Chapter8
927 Words
Tiger's game.
The air in the rebel’s camp felt colder than the slums.
Zara stood at the entrance, staring at the monolithic building in front. It looked like a fortress. Tiger’s empire.
“Are you really sure about this?” Usman asked, his voice low.
Zara nodded. “We will strike him tonight. No more running.”
“Tiger isn’t just some street leader anymore. He’s the mastermind of the system.”
“I don’t really care.” Her voice was steel. “He’s the one who made us, and he must go down.”
The crew split up as planned.
• Usman and Mara would handle the security outside, quiet, lethal.
• Zavier and Zara would storm into the main building, find Tiger, and get the answers they needed.
The place was a maze, dark pathways, flickering lights. It felt like a city built on lies. Echoes of voices filled the walls. The Project. The Saints. The Elite Games.
Zara’s heart pounded. That was it. That moment, everything would change.
They found Tiger in the middle of the compound, sitting in front of a big screen, watching the slums burn in real-time.
“Welcome, Zara,” he said, not even turning to look at her face.
“Enough of the games,” Zara said, stepping forward. I know everything. About the Project. About you. What is your reason for making us?”
Tiger laughed softly. “I didn’t make you, Zara. I actually built you. I prepared you to be leaders, rulers. You were never meant to be just weapons. You’re the future.”
She felt a cold shiver down her spine. “The future?”
“You’re the one who will rebuild this broken world. You think the rebels will save the slums? They’re just as broken as the system they fight against. You will bring order. Power.”
Zara’s hands clenched into fists. “I won’t be your puppet.”
He turned and faced her, his eyes cold and calculating. “You already are. The project didn’t fail. It succeeded. You are the future. And you’ll lead it, whether you want to or not.”
The Truth About Mara
Zara’s world tilted. Tiger’s words rang in her ears.
“You’re lying.”
Tiger didn’t blink. “You think Mara doesn’t remember? You think she hasn’t already made her choice?”
Zara turned to Mara, who was standing near the doorway, eyes downcast.
“Mara…?” Zara asked, voice trembling. “Tell me he’s lying.”
Mara’s voice cracked. “I… I didn’t choose. I never did. They erased me. But they didn’t just erase my memories, Zara. They planted me. You… You were the backup. I wasn’t supposed to remember you.”
Zara’s breath caught. “No…”
Mara stepped forward, her voice shaking with guilt. “I didn’t want to be part of the game. But I was. We both were.”
Zara turned to Tiger, eyes wide. “You did this. You turned us against each other.”
Tiger smiled. “I didn’t have to. You did that yourselves. It’s all part of the design.”
Zara couldn’t breathe. Betrayal. Lies. Her past had been twisted into something she didn’t recognize. She looked at Mara, at Zavier, at Usman. Every one of them was a product of a game they were never asked to play.
Tears burned in her eyes, but she wiped them away, a new fire starting to burn inside her.
“I don’t need to be part of your future,” she spat at Tiger.
“You’ll need us before this is over,” he said, his voice calm, confident. But make your choice. Because this fight will destroy everything. The slums, the Project, the future you think you control, it’s all a house of cards, Zara. And you don’t have the strength to hold it up.”
Zavier pulled out his blade, his eyes narrowing. “Enough talk.”
He lunged at Tiger, but a series of blinding flashes lit the room. Drones.
“Trap,” Tiger said, stepping back.
Zara lunged, knocking Zavier out of the way just as pulse blasts struck the walls.
“We need to leave now,” Usman yelled over the chaos. “This place is collapsing!”
“Not until I finish this!” Zara shouted back, rushing forward, but Tiger was gone. The room was filled with smoke and the sound of approaching guards.
Zara’s hands trembled as she reached for her blade. “We finish this—NOW.”
They barely made it out. As they ran through the compound’s winding halls, they were met with endless reinforcements. Guns. Drones. Guards. It felt like an entire army.
But then, just as they reached the exit, Usman fell.
A bullet, straight through the leg.
Zara screamed. “Usman!”
He grinned through gritted teeth. “Get out. Go. Save the slums.”
“I’m not leaving you!”
“Get out of here. You’re the future. You’ve got to finish what we started.”
Zara hesitated. But she knew. She had no choice. She ran, pulling Mara and Zavier with her, while the rest of the team covered their escape.
Usman stayed behind, fighting until the very last second.
They made it back to the slums.
But Usman wasn’t with them.
Zara stood at the edge of the city, staring at the burning skyline.
Tiger wasn’t just a man anymore. He was a system, a lie that couldn’t be fought with weapons.
Zara clenched her fists.
“Everything changes now.”
- Writer
