<h4>Chapter 201: The Final Project</h4>


    More than four years ago, when Eleanor first proposed a central satellite-based surveince system for counter-terrorism to the NATO Special Committee on Terrorism, they considered it an overly ambitious project. Furthermore, Eleanor imed the project would bepleted within five years... an assertion most dismissed as unrealistic.


    Fortunately, Fiona Elizabeth Raynor had allies within NATO who pulled the necessary strings, and the proposal was eventually forwarded to the Military Committee for appraisal. As the senior military authority of NATO,posed of member nations’ Chiefs of Defence, they found the proposal intriguing. However, their primary concerny in the matter of sovereignty... a core NATO principle. Questions were raised about how data control and national privacy would be preserved in such a shared surveince programme.


    The proposal was passed to the Defence Policy and nning Committee, which acknowledged the military potential of a surveince satellite system for counter-terrorism operations. Several conditions were added: Data Sovereignty uses, ssified ess Levels, National Control Over Hosted Infrastructure, Decentralised Data Processing, and Opt-Out Rights. After these additions, the revised proposal was handed over to the NATO Communications and Information Agency to assess the system’s security, integration capability, and infrastructure requirements.


    After multiple adjustments to the contract, it was agreed that Heimdall Technologies Inc. would bear the full cost of implementation. NATO would providend in its member and allied countries for ground stations, as per Heimdall’s requirements. Although these ground stations would be operated by Heimdall, supreme authority would remain with NATO and the respective member nations. NATO’s financial obligation was limited to covering the operational cost of the God Eye Project. Profits generated from any secondary use of the infrastructure would belong exclusively to Heimdall, subject to NATO approval.


    Unofficially, NATO also indicated it would assist Heimdall in securing loans from international banks under the guise of the Worldwide WiFi Project, the public-facing front of the God Eye system. Additionally, NATO would facilitate smoother regtory clearance across its member states.


    Ultimately, the proposal was unanimously approved by the North Antic Council.


    Prior to the project’sunch, Heimdall and NATO had signed aprehensive contract containing extensive uses to safeguard the interests of all parties involved.


    Now, with the sessful deployment of the first beta version, a specialised team from Allied Command Transformation was stationed permanently at the Virginia NATO Data Centre.


    Following a sessful report from Vice Admiral Martin J. Connell, Deputy Chief of Staff for Capability Development, NATO Headquarters officially authorised construction of the remaining ground stations as outlined in the contract.


    Heimdall was more than ready. ns, permits, and resources had been in preparation for years.


    In the United States, three additional ground stations would be constructed... ska, California, and Texas, alongside the already-operational Virginia site. One would also be established in Nova Scotia, Canada.


    Across Europe, five ground stations were nned: in Norway, the United Kingdom, Germany, Pnd, and Turkey. In the Mediterranean, two more were nned: Italy and Greece. In the Arctic, a station would be ced in Greend.


    In the Pacific Inds, three would be built: Guam, Hawaii, and Diego Garcia.


    A station would also be constructed under direct NATOmand at McMurdo Station, Antarctica.


    Separately, under a tri-party agreement between NATO, Heimdall, and the respective host nations, twelve additional ground stations would be built in: Israel, United Arab Emirates, Japan, Australia, New Zend, Thand, Philippines, Chile, Moro, Kenya, and South Africa.


    Once authorisation was received, Heimdall’s teams moved at once. All locations, personnel, and logistics had been pre-arranged. The only thing remaining was execution.


    With Nora’s support, Eleanor had already tuned the God Eye to near-perfection. She hoped that, by the time she returned from the Trial, the entire system would be fully operational.


    The only downside of partnering with NATO was that it ced certain regions off-limits... countries such as Russia, Brus, China, North Korea, Venezu, and Nicaragua. For these, Eleanor had other ns: to build independent surveince systems under a different structure and brand.


    For NATO and its member states, God Eye was a tool to detect terrorists before they strike, and track them down after an attack. Governments also saw potential in using the integrated system to capture domestic criminals.


    Public surveince systems were willingly linked to God Eye, as participating countries maintained full control over data and ground stations.


    ording to the contract, any surveince or intelligence system, as well as domestic data, mustply with nationalws. Countries retain the right to restrict ess to data collected within their borders. Only authorized personnel with both national and NATO clearances may ess sensitive data streams. Furthermore, countries can determine what information, if any, is shared back with NATO Command.


    Ground stations located within a country’s territory remain under that country’s physical and legal control. While NATO or coalition operators may utilize these facilities, they must operate in fullpliance with the host nation’s regtions. Surveince data may be processed locally, with only filtered metadata or specific threat intelligence forwarded to NATO Command.


    Additionally, the Opt-Out use explicitly states that even if the system is NATO-wide, any member country may opt out of specific operations, data-sharing protocols, or deployments involving its national territory.


    In ordance with the contract, Heimdall was obligated to staff each ground station with at least 50% personnel from the host country. These conditions gave participating nations confidence, believing they remained in full control of their data and facilities.


    No one suspected that Nora, the sentient AI, could bypass all protocols and enter any system undetected.


    Even more significantly, no one realised that while they were busy setting the rules, Eleanor had already built the key.


    Eleanor was busy in her office, adjusting the ground station ns for the European countries, when her phone vibrated. Fiona was calling.


    "Nora, continue adjusting the ns for the other countries. I need to take this call," she said, picking up the phone and holding it to her ear.


    "Grandma, good afternoon," she greeted warmly.


    "Eleanor, the order hase from the King," Fiona said. "All selected candidates have been asked to report at Kvernheim within ten days. I’m hoping you’ll bring the first batch of Raynor and nc n members with you."


    Eleanor sighed. The time hade. Although reluctant, she had no choice but to go through with it. "Okay, Grandma. I understand," she replied.


    "What about Ethan? Have you two decided what you’re going to do?"


    "Yes, Grandma. We’ve talked. I’ll go with the first batch along with the rest of the Raynor n. He’ll join the next batch, after I return," Eleanor said.


    "That’s good. Don’t worry about Freya. She’ll be fine with us. While you’re away, I’ll try to stay in Manchester unless something urgentes up," Fiona assured her.


    "Thanks, Grandma. I’lle visit youter," Eleanor said and ended the call.


    She slowly put the phone back on her desk, then stared at it for a long moment.


    Truth be told, she was deeply reluctant to participate in the Trial of Yggdrasil. But with the King’s order issued, and every other future n head preparing to join, she couldn’t back out. If she did, the other ns would surely look down on the Raynors.


    Her fate was sealed the moment she awakened the Elizabeth bloodline. Whether she wanted it or not, she had to be an Ascendant to lead the n. Unless another Raynor was born with a purer form of that bloodline, there was no escape.


    Though she had always tried to spend as much time with Freya as possible, she knew in her heart it had never been enough. Her businesses, her ambitions, her selfish goals had taken too much of her time. To make up for it, she built autonomouspanies and appointed strong, independent people to lead them... so that, once the God Eye Project was fully operational, she could finally take a step back and live a quiet life at home with her daughter. She thought the God Eye would be her final project... the one that would oversee all others and ultimately set her free.


    But fate had other ns.


    She hadn’t evenpleted her primary goal, and yet now, she was being pulled into an entirely different world.


    Her thoughts drifted back to when she had been a na?ve girl in her human life. Gullible, often bullied, used by the Whitmores... but life was simpler then. No matter how bad the day was, she could always return home with a smile.


    Then came the turning point... her transformation into a werewolf, the birth of her beloved daughter Freya, and her gradual descent into the intricate world of the supernatural. A web that grew more tangled with every step.


    She thought of all the people who had supported her along the way, how each decision she made pulled her deeper into the quicksand. No matter how she struggled to climb out in search of a peaceful, simple life, it only dragged her further into the jungle of thisplex existence.


    Her reverie was broken by Nora’s voice.


    "Master, including Trafford Park station, all thirty ground stations have now been remodelled. Please check and confirm so I can forward them to the relevant departments."