Son of Lazarus

Chapter 26: Secret Weapon

January 17th, 2041

12:00a.m.

7 months, 0 days, 18 hours, 25 minutes and 59 seconds to War.

   Silence ruled the laboratory for a time before the lights flicked on and a man stepped inside. He fixed his glasses, adjusted his collar and sat down at a desk directly across from the door. His fingers touched the keys on the desk and the monitor came to life, revealing a desktop full of nothing but files titled and organized by numbers alone. With quick, agile fingers, he typed in his ID and password combination before sliding his wrist beneath the DNA identification scanner. Such a long process to get access into the data logs, but it was a necessary process. Not only did it allow the scientists access to the data logs, but it also granted them access to view important documents from their top secret projects. There was one document in particular he was looking for. He skimmed over all the documents until one caught his eye. It was the one he'd been searching for.

   Titled Project Six, the man clicked on it. His hands were shaking. He turned to look at the door behind him, the fear of being discovered settling in his stomach. If he were to be discovered now, everything he'd worked towards would be lost and his life would be forfeit. These people took treason serious. Serious enough that they would kill anyone who turned traitor. His eyes shifted back to the monitor, the document open. There was a digital picture of a young girl of about seven years old with raven black hair and soft purple eyes and just to the left of that picture was her file information. The man fumbled with something in his lab coat pocket before he pulled out a small rectangle box, his fingers messing with a few buttons on the side. The second his index finger brushed against one of the buttons, the top of the box folded itself back to reveal a plug in. Blue and green lights appeared along the box's body to indicate that it was on and ready to go.

   With a deep breath and a shaking hand, he inserted the plug into the side of the desk and watched as the blue light turned into a downloading bar with the number 0% complete resting on the side. His eyes searched the monitor for a download button and clicked on it once he saw it. Once it started, his head swiveled to the door. He had to be certain no one would interrupt his download. Each time he heard voices, he jumped and tensed, waiting for them to enter into this very lab and catch him redhanded in an act of treason. It didn't take long for a small blip to sound off, telling him the download was complete. Quickly, he removed the USB from the desk and exited out of the files before he walked towards the door and opened it up. Standing in the doorway was one of the high ranking scientists wearing a black shirt, leather jeans and the signature white lab coat.
   "Ah, Jordan." Jordan swallowed and managed a smile, doing everything in his power to stop his hands from shaking. "There you are. The boss wanted you to check in on Project Six."

   "Can't he send one of the others?" The man shook his head.
   "Unfortunately," he began, "it seems she only ever responds to you and you alone." When Jordan didn't respond, the other man gave a quiet laugh and slapped his shoulder. "Don't worry. She's sedated and won't give you any trouble."
   "That's not what I'm worried about," he breathed, turning his head to watch the man walk away. With a sigh, Jordan headed in the opposite direction. He was headed towards the children's wing, where most of their young subjects were housed. He passed by many doors until he came to one with the number six on it. With a deep breath, Jordan knocked on the door before he entered. On the bed closest to the wall was a young girl. Her hair was raven black and he was quite certain she had purple eyes. "Zoe?" He called her name in a soft manner, gaining a small reaction from her as her head lifted to stare at him. So much for being sedated. "Hi." He watched as she swallowed before she answered him.

   "Hi." Jordan offered a small smile before he crossed the room and knelt down in front of her.
   "I was sent to check up on you." Zoe studied him for a moment and a chill set upon his back, running the length of his spine.
   "Are you going to take me away, like you promised?" Jordan felt his heart sink. Slowly, he ran a hand through her hair.
   "I will," he said. "I promise." Zoe gave a small smile and a chuckle. He couldn't help but smile right back. She was such a sweet girl. She, and the other young ones, didn't belong in here. He knew he had to get them out somehow, someway. "It'll be a little while yet, but I promise once everything is set up, we'll get you out of here." Zoe tilted her head to the side and he saw a spark of curiosity enter her eyes.

   "We?" Jordan looked to the door for a moment before he gently gripped Zoe's hands and looked her square in the eye.
   "I have a few friends on the outside that are working to help me free you and all the other young ones." He said in a quiet voice. "Once everything's in place, I'll send word to them that it's time and they'll come get you and the others." He saw her face light up and her smile widened.
   "Will I be able to see mommy again?" Jordan's heart almost exploded at her innocent comment. The truth was that he didn't know what had happened to her mother. No one except the high ranks did.
   "Maybe," he answered with a hopeful smile. "For now you have to keep this a secret." Zoe nodded and took a breath, her lips sealing together in one fluid motion. It made him smile. "Good girl. I'll see you soon, okay?"

   "Okay." Jordan rose to his feet and walked out of the room to his own quarters. Once the door had shut behind him, he crossed the floor to his desk and inserted the USB before uploading the file to his desktop. With a deep breath, he stripped his lab coat off and threw it out of sight before he started up an anonymous call and turned the volume down enough for it to not exit his room in any way. He had to keep this quiet or he'd definitely be killed. "Hive, this is Drone Twenty-Four reporting in." A live feed of a young man and woman both with black hair popped up onto his screen. He could see someone else in the background, someone he didn't recognize but he thought it best to say nothing for now.
   "Read you loud and clear, Twenty-Four." Said the young man. "What's your report?" Jordan began to busy himself with typing on his desktop while also giving his reports to the Hive.

   "Sending in the last file over to the technicians," he said, hitting a final button. "Hopefully this helps with identifying all of the children living here."
   "Good job, Twenty-Four." Jordan gave a small grin before he switched the feed over and studied the two leaders.
   "Is everything ready to go?"
   "Almost," came the response. "We're still running low on supplies, but we'll manage. How about on your end? Is everything set for us to infiltrate to free the children?" Jordan glanced at his door, staying silent when he heard footsteps. Luckily for him, they passed by.

   "Just a few more minor details I have to iron out," he answered quickly and quietly, turning his head back to the screen. "But once I've worked them all out, I'll contact you and let you know that it's time."
   "Don't let it be too much longer," said the young man. "We need to get those kids out of there soon. They are our future, after all."
   "I understand." Jordan ended the call shortly after and laid out on his bed. He had to make sure everything went perfectly so they could rescue the children. He just had to do it in a way that no one would suspect him for treason so he could remain the mole in this operation. "Don't worry, Zoe. We'll get you out of here."