Rigging the System

Asher spun in the chair in his room. The dizziness made the glowing stars above him blur into a galaxy. 

"What to do, what to do," he muttered. What ever could he do to get the balance in his favor? 

Of course, he could just go and press the button when no one was looking, but he had looked at the button closely. It didn't have a sprung under it - it was a one-time press. That's how no one had showed up to find the alien that they'd buried yet. It'd obviously not been able to press the button yet.

Since it was a one time press, he'd be caught. Unless he maybe fidgeted around with it, but that would require opening the alien keyboard up, which was probably better sealed then a nuclear bomb - he hadn't seen screws anywhere on it.

I should press it, but only when I'm at my best so the aliens will understand what a smart type we are. That'd likely be once I get one of those bracelets, Asher thought. So I'd have to get one somehow. I'll have to wait my turn - Miriam is more likely to get one then me, and she hardly knows how to fight.

And the others will have to be presentable of course, too. I have a feeling Adah is too outspoken to be talking to them, he thought, and then winced. He hated talking negatively about his sister, but that assessment lined up with all of her actions. His twin would probably mess up and ruin everything.

Forget about being able to speak to them! I need to learn Egyptian. Maybe PJ, too. He began to type DuoLingo into the searchbar. It brought him to his account, where he'd finished courses in many languages and was halfway into others. He clicked learn a new language and began to scroll.

His labour proved fruitless. They had klingon, a fictional language, but not ancient egyptian. This'll take a while, he thought, pressing the undo button on his search bar and beginning to scroll.

Finally, he found an outdated site that looked like it was made during the age of Geocities and Angelfire. The design was terrible, but at least it had the basics in ancient egyptian. 

A couple of miles away, PJ was nestled in her room. The walls were painted a cream color, and one of them was tilted in because the roof ran slightly through her room.In that indent area was also a flat little cubby with a window overlooking the backyard. 

Pressed against the wall opposite to her was her bed which touched the corner and her nightstand. She had no bathroom connected to her room, but she did have a large set of bookshelves and a desk. 

PJ was currently in the cubby area, looking outside as rain spiraled towards the ground. She was thinking about the button. She wanted to press it as she didn't want Asher to take the fall for it, but was worried he'd feel left out. 

Her phone buzzed and she picked it up. A private text. She read who it was from: Asher Abbott. She punched in her passcode and began to read. 

"I'm starting to learn Ancient Egyptian. I recommend you do so as well," it read with a link at the end of the text to a website on Ancient Egypt. 

"But what about the button?" She asked. 

"I feel like we don't have to worry about that… " he replied, and then a bubble appeared showing he was still typing. 

After an anxious minute, the text arrived. "For now." 

How ominous, PJ thought as she clicked on the link he sent. 

She scrolled through the website he sent her and then texted, "Meeting today?"

"No," came the simple reply. "But if you really want to talk then we can. It's not like I have anything better to do."

"Alright. Meet you at the G2?" she asked. 

"Sure," Asher replied. 

Miles away from PJ, the boy put down his phone. He snuck out and was relieved that Adah wasn't on the screened in porch watching the rain. He didn't want to have to answer any of her questions. 

Rain soaked the pine leaves to the forest floor, and when they spun into the tire they were pasted there until a rock bumped it off. 

He skirted through a pond of water as he arrived at the Genesis 2. He took his helmet off and pulled his glasses from his pockets and put them on despite the rain. 

A minute later, PJ arrived. 

"What's up, Paris?" Asher asked.

"The clouds," PJ replied. 

Asher chuckled. "Of course. What do you want to talk about?"

"The button."

"The thing about the button is it doesn't have a spring - it'd stay down. The only people with motives to press the button are you and me. We'd be torn to shreds by them," Asher said. 

"The aliens?" PJ inquired. 

Asher shook his head. "No. Cain, Miriam, and Adah."

"Miriam wouldn't hurt a fly," PJ told him. 

Now that gives me an idea. She'd be easier to deal with in a fight then Adah, Asher thought. 

"Yes but.. that's not the point. We don't have the man-er, womanpower. We are a two person team. Something that might give us edge is having someone with special abilities on our side," Asher said. 

"When the time comes to choose a candidate for the second device, I'll rig the system so it's either you or non-confrontational Miriam," Asher continued. "As long as Adah isn't the next one to get a device, we might be able to tip the scales."

"Are you sure that will work?" Miriam asked. 

Asher crosses his arms. "We can only hope."

"And what if it doesn't?" 

Asher narrowed his eyes at the Genesis 2 and through gritted teeth muttered, "Then we might have to play dirty."