Masego was shocked by Enzo's gesture of mercy.

  But he was consumed by the defeat as reality darkened; the whole scenery changed, revealing two children standing opposite each other while a group of children surrounded them.

  It was a flashback of mine and Enzo’s childhood as we were play-fighting against each other just as we were now, with nothing changed but the location and cheers.

  "Enzo, I challenge you for your role as the leader of the group," a younger me had said as I pointed my stick towards Enzo.

  Enzo was always one who accepted a challenge just to prove a point. "Masego, I accept your challenge to prove to you why I lead the group," Enzo had said to me as he got into stance.

  The sky was covered with dark clouds, and the air was sweet but cold like a breath mint, exactly how I remembered.

  We had a standoff with Davy as our referee, and then a ball bounced as Enzo started his attack.

  I was getting pushed back as Enzo went on the attack. I could see the growing frustration on Enzo's face, the same as always, as he forced me back. Then he stopped before I could react; Enzo hit my arm and leg simultaneously.

  I was put on my knees just like this, and all I could think was, how? How did I lose to him? What made him so impossible to beat!?

  Enzo said with a smirk, "Your defeat was inevitable." I saw sweat dribble down his face; he looked exhausted as he got ready to finish me.

  "This is unfair! I WAS NEVER GOING TO WIN AGAINST YOU IN A FIGHT! LET'S GO AGAIN IN SOMETHING ELSE!" I said aggressively towards Enzo as everyone in the group watched me, getting more and more frustrated, and even Davy looked away as I brought shame to myself.

  But before I could continue my rant, Enzo stopped me.

  "This is the reason why you are not the leader. If you can't fight for your friends, then how can you expect us to trust you to lead us away from this growing conflict?" Enzo said as he poked his stick at my head while the sky cleared up and the sun shone on him as the birds chirped in celebration of Enzo's victory over me.

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  "At that moment, I couldn't understand why Enzo was always the one leading us, why couldn't it be me?

  It flashed to every choosing of Enzo as group leader of everything from projects to assignments and etc. I could do it too; I can also be a leader of something.

  Maybe I was just jealous of how he defied the odds when defeat seemed certain but still won. It felt like the world was praising Enzo for his victories and achievements.

  But when it came to defeats, my failures brought laughs and put me down into this pit of failure. I want to be someone people can rely on, but then something lightly hit me, confirming my defeat.

  The memory was consumed by darkness as Masego's body and head lowered. However, a light shone upon Masego's face as the darkness vanished. Masego lifted his head to see Enzo smile as he lent him a hand.

  I sighed a breath of relief. "Of course, you still help a loser like me," I said as I took his hand and got up while we heard cheers from the students around us watching the play fight.

  "I finally understood; the sky isn't covered with dark clouds because I couldn't see Enzo as a leader but as an obstacle blocking my path. That's why it seemed so unfair that he was in the position for so long without change—because I didn't change," Masego said with a clenched fist, but then...

  "Then I realized Enzo was right. You can't expect to lead others when you can't protect them, and I was a fool to think I could lead them when he did a better job while I was struggling for success." Masego relaxed his fist.

  I looked over at Enzo and saw how everyone praised him for his victory, even carrying him while he looked exhausted.

  I was prepared to leave when...

  "Don't praise me alone; it was both my friend and me who provided this level of performance, isn't that right, Masego?"

  In that moment, I no longer saw Enzo as a ruthless, cold leader but as a warm and considerate person.

  "You're right; it took both of us to provide this level of performance," I said as we both bowed and laughed as the bell rang, indicating that the break was over. We grabbed our bags, and Davy stopped me.

  "Hey, Masego, how are you feeling? You're not hurt, right?" Davy said as I watched Enzo walk ahead of them.

  "Of course, I couldn't be better," I said as Enzo waited for us.

  "What’s taking you guys so long? We can't be late for technical science class, so let’s hurry up!" Enzo said as a raven flew above him.

  Enzo looked up, catching a glimpse of the raven cawing as it passed by me, making him uneasy. I turned to see where it landed, and it landed at the hangout spot, picking up my broken stick that I had used as a blade as it flew away.

  "You coming, Masego?" Davy said as he walked past me.

  "Yeah, I’m coming," I said as I caught up to Enzo and Davy while we talked about the fight and how I felt it was impossible to beat Enzo, as if he could snap his fingers.

  As Enzo, Masego, and Davy walked upstairs, the lights flickered on and off when Enzo snapped his fingers. The raven could be seen flying toward a district; it flew past buildings until we saw a sign saying "Ekurhuleni District." It finally landed on its nest, placing the stick in its nest structure.

  The raven croaked, and a crow cawed back as we saw from below the masked figure, User 02, standing in front of an abandoned Ekurhuleni District building looming over its surroundings, a skeletal remnant of its former self. Its once-polished concrete facade was now cracked and stained, streaked with years of rain and neglect. Faded government insignias barely clung to the walls, their edges curling like dead leaves. Rows of shattered windows stared vacantly, some covered in grime, others gaping open, revealing the dark emptiness within.

  Vegetation had begun its slow takeover—vines slithered up the walls, weaving through the cracks, while tufts of grass sprouted defiantly from the building’s foundation. The rusted remains of signage creaked in the wind, their faded letters barely legible under layers of dust and peeling paint. The main entrance, once bustling with officials and workers, was now a forgotten threshold, its heavy double doors left ajar, revealing nothing but shadow beyond.

  "Mr. Charles, your trial begins now," the masked figure, User 02, said in a menacing and cold tone.