When I'm not writing, studying, or working on my research, I'm actually an amateur composer! So when I was listening to the Avengers soundtrack on loop like any normal, sane person would, I wondered what the soundtrack of Games of Chance would be like if it was a movie, and that thought led to the video on this chapter: the official Project PROB theme song! Hope you guys enjoy it :)

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"So right now, we're in the basement of the Jacker warehouse, and lucky for us, there's usually not any Jackers down here. Something we've learned while we're here is that there's not very many actual Jackers in general- maybe twenty to thirty, tops- but they run everything with their army of Jacked. That means while we're here, we're much more likely to encounter a Jacked than a Jacker- specifically, the kind of Jacked they call a Bot," Violet explained as the Heirs walked around the room, looking under chairs and piles of discarded clothing until, one by one, they found their PW's. 

"What's a Bot?" Hayley asked as she triumphantly retrieved a thick, leather belt from between the cushions of a couch. 

"A Jacked that isn't actively being controlled by a Jacker," Violet replied, closing her fist around an elegant pair of diamond earrings. "They're programmed to follow repetitive, predictable patterns and are therefore quite easy to fight. My advice is to attack them from behind if possible. They don't really know how to respond to that." 

"Oh, baby, have I missed you," Roy grinned, stroking the handle of his mace. 

"Don't be weird," Juliana rolled her eyes, pulling on a ratty black hoodie and sweatpants over her suit. When she pulled the string of the hoodie tight until most of her face was obscured, Chase discovered that his mother was right: she could easily be mistaken for the Raven. 

"How do I look?" Juliana walked to the front of the group, spreading her arms to show off her baggy outfit. 

"...not like a princess," Roy raised his eyebrows in distaste. 

"Good," Juliana nodded. "Let's go." 

As the group made their way to the flight of stairs on the other side of the room- which they presumed led out of the basement- Chase and his parents fell to the back of the line. 

"You've come a long way since you first got to Arcana." Although she was smiling, there was a hint of regret in Violet's expression that Chase didn't understand. "It's like you've always been one of us." 

"Uh...thanks, Mom," Chase nodded. "The others have been a lot of help. Especially Jules and Chu. It takes a lot of patience to put up with my cluelessness." 

"Ah, yes, the young princess," Henry nodded, a small smirk coming over his face. "I hear you two have grown quite close." 

"Hayley," Chase muttered sharply under his breath. Whatever he had with Juliana, it certainly wasn't something he was ready to tell his parents about. 

"Oh, come on, don't look so embarrassed," Violet laughed. "A month ago, you had no idea the Order of Chance existed. Now, you're playing the part of an aristocrat with ease: excelling at the Royal Academy, going on missions, kissing the princess... Don't you think you've adjusted a little too easily?"

Chase didn't know what his mother was getting at, but the frightening part was, she was right. Just a month into his new life, he was beginning to see himself and the other Heirs on the same plane. He was taking things for granted, forgetting who he used to be. 

Making sure that Juliana, a couple of steps ahead of them on the stairs, was out of earshot, Violet lowered her voice. "Juliana VanderSchee was born to rule the most powerful country in the world. She is trained to be poised and extroverted, always ready to lead the charge. I just want you to remember that everything you find attractive about her, she learned out of a textbook." 

"What... what are you trying to say?" Chase frowned. 

"The truth is, we weren't exactly kidnapped by the Jackers," Henry whispered so quietly that there was no way that even Roy with his dog cochleas could've heard. "We let them take us." 

"What?" Chase's eyes bulged out of his skull. 

"Shh, not so loud," Violet put her finger to her lips. "There is corruption in Arcana. In very high places. Your father and I have been observing both the Order and the Jackers for years, and there's only one possible explanation for how similarly they operate... somehow, they're both ultimately being run by the same person. We've already had plenty of inside observation of the Order. If we wanted to find the common thread, we would need to get the same kind of intel on the Jackers. And what better way to do that than be held hostage by them for a month?"

"That also explains how easy the Order made it for you to fit in," Henry added. "Our mysterious leader must be so excited- they've just gotten a new toy soldier to play with." 

"But... but we found the spy! We found Adrian Harrow. That means we're safe... doesn't it?" Chase softened his voice, looking at his father for reassurance. 

"Ha," Henry scoffed. "Adrian was just a minnow. Mark my works, the shark is still out there." His gaze rose to rest on Juliana, who was fumbling with the lock on the steel door that led out of the basement. 

"You can't possibly believe it's her," Chase's brow furrowed with worry. "I mean, she's Juliana- the Crimson Angel! She's smart, she's strong, she's a superhero!" 

"Yes, that is the image she's strategically built of herself," Henry nodded. "It would be unfair of us to condemn her with what insubstantial evidence we have, but I still thought it wise to tell you to be vigilant around her. Especially after hearing what I did from Hayley." 

Chase continued up the stairs as the door creaked open, feeling decidedly uncomfortable. His lifelong admiration of Juliana and his parents' revelations wanted to battle it out in his head, but the task at hand forced him to push his intrusive thoughts aside. 

The first floor of the base looked more like a traditional warehouse, with stacks of crates climbing all the way up to the ceiling and plenty of Bots walking about. 

"Name and business," one of the Bots asked at the sight of the group. He looked like he said this exact phrase dozens of times a day, like a real-life NPC. Seeing what was once a thinking, feeling human being reduced to this made Chase sick to his stomach. No wonder Jacking was illegal in Arcana. 

"Raven," Juliana stepped forward, perfectly imitating both the Raven's accent and her careless, swinging gait. The Bot looked her up and down, frowning. 

"Accepted," he finally nodded in acknowledgment. "But that is not your primary name. Next time, please refer to yourself by your primary name for quicker identification." 

Of course 'The Raven' wasn't her real name, just like 'The Crimson Angel' wasn't Juliana's. But somehow, the idea of the murderous cyborg having a real name, a real identity, was rather unsettling. 

Juliana motioned for the others to follow her across the warehouse floor. Now convinced of her identity, the Bots avoided her, leaving a clear path toward the door. Opening it, Juliana was met with a deluge of sunlight that nearly blinded her for an instant. It was daytime alright, although she couldn't begin to estimate how many days had passed since their capture. Had it been a week? A month? Was the Order even still looking for them? 

No, she couldn't afford to entertain such thoughts. It had only been a couple of days, tops. The Order was lurking just outside the Jackers' ring of defenses, waiting for them to make their escape. It had to be so. 

The square around the warehouse was circular and covered in gravelly sand. Juliana's lightweight black boots, which were beginning to feel very heavy in the hot, humid air, crunched through the dust as she laboriously put one foot in front of the other. 

"Hey, Rave!" 

Thanks to the hood drawn tightly over her ears, she almost didn't hear the voice calling out after her. Looking up, she saw two figures walking toward the group. The Eagle was impossible to miss with his pointed gray mask, but the other... it took a moment for Juliana to recognize him dressed so casually in a t-shirt and cargo shorts. 

Adrian. 

Juliana's heart pounded in her chest, and she felt the others' intense gaze behind her. Strongly suspecting his betrayal was different from catching him taking a stroll with the Eagle across the Jacker island. Even through the others' accusations, she'd always held out hope that they were simply mistaken, but now, that hope had been crushed. 

"G-guys?" Adrian gulped, his eyes widening. He instinctively recoiled, hiding behind the Eagle. 

That coward! He couldn't even own up to his treachery. How Juliana wanted to run her spear through him right that instant! 

"Can we continue this revelation later?" the Eagle looked down at Adrian with disgust before returning his gaze to Juliana. "Perhaps you were right when you suggested not sending him back to Arcana. His foolish weakness is more trouble than it's worth." 

"It is," Juliana seethed.