In the Kisumu Boys' Assembly Room, a closed session in the late afternoon is underway. The rain drums faintly on the roof. Both Order loyalists and Shadow Walker affiliates have been summoned — the first meeting of its kind.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1Jx9TaQpXZ
The room buzzed with restrained confusion. On one side: prefects, old Order loyalists, data-keepers. On the other: Shadow Walkers — code-runners, graffiti scouts, watchers from rooftops.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡReiWWnxpm6
No one sat near the center.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG99jarQM7J
Jabari stood at the front of the room, back straight, the cracked ledger box in one hand.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8r9M4VmeLF
He didn’t shout.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbAVRYsBZil
“You all saw what Mercy did.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH2VpRfpIeB
Silence.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9GtwNAvd08
“She used our stories. Our fractures. She drowned us in our own past.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡekCTyBpuEL
He placed the box down — loudly.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZzXkbdqGcg
“So, this time… we drown her in it.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjruaO13XqH
He scanned both sides of the room.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0I5sWVOQpw
“We have word Naomi’s side is moving — quietly. They’ve offered a containment pact.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4BKtIWafpp
A few gasps. One laugh — quickly hushed.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyPx8zLNV1s
Jabari continued.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfdUnG0qwzz
“This isn’t an alliance for peace. This is a trap.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1cQVUxgJfH
He walked to the chalkboard and drew a quick diagram: the chapel crypt, the drainage lines, the tunnel forks.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKWSw6280Us
“Mercy’s using the third memory drop — a ledger no one catalogued. We lure her into finishing the cycle. And we lock her there. Not with chains. With evidence. With noise. With memory.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiA3xRybeef
Kwame wasn’t present.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxSig6791ia
But Otieno was — arms folded, expression blank.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnomz6irN4T
Ayo muttered under his breath, “He won’t like this.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2c00HliGnr
Juma asked sharply, “So we do Naomi’s cleanup?”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDuGzqqkggZ
Jabari looked him straight in the eyes.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBdHEeNJ8zs
“We clean up our own ghosts. Naomi’s just part of the smoke.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ63X17TcK0g
Musa stepped forward and unrolled the scroll — Naomi’s signed terms, retrieved from the wall.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqodilF1Ym3
He read them aloud: Neutral crypt space during the trap execution. Shared counter-signal system (one chime = cancel, two = proceed). No betrayal until both crates are verified and neutralized.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjXXPgwwGzs
The final line:55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNUQG2dYFto
“No war until the wound is stitched.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCVd7cV1yLc
A single nod from Jabari. “Vote?”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1UXPWi4Qug
This time, only one hand stayed down.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbwpjXKhqWs
Otieno.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs4CagXDvcb
He met Jabari’s gaze, then whispered: “You catch her… Just don’t become her.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQIBOkUp1MV
The moment Musa finished rolling up the scroll, Juma stood — arms crossed, eyes cold.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCKNE0J7Caj
“We’re trusting Naomi now? The same girl who tried to silence everything Mercy uncovered?”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfSp3C3KK3j
The room went quiet again. Even the Shadow Walkers leaned in, sensing heat beneath the words.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyjC6OVwYW3
Jabari didn’t answer immediately.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEOqvMFIWiK
Juma continued, his voice quieter but heavier:55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ27iL4zn2Yx
“She isn’t here to contain anything. She’s here to bury it again. And if we help her… we’re part of it. We’ve already done one cover-up, Jabari. I won’t do a second.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjQ5dHtICs7
Otieno glanced at Musa. Ayo looked away.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwk9jjLNXVi
They knew what Jabari suspected but never asked.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ78RQ9T5GIL
Juma’s voice cracked ever so slightly: “I swore I’d protect Kim. Not just physically. From all this. From becoming one of us.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwNiwq3C2uF
He looked straight at Jabari. “You think Naomi won’t use her if it means killing Mercy’s story?”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ702jnf8Rtw
A slow clap echoed from the hallway.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk0c56Nws1a
Kwame.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKwOezDI0sa
He leaned against the doorframe, shadowed, smirking.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7YLfytq1TT
“Now that’s what I’ve been waiting for.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoM83OFfvrh
Jabari’s jaw tightened. “You weren’t invited.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbys2AQPNpD
Kwame stepped in. “I don’t need an invitation to watch a castle collapse. Especially when the stones fight each other.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD4xNSj3uAM
He glanced at Juma. “Finally, someone with a spine.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDdeGzSHYxM
Jabari stepped forward. “This isn’t about Kim.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZxRc1UzPvj
Juma didn’t move. “No. It’s about all the people who can’t speak anymore. Mercy included.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbnxakalPbt
Kwame tilted his head, amused. “You know, I think Mercy would like him.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCyhl91c0BQ
Musa finally spoke. “We don’t have time for this.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjj7GBgRrEO
Jabari looked at Juma. “You can’t protect her from all of it. You can only decide whether you help shape the truth or let it crush her.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡilaQWi66mM
Juma’s fists clenched.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr3HxqmmOj3
But he didn’t sit back down.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAkAcjDlckG
Later that night, after the hall had emptied and the plan was posted on the encrypted wall scroll, Kwame found Otieno near the water tanks, where the fog rolled low and the pipes hissed with steam.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfL4RWzj6To
Kwame leaned against the concrete.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkxftWS16Qq
“So. You’re really going with Jabari?”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWHgnEz9wDw
Otieno didn’t look up. He was fitting a copper ring into the vent grate — a piece of an old filtration system he’d been rigging for months.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbIeVq2h0bQ
“Does it matter?”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEoAjTx1V7O
Kwame smirked. “It does to me. I had you pegged as a watcher. Not a follower.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXTjGux15yS
Otieno stood slowly. “You’re right.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMmW0HWnbc2
He turned to face Kwame — taller than him in the dim light. 55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7YaNaW03WT
“I do watch. I watched what happened when the last war between Orders wasn’t stopped. I watched Jabari get blamed for things he never did. I watched you use Mercy’s name like a weapon — without carrying any of her burden.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfVh72s0IQg
Kwame’s smile faded slightly.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡROdzmcdp9K
“She’s rewriting history,” Otieno said. “And you think you’re the editor. But she’ll erase you the second you stop being useful.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6V81pKMf9Z
Kwame raised an eyebrow. “And you think Jabari won’t?”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ88zJQQOFsP
Otieno stepped closer.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxCgD4xnL4N
“If we help Jabari now, we keep Mercy’s revenge from destroying us all. Not for Naomi. Not for orders. Not for walls.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUEVDS1AboY
He paused. “For survival.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjM6WyyrjfR
Kwame scoffed lightly. “You sound like you’re preparing for a funeral.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcJEU6NSv6U
Otieno turned away, sliding the copper ring into place.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVuW1zgADZ9
“I am. The old war never ended. This time, I just want to know which side I buried my friends on.”
**********55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkVNxGoSntN
The ledger crate was lighter than expected.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWPyI95HTVc
Musa tested its weight once more as he crouched beneath the courtyard arch. The M.O.3 chalk mark had been carefully redrawn. The false ledgers inside were wrapped in canvas, just enough heft to feel real.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd3nzU6v9Qt
Jabari stood beside him in the hallway shadows. “You’re sure?”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8fyZrbwZA1
Musa gave a half-smile. “You trust me with a busted borehole and a map that doesn’t exist, but not a box full of air?”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa88IqaYThj
Juma, standing nearby, muttered, “It’s not the box I don’t trust. It’s the gate it’s going through.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFTHsn7OkdC
Musa turned to Jabari.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjjXDwyoJr1
“Let me take it. If we send a signal through anyone else, they’ll second-guess it.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUoDbkWEPSx
He gripped the crate.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoCx5Gtmjtw
“I’m neutral enough to walk through fire.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlzCxdJNzRO
From behind him, Ayo appeared silently, holding a folded black card — flat, thin, almost forgettable.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwO5nvJXFv6
“For insurance,” Ayo said, sliding it beneath the top canvas.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtyTkB2UhXz
Musa frowned. “We’re not sending threats.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyKg5scbGzH
Ayo’s voice was smooth. “It’s not a threat. Just… a reminder. She needs to know she’s still being watched.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwaQe82IA0z
“No names. Just the old cipher. Mercy’s mark.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXsiPJMok3k
Musa hesitated, then said nothing. There wasn’t time. Jabari was still briefing the wall runners. No one else saw.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFYuj4SBJs0
At 5:48 p.m., beneath the buzz of Science Week cleanup, Musa rolled the AV cart up to the old drain-slot gate in the concrete wall.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnR4UyeS3Ex
He stood still, adjusted his sleeves. Waited.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1bKcbZcWIw
The grate shifted open. Two gloved hands — Mary’s, if he had to guess — pulled the crate silently inside.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS94OZyrfwC
No words. Only a single origami triangle left behind, folded from printed timetable paper.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhhGJpj3Hnb
He picked it up, unfolded it.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQe134Yf3Q3
“Drop scheduled. Second chime. No shadows.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxJwFqgHDt5
The plan was live.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2iGdvtaBJv
Inside the crate, beneath the false ledgers and canvas, Naomi’s hand paused when she reached the black card. It bore Mercy’s old cipher — a twisting serpent swallowing its tail — stamped in silver ink.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ3hRr5DVk5
Below it: one line in tight handwriting.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgs3QtOeaCD
“She buried you once. Don’t let her bury you again.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy5V37aGIGj
Mary looked up at Naomi.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtzOtKQ0n4Y
“Did you put this in?”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2WSHV06q6G
Naomi said nothing.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHlmNCC5iWR
Her fingers tightened.
*****55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr8get70jmc
On the girls’ side. After dark. Naomi’s inner circle meets in the underground storage room behind the old library annex. The crate sits unopened on a long metal table.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiesJwjPC4n
The room smelled like old pine and chalk dust.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHsGxa4dGxA
June, Mary, and Naomi stood around the crate. No one had spoken since the door shut.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzE6owfZCqb
The origami triangle Musa left sat neatly beside the latch. Naomi’s hands hovered above it.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbm0T83dGDJ
“We open it now,” she said.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjPzQlVIpp5
“We can’t afford another surprise at the Tribunal.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLMisUNBrdo
She glanced at Mary. “Gloves.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJokgyamy5K
Mary handed them over — clean surgical pairs swiped from the chem lab.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwiXu0Pz640
Inside, the ledgers were exactly as expected — wrapped, unmarked, blank. But under the first canvas fold, June’s hand paused.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlXsBAmWVzQ
“Something’s here.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQYxGtiB5TM
She pulled out the black card.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsx5PRk1kEW
The serpent. Silver ink. Old cipher.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh7GR699BYt
Naomi took it. Kim read the line aloud:55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7Gba7UHzx4
“She buried you once. Don’t let her bury you again.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGeRO0YzV40
A beat of silence.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd6sbdJCoJn
Naomi’s face stayed blank, but her pulse visibly jumped.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaQJbXQISyX
“It’s not hers,” she said flatly. “She never wrote in third person.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡivS2GytIpd
June stepped in. “Then it’s meant to make it look like it is.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3J51NHYVI8
Mary whispered, “Could it be a warning? From the boys?”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFneMxmPtgh
Naomi shook her head. 55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5haNILWx1h
“Too calculated. This isn’t warning. It’s planting doubt. Whoever slipped it in wanted us to panic in front of the school.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTZe5gZ5Lwm
June laid the card flat on the table.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlnT1U3gT8I
“We pull it now. Quietly. And we never say a word.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPXLKcMxclA
Naomi finally nodded. “Burn it.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0fYOMkaZuH
Mary hesitated. “That’s a Mercy move.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLoXIhxTi0U
Naomi replied coldly: 55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzpcUwaPQds
“Then maybe she taught us well.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdWFmwUQeRi
The card was burning in a lab beaker, the serpent curling into ash by the time they were done, Naomi staring into the flame longer than the others.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7ykeG0WvgD
June turned to Naomi. 55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjcsaatGeUx
“When you open that crate tomorrow, make sure your voice doesn’t shake.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi8dVrQKnQU
Naomi said nothing.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk35KXVMTO1
But her jaw was set.
