The false Noor shook his head, his expression turning serious.
"We can't do that. First, he'll be angry that I chose you over him. Second, he might try to steal the keys from us. He wants to win just as much as we do. The smart play is to slip out of here without him noticing. He'll just have to find another key on another path. If we see him at the finish line, we'll just say we couldn't find him."
He looked at her, his tone softening.
"I know it feels wrong. But think about the consequences if we tell him. Just think."
Jean felt like she was drowning. His words pulled her one way, her conscience the other. The logical part of her knew he might resent them, might even become a threat. But she also remembered Akira saving them. He wouldn't do something like that, would he?
"It doesn't matter," she said, her voice shaky but firm. "We're telling him. We've been through worse than this, and we owe him. We can't just leave him here to save ourselves. If we survive and he doesn't, I could never live with it."
The false Noor stepped closer, putting his hands on her shoulders. His face was flushed, his eyes intense.
"Do you realize what you're throwing away?" he said urgently. "The finish line is right there. We can finally escape this hell, and you want to risk it all? He might try to kill us for these keys! If we leave now, it's better for everyone. He'll find another way."
Jean shoved his hands off, a sudden clarity cutting through her confusion.
"This is wrong. All of it. Get your hands off me," she snapped. "Who are you? You're not Noor. Noor has never touched me before. And he would never, ever think only of himself like this. Tell me who you are. Now."
"Have you lost your mind? I'm Noor! I'm sorry, alright? But you have to understand. This is our only chance."
"I know it's our only chance," she shot back, "but we don't leave people behind. He helped us. We wouldn't be here without him. We'll tell him we each found a key and ask if he's found his. Then we'll pretend to look with him. We owe him that much."
The false Noor fell silent, his face tight with frustration.
"But that's a waste of time! The others will get ahead of us. We have to be among the top eight to get out of here! The more time we waste, the lower our chances!"
Distress and doubt warred on Jean's face. She raised a hand and pointed at him.
"Who are you?"
"I'm Noor! I told you! What's wrong with you?"
"If you're Noor," she said, her voice turning cold as ice, "then what's the password we agreed on?"
The impostor froze, the words choking in his throat. He forced a smile.
"You doubt me?"
"Of course I doubt you. Tell me the password."
The voice paused the video.
"When did you create a password?" it asked the real Noor. "I've been monitoring your every conversation."
Noor laughed, a cool, detached sound. He knew Jean had already passed.
"We figured you were listening," he said. "We knew this race would be full of tricks. While we were waiting for Akira to recover, I wrote a password in the sand. I just signaled for them to look at it, and they understood. You probably thought I was just bored, drawing in the dirt. You weren't paying close attention."
The voice actually laughed, and its tone softened.
"My goodness. I did not expect that. You continue to amaze me. Now, let's resume the video."
On the screen, the false Noor was stammering.
"I… I just don't remember it! All this stress… the fear… it would make anyone forget."
Jean backed away slowly, her eyes narrowed with cunning.
"Jean, what's wrong with you?" the impostor pleaded, trying to look innocent. "It's me, Noor!"
"Tell me the password."
"I really don't remember! Why won't you believe me?"
"Because you're the one who came up with it," she said, her voice flat. "So how could you forget? That settles it. Where is the real Noor?"
The false Noor was silent for a moment, then an unsettling laugh escaped his lips.
"Fine, fine. You passed the test. You can have the key. But first, you have to guess which one is real."
He held up two keys, a mocking grin on his face.
Jean smiled confidently.
"It's in your back pocket."
The impostor's smirk vanished, replaced by thunderstruck disbelief.
"How did you know that? You couldn't have!"
Jean's own smile widened.
"Because you're an idiot. You told me they were both fake. So I went back in time five seconds and chose this one instead. Now give me the key. I don't have time to waste."
The false Noor slapped a hand to his face, laughing in frustration.
"What a fool I am. I completely forgot about that. Well done. You deserve it."
He tossed her the key.
She caught it.
"Now tell me where the real Noor is," she demanded.
The voice spoke to the real Noor.
"What an intriguing group. I've truly been entertained. I hope you make it to the end. Now, let's take a look at your friend Akira. Trust me, his test is particularly fascinating."
A smile touched Noor's lips. He was relieved Jean had passed, but now a new worry settled in. What about Akira? He turned his attention back to the screen.
The video showed Akira walking down a similar corridor and entering a room.
He stopped dead, shocked by what he saw. Inside were two glass cages. One held a single key, sitting on a small table. In the other cage sat a false Noor, bound in chains, looking at Akira with terror in his eyes.
"Hold on," Noor said, pausing the video. "Why did you use me in both of their tests?"
"Isn't it obvious?" the voice replied. "For Jean, you are her anchor. She trusts you. Using you was the ultimate test of her loyalty to the team versus her loyalty to her closest friend. If I had used Akira, she would have refused to abandon you from the start.
"As for this test," the voice continued, its tone analytical, "using you removes certain biases. A male is often conditioned to protect a female. Had Jean been in that cage, his instinct might have clouded his judgment. But for a male to choose another male over his own self-interest? That is a much purer test of character. It forces him to choose between a comrade and the key. Between 'we' and 'I'."
Noor thought about the sheer malice behind the tests.
It's designed to play on every human instinct, he thought. Survival, ego, selfishness. It reveals everything about you, but the real trick is realizing the test isn't what it seems. But Akira doesn't know that. What will he do?
The video resumed.
The voice began speaking to Akira inside the room.
"This test is simple, Akira. There are only two keys in this place. Jean has already obtained one. Noor, unfortunately, took a wrong turn and fell into this trap. Now, you have five minutes. You must choose between saving Noor and taking the last key. I should tell you, the chance of finding another key on any other path is less than ten percent.
"This key is your ticket out of here. Also, there is no hope for Noor. If you don't save him, he's doomed. If you choose the key, Noor will fall into the fish pool below. If you choose Noor, the key will fall. Now, let the game begin."