Eniola retraced her steps back to the SCOPE arena. She and Iris walked down the Sydney streets, but only on the back roads just in case someone wanted to jump them. Back when they did came to the safe house, the adrenaline took over her, and she simply ran to Iris's voice. But the more she looked, she realized she didn't know where the arena was. Woah.

"So I have directions in my brain and the SCOPE arena isn't far," Iris said.

"We haven't been there since the explosion," Eniola replied faintly, feeling the tingle of fear rush down her body. All she could see was Hyejin over top of her, about to shoot her in the head. Then she could see Hyejin with charred skin and a permanent look of shock. She forced the images from her mind.

"Great," Eniola replied shakily.

"I think that the only reason it seemed far was that we had to carry Keone," Iris said. Eniola only nodded.

"Are you going to talk to me?" Iris asked with a sigh.

Everyone had been awkward around her ever since she revealed she created ALTSCOPE and maybe Paradox. Eniola didn't talk to her.

"I know you guys are all mad, but you could at least tell me, so I don't have to guess," Iris said.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Eniola asked. "We would've kept your secret."

"You know how Keone is," Iris spat. "He knows how to blackmail you to get what he wants. I was afraid because he had power. He is a famous SCOPE player and his dad's like some millionaire. I didn't want to go to jail or get in trouble."

Eniola stayed silent. She agreed. Keone knew how to be manipulative. He drew you in close and acted like someone who cared about you. He had a way of making you feel you were the only person who mattered, and then he used that against you.

"I won't lie to you guys when I say I want to protect my family," Iris said. "I have 8 younger siblings that I help take care of and I help my family through SCOPE. I didn't want Keone to take that away."

"We could've helped you," Eniola said. "We could've stopped Paradox."

"Sorry for reacting at the moment," Iris grumbled. "I didn't know what to do. I'm sorry for not telling you guys. I've felt guilty ever since I've known, and I didn't want to tell because you guys wouldn't listen."

"Huh?" Eniola asked. "What do you mean?"

"I like being able to listen to all of your guy's problems and being the positive friend, but I need you guys to know that I struggle too," Iris revealed.

Eniola stopped and raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Yeah," Iris said. "I just wanted to know that you would take me seriously."

"Oh, Iris," Eniola said. "We'll always take you seriously, you know that? You're very special to us, and I'm sorry if you've felt that way."

"Yeah," Iris replied.

Iris and Eniola walked through the streets. Eniola said nothing after that, and neither did Iris. Maybe they didn't need to. They emerged onto faint city buildings that didn't look destroyed, but honestly, anything could happen. Eniola was suddenly hyper-aware of her body and where it was. Rogue androids and free criminals?

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"You know, we're technically saving the world," Iris said, turning back to her.

"Way to not put pressure on me or anything," Eniola mumbled, with her heart thumping against her chest. "We're just two girls, walking down the streets on their way to saving the world."

"Yeah," Iris said. "You know what I miss?"

"SCOPE," they both said at the same time. They looked at each and smiled.

"Sometimes, to cope with the crazy shit, I pretend like everything's a SCOPE game," Iris revealed. "Sometimes it helps and I don't go crazy."

"Wow," Eniola said. Eniola looked at the city and wondered what it was like. She pretended she was in the City of Ruins, the last SCOPE game they played before it got cancelled. She pretended vines overran the city and kept her guard up just in case a flurry of zombies came at her. It was exciting.

SCOPE had always been her escape, and being without it had kind of left her empty. It had kind of been that way for Paradox. Eniola had felt a little weird without the game in her life. She didn't realize it had played such a huge part in her life. Maybe it was the only part of her life.

"Eni," Iris said, breaking Eniola out of her fantasy.

Eniola's gaze travelled up to the SCOPE arena which had been surrounded by holographic police tape that flickered in and out of vision. The arena looked the same as it had before. It was curved into the ground and damaged on one side. Eniola sucked in a breath.

"Let's look around," Iris said. "If we can get close enough, we'll find the signal. Let's go."

Eniola took out her fake cell phone. Zaira had programmed something to find the signal. Zaira was a smart and fast hacker. She might've even been on par with the PSEUDO.

Iris ran over to the arena first, but Eniola took her sweet time. She subconsciously buried the sounds of explosions into her mind before she huffed and trudged.

"Come on," Iris yelled before she ran back to Eniola and pulled her into a run. "We need to find it."

Eniola stretched the hand with the phone and peaked it into the sky. Nothing happened. Of course, it didn't.

"Walk around!" Iris yelled, slightly moving away from her and holding up the phone. "I can try to hack it with my mind, but I want you to do things to do." Eniola walked around, stretching as far and high as she could, but Eniola was still short and could only stretch so far.

"Hey!" Eniola jumped when the vice wasn't airy like Iris's. Instead, a masculine voice boomed at her. Eniola swiftly turned back to see a pack of human soldiers in black riot gear stand on guard for her.

"Iris?" Eniola said, and she sucked in a breath and stepped back until she bumped into Iris.

"What?" Iris hissed before the tension abruptly cut her off in the air.

"Hello," one burly one said, moving up the front. What did they want with them?

"What do we do?" Iris whispered into her ear. Eniola sighed.

"We have found reason to believe that one of you is a cyborg," the soldier yelled.

Eniola felt Iris freeze coldly against her. Eniola dared to speak up. "Why?"

"We've known that combined with the computer interface and human brains, cyborgs still have access to communications and the internet," he announced. "Which is why we're rounding up cyborgs as temporary communications until they come back again."

"Let's go," Eniola whispered, as she moved back. The soldiers moved forward and drew out their guns in one seamless motion. Panic swelled in Eniola's chest.

"Run!" Iris yelled before Eniola turned around and sprinted, adrenaline moving inside of her veins. A thick clomp of boots sprang up from behind her. Eniola hastily turned back as they looked into the streets. They were gaining on them.

Iris dove into a turn and Eniola followed her, as her legs burned from underneath her. The soldiers all followed in one swift motion. Eniola spotted a divot in between the alleyway they'd walked through.

"Right here," Eniola instructed, and they turned the corner. Eniola met a brick wall and halted to a stop. The only thing was a dumpster wedged in on their side.

"What the hell?" Eniola hissed.

"Good news," Iris sighed. Eniola turned to her, holding up the phone. "I've got a signal. Zaira can use this now." Eniola smiled in relief.

"Halt!" a big voice screamed. Eniola froze in her spot. The soldiers were there and blocked the entrance. Eniola's breath hitched in her throat as her eyes scanned the area. They were boxed in now. There was no place to hide.

One of them stepped forward and pushed past Eniola, who yelped as she fell onto the way. Her gaze trained on the soldier, who grabbed Iris with a thick hand. Iris screamed out. More soldiers filled the alleyway and surrounded Iris like she was a lethal weapon that could blow anytime.

"Eniola!" Iris yelled. "Eniola, help!"

"Get away!" Eniola screamed, but they ignored her. She wouldn't be useless. She would fight, and she wouldn't let Iris be taken like this. Eniola clenched her fists. But what could she do? Was she going to fist-fight these men 3 times her size?

Then Eniola's gaze moved to the corner of her head.

Eniola squeezed her eyes shut and clenched her fist and focused on the side of her head. Heat danced in her hands and Eniola looked below to see green sparks that lit up. She focused again. Something had to happen.

Then a jolt hit Eniola's body and heat ran down her arms. Eniola opened her eyes again. The light was in her veins and her arms and green in her hands. She was electrified.

Eniola threw her hands towards the ground and ran back as a green explosion hit the ground and sparked into a wide electric light. She crouched down and covered her head as the huge clomp of footsteps ran the other way. The glow slowly disappeared from her head.

"Iris!" Eniola coughed.

"Here," Iris responded. Eniola sighed in relief. Eniola got up and walked through the residue of smoke before a figure moved into a silhouette. Iris's cyborg hand grabbed her own and pulled her out into the alleyway. Iris coughed again before she faced Eniola.

"From this moment on, you can't say anything about me not keeping secrets," Iris hissed. "What the hell was that?"

"An explosion," Eniola said.

"I saw you," Iris emphasized. "You did something. Y-you caused an explosion. What does that even mean?"

"Listen, Iris, I'll explain to you later," Eniola explained. "But we should look at trying to find Zaira."

Iris frowned. Then her face went wide. Eniola raised an eyebrow and turned back. Her breath hitched in her throat.

A large expanse of black materialized in front of them. It was hollow and dark like you would go in and become nothing. Eniola stepped back.

Then a bright, searing light flashed and exploded in their view. Eniola blocked it with her hand, but it was too late.

It had consumed her.