The science lab hadn’t been officially used in months — the windows were cracked, the wiring unstable, and the door only locked from the inside. Which made it perfect.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡClZYZWZ066
Mary adjusted the lens on the UV lamp, flicking the toggle back and forth until the bulb buzzed to life with a dull purple glow.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbcfhLpGKxL
She spread the black card across the dissection tray — the one Mercy had retrieved from the chapel and handed over without explanation.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNGFvBP3489
“You know how to look,” Mercy had whispered. “So look.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2akvZr9MHj
So Mary did. At first, nothing.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6i1TvZTYpU
Then the ink shifted — faint glowing threads emerging beneath the card’s surface. The lines curled, widened, and gradually began to form structure.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwJkJenY6hn
It wasn’t art. It was architecture.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj3rVM8bi3J
A floor plan. 21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIvM7ZhIpuh
June leaned in over her shoulder. “That’s not just the chapel…”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIEg1UeNbQR
Mary nodded. “That’s the tunnel system.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡci2EyeMNlY
The map showed multiple levels: A narrow tunnel from the borehole curving beneath the dining wing. Level two: The greenhouse access route — confirmed. Level three: A set of interlocking service paths ending in a room marked by a circle and the letters:21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyRYBTaPBgM
C.9 – Cryptus Sacrum.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAGGLW1TL7i
Mary’s breath caught.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi7GXWsBEXl
“The chapel has a crypt,” she whispered.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtyth6CBuHV
June’s eyes narrowed. “No one’s spoken about that since Mercy’s expulsion.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡklYwIkojO5
“No one dared,” Mary replied.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN0GxZ5gyCU
In the bottom left corner of the blueprint, another glow began to rise beneath the UV:21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa62rQCRsAP
“Begin from what you buried.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfbaCqQ9XkD
— M.O.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSMCIL5j3jq
June stepped back slightly. “She’s not just reactivating the tunnels. She’s trying to pull us back in.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzHxOyuyRYD
Mary nodded slowly. “Or she never left.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFbugXXPWxQ
For the first time in weeks, June didn’t know which side she was on.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOMCwjJC8YC
Naomi had restored her badge. Reinforced their place in the Order. Offered peace. But what Mercy offered now was truth. Not orderly. Not safe. But real.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBqQBdNF2Cj
And June had always preferred sharp things to dull ones.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu8tjhhyDQP
She looked at Mary, who was still tracing the lines of the blueprint with a gloved fingertip.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGk7RYb878f
“If that’s real,” June whispered, “then we’ve never actually been above ground.”
*****21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7Dr8u0Ykw0
Kim didn’t look up when June sat down beside her.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5aqQBBZoXv
The bench under the jacaranda had become her quiet spot — the only place where questions didn’t buzz in her ears. The petals drifted down like soft ink, blanketing her shoulder, the pages of her notebook, even the edges of her thoughts.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo6kGR6FmzT
June broke the silence.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXsNmMRYlnh
“You were right about her.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnph3sfilCx
Kim turned. “Mercy?”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTOOd5dLLqD
June nodded; her voice taut. “She doesn’t want power back. She wants the Order buried.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGvXEGAe2Fs
Kim closed her notebook slowly. “What did you find?”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQg2wQCsplU
June didn’t answer at first. She reached into her sweater pocket and pulled out a slip of folded paper — not the blueprint itself, but a tracing she’d made in secret, away from Mary, away from Naomi. On it: the outline of the chapel. And beneath it — the crypt, marked in Mercy’s faint symbol: M.O., crossed by three vertical lines.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdjbo9Z81oB
“Three verticals,” June whispered. “Three prefects. Mercy’s way of marking a trap.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKvAxZaMX8l
Kim stared. “You’re sure?”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCKoJvQQvgC
“Dead sure. She means to draw them there. Naomi, the others. And seal it. Not physically — symbolically. Shame them. Expose what they covered up about the tunnels, the Walkers, her expulsion. All of it.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4atAkFmlZB
Kim traced one of the drawn lines with her finger.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlXymVTSg9R
“She’s not exposing history,” she said slowly. “She’s rewriting it.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3PoklhwPSU
June leaned forward.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHOnlihYwVt
“You’re not in the Order. You’re not on anyone’s side. But you’ve seen more than most — and you don’t scare easy.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFAC8dJUI3C
Kim gave a small, tired laugh. “You sound like Shiko.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI821Pyg701
“No. Shiko’s a scout. You’re a witness.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4ZPApOtEdE
June paused, then added softly:21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5tp5KDv76V
“I don’t want to be part of burying people. Not even Naomi.”
They sat in silence for a moment, petals collecting like snow.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlUTbP73VQY
Then Kim asked, “What do you want me to do?”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuGwe1bgoGV
June looked up. Her voice was quieter now. Less prefect. More person.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDqKKMAR6cz
“If anything happens in the crypt... if I can’t stop it... you tell the others. Shiko. Seline. Even Jabari, if you have to.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqLdqDgzYBC
Kim stared at her. “That could expose you.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLMnLnpzM8F
June nodded once.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTBwnlCnpnH
“Better me than them.”
*****21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzCtieRskUr
The corridor was nearly empty when Seline appeared.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB8Ckzs0IRa
She didn’t slam her locker or call Kim’s name. She just stood there, leaning against the doorway like someone who had waited long enough for the exact moment to arrive.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡezXeVSkjFD
“You’ve been busy.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwsK8pQMzro
Kim turned slowly, not startled — just tired.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4goETdnHNp
“So have you.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3wApUfqxMw
Seline’s eyes were cold, but not cruel.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4jmtJO7ALa
“Let’s skip the pretend part.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhYlGoMsOSu
Kim raised an eyebrow. “Which part?”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw2Vl3JXdDl
“The part where you pretend, you’re not helping Mercy. Or June. Or whoever it is this week.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr36lwtowQL
Kim closed her locker slowly. “I’m not helping anyone. I’m trying to understand what’s happening.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKDjrYY6pmO
“That’s exactly what makes you useful.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzGK798B1Ta
Seline stepped closer, her voice low and measured.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ01TGNjQPYc
“Help me expose Mercy before this thing in the chapel happens — and I’ll show you something.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoilcDkgm25
Kim didn’t move. “Something about Juma.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVUelmnfq85
That stopped her.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt6iJWMtyvr
“Juma?” she said, sharper than she meant.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzQmmrgHDEU
Seline nodded. “Something you’ve clearly been dancing around since last term. Don’t look so surprised, Kim. You don’t hide infatuation well.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWnjHfIsZhN
Kim crossed her arms. “And you just happened to be saving this for a rainy day?”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSfWiXXW8Mj
“No. I was saving it for the right pressure point.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4kHYvnoDaH
Seline reached into her sweater pocket and tapped a folded sheet. Thick. A printout? A photo?21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzlkoabe8Vw
“You help me shut this down — expose Mercy, burn the tunnels, force Naomi to act — and you’ll get the truth about what Juma’s really doing when he says he’s ‘off-grid.’”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZV3EJW8R7s
The corridor felt suddenly colder. Kim stared at the folded paper, then at Seline’s face. Not smug. Not even manipulative. Just… determined.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIehDLkL3jP
Like a girl who had once been close to Mercy. Like a girl who knew betrayal personally — and intended to weaponize it back.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9XrvIJZx8c
“You don’t even care about Naomi,” Kim said.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEsirF1GaOt
Seline’s voice softened. “I care about not being erased.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1KYoK4ZB1u
When Kim returned to her desk in the class, there was another mystery to follow waiting up on her.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0eeDVCcZYV
There was no envelope.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHezaEWhXso
Just a folded note, slipped between the spine of Kim’s literature textbook and the dusty edge of her locker wall.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtOS6oDssAa
She knew it was Shiko’s. The paper was squared at the corners. Neat. Dry. No handwriting on the outside. Just careful silence.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEvfqL3dQKR
Inside, a short message:21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3YbbkB0ri0
“Meet at Science Week’s midnight demonstration. No one else. No delay.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0Us9GTXhAu
— S21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzZciGNk3Cj
Kim stared at the paper, rereading the curves in the "S" — round and sharp in the way only Shiko's handwriting ever was.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW0PevKo5ih
She folded it twice and slipped it into her sock.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwXOEypLz5N
Outside, thunder rolled low and slow across the lake.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqKqtI5MTjO
If Seline was a warning... Shiko was a reminder:21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4ZkLedQ1JZ
She wasn’t alone.
*****21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUfPprzMPmF
Naomi’s heels echoed unnaturally down the corridor.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTXtYO8rHhw
She didn’t bark orders. She never had to.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw7NPZHKgFg
Two junior prefects flanked her, carrying empty crates. She stopped at the lab entrance and waited until the girls looked up from the bench.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7yLgOxoQof
“New directive from the principal,” Naomi said evenly. “All ultraviolet lighting equipment is to be removed from the lab facilities effective immediately.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiekxibwoZK
Mary blinked. “Why?”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPV3cFSw6Xv
Naomi held up the clipboard. “Cited: potential risk of chemical interactions. Some of these lamps are over a decade old. Filaments cracking. Possible mercury leaks.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHZKJCjxi6n
June stepped forward. “That’s never been a concern before.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvD49FVfjAd
Naomi raised an eyebrow. “Well, it is now.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqFtOhDlF95
As the juniors moved through the cupboards, one lifting the dusty UV lamp from the back shelf, Mary and June exchanged a look.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9GCGoxedPq
This wasn’t about safety. This was about control.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrbFX57yhv7
Naomi didn’t glance at the blueprint folder tucked beneath Mary’s stack of textbooks — but her silence was surgical. Her eyes landed on it. Briefly. Knowing.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC89uzshYqc
Then she turned to go.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZIYDvH0YRW
“If you need light,” she said over her shoulder, “try daylight.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwlBcI3QEQ8
The door clicked shut behind her.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFcY8ip9TPI
Mary’s fingers dug into the edge of the desk.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4fm7Wtci2m
“She knows,” she whispered.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzvRisA2aix
June stared at the door. “She doesn’t know everything.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡisXN2FXMyU
Mary hesitated. “Should we tell Kim?”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8v2kLkOb08
June exhaled.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHIIXqy2Pyg
“No. Not yet. Not until we find the crypt entrance ourselves.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhcP2mi0CMk
She picked up the blueprint sketch, gently smoothed the corner, and whispered under her breath:21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHsVrbrjAuv
“We don't need light. We need memory.”
******21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhMAK3fYEDp
Juma paced just outside the back stage canopy, fists in his jacket pockets. He could feel Jabari before he saw him.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwBz1uG2sXh
“You’re late,” Juma muttered.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡldgyaSfDkI
“You followed me,” Jabari replied calmly.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnne2dAdolk
Juma stepped forward. “You’re walking into a trap. Mercy isn’t just planting symbols — she’s turning them into a net. And Naomi doesn’t see it.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW9HfTI9hK1
Jabari’s voice was cold. “Neither did you, until you saw the card.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx1oAiCQ61R
Juma’s jaw clenched. “This isn’t about who saw what first. It’s about stopping a collapse. Tonight. In the chapel.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5yBNYOiXMJ
Jabari finally turned, locking eyes.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBcflKvDaMc
“Then let’s collapse it before she does.”
Beneath the science wing on the girls’ side, Kim and Shiko crouched behind the old reagent shed.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnsT1hWCyjC
Shiko passed her the flashlight. “If the crypt’s real, it has to open from somewhere near the annex sub-basement. The original plans placed the drain gate there.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAybBobKAXI
Kim stared at her. “You sound like you’ve been practicing this.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOHjoAh0owJ
Shiko gave a faint grin. “You’re not the only one who gets notes.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMBSZDZUbyi
Kim unfolded hers again: “Midnight. Come quiet.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHVzDZAvySn
There had been no signature — but the direction had been clear. The trap wasn’t just Mercy’s.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkgcM1u0VI2
Someone was planning to stop it.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgKXUTrYc2x
They were just making sure someone else survived it.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ00kAIISXC5
At 12:06 a.m., while students at the science demo lit hydrogen bubbles and experimented with heat coils, four shadows moved in four separate arcs: Jabari and Juma, slipping behind the stage, through the external water tank corridor. Kim and Shiko, looping behind the incinerator shed toward the chapel annex. Mercy, already beneath the chapel, lighting her candle, placing the final lock in the metal gate.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡENooNkQKfT
And somewhere else — Seline, watching from above the science dome, her eyes flickering with a phone she shouldn’t have had.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ5NViQGkKl
Jabari reached the tunnel grate first.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFDY64vSuuv
Juma slipped beside him, passing the folded metal rod they’d stashed days ago. Together, for once, they said nothing.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQDWbCeSh4P
Inside the tunnel — faint blue paint glowed at the seams.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDl1pO23Wsk
The glyph for “complete.”21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXenpAPX9yR
Mercy had finished the sequence.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBuMbt6MD7Z
On the girls’ side, Kim reached into the drain gate.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHyt3sIMYlD
Shiko crouched beside her, prying open a rusted latch.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMjDxuyIDjT
Below them, the faint sound of a click echoed.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEH8nAdzKyR
A door opened.
