Enhancement

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(A/N: This is still in the Equinox)

President Hybriad stands rigidly behind his desk, rendering me terrified. An aura of wealth and power contorts around his figure. As if I didn't know it already, his office screams control. Look at me. I'm dark and dangerous. Don't mess with me, or I'll gun you down.

"Holland Renner," the President draws out. His hands tuck into his suit pockets, and he taps his dress shoe on the cold ground. I'm barefoot, robbed of the right to even wear shoes.

"Please, sit down. We've got lots to discuss." He motions to the chair in front of his desk. He's so serious it sets off my instincts. But with cautious eyes, I step across the room. Silently.

Thunderstorms of fear roll through my chest. I'm freezing cold and have nowhere to turn. I am cornered. I am wounded. I am nothing in comparison to the ringleader of the world.

Hybriad's eyes shoot daggers at me, and I want to flee from him. Every inch of my body urges me to run, to bolt in the other direction. This is like playing with fire, which never ends well.

Never.

I slip between the desk and the lone chair waiting for me. Sitting down lightly, I hold my breath.

"Holland Renner," Hybriad repeats. His voice is sharp. Like a threat.

President Hybriad clears his throat crisply. "I must say, you've done well for yourself."

I swallow away the bile in the back of my throat. My nerves are about to explode.

"And by well I mean by twisting your way through every rule of the nation. You really don't know how to sit still, do you?"

"Uh..." I falter for words.

"You disrupted a SkyTrain, killed my Screeners, and vanished off the grid, appearing again only to play around with my Equinox."

Death glares fire at me through the President. My body quivers at his fury, yet I remain quiet.

Hybriad chuckles to himself, rubbing his chin. "I don't know why I haven't killed you yet." He stares into my soul, leaving me bare. I don't dare say a word.

The President laughs to himself sickeningly. "You're the girl who threatened this nation? You haven't even said a word yet."

"W-What would you like me to say?" I ask with a rasp.

He slams a fist on his desk, causing me to jump. "Where's your resistance? Can you not face me in person? Or do you only threaten me from afar?"

"I didn't ask for this, I swear," I tell him brashly. "You put me in the Project. I had no choice."

Hybriad laughs again, a quiet laugh growing louder. "The Enhancement Project is an extension of my strength, only used against those who hide behind fights and wars in the streets. I'm not at war with you, only what you support."

Disbelief overtakes me. "Whatever rebels you've helped, let it be clear I'll find the ones that got away from me. I'll execute every one of them," Hybriad says. "But I'm not going to let you die with them. No, that'd be too easy."

His words shatter me, declaration striking the wrong nerve. I rise from my chair. "Then why are you telling me all this? I don't get it anymore!"

"Sit down, Miss Renner," Hybriad commands. I shrink back and slowly take my seat.

"Let me start from the beginning," the President says. I glare at him, unable to contain myself. "I started the Enhancement Project to experiment with new technology. I needed subjects, so my scientists staged accidents. Train derailments, building collapses, failed illness screenings. Keep my citizens on their toes.

"Then the body control systems came along. You weaseled your way into one of the real-world test groups and then spilled the beans to your dear dead mother."

He sighs. "So then you and I circled around each other. You threaten me, I kill someone. You pull a fast one, and I throw it back in your face. Until I let you reunite with your friend Nicolette and enter into the Equinox with her and your subject boy. My reward for you."

My chest stings, blocking his hits from punching my crackling heart. "For what," I whisper slowly.

"For the chase," the President says, dead serious. "I enjoy a challenge now and again."

"Huh?" I say.

"I'm not going to repeat myself," Hybriad says grimly. He's back to evil again, stronger this time around. "Having power means using it. The Project is still within you, and I'll use it whenever I want. You hate my nation, and I'll hold it against you tenfold."

"I don't hate the--" I begin, but Hybriad cuts me off. He's grinning now.

"You're going to be tortured from now on, just like the way you torched through my country. And I can't do that if you're dead, so you're staying alive, along with your boyfriend... for now."

He leans back in his chair, the tall windows casting tall shadows. "The Equinox was another one of my games for you, and based off your performance, I see you're willing to take down anyone who steps in your way. That's why I have the Project technology permanently sewn beneath your skin. You're high on the Equinox disloyalty ranks and low on everything else we've assessed. You're a threat, but not with the Project around."

His voice turns dark. "Wherever you end up after your Equinox, whether it be close to here or far across the nation, the Project and I are watching you. Even when I'm not, I still am. You'll be burdened by prying eyes in every corner of the rest of your life. Cameras, Screeners, body control. Every aspect of my power shall seep into you so deeply you won't be able to say 'traitor' quickly enough."

He snickers. "It's your reward, once again."

I'm shaking my head now, trying to refuse his words. Those dreaded words sicken me.

"Unless your know something I don't." The President baits me. "Whereabouts of the remaining rebels perhaps? Locations of their headquarters?"

"I don't know any--"

"Don't lie to me," he growls. "I have the power to kill you, yet you choose to lie? Where are the rebels? Where are they hiding like the insolent cowards they are?"

A snort escapes me, then a full-out barrage of laughs. "Why the heck would I help you?"

"To save yourself," Hybriad shoots. "You make the wrong choices and harm the people you love. Do the right thing and spare Stephen, your father, your fellow citizens. Do it."

I shake my head again. "No way." I'm staring the root of all evil in his ugly face, convinced of my innocence. "You kill people, not me. That's why your power is falling apart. All the people you think are loyal want to rid themselves of this country."

Now it's Hybriad laughing. "Miss Renner, you're disloyal. It's illegal, and it's punishable by death. I'm going to find those rebels, and then possibly execute you first. Until then, have fun with the rest of your miserable life."

The President reaches a hand inside his inner jacket pocket, swings out a pistol, and fires a bang at my chest.

-- -- -- -- --

"know all" was the winning choice! i hoped that answered some questions, and guaranteed there will be some more equinox-related explanations coming next.

i can't wait for you to see what will happen next!!

Question: Choose a phrase: Equinox finale spread over 2, 3, or more chapters.

Follow-up Question: Pick another phrase: scare the daylights, free the fury, or no way out.