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Jaime looked down at the ground, snapped from shock into realisation at the scarab’s words. “Wait a second- you said found… …I wasn’t chosen?”
“You all *lied* to me…” Jaime said, realisation quickly turning into anger.
The words {Tactical error: Secret = Failed} flashed briefly in Khaji Da’s subconscious.
[[We told you what you needed to hear.]]
“No! You lied- Don’t you dare try and act like you were doing what was best for me…” A lump formed in Jaime’s throat. A realisation. The Reach were using him just like Beam was using Riley, and the thought made him sick.
{Course correction / The Reach need Jaime’s belief} [[The ambassador just needed you to trust him, Jaime. He didn’t know what kind of a person you might have been. Rest assured the ambassador wants you to be the Reach’s representative.]]
‘Another Lie’ Jaime thought, dread and rage pooling within him. ‘Just what else is a lie, just how much are the Reach using him…’
“That’s it… I’m done with the powers- I’m done with you, and I’m done with the Reach. -I’M OUT!” He moved to walk away, not that he could move away from the scarab in his spine, but nevertheless he walked further out into the Texan desert.
Khaji scrambled to find the words to assaude their host, but Jaime’s anger was palpable, this lie was detrimental to their plan. Perhaps the best course of action = silence.
Jaime could hear the footsteps of his friends behind him, he had barely stopped to think about what they might have seen… He could think about the Reach’s lies later, right now he had to tell his friends the truth.