Dealing with two comms in his ears was hard. He had to be careful of which line to connect to else he'd be betraying two halves of his life to each other. This was more complicated than having an affair.

The counter was underway for the last twenty minutes, showing no sign of stopping. By his calculations, the alarms have been going longer and longer. From his recent hacking escapade, those from the top deemed it necessary to extend the time when bloodshed was possible. Whoever they were, they aimed to finish the Game faster before he could crawl his way up to them.

They knew all about his attempts at unlocking the rest of his chip and several others. He hadn't been subtle with that. But with all the meticulous effort of locking hundreds of barely-legal kids inside an abandoned property, he assumed they'd be more sensitive with his proddings. If they were truly observing from the cosmic folds of reality, they wouldn't have tolerated his presence. They would have torched him the moment he stumbled across the locked rooms in search of the black books.

With his presence intact, the only conclusion to reach was that they put him here for a reason. For a sole purpose he had yet to discover. What could it be? Proving how someone with no ability could survive in a room full of the powerful? Lucky them, he had dragged this contained experiment longer than necessary. He had no intention of making it easy for them. Must be nice, playing gods despite being the puniest mortals.

They couldn't even face their creation nor live in the same environment with them.

The comms in his right ear crackled. "Status on Karrel?" Five's breathy voice rasped from the other side. "Quota is done."

While walking towards Section R's headquarters, Thirteen whipped out the portable screen and swiped in calculated moves to bring up locations of Section H's members. "Somewhere near Section Y. We can cross that one off our list. They only have five people left anyway."

"Permission to go after the next one?" Five asked. "Until which line?"

Thirteen checked the pins on active chips, counting under his breath. His steps kept getting in the way, synchronizing with his count. He cursed. He'd deal with the numbers later. Just give Five what she wanted. "Permission granted until two sections," he said. "Don't get greedy."

Five scoffed. "We save everyone, remember?" she said. "I'll take care of them."

Thirteen flipped the comms off and tuned into the other one. "Slate, Flint, status on Section R?" he asked.

The other line creaked. "1,2-west from Section H's HQ," Slate answered. "It seems they thought it's better to defect to Karrel's side."

As was the norm within the other sections. The remaining ones have three choices—go to Section H and cling to them for hope, help Section M and deal with its idiosyncratic leader, or stand on their own against two prominent sections and lose. Section R was smart for choosing Karrel.

"Move them farther," Thirteen replied. "I'll find you."

A round of scuffles rang from the other side. Someone grunted, while others screamed. How many people were there? He picked up his pace, shutting the line for a moment. Five's line on his other ear replaced the silence immediately. "Where is Karrel?" she asked.

Thirteen's lips perked at that question. "A little paranoid, are we?" he said. "Relax. She's too far to reach you. So are her goons. Two of them are still at HQ. If she attempts something again, I can just kill those two to get even."

Whether Five was spooked by how easily he blurted that out or not, she didn't show it. "Are you still at the command center?" she asked. "Why can I hear the wind from your side?"

He considered lying or spouting nonsense. Instead, he answered, "I am where I'm needed."

Five seemed to have tuned in because the journey towards a new base bored her. When her line clicked shut without giving him a sign whether she heard his answer or not, he assumed she and the unit arrived and about to taste some action. Well, he should also be a few moments from now. He could see the faint flicker of Flint's illusion in the distance.

Having interviewed the boy to an extensive degree, Thirteen concluded Flint's ability relied on individual perception more than bending light waves. The latter would be more of Jason's ability, and Thirteen didn't want anything to do with that. There were some blessed with natural talent, and others, well...had that.

Thirteen trained himself to look for the signs of Flint's ability activated on a space. The first one would be the false flickers, small spots where the fabric of reality and a person's perception met or diverged. The second one was the wave of nausea creeping at the back of his head upon seeing the rippling streaks of light. When the nausea increased, he was inside Flint's conjured illusion.

It was a handy ability, especially when the boy knew how to use it in ways surprising even Thirteen. How Karrel was able to defeat his section when they had him showed their leader's lack of skills.

Flint stood in the center of his illusion together with Slate. Both of them braced their hips with their hands. "I see what you win, but you really shouldn't be trying to merge with Section H," Flint was saying when Thirteen caught up with them. "You'll get in the crossfire with them and Section M. I would advise you to do what we did."

"There's no need for convincing, Flint," Thirteen said. All heads snapped to him. Slate and Flint's faces eased into a slight comfort. The two people kneeling before them stared up at him with bewildered expressions. "I know what they want."

"Who the hell are you?" the left one snapped. A girl. That would be Berry, the one who could manipulate darkness. The one beside her must be Chico, the one who could duplicate himself into several incorporeal copies.

Thirteen stepped between Slate and Flint who moved aside to give him some berth. He crouched in front of her. "Let's just say I'm a scout for Section M," he said. "Our leader has an interest in the both of you."

"We're joining Section H," Chico spat. "In case you're not aware, Section M killed our friends."

Thirteen knew. He gave the order himself. "I'm amazed at how you think you still have a choice in this situation." He pointed in the vague direction of Section H's headquarters. "There are two people inside there right now. If I kill them and blame it on you, who do you think Karrel would go after?"

Chico's eyes widened. "You wouldn't dare—"

"Oh, I would," Thirteen interjected before another false claim got thrown into his face. "I am perfectly capable."

"She would know it was you. She's not stupid," Berry said. She believed in that conviction so hard it made Thirteen want to roll his eyes. "Why would we try to harm someone from the section we wanted to join?"

"Then what are you doing near their headquarters while a counter is underway?" Thirteen leaned back, driving his point home. It was too easy finding fault in an innocent gesture if he framed it that way. "I have cards under my sleeve to pull layers upon layers of deception."

He snapped his fingers. As if Slate understood, her ability flashed in her eyes and her skin rippled until a copy of Chico stood in front of the original. One glance at Flint, and understanding passed between them. The illusion shifted to show Berry in Flint's place.

Thirteen turned back to the two shocked originals. "Your abilities are useful to my plan, so if you pledge to join me, you will not die," he said. "Nobody needs to die, and no crimes need to be committed. How about that?

Chico and Berry exchanged glances. "What do we have to do?" Chico asked, his blond hair bouncing against his forehead when he turned to Thirteen. "What can you promise us that Karrel can't do?"

Thirteen pointed a gun at them. The cartridge was empty, but it did the trick. Fear glinted in their eyes and froze them in place. "I can always kill you here. The only way out is to do as I say," he said. "You can try to run. You can try to use your ability on me. Maybe you'll find yourself at the end of Karrel's sword sooner than later."

"And I lied earlier. Sorry." He shrugged, keeping his shoulders tense but his tone nonchalant. "You have a choice, but you don't have a surplus of smart ones."

To force people to make the choice he wanted them to make, he twisted their minds around the truth that they have to make one in the first place. Human minds, no matter how much the Founding Chip had altered them, were ever the same.

"We'll join you," Berry said. "What are we doing?"

Thirteen withdrew his gun and dug two more comms from his pockets. "Keep all ears open from when I call," he said. "I suppose the next counter would be probable."

The illusion melted around them, showing Thirteen where they really stood. It was a barren park full of chipped cobblestones, dented benches made from twisted wire, and wildlife slowly devouring human legacy.

He straightened and retreated from the new sleeper unit he formed. Four people should be good. Five's line fizzled, and her voice bled through his ears. "Mission complete," she said. "Permission to move to the next?"

Thirteen glanced at his watch. Still five minutes left. This was the longest counter they were given, and Karrel didn't show up. What was she doing? Probably the same thing he was. Too many sides in this war would be harder to navigate. Alliances would need to be formed and broken. Sabotaged and stolen. He already had what he wanted. This time, he'd let Karrel have her fun building her army.

"Head back," Thirteen answered. "Counter finishes in five."

Five was miffed, judging from the near-silent huff that rang from the other side. He had to say, though—she had gotten good at masking them from him.