We've Been Hacked

"So..." he mumbled as he hit the keys on his keyboard. His worn-out eyes stared at the dimmed monitor light, running codes of different figures. "Are they ready for the first part of the escape plan?" he turned his chair and faced the little fox sitting behind, licking his paws.

The fox sat stiff as he stared at his master and immediately replied, "I guess they're all set." he mustered all confidence to make his master proud and somehow relieved. "Everyone's preparing for their respective tasks with all your instructions in mind. I really hope this one works," he muttered.

Hachiro took a deep sigh and turned back to his monitor. They sat quietly inside the tent where the people who treated him as a foe all gathered for their meeting. It was Jayson's tent at first, but when Hachiro said he needed a workplace, the tent was offered like a piece of candy.

It was spacious inside, a few supply bags lay on the floor, stools for chairs and a big monitor sat in the middle of the tent. It was initially used for recon and headquarters but now, it's a mere hub for a brat.

"I do hope so as well..." Hachiro replied, leaning on his chair. "De, how about us?" he stretched his arms in the air. "How's our end?"

"I've scanned the palace and found a sneak route inside to get to the key without getting caught," Shichiro replied. "The security was pretty tough though. I tried every means to stay hidden."

"So, how do we get to the sneak route?"

Shichiro leaped onto Hachiro's lap and hit the keys on the board. A schematic diagram is shown on the monitor.

"We'll take the entrance hall and sneak up the ventilation deck."

"Cliché strategy." Hachiro frowned.

"We should do the unexpected." The fox replied. "If we do the most conventional thing, the hacker won't think of us doing that. He would think of complex stuff and will wait for us to take his bait and if we do the opposite, I guess he won't expect us to do the lame stuff."

Hachiro giggled. "It's not lame..." he said. "It's just...we're like a real spy" The fox saw a slight glimmer in his eyes, like he was back to being a child where he saw something special. "Like Agent 007 or Sherlock Holmes."

"You've always wanted to try that stuff since you were a kid," Shichiro muttered. "And one thing, Sherlock Holmes is not a spy." He sighed.

"Ehhh? He's not?!!" Hachiro exclaimed. "I thought he was a spy. I mean, I've seen a movie—"

"But that doesn't mean he's a spy. He's a detective."

"Do detectives do the spying thing?"

"I guess.." the fox paused for a while and gave a smug face "...NOT"

"Ehhh?! Anyway, he passed as a spy for me. I won." He grinned playfully.

"Tsk. It's drawn all over your damn face, idiot."

"Where did you get those words?"

"What words?" the fox asked.

"That word. 'Idiot' where did you get that?"

"Sandra...Dave...and the rest of the people around us." The fox replied. "They're all calling you that..." the fox smirked. "...is there a problem?"

"That doesn't mean you can say that.." Hachiro pouted and crossed his arms. "I just can't argue with Sandy... and Dave's doing it for fun."

"Ohh...I thought it was like your nickname or something.."

"Clearly it's not, damn fox.." he glared.

"Ohh,, I'm sorry." Shichiro smiled. "As I was saying, we'll take that route and hopefully get the key before the hacker gets to us. I'll send the map on your watch after we send the other map to the others' watches."

"Okay..then, upload it now."

Shichiro hit the keys and the monitor ran codes. A meter indicating percentage appeared at the center that started counting.

"Oi, Marky.." Dave called as he entered the tent. "I was just passing to check on you."

"We, Dave. It's we." Sandra emphasized with a smug face as she entered the tent as well.

"We're doing fine." Hachiro replied.

"Here's some iced coffee. It's from the vending machine we saw on one of the abandoned stores near the camp." Dave handed him the cup. "Just bear with it for a while."

"We know you've just woken up from a deep sleep because of that wound, but I know how much you love coffee, so I'll spoil you just for now."

"It's WE, Sandy. It's we.." Dave frowned.

"De, how're things here?" Sandra changed the topic.

"Well, nothing that I can't handle," Hachiro replied. "And please call me 'Hachiro'. There's something on that name that I can't still fathom."

"Oh sorry. Sandra told me about it." Dave reluctantly said.

"Ha-chan de ii yo.." Shichiro said with a smile. He curled under Sandra's leg.

"Ha-chan?" Sandra said and he saw his friend's face turned pink. "That sounds like an Anime."

"That is fine.." Hachiro said in a whisper, pouting. "And I don't care how it sounds like anime stuff though, I like anime.."

"That's cute..." Sandra giggled.

"What?!" Hachiro asked pissed.

"Nothing." Sandra answered. "I just thought I was seeing that old friend of ours here. Right in front of me." She smiled.

Hachiro's face turned red.

"Anyway, what's next after we get the key? Do you have a plan to decipher the code, if that's really a code or something?"

"I...I have something in mind. But, that's not yet important. If the map has been uploaded, you can all check on it and we'll commence our plan." Hachiro replied. "All we have to do now is get most of the others near the port for easier escape, make the glitch, and let Louige and his team do the rest. Besides, I was sent here to get you guys to safety."

"Oh I see.." Sandra smiled weakly. She wanted to say something more, but their watch's beep interrupted her. "Look, the map's been uploaded. I'll try to check it out." she exclaimed.

The screen ran red codes with a skull imprinted at the center like a watermark. Keys won't function and a dozen pop-ups filled the screen. Shichiro jumped from his seat and growled at the monitor, baring his fangs.

"We've been hacked." Shichiro announced.

"Long time no see.." Hachiro grinned.