The Blazing Rebellion

Chapter 58

Sera POV

Sera had been able to tell from the expression in John's eyes that he wasn't going to give up easily on his idea to join Spectre. Still, she couldn't help but feel it was a very bad idea. In the beginning, she hadn't thought that Spectre was so bad; they seemed to have the same views as her, after all. However, she'd always been suspicious of Orrin, one of the executives. Even from the first time she'd seen him on the iPad screen that Spectre members had brought for him to talk to Sera's sister, he'd seemed untrustworthy.

Her first real mission, stealing the data for the conversion technology from NXGen, had confused her a bit more. It had been dangerous; her ability had malfunctioned, causing her to nearly be caught. Still, Spectre hadn't cared much. It seemed that their machine could only do so much for her ability overall. After realizing this, Sera had slowly began to see that they were too dangerous. She'd given them too much control.

She'd been distracted with John and trying to make sure he was alright, but in the few times she had been forced to come to Spectre she had noticed a few things. One day, she'd been waiting for Leilah to show her something in a different room; on the way there, she'd noticed a few papers lying out. It hadn't taken her long to realize that the faces and descriptions on them were familiar. Spectre had been watching her friends... they'd been watching the royals of Wellston. Are they planning to take their abilities, too? Are they going to use them? She hadn't told John, not wanting to worry him, but it was concerning.

Although John joining Spectre felt like a bad plan, maybe it would end up being the best option. Maybe with him already on their side, they wouldn't feel the need to go after him. Her worry about Spectre had only increased when John had brought it up, reminding her of what she'd seen; still, there was nothing she could do now. It was just as she'd told him. She couldn't leave, not now. They had too much power over her.

Sera glanced over to where John was sitting next to her. The two of them had made the decision to skip class yet again. John had low endurance for sitting through classes after everything that had happened, and Sera enjoyed the fresh air of the roof; it was relaxing. John didn't even feel the need to talk to her too much. He'd told her that her mere presence was comfort enough. She was just grateful he hadn't brought up Spectre again. She'd barely convinced him not to act on impulses yet.

Sighing, Sera leaned back against the fence. Everything is becoming so complicated. She stared up at the sky above them, wondering what things would have been like if she'd never lost her ability. If he'd never lost control. If they'd simply been friends, without Spectre or John's parents to worry about...

She shook her head. Things would have been very different, then. John had been keeping too many secrets. He'd been in his own kind of mental prison, and it had taken her losing her ability to really see it. Even if there had been no death involved before, it hadn't been perfect. It was far from it.

"...Sera?" John asked, interrupting her thoughts. She turned to look at him. John was leaning against the fence just as she was, staring up at the sky. "Do you think... do you think he'll wake up soon?"

There was a moment of silence. They'd visited John's parents in the hospital again a few days before. His mother's gaze had been just as dead as ever; his father hadn't shown any sign of waking. Sera bit her lip. Things were looking bad, and John knew it. She sighed.

"He got out alive, John." She paused. "Right now, I think that's the best we can hope for."

The authorities could've done a lot worse to his father for breaking into one of their buildings, NXGen, and stealing their test subject. Sera was only surprised they hadn't acted yet. It both relieved and worried her.

Suddenly, John sat up straighter, turning to look her dead in the eyes. "I haven't forgotten our other conversation."

She winced. She knew exactly what he meant. "It's still too dangerous."

John's amber eyes narrowed. "I've already told you. I. Don't. Care. Sera, I need to do something. I can't just sit here." His breathing became harder with every word. "Let me protect you. Let me make sure you don't end up like they did."

Sera opened her mouth to argue, but then closed it again. Even if Spectre wasn't a part of the authorities like NXGen, they were still dangerous. It was highly likely that they would turn on her at some point. Still, she couldn't let John put himself at risk. He meant too much to her. "I'll be fine-"

He cut her off. "They have your ability, Sera!"

She stared at the ground in front of her, hating that he was right. They did have her ability. They had the machine that allowed her to get to it, and there was no way she could get to it by herself...

She paused, looking up at John. He was strong. Maybe there was a way he could help. If she could get him into Spectre, then together they could steal the machine and teleport away with Kayden's ability... Her eyes widened. Maybe there is a way to figure things out!

The only problem was that she would need to bring John into Spectre... and bring him into danger. She shook her head. I can't do that.

"Sera." John's voice interrupted her thoughts. She turned to see the same determination burning in his eyes. "Let me join you."

She stared at him for a moment, an plan beginning to form in her head. Although it felt dangerous and was full of risks, if she ever wanted to break away from Spectre, now was the time to do it.

John was going to get his wish to be involved.