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Chapter 11
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2024-10-29 19:42:56New York City, New York.
It’s around ten in the night when they drive into New York; at least that’s what the clock on the dashboard says.
Mia has never felt as tired as she is in that moment but the excitement coursing through her veins from seeing such a marvellous city didn’t make that all too obvious.
Now, it’s not that she thinks Chicago isn’t marvellous anymore- seeing an actual big city isn’t enough to just rob Mia of that love that she has for her home city- but being in an economic jungle like New York is definitely an upgrade in travel experience for her and she likes it.
And Andrew said that this isn’t even the best part, she reminds herself.
The street traffic has become light by that time of the night but it still isn’t very easy to manoeuvre through the city- one of the side effects of being in the city that never sleeps- but Andrew’s navigation is quite expertly and that makes the journey reaso
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Okay, everything in this company has got to be imported from the future, Mia concludes when she sees the diagnostics room; at least that’s what the inscription on the door calls it. It takes a few more minutes of persuasion from Jacob before Mia finally agrees to have them run diagnostics on her mind. Whatever the hell that means, she thinks all the way. Truth be told, she doesn't see the importance, nor care to really. But Jacob has gone out of his way to protect her for sixteen years, the least she can do is indulge him; and so, she does. Besides, if he means me harm, she thinks to herself,he could have done so when I was still young and defenseless. However, one question that keeps nagging at Mia even as she gives in to the request is, why is Jacob Londermann, the CEO of one of the greatest tech company there is, so invested in her, a sixteen-year girl? And no answer she's come up with so far has sa
Tekna Chapter 13
Forty-three... Forty-four...Mia counts as she puts one foot in front of the other and moves round the big white room that has become her home. For about a week now, she's been staying at Alphatech and her life has quickly taken the shape of a routine. She wakes, eats, exercises, does a little bit of schoolwork as assigned to her by the numerous tutors that have been hired and paid for by Alphatech; and of course, her evening isn't complete without a diagnostic test with the master himself, Jacob Londermann. Now, it's not that Mia's against her hermit-like lifestyle. In fact, it rather suits her "Not mingling with people" personality perfectly. However, the problem is that even though she's shown that she's ready, the answers she so desperately craves for haven't been given to her. Every day, she's asked to look for a certain someone or something; and although the pain is almost non-existent now when she does a mental search as she likes to call
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The fact that Jacob asks to see Mia in the morning already convinces her that it isn't going to be a pleasant meeting. For one, he has never asked to see her in the morning before. Second, he's never even present in the company at that time so it doesn't make any sense that he will have something to see her about. Anyway, she goes to see what the fuss is all about. In the office that hasn’t quite lost its effects on Mia, she stares out the transparent wall into the city below. That morning, she opts for a white long-sleeve top with matching white pants and sneakers for the meeting. To be honest, the outfit that makes her feel like a lab rat, but she finds it way better than its black counterparts in her Alphatech closet- Mia really doesn’t want to look like someone in mourning no matter how the situation looks like. “So, why have you called to see me?" she asks, finally tearing her eyes away from the sight outside to face the man who has been sitting
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Andrew enters Mia’s room to see her sitting on the long leather sofa with her knees drawn up to her chin and biting her nails absentmindedly. It's a very rare posture with her, and if she's assuming it, it means that she’s worried about something. “What's wrong?" he asks as he sits down next to her, taking special care not to touch her- he doesn’t know what state of mind she’s in that moment and figures it unwise to push her. “I talked to Jacob,” she replies. “And?” “He told me everything.” “So, where's the worry coming from?" Andrew makes a confused face. In his mind, he thinks that if Mia has talked to Jacob, and he's told her everything- and neither of them is dead yet- then there should b nothing to worry about. “I don’t think he was telling the entire truth,” she replies and tells Andrew the story of her creation exactly as Jacob told her. “What makes you think the story's false?" he asks after she's done. “I don't
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Sitting within the four glass walls that mark his office, Alphatech’s Head of Operations, Quinn McCarthy feels like there’s nothing that can possibly get in the way of the joy he’s feeling that morning. Quinn has always thought of himself as a kind of mystic force of nature. Not anything like a god though; his boss is the real god. The kind of power that Jacob Londermann, his beloved boss, wields is in no contention with any man. Jacob’s web is ever-reaching, his influence ever-growing. In fact, he’s definitely the unnamed Lord of the world; and every who’s who knows that. That kind of power can only be dreamed of by other people. What I am is aGeneral conquering territories for my King, Quinn thinks of himself, relaxing even more into the cream revolving chair he’s sitting in as he smiles. To be honest, Quinn’s job as HOO goes way beyond ordinary business actvities. He has been the coordinator of a number of covert operations for Alpha
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Andrew has always viewed himself as a team player. In his eyes, he's someone who stands for the success of the course of a group, not against it. Unfortunately, that views seems about to change; and because of a girl too. No, Mia’s not just a girl, he reminds himself. She’s special and he knows that; and she’s never one to be impulsive although truth be told- that’s actually one of the things that makes him unable to stand her soemtimes and the reason why he's teased her so many times in times past. Mia's level-headed behaviour also happens to be the very reason why Andrew's going against his prime philosophy and helping Mia escape Alphatech. She wouldn’t have voiced her thoughts on Jacob being up to something if she wasn’t sure, he knows in his heart. Anyway, Andrew walks through Alphatech’s doors that morning and an unsettled feeling immediately washes over him. It’s like everyone can see his intention through the cool facade he's
Tekna Chapter 18
As discussed, the four armed men escort Andrew to the conference room and then take their leave. Well, all of them but one who decides to stand by the door as if guarding it; and Andrew's initially worried about him but he notices then that he's not even concentrating as his mind is totally on the phone before him. How hard can a phone freak guard be? he thinks and relaxes.About fifteen minutes later, Andrew's phone buzzes and it takes one glance at it to get his worry gauge back up again. The text is from Mia, asking him where he is.They’re definitely on to us, he confirms, finally understanding why the guard with him have been so relaxed. He's not there to guard him, he's there to stall him while the others presumably deal with Mia.Sitting up straight, he clears his throat to get the guard's attention. “Can you please get me a cup of water?" he asks.The latter is more than happy to comply. Apparently, he's bored just ba
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Jacob looks around him with a smile on his face as the chopper flies by.The sight of New York at night has always had a calming effect on Jacob. The miracle of the world is looking beautiful at night, is a major belief of his, and that’s the main reason why he prefers to come in to work at night. Well, that plus the fact that he usually has to go around meeting different sorts of people to discuss the new techs he’s developing during the day- they just don’t let him be.Those stupid people only want others doing things for them, never trying anything themselves, Jacob thinks, annoyed whenever he remembers the number of times the people he meets gives him an advice on how to better a product they haven’t seen nor tested yet; and most of them aren’t even scientists or tech developers. “Well, they can go shove all their advice up their asses,” he says, turning away from the sight before him with his mood ruined.
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5 years laterParis, France. The lights in the condominium automatically switches on as Mia walks in through the front door. She shrugs off her snow-covered coat and places it on the hangar next to the door, removing her boots to walk barefooted across the brown fur rug to the kitchen cabinet just as the heater automatically comes on too. “Please, be careful not to get snow on my rug,” she says to Andrew who walks into the apartment after her. “It’s new and I’ll love to keep it that way”. “Gee, so protective.” He rolls his eyes exaggeratedly but complies anyway as he carefully removes his coat and places it on the hangar next to Mia’s. “I have to say that party was great,” Andrew says, depositing himself on the couch. “At least, it was until those two guys began dishing me more French than I could handle.” “Which was why you had me as your designated translator beforehand,” replies Mia wit
Tekna Chapter 44
“You, my dear, aren’t just aTekna. You’retheTekna."The words ring in Mia's head like some alien language. It feels as if her mind can't make a decision on how best to react and so it doesn't- she just stares ahead with a numb expression on her face.Joseph means every word he's just said. Of that, Mia has no doubt; and the intense look in his eyes even then supports it, but not wanting to let herself be upended, she puts on her best mocking smile.“Wow, Joseph!" she says. "That sounds an awful lot like admiration.”“That’s because it is,” he returns.Before Mia can fully vibe the situation though, Joseph suddenly pulls out a gun and points it squarely in her face. “I’m going to do whatever it takes to keep you with me, Mia," he says, "even if you have to be in a cryogenic coffin for that to happen.”Mia's expression takes on that vi
Tekna Chapter 43
Mia wobbles three steps forward before finally giving up and collapses against the wall. She watches her blood stain the wall as she slides uncontrollably to the ground.There's no need to sugarcoat this, I'm a failure, she thinks to herself as she pants helpslessly on the ground. It doesn't take a genius to see that she has failed in her mission to subdue Joseph, and as a result, she’s going to lose her life and Andrew’s too; if he isn’t dead already, that is.Well, guess it’s divine justice that I should die all alone and with a hole the size of the Mississippi in my side too, she laughs at the image in her mind. Irony be that she caused her own death and perhaps a billion others too- it’s a no brainer that Joseph will find a way to remotely control her mind to launch the missiles like he wants.To be honest, she knows from the start she may actually have been alright had she not been so insistent on her freedom.
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“Is this the part where you kill me?” Andrew passes a look around Jacob’s men as they lead him down a deserted corridor. It’s thirty minutes after his rescue- if it can even be called that- and so far, the only interaction they’ve had with him is to cuff him and say, “Move.”He looks to Jacob. “You know, I don’t get it,” he says. “Why are you so scared of Mia?”“Of course not, Andrew. What ridiculous story is this?” he returns, scoffing. “I’m not afraid of Mia. She’s just a child.”“And yet, here you are.” Andrew shoots him a mocking smile. “Come on Jacob, you’ve crossed every boundary known to humanity in order to get her in your custody. Is that how much she haunts your nightmares?”“You don’t know what you’re talking about.” Jacob’s voice takes on a threatening tone as he grabs Andrew by
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Mia’s gaze shifts from the footage of Andrew in his flooded cell to the world map of deathly red dots. A conflicted expression rests on her face. Do I want to save the world? She asks herself. Of course, she wants to. She won't have gone through all the trouble to resist Joseph if she doesn't want to. So now, the real question is, does she want to save the world at Andrew's expense? In all honesty, Andrew has become more than a friend to Mia in the past month; thinking otherwise is just self-denial. He has risked his life for her time and time again, and all without asking anything in return than she should remain safe. She owes him a lot. But can I let the world be destroyed just to save his life? She asks this time, sighing again as the conflict in her soul comes once more to the forefront. The truth, Mia knows that she will definitely lose Andrew if she goes along with Joseph's plan even if it is to save his life. No one wants to
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Jacob looks down at the endless ocean as the chopper flies past and marvels. No wonder Joseph decided to establish himself here, he thinks to himself, smiling. Truth be told, Jacob isn't that big a fan of waters, but this one feels different. Looking out, he can see that Joseph's choice of the Atlantic ocean is more than just for security. The sight of it actually fills one with an aura of power. Anyone will give anything to remain in the presence of that aura. But ocean thoughts aside, Jacob concentrates himself back on the simple reason why he's made the trip all the way to Joseph: he has Mia and he needs to get her back. Actually, it’s a plan that he has envisioned for a while. In fact, it’s the particular reason why he warned Joseph of Mia’s coming to begin with. Get Joseph to stop Mia and then take her away from him. He smiles to himself. Brilliant, just brilliant. “We’re approaching the building, sir,” the pilot’s voic
Tekna Chapter 39
A few days before Mia's arrival, Joseph is in his office doing his regular overseeing work when his office phone suddenly rings. A frown crosses his face as he takes a glance at the caller ID and sees no name or number on display, which isn't supposed to be possible.Thing is, all of Joseph's phones are tagged with a caller identification app that can hack into any signal- even military- and get him an identity, but the fact that it seems not to be able to work for this particular incoming call can only mean one thing: trouble.“Who's this?" he says cautiously into the phone.“Jacob Londermann,” comes the reply from the other side, “and I’m calling to help you, old friend.”“You!” Joseph grits his teeth so hard it's a miracle he doesn't lose one or two teeth. His heart gets torn between the feeling of anger at Jacob and excitement to hear his voice again after sixteen long years.However, a second lat
Tekna Chapter 38
Thing is, Mia has been able to find out beforehand that Joseph mounted motion sensors in the water. If they get too close to his base, they will run into the sensors perimeter and trigger them. With a little bit of Tekna magic though, Mia has equipped the ship with a software that can easily detect the sensors and thus, avoid them, which it just does. “Ladies first.” Andrew makes an exaggerated gentlemanly posture with a wide grin on his face as he points Mia below deck. “Enough with the drama already, Cameron,” she returns, deliberately brushing against him when she moves. Surprisingly, Mia realises that she sort of enjoyed the contact. In fact, for the past few days, she has been "sort of" enjoying various contacts with Andrew; and has been fostering cases for them too to be honest. Not healthy, Mia, she warns herself. Andrew should be the last person she wants to "enjoy." He's still the same guy that caused you trouble in high
Tekna Chapter 37
Somewhere in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Mia stares into the horizon as the cold ocean breeze whips across her face; a gentle reminder that winter isn’t far behind. It has taken a long time, and quite a lot effort, but she can finally say she has beaten Jacob fair and square; and now, she's ready to move on to her next target: Joseph Lewis. Finding Joseph hasn't been a walk in the park for Mia. The man is thickly hidden behind firewalls, shell companies, and general digital footprint animousity; and even with her Tekna ability out to play, following him ithrough all those veils still isn't easy. Fortunately, Jacob's data coin's information proves handy as despite the fact that the coin itself is a bait, and later destroyed, Mia is still able to make use of it- its source code, to be precise- to log on to and communicate with the other data coins in Alphatech; and by extension, use the company's servers and satellites to foster
