Page 221
“Ooh,” Miles laughed quietly beside me. “Looks like it's going to be an exciting day after all.”
Adrian muttered something incomprehensible.
“Did you miss me?” The Eye continued with an amused undertone. “No?”
The old professor pulled out his phone and began dialing a number before lifting the phone to his ear and eventually disappearing through a side door into the bright corridors of Vanderwood. The door closed on its own, leaving us enveloped in darkness once again.
“Believe me, you may not know it yet, but I'm going to get you addicted. Addicted to the freedom that was taken from us.”
I tried to observe the reactions of my fellow students, to see them better in the darkness, but interrupted myself when I noticed my eyes beginning to glow.
“Addicted to the chaos that will give us back what belongs to us.”
I noticed some heads nodding and the murmuring growing louder.
“Whatever the directors of this university tell you. The supreme authority of Vanderwood...” It grew quieter. The tension in the hall seemed to thicken like a cloud of mist. “...is me.”
“I doubt that, but okay,” Miles laughed in amusement and leaned back further in his chair as if this were a trip to the movies for him.
“That's why the first thing I demand of you is that you replace those ridiculous uniforms with decent clothing.”
Cheers of approval broke out somewhere below, and some students clapped.
“Let the games begin.”
The murmuring grew louder again and students exchanged confused glances.
“I'm sure you're wondering…” The Eye continued. “...what these games are.”
He paused, allowing the room to quiet down again.
“Let me explain.”
I wondered who was behind this, whether they were watching us, and whether we were the only lecture hall affected.
“The big game consists of three phases. Phase one: Inner turmoil.”
He paused.
“Phase two: Intrigue.”
It was getting quieter and quieter.
“And phase three.”
Complete silence. It was as if the entire hall was holding its breath.
“Disempowerment.”
Someone started cheering loudly. Others joined in.
It was clear who the hacker wanted to disempower. Harlow. And the students at Vanderwood were ready to see this woman burning at the stake.
“As students of this university, you will have the chance in each phase to prove through games how much you want your university back.”
“Finally someone who dares to do something about Harlow,” I heard a girl on the other side of the aisle say quietly to her friend.
“Phase one starts today,” The Eye announced. “That means you will now receive daily tasks from me to clean up our campus.”
