The capital building stood confidently across the street. It was a few stories high with a wide base on the bottom. Several windows covered the white walls, and a large domed steeple topped it off. It gave off an intimidating aura, and I tried not to let it get to my head. This was the next phase of our adventure, and I had no idea what was to be expected. Would we be successful, or will someone or something prevent us from achieving our goals? 

Emily nudged my arm, snapping me out of my thoughts. "Staring at the building won't make it disappear any faster, or change whatever you have in mind. We're going to have to go in and get it ourselves." 

"You're right. I'm sorry," I nodded, pursing my lips and tearing my eyes away from the steeple. "Something about it seems so mesmerizing. I can't tell you what it is, but..." 

Trailing off, Emily placed a reassuring hand on my shoulder and looked at me reassuringly. "Relax. As long as we work together, we'll be fine. I know it's hard to put those words to use, but you need to listen and trust me. Xavian, too." 

"Okay," I responded, not realizing how anxious I was when I sighed. It was like she could see right through me. It was scarily accurate. "I'm sorry. I'll try to be better." 

She frowned and squeezed my shoulder. "Stop being so apologetic. I don't need an apology. Just take a deep breath and charge through the wall ahead of us." 

"Hey! Check this out!" Xavian exclaimed as I turned my attention to him. He was pointing toward the front entrance. "There's a sign in front of the doors. They're giving out tours of the building. Should we do it?" 

Emily and I exchanged a glance before I nodded. "I don't see why not." 

She wore a doubtful expression. "It seems awfully convenient, don't you think? Why would they want to give out tours of a government building?" 

I understood her logic, and Xavian made a thoughtful noise. "I remember a friend of mine who went on a field trip here and met a lot of the important government bodies. That's probably what's going on." 

He still seemed doubtful, but it was the only explanation he could come up with. It still didn't explain why they were publicizing tours, especially during the peak of a war. Was it a good idea to sign up for the tour? 

Pursing my lips, I faced my friends. "Let's do it. Emily, if you can use the vision that allows you to see the flames, that would help tremendously. I know we don't understand the true meaning of it, but something is better than nothing. We need to stay on guard and keep our eyes open for anything unusual."

"Why are we being so hesitant about this?" Xavian questioned, raising his hands in confusion. "It's just a tour, isn't it?" 

Emily nodded. "You're right. I'm overthinking more than necessary. I'm sorry." 

"No, don't be sorry," I reassured. "I'd rather you overthink and bring something to our attention than keep your mouth shut and have something happen that we're not ready for. The best thing we can do is be on guard and stay on our toes. Agreed?" 

The two nodded. Xavian put a comforting hand on my shoulder. "We got your back, Eli." 

"Yeah," Emily added with a small smile. "We have each other's backs. Go big or go home, right? How else are we going to know where to go after breaking into such a big building?" 

I internally admitted that she was right. We'd be blindly wandering if we didn't take this opportunity to get an idea of the blueprints of the capital building. Even though the fear of danger was strong, I had to overcome my anxiety and take the first step forward. That started with signing up for the tour. 

"Well, what are we waiting for?" I asked the group. "Let's go on a tour!" 

"Yeah!" Xavian exclaimed loudly, pumping his fist in the air. After seeing that we didn't react as he did, he hesitantly lowered it. "Oh, too much? My bad." 

Rolling my eyes, I threw my fist in the air and shouted, earning confused looks from a few strangers. "YEAH!" 

Emily and Xavian joined me, giving my mind some reassurance that everything would be okay. We laughed momentarily before Xavian cleared his throat and motioned across the street to the building.

"Shall we?" 

I bowed my head and spoke in a foreign accent. "I believe we shall." 

We walked across the street and made our way to the front entrance. Stopping short of the doors, I sighed and eyed them. "It's not too late to turn around." 

"I know, but we need to do this," Emily stated with a twitch of her lip. "We can leave if we get a bad feeling." 

I slowly nodded and put my hand on the handle. "Here goes nothing." 

After walking through two sets of doors, a large lobby with a receptionist desk was what we were greeted to. The walls were golden with multiple sofas and leather chairs sitting against them on the left side of the room. There was also an ample-sized TV that was currently displaying the news. Under it was a coffee maker sitting on a table that had a quarter-full pot sitting in it.

"Wow," I mumbled. "This isn't what I was expecting." 

"Yeah," Emily muttered beside me. "I didn't know a government establishment could be so...pretty." 

Meanwhile, the receptionist looked up from her desk and noticed us. She frowned. "Are you here for the tour, or do you have an appointment with someone?" 

"Oh, uh, we're here for the tour," I answered nervously as we stepped closer to the desk. 

The lady shuffled through a few papers until she found the desired folder. She looked up at us after glancing through it, and there was a noticeable glint in her eyes. What was she thinking about? 

"Right this way." 

Standing up, she motioned us toward the area of the room with the sofas and chairs. We followed her and sat down. 

"I just need a little information from the three of you if that's okay." 

We glanced at each other before I subtly nodded. "Sure." 

"My name is Nicole, by the way," she said with a hand on her chest. "I'm the receptionist and one of the secretaries here. I'll also be your tour guide. I need your name and birthday for right now."

"Elijah Bell," I started, and Nicole started writing in her folder. Her dark brown hair slipped over her shoulder. "February twenty-sixth." 

She looked up, ready for the next person. Emily cleared her throat. "Emily Jackson. March fourth." 

"Xavian Murdock. June twelfth." 

Nicole noticeably furrowed her eyebrows but kept her composure. After a few seconds, she swiftly stood up and put on a smile. "Alright! Let me run these through the system and we'll get started as soon as I'm finished." 

 "Sounds good," Emily said with a kind smile.

Just before Nicole left the room, the front doors opened and revealed what looked to be a mother that looked to be in her late twenties and a son who was no more than eight years old. The boy looked very excited as he looked around in awe. 

"Look at the walls, Mom!" 

The mom smiled at him. "I know. They're so pretty."

Nicole stopped in the middle of the lobby and faced the mother and child. "Are you two here for the tour?" 

"Yes, yes!" the boy jumped up and down enthusiastically. "I want to meet the Supreme Leader!" 

The mother patiently smiled at her son. "I told you there was no guarantee that we'd meet him. We'll have to wait and see." 

The boy momentarily looked downcast. Nicole came over and crouched down to his level. "I'm sure if I talk to him, he'll try his best to come and meet you. How does that sound?" 

It wasn't his original excitement, but the boy's spirits lifted. "That sounds good." 

Nicole checked them in and excused herself from the room, telling us she'd return in a few minutes. I checked out the lobby and tested how warm the coffee was and to my surprise, it felt freshly brewed. Watching the TV, Emily sidled next to me and whispered. 

"What do you think of Nicole?" 

I glanced at her. "I don't know. Why do you ask?" 

She hesitated before answering. "She seems off to me. I can't explain why, but it's giving me a strange feeling. Maybe it's the way she's talked to us." 

"Do you want to leave?" 

My question took her off-guard. She looked at me with surprise before turning back to the TV. "N-No, not really. I know this is something we have to do. I'm just nervous." 

"I understand," I reassured. "So am I. As long as we stay together, we'll be okay. Nothing about Nicole has struck me as unusual, but I'll help you keep an eye on her." 

Her shoulders relaxed. Emily looked at me with eyes that made a blush form on my cheeks. "Thanks for listening, Eli." 

"O-Of course," I stammered. 

Nicole returned shortly after, standing in front of the hallway. "Alright, we'll begin the tour down this hallway." 

We, along with the mother and son, joined her as she began to walk down the hallway. Nicole explained some basic historical facts about when the building was built and a few past predecessors that played a big role in the construction and management office. The little boy, for some odd reason, was very fascinated by this. Did he even understand anything she was saying? 

After showing us a few offices, we met a few of the nation's representatives. Getting to talk to them gave me some insight into who was truly behind the scenes when it came to our government and who executed the orders given by our Supreme Leader. They were all kind people up front, but it was clear that they were stressed beyond limits. It was like they had to put on a mask for the public. 

The little boy had the time of his life. He got to ask almost whatever question he wanted, and the rest of us enjoyed the core memories being created. One of the questions stood out, though. It was when we were talking to a person who directed a lot of the military and weaponry. 

"What will it be like once the war is over?" 

The man crouched down to his level and spoke firmly. "I don't know. In the twenty-two years I've been in office, my entire career has been nothing but dealing with the stress of this war, and let me tell you..." 

He leaned in and lowered his voice. "You do not want this kind of stress unless you are incredibly good at dealing with it. I'm not saying you can't do it, but I cannot tell you anyone else who doesn't work in this building that can. This is what I have to deal with, so imagine what the Supreme Leader is like." 

Standing back up, the kid looked a bit surprised, but he put on a brave face. "I'm going to do the best I can." 

"That's all that we can ask of you," he said, giving him an encouraging pat on the back. "Have the best grades in your class until you graduate university, and take good care of your mother, alright?" 

He looked at his mom with a big smile. "I can do that." 

"Then you'll be just fine." 

After getting to know a couple more political celebrities, it was time we returned to the lobby. I got a rough idea of how the building was constructed, but there was still a large percentage that went undiscovered, including the lower levels. From what I could tell, the first floor was largely open to the public, so I doubted anything was that important. The upper levels consisted of almost all of the offices. 

The closest thing we saw to the lower floors was the winding staircase and elevators. That had to be where we needed to go. The only concern was that we had no idea what was down there.

------------------------------

After seeing them out, Nicole returned to her desk. She gathered the folders from earlier and started to make her way down the hallway. Her mind was busy considering the possibility of the high schoolers being the ones the Supreme Leader issued an order to look out for. What would happen if they were the ones? 

She opened the folder. "Elijah Bell, Emily Jackson, Xavian Murdock. That has to be them. Damn it." 

Nicole entered the elevator and pressed the second-floor button. It dinged before it opened the door. She briskly walked down a couple of hallways before coming to the last door at the end. Knocking profusely, an irritated voice could be heard from the other side. 

"Who's bothering me!?"

"Your receptionist, sir! You may want to see this!" 

A few silent seconds passed before the door opened. General Murray scanned her before moving out of the way. Nervousness rose in her body as Hayward sat at his desk, typing away at his computer. Nicole stepped forward and bowed, anxiously waiting for him to finish.

He eventually looked up. "What's so important that you decided to barge in here?" 

"I believe that the high schoolers you're looking for took the tour you chose to initiate," she responded. "I have the folder with me." 

Hayward's eyes lit up before furrowing his eyebrows. "You best not be lying to me." 

"I-I don't know for sure if it's them," Nicole answered, trying to control her fear. "I'd rather be safe than sorry. Do you wish to see the folder, sir?" 

He nodded and extended his hand. Nicole stepped forward to place the folder in his hand and took a few steps back. Hayward scanned the folder, a smile growing on his face. 

"Well done. Nicole, right?" 

Hope grew throughout her body. "Yes, sir." 

"These are more than just high schoolers, Nicole," Hayward explained. "Elijah Bell is Subject Alpha and Emily Jackson is Subject Iota." 

Nicole's eyes widened. "O-Oh. I see." 

He nodded and extended his arms. "This is great news! Instead of having to go on a manhunt, they played my game and fell right into my arms." 

General Murray stepped forward. "What do you suggest we do, sir?" 

Hayward stood up and rubbed his hands. "Oh, this is wonderful. I can picture it. I can envision my soldiers, each with their unique powers, all on the battlefield giving Hevastwa what they deserve. This is wonderful!" 

Nicole and Murray stayed quiet, waiting for the Supreme Leader to answer the question at hand. He slowly paced the room in thought. "Follow them closely and initiate phase two of Project Next Gen. Do whatever is necessary to maintain our cover." 

"Yes, sir," Murray bowed. 

"Don't disappoint me. Dismissed."

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