The Library

Chapter Four

Come third lesson, everyone had re-congregated in the library, bar Poppy, Ken and Sofia.

"Libby, how did the testing go?" Mrs Li asked, getting straight to the point.

"Oh, um, er..." Libby starting stuttering, unsure of how to explain that they had not run the tests. However, she hadn't gotten far, when Dewey butted in.

"The tests were nor performed, as two people are required to be conscious at all times to monitor the equipment. However, changes were made to the blue prints for the external casing of the hoverbot, which should ensure that the beam is focussed and does not get false readings off of scattered particles." On hearing what Dewey said, everyone looked surprised, apart from Joel, whose face broke into a huge grin, before he picked up Rosie and spun her round.

"How do you know that? Sofia wouldn't even let me monitor her lab!" Eli exclaimed, put out that he had been denied something which had instead been given to an AI. "I trusted you Dewey, and you betrayed me," he declared dramatically, "we are no longer speaking!" Dewey ignored him.

"Wait, wait, wait," Joel declared, "if Libby was awake, that means Ken and Sofia were asleep. And there is only one bed down there."

"Your deduction is indeed correct Agent Connors. I have video footage from the lab if you would like to see it. Oh, and Eli? Sofia does not know I have access to her private system in her lab," Dewey explained, monotonous throughout.

"Ye-," Joel started to say, but Mrs Li interrupted.

"No, we do not, thank you Dewey. I will need to talk to you later. As you haven't done the tests, maybe we should move upstairs before continuing." Recognising that the last part was not a question, everyone got up, resulting in the usual jam in the cloakroom as everyone tried to scramble through the small gap behind the lockers.

After about five minutes, everyone managed to get up the staircase and was sitting around the table, Rosie perched on Joel's lap in the corner, bandaged arm resting gently on the table.

"Anne, have you completed the psycho-analytic profile of the man who ordered the hit?" Mrs Li asked.

"Yes, but there really is not a lot to go on. He clearly believes himself superior, or he would not have risked so much over a little wound, so a basic superiority complex seems quite likely. This is made more likely by the simple fact that he is a leader, or at least a high ranking member, of LEAF. From the basic description M-maria gave us, we have been able to gather that he is quite young, possibly younger than we expected, around the same age as Greg," Anne explained.

"Good, put that on the system in his file. Talking of Greg, we received a report this morning. As you have possibly heard, a student was knocked down on the ring road. Or that is what was reported in the news. The student was Greg, and he is currently in critical condition in hospital. The family has been told it was a drive-by shooting. However, one of our old cameras caught the shooting. The police don't have access to it, as it was one of the old cameras set up to monitor the perimeter of the town near the then secondary school." Turning, she clapped her hands together. The lights dimmed, and a projected display came up on the large wall.

The image was slightly grainy, as the camera hadn't been updated since the original Library project had been disbanded in the mid-nineties. It showed an adolescent bearing a resemblance to Greg, and a tall man, around 6'2", with dark curly hair, dressed in chinos and a shirt. The man was standing around as the adolescent approached, failing to look inconspicuous. The adolescent walked up to the man and started conversing with him. The argument seemed to get quite heated, the man turning away from the camera, before shooting the adolescent in the stomach twice, and leaving quickly in a dark green car. As they pulled away, the screen went out, and the lights came back on.

"That was not what was expected," Eli commented, a slight scowl still on his face. Before anyone else could speak, an alarm went off, alerting them that there were five minutes until lunch began. Filing back out of the room and down the staircase, they only just made it back before the door to the library opened. Holding their breaths for a moment, they realised it looked suspicious that they were all in the cloakroom including Mrs Rogers and Mrs Libra. When one sensible-shoed foot after another appeared, they were all relieved to realise it was only Poppy.

"Okay everyone, you all need to go and get lunch. Shoo, eat, and go fool everyone into thinking you are just regular students. Or as regular as you lot can get," Mrs Li chastised, pushing through the group to her desk. Bidding her fairwell, they all left but Mrs Rogers and Poppy.

"Would you like me to pick you up a sandwich Sarah?" Mrs Rogers asked, approaching the desk. Leaning forward and resting her head in her hands, Mrs Li exhaled loudly.

"That would me great Hazel. Just the usual please."

"Sure. Be back in a tick. Bye Poppy."

"Bye Mrs Rogers," Poppy replied as Mrs Rogers left, headed for the canteen.

Once she had left, Mrs Li turned to Poppy.

"Okay, so we need to be getting on with the new recruits. There are some which looked promising, but I would like your take on them, as you are the one they sit with."

"I assume you're talking about Anya, Vash and Ali?"

"Yes, as well as Joel's brother, Timothy. First, what are your thoughts on him?" Poppy spun, sitting sideways one her chair to she could face Mrs Li.

"Timmy is nice enough, and is in here enough, but I found him a little rude to be honest. He seems more interested in just using the library for homework and leaving. Also, I don't think Joel would particularly appreciate Tim being part of the Library, both from brotherly concern, and the fact that they can rub each other up the wrong way sometimes," Poppy expressed, eye-brows creased.

"Okay, all valid concerns, and I have to agree with you on that. Timothy also did not seem particularly pleased to find that his brother was in here. Okay, how about Anya and Vash?"

"They are both in here a lot, they are certainly perceptive enough, and I think they would blend in really well with the rest of the group. Vash has his odd habits, such as walking all the way around for his book, and Anya has a different way of thinking which is oddly linked to Anya's. However, I would express concern with their abilities of time keeping, though I just may need to replace my watch."

"Okay, so those two are good, but what about Ali?"

"She is just the sort if person we are looking for. She is strong-willed and bright, but has the ability to seamlessly blend into a crowd. With a bit of the right training, she would fill the gap of skills on the team since, well, you know." Mrs Li nodded at the bit, an expression of slightly pained understanding on her face.

Just then, the door burst open, Sofia and Ken chatting animatedly as the bounced into the library.

"Hey Mrs Li, Hey Poppy, we're just going to work on Eli's new surprise, so if you need us, we will be down in the lab," Ken said, as Sofia typed in the lines of code, before they disappeared into the lab. Once they had gone, Mrs Li looked back around, only to find that Poppy had disappeared, probably off to eat her lunch. Shaking her head slightly at her agents's antics, she busied herself in librarian work, waiting for the return of Mrs Rogers, and lunch.