Shadows Peak |✔

Chapter 23: Jasper

When Jasper first entered Brenan's dorm room, he was surprised by how messy it was. He didn't peg him as the cluttery type. The only space that seemed to be taken care of was a small section of his room, in the corner.

That was where Brenan's desk was, and ontop of it sat a three-screened computer setup.

Wow.

"Welcome to my abode. I hope you don't mind if I start cracking this code now," Brenan said as he sat in his desk chair infront of his impressive monitors.

Jasper and Lucas crowded him as he typed some script that neither of them understood. But, Jasper watched in amazement, wondering if each time Brenan refreshed the screen that was the moment he'd break through the firewall.

"I'm almost there. Just one more bypass and we'll have access to all the security footage from the past month," Brenan said, updating them sense they had no idea of the progress he was making.

"How'd you get so good at this?" Jasper asked.

He couldn't believe their luck. Brenan eavesdropping was the best thing to happen to him in a long time.

"Pure passion. I love everything about computers. The way they're made. The way they are programmed. I've always wanted to be a computer engineer," he answered.

"Well, what's stopping you?" Lucas wondered.

"I don't know, probably the fact that I wasted my whole education training to be a stupid soldier for a self-righteous government that allows society to shun males who don't want to serve in their army," Brenan vented, clearly bothered by the hand life dealt him.

"Who cares if society shuns you. They'd soon realize they have you to thank for the awesome technology that sustains their lifestyles," Lucas said.

Jasper noticed, however, that his friends comment did nothing to encourage Brenan. He still was typing gibberish onto the screen, but his underlying frustration was evident.

"It's not what a bunch of strangers think that I care about," Brenan spoke after almost ten minutes of awkward silence. "It's what my parents think."

His parents?

"They care so much about how people perceive our family. I felt so much pressure to be what they wanted me to be; being their only child and all. But a couple of weeks ago, I had had enough. People died that day. They'd never be able to become anything, all because someone robbed them of the chance. Well, I'm still here, so I can't let someone rob me of my chance," he further explained.

My parents were always so supportive of my dream. I can't imagine what it was like for him.

"So that's why you quit your pursuit of becoming a soldier," Jasper said, voicing the conclusion he had made in his mind.

A slight chuckle came from Brenan at his comment.

"Well, yeah, that was the main reason. But I also quit because that sergeant guy was crazy!"

The two of them burst into laughter. Even though Lucas had no idea what was funny, he still smiled, and the mood was instantly lightened. Jasper's smile only grew bigger when Brenan made an announcement a second later.

"Boom, baby! We're in!"

Jasper immediately asked him to show the footage from two weeks ago; the one taken from Centre Park.

"Jasp, are you sure you want to see that?" Lucas asked, placing a concerned hand on his shoulder.

He knew what his friend was referring to. If he watched the footage from that day, he would be watching the horror that kept him up at night. The terrors that invaded his dreams. But, he had to see if there was something the cameras caught that could vindicate Sydney.

"I'm sure," he said, assuring Lucas.

"Okay...I've got everything those cameras picked up the day all hell broke loose," Brenan said, his voice sounding hesitant, like he didn't think they should watch it.

But, for Jasper, there was no time for hesitations. For all he knew, Sydney could be out there, struggling to survive in the Western Region.

"Play the footage."