The Spectre

Chapter Thirteen

Jez was suddenly shaken awake, and he looked around for several seconds before seeing a Zodiac Soldier standing before him, mouth covered by his mask. "The General wishes to see you in his office," the Zodiac said, and Jez nodded, standing, stretching, and following the Zodiac through the prison before finally arriving at the gate, which slid open, and he still followed the Zodiac away. "Don't even think about trying to escape," the Zodiac said as Jez's eyes wondered to the surrounding Black Forest, and the Zodiac did not wait before saying, "If you even try to assault me and flee, we have strict orders to execute a few Spectres. Starting with your friend...Rose." Jez's shoulders slumped, and he banished the thought from his head as quickly as it had come. "I will take him," a voice said, and the two of them turned to find the Kernel standing before them.

"I am under strict orders, sir. I will be the one taking him down," replied the Zodiac, standing his ground and glaring at the Kernel. Bang! The Zodiac fell to the side, a bullet hole in his head and the Kernel holstered his smoking pistol once more, grabbing Jez's arm firmly and dragging him along the path. "I wanted a word with you," the Kernel muttered as they strode forward, getting closer toward the school where Jez's fate awaited. "I know that your mother was murdered by Spectres, but why you decided to free them...that is beyond me." Another surge of anger ran through Jez, and he gently clenched his fists by his side, knowing that the Kernel was the one who had killed his mother. "So why don't you tell me why you got your friend killed just to save a few pathetic Spectres?"

Jez remained silent, not wanting to say anything to the Kernel, and the murderer chuckled, as though finding Jez's actions. "You are as stubborn as your mother was," he growled, and then they broke through the Black Forest, right next to the school. Jez felt the Kernel push him towards the double glass doors of the school, and Jez didn't need telling twice, striding into the school and marching through the empty hallways until, finally, coming to a stop inside his father's office. "Sit!" demanded the General, anger spilling from every word he said, and Jez did so, sitting in the brown leather chair in front of the General's desk. "Father, if you just let me explain," Jez began, but his father cut him off by slamming his fist against the desk angrily. "Zodiac people demand loyalty! I demand loyalty! That is the only thing you cannot give me, as you have shown!"

His father sat behind the desk, his fist red from punching the wooden desk, and Jez sat still, waiting for his father to continue. When nothing was said, Jez decided the time was right to speak. "Father, I was doing the right thing!" If anything, those words seemed to anger the General even more, "You think betraying my trust, attacking the Zodiac Soldiers and getting your friend killed was the right thing?" he yelled, and Jez did not have an answer to that. The General sighed and observed Jez, something like curiosity in his eyes. "The Kernel also tells me the Black Knight figured out what you were up to, so he went to confront you. Now, you would have thought the Black Knight would have been able to take you on and report you to me, but then we found him only this morning, locked in the storage section of the gym."

The General leaned forwards to be closer to Jez, staring into his son's eyes intently, and then he whispered, "You have grown strong and powerful, just like I knew you would. Your mother would be proud of you." That made Jez realise he had left out a crucial piece of information so, with a heavy heart, he murmured, "The Kernel killed mom." Now the General looked angry again, leaning back in his chair and glaring at Jez. "That's ridiculous. We do not have time to talk about conspiracy theories on how your mother died. She was killed by a Spectre and everyone knows it." The General stood, cracking his knuckles quickly and then staring down at Jez. "The United State Alliances are moving across the border and are about to engage in battle against our Army. I have to be on the front lines, and I want you to join me." Jez knew he really did not have a choice, so he nodded, stood, and followed his father from the room.