by Azalea Ellis
-Adam-
--HACK INTO THE SECURITY CAMERAS AND THE RELEASE RECORDS OF THE NEW LIFE HOME FOR TROUBLED GIRLS. THEY SHOULD STATE JACKY HAS BEEN RELEASED FROM CUSTODY OF THE STATE, AS OF YESTERDAY, AND ANY INCRIMINATING EVIDENCE ON THE SECURITY CAMERAS FROM 12:00AM TO 2:00AM NEVER HAPPENED. CAN YOU DO THAT?--
-Eve-
--GIVE ME 30 MINS.—
-Adam-
I let out a sigh of relief. “In half an hour, your records will reflect that you are no longer a ward of the state,” I said to Jacky. “And the evidence you had anything to do with what happened to the warden will be either erased or burned away.” The claw marks I’d made in the wall would be the only evidence remaining. Good luck interpreting that. I smirked silently.
“How?” she asked simply.
“You’re not the only useful one on the team, Jacky,” I teased.
She stuck out her tongue at me, but whispered, “Thank you.” There was a kind of force behind those words, as she bound herself to me with chains of gratitude.
I set Jacky up in one of the many spare bedrooms in Blaine’s house. He was enraged when I gave him a vague explanation of why Jacky would no longer be staying in the detention center, and was more than willing to house her.
Adam successfully completed his assignment, less than thirty minutes after my request, and sent me a message saying only,
--THE BASTARD’S BETTER OFF IN HELL. BUT NO ONE ELSE WILL EVER KNOW EXACTLY HOW HE GOT THERE.--
-Adam-
I stayed with Jacky till the morning, then left to replace my mom’s pod before the sun had fully risen.
Chapter 22
Nobody really cares about your existence, but they will pretend.
— Raja Molanthe
That afternoon, Blaine presented me with his latest invention, through which we would find NIX.
I called the team together to explain the plan, and the preparation necessary to carry it out. "Blaine's got something ready for NIX. He's going to set up a drop to exchange his research for proof of life on his niece and nephew, and when it's done, we're going to follow the people who come."
Adam grinned, tossed a coin high above his head, and caught it behind his back without looking. "I knew it. That's the next logical step, after the doc told us about the drops. But it's quicker than I thought we'd be able to prepare."
I nodded and smirked. "Well, we'll be giving them an inferior product, of course. Why don't you tell them, Blaine? It's your accomplishment, after all."
Blaine stepped forward, "I have two things I’ve been working on at Eve's request.” He held up a small silver disk. “This is the most efficient battery this world has ever seen. Well, except for the one you brought me,” he nodded to Adam and me. “I created it based on the model from the Game. It is inferior, because I had to use the most similar known elements I could find. The original uses some previously undiscovered elements. Actually, it is quite amazing…” he visibly restrained himself from going off on an intellectual tangent. “That is beside the point. We will give this to NIX. The perfected product will be for us.”
“What’s the second thing?” Adam asked, doodling on the back of his hand.
I grinned wide at China. "You're going to like this."
Blaine held up a sealed vial of amber liquid in his other hand, “It’s an antidote to meningolycanosis. That’s what I dubbed the parasitic samples from NIX. The ones that infected your sister,” he looked to China. I used samples of Eve's blood to do a series of tests, and found that the Seed organisms would fight off other infectious diseases with varying degrees of efficiency. But meningolycanosis, they completely ignored. The Seeds can't see them, and thus don't recognize them as a threat. So, I thought, why not? Long story short, it's because the meningolycanosis camouflages itself."
China leaned forward and gripped my forearm, without taking her eyes off Blaine. "But you figured out how to make it visible, right?"
He cleared his throat. "Well, yes. Unfortunately, stripping the coating off them creates a sort of acidic reaction. The Seeds can kill them, but they have a harder time dealing with and disposing of the acid. I'm working on a second step to the serum, that will neutralize the acid after stripping off the coating, but I haven't finished it yet. It's proving more difficult than I thought. However, when I have the completed serum, we'll keep it for ourselves."
I placed my hand over China's. "And we can use it on your sister."
Her eyes filled with tears as she looked at me, and Jacky smiled at us with approval. Even Sam, who hated my guts at the moment, gave me a grudging nod.
I felt the burden of their trust and expectations weigh heavy on my shoulders.
Both girls looked at me as if I was some great person, a trustworthy leader, a loyal friend.
I was not a hero. I was the leader of this team by necessity. My own necessity. My need to stay alive. Sure, I tried to take care of them, but it had nothing to do with being a good person. An intact, well-oiled, loyal team meant better chances for my own survival. Couldn't they see that?
But of course they couldn't. And so I took the burden of their ever-deepening trust, and hoped that I wouldn't have to betray it someday.
"I want to give us a couple days to prepare for this, but it's happening soon, and we need to be ready. Blaine will be working on the serum two-point-oh, and working with Adam and me on our preparations. Sam, I'd like you to help Blaine with the second step of the serum, since your abilities might give him a clue how to augment it."
He nodded immediately, "Sounds good."
At least Sam didn't have a problem taking orders from me, despite his resentment. "Adam, you're in charge of a tracking device. It's top priority. Also, let's see if we can't trace their response to Blaine's request for a drop."
"I'm on it," he said.
"China, if he's got the technical side down, you'll have the physical. With your Perception and Grace, you're the most likely to be able to follow someone organically without being detected. In case something goes wrong."
She bounced on her toes. "I can't believe this is happening! I'm so excited. We're going to save Chanelle, and we'll find a way to get out of this Game and the Trials, and everything's going to go back to normal. I can't believe it. I can't wait!"
I laughed, "Well, we need to find NIX, first. But at least it's a start. Jacky, you're our fighter, and you'll keep teaching us as you have been. Sound good?"
"Hell, yeah." She cracked her knuckles and her neck, all evidence of last night's ordeal gone, though I knew at least part of it was an act.
"Okay, then. Time to brainstorm," I said.
* * *
Two days later, I crouched in the corner of a field, behind the rusted shell of an old pod, watching as a large black transport vehicle pulled up to Blaine's sportier pod. Two men jumped out, scanned the field of tall grass and the tree line on the far side, and turned back to him. I could only be grateful they seemingly didn’t have access to our GPS data, or we’d be given away. Blaine was still working on shorting it out safely, along with all the other projects he’d been spreading his energy among.
"Whatcha got for us this time, doc?" The larger man said. He wore a dark blue shirt, and the other man a black one. Except for that, they wore exactly the same outfit.
I could have heard them faintly with my increased hearing, but the henchman's tinny voice came instead out of an ear bud tucked into my ear. It was connected to a small mic on the inner corner of Blaine’s glasses, and the whole team had ear buds, just in case.
Blaine held up the energy disk cushioned within a Styrofoam bed, and a folder of papers explaining his research. The file was clipped on top with a simple metal clamp. Inside the clamp was a tiny tracking device, which Adam was monitoring with his computer.
"Just this," Blaine said. He sounded nervous, but I thought that was acceptable, given the circumstances. He was probably nervous every time he did this, even when he didn't have a group of Players hiding all around the field where he h
ad set up a meeting with a secret organization.
They brought out a lock box and the Blue henchman opened the door, while the Black took the energy disk and file from Blaine and placed it inside.
There was a faint beep when he did so, and Blue and Black shared a look, and then turned on Blaine. "It says something's sending a signal."
"Shit," I hissed, and sent a message to Adam.
--TURN IT OFF!--
-Eve-
Blaine was stammering, trying to convince them that was impossible.
They took the vial and file out, and the box beeped again.
He grew more flustered.
--I SAID TURN IT OFF!--
-Eve-
--I'M TRYING!--
-Adam-
Blaine held up a hand, as the two henchmen's expressions changed to promise violence. "Wait! I know what it is. I know what it is."
Blue henchman took a threatening step forward. "Well, what is it?"
Blaine pulled a pen out of his pocket and held it up. "This! It’s a magnet pen. It's not sending a signal; it's just a magnetic field. The clip on the file's metal, and it's catching the magnetic field, sending out a disturbance to the box's sensors. Look, I'll show you." He walked to the back of his pod with the pen, and stuck it to the metal side. It hung there while he walked back to the men, buying us time.
"Try it again," he said.
Black henchman nodded at Blue, and Blue placed the file inside again. No beep.
I melted with physical relief, and heard Blaine let out a tiny puff of his own through the bud in my ear.
Blue henchman pulled off the clip and turned it around in curiosity. "All the same, we'll leave this," he said, tossing it into the dirt beside Blaine's pod.
--NUCKING FUTTS--
-Jacky-
--WE'RE SCREWED.--
-Sam-
--I HOPE CHINA'S READY TO DO SOME TRACKING.--
-Adam-
The team sent me a flurry of messages. Adam had been unable to track the electronic source of NIX’s response to Blaine without being detected, so we were forced to rely on physical means.
The disappointment was just starting to seep through me when I saw a movement in the tall grass beside the pods. Suddenly, a group of birds erupted on the other side of the field in a cacophony of squawks and flapping of wings.
The attention of both henchmen was drawn in that direction, and they put their hands under their jackets, reaching for their guns.
While they were distracted, China crawled from the grass, scrambled around Blaine's pod low to the ground, and grabbed the clip.
--WHAT THE HELL IS SHE DOING?--
-Adam-
--CHINA'S GOING FOR IT!--
-Jacky-
I itched to send her a message telling her to get the hell away, but I didn't want to distract her and get her, and thereby all of us, caught.
She slipped around behind all three men without them noticing and put the clip in the side pocket of a messenger bag sitting inside the open door of the transport pod.
Black turned away from the spot where the birds had erupted and scanned the rest of the field, while Blue stepped away to investigate what had scared them.
China had nowhere to escape. Just as the man turned toward her, she slipped underneath the black pod in one fluid motion.
She must have made some noise, because the man looked to the spot where she'd been standing, and then crouched to look under both pods.
But she'd tucked her small body into the underside of the pod, holding herself aloft in some indentation in the mechanics of the underbelly.
The man saw nothing, and stood with a shrug. His partner returned, shaking his head. "Probably a snake or something."
But I knew it had been China’s command that had caused the birds to act as a distraction.
They gave Blaine a smartglass tablet, and I vaguely saw the faces of two dark-haired children pop up. Proof of life for his niece and nephew. He had a quick conversation with them that I tuned out in my worry over China's situation.
Then the men took away the pad, got into their pod, and drove away with China still hanging underneath.
Just before they turned a sharp corner on the small path, she dropped off and rolled into the grass.
Blaine got into his small pod and drove away, oblivious to the whole adventure of China’s involvement, muttering, "Sorry guys. Looks like it failed. It's up to you now."
--WAIT A FEW MINUTES, GUYS.--
-Eve-
I sent the message to the whole team. After I was fairly certain we weren’t being secretly observed, and the men had put distance between themselves and us, I gave the okay to move.
China stood up and ran back to us without bothering to brush off the dirt and grass all over her. She was trembling visibly, but had the biggest grin on her face. "I did it. I did it."
Adam scowled. "What you did is almost get yourself caught. And all of us along with you."
Her grin slipped a bit, but she didn't back down. "I don't think we could have tracked them all the way there without the beacon. Following them in a car would have been dangerous, too. They're probably trained to look for a tail. Besides, I couldn't just let this chance go. Who knows when we'd get another? And every day we waste, Chanelle's still in there. Who knows how much time she has?"
Adam pressed his lips together, but pushed the hair back from his face with a sigh and ruffled her hair. "Well, you didn't get caught. You're okay, and that's the most important thing. But don't do something so stupid again, okay?"
She grinned and nodded, but there was an obvious lack of remorse on her face.
I couldn't help but laugh, and it felt good. It had been a long time since I last laughed for real, and the relief of our small victory made me feel lighter inside than I had since before I was a Player.
* * *
That night, we sat around the tables in Blaine’s lab.
“Don’t be such a lily, Sam.” Jacky shook her head. “What did you think we were tracking NIX for, if not to actually find them?” Jacky was more on edge than usual, because of what had happened with the warden, I assumed. The fire and his death had been on the news. All the residents of the juvenile center had escaped unscathed, except for the warden, and it was reported as a strange drunken accident. Whether the enforcers were investigating despite that, I didn’t know. Time would settle both Jacky’s mood and any suspicions, I hoped. If my claw marks in the side of the building had been noticed, I laughed a little at the enforcers’ inevitable confusion.
“My sister is in there,” China said simply, steel in her voice.
“Adam rubbed his fingers together, sparks jumping over his knuckles. “I want to go. But Sam’s not wrong. It’s dangerous to jump into this. You guys do remember that we all have a GPS chip embedded in our necks, right? They could have alarms set to go off if Players get too close.”
“They might not,” I speculated aloud. “They keep some Players who failed Trials there to research on. And if anyone but Bunny were actually monitoring us, they’d notice that we’re in the house of one of their contractors-slash-blackmail-victims.”
“Unless they know and don’t care. Or they’re keeping an eye on us secretly.” Adam shot one of his sparks into China’s side, making her jump, then grinned mischievously when she smacked the top of his head.
I rolled my eyes at them. “We need more information. That always seems to be the problem…” I rubbed the back of my neck, and sat up straight. “But we do have a resource on the inside, which we’ve forgotten about.”
“You want to ask B—him?” Adam asked.
“Not overtly, of course. But if we could tease some information out of him, think how useful that would be.”
Sam’s eyes widened. “What if he realizes what we’re doing?”
I leaned forward, my mind racing. “That’s why we’ll have to be careful. We’ll slip the information-gathering into conversation secretly, and each of us will try for different piec
es of the puzzle so he doesn’t even realize everything he’s told us.”
* * *
China was the one to end up getting most of the information we gathered out of Bunny. She learned more about NIX’s physical and organizational structure, as well as some hints about security, all the while bonding with Bunny and subtly planting seeds of empathy toward our little team. She was amazing. When I told her so, she just shook her head sadly. “I just want us all to be safe.”
From what we gathered of Bunny’s knowledge, NIX wouldn’t know if we snuck up on them, unless someone checked in on us specifically and noticed our location. This was least likely to happen late at night, because while Bunny had constant access to all the Players he moderated, he did need to sleep. And he did it on a fairly regular schedule.
So, late at night a few days later, after driving to a spot Adam had deemed suitably removed from NIX, our actual target, the team got out of the pod and spent hours in the government-property forest, circling in around the tracking beacon. We moved cautiously, and scanned for any electronic security devices hidden among the trees. When we found them, we marked a way around in their blind spots, and continued on.
Finally, we got close enough to see what we'd been working for so long to find. It seemed to be a huge compound, cut from the inside of the mountain cliff. The front side had windows and air vents cut into the stone face, little bright points of light or deeper dark in the night.
The back side was a bowl depression into the mountain, with a huge metal ball on a concrete tower shooting out of the middle, surrounded by mostly open courtyard and some smaller individual buildings. The walls were made of glass in places on the inside, and we could see people moving along the curved hallways. We had no way of knowing how far the underground construction went, but I had no doubt it was extensive. The inside had stairs running up the wall for convenience, while the other side plunged to rock, river, and trees far below. Because of the way the compound had been built, it almost seemed as if the ball tower was surrounded by huge stone walls made of mountain, like a king's castle or city of olden days.
