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.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ10WIgrnK2W
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.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp94iYSpwm8
No one sat near the center.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbODq1jMWzF
Jabari stood at the front of the room, back straight, the cracked ledger box in one hand.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeTDAlIu5IM
He didn’t shout.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc4nLfSTyZt
“You all saw what Mercy did.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKYIsB0Sgut
Silence.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtxcsAYeAWY
“She used our stories. Our fractures. She drowned us in our own past.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK9lyc24ewy
He placed the box down — loudly.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ26TsTDWE1u
“So, this time… we drown her in it.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFe7XhH315f
He scanned both sides of the room.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL5Jr6elOvc
“We have word Naomi’s side is moving — quietly. They’ve offered a containment pact.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxMm70jgDLR
A few gasps. One laugh — quickly hushed.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj9lBUWsKFd
Jabari continued.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbqToBJjfNn
“This isn’t an alliance for peace. This is a trap.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpJiW5vftUe
He walked to the chalkboard and drew a quick diagram: the chapel crypt, the drainage lines, the tunnel forks.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYVUaQsK4Pf
“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.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2n9MAu4tDl
Kwame wasn’t present.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqERlx9QePQ
But Otieno was — arms folded, expression blank.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF4JJnmPPP7
Ayo muttered under his breath, “He won’t like this.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI98v73WuVj
Juma asked sharply, “So we do Naomi’s cleanup?”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAJ2QMmvEQu
Jabari looked him straight in the eyes.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡslzzyEzfzB
“We clean up our own ghosts. Naomi’s just part of the smoke.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv6PNuHihuI
Musa stepped forward and unrolled the scroll — Naomi’s signed terms, retrieved from the wall.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOMUmi52myc
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.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyJoQjp8rap
The final line:44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6hycWvkYZc
“No war until the wound is stitched.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKHzOoCqfiS
A single nod from Jabari. “Vote?”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrV7XeJjamE
This time, only one hand stayed down.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEdBAJ109sG
Otieno.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA7F3KxMoBq
He met Jabari’s gaze, then whispered: “You catch her… Just don’t become her.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIHdkGDHQns
The moment Musa finished rolling up the scroll, Juma stood — arms crossed, eyes cold.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjuf6EYR1dV
“We’re trusting Naomi now? The same girl who tried to silence everything Mercy uncovered?”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBlINAkYN1l
The room went quiet again. Even the Shadow Walkers leaned in, sensing heat beneath the words.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Jw0Ujpe91
Jabari didn’t answer immediately.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9pioexhjey
Juma continued, his voice quieter but heavier:44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWd5XVAtGqD
“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.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj7QmGHxp0G
Otieno glanced at Musa. Ayo looked away.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIztIHH9RmF
They knew what Jabari suspected but never asked.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtFPymWBmVY
Juma’s voice cracked ever so slightly: “I swore I’d protect Kim. Not just physically. From all this. From becoming one of us.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTgXh225fJG
He looked straight at Jabari. “You think Naomi won’t use her if it means killing Mercy’s story?”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaNGq6iHhgJ
A slow clap echoed from the hallway.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzf1G8fyRO3
Kwame.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3gpjQmTpXx
He leaned against the doorframe, shadowed, smirking.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2VcVIChE3H
“Now that’s what I’ve been waiting for.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkYq8wUUiwB
Jabari’s jaw tightened. “You weren’t invited.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNn7bGut8O4
Kwame stepped in. “I don’t need an invitation to watch a castle collapse. Especially when the stones fight each other.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaIQYDBNvYs
He glanced at Juma. “Finally, someone with a spine.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2sUfHvcRna
Jabari stepped forward. “This isn’t about Kim.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFZE0G3wnsy
Juma didn’t move. “No. It’s about all the people who can’t speak anymore. Mercy included.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNN9RBICeXn
Kwame tilted his head, amused. “You know, I think Mercy would like him.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDC3XzscKe6
Musa finally spoke. “We don’t have time for this.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3jaDIHKrvZ
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.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgSB3kzRTPk
Juma’s fists clenched.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeHB1Fk6c5K
But he didn’t sit back down.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡflhKDcWcU0
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.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs5VMF6vKxx
Kwame leaned against the concrete.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw4CvEiaU6I
“So. You’re really going with Jabari?”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAkjJyIvV7B
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.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsEycSStOYO
“Does it matter?”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ53oKYhlVgr
Kwame smirked. “It does to me. I had you pegged as a watcher. Not a follower.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlNfCiQGsLK
Otieno stood slowly. “You’re right.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWDnP2uXimT
He turned to face Kwame — taller than him in the dim light. 44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx2i6Hlkd3o
“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.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPCwRZt7Tiv
Kwame’s smile faded slightly.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy7p04vI6nd
“She’s rewriting history,” Otieno said. “And you think you’re the editor. But she’ll erase you the second you stop being useful.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLnoKsMmQfy
Kwame raised an eyebrow. “And you think Jabari won’t?”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoeyNKVvg9f
Otieno stepped closer.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfuaN82lq4x
“If we help Jabari now, we keep Mercy’s revenge from destroying us all. Not for Naomi. Not for orders. Not for walls.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6rJHInhOP4
He paused. “For survival.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8rSv75nDro
Kwame scoffed lightly. “You sound like you’re preparing for a funeral.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ98UBBMAyVp
Otieno turned away, sliding the copper ring into place.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvDMIwwVj1l
“I am. The old war never ended. This time, I just want to know which side I buried my friends on.”
**********44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMy0tNsNqQg
The ledger crate was lighter than expected.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBoAK6u3fnd
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.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB4rrm0WeSe
Jabari stood beside him in the hallway shadows. “You’re sure?”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxkFekGzrpl
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?”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7vq3nFI8Gx
Juma, standing nearby, muttered, “It’s not the box I don’t trust. It’s the gate it’s going through.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJFKc2VAJiY
Musa turned to Jabari.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKIw9UbJRya
“Let me take it. If we send a signal through anyone else, they’ll second-guess it.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN60gSTU1rT
He gripped the crate.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCiYhOYIQMX
“I’m neutral enough to walk through fire.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡROJwm8wBGh
From behind him, Ayo appeared silently, holding a folded black card — flat, thin, almost forgettable.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNbHyX6aDX4
“For insurance,” Ayo said, sliding it beneath the top canvas.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3ro5wHOmi9
Musa frowned. “We’re not sending threats.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF5Hd85yMPr
Ayo’s voice was smooth. “It’s not a threat. Just… a reminder. She needs to know she’s still being watched.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2w2vXjRSxd
“No names. Just the old cipher. Mercy’s mark.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5D34NTYDMy
Musa hesitated, then said nothing. There wasn’t time. Jabari was still briefing the wall runners. No one else saw.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJgRisKFpw4
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.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIDuJCqhIiA
He stood still, adjusted his sleeves. Waited.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsqlVyHXH2b
The grate shifted open. Two gloved hands — Mary’s, if he had to guess — pulled the crate silently inside.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrFpUP0SeuT
No words. Only a single origami triangle left behind, folded from printed timetable paper.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEQZDh0eB3Z
He picked it up, unfolded it.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3jKnO5IC2z
“Drop scheduled. Second chime. No shadows.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV1upjodahi
The plan was live.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTiDibkH1ds
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.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjRN5ooat3j
Below it: one line in tight handwriting.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMnPVNhkznN
“She buried you once. Don’t let her bury you again.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQi9eQXk75b
Mary looked up at Naomi.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwZ4D9wXUaH
“Did you put this in?”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAbCB34DiNV
Naomi said nothing.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfP09KXJ4et
Her fingers tightened.
*****44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNOfbiZFeCM
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.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1UK1uoReij
The room smelled like old pine and chalk dust.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9t7lKMoN0L
June, Mary, and Naomi stood around the crate. No one had spoken since the door shut.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ9Sl9bub6K
The origami triangle Musa left sat neatly beside the latch. Naomi’s hands hovered above it.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTURd1lhDg1
“We open it now,” she said.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcyifJbjzQT
“We can’t afford another surprise at the Tribunal.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0yLoCwMvKw
She glanced at Mary. “Gloves.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy3TUue3Snz
Mary handed them over — clean surgical pairs swiped from the chem lab.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvhlR6oJxhI
Inside, the ledgers were exactly as expected — wrapped, unmarked, blank. But under the first canvas fold, June’s hand paused.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoxskxXY5B6
“Something’s here.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxOFjjmLE6p
She pulled out the black card.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbKNbeXam1z
The serpent. Silver ink. Old cipher.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXSu02kkVZF
Naomi took it. Kim read the line aloud:44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBZN4CSuVhi
“She buried you once. Don’t let her bury you again.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlIE01X7zCk
A beat of silence.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlXTWanYeGI
Naomi’s face stayed blank, but her pulse visibly jumped.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQABoo3MRhu
“It’s not hers,” she said flatly. “She never wrote in third person.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKCu7kdlZIW
June stepped in. “Then it’s meant to make it look like it is.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvOR3zVZ6fa
Mary whispered, “Could it be a warning? From the boys?”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK0arXSOypM
Naomi shook her head. 44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ94y6rANau5
“Too calculated. This isn’t warning. It’s planting doubt. Whoever slipped it in wanted us to panic in front of the school.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOblQ78DmVm
June laid the card flat on the table.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPP7NUL585Z
“We pull it now. Quietly. And we never say a word.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM3jBZGvwBF
Naomi finally nodded. “Burn it.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtJLtEgkHw9
Mary hesitated. “That’s a Mercy move.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVAiYdHApQT
Naomi replied coldly: 44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxk4CXRnNdu
“Then maybe she taught us well.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo6BwrrjuYN
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.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsGtaLFnMrH
June turned to Naomi. 44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYbToDPfxNq
“When you open that crate tomorrow, make sure your voice doesn’t shake.”44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsP4ohFSQ65
Naomi said nothing.44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0kVGuXk77v
But her jaw was set.
