Chapter 54: The Ghost Protocol

As she stepped out of the SUV. Everyone was already standing near the library door. Aiden was the only one waiting in plain sight. She put the SUV into the space. She didn’t want it to be stolen when they came out again.

As soon as she came up to him, she nodded. “We need to find a secure place. Somewhere, no one will be able to disturb us. I’ll explain everything when we get there.”

Aiden took her hand, leading her to the door. As soon as it opened, they moved quickly. Aiden led the way, while Marcus kept the rear. They were all armed, in case of any conflict. They push the door of the library open, their strength making short work of the barricade at the door.

They closed the door, pushed the barricade back to the door, and also used metal bars to hook the door.

As soon as they passed the main doors, they noticed a group of young faces. They were huddled together. Their faces were dirty, but one could see that they were young college-aged students. They look frightened, but anyone would be seeing a group of seven people coming into the library armed.

Aiden ignored them. “Stairs,” he murmured. “The sub-basement is our safest bet.”

As they moved towards the stairs, a young woman with fiery red hair and a defiant attitude stepped forward. She was obviously afraid, but she was willing to step forward. That made her either extremely brave or extremely stupid.

“Stop! Who are you? What do you want?” she asked.

“We aren’t here to hurt you. Just stay out of our way.” Ivan called out.

With that, they continued down the stairs. Seeing that they didn’t try to do anything to them, the red-haired girl became bolder. She stepped forward again to say something.

Ember didn’t want to deal with her at the moment. She had to talk to her team, and she wasn’t in the mood to deal with the girl’s temper. She aimed and shot close to her foot. This made the girl stop immediately and shrink back.

Ember spoke, her eyes hard, “He already said we won’t hurt you. Don’t push your luck. We’ll come back when we’re done. Just stay out of our way for now.”

Ember then motioned for everyone to keep moving. They continued down the stairs, leaving the students to whisper and stare. The sub-basement was exactly what they needed. A long, windowless corridor with several reinforced doors.

Aiden tried one of the doors but found it locked. This is where Marcus’ skillset comes in. He was able to quickly and effectively open the door. They walked in and saw the empty room that smelled of old paper.

They went in, shutting out the world inside. The bolts on the inside were closed.

“I don’t want to waste any time. And we don’t have the time either. We need training. We mentioned it earlier, and I have a way for us to train without risking our lives. I need to know what everyone thinks.” Ember talked without preamble.

“We’ll be unconscious, and our consciousness will be transported to another place for us to train. I’m not sure how long it will take, which is why I asked Aiden to find us a secure place.”

“I’m willing,” Alex said.

Ivan looked over at him. “You don’t even ask questions?” he said, incredulous.

Alex rolled his eyes, “You weren’t the one who was almost stabbed. I don’t care how it will happen. As long as I have the strength to protect myself and Adrienne, I can do anything.

The determination in his voice was felt by everyone in the room. They may not have been the people in danger in that moment, butif something happened to Alex, they would all feel the loss.

Ivan didn’t ask any other questions. “Alright, little sister, hit me.”

Ember reached out and hit him.

“I didn’t mean literally,” Ivan said, rubbing his head and complaining.

She shrugged. “Does anyone want to ask anything?”

This time, no one asked any questions. Although they didn’t understand how or why, they didn’t think Ember would be trying to hurt them.

“I’ll still let you know a few things. We will be unconscious while we train. We will be going to a shared mindscape. We can learn the kind of sixth sense soldiers. It will train both our senses and reflexes. We will fight and fail multiple times until we get it right. Are you willing?” Ember asked

Everyone gave an affirmative answer. They we all willing to give it a try.

Ember, just like everyone else, was unsure of what to expect, so she was going in blind as well. She took the sleeping bags they had been using from the space. They put the sleeping bag close to each other. The space itself wasn’t large, and they didn’t feel safe being too far apart.

Aiden checked the locks once again before lying in his sleeping bag next to Ember.

Covenant Engine, initiate the Ghost Protocol.

[10,000 AB deducted]

[The Ghost Protocol is now active]

[First-tier training will commence in 60 seconds]

[Duration: 24 hours]

[WARNING: Your consciousness will be submerged in the simulation. A significant external threat is required to breach the simulation. Choose your location wisely.]

The system notice was shared with everyone in the group, so they were aware of the 60-second wait time.

“See you soon,” Aiden whispered, holding Ember’s hand briefly.

“Definitely,” Ember responded.

The countdown hit zero, and the world fell away.

In the library lobby, the university students waited and listened. They heard the bolt being locked and then…nothing. The building once again fell into the silence it had before they arrived. As if they were never here.

They couldn’t help asking among themselves why these people were here. They were curious and wanted to go down the stairs. But at the same time, they thought their lives were precious, and with their life versus curiosity, they chose to keep their lives.

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