Chapter 255

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> *Seraphina, are you ready?*
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*- Agent Rowden*

This is the 255th episode of *unORDINARY*.

#### 7:30 AM

The Spectre technician exits the van to do her part while the rest stay inside to do the same. Seraphina is approached by the Spectre Communicator to "establish a link". She stays still as the agent holds his finger near her forehead. He asks if he can hear her, which she unexpectedly can despite him not using his voice. He telepathically tells her that the "No Communication Devices Policy" of the government run facility necessitates telepathic links in order to keep in touch. Seraphina is warned that the strain of his ability sets in the more the further away his contacts get. As such, all messages amongst the team will have to be kept brief so he could better focus on keeping the connection going. Seraphina affirms her understanding.

#### 7:45 AM

Right on schedule, the technician's handiwork is completed, and the rest of the van team now has access to NXGen's surveillance. *Rowden* asks if Seraphina is ready for Phase One. She nods.

Now inside, "Miss Meryl" gets a warm welcome from "Stacey", who guides her to be checked in at the front desk. The receptionist asks for Meryl to provide her ID and to turn over her phone. The Fake ID card passes scrutiny and Meryl says that she left her phone in the car. With that out of the way, she gets a visitor's pass, and with it clearance to venture further in to the room Stacey booked. As they walk through the halls, Seraphina's crash course on the building layout allows her to recognize the room from the map that she is supposed to gain access to.

#### 8:00 AM

When they are alone, Seraphina notices that Stacey is cool and collected for somebody partaking in such a dangerous mission. Stacey replies that they have the utmost privacy before going over Phase Two. The room they were trying to breach contained highly sensitive data. As such, there was heavy surveillance monitoring the door from outside 24-7. Though no cameras were installed inside, it was even more secure. There were aura sensors that were rigged to sound an alarm should an ability be active for more than five seconds within. The list of personnel cleared to enter the room was short, and on it is Dr. Kelley. He is the head of Conversion Research for NXGen, and was scheduled to enter the room at precisely 8:30 AM. As soon as he opened the entrance, Seraphina would have *exactly* three seconds to follow him inside unnoticed from the safe zone she was currently in. Seraphina mentally maps out her route, and says that it poses no issue for her. Satisfied with the rookie's confidence, Stacey hands over the USB drive to be used to hack the systems and download the data Spectre was after. Just one more change of clothes and Seraphina would be set for Phase Two.

### Downtown Rowden

#### 8:15 AM

The Safe House group, minus Sera, awaits to embark. Blyke gets supplies ready and announces for everybody to get into their separate groups. Arlo is caught off guard by this update, prompting Remi to explain that they were splitting up into City Tour and Mountain Hiking parties. Arlo wonders why this is, which Remi chastises him for. He would have known that the votes were tied beforehand if he didn't skip *every single after-school club meeting*. She then goes over to help Blyke pack, giving Arlo and John to a moment to agree on informing Seraphina of this unexpected divide. Remi observes their not-so-discrete interaction, wondering when and how camaraderie between them formed. John's phone call is fruitless, as a message informing him that she is unavailable plays. He assumes it's because she's busy with her mission, forcing Arlo to come up with some sort of Plan B.

Blyke finishes packing, and calls for all those interested in hiking to join him in boarding their bus. Only a handful of the group step forward, to his confusion. Arlo proposes that it may be best to cancel the hike and just take everybody on the city tour for the sake of convenience. Blyke decides against that course of action, saying that it's no bother for him to make the trip with a small group. Isen chooses to keep his buddy company on the journey. With the group potentially in danger, John resigns to ask for permission to participate in the hike. Blyke gives the okay, and the development inspires others to switch to his group as well. As they go their separate ways, John and Arlo exchange one last knowing look.

### NXGen Arcwood Facility

#### 8:29 AM

Seraphina has almost finished changing into a catsuit with spy gear. Meanwhile, *Rowden* keeps an eye out for Kelley on the van's monitors. As soon as the doctor makes his appearance, the Communicator starts sending *Rowden's* signals over to Seraphina. Stacey prepares to hold the safe zone's door open so Seraphina could just focus on reaching the objective. Kelley unlocks the data room, and enters. The now-masked Seraphina is off like a shot, but even with the speed of Time Manipulation, it looks to be a close call. The doors shut tight, with no visual confirmation of entry on *Rowden's* end. Things look bad until...

#### 8:30 AM

...Seraphina relays her successful infiltration to the team. Kelley is out cold, and the Aura Sensors do not give away the powered-down intruder. Seraphina gets to work, and uses the USB drive to access the password-protected terminal. She locates the file marked "Conversion Technology" and initiates the extraction process. All she could do now is wait 21 minutes for the download to complete.

### Downtown Rowden

#### 8:30 AM

While everybody else in the City Tour Group is buzzing with excitement, Arlo frets to himself about the misrepresentation of the Safe House votes splitting everybody up. At the same time, John does the same as the bus is in transit. Both have a nagging feeling that something is about to go awry.

## Appearing Characters

* Agent Rowden
* *Tech*
* Seraphina/"Miss Meryl"
* *Communicator*
* "**Stacey**"
* NXGen Receptionist
* Dr. Kelly
* Arlo
* Remi
* John
* Isen
* Blyke
* Roland
* Dylan
* Terrence
* Evie
* Jane (Picture)
* Elaine

## Appearing Abilities

* ***Telepathy***
* Time Manipulation