March City: Land of the Gifted [Book 1 | Fantasy/Sci-fi | Complete]

Chapter 17: A Block

"You really can't keep out of trouble, can you, Ari?"

Ari made a non-committal noise, sitting cross-legged on one of Rale's cushions on the floor. After getting changed at breakneck speed, she'd teleported to Area Eight and then leapt to Rale's from there. Stingy Rale hadn't even let her recharge her necklace at his place as it used up his valuable credits. Ari couldn't imagine even rationing electricity.

"But if the Peacekeepers are taking a step this rapidly and to that excess, something's up. Something's bothering them."

"I don't know, maybe it's all the explosions that's been happening in March city, perhaps?"

"Don't snark me, Transformer. I'm your last hope."

"And I you, idiot," said Ari, irked. She was too tired and stressed to deal with all the mess. Night fell hours ago and the Peacekeepers wasted her whole day. "They won't prosecute me. They only have my blood. There's no CCTV evidence, no evidence of my assault on the bodies, no witnesses. They'll keep an eye on me, though. I can't do too many dodgy things in daylight."

"Must be nice, having a friend in the justice system to clear you of all your offences."

"Shon doesn't pervert justice for my sake," said Ari, heated.

"You've yet to receive any repercussions for your illegal ability uses across the city. You skip more classes than you're actually allowed to. You do as you please, waltzing through the city during post-curfew hours. You're telling me you don't receive special treatment?" Rale snorted.

Ari flushed. "Shon turns a blind eye when I leap, but that's it. Everything else is either because there are bigger fish to fry or I'm too good to be caught."

"Ah, ever the humble one, Transformer."

"I'm good, reporter, and I know it."

Rale scowled at her from his spot at the computer. He'd been doing work on his own when Ari didn't show up. All of Noan's abysmal school records and Kena's research piled atop his desk. A map of March City took up the main screen. Little red dots flashed, predominantly over Area nine and a sector of city outside the populated parts, further than Areas Two and Four.

"What's that?" She pointed to the dots out with the boundary. "That can't still be March City?"

"Yeah. That's Area Six, the old research labs. It's abandoned."

"You think...?"

"The whole area's heavily cordoned off by Peacekeepers. It's near impenetrable – they patrol outside on a regular basis and there are security cameras all around the area."

"But does anyone go in it, though?"

Rale shrugged. "Who knows."

"Nobody went inside that roped-off basement lot until they heard me. I don't think security is as tight as they think it is."

"Area Six was expunged and sealed after the scientists' experiments were exposed two and a half years ago. Kena's last registered base was there, too. Most of the other research there was dying already, so it wasn't much trouble shutting everything down." Rale skimmed his notes again, tapping his chin thoughtfully.

Ari eyed the flashing red pinpoints in that outlying area. The Peacekeepers told her to keep away from city business and particularly abandoned areas. She grinned as a surge of triumph relit her positivity. They didn't realise how valuable that confirmation was.

The terrorists were hiding out in Area Six. They must be.

Peacekeepers and Investigators have scoured everywhere but they'd never found anything. They'd missed out where they thought it was safest – the terrorists must have been hiding there all this time.