Neil grimaced at her. “Look, I can appreciate the fact that you made a little friend, I really can. It’s cute, almost heartwarming, but let’s go over the facts here. A. You just went through a high level of shock. B. Your physiological tests were indicating that extended exposure to a haptic pod was steadily growing more deadly, and C. Van is a big boy who can take care of himself. If you climb back into that pod, you could die. We were trying to be polite in telling you to take it easy, but the fact is, Agent Sang, your body isn’t cut out for this kind of device. It’s been impacting your heath.”
“What do you mean?”
“Look, the doc said that, with the way your body interacts with the long periods of stasis and the haptic system… well, there’s a sizable portion of the population that just can’t physically handle this game on this level. Those who have more experience with video games have some kind of tolerance built up, but you… it’s like giving moonshine to a kid who’s never even had a beer. Problem is, it’s been affecting your overall health. We had a timetable to work with and, lucky for us, you just managed to snag the key evidence right before we had to pull the plug on the job.”
“Why didn’t anyone tell me?” Sang asked.
“Because the stress of knowing that you could potentially be dying inside of that thing would have been too much for you,” Neil explained. “The reality is that there was a very safe threshold for you, but you’d started to push it. You were close to the information, so we let you skirt the danger line, but when you went into shock... well, the higher-ups wanted this program put on pause, like yesterday. No holding off. The mere fact that you woke up without any speech impendent, and with functioning limbs, was considered a miracle after that exit; and on top of that, you’ve got some kind of code. Great. But if you go back in there, who knows what’s going to happen? You might die. We wanted you to think you were the hero and that we were ending the mission with a win, but the reality is that we have to halt until we can find someone to replace you.”
Sang had known something was up, and everything Neil said made sense... but then there was Van to consider. “I understand, Neil, I do. It makes sense. I suppose that I would have done the same if I was in your position. But the fact remains that Van is in trouble, and he needs me. If he can’t log out, they might kill him.”
“Why?” Neil asked. “Why would they kill the kid? Ban him, kick him out, post an embarrassing picture of him online, sure—but kill him? It doesn’t make any sense.”
Sang closed her eyes and remembered the words that had been spoken to her by whatever entity had contacted her. Draco like us. Hate us. Draco Kill. Those were the only phrases she’d understood from that entire flurry of communication, and she knew that she had to do something. She couldn’t just sit here while Van was in danger.
“Look, I don’t care what you think, or what you’re worried about. I know he’s in trouble. I’m going in there and you can’t stop me,” Sang said.
“You wanna bet?” Neil asked. “You honestly think that you can just get in there and find Van alone? Look, you’re not thinking right. You need sleep.”
Sang glanced at the gun that was resting on Neil’s hip. All of the agents had firearms on them, even in the building, just in case. His hand wasn’t anywhere close to the gun, but she wondered if he would pull it.
“Sorry, Neil, but you don’t have the right to tell me to stop,” Sang said as she strolled over to the pod and began to plug the cords back in.
“Hey, come on, enough!” Neil said as he walked over and grabbed her by the arm. She moved quickly—lunging up, headbutting him under the chin as she pulled his pistol out of its holster. She aimed it right at him.
“Whoa! Hey!” Neil said as he backed up, his hands in the air. “No reason to get any crazier than you already are.”
“Is Neil running his mouth again?” O’Hara asked casually as she walked into the scene, also with food occupying her hands.
“O’Hara! A little back-up here!” Neil said, pointing to Sang. She kept her gun trained on the man.
“Come on, Sang, take it easy,” O’Hara said. “Listen, we’ve all had the desire to shoot Neil at some point in our lives—hell, a few of us have even pulled our guns on him—but we’re not allowed to actually shoot him. Against our ethos. You don’t shoot fellow agents, no matter how much of a smartass they are.”
“I don’t want to shoot anyone,” Sang said as she slowly walked toward the pod. She reached back, not taking her eyes nor her aim off of Neil, and pushed the pod lid open. “I just want to get in here and save Van.”
“It’s going to kill you!” Neil shouted. “O’Hara, help me out here!”
O’Hara only shrugged. “Look, if she’s willing to pull a gun on you, it’s clear she’s past the point of reason. Just let her get in the damn pod already.”
“She’s going to die!” Neil cried.
“Why’s she going in there anyway?” O’Hara asked as she walked over to the computers and began to power up a few systems.
“Van’s still in there. He’s in danger,” Sang said, feeling a little relieved as the pod began to light up.
O’Hara looked at Neil and shook her head. “Like it or not, we don’t leave our own behind. Van’s a weasel and a dweeb, but if Sang cares enough to risk her life for it, he’s one of our own.”
“It’s not worth your life, Sang,” Neil pleaded. “You’re a star agent. One of the best and the brightest. If you die, it will be a tragedy among all tragedies. You haven’t heard the talk from the higher-ups. They’re impressed with your work. Frederick’s already talking about putting you back in the cyberterrorism division. You’re throwing away all of your potential. If Van dies… so what? He hasn’t done a damn thing with his life. No friends, no wife, no job. The best thing that could happen is that he dies doing what he loves, playing this stupid game.”
“And so, what?” Sang asked. “I’m worth more because I can do more? I contribute to society in a way that’s acceptable, and that makes me intrinsically more valuable than him?”
“You have more to lose than he does!” Neil reasoned.
Sang shook her head. “He matters, too. He’s a person, Neil. Not just a number or a statistic. And he also happens to be my partner right now. I already lost one partner, I’m not losing another. I’m going into the pod now, with the gun in my hand. If it opens up before I log out, I’m going to come out shooting.”
“You’re throwing everything away,” Neil warned as Sang laid on the pod’s table. It hissed as it slowly began to shut. “You’re throwing everything away, and for what?” he demanded.
Sang smiled as she felt the sharp sting of the haptic system plugging into her. “For redemption,” she whispered as everything around her went completely white.
Chapter Twenty-One
Van shifted nervously as he sat on the back of the massive Dragon. They were flying incredibly high—higher than he had ever gone before. He could see the entire continent below him, and while the view was breathtaking, he had no idea what was going on with Sang. There was no communication from anyone involved in the CIA team, and it was only a matter of time before he was going to get caught for being a filthy liar. He wasn’t very good at long term deception, having had no real experience in lying to people other than sometimes telling people that his uncle worked for Draco so that they’d believe his silly rumors. Trefor had been very silent. Without the ability to log out, Van was entirely at the mercy of the guy.
“We’re almost there,” Trefor said, smiling at Van. “You aren’t going to believe your eyes when we get there. It’s the most incredible thing you’ve ever seen.”
“Great, great,” Van said through gritted teeth. Each time he thought they were as high as they could go, the Dragon flew up even higher.