UPRISE

025

 "He's just unconscious," Harper assures them.

Corbin decides to lift Edison off the ground. Wren finally slips away from Reagan to support the weight. Corbin nods a quick thank you, before turning to Harper. "Where to now? The Complex is shut down."

"He's a gold," Noah explains. "His wrist is painted."

Because the already stale air seems to grow heavier on their shoulders, Wren is the only one able to move. He takes Edison's wrist and inspects it. Indeed, it glows gold beneath the layer of red paint. "Let's try the black gates."

"Will we even be able to get in there?" Harper asks. "I mean... he's a Gold. Are you sure he's a Gold?"

Jasmine finally walks over. It feels weird to touch Edison's hand, knowing that her band puts them at opposite ends of a hierarchy. Surprisingly, she is fine to be at the bottom. "I mean, it makes sense. That's probably why he was able to adjust Wren's band, right?"

"You're the luckiest asshole there ever was," Pluto jokes, nearly adding a joke about how he won Jasmine too, but it's too soon, she decides.

"Maybe he can help Jasmine too!" Rinn begins. "If he can lift Wren, then he can do the same for her, and she can go back to being a Red. Maybe he can lift all the Clears out of poverty."

Corbin sighs because everyone is getting ahead of themselves. He locks eyes with Viola, who simply shrugs at him, a smirk stretched between her cheeks.

"Let's first just try to get in the gates, and we will go from there," Corbin says.

Wren begins to lead the way. After all, he has spent enough time on the roof to memorize the layout of their small town, so he knows exactly where the Golds are rumoured to live. As he walks, he looks back at Reagan, and offers a small smile.

Reagan doesn't notice that when Wren looks at him, he stops trying to get their breaths to sync. After all, just a glance from him is enough to consume his whole world. Maybe Reagan is falling in to quickly, which he might definitely be doing. However, it doesn't matter to him.

While they walk to the black fence, Noah and Jasmine hold hands.

Finally, they arrive. Wren taps Edison's wrist against the screen, and a message pops up. The white text on the blue background is much more polite than anything the others are greeted with.

Welcome back Master Edison.

Château Darby

Tap in a guest (Unlimited)

Tap up a resident (2/3 remain)

Before anyone else can look, Corbin shrugs off Edison. He taps the guest button eight times, before turning around. "I can't feel my shoulder anymore. Can someone else take him?"

Though Harper is suspicious, he pulls himself up before Jasmine can step in. His eyes scan Corbin, and he decides the pair will discuss it later.

Corbin, simply, is trying not to start a fight now.

They walk up. The first house they pass is a massive mansion. It's made of red brick with vaulted ceilings. At the end of its driveway, they notice the inscription for the Château does not belong to Mr. Edison Darby.

While the others continue walking, Viola stares up. She has never seen anything so massive. It could easily house twenty people, if not more. Though she has managed to sneak into the parties of the wealth before by batting her eyelashes and throwing a quick smile, she has never seen anything quite like this. A light flicks on, and so she jogs away.