When the first bell rang at 7:23 a.m., girls loyal to the order froze mid-breakfast.92Please respect copyright.PENANA2RrsOJazCa
By the second bell — louder, longer — every corridor emptied into the courtyard.92Please respect copyright.PENANAfZLEhb27jS
Whispers flew faster than feet:92Please respect copyright.PENANAh0hDbFhrOq
“Tribunal.92Please respect copyright.PENANAOso9zpKDWE
“She’s calling names.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAKTsRIUa08Y
“Is it because of the video?”92Please respect copyright.PENANARIYfQQlwMW
“Did someone move the ledger?”92Please respect copyright.PENANACT7RfnRLzM
Inside the Assembly Hall, Naomi stood center-stage, hands behind her back.92Please respect copyright.PENANALpmdGw2kfF
Behind her: two senior prefects. To her right: Mary.92Please respect copyright.PENANA6qNdVBTHt7
To her left: the Order Ledger Book, unopened since Mercy’s fall.92Please respect copyright.PENANAqOFs00FFtJ
The girls filed in. No laughter. No chatter. Only breaths held under stiff collars.92Please respect copyright.PENANA449VJRwjST
Naomi’s voice echoed when she began:92Please respect copyright.PENANAmVwXLCQ4ZE
“There is a war over truth. Before we face it out there, We must decide who we are in here. I am calling an Order Tribunal.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAxupiKi9AdD
Gasps rippled through the room.92Please respect copyright.PENANAb0zo0fvDc9
“Each girl in this hall will have a choice: Recommit to the Order — or walk away.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAXT8BeHaQfl
A hand shot up. Seline. “What about those who were never in?”92Please respect copyright.PENANAyMWO9j6EFL
Naomi didn’t flinch.92Please respect copyright.PENANA7uIDPfwMkE
“Then decide who you’re standing beside now.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAd5uVWwwRqT
She pointed to the bell.92Please respect copyright.PENANAU8383LzvmX
“Step forward. Touch the bell. State your name. You’ll be marked ‘Known.’ Stay silent — and you’ll remain ‘Unlisted.’ Either way, we’ll all see who you are.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAiwJ9zvsdtg
The first girl — a Form 1, trembling — stepped up and touched the bell.92Please respect copyright.PENANAXaip6kwnni
“Amara Oketch,” she whispered. The bell rang once.92Please respect copyright.PENANADSzVKQhFEF
Another followed. Then another. Shiko, near the back, stayed seated, her eyes locked on Kim across the room. Seline stepped forward dramatically, hand brushing the bell with a smirk. “Seline Wanjiku. Still watching.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAvDJh1Z8Sna
Naomi’s expression never changed.92Please respect copyright.PENANAWQpGztpFsu
But inside, the ledger was already shifting — loyalty was becoming currency.92Please respect copyright.PENANAVSYfuPMwJG
Kim rose only when half the room had already gone forward. She walked slowly, eyes not on Naomi, but on Mary. She touched the bell.92Please respect copyright.PENANAIaI66XPjtu
“Kimberly Diana Otieno. I came to listen. Not to lie.”92Please respect copyright.PENANACrv4Nusl7W
The bell did not ring.92Please respect copyright.PENANA8SacFjIsbM
Mary frowned.92Please respect copyright.PENANAPKOmLeLqQ9
Naomi closed the ledger without writing.92Please respect copyright.PENANAVen7rPkChe
“Some names don’t need to echo,” Naomi said.92Please respect copyright.PENANA5xLmEtp8QU
There was one empty chair near the stage — June’s and as if she was called out, the back door creaks and June enters late, eyes calm, uniform clean, face unreadable.92Please respect copyright.PENANAiacub2DlBZ
Naomi’s voice is filled with unspoken disgust:92Please respect copyright.PENANAN0OLR3qGJy
“Miss June… do you still believe in the wall?”92Please respect copyright.PENANAhuUUxhQAji
June walks past the bell, but doesn’t touch it. She stops beside Kim.92Please respect copyright.PENANA4RefdJCQ9Y
“I believe in the cracks.”
*****92Please respect copyright.PENANAD0oJt5zwJ4
June didn’t speak until all three of them stood in silence. The air was humid. The echo of the bell still rang faintly in their ears.92Please respect copyright.PENANABoQq9dvJTb
“There’s a ledger being held by Jabari’s boys. Not the one in the broadcast. A second one. Still sealed.”92Please respect copyright.PENANA7Bx68utogX
Kim tensed. “We thought Ayo took it.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAC76SMa8MHB
“He did,” June said. “But he gave it back too quickly. That means it’s stashed somewhere, waiting for the right time.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAziBb13p9d8
Shiko asked, “What’s inside?”92Please respect copyright.PENANAJxxFYZsIw3
June pulled a folded note from her pocket — Mercy’s handwriting, unmistakable.92Please respect copyright.PENANAQctoOMd2kN
“Box 3 holds their fingerprints.92Please respect copyright.PENANAjlTOac2xNG
What they buried beneath your dorm.92Please respect copyright.PENANAe1gfyfE3dJ
Who vanished, and who let them.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAz83bLKMxDn
Kim’s throat went dry. “That’s… not just old Order business.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAKFKD3NtiCW
“No,” June said. 92Please respect copyright.PENANApsdImImeyt
“It’s a minefield. You need to find the crate. It’s in the archives wing on the boys’ side. Jabari’s men have it under pretext of ‘found records.’ You need to swap it before it's opened. Replace it with anything that looks like it.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAz7MwNhyTay
Shiko frowned. “We’re not even sure what it looks like.”92Please respect copyright.PENANASUvqTfJgDn
June smirked slightly. “You will. It’s the only crate stamped in red chalk. ‘M.O.3’ — Mercy’s final cipher box.”92Please respect copyright.PENANABtzYRaxpdO
Kim looked at her. “And what happens if they’ve already opened it?”92Please respect copyright.PENANABkvyiEsfAW
June met her eyes.92Please respect copyright.PENANAKz7peTU0lC
“Then make sure what they read next… isn't real.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAK9qTX0hI9l
Kim nods slowly.92Please respect copyright.PENANAZ1tNsbDGD3
Shiko reaches into her backpack and pulling out a dummy crate lid she stole from chemistry storage and June hands Kim a paperclip bent into a tiny “M.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAjVI0SbqYDk
“Plant it when the swap’s done. That’s how I’ll know.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAoH0bP99i4D
As June walks away, she murmurs to herself: “Let them remember what we allow.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAyMUfTrUn5B
*****92Please respect copyright.PENANAEqe5bwstrS
Naomi stood beneath the frangipani tree, flanked by two prefect guards. The tribunal had quieted some nerves — but not all. There was still one ledger out there. Still one story too dangerous to break.92Please respect copyright.PENANArNQMHCbVto
“We need eyes everywhere,” Naomi said. “No dorms unchecked. No keys misplaced.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAeuu53Q6byX
Seline stepped forward with studied calm.92Please respect copyright.PENANAnUCV904VKM
“I may know where they're planning to meet.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAw2cnjYagt7
Naomi narrowed her eyes. “Who?”92Please respect copyright.PENANAP5UHxIEXD4
Seline didn’t answer directly.92Please respect copyright.PENANAZfav9a7oMi
“Let’s say I’ve seen enough body language. Kim. And the quiet one. Shiko. They’ve been whispering too much for two girls with nothing to hide.”92Please respect copyright.PENANATPGqM6g7Xy
Naomi raised an eyebrow. “You think they’re involved with Mercy’s crate?”92Please respect copyright.PENANAK6HOuVnEjX
Seline folded her arms.92Please respect copyright.PENANAOpK3AhR67I
“I think if you want answers, send your guards to the south incinerator lane — just before dusk. They’ll find more than ash.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAQddB9ErxF6
At the meeting point near the old herbarium wall, Kim adjusted the dummy crate lid inside her bag. Shiko scanned the perimeter with a pocket mirror.92Please respect copyright.PENANA3Q7Sv8R4je
“We have six minutes,” Shiko whispered.92Please respect copyright.PENANAwRKpkv7yMA
“Once the bell rings for sunset inspection, all internal guards get recalled.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAS4iwAFMZIg
Kim glanced at the marked fence post — red chalk: “M.O.3.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAkw2jKgd4i4
“Let’s just make sure we’re not the ones being followed.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAbXjmuv9oqN
Naomi nodded slowly. “Good work, Seline. Stay close.”92Please respect copyright.PENANA3n1Qnk3fDA
As the prefect guards jogged off, boots thudding across the tiled walkways, Seline lingered behind — smiling faintly. She pulled her phone from her sock — the one she was never supposed to have — and tapped a message into a hidden note app:92Please respect copyright.PENANAMCpJr3OJYH
“If the bait’s good, they’ll bite. If they bite, I watch who bleeds.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAcHsU9htliN
She never pressed send.92Please respect copyright.PENANA2tF3jo6Vfj
She didn’t need to.
******92Please respect copyright.PENANAhvGZcN10nt
They came from two sides — four prefect guards, swift and silent, their batons clipped tight and flashlights already stuttering in the growing dark.92Please respect copyright.PENANAVb5IhQJFpe
Kim turned first.92Please respect copyright.PENANAYatf9jfKjp
“We’re boxed.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAU8icgJa7S1
“No,” Shiko said, calm. “We’re just poorly lit.”92Please respect copyright.PENANA36orwImq4A
From her satchel, she pulled a small envelope marked “Science Week – Safe Burn”.92Please respect copyright.PENANAWhyt53jYXu
Flash-paper.92Please respect copyright.PENANA42WsrUOHZE
Confetti-layered. Impregnated with fine magnesium salt.92Please respect copyright.PENANAuOJG7OBwly
Designed for stage experiments.92Please respect copyright.PENANA5yL1lR4V46
She struck the match.92Please respect copyright.PENANAIYpQkrzhKN
FOOM. A burst of white light exploded around them — silent, heatless, bright enough to blind the guards for two full seconds. White flecks scattered through the air like ash and stars.92Please respect copyright.PENANAonwpNKqfun
Kim didn’t flinch.92Please respect copyright.PENANAEAkdx3UYeL
She sprinted through the dust cloud, weaving past the closest wall and cutting behind the Hall, where the delivery crate — “M.O.3” — was being wheeled toward the west staff entrance on a borrowed AV trolley.92Please respect copyright.PENANAQWDGWkTzoG
Two tech interns who worked in the principal’s office were halfway through handing it over to the runner when Kim appeared, winded, bag in hand.92Please respect copyright.PENANAGidn3QtC9s
“They sent the wrong box,” she said, breathless, flashing her forged badge.92Please respect copyright.PENANAToSw1YYGxd
“I’ve got the corrected archive.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAtAvHVtFogz
They looked confused. One shrugged. “It’s all sealed.”92Please respect copyright.PENANA6fjgDqkFzX
Kim tapped the chalk mark on the side — slightly smudged.92Please respect copyright.PENANAZXFiGUslT2
“See? Rained out. Mercy’s tag faded. Could be mislabeled.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAFPkq5NMdTf
They hesitated.92Please respect copyright.PENANAPqtHJYmbOK
Shiko appeared behind them, adjusting her glasses, calm and efficient.92Please respect copyright.PENANAqpEbM7cG9C
The boys handed it over.92Please respect copyright.PENANA2sSTHirBIb
Kim wheeled the real crate away, heart pounding.92Please respect copyright.PENANAI5K1RgCLSx
The prefect guards staggered out of the light-blast cloud, coughing and confused. Seline, watching from the upper dorm window, narrowed her eyes.92Please respect copyright.PENANA20zcwuCSL4
“You underestimated the quiet ones,” she whispered.
*****92Please respect copyright.PENANAQ89NgjCMFm
Naomi stood at the front table, her fingers on the crate’s seal.92Please respect copyright.PENANAU2cRLmjk5K
June and Mary flanked her. The Order Hall was quieter than usual — no full assembly, just a controlled group of trusted seniors. The rest had been dismissed after the Tribunal.92Please respect copyright.PENANAYZjKuyVOtc
“Let this end what she started,” Naomi said.92Please respect copyright.PENANAHWlYi1j6aI
She peeled back the tape. Inside: a folder marked “Confession Index: Volume I” — filled with blank pages.92Please respect copyright.PENANAo0dFsLGTdW
Mary frowned.92Please respect copyright.PENANAyVWea8cP03
June looked to Naomi, whose face remained unreadable. “This isn’t the original,” she said.92Please respect copyright.PENANAyT20Kz8j6Z
Then the lights flickered.92Please respect copyright.PENANANPH9bk8YGt
Just once.92Please respect copyright.PENANANyxFhXcux6
Not enough to panic. But enough to shift attention.92Please respect copyright.PENANAscO30TXUXf
A faint hum rose from the archive cabinet in the corner — the audio box used for morning address recordings. It hadn’t been touched in weeks.92Please respect copyright.PENANA9kDyXYr3TX
Then it clicked. And played.92Please respect copyright.PENANASgLBnkMg2A
Mercy’s voice.92Please respect copyright.PENANAfr55Uxc11G
“Nice switch. Too slow.”92Please respect copyright.PENANA8kdFtHICc8
Heads turned sharply. A soft whir from the old cassette speaker in the wall — a repurposed relic. Vintage. Protected.92Please respect copyright.PENANASf3xAWgkt9
The voice continued — calm, amused, in perfect control:92Please respect copyright.PENANA5tVzRHtxnn
“Let’s not pretend this was about justice. This was about story. And I still write the better one.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAwNTJWLAfDB
A pause. Then:92Please respect copyright.PENANA5Zd5CxEEc2
“To the girl with the sharp hands—well played. But you forgot something. I never left. See you in the crypt. Round two begins.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAllVOvX5kEF
Click. Silence.92Please respect copyright.PENANAg959QBOsDD
Outside, thunder cracked.92Please respect copyright.PENANAPsmpTxdPLZ
Naomi’s fingers tightened on the empty folder.92Please respect copyright.PENANAo4oygJSQDr
Mary whispered, “She recorded it before the Tribunal.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAmiGhxHwkCA
June looked at the now-open ceiling vent above the archive. “No. She triggered it after.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAelDRgXCqJI
Kim, listening from the hallway, stared at the speaker — then slowly slipped the real crate deeper under her cloak.92Please respect copyright.PENANAo3bdUHhLLN
The war hadn’t ended. It had just gone underground again.
**********92Please respect copyright.PENANAI7r40bn2cp
Jabari laid out the sealed envelope on the table. It had come that afternoon — slipped through the vented panel beneath the main wall, the one only a few knew existed. No name, but the handwriting was unmistakable.92Please respect copyright.PENANARthiRXoAUW
Naomi’s.92Please respect copyright.PENANAVW2AldrblB
He broke the seal.92Please respect copyright.PENANAsTy3NiV1ZD
Inside: a short message and a typed formal proposal, stamped with Naomi’s name.92Please respect copyright.PENANAxMGwnGcZZO
“Temporary Intelligence Exchange Proposal.92Please respect copyright.PENANAgdoQKulJ2G
Objectives: Stop second wave. Contain ledger fallout. Restrict Shadow Walker expansion.”92Please respect copyright.PENANA824eC6af7g
Musa leaned in. “She’s serious.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAyfyNU1uZcf
Juma scoffed. “Serious or desperate?”92Please respect copyright.PENANAFAluW3pPTY
Jabari didn’t answer. He was already reading the fine print: No direct physical meetings. Exchange via designated wall drops. Shared surveillance logs (anonymized). Tunnel use strictly prohibited unless both sides agree. All mentions of “M.O.” to be contained or denied until internal hearings.92Please respect copyright.PENANAXP0WBAhheP
Ayo paced. “You trust Naomi?”92Please respect copyright.PENANANflro716D1
“No,” Jabari said. “But I trust the threat.”92Please respect copyright.PENANARGRM5RYMNP
Juma added, “If she’s suggesting shared control, it means she doesn’t have it.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAkupPN8nCAw
Musa tapped the table. “And if we say no, we’re not allies. We’re targets.”92Please respect copyright.PENANADe7U5WKr2n
Juma looked around. “I can’t believe we’re even considering this.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAemXNgWVOwn
But his voice wasn’t angry. Just tired.92Please respect copyright.PENANAAW7QE8NjPy
“She beat us. That message from the chapel? That was a declaration. If we don’t stand together, we’re all just going to be footnotes in her confession index.”92Please respect copyright.PENANASN2SjuZKL6
One by one, hands rose.92Please respect copyright.PENANAIHBwEO2lcX
Even Juma’s.92Please respect copyright.PENANAuUtEj1cSep
The decision was unanimous.92Please respect copyright.PENANAZKOGSs2X6n
Jabari scribbled a short response:92Please respect copyright.PENANA8fTxum7BQY
“Agreed. Shared containment.92Please respect copyright.PENANAEWrmqk5ziV
Our fire stays cold until her flame dies.”92Please respect copyright.PENANAAw3jkd2yfa
He slipped the letter into a clean envelope, sealed it with the old Order wax-stamp, and marked it with a chalk triangle. That night, just before midnight, Musa tucked it behind the drain grate, the way they used to pass ledgers during term inspections.92Please respect copyright.PENANA4DLUUnHtp8
The next morning, the note was gone.92Please respect copyright.PENANAMosHknmwIm
And beneath the vent, someone had drawn a small M.92Please respect copyright.PENANAHorWUnLE4x
Then crossed it out.