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Mr. Zero looked up from the monitor, just a few seconds before the mechanical door opened and a young woman walked in, escorted by two guards. A bit annoyed, the man in the grey suit squinted when she turned to the guards and, with a half-smile as cold as ice, said:

'I know this place, thank you. You can leave.'

Both guards turned then to the man in the grey suit, waiting for orders. After a few seconds of hesitation, Mr. Zero nodded almost imperceptibly as he fixed his timeless gaze, which was almost as grey as the rest of his body, in the woman that stood in front of him. The guards left the metallic room, leaving both alone in.

'Good afternoon Emile,' Sophia greeted him, tilting her head. 'Such a pleasure to find you in my former workplace. Everything must be calmer now that there are no anthros to monitor.'

Mr. Zero did not initially answer. His fingers drummed softly on the table, in an unmistakable sign of irritation. That woman always managed to drive him crazy, in spite of how efficient she had proved to be several times. However, while Mr. Zero liked to faultlessly follow an established schedule, Lefevbre seemed to enjoy improvising… and working on her own.

'I see you are back,' he said briefly, not showing a single emotion in his face.

'Very observant. Are you surprised?' the woman asked. Behind the serious mask that adorned her face, Mr. Zero could feel a little shadow of fun.

He had to contain his disgust.

'No,' he replied, after a few seconds. 'What surprises me is that you are brave enough to appear here after what happened in this containment unit. Which was under your charge,' he added, giving her a piercing, accusing gaze.

Sophia shrugged.

'I can't control everything that happens around me, I am not qualified enough. And you know what, Emile? You aren't either.'

Mr. Zero did not respond to the provocation.

'There was a mutiny, as I bet you know,' the woman continued, indifferent 'And I just saved my life. You can't deny anyone would have made the same in my situation.'

'Some could not do it,' Mr. Zero replied coldly.

Sophis held his gaze for a few seconds, until she understood what he meant and gave him a cold smile.

'Oh, you mean Camus. Well. I'll let you know that this stupid riot would not have gotten anywhere if it wasn't for him. But he had to poke his nose where he shouldn't. As usual.'

Mr. Zero stood silent.

'It doesn't bother you, does it?' Sophia asked.

There was no sadness in her voice, or an ounce of compassion. Mr. Zero thought it was better that way. He could not tolerate that Sophia pitied him.

'No,' he replied. 'I watched the recordings. The mutiny had its roots in his arrogance. But I have also seen you did nothing to stop it.'

Sophia adjusted her glasses and they reflected the light of the monitor that flickered in front of Mr. Zero.

'And lose all the subjects and data that we had gathered in all this time? I'm not that stupid, Emile. I know when I have lost a battle and I acted consequently.'

Mr. Zero shook his head, irritated.

'Anyone would say you lost in purpose.'

Sophia opened his mouth in order to reply something, but she stood quiet. A small wave of satisfaction washed over Mr. Zero when he realized he had managed to leave her speechless.

'And speaking about subjects, I have noticed that you were particularly interested in one that, in spite of not initiating the riot, managed to sneak in our private facilities and found out things that an anthro should not know.'

'Lagopus Z' Sophia guessed.

'Exactly. I am certain that you have dealt with him properly.'

Sophia tilted her head.

'He is in a comatose state and I doubt highly he will ever wake up. In any case, what he knows is just a little part of reality.'

She pronounced those words passively, but Mr. Zero thought he could feel something beneath them… sadness, maybe?

However, he did not have much time to think about it, because at that moment the door opened and one of the soldiers walked into the room, bowing quickly before Mr. Zero. The man instantly guessed the reason why the guard was there. It was time to go.

'We must leave, it seems that he wants to see you,' Mr. Zero said, turning off the monitor in front of him and walking towards the door. 'I hope your arguments convince him more than you have convinced me, or otherwise, you will have a problem.'

Sophia did not answer. She hesitated for a few instants, before walking behind the man in the grey suit. Before leaving the room, he turned to her and gave her another piercing look with hatred in his grey eyes.

'I'll let you know I am wary of you, Lefebvre. Your personal implications with this project are mere obstacles in our investigation, and if I find a way to get rid of them, I will.' He paused. 'And the same goes to that anthro that you are trying so hard to protect. It may be enough for him that you left it unconscious, but it is not enough for me.'

Sophia shivered a bit. However, after a few seconds, she gave the man a half smile and replied:

'Let the events take their course. I'm telling you again, Emile: none of us can control everything.'

And after those words both left the room, leaving behind them what had been, for several months, the control room in the Box.