The Program [COMPLETED]

Chapter Ten

Your city is going to fucking burn! Tell me how it feels!

The words refused to leave Aiden's mind as he ventured to Zariah's bunk. Her erratic behavior during the Laspil City mission troubled him deeply. She hadn't meant any of it; Aiden was sure of that. But the expression on her face while killing Deon... that was what made him fear her. He regretted feeling unsafe in her presence on the day of the mission, but she was acting completely remorseless. He knew better than to assume she would turn on him though. He trusted Zariah more than to belittle her like that.

What he did know was that so far, this was the biggest and only real clue he had about Zariah's mysterious past. However, her actions during the mission had left him with more questions than answers. Aiden didn't know what she was doing here, or why General Xylem cared about her enough to violate one of the three unbreakable laws of the Program, but he had confirmed that Zariah was an extremely valuable asset; to him, to the Program, to Second Unit, and to their group of friends. She'd proven herself many times over, saving Aiden's life on more than a few occasions now. He owed her that much. A sudden thought crossed his mind. Aiden wasn't even sure if Zariah would be willing to return to the cities, after all that had happened. He immediately knew that Theo, Jayda and Rania would be furious about their lock down, but Aiden figured they wouldn't be too angry if they could enjoy each others' company for a while. Theo and Jayda had barely gotten any time to spend with each other after Jayda returned from her mission, and Rania rarely had any downtime these days. At the same time though, Aiden knew that all three of them would want to be right there next to him, Virgil and Zariah, helping the victims of the air strike. He felt mostly sorry for Rania, who had really suffered the blunt of the punishment from their mission. He felt a twinge of guilt, and as much as he expected to feel attraction there too, to his surprise, there was nothing. That just confused him even more.

Veering left down the hallway, Aiden approached the entrance to Zariah's bunk and knocked three times. The metal made a dense rumbling sound, and it felt smooth against his knuckles, which were bruised from fighting the members of Phantom. He quickly withdrew his hand from the door and waited, rubbing his tender hands. Ten, twenty, thirty seconds went by.

"Come in." Zariah's voice sounded tired from inside her bunk.

The metal door slid open and Aiden stepped inside. Zariah looked especially pretty today, with her hair swept back into a partially braided ponytail. She was sitting on her bed, wearing a fitted gray t-shirt and relaxed combat pants, her dog tag wrapped around her neck in its usual fashion. Her combat boots were tucked under her bed, ready to be put on in a single moment's notice. Aiden did the same thing with his shoes in his own bunk. If the Program had taught him anything, it was to be prepared for absolutely every emergency that could occur at any given time. Part of him was happy that he wasn't crazy, especially if Zariah did the same thing.

"Hey," Aiden greeted her. "How are you holding up?

"I'm good," Zariah replied. "A little tired, but good."

"Didn't sleep well?" Aiden guessed. "Same thing with me."

Zariah nodded very slowly, her eyes fixated on a spot by the wall where Aiden couldn't see. An uneaten slice of bread remained untouched on a nearby table. Zariah's bunk was an exact replica of his, so there wasn't much in it that he didn't already know the location of. He pulled up a chair by the door, positioning it across from her and taking a seat.

"Xylem has deployed Virgil and I out into the four cities to join a rehabilitation team," Aiden explained. "He's allowing you to come with us, but only on a volunteer basis. You don't have to go if you don't want to, I just thought I should ask anyways."