The quad glittered in moonlight and kerosene halos. Stalls shimmered under makeshift LEDs. Tinny speakers blared distorted jazz as projectors looped grainy experiments on white bedsheets.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSDDZwUeTU0
Juma hated this kind of show — too bright, too scripted. But it made for the perfect cover.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxdgAloTbnA
“Everyone’s looking up,” he whispered.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRr0aBmKk87
“No one sees what we’re pinning to their legs.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsbJvLPnekN
Jabari didn’t smile.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡixUdxE4LlR
He reached into his backpack and pulled out a rolled poster, smooth and stiff. Thick matte ink on thick gray stock.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC0xu6JwoIv
ORDER OVER INSURRECTION33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1lVr5IkFZb
A white wing over a fractured flame.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxEAavH3Qvg
They walked slowly, calmly — like any two team leads reviewing tech projects. But every ten steps, they pinned a new poster to the underside of a demo tent. To a light pole. To the back of a wooden bench.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4fLxpRhuAq
Four in total. No more. Enough to seed rumor, not provoke response.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX4pwITG9Hh
They weren’t messages for students.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZLwU5LTrK4
They were warnings for the Shadow Walkers. The fractured flame was Mercy’s old signal — twisted now. The white wing was the Order’s ghost — not yet dead.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡINcSywrIMS
Juma stuck the last one behind the water distillation tent, where he knew Ayo used to scout during Fire Theory projects. Jabari paused beside the herb garden exhibit and looked around at the swirling bodies of boys and girls in scattered uniforms.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEHpbBWiCbq
He whispered:33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsW8y9pHTAK
“She wanted an audience. Let’s give her one.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhyhV8s0sau
Behind the hydroponics dome, a girl in Kisumu Girls' tracksuit lowered her phone quietly. Her name wasn’t known to either of them.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTFcmuAvPMj
But the notification she sent was clear:33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1cj5sY2dB9
“The birds are flying banners again. Mercy will see.”
*****33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTZJS3eTUKR
The crypt door had always been heavy — metal, groaning, older than the last three headteachers combined. But now it swung easily on oiled hinges — prepped, ready, hungry.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡITqrZF2KJZ
Inside, Jabari and Juma moved fast, pushing through ankle-deep water that had begun pooling around the eastern wall.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡappCUiYimw
“This isn't just a chamber,” Juma snapped. “It’s a channel.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnrpM54FYqs
Jabari knelt, ran his fingers across the grooves in the floor. “It connects to the borehole line. It was always part of the filtration system — just repurposed.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX9vWw6M5je
Repurposed by whom?33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUf5SEfZMSY
By Mercy.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDYRQhhmAEn
Atop the hidden stairway, two girls in Kisumu Girls’ jackets stood in silence.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgQRAxEgsll
One wore Mercy’s old prefect sash — though no one had given it to her.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlJJqhw4360
The other held the key.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡObDBVYLHNM
She waited exactly until her watch ticked to 12:17 a.m.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkWbqSHYM24
Then she slid the bolt home and turned it once.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4fH9ZsTAPA
Click.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBkwDFTNDra
The girls didn’t laugh. Didn’t speak.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTNyR8gj8kH
They simply walked away.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgSdq78oidV
Jabari’s light flickered.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsFbZhD4LNO
He and Juma reached the far side — a rusted metal ladder leading up toward the chapel’s north vestibule — welded shut from above.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrqrl6BRCie
“She locked us in,” Jabari said.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ33dPb0CheW
Juma stared at the water now reaching his shins. “That’s not the problem.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWoVvGriWNb
The sound came next — not fast, not crashing.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVKCe85PUbc
A slow gurgle. A hiss.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwq3ASBvZLG
Then the unmistakable suction of redirected flow.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7AoTqAdKBg
Juma turned to Jabari.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8bLGP1tAsE
“She's opened the borehole line.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXQjnmo8Ne7
And sure enough, behind the sealed hatch, where the borehole channel fed under the school… the grate now trembled.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpNHqSyhI31
Then the water began to rise.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv9OQdP5gi4
From the high choir loft, Mercy stood silent, eyes calm, watching the stained glass as shadows shifted across it.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlViabBt9JB
Behind her, a girl whispered, “They’re in.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ47QUn5DnqH
Mercy didn’t reply at first. Then:33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdmNnZSn7Pc
“They came looking for a lie. Let them leave soaked in truth.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0mbOSBVDHg
She turned away and walked down the spiral staircase, vanishing into the dark.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmbqOjkDaK1
The water rose like a slow betrayal.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmEJBufpzqI
Jabari tried to brace the base of the ladder, but the surface slicked too fast. Juma had begun stacking the crates beneath the wall vents, but none led out.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvZMZMNvJFZ
Then — a sound.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWZ9V02IZOa
Bang. Bang. Clank.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY0vfTXURiZ
A screech of iron echoed from behind the north wall.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFCkkczDyvN
Juma froze. “Did you hear that?”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEWDDinm8Nc
Clank. Slam.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvTMGATz91G
Then a voice, muffled by metal and rage:33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4JDYWXPZQp
“Get back!”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTj0aJ3gIpp
Suddenly, the side grate at floor level buckled inward — then burst open with a thundercrack of rust and rock. Water whooshed sideways, funneling out violently, pulling ankle-deep current toward the now-gaping vent.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdLFugUhkd4
And through the water— Musa crawled through.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNAGzdi1c7d
Soaked. Grit-covered. Grinning like a man who had wrestled a pipe system and won.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNdVRJXofVl
“I told you I was the better swimmer,” he coughed.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFYqlBnALG7
As the water drained and light returned, Juma leaned against the far wall, breathing hard.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNmQtN5QzJu
“We were seconds from blacking out.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkspUbPeVqx
Jabari, still quiet, turned his torch toward the south chamber — a small alcove half-submerged behind a collapsed marble panel.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlRzt2X6R2H
Musa followed his gaze. “What’s that?”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiDkeFApL2L
They stepped forward slowly. Beneath the now-drained floor, the shape of something metallic gleamed behind a decorative grate. Jabari crouched, pulled at the frame — it came loose with a groan.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlycqxrvmRB
Behind it, half-sunken and chained inside a rusted cage:33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡonSMGwNg3V
Three black ledger boxes, stamped with faded silver initials: “M.O.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJllOTrHP78
Juma slowly unlocked one latch. Inside: letters, class registers, intercepted prefect reports, old Order rosters — all annotated in Mercy’s handwriting.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7Vlu1GRN4M
Jabari picking one up and reading aloud:33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5AWgZXC5sn
“She was never exiled. She was buried.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdvhSHnwZmR
Musa whispered “She didn’t build a trap. She built an archive.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo0vqDNa1xf
Ayo appeared at the crypt entrance as Jabari flipped through the first ledger. No fanfare. No announcement. Just his shadow crossing the old candlelight, face unreadable.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKAZrkgOxns
Jabari looked up sharply.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzyOdScPKPR
“You followed us.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgT8sLKhu5j
Ayo didn’t nod. Didn’t deny it. Instead, he stepped forward, knelt beside the third box — and picked it up carefully, like it might bite.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ297kv3PZrK
“You need this one,” he said. “It’s the only one with dates after Mercy’s expulsion.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBnsFccxgHz
Juma narrowed his eyes. “Why help us?”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOwUUKAb5WS
Ayo hesitated, then looked directly at Jabari.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo4PCKqLPFb
“Because I’ve seen what Kwame would do with it.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzLRVcwx9Rv
The silence cracked with the sound of metal boots on water-slick stone.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI7IDHR1Wps
Otieno, lean and quiet, stepped through the broken wall entrance where Musa had forced the grate. He didn’t look surprised to find them. He didn’t speak. He simply walked forward, reached into the cage, and took the second box.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzV9MPllwQl
The one marked “Staff Correspondences: 2007–2014.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvD9B253kGq
Jabari stood. “What are you doing?”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBrwIOellHs
Otieno held his gaze. “You know I follow the truth.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb0eo8Qfhct
Then turned and walked out — no rush, no guilt.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEYXwHSYEKh
One box in Jabari’s hands. One box in Ayo’s grip. One box now leaving with Otieno.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvK9GPvbmyt
Musa broke the silence.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdzrwbm8IuN
“That’s it, then. The lines are drawn.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs5c4rS68HA
Juma added, “And Mercy didn’t even have to choose sides. She just lit the match.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvn8MqE2Mlq
Jabari watched Otieno disappear into the crypt tunnel, Ayo still standing beside him, conflicted but present.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJOe2susYHE
Musa whispered, “This isn't just about the wall anymore. This is a war over what gets remembered.”
******33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxArZXTDhKE
The video was less than ninety seconds long.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrLRjyBh1D8
It had no watermark. No source. But it found its way into every inbox in the Kisumu Central Education Circuit — sent from a dead address once used for prefect newsletters.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgXqxaXIgn6
The screen opened on dim light, stone, water glinting along the floor like liquid glass.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1Pp5jvvzRz
The voice was unmistakable.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS4AJlRpUrt
“This is what they called leadership. This is what they built walls to protect. Jabari’s Order — drowning in Mercy’s revenge.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRw1sIuuWNL
The footage cut quickly — glimpses of the crypt, soaked boys in Kisumu boys uniform, flooded ankles, two figures dragging themselves out, torchlight flickering like panic.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj6oXC2ghgK
Then:33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTx8rBvRSxo
Freeze frame.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJew2wKUAKM
Jabari, back turned, lifting a rusted ledger box.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIIEBIdqiYc
The words flashed over the image in blood-red type:33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSeNPBZdIPf
"The Order is underwater."33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeEu1WalX3t
Then black.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyPmAu2B7hv
By 7:00 a.m., the dorm corridors buzzed like electric wires.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyzYtJKSHmn
“Who recorded it? There are no phones allowed—how did it get out? Was it staged? Is Mercy back? Was the flooding real?”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmnPeE9xK0r
In the Kisumu Girls library, Shiko watched Kim watching the terminal.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNXTPsMwj3H
“That’s the tunnel. That’s the crypt,” Kim whispered. And that—is a declaration.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDbc5AWpQiX
Behind the AV club at Maseno school, two junior Shadow Walkers shut down their old relay laptop — wired into the school’s forgotten printer line, a hidden broadcast node Mercy herself once rigged in her second year.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡksH1nnR1Be
Kwame stood outside, eyes on the sky, arms folded.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPQxJnD176I
He didn’t need a phone.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvuPcQoAAP9
He just needed a network Mercy built…and a reason to set it on fire.
**********33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVAwGgmG84y
June pushed the heavy doors open just as Mary arrived from the science wing.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4sV5jrUbZF
“The boys have seen it?”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTQkX25lxav
“Everyone has.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP2h93GgDuD
Kim entered last, silent.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo0MbmhjhL2
Shiko hovered in the corridor, uninvited but listening.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMJ6EYDtNTO
On the old Order wall board, Naomi stood still.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjUxggxwd7x
Below her — pinned with blue tacks — were printed stills from the Kwame video. One showed the crypt grate. Another, Jabari holding the ledger.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcLa2n8wdGS
“This wasn’t Mercy’s trap anymore,” Naomi said quietly.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC0hYoNEaak
“It was her signal.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgIiu78L9ei
Naomi turned to them — prefects.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdNjWfLYKuq
“There’s at least one ledger still moving. Probably being moved to St. Theresa’s. Possibly Maseno.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcdULz1KLJA
Mary stepped forward. “So, what do we do?”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnUEXxz0ebc
Naomi tapped the board.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHnpknRnvua
“We don’t chase her legacy. We protect ours. Lock down the Hall. Triple-lock the Prefects’ Archive. And find the girl carrying the ledger.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsbzYXcjOUq
June’s voice was cold.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9HQgqVido1
“You think Mercy would use one of us?”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIvdY5485JR
Naomi didn’t blink.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEyau1BdjpF
“Mercy doesn’t use people. She recruits them.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGVgNKh3R7l
The girls split into teams. June and Mary to the Greenhouse Tunnel, checking Mercy’s known exits. Seline, assigned to patrol around the west dorms, but already planning her own detour. Shiko, pretending to go to class, slips Kim a folded message:33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXtNRRHHqs0
“Don’t trust who enters first. Trust who stays behind.”33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtR01OfUW2a
The Order Hall is locked though Naomi stays inside, assembling the remaining cipher logs and pulling names off Mercy’s old class rosters.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0M7Lys9tRl
Outside the campus fence line, under a tree heavy with wet blossoms, a junior form walks fast — a duffel bag over her shoulder. Her name is not known. But inside the bag is a ledger box, sealed with black tape.33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs4pewKBInK
She has only one instruction:33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOigXJRYmMU
“Deliver it by dusk. If you’re stopped — deny you ever knew.”
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIix7nwS1UF
33Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZSLj0o90tK
