"Are you deaf? Hurry up and move!"
The shout in his ear startled Elijah, and he immediately took hasty steps. If Elijah attacked these people, he didn't know how many rebels there really were. If they lost members, they would naturally be searched for. It was the same thing, Elijah was looking for a bigger problem.
From behind came the moaning of Isaac, who was being dragged by both hands by another rebel.
"Isaac!" cried Map in fear.
"Calm down, Map. Don't do anything, I'm here," Elijah whispered.
"Isaac!" Map pointed to Isaac and sobbed.
They were led into a black truck. Their eyes were blindfolded and their hands were tied in front of them, except for Map. Elijah could feel the girl's arms around him. At least these rebels still had some compassion for the little ones. Though who knew if they had arrived somewhere completely unknown.
"We're not guilty! We didn't do anything!" Isaac shouted angrily.
"Shut up!"
Then Elijah heard the sound of a blow followed by Isaac's groan. Elijah was afraid and panicked, even though he tried to remain calm. He felt like a coward, even though he had almost all the elements of superpower. But somehow he suppressed his courage and remained weak. He could only look down and think.
For hours, the truck continued to move. Sometimes it would stop, and then Elijah could hear the sound of things being loaded into the truck, and there was less and less room for him to sit.
That's when Elijah realized that the group was probably on their way to pick up supplies or something. For a long time, rumors of rebel looting had been common. Especially now, with the Orb suddenly spewing thousands of ants, it is certain that the state of the Earth is not good.
As a result, the survivors will starve, and killing each other in an attempt to survive might be the greatest possibility.
The truck stopped, and this time the men pulled Elijah's arm to get out. It was the last stop. The voices of the people swarmed around the young man. Half-limping, Elijah's body was dragged along, still blindfolded and with his hands tied.
Then Elijah was taken to a room where it was much quieter. He was forced to sit down, the ropes were removed, and then he was moved to be tied to a chair. Elijah didn't resist, he just kept quiet. When they were done, the men were just whispering to each other, it was not clear what they were talking about. Then the sound of footsteps left the room. It was quiet.
"Isaac?" Elijah called hoarsely.
There was no answer.
It seemed the room was completely empty. Elijah waited anxiously.
The door behind Elijah opened and someone's footsteps approached. This person untied Elijah's head. Seeing the light of the bulb, Elijah blinked. He faintly saw the figure walk up and sit on the chair in front of Elijah.
When Elijah's vision cleared, he focused on the figure. A woman whose face looked very familiar.
"Master Halsey?!" Elijah gasped in surprise.
For a few seconds the woman was silent, her expression cold. Then she cleared her throat quietly. "I am not Halsey. Is she your teacher at the academy?"
Elijah nodded. "Yes. You look too much alike."
"You know her?"
Elijah's eyebrows knitted. "Of course, she was my master there."
"Then where is she now? Did she let her students go outside after the aliens wiped out everyone in the city?"
"Master Halsey died," Elijah said. "And everyone at the Academy when the aliens attacked from the Orb."
The woman's face seemed to go blank for a few seconds. As if she heard something she didn't want to hear, or something that was impossible. She rose to her feet, nodded stiffly at Elijah, and then headed for the door.
"Are you going to keep me here?" Elijah asked.
"Yes, until I know if you're dangerous or not."
"Map, where is Map? I need to know how my friend Isaac is. Ma'am, please! Ma'am!"
The door opened and slammed shut, indicating that the woman was no longer paying attention to Elijah.
"Ah, shit," Elijah hissed.
He just looked left and right, taking in as much of the room as he could see. It was really just an empty room with two chairs and a lamp hanging from the ceiling. Elijah noticed that the walls were pretty solid, so he was probably inside a building.
The headquarters of the rebels, that was most likely.
Elijah was worried about Map and Isaac, what would become of them.
*
Meanwhile, elsewhere, Isaac sat in the medical room, both hands tied to the edge of the bed. He was alone, waiting for the minutes to pass with an uneasy feeling. Suddenly, the door opened and a man entered. From his stature, Isaac knew it was the man who had hit him with the rifle.
"The medics will take care of your bruises," the man said coldly.
Isaac was silent, just staring.
"How did you get out of the Academy without your friends? Did you escape?"
"The Academy was wiped out."
"There are no survivors?"
"There are. Me, Elijah and Map."
"So there's no reason for me to cut off your hand, since the bracelet shows where you are now. Isn't that right?" A smirk appeared on the man's face.
"I will burn your body if you dare."
"Brave boy. I like that."
The door opened again, a woman entered, and just like Elijah, Isaac was surprised. The woman's face looked very much like Halsey's. She walked over to Isaac and examined the cut on his lip and around his eye.
"What are you doing, Derek?" The woman's voice sounded displeased.
"Just teaching him a lesson."
"He's a kid."
Derek looked startled, about to make an excuse, but his lips only made an incoherent mumble. The woman stared so intently, so irritatingly. Especially when she crossed her arms.
"I will not tolerate such rash behavior any longer."
Derek swallowed. "Sorry."
"Get out," the woman ordered sternly.
The man named Derek just nodded and hurried away. Isaac thought the arrogant man was the leader of the rebels. But the woman before him seemed to have the power.
She quickly searched Isaac's body, making the seventeen-year-old feel uncomfortable. As soon as she felt something in Isaac's pocket, she reached in and grabbed Bernice's metal tool.
"What's this?" she asked in a calm, non-threatening voice.
"A tool for removing the bracelet." Isaac cleared his throat quietly.
"For the Academione."
"Then why didn't you take the bracelet off?"
"Only one of the students there can do it. And that girl is already dead."
The woman didn't comment and just put Bernice's tool in the back pocket of her pants.
"Don't try to escape, because you'll find out it's useless. The bracelet limits your powers, and I'll make sure you die if you hurt the people here," the woman said.
"I didn't do anything. We were just leaving the city and didn't want to hurt anyone."
"Your powers are dangerous."
"You can tell that to the aliens out there. Maybe they'll tear your people apart in an instant."
The woman changed the subject. "You'll meet your friends later."
Then she left Isaac's side and headed for the door.
"Wait! You remind me of someone," Isaac said.
The woman turned her head. "Your master? Halsey?"
"Yes, you look very much like her. Have you met Elijah? Did he tell you?"
The woman nodded. "Yes, and what else?"
"Do you have a relationship with Master Halsey?"
The woman opened the door, pausing briefly on the threshold. "She's my older sister."
*
"Hannah!"
She turned her head as someone called to her from the end of the corridor. A small, stocky woman in a fluttering white robe approached her.
"What is it, Gwyneth?"
Gwyneth adjusted her sunglasses. "The little girl they brought shows none of the elemental powers we know of."
"So she's a normal child again?"
"But there is gamma radiation in her body. Like children everywhere. It's just that she doesn't seem to have any powers."
"Have you examined the young man named Elijah? The one I put in another room?"
There was a quick shake of the head shown by Gwyneth. "I haven't yet. I will after I examine the little girl."
"The little girl, who was her nickname." Hannah muttered to herself. "Map, yes that's what I think. She's not wearing an bracelet like Elijah. I don't know what happened at the Academy, but investigate this matter immediately."
"Okay, Hannah."
"Make sure that Elijah also has to pass a series of tests."
"Of course."
"I'm going to see the little girl."
"She won't stop crying. Calling Elijah and Isaac, I can't bear her."
"Look, she's just as dangerous as the boy behind that door. And the boy in the other room." Hannah sighed softly. "Don't let their looks fool you."
"They live in the same Academy as your sister, don't they?"
Hannah just nodded quickly, a slightly troubled look on her face at the question. Hannah hurried down the corridor, Gwyneth's footsteps following behind her. A pile of crates slightly blocked their way, leading to another room where Map was.
The two of them walked up a small, dimly lit staircase. Then down another corridor that was empty. Hannah and Gwyneth stopped in front of a closed door.
"Isn't she going to look for the kids, Hannah?" Gwyneth suddenly made a deep, worried sound.
"Who?"
"Your sister."
"She won't. Lucky she's dead." Hannah opened the door and looked over. "So you have nothing to worry about."