EVARA | JAYHOON [Hiatus]

02: Secrets in the Archives

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The next day Jay and Drea were immersed in the hum of servers at the sprawling data center where they worked. Drea's fingers danced gracefully across the keyboard, orchestrating the delicate dance of data migration. The sterile environment was a stark contrast to the chaos of the bar the previous night. Drea, his colleague with a penchant for colorful hair, raised an eyebrow as Andrei strolled in, looking as out of place as a cat in a fish market.

"What brings you to the data center, Andy? Trying to decode the secrets of the universe in binary code?" Drea quipped, her fingers dancing over the keyboard.

Andrei smirked, "Nah, just thought I'd escape the monotony of my Lab. Besides, Jay here might need some backup if another gang decides to target him."

Jay shot him a sideways glance, "I can handle myself, you know."

Drea chimed in, "Speaking of handling things, what on Earth possessed you to confront armed intruders like that, Jay? Are you secretly a superhero or something?"

Jay shrugged, "I don't know. It just felt like the right thing to do. And I'm definitely not a superhero. Maybe just a guy with questionable decision-making skills."

Andrei chuckled, "Questionable is an understatement. Seriously, though, you don't find it weird that you can pull off stunts like that?"

Drea, her eyes glued to the screen, interjected, "Wait, can we save the superhero analysis for later? We've got a deadline to meet, and I'd rather not find myself in a sequel to last night's drama."

Andrei leaned against a server rack, feigning boredom, "Fine, fine. But I need to process what happened yesterday. Jay, you defied basic survival instincts, and Drea, you've got to admit that was pretty wild."

Drea sighed, "It was indeed wild. But let's not forget we're in a data center, not a battlefield. Jay, do you really believe you're just a regular guy?"

Jay pondered her question while checking the status of the ongoing data transfer. "I don't know what I am, Drea. But being extraordinary doesn't necessarily mean being supernatural. Maybe I'm just an anomaly in the system."

Andrei interjected, "Or a lab experiment that had gone right. I mean, how else do you explain your sudden kung fu skills?"

Jay shook his head, "I don't have kung fu skills. It was more like... instinct."

"Maybe Jay is an android sent from an organization to save us from a dystopian data-driven apocalypse."

Drea rolled her eyes, "Can we please stick to reality?"

Andrei laughed it off and a few minutes later a teenage boy suddenly pulled up outside on a sleek, black bike. The bike featured a streamlined design with glowing neon accents tracing its curves, and its wheels hovered slightly above the ground, employing anti-gravity technology for a smooth, silent glide. The engine emitted a soft hum, suggesting advanced propulsion systems beyond contemporary designs.

The boy pulled down his reflective sunglasses, revealing sharp eyes that seemed to take in everything around him with keen interest. He greeted them with a nod and a casual, "Hey there."

Jay looked up, recognizing Enki. He got up from his seat and walked over to the boy, who was holding a medium-sized box.

"Enki," Jay said. "Good to see you. What brings you here?"

Enki grinned, lifting the box slightly. "I've got the books and VD tubes you asked Seán to send over."

Jay nodded, taking the box from Enki. "Thanks. How's Seán doing?"