The Unnamed | The Unnamed Duology Book 1

12: One

"We were informed about this place earlier by one of our sources. Came down to check it out, is all. You found nothing?" A voice says, the Runner recognizing it as the Elite Leader.

The Runner feels all of the blood drain from his face. He's the source.

"Come on," Two whispers and takes off down the tunnel to the World. He stops at the entrance and touches the black bricks that make up the walls. Three of the bricks scoot back noisily, and three walls slide down from the ceiling, cutting the Runner and Two off from the black square room as they squat in the tunnel that leads back to the World.

"We need to find One. Now."

"Who's One?" The Runner whispers back. Two looks at him in the dim lighting of the hallway and then rushes past him without responding.

The Runner glances back once more at the door that cut them off from the voices before running after Two. Had Mortimer the Elite Solver told the Leader about the map the Runner had drawn? He had asked him not to tell anyone, not until...

The Runner groans as he rounds a corner with Two. Eventually, they reach the Runner's Building and they burst through the door located in the basement where everyone sleeps. It's hidden behind the bed closest to the back wall and the color helps it blend in with the rest of the gray walls, making it even harder to notice.

He follows Two up into the main part of the building where the Runners do their warm-ups and their self-training, and out into the society. Everyone seems so busy, what with everyone rushing back and forth for training and to fulfill their Master's wishes. The Runner wonders if the Elite Solver wishes he were there to run his errands for him.

They take a hard left and run toward the Leader's Building. Two opens the door hastily and barges in. There are only three people in the room, despite the twenty round tables scatted inside its four walls. Two boys and one girl are sitting at the table halfway across the room, each glancing up from their paper pads and documents.

"One," Two says abruptly, breathing hard. "We have a problem."

The three of them look back and forth at each other, as if pondering if one should respond. The girl clears her throat and stands up, flattening out her red pencil skirt and matching blazer with the Leader's emblem on the back of it, a black circle with a red silhouette of a man on it.

"Alright," she says calmly, but her eyes reflect something like worry as she walks toward the boys standing in the doorway. "Follow me."

One walks down the stairs to their basement, the same arrangement as the Runner and Builder's Building. She sits on the bottom bunk of the bed farthest away from the stairs and laces her fingers together. The Runner and Two sit in the one opposite of her, Two's face hard and like a statue.

"Someone is down there," he says quietly. At this, One's eyes widen and she looks down and swallows spit in her mouth, nodding. "I don't know who, but someone is. Someone ratted us out, and now we gotta hide."

"No," One says, her eyes sharp and focused on Two like an eagle that has spotted its prey. "No. No more hiding. This Competition, we're going all out."

"But they know where we are now—"

"Did you close off the tunnels?"

"Yes, but—"

"Then good. Where is everyone else?" She asks, her back straight and her blue eyes focused on Two's.

"I don't know," Two says. "I think they might have used the back escape route. That, or they took off down the tunnels, which is highly unlikely because they know better than to leave them open. It didn't seem like the intruders found anyone."

One nods, keeping her eyes on Two still. "We'll hide out in the tunnels since they're closed off and we'll stay quiet. Make sure, if you find the rest, that they know that. I need absolute silence down there. And on the surface, we'll have to settle down and stop recruiting people for the time being. Give it ten days. After that, we can start it up again, but we'll only have about five more to actually recruit before the cut off. After that, we'll need to condition the new Unnamed troops and get them ready for the Competitions."

Two nods. "Yes ma'am."

One brushes her long black hair over her shoulder and finally looks at the Runner. "Who is this?"

"A new recruit. Three took him down there and told him stuff, and I was gonna take him down and help answer some questions and start conditioning him, and that's when we heard the voices in the tunnel."

One nods and purses her lips. Her bangs hang just below her eyebrows, making her blue eyes pop. "What tests did he give you?"

Two looks at the Runner expectantly.

"He made me run while he held a gun up to me and shot at me," the Runner nearly laughs at how ridiculous it was. "And then he had me race Stark—"

"Did you win?" One asks with a slight sparkle of excitement in her eyes that doesn't trickle down into her sharp voice.

The Runner nods.

"Good. You're one of the only ones. Actually, the only one..." she seems to ponder this for a moment, biting her cheek before sitting straight again and looking the Runner head-on. "Anything else?"

"He made me lie to the guards to get to the Unnamed territory."

"And I take it you managed to do that successfully, considering he took you down there," she says, and the Runner nods again. "Alright then. Two, head out and find the rest of the Unnamed and tell them what I told you today. Runner, go back to your Master and train. I will send Three to find you if there is any news, or if I need you to train a certain way. I promise that they will help you with the Competitions. Just... don't throw the stupid race like Stark did. I told him it wasn't a good idea, that it would just raise suspicion... and now look at us. People infiltrating our home..." she sighs and places her hands back over her crossed legs. "You two are dismissed. I will see you in ten day's time."

With that, she stands and waits for the boys to head up the stairs.