Rehash

Seven

Zed had a list of items needed to make a signal scrambler prepared for me when I returned home. Like he'd already calculated I would do it in the end.  

He all but pulled the items from my hands after I had them rush delivered to my appartment an hour later and got to work immediately, not even requiring many tools. He was the tool himself, having small inbuilt laser cutters, and other nifty functions.

I watched Zed work with both wariness and awe for a short while before curiosity made me clear my throat. 

"So, how long will it take to build this signal scrambler?" 

Zed looked up at me and smiled. "It's already finished. Here to go."

Zed pushed a small, square metal box into my hands. It looked and felt like old playing dice, popular around the start of the 21st century and among hardcore retro gamers now.

I arched a brow. "Really. This little box will mask our presence? It doesn't look like much."

Zed mimicked my expression, raising an amused brow. "What, you'd rather have me make its purpose obvious? Disguising the devie as gaming dice seemed like a good idea.  I could also make another chip and inject it under your skin."

"What the fuck? No. I'm not injecting anything under my skin!" I called out startled, which made Zed chuckle. 

"Well, I have," he replied, patting his right arm. 

"Wait what? But you're not coming." 

Zed dipped his head. "I understand your feelings. But I'm going to have to if we're going to hack our way into the tunnels. I don't suppose you can do it?"

"I--" I opened and closed my mouth. 

Well, shit. He had me there. No matter how much I hated admitting it, I'd never been very good at anything hacking. I wished I'd payed closer attention to network and security classes, rather than deciding passing with a D was good enough. 

"Very well, I gave in." 

A few minutes later we were walking side by side on the streets together. I'd given Zed a hoodie to cover his head, which he'd done without complaint. Still, he snickered at the way my gaze darted around, keeping a close eye on the people walking around us. 

"Act casual, man," he told me. "Hold my hand and they'll think I'm your boyfriend just like your brother did." 

"That's not going to help people recognising you!" I hissed to hide my embarrassment. Zed decided to make things even worse, his smirk broadening. 

"There must've been plenty of people who saw my picture on the background of your phone, indeed. I've been meaning to ask you: why did you have my picture on your phone?"

"Because you're a war hero," I replied instantly.  "You saved a continent. That's enough of a reason to want a picture, isn't it? People idolise celebrities for picking fights with other rich people and screaming dumb shit online. At least my reason was legitimate. I don't know why people make such a huge deal of it all the time!" 

Zed looked ahead, staying quiet for a while. I'd expected more sass, but when he finally turned to me, he only nodded. 

"That's why I'm even considering doing this," I continued. "My parents wouldn't have been alive without you. My brother and I wouldn't have been born without you."

"I see," Zed replied with an uncharacteristic frown. "I am grateful for that, then."

We didn't talk much more while traveling to the outskirts of Lenora's campus. Zed led the way and I followed over old broken concrete roads with grass peeping out, trying to reclaim the area. We'd walked so far Lenora looked the size of a toy building. I'd never been so far out of the city before and now I wondered why. It was quiet, deserted. A perfect place to clear your head, work-out, or jog.