Novels2Search

Chapter 39

Zaira, Theo, and Keone had spent the better part of the afternoon walking around Sydney, avoiding crooked people, to find an entry point for the flaw to Enigma. The imminent sense of danger had soon faded and Zaira was just bored.

Zaira grimaced as the wheels turned and squealed against the scratchy, ashen roads. They hauled the generator out from Keone's tank since he didn't need it again and put it on a little wheely thing. She had reduced Theo and Keone to carrying it.

She gazed around the city and guilt-wrapped her in an ugly slime. Who knew she'd have to save the world from her creation instead of the creation saving the world? Kain, of course, did this, but Zaira couldn't help but feel strange.

"Keone," Zaira called, looking down at him. "Is there any other thing you know about Enigma so it can make it easier?"

"You sound so antsy," Keone said in an aloof tone. "I've told you all I need to know."

"Do you even understand the velocity of this situation?" Theo yelled, turning to him. "We're on the verge of the end of the world and all you do is pretend to act all mysterious."

Keone rolled his eyes, and Theo continued. "Do you even realize what this is? You've indirectly caused what can be the end of the world and you act like this? You never take responsibility."

"Neither do you," Keone snapped back. "Had it not been your selfishness, maybe Rogue might've still been a team."

"Enough!" Zaira's voice cut into the air loudly. She turned back to them. She could feel their arguing. "All you've done was argue ever since we've been here! Can you two, just maybe, maybe, act normal so that we can get this over with? When we're done, you can yell at each other from Keone's jail cell. Okay?"

Theo swallowed back bitterly. "Fine."

"Fine," Keone replied.

"See, not so hard," Zaira grumbled, anger still in her voice. "Leave the generator here. Maybe someone can pick it up."

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"Shouldn't we drop it at a safe house?" Theo asked.

"We don't have time to walk over there," Zaira said. "We have to keep walking to find a signal. Come on, everyone."

Then Zaira's phone pinged and didn't stop. Then it did. She refocused on it immediately. The phone said that was no match. But it just pinged? Zaira looked backwards before she slowly moved back. The phone pinged again.

"Come over here, guys," Zaira told them. The boys closed in on her. The phone showed the words in bold text.

MATCH

"It's here," Zaira said, as her eyes lit up. "This is where I'm going to hack in the flaw."

"Do it quick," Theo said. "And we'll send everyone the exact location."

"So, what do we do now?" Keone asked. Zaira sat down, eyes still glued to the screen. Theo took out his phone and sent the location. Hopefully, they'd get it by now. Zaira peered up to see Keone just so that she could see him. She still felt homicidal to him, but she could get over it.

Destroying Enigma with the flaw was the easiest and quickest way. But technically, if that didn't work, there was another way. Zaira was linked to the first computer like Keone was linked to the second and Kain to Enigma. But what she was thinking of would be a bigger risk.

Then Keone flinched like a bug had entered his hair, and Zaira flinched, even though she felt nothing. He looked at his hands.

"What?" Theo asked, looking over at him.

"Just felt a breeze," Keone dismissed. Liar. But Zaira said nothing. He'd be in a fresh jail cell soon. That she accepted.

"Look here," Theo said, ignoring him, looking at an abandoned shop. The windows were clear and showed a variety of tech.

"So," Keone began. "How's it going?"

"Could be better," Theo replied. "I wish this moment didn't determine the fate of the world. Could happen to anyone. How about you?"

"Good," Keone replied. "I hope prisons are open so I can go there."

"Do you regret what you did?" Theo asked.

"I don't know," Keone said. "I wish it had gone better. I didn't want this to happen. I just tried to make the world better."

"It's no fun getting reminded that I had to go on the run because some psychopath try to murder me," Zaira muttered.

"I agree," Theo agreed.

Suddenly Keone sucked in a deep breath before turning to her. "I'm sorry."

Zaira froze for a moment. "What?"

"I'm sorry," Keone repeated to make sure that Zaira wasn't having a hard time processing it. "I'm sorry for murdering and making you go on the run. Every night I used to think about it and wake up in a cold sweat."

"You're too late for that," Zaira said. "But I appreciate your effort."

"Thanks," Keone sighed.

"But this doesn't cancel out everything you did," Zaira said. "And it doesn't make us friends. This just means my homicidal tendencies toward you have decreased significantly."

"I'll take what I can get," Keone sighed.

The rest of us sat in awkward silence. It comforted Zaira to know that he pretended to care. But she was still mad.

"So Zaira," Theo asked again. "I trust that you'll figure out to play SCOPE?"

"Yeah," she replied, as she toggled with the screens. She could put the flaw inside now. But Iris and Eniola hadn't given her the signal. So she couldn't introduce it. She sighed.

"Yeah, but there is no SCOPE," Zaira explained. "Iris-

Suddenly, a bright light flashed and blinded their eyes. Zaira screamed as it threw her onto the floor as a darkness swirled around her. They looked like a pool of nothingness. Her body screamed at her.

Then it expanded on a dark horizon until there was nothingness.