OLD-WORLD EXTRA-Chapter 144: A Consenting Blackmailed Double Agent [Bonus chapter]

'Uhh... You were chosen simply because it was convenient. But let's not tell him that.'

Was the first thought that crossed Emir's mind after listening to Nathan's confident words.

"Before we get to that, let's reintroduce ourselves, shall we?" He said, gesturing towards Lyra.

Stepping up next to Emir, she spoke:

"My real name is Lyra..."

She paused for a moment, allowing her physical form to shift to its true appearance.

Pushing away her white hair from her face, she continued:

"Amanda is one of my many identities. And as you might've guessed, we are not from the Liberation Army. You see... I am an AI, created by the very ones you fight against."

They watched in amusement as a flicker of panic spread across Nathan's face, only to be replaced soon after by a smile of joy.

"So you defected?"

Cutting in, Emir answered instead, "Yes, she did. Lyra helped me out of the Order's game, and now they've caught us in the act. And you can see the consequences with what's happening to my mother's business."

"But before we get to that, let me tell you about me. My real name is Emir, but I have another, Subject 777. That's what they called me, as I was but a tool for them, though not so much anymore..."

"We have no connection with the Liberation Army, obviously, but we do have our own secretive group, and although we expected the Order to catch on, due to my prolonged absence, we were discovered earlier than expected."

'It isn't much of a lie, Kiera and her gang do technically work for us.' He added inwardly with a snicker.

"So now... Let's get into the main dish. You are correct in your assumption since you'll be working in tandem with us to establish a solid foundation for us on Earth. Prince Emporium's survival is dependent on that, so we need to act now before the court date against us in three months."

Immediately understanding their plan, Nathan asked excitedly:

"Who do you want me to track?"

Smiling Emir leaned back on his chair and let Lyra take the metaphorical stage.

"We need you to pull up any suspects that UEF has on the Gold Leaf and Moon Scribe families - anyone, no matter how low they are on the family ladder. The implication itself could be used against them."

Nodding, Nathan turned to his terminal, and after a few clicks and clacks, he turned towards the projector as it showed a long list of names and faces.

He raised his hand through the hologram and pinched outward, zooming out the list, which numbered hundreds.

"The UEF has access to AI systems that track people's Aether Core implant ID, it could only be obscured by special devices or instances when jamming smoke and acid rain interfere with the signals. But it turns out there was one more that I didn't know of..."

He paused for a moment as he looked at Lyra, causing Emir to let out a laugh.

Nathan then turned his gaze back at the hologram and continued:

"What I do know, however, is that not even the Elite have someone with Lyra's capabilities or the devices I mentioned, they are expensive to make after all."

Letting out a sigh, Emir said, "Stop going off tangents, Nathan. I get that you're excited, but we need to begin the operation by the end of today."

Waving in a gesture of apology, Nathan refocused on the topic at hand:

"My bad, my bad... So, as you can see, we've got a lot here. And you can check them out and see who you'll be going after."

Emir silently turned his head and looked at Lyra, waiting for her to speak.

Moments later, she looked away from the hologram and said:

"More than ninety percent of them are duds. Bait for the UEF to bite into and waste their time."

Willing her thoughts into the hologram, all those she judged to be useless were deleted, and only thirty or so people remained, ranging from the highest to the lowest suspicion level.

"I can easily bet that at least one of the people in this group has regular contact with an intermediary relating to the Order."

Showing a confused face, Nathan asked:

"But how? How do you know that the ones you removed aren't involved?"

Sounding a chuckle, she answered:

"It's simple, I might look this beautiful, but remember, I am an advanced AI capable of easily hacking most networks on Earth."

Nodding, Nathan replied to his own question:

"And by doing that, you can determine their background information, their daily routine, and where they're actually spotted at what time, automatically removing those that don't fit the

bill..."

He had more to say but stopped when he saw Emir stand up and walk closer to his desk.

Emir snickered at his reaction and turned his attention to the hologram.

With a few swipes and gestures, he skimmed through the entire list of people, noting key things about each one that might implicate them.

Seemingly having had enough, he turned his attention to the double agent.

"How many men do you have on hand?"

Scratching his gray hair, he answered awkwardly:

"Kuhm kuhm, I have a few..."

Seeing that Emir was staring daggers at him, he quickly corrected himself:

"I only have four people. I didn't allow any in that weren't fully trustworthy."

Emir nodded in approval.

"Good enough. I'll have my group check out the rest."

He then pointed at a specific high-rated target in the hologram:

"Have your best guy focus on this one, he might lead us somewhere."

Nathan stood up.

"Understood. Is there anything else that I need to know about?"

Emir shook his head.

"Nah, we do have a plan to fall back on, but I'm not betting on it."

Stepping out from behind his desk, Nathan raised his hand to gesture a handshake, and Emir's

hand met his as he said:

"Pleasure to be working with you, Nathan. Don't let me down."

Gripping Emir's hand tighter, Nathan responded to the challenge:

"I won't, my life is on the line after all."

They both snickered and let go as Emir waved goodbye while following Lyra out of his office.

[Lyra, is Kiera still at her base? It's about time we make them useful...]