Prodigy Eternal (book 2)

Chapter Forty-Four

“After we became better friends, she introduced me to something else I had never heard of — The Fox. We began working for him and later I involved the rest of the group. We would do things that were unlawful and unethical, and in exchange he would give us new hacks. Since nobody ever got hurt with what we did, we justified the trade-off. Then one day The Fox asked us to do something that none of us felt comfortable with, and when we refused, he took Dalia. We’re all really fortunate that he didn’t kill any of us.”

“It wasn’t for a lack of trying,” Yuri added.

“So did it surprise you when she turned on you?”

“At the time it did, but upon reflection, no, I can’t say that I’m surprised. Sometimes when you are too close to someone it’s difficult to see them for who they truly are. Only when you step back for a moment can you see a person’s true nature.”

“Do you think we’ll ever see her again?” Milo asked.

“Not sure,” Link said. “Now that The Fox is the Leader, they have everything they’ve ever wanted, including access to some of the most advanced technology and data available.”

“But they didn’t get Alex’s intelligence.”

“No, but they have the eternity hack. My guess is that Arlon will fortify himself with RTs and rule with an iron fist until all of us grow old and die.”

“All of us except Alex — she was given the eternity hack as well.”

Alex didn’t say a word as she was still struggling with everything that was going on, including the fact that she would live for an eternity without her friends and family. She felt an incredible weight on her shoulders as if she was somehow responsible for everything that had transpired. She rose to her feet and quietly separated from the group. Milo and Mara saw the distress on her face and wanted to comfort her.

“Stay here,” Mara said to Milo, “I’ll go talk to her.”

Alex walked briskly with her head down toward the equipment room. When Mara came in a few moments later, she saw Alex rummaging through the piles of discarded electronics.

“Alex, may I come in?” Mara said softly. She heard Alex sniffling and approached her gently. “What’s wrong, honey?”

“It’s all my fault,” Alex said, with tears running down her face.

“What’s all your fault?”

“Everything,” she sniffled. “I almost got my friends killed multiple times. I almost got you killed. Sometimes I think it would have been better if I was never born.”

“Oh, honey,” Mara said empathetically, placing her hand on Alex’s shoulder. “You’re being too hard on yourself. If anything, I was the one who endangered everyone. My history with Arlon was what put the people I care about in jeopardy, not you. If anything, you saved us.”

“Thanks, but I know the truth. It was Milo who found you, Curik who rescued you, and Glitch who saved us… I didn’t do a thing. There was nothing I could have done.”

“That’s not true… you saved Milo from drowning.”

“No, I was too weak… Aris saved him. Milo almost died because of me. When I had my abilities, I just wanted to be normal. Now that I’m normal, I realize how much I relied on my abilities. Without the gift that Arlon gave me, I have nothing.”

“I know about two dozen people in that room who would disagree with you, including Milo and the person standing right in front of you. Not to mention another billion people around the world who absolutely love you.”

Alex ignored the sentiment, even though she knew she was being overly dramatic. Now that she no longer had her abilities, it was all too easy for her emotions to control her.

“May I ask what you’re doing?” Mara said.

Alex continued to comb through the piles of junk, looking for anything of use.

“I figured if no one was willing to help, then I needed to do something on my own. I came in here to see if there was a way I could get my abilities back to one hundred percent.”

“It’s noble what you’re doing, trying to stop Arlon on your own, but it’s foolish.”

“Was it foolish to go after Maxim?”

“Yes, but Maxim is your father. He cares for you. Arlon isn’t like him… he’s dangerous.”

“I don’t care.”

“I know it may feel like it’s you against the world, but you’re not alone. We all have your back. In fact, you have an entire world that supports you.”

“Their support is conditional, and will eventually fade once Arlon takes office. I can only imagine the crusade he will lead to bring us down. He said it himself, we’re loose ends that will grow to become a problem for him. It’ll only be a matter of time before he finds Incarus and exterminates us like rodents.”

“Perhaps if your father were here, we wouldn’t be in this situation.”

With those closing remarks, Mara gave Alex a moment to be alone. She kissed Alex on her forehead and told her everything would be okay.