Hector's eyes scanned the holographic news articles hovering in front of him, absently scrolling through the text as his mind wandered. Who would be surveilling him tonight? Likely Miller, with his keen eye for detail, or maybe Nguyen, always eager to prove herself. Hector shifted in his bed. After he aided Kimiko and Hiro, the task force had decided to yank him from the Academy, to monitor him more closely. This was his last night in his cramped dorm room, and a part of him was going to miss it.

  His lamp light flicked next to him, threatening to go out. Hector's eyes flicked to the camera mounted in the corner - its blinking red light had gone dark. His brows knit together. Curious. He slid off the bed and made his way over to get a better look, when did the camera go down?

  His slab rang, an unknown number hovered over its glass surface on his bed. Hector picked it up and dismissed it with a flick of his finger. Probably another spam call - the third one this week. The slab rang again, flashing the same number. He squinted down at the slab, whoever was calling was being persistent. He refused the call again and turned off the device this time.

  A shimmer in his peripheral vision caught his attention. Hector whirled as his holodeck whirred to life behind him, materializing the semi-translucent image of a woman with short wavy hair and intense eyes. She seemed to be analyzing him before she spoke.

  "Hector Gorth," she said as he moved closer to get a better look. "My name is Naomi. We need to talk."

  Hector stared at her, still unsure how any of this was possible. "I don't know who you are or how you got access to my holodeck. But hacking the school mainframe is an offence punishable by -"

  "I work for the Japanese government. We both know you're not who you said you were, so listen up." Naomi's image flickers as she steps closer. "And I know all about the little UN task force's secret operation here."

  Hector gulped as he realized their cover was fully blown. She could expose everything and he had no way of warning the others. But as if she could read his mind, Naomi waved a dismissive hand.

  "I'm not interested in your international spy games. I need your help with something far more important. Meet me at Toyone Station. Midnight. I'd explain but campus security is rebooting the system."

  The lights dipped again and Naomi's hologram winked out, leaving Hector in the suddenly pressing silence of his room. He raked a hand through his short-cropped hair, and the red light on the camera slowly came back to life.

  What did she want from him? And how could it be more important than the discovery of a secret operation on Japanese soil? He needed answers. Even if it meant walking into a trap.

  Hector's eyes cut to the camera. He had to get to that station. Without the task force realizing he's gone.

  Hector sat on the bed pretending to scroll through the news again, his brow furrowed in thought. There had to be a way out of this room, he just needed to figure it out.

  Part of him itched to contact Nia, to warn her about the possible attack from the Japanese. It could be his way back into Nia's good books and the chance he has been waiting for to prove himself. But another part of him hesitated.

  If Naomi could so easily infiltrate the school's network, who's to say she's not still watching him now? Alerting the task force could cause her to retaliate, and cause a war no one wanted. Or worse, if she was a pilot, she could wipe them out before they could react.

  No, he needs more information first. And that meant sneaking out to meet her, even if it meant losing his career.

  Hector's gaze darted to the wall clock. 23:00. One hour until the rendezvous.

  He only had one idea and it was a long shot, he moved to his desk and activated the holographic keyboard. He prayed Naomi left a back door open for him to get access to the school mainframe, bingo. He was in and within moments he was circulating through the security footage from his room. It took him mere minutes to splice together a looping clip of himself puttering around the room before settling into bed from over a month, nothing fresh enough for someone to remember.

  With just a few clicks it was playing for his watchers, so Hector turned his attention to his physical disguise. He tugs on an extra pair of socks to boost his height by an inch, then shrugs on a baggy hoodie. He flipped up the hood, shrouding his face and obscuring his build.

  With one last steadying breath, he slipped out into the darkened hallway, hugging the shadows as he navigated his way out of the dorms. He kept a mental map of the security camera placements, which allowed him to stay out of frame where he could.

  Once he arrived at the gates, he made quick work of the keypad, he remembered the code Nia used to visit him. And then he was out, making his way towards the Toyone Station and hoping he wasn't walking right into a trap.

  But even as he walked, he couldn't help but feel he was being watched. How long would it be before the task force figured it out?

  He slipped onto the bus and took his seat at the back. Keeping his head down to reduce the chance of witnesses if this went sideways.

  The station looms ahead, almost abandoned in the night. Hector squared his shoulders and stepped off the bus into the night. His eyes scanned the platform for any sign of Naomi.

  ---

  The glow of the monitors bathed the room in blue light. Tess leaned over the shoulder of Nguyen, she had just popped in to check on how Hector was holding up.

  "Anything unusual?" Tess asked while she scanned the monitors.

  Nguyen shook his head. "Nothing but a bored kid. But we did lose power for a few minutes earlier, with no signs of interference. Don't worry I'm looking into it."

  Tess frowned. "Rewind to that moment."

  The agent complied, turning the dial back to that point. Tess watched intently as the camera feed cut before slowly coming back moments later. She noticed the subtle shift in Hector's body language, the way his shoulders were tense, his eyes darted to the camera.

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  "He looks on edge," Tess mused, leaning uncomfortably close to Nguyen. "So we lost the feed for five full minutes? Is there any way to recover the footage?"

  The agent shrugged apologetically. "Afraid not. When the power's out, the cameras are dead."

  Tess sighed, turning to leave. But something caught her eye. She whirled back to the screen, pointing at Hector's bed.

  "That's not right, his bedspread. It changed."

  The agent squinted at the screen. "You're right. It's different after he goes to sit at his desk."

  Tess shook her head, something was wrong, The power outage. Hector's nervousness. The changed bedspread. It all pointed to one conclusion.

  "He left the dorms," Tess declared, already reaching for her slab. "We need agents at the school ASAP. I'll call Nia."

  ---

  Hector paced the length of the train platform, his eyes scanning the sparse crowd. Where is she?

  "I can appreciate someone who doesn't waste my time, Hector."

  He spun at the sound of the voice, finding himself face-to-face with Naomi. She was just as striking in person as she was in the hologram, her gaze sharp and assessing.

  "I'm here," Hector said, fighting to keep his voice steady. "Now tell me what this is all about."

  Naomi glanced around, then leaned in close. "I believe to can help me clean up a mess before it causes a national incident."

  Hector squinted in confusion. "Why are you giving me the run around after asking me here? just tell me what it is,"

  "I am a handler for a very unique Mach pilot." She explained looking at him dead in the eye. "I was tasked to keep him in check, he has a history of losing his temper. Unfortunately, a recent assignment sent him into a bit of a spiral."

  Hector still didn't understand, why did she need him for this. "I still don't get it. I mean obviously, you're talking about Mach 2? But my do you need me? I don't even speak Japanese."

  Naomi laughed. "I need you because this involves Hiro. Nori was assigned to kill him. But he couldn't do it. So he was given seventy-two hours to finish it or be put down."

  Hector's stomach dropped. "We have to warn Hiro. Get him to safety."

  But Naomi was already shaking her head. "It's too late for that. Nori's made his move according to the tracker we have in him."

  She turned to the train, her expression grave. "And now, we have to make ours. Before his actions cause a global catastrophe."

  "But he already killed Hiro, what else can he do?"

  A harsh laugh escapes Naomi's lips. "Kill Hiro? Nori would never. He's in love with him, in his own twisted way." She turned back to Hector, a wry smile playing at the corners of her mouth. "And that's what he's done is far stupider than we could have ever predicted."

  The screech of metal on metal fills the air as the train pulls into the station. Naomi presses a ticket into Hector's hand. "We can continue this conversation in my private room. On the train."

  Hector's fingers wrapped around the ticket, but his feet remained rooted in place. He felt like the station was spinning and there amongst the crowd, he spotted a familiar face. The UN task force had found him already. He had no choice. He followed Naomi onto the train, the door sliding shut behind them.

  As they navigated the narrow hall, Hector followed Naomi as closely as possible. What has Nori done? he thought, And what will it mean for Hiro?

  Naomi ushered him into a private compartment, motioning for him to sit. She leans back, her gaze intense. "The Japanese have a problem. A big one. Nori's vanished, and the last ping from his tracker? It came from the US. The ruins of Detroit, to be precise."

  In that moment Hector finally understood my Naomi had sought him out. "He's taken Hiro there. To hide him from the Japanese."

  Naomi nods. "Correct. If anything goes wrong, if either of them is discovered..." She didn't need to finish the thought. The implications of this were more than obvious.

  "Given his mission, I have just over forty-eight hours to find him and bring him back," Naomi continues. "But my knowledge of the US is limited. I need someone who knows the area. Which is why you are here."

  Hector sat mach in the red leather seat. "How did you find out about me?"

  Naomi looked him over again. "It's my job to be observant, I notice everything. Including the people who show up in the background."

  Questions swirled in Hector's mind, but Naomi didn't seem to have time to waste on answering them. "The way I see it we need each other, if this fails them we are both out. But if we succeed it will be business as usual come Monday."

  Hector looked out the large window, he still wasn't sure what they could do against a Mach. The stakes had never been higher. If the US found them first then the president would declare war, something he had been itching to do since the Machs were discovered.

  "Getting in and out of the US undetected will be a challenge," Hector said, his voice low. "Security is tighter than ever."

  Naomi nodded. "I can handle that. But there's something else I need from you." She leaned forward, her voice urgent. "Ai. We need her on this mission."

  Hector's brow furrows. "Ai? Why?"

  "To convince Hiro to leave Nori when the time comes. If she's not there, Hiro may try to save him. And that..." Naomi shook her head. "That could get them both killed."

  Hector nodded slowly, not sure he wanted to drag Ai into this. "Ai will come. But is it fair to put her in danger like this?"

  "In our line of work, nothing is ever fair. It is about doing what is necessary,"

  He pulled out his phone, wavering before dialling the number. "Ai? It's Hector. Listen to me carefully. Hiro is in danger. I'm going to try to save him. But I need your help."

  There was a pause, a heartbeat of silence. Then Ai's voice came over the speaker. "I'm in. Tell me where to meet you."

  "Kyoto Airport as soon as you can,"

  "See you there,"

  Hector ended the call and tucked his slab away. A wave of guilt washed over him. Yes, bringing in Ai was necessary, but was it right?

  ---

  Ai hung up just outside the cafe, she began heading down the street with purpose toward the bus station. Masumi watched her from the window, she could tell something was wrong.

  "Ai, wait!" Masumi grabbed her purse and hurried after her, her heels clicking on the pavement. "What's going on?"

  Ai didn't slow down, her eyes fixed on the bus stop in the distance. "I can't talk now, Masumi. Hiro needs me."

  Masumi caught up to her, slightly out of breath. "Hold on a second. You need to think about yourself, too."

  Ai shook her head, her black hair whipping around her face. "Hiro's life is in danger. He saved mine twice. Now it's my turn to save him."

  "But he has that super-charged cybernetic suit," Masumi argued, her brow creased with worry. "You don't have anything like that. You need a plan."

  Ai pulled away, as the bus pulled in. "I don't have time for a plan. I have to go. Now." She stepped inside.

  Masumi hesitated for a moment, then she found herself climbing onto the bus too. "Alright, I'm coming with you. I'm not letting you get yourself killed."

  Ai's eyes welled, turning to face her friend. Just months ago Masumi was willing to let her die, now she was going to protect her. "I knew you were still a good person. Thank you."

  Masumi hugged her back tightly, her own eyes stinging. "I'm going to earn your friendship again. I missed you, Ai."

  ---

  Across town, Nia sat in her car, her eyes glued to the video feed on her tablet. Hector was definitely tense after the blackout, but what happened in those few minutes that made him run? She huffed before switching over the feed from Toyone Station, he boarded the train behind a mystery woman.

  "Do we have an ID on the woman yet?" Nia asked, looking up from the tablet.

  The agent beside her shrugged. "No, ma'am. We're still working on it."

  Nia slammed her fist against the dashboard, frustration boiling over. "What the hell is Hector thinking? He's jeopardizing the entire mission."

  She snatches up her phone, punching in Tess's number. "Tell me you found something in Hector's dorm."

  Tess's voice crackles through the speaker. "We think the woman hacked into the school's security system. She must have turned off the cameras in Hecotr's room and contacted him then."

  "Any idea what she said to him?"

  "No, but judging by how nervous he looked afterward, I'd guess she threatened to expose us."

  Nia gritted her teeth, this was the worst-case scenario. "The train they boarded was headed for Kyoto. Meet me there. We might be able to get ahead of them before it's too late."

  She ended the call, her grip tightening on the phone. One way or another, she was going to get to the bottom of this. She was going to bring Hector home.

  The car engine roared to life, and Nia drifted onto the street, engines propelling the car forward. The chase was on.