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.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo3gOe5v1HQ
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.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6gALkAjAri
No one sat near the center.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJMOp6Ap6AP
Jabari stood at the front of the room, back straight, the cracked ledger box in one hand.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg0oKbpk6M9
He didn’t shout.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMajGK6wboM
“You all saw what Mercy did.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡphmcm14x3Y
Silence.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfnVodcPfon
“She used our stories. Our fractures. She drowned us in our own past.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4IbLvhloZk
He placed the box down — loudly.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmiAvjpsprE
“So, this time… we drown her in it.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4BX1OgJfLV
He scanned both sides of the room.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYSKC3iSrwY
“We have word Naomi’s side is moving — quietly. They’ve offered a containment pact.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCC4rNPXgF1
A few gasps. One laugh — quickly hushed.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXxYmBrgJED
Jabari continued.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7cUgPW2Ule
“This isn’t an alliance for peace. This is a trap.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp6Lc9OFAUo
He walked to the chalkboard and drew a quick diagram: the chapel crypt, the drainage lines, the tunnel forks.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYHv66UlLga
“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.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZCdvcPejqF
Kwame wasn’t present.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfslwssNxHu
But Otieno was — arms folded, expression blank.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn0dCk1wqPQ
Ayo muttered under his breath, “He won’t like this.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPrAxEVSwym
Juma asked sharply, “So we do Naomi’s cleanup?”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK2Tdg4Vbq5
Jabari looked him straight in the eyes.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgdPU9nJuUZ
“We clean up our own ghosts. Naomi’s just part of the smoke.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkuDEN6sYYI
Musa stepped forward and unrolled the scroll — Naomi’s signed terms, retrieved from the wall.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkxuBPM5521
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.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEosH9iTlPt
The final line:24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOKWksyBdQ7
“No war until the wound is stitched.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYEgq6Yt2WN
A single nod from Jabari. “Vote?”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsB8lCS784N
This time, only one hand stayed down.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR0yh5cMvmu
Otieno.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdeepHQcl1y
He met Jabari’s gaze, then whispered: “You catch her… Just don’t become her.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPYCkwNht59
The moment Musa finished rolling up the scroll, Juma stood — arms crossed, eyes cold.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg8zHq8RZeS
“We’re trusting Naomi now? The same girl who tried to silence everything Mercy uncovered?”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlckyeuWDgm
The room went quiet again. Even the Shadow Walkers leaned in, sensing heat beneath the words.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ08Ecd3BXGB
Jabari didn’t answer immediately.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaeW5nUk4xr
Juma continued, his voice quieter but heavier:24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF8x9pbP3Zu
“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.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgkLtg2zMsP
Otieno glanced at Musa. Ayo looked away.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH8WnDdPQN8
They knew what Jabari suspected but never asked.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLSBq8QFudA
Juma’s voice cracked ever so slightly: “I swore I’d protect Kim. Not just physically. From all this. From becoming one of us.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu5gMhQMTS8
He looked straight at Jabari. “You think Naomi won’t use her if it means killing Mercy’s story?”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBTlP043Hh4
A slow clap echoed from the hallway.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJjUi8PpSqw
Kwame.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3BE7P02XQA
He leaned against the doorframe, shadowed, smirking.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPERjlJuEl5
“Now that’s what I’ve been waiting for.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDSyaDh66w5
Jabari’s jaw tightened. “You weren’t invited.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuwXb2TqnbK
Kwame stepped in. “I don’t need an invitation to watch a castle collapse. Especially when the stones fight each other.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAsdupJHtA0
He glanced at Juma. “Finally, someone with a spine.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsVayxsonkw
Jabari stepped forward. “This isn’t about Kim.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiYutdhyXb3
Juma didn’t move. “No. It’s about all the people who can’t speak anymore. Mercy included.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4uMsyBxVkQ
Kwame tilted his head, amused. “You know, I think Mercy would like him.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKgUy7M9ebV
Musa finally spoke. “We don’t have time for this.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMgJa5ah3WH
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.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7O8t2Yi41r
Juma’s fists clenched.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuxFGLCLF2A
But he didn’t sit back down.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ46f6XOiKZ
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.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9LIGftH31m
Kwame leaned against the concrete.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Ad17zEbw1
“So. You’re really going with Jabari?”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡShKYtap7mD
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.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX9Pr4QMJ14
“Does it matter?”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyq9tbzncD1
Kwame smirked. “It does to me. I had you pegged as a watcher. Not a follower.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCTKMl3BLDz
Otieno stood slowly. “You’re right.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVulzNCXpwh
He turned to face Kwame — taller than him in the dim light. 24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSZDe2SMLfg
“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.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfg9ed6MZ2r
Kwame’s smile faded slightly.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA8A3VhM0RO
“She’s rewriting history,” Otieno said. “And you think you’re the editor. But she’ll erase you the second you stop being useful.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡetO4nR3aXM
Kwame raised an eyebrow. “And you think Jabari won’t?”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1lozEet1jM
Otieno stepped closer.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJtJP4NPFGx
“If we help Jabari now, we keep Mercy’s revenge from destroying us all. Not for Naomi. Not for orders. Not for walls.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEewsv10U1L
He paused. “For survival.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSjsTGtNCrv
Kwame scoffed lightly. “You sound like you’re preparing for a funeral.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTkblv2S4es
Otieno turned away, sliding the copper ring into place.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrViUaMuc9H
“I am. The old war never ended. This time, I just want to know which side I buried my friends on.”
**********24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5RTjsiRZTC
The ledger crate was lighter than expected.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqWu0JZXfyw
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.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1hmDgbTXID
Jabari stood beside him in the hallway shadows. “You’re sure?”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN3PlUxJFYV
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?”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzmjeyyNHTz
Juma, standing nearby, muttered, “It’s not the box I don’t trust. It’s the gate it’s going through.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo4zowhn1co
Musa turned to Jabari.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuuntqtabVY
“Let me take it. If we send a signal through anyone else, they’ll second-guess it.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBr4InlnGRD
He gripped the crate.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcASewCyar6
“I’m neutral enough to walk through fire.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0lA0z05NaY
From behind him, Ayo appeared silently, holding a folded black card — flat, thin, almost forgettable.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh1DNYkm83z
“For insurance,” Ayo said, sliding it beneath the top canvas.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS0NFwjUGgf
Musa frowned. “We’re not sending threats.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡypLhsmWQCV
Ayo’s voice was smooth. “It’s not a threat. Just… a reminder. She needs to know she’s still being watched.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSx04uwmmN7
“No names. Just the old cipher. Mercy’s mark.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL905IHm52d
Musa hesitated, then said nothing. There wasn’t time. Jabari was still briefing the wall runners. No one else saw.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiAItKPu6zF
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.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZMgovX5WoV
He stood still, adjusted his sleeves. Waited.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsOPiycyw3t
The grate shifted open. Two gloved hands — Mary’s, if he had to guess — pulled the crate silently inside.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNpFuuWY34Y
No words. Only a single origami triangle left behind, folded from printed timetable paper.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvaIEeszJ8M
He picked it up, unfolded it.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwRYdfHLtd1
“Drop scheduled. Second chime. No shadows.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGcVnJJGmLo
The plan was live.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZhW3E3KzXF
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.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSQ8v3QdmxX
Below it: one line in tight handwriting.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0IGpQKF6Vw
“She buried you once. Don’t let her bury you again.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSpiy2iMZQK
Mary looked up at Naomi.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ348Pd5tJv
“Did you put this in?”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡReN6XO0lka
Naomi said nothing.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMoudbnFByb
Her fingers tightened.
*****24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMg72gXEjm8
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.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtwSSLXZ9Kf
The room smelled like old pine and chalk dust.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv2wrf2odQv
June, Mary, and Naomi stood around the crate. No one had spoken since the door shut.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXzZLKJlXcd
The origami triangle Musa left sat neatly beside the latch. Naomi’s hands hovered above it.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1Q9IAXg6aB
“We open it now,” she said.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡquUi68pqLi
“We can’t afford another surprise at the Tribunal.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyuGmgzoH58
She glanced at Mary. “Gloves.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOezKGw78WW
Mary handed them over — clean surgical pairs swiped from the chem lab.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHZTZNr1HRq
Inside, the ledgers were exactly as expected — wrapped, unmarked, blank. But under the first canvas fold, June’s hand paused.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx7jXAXpH3d
“Something’s here.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUImMXENWgv
She pulled out the black card.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡINo52GVu2Z
The serpent. Silver ink. Old cipher.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfoI76vV2aq
Naomi took it. Kim read the line aloud:24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRaBEtl431R
“She buried you once. Don’t let her bury you again.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdVXqbPnVSe
A beat of silence.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMclq7VgnNY
Naomi’s face stayed blank, but her pulse visibly jumped.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuWQFLPKMTz
“It’s not hers,” she said flatly. “She never wrote in third person.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHTjHXJ8UHC
June stepped in. “Then it’s meant to make it look like it is.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡth030ExEyV
Mary whispered, “Could it be a warning? From the boys?”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbRTpYlDgt7
Naomi shook her head. 24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0eBB5R2yYN
“Too calculated. This isn’t warning. It’s planting doubt. Whoever slipped it in wanted us to panic in front of the school.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJKq1Mc5R57
June laid the card flat on the table.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpM26kiwUzY
“We pull it now. Quietly. And we never say a word.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnp9KdXRhXz
Naomi finally nodded. “Burn it.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgJEokVi5gA
Mary hesitated. “That’s a Mercy move.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHCZCCaY9eu
Naomi replied coldly: 24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Ok3tY4HZ5
“Then maybe she taught us well.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLZNNYWBg7H
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.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIQabR51Owk
June turned to Naomi. 24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5TcciqOvEm
“When you open that crate tomorrow, make sure your voice doesn’t shake.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZlNX8WvX5P
Naomi said nothing.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjsDwWdRSrT
But her jaw was set.
