Shade, cloaked in his usual mask, approached the side entrance of the TEC headquarters.
He wasn't surprised to find Nia leaning there against the backdrop of the wall. What did surprise him, however, was the subtle weariness on her face. It looked as if she had been there for far longer than necessary.
Once she spotted him, she began, "Shade… we need to talk."
"I figured you'd be here," he responded in a neutral tone. "What is it?"
"What have you and Stanley been hiding?" she demanded. She sounded as if she was desperate to know. "Tell me what's going on." She took a step closer. "If you don't tell me, then—"
"I'll tell you," he said, cutting her off.
The abruptness of his compliance seemed to take her aback. She had clearly expected a fight, a denial, or at least a protracted negotiation. Instead, she was met with an unexpected willingness to reveal the truth.
But before that, Shade surveyed their surroundings and skimmed the alleyway for any potential eavesdroppers. "Before I say anything, turn off any devices you have on you."
She didn't hesitate to reach into her pocket and power down her phone, comms, and transmission device. For one girl to have all that technology on her showed her commitment to TEC.
Once the last device was silenced, Shade revealed, "Matt's deceiving us and he's been feeding information to THE."
The revelation hit Nia hard; her eyes widened.
"I knew it!" she exclaimed by stomping her foot against the pavement.
Shade raised an eyebrow, intrigued by her reaction. "You knew what exactly?"
Nia hesitated as a sweat trickled down her face before admitting, "Well, I didn't know, know. But I suspected something was off with him. He's always been too eager to please everyone and agree with everything."
Shade understood. "I'll gladly give you the details, but I'd rather do it inside. It's not safe to stay here for too long."
Nia seemed to snap out of her daze. "Right! Sorry about that."
She stepped aside, allowing him to pass through the secret entrance. As he moved past her, he caught a glimpse of the rage inside her. Clearly she was more frustrated at the internal conflict going on too.
…
Hours later, an unmarked car sped through the city's underbelly.
Inside, Matt sat amongst a small cluster of TEC members. They were journeying towards Underground Travon.
As they pulled up to their destination, Matt stepped out of the car and inquired, "Where's everyone else? I thought there'd be more of us here."
The other TEC members exchanged uneasy glances and shrugged. One of them then mumbled, "They'll be here in a moment, I think…"
Another member piped up, pointing towards a familiar vehicle parked nearby. "The boss's car is here, so they're probably already inside, setting things up."
Matt pushed any suspicion aside, reminding himself that this meeting with Libra was crucial for securing himself later on. He shrugged and said, "Then let's get this over with."
He started towards the entrance of Underground Travon, a subterranean building that wasn't used ofen. As he was about to cross the threshold, his companions called out to him.
"Hey, Matt," one of them said. "We need to use the restroom. We'll be right back."
Matt paused. "Seriously? Now?"
"Well, yeah," the TEC member replied. "We've been holding it since before we left."
Matt sighed and said, "Whatever. I didn't need to know the details."
He then turned and stepped through the entrance, leaving his companions behind.
The moment he crossed over and went through the double doors, he was greeted by darkness. Everything was too quiet, as if he had stepped into a void.
"Yo?!" his voice echoed. "Is anyone here? I'm Matt from the Ethereal Covenant!"
His calls went unanswered. Then the door's shut behind him, causing his spine to shiver.
Bang!
Now he felt something was terribly wrong.
Suddenly, the darkness exploded with blinding light. Strobe lights flashed, disorienting him. Matt instinctively threw his hands up to shield his eyes. He couldn't tell if this was a trap or a setup by AU forces.
"What's going on?" he stammered.
"Feeding information to other factions?" a crackling voice said.
Matt's blood ran cold. He recognized that voice.
"Stanley?" he questioned. "What's the big idea flashing that light at me?"
"We'll be asking the questions," a female voice chimed in.
"Nia? What's going on?" He pleaded, now on the verge of panicking.
Nia stepped forward, but he couldn't make out her face. In a demanding voice, she asked, "Where does your allegiance lie, Matt?"
"With TEC! Of course, with TEC!" Matt insisted. Yet he sounded desperate.
"Liar!" Stanley's voice scorned.
"No! I promise, I'm loyal to TEC!" Then Matt dropped to his knees. "I would never do anything to harm the organization."
"Then why have you been meeting with THE members in secret?" Nia pressed.
Matt hesitated for a plausible explanation. He had been caught, cornered, and he knew that his web of lies was about to unravel.
"They're... they're family," he stammered, grasping at the only excuse he could make. "Some of them are my family. We were just meeting to hang out. It had nothing to do with rebel business, I mean it!"
Stanley stepped forward with righteous anger. He pressed a button on a small device, and a crystal-clear audio recording filled the room. It was Matt's voice, revealing sensitive information about TEC's operations, strategies, and weaknesses, all delivered with nonchalance.
The blood drained from Matt's face as he listened to his own words. He opened his mouth to speak, to deny, to beg for forgiveness, but no sound came out.
The lights then died, plunging the room back into darkness. A single spotlight illuminated Matt, isolating him in his shame and guilt.
He looked around frantically until another light came on, illuminating the second floor balcony. Standing along the wall was every single TEC member wearing masks except for one: Matt's closest companion.
"Aiden…?" he cried. "Don't believe for a second I'd betray TEC!"
Aiden looked away in disgust. How did Matt have the gall to continue lying to him here? As he slowly donned on his mask to hide his face, he said with regret, "I didn't want to believe it at first till they showed me proof."
A new light came on behind Matt, and there was someone standing in the center of it.
Matt slowly turned around, shamefaced. He didn't have any words to say; he just knew that this was the end of the line.
"Maybe I didn't make this clear when I became leader," Shade said in a dangerous tone, "but I don't take lightly to rats."