I flipped the phone open, but not before taking one last look around the room.

I wanted to be sure that everyone was on the same page. But more specifically, I wanted to make sure Birgit and Ahmed were okay with all of this. Because I didn’t know what was waiting for us.

But they nodded.

Even when I had first met Jensen, he was seemingly past all his villainous tendencies. Calm and collected–a true friend and ally in all regards. I looked at the screen of the phone. A single contact was saved on the phone.

[Retracted.]

And with the push of a button, the call went out. It was ringing. Echoing across the room in a loudspeaker. I looked around again. Everyone was looking down at the phone. With a click, the ringing stopped.

“Hello?” Jensen’s voice.

“It’s me,” I said as calmly as I could. “Your little game is up old man. Give it up.”

“Oh, Alexander, how I’ve missed you. I take it you know all about your past. Considering you have this phone.”

“We know all about your past too!” Birgit cut in. “And we’ll get you! Everything you’ve said will catch up now! I swear to my family name! We’ll find you!”

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

“I know you don’t realise it now, but we are allies in this battle. But with Alpha Surge dead, you can’t hope to fight villains. You barely managed to defeat a severely weakened Paragon!”

“So why all the clues then?” said Ahmed. “You can’t honestly expect us to believe you forgot everything in your offices? You’re too smart to make that mistake. To not have your own schemes.”

“You too, Ahmed? You’re a proper team, aren’t you? Again, you may not realise it now, but we are allies. And I am proud of you for coming together–however many of you there are.”

“You still didn’t answer my question.”

“And I will not. What did you expect? That you’d call me and I would have all the answers lined up for you? Everything went wrong. I had to choose between sloppiness and death. The notes you found were a report for Charles. But then he fell and the Houses started moving again. You don’t realise what you’re messing with. So stand down.”

“You trained us. Brought us together,” I said. “Do you really think we’ll go for that?”

“I suppose not.”

“Then get ready. Crisis.”

A hm sounded on the other side. I could practically hear his smile through the phone’s speaker.

“I didn’t want it to come to this. But it looks like we don’t have another choice. Do not expect any mercy, Moros. But I will give you a clue. The Inter School Tournament. That is when everything will be revealed. When we win, or when an age of darkness will begin.”