C0NV3RG3 (Sequel to M3RG3)

Chapter 4

Tuesday

Lyla

Merge. I typed the passcode into the Doctor's Tabloid. The locked screen vanished, and the home screen appeared. I was in.

I had no idea what I was looking for, but if this person had to keep some confidential information, anyone would hide it in the most secluded areas and bury it within dozens, if not hundreds, of files.

The model of this Tabloid was outdated and a bit glitchy. The recent models, mine included, could have a 'public' screen and a 'private' screen where we could hide certain documents, apps and tabs in the 'private' screen. However, I was certain that this model wasn't up to that task. Where would he be hiding his documents then?

The downloading feed? The same voice asked with uncertainty. This time, no pain came after the voice, there was only a tingling sensation.

I quickly sifted through his documents and found the ones in the downloaded file. As expected, there were well over a thousand documents crammed inside. It would take me ages to find that one document, much less muster the patience to do such a time-consuming task.

Fortunately, the Doctor was a very organized person. Within the downloaded file were more files, categorized into 'Republic notices', 'Medical department' and 'Republic documents'. When I clicked into it, the files led to more files, which led to even more files. If this Doctor was trying to agitate the intruder, it was definitely working. Clicking through fifteen files, five documents were lined up neatly, each one labelled 'Emergency notice' with a consecutive number typed next to it. When I opened the document, it seemed formal, nothing suspicious really. Still, wasn't that what all confidential documents looked like? I scrolled through it, reading the document from top to bottom.

Dear all,

There seems to be an infiltrate within the Republic headquarters. There has been a major information leak and massive use of propaganda from opposing parties. The major party comes from a supposedly defeated party many years ago: The Revolution.

If you spot any suspicious activity or misbehaving Republicans, please report to me at once.

That is all.

Head of the Merging Process,

William

The date was startlingly recent. This was only two and a half months ago, two weeks before the Merging Process. My fingers hovered on the Tabloid, about to exit the document, but something else, no, someone else stopped me from doing so.

Stop. The voice was stronger, but it still came as a plea. Don't you want to know about the Merging Process?

I instantly switched off the Tabloid, my head swivelling around before realizing that I was the only person in the room. "Who's there?" I whispered.

Nobody's there. The voice said. It's just you.

"Who are you?" I surveyed the room once more. No one was there.

It doesn't matter. The voice continued. What matters is that you figure out what happened to the Republic.

"This is ridiculous." I paced in my room. "I hear voices in my head, and they're telling me what to do. You don't exist." I mentally imagined squashing the voice like a bug, suppressing it so it would no longer control me.

No! You have to- The voice was gone, but I was far from reassured. Perhaps a good night's sleep would keep it away for now.

My instincts told me to bring the Doctor's Tabloid to Coding class. Maybe there was a shortcut to finding the documents about the Republic's history.