The Program [COMPLETED]

Chapter Twenty-Nine

"Hey, brother," Virgil greeted him with a smirk. "Nice face. Did you finally talk to Theo?"

"Not now," Aiden waved his hand dismissively. He looked at his friends with a serious gaze. "All of you, follow me. Now."

The three of them shared confused, fleeting glances before rising to their feet and chasing after Aiden, who had already bounded out of the dining hall in a rush of adrenaline.

"Aiden, slow down," Virgil prompted him. "You're going way too fast."

"I can't help it," Aiden seethed. "Pick up the pace. We've got to walk faster."

"The hell has gotten into you?" Zariah frowned.

"Aiden, what's going on?" Rania asked worriedly.

Virgil, Zariah and Rania all followed Aiden as he lead them down the hallway and towards his bunk. He opened the metal door with ease, ushering his friends inside.

After the four of them were securely in his bunk, he began tearing the place apart, looking for cameras and bugs. He cursed after his search yielded him with nothing.

"Fuck, fuck!" he swore. Virgil looked at him in concern.

"I think you've lost it, brother," he said cautiously. "What's this about?"

A sudden thought dawned on Aiden. He immediately paused, spinning towards his friends wildly. "It probably doesn't even matter if I tell you everything. You're all probably in the same circumstance."

"Aiden," Zariah snapped. "What's wrong? You dragged us all out of the dining hall like a mad man, and now you're acting paranoid."

"Xylem," Aiden explained breathlessly. "He just requested to speak with me. He said he was watching us. Unless I give him the data card that Agent Toryn had during the raid, he's going to kill each and every one of us."

"But you don't have the data card, do you?" Rania inquired.

"No," Aiden lied. "But that doesn't change the fact that all of us just became big walking targets. Xylem won't believe me, even if I'm telling the truth. At this point, he's just trying to get rid of us indefinitely. He's got to shut us up somehow. He probably knows we're having this conversation right now."

"Is anywhere safe?" Rania looked around with wide eyes. "What are we supposed to do?"

"I don't know," Aiden admitted. "I had to tell you guys. There's was no way I could hide it. He's seen everything."

"What has there been to see?" Virgil argued. "We're safe as long as we can't give him any means to kill us."

"He's going to kill us regardless," Zariah hissed. "Trust me, I know Dominic Xylem. He'll kill even without a purpose."

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" Virgil narrowed his eyes, glancing at Zariah pointedly. "Is there something you're not telling us?"

"There's plenty I haven't told you," Zariah retorted. "Only half of it matters right now."

"Get on with it, then," Virgil folded his arms across his chest. Rania peered at her uneasily, unsure of who to believe.

"What makes you think I'd be able to tell you? It's confidential for a reason," Zariah growled.

"It'd be a stupid call if you didn't tell us. How are you supposed to sway us to your side when we don't even know the full truth?" Rania pointed out. She gazed at Zariah distrustfully.

Zariah gave in. She sighed, nodding slightly. "Fine. You win."

In a brief summary, Zariah recounted all of her experiences with Xylem and the Other Worlders in Fifth Unit. Aiden noticed that she had left out a lot of details, but it wasn't his position to add continuations to her story. Besides, he understood that telling Virgil and Rania already came at a great personal risk. She didn't mention Rhys or any of the sacrifices she'd made along the way. She stuck with her blunt, straightforward explanation, true to Zariah's nature.