled) Operative

  William Slayne, (Exiled) Operative, Arthur’s son

  Anton Slayne, Anna and William’s son

  Gang Wu, (Inactive) Weapons Grandmaster, Chef and Proprietor of the Noodle House restaurant

  Li Wu, Gang’s daughter, Weapons Master

  The Mirovar Force Team

  Francis Mirovar, Force Leader, Weapons Master

  Juliette Mirovar, Loremaster, Netmaster, Combat Surgeon

  Yvette Mirovar, Operative

  Jay Creeley, Operative, Weapons Master

  Peter Lamb, Operative, Armorer, Strength Talent

  Chiara Romano, Operative, 2nd Combat Surgeon

  The Walker Force Team (UK)

  Richard Walker, Force Leader

  Joan Lewis, Loremaster, Netmaster

  Mary Turner, Operative, Netmaster,

  David Wilkinson, Operative, Weapons Master

  Karen Chapman, Operative

  David Khan, Operative, Weapons Master

  James Cox, Order novice

  Michael (Mikey) Wilson, Operative

  Francine (Frannie) Parker, Operative

  The Red Empire

  Shabbah al Ahmar, aka ‘The Red Ghost,’ aka Dalien Morte. Head of the Red Empire

  Al Ghurab, aka ‘The Raven,’ Operative inserted into the Order of Thoth

  Al Eunza, aka ‘The Goat,’ Operative

  Al Far, aka ‘The Rat,’ Operative

  Thueban Kabir, aka ‘The Great Serpent,’ aka ‘Taipan,’ Weapons Grandmaster, warrior of the 3rd rank

  Nasr al Dam, aka ‘The Blood Eagle,’ Fist team leader, warrior of the 2nd rank

  Tamsah al Ramil, aka ‘The Sand Crocodile,’ Fist team leader, warrior of the 2nd rank

  Shadowstone

  James Haley, Head of Operations, United States

  Louise Wesson, Team Lead, Green-4 spectrum team

  Sean Higgins, Operative, information technology specialist

  Gary Johnson, Operative

  Harvey West, Squad Leader, Indigo-6 spectrum team

  Gordon Heathmont, Director Shadowstone United Kingdom.

  Frank Quiver, Major, Commander of Squadron F

  Victoria Hansen, Flight Officer, Blackwidow pilot, Squadron F

  Other Players

  Luke Walker, Sergeant Detective, Boston Police Department

  Sarah Murphy, Head, Crime Scene Response Unit

  Sam, Homeless Shelter Attendant

  Barry, Homeless man

  Mr. Wang, Head of the Tiger Clan

  Sleazy, Tiger Clan gangster

  Fats, Tiger Clan gangster

  Ferret, Tiger Clan gangster

  Justin Blake, Force Leader (South West), Weapons Master, Strength talent. Former student of Gang Wu

  Gracie Williams, Flight Lieutenant, RAF

  Tom (Tommie) Wilkes, RAF Regiment, soldier

  Glossary

  The Vampire Dominion

  Established in the 1850s by Cornelius Crane. The Vampire Dominion has built an organized community of vampires that work together to maintain the primacy of vampires, and the secrecy of their existence.

  The Order of Thoth

  Established in 3023 BC by Hakron the Scribe with the twin purpose of protecting the Key of Ahknaton and eliminating vampires from the world.

  The Red Empire

  Established in the third century BC, by a faction of the Order of Thoth. The Red Empire view themselves as the true inheritors of Hakron’s vampire hunting legacy.

  Shadowstone

  The Shadowstone organization was first established in the second half of the 19th century by Cornelius Crane as a means to co-opt the military and intelligence elements of nation states to the purposes of the Vampire Dominion.

 
Praetorians

  The praetorians predate the existence of the Vampire Dominion. They are an elite vampire force established and ruled by Cornelius Crane.

  The Metaframe

  Also known as The Divine Engine of Thoth, is an interface to the fundamental rules of the universe that when properly invoked allows reality to be changed.

  The Key of Ahknaton

  A device that enables safe access of the Metaframe

  Prologue

  “Imagine if you could change the rules of the game, what rules would you choose?” - Unknown

  * * *

  Southern Egypt, The temple of Thoth, 3023 BC

  Thunder boomed and echoed across a sky howling with madness.

  Lightning bolts sheeted between bubbling masses of black thunderheads, and crimson sunlight slashed across the rock and sand before the temple of Thoth.

  Hakron shivered with more than the sudden cold, and drew his cloak more tightly around his tall, lean frame. He glowered at the roiling clouds all but obscuring the setting sun and thought furiously to himself, This storm is not born of nature.

  He took a step back beneath the cover of the stone pillars and the vaulting roof of the temple of Thoth. An attendant, shaking with fear, moved from the shadows within to stand beside him.

  “Our Master comes,” the man whispered hoarsely.

  Hakron glanced to his side, noting the dull sheen of perspiration on the man’s shaven scalp. He noted silently, Our men are undone by this devilish storm.

  The great horn of the temple of Thoth resounded across the valley. Its sharp note breached the thunder as it welcomed the high priest of Thoth and first prince of the southern realm, Ahknaton, to the seat of his power.

  Hakron watched from above, as his older brother pulled his chariot to a sudden halt before the temple entrance. Attendants rushed forward to take hold of the frightened horses that drew the chariot.

  Ahknaton swept down from the back of the chariot, his jaw clenched and his face pale with fury. He carried the limp form of his beloved wife, Mekra, within the cradle of his powerful arms.

  Mekra’s beautiful hair fell like a raven’s wing. Her left arm hung limply; her hand clenched into a rigid claw. The swollen mark of a scorpion’s sting stood in bold defilement on the back of her wrist. Grief tore at him as Mekra had claimed the hearts of both men, and he braced himself against a pillar to avoid falling to the flagstones.

  Ahknaton strode grimly up the broad stone steps of the temple’s entrance, carrying the body of his young wife into the temple. He drew close to Hakron and their gazes met over Mekra’s body.

  The depths of his brother’s anguish washed over Hakron and he recoiled as if slapped. The agonized fury within his brother was a palpable force, as trenchant and bitter as the storm assaulting the heavens above the temple.

  Ahknaton looked into the temple and swept past him.

  Hakron turned and rushed after him, keeping pace with Ahknaton’s long strides as they went deeper into the temple.

  Ahknaton moved past the main altar toward an archway near the back of the temple. The temple guards and priests quickly stepped aside to allow him to pass. The attendants had already lit oil lamps and pitch-soaked torches for the evening. Ahknaton gently shifted his wife to his left shoulder and took hold of a burning torch as he approached the archway.

  Hakron moved to stand before him.

  Ahknaton stared at him, snorting dismissively. “Hakron, you will not bar my way.”

  Hakron looked at his brother with glistening eyes. “I feel your pain brother. I am not here to stop you but to offer counsel.”

  Ahknaton paused, his head leaning against the still form of Mekra on his broad shoulder. In the pale light of the oil lamps, she looked like she was merely sleeping as fresh tears rolled down Ahknaton’s cheeks.

  Hakron had never seen his brother weep before. He was mad with grief. An unbelievable realization flashed through him. He stepped forward, and grabbed his brother’s shoulders, and declared incredulously, “You intend to use the Divine Engine of Thoth.”

  Ahknaton’s face hardened and he snapped, “Of course.”

  Hakron froze, momentarily dumbfounded with disbelief. Ahknaton shrugged off his grip. Pushing past him, he rushed through the archway and into the antechamber that led to the hidden depths beneath the temple.

  Snatching a lit torch, Hakron hurried into the antechamber after his brother. He ran down a short, steeply sloping hallway that led to the first landing. He then switched back to descend again in the opposite direction. The powerful figure of his brother ran in front of him. His pace undiminished by the burden of carrying Mekra over his shoulder. Hakron strove to catch up with him. He drew upon the techniques that Ahknaton had taught him to accelerate both mind and body but even running faster than any man could expect to run, he was unable to close the distance between them.

  Hakron reached the second landing, and followed his brother down a spiral staircase, and into the Halls of the Gods. The halls were a dangerous and deadly maze of shifting walls and counterweighted traps. They were filled with caustic pits, acid sprays, razor sharp nets and crushing blocks of stone. They had been explicitly designed by Ahknaton, to bar the passage of anyone without the knowledge of how to navigate their murderous paths.

  Ahknaton shouted over his free shoulder, “Only a fool would hope to stop me, but you can witness divinity in action. What happens tonight should be recorded and you have a gift for words my brother - so follow me if you dare.”

  Hakron had helped his brother build the temple and the levels beneath it. He darted forward, navigating his way past the traps.

  Exiting the maze, he descended along another sloping hallway toward the chamber of the third landing. Embedded into the landing’s floor was a secret door that only Ahknaton knew how to unlock. There was a deep rumble of moving stones and shifting counterweights. Upon reaching the chamber, he discovered a circular hole in the floor.

  He rushed to the edge. Beneath him, the retreating sphere of Ahknaton’s torchlight disappeared down another spiral staircase. Hakron followed his brother, taking the stairs two or three at a time until he reached the bottom. He passed through a vaulted archway and entered the Chamber of Worlds.

  Lifting his torch high, Hakron illuminated massive walls of polished stone. He found himself staring into the empty space of an inverted pyramid. Beneath him, the lower levels crowded into the darkness at the limit of his torchlight. Halfway down the levels of the inverted pyramid, Ahknaton raced toward the bottom.

  Chasing after his brother, he ran, leaping from level to level until he reached the bottom. He went through an archway and down another descending, curved hallway.

  Hakron emerged from the hall into Ahknaton’s Tomb Chamber. The intended location for Ahknaton’s final resting place. It was bare, except for a raised plinth on which a sarcophagus could rest. Beyond the plinth, was an opening, the height, and width of a tall man. It was another secret door - left open for him. Through it, the glow of Ahknaton’s flaming torchlight diminished into the distance. He dashed forward, fearing there was no time left to stop his brother summoning the Divine Engine of Thoth.

  Hakron sprinted down the narrow hallway and into the chamber of the Engine.

  Ahknaton had placed his torch into a wall sconce. Mekra lay as if asleep in the center of the room with Ahknaton’s cloak wrapped into a pillow for her head. On the far side of the chamber, Ahknaton stood tall. He withdrew a polished, black, obsidian stone, the size of a pebble, from a pouch at his belt. He held it aloft in triumph.

  Hakron stared at the stone, Ahknaton’s key. It seemed that the starry sky had been captured and locked within it. A wet, glistening surface, writhing like a living thing in Ahknaton’s fingers.

  “Stay back!” Ahknaton shouted.

  Hakron warned fiercely, “You cannot be sure what will happen if you try to change the Engine.”

  “There is no doubt that the power can be used to save Mekra,” Ahknaton declared
with a desperate passion. “It is her only chance.”

  “Her soul is already facing the judgment of the Gods,” Hakron urged. “It will be a violation of divine law for her to come back now.”

  Ahknaton promised, “I will remake the law - even divine law must bow before Thoth’s Divine Engine.”

  “My brother,” Hakron pleaded. “Thoth’s engine is too complex for any mortal to understand. If you change it, you could unmake the world, and all within it!”

  Ahknaton pointed to the body of his beloved. “Do you imagine that I care about the risk - you fool - I have lost everything in this world.”

  Clenching the key, Ahknaton’s face filled with concentration and the world trembled in response.

  Hakron’s heartbeat thumped in his ears. The air stilled within the chamber. The shadows beyond the two torches thickened, deepening into darkness beyond memory. The circles of torchlight sharpened; faint motes of dust marooned in their light.

  The walls faded, becoming blurred and insubstantial. The Divine Engine of Thoth emerged into view. A swirling mass of luminous spheres, each a brilliant point of subtle color moving in a steady flow around an invisible axis. The Engine’s bright light eclipsed the shadows of the flickering torchlight.

  The chamber snapped into razor sharp clarity. The presence of the Engine, rendering every sense to a high pitch of acuity. Time slowed and Hakron’s mind raced. Power flooded his limbs and his thoughts clarified. The orbits of the spheres revealed a unified order. A perfect balance between movement and stasis, between order and chaos, and between good and evil.

  Ahknaton thrust the key at the swirling lights and a dark glow encompassed his fist. With a voice filled with desperate longing and powered by a will beyond measure, he demanded, “She must live again!”