Laying Low Secretary La Selva went back to his office in Waste. He had gone out feeling energized but had returned with a sense of impending doom. His inquiry about Stevie's so-called death due to mugging wasn't cut-and-dried. He felt it was leading to something bigger and more sinister, of which he did not know yet. But one thing he knew for sure: Stevie wasn't who he said he was. He had only thought of him as an effeminate and lowly assistant, incapable of trickery and subterfuge. And clearly, he wasn't. He now acknowledged that Stevie could do bigger things, and he only wished he had treated him more kindly. Secretary La Selva felt he had fewer choices remaining to take. He didn't want to go home to his wife and son for fear of getting them involved. There was the option of going to Chief Church to tell him of Stevie's botched-up plan to assassinate him and his unwitting involvement. However, it meant his tenure as Secretary of Waste Management, and the corresponding enterprise

The Point Man Zeke and Trevor arrived at the docks of Manila Bay in exuberance. They had successfully escaped the Valley and had traveled the wide waterways to finally get to Neo Manila. Their only remaining possession was the duffel bag full of money, which they had to give to someone that would meet them on the harbor. There was indeed someone standing not far from them, and at first glance, they assumed a female due to the womanly gait, but upon closer inspection, it was a man. It was their point man. He introduced himself to them: "Hello, my name is Esteban. You can call me Stevie." Hello Stevie. My name is Zeke, and this is Trevor." "You've spoken with Brother Jomar and Bart?" "Yes, they've helped us escape the Valley. We owe them our lives." "You have something for me?" "Hold on. How do we know you're the person we're supposed to meet?" "I understand. Look at this," said Stevie and showed a small tattoo of a native Filipino dagger (kampilan) on his wrist, the sign of a t

The Outcome Zeke and Mary Rose were able to escape with just a few scrapes on their bodies, while the others weren't so lucky. The bombs went off as planned and killed everyone on the penthouse floor including the remaining Higher Echelons that had escaped Jennifer's initial shooting spree. The floors below were relatively unaffected, and the presidential suite was left intact. Later, when a formal investigation was made of the apparent "terrorist attack," the investigators found Trevor's dead body, which had ten stab wounds. Bob the concierge was still alive and sent to a hospital. However, Chief Church had disappeared, and no one was able to find him. He had vanished like magic. The Valley remained a prison island but was not made secret anymore and opened to public knowledge. Rampant abductions and missing persons that were going on in the Colony came to a complete halt. Zeke went back to the province and tried to help his parents with their land problems but was no match agai