Page 98 - The Chronicles Ser2 (6-10)

“You really are like your Mother; always thinking one step ahead. You were right of course,
but I did have a contingency plan. I’d love to see the faces of the detectives when that
bombshell hits.” Josiah said and he laughed continuing “Have you sorted your
disappearance yet?” he asked

“I’ve made arrangements to have it look like I was killed in an explosion at the docks in
Hedebar; it will also take out Jason’s main rival too. I made sure that enough DNA evidence
and other items show I was present. I also had Jason alter my dental records like Mother, so
that the corpse” can be identified. Better not to leave anything to chance. Oh, I also found a
Geno-surgeon near to where you and mother are “retiring”. She’s discreet as she was
“struck off” for doing something nasty to a celebrity, but like us, she “disappeared” some
time ago and has a private Clinic under a new identity. I’m going to have my DNA re-
sequenced just to be certain I never show up again as me” Marco replied

“I think I’m going to be proud to call you son, but don’t call me Pop, Dad or Father will
suffice” Josiah said in response and they both laughed.

Morgana stood watching the pair getting along. She had longed for a family for so
long it now scared her, but she was determined to make this work. It may not have been the
most auspicious of beginnings and may still go awry, but she was determined to see it
through, however it went. The Abbot and the “monks” had been a surrogate for the loss of
her Father, and she appreciated their efforts. “We will make this work” she thought and left
the two “boys” to heir tales of bravado. For some time now, she had been working on a
plant-based formula she had found in an old Herbal Companion book. Notes were scribbled
in the borders of several pages. The Book had been one that was placed in a reinforced

“Time Capsule” dating back to a time before the Economy Wars. It had
been preserved because the Capsule had been in a spacecraft isolated on
Earth’s Moon. She had come across the book on one of her trips to the
Archive on Terra Prime. Quite why she had “borrowed” the book she
couldn’t say, and since nobody noticed it was missing, she had never
bothered to return it. The formula had been written down in an old
language and had taken some time to translate. The concoction used Herbs and plants that
were extinct, but current species on various worlds appeared to have the same or similar
properties. By trial and error, she had eventually managed to create the recipe to a close
approximation. It was to be consumed as an infusion in Alcohol; she had chosen a colourless
drink from the Achenazi sector, a filtered form of Mescal for this purpose. Not knowing just
what the results would be, she had refrained from testing the stuff herself. The Bio Labs
were available to her so she decided to see what the results would be on a volunteer. When
she eventually plucked up the courage to ask the Abbot he said that one of the elder
patrons was looking for an easier way to end his suffering, his disease being degenerative
and persistent. He would ask the man if he was willing to try the “witches brew”.

“The old Apothecaries of the time would try all sorts of mixtures on themselves. More often
than not the results would either kill or affect some sort of change, very rarely a cure was
found by this method. I’ve looked over the notes and, as near as I can tell, the stuff should
promote a dumbing down of the pain, one or two of these plants are mildly toxic, but
nothing that Nano meds can correct. So you have my blessing. At the very least it could
prove an interesting addition to our fortified wine range” were the Abbot’s comments. She