Sir Connor Rent knocked three times on the door to President Weatherford's office. Weatherford opened the door cautiously, realized who he was, and let him in.
"Sir Rent," greeted Weatherford. "Do you need anything?" He sat down. President Lloyd Weatherford's office was decorated with an expensive blue rug, complimented by paintings, one hanging on each wall. A desk almost overflowing with notes and paperwork was placed in the middle of the room, next to a big armchair which Weatherford now sat in.
"Yes," replied Sir Rent simply, clearing his throat. "Are you absolutely sure you want to continue producing the Guard Robots?"
"Of course," Weatherford answered, staring at Sir Rent pensively. "Is there any reason not to?"
"Robots are programmed. They're incapable of choosing their actions through human emotion."
"Yes, the very reason I'm producing them."
"But lack of emotion could backfire horribly," warned Sir Rent, pacing around the room.
"How so?"
"If anyone somehow snuck into the lab, they could use the mainframe to program the robots to do anything they'd like."
"How would anyone else know how to use the mainframe? Only I and a select few have the expertise," countered Weatherford.
"You seem to be forgetting Pilot apprentices. If they can fly jets, they can program the mainframe."
"Perhaps, but Pilot apprentices wouldn't know the robots ever existed. They're still prototypes. Only You, my Officers, Sir Briggs, and Madam Park, and your apprentices know they exist."
"Unfortunately, that's not true," said Sir Rent, abruptly stopping his pacing. "I've received a tip that someone will hack into the mainframe tonight with malicious intentions."
"And who so generously gave you this tip?"
"David, one of my apprentices."
"How would David know?" inquired Weatherford, gaining interest.
"After today's lesson, David left to visit his parents. He said he'd accidentally let something slip about the robots, and his older Pilot Apprentice brother said he wanted to "mess with those." Everyone knows where the lab is-- and of course it's heavily guarded during the day, when people are going in and out. At night, it's left unguarded, as you know. David said that only a few minutes after the incident his brother left the house. He assumes-- as do I, that his brother, Logan Johnson, will attempt to hack the mainframe tonight."
"Well," began Weatherford. "If it worries you so deeply, I can send a couple Officers down to guard the mainframe."
"I only hope you aren't too late," Sir Rent replied. Weatherford stood up and opened the door only to find himself face to face with a robot. Weatherford jumped slightly backwards in surprise, and the robot proceeded to shoot him in the stomach...with its paintball gun. Within seconds both men and Weatherford's office was covered in multicolored paint splatters.
Sir Rent tackled the robot and deactivated it, then sprinted to the elevator and down towards the lab.
***
The next morning, Thomas woke up and watched the daily news report. Once again, nothing had changed, meaning that Valerie was still on the run. He changed into his Guard armor and walked into the hallway. He was accompanied by Luke, Jadie, and David into the elevator. David kept shifting his gaze nervously.
"David," said Jadie. "Is there anything wrong?"
"I hope not," was all David said in reply. Jadie looked at Thomas and shrugged. Thomas hoped David would be alright.
The elevator doors slid open and the group joined Sir Rent and the rest of the Guard apprentices in the courtyard outside of the President Spire. It was raining slightly, enough to feel it on their skin but not enough to soak them. Sir Rent looked very sleep deprived.
"As you all can probably tell, I barely slept last night," began Sir Rent. "The reason being someone hacking the prototype robots." A few of the apprentices collectively gasped.
Claire raised her hand.
"Yes, Claire?" answered Sir Rent.
"Did anyone die?"
"Luckily, no. It was simply a teenage Pilot apprentice who wanted to prank The President Spire. He programmed three robots to roam the building, filling the hallways with paint splatters everywhere."
"I knew it," David muttered under his breath as he facepalmed.
"And when I say everywhere," continued Sir Rent. "I mean everywhere. After a long, arduous night full of cleaning from Sir Briggs, Madam Park, a few Officers and I, the building has been returned to its original state. However, President Weatherford is calling a meeting about the protection of the mainframe today and I'm expected to go. We can't have a physical lesson, so today you need to visit the library and read up on Tech Guns. Any questions?"
The apprentices shook their heads.
"Okay, then. I'll be going." And with that, Sir Rent returned to the President Spire, leaving the apprentices to traverse the rainy streets towards the library.
***
Valerie stood in the underground warehouse, watching Oliver put the finishing touches on her newly built room.
He had built it surprisingly fast. He was, as he had proudly mentioned before, a professional. Oliver finished and stepped back, admiring his handiwork. Then he turned to Valerie.
"What do you think?"
"It's great. You really are a professional."
"Did you think I wasn't?"
"Well, everyone exaggerates sometimes," she replied, inspecting her new room. It contained a small, wooden bed, complete with a lamp and end table. Shadow hopped onto the bed and rubbed his face on the pillow, purring happily. Oliver walked to the side of the bed and slowly held out his hand for Shadow. Shadow sniffed him carefully, and then rubbed his face on Oliver's hand, purring.
"It's about time," he chuckled. While Oliver petted Shadow, Valerie's thoughts turned again to the mystery of Paul Nightman. How could she solve the mystery? What did Paul, Jonathan, Ed, and Kresco do? What was Midnight's Wrath? These questions swam through her head. Maybe there was some other book that mentioned Paul Nightman, and Valerie just hadn't found it yet.
"Oliver?" she said.
"Yeah?"
"Do you think it'll be safe for me to go to the library today?"
"Probably. Why?"
"I just, uh...want to pass the time, I guess. I'll probably be a fugitive for a long time if not for, you know, all eternity."
"Alright. You should take the Chameleon Band with you."
"I don't think a tiny chameleon playing drums would help me disguise myself," laughed Valerie, heading towards the ladder.
"Not that kind of band," said Oliver. "The armband kind of band. I found it already made when I stumbled onto this place. Must've been left here by the old owner."
"What does it do?"
"It creates a hologram projection of a new face for you. The face stays on as long as you keep the watch on. I use it whenever I turn in a criminal. Even though the guards haven't seen me since I was thirteen, It doesn't hurt to be safe."
"Okay," agreed Valerie. Oliver hurried to his workbench, grabbed the chameleon band, and handed it to Valerie. It was an inconspicuous looking silver bracelet which slightly glowed blue. Se could easily hide it up her sleeve, and so she slipped it onto her wrist. "It doesn't feel any different. Have you got a mirror?" Oliver handed her one, and she doubled back in surprise.
She was Asian now, with long, jet black hair. "That's....different."
"A perfect disguise," agreed Oliver. "I still have no idea how it was made, or why they aren't mass-produced by the government." Valerie climbed up the ladder and the searched the nearby dumpster, finding various useless items and a disturbing amount of banana peels before eventually finding female silvers her size. She changed and then walked through the rain towards the library.
***
Thomas and the rest of the apprentices stepped into the library, which felt comforting after being in the rain so long. Thomas picked up a book on Tech Guns, sat down, and read. After about half an hour, he felt a hand on his shoulder. He tore his gaze away from the book and glanced behind him. A young Asian girl was tapping him on the shoulder. She looked strangely happy.
"Thomas," said the girl. "Come on, follow me." Thomas was curious. Who was this girl? What did she want?
"Do I know you?" questioned Thomas.
"Yes," replied the girl as she pulled him behind the shelves. When no one was looking, she slid her silver armband off of her wrist, and flashed into Valerie for a split second before putting the armband back on and suddenly becoming a red-haired girl with lots of freckles. Thomas stared at her, shocked.
"Valerie? What? How? Is that some kind of disguise thing?"
"Yes, it's me," she assured him. "Keep your voice down, though. I'm still a wanted fugitive." He resisted the urge to hug her.
"What are you doing here? How?"
Valerie told him everything in hushed whispers-- starting when she escaped and going all the way to when she met Oliver in the underground warehouse.
"But anyway," she said. "I came here to search the history books. I need to know what Paul Nightman did."
"I'll help," offered Thomas. And so brother and sister searched the library, hoping to find the smallest piece of information on the surprisingly-not infamous Paul Nightman.
***
President Weatherford, Sir Rent, Sir Edelman, Sir Briggs, Sir Paylon, Madam Park, and Madam Brooks all assembled in the meeting room. The Guards (Rent, Briggs, and Park) and the Officers (Edelman, Paylon, and Brooks) holstered their Tech Guns, then sat down. President Weatherford sat at the head of the table after everyone else was seated.
"As you all know, a reckless teenage Pilot apprentice hacked into the Mainframe last night," began President Weatherford. "There are two choices. We could continue producing the robot Guards, but increase security on the mainframe both day and night. There's option one. Option two is canceling the mass-producing of the robots, as proposed by Sir Rent. I say it's time for a vote. Raise your hand if you think option two is the best choice." Sir Rent and Madam Park raised their hands, and Weatherford smirked.
"Raise your hand for option one." Weatherford, Edelman, and Paylon immediately voted. Sir Briggs and Madam Brooks both sat deep in thought, before eventually they too voted for Weatherford's proposition.
"Sorry, Sir Rent," Sir Briggs apologized. "Robots are going to be more effective in protecting the city than human guards will ever be, and you know what they always say-- safety first."
"It's decided then," confirmed Weatherford. "The robots will contribute to the protection of Washington City."