A beat of stunned silence followed the answer.
"No?" Ellie repeated, her voice cracking—whether from the revelation or fear, no one could tell. "But you just said you were one of us!"
Mark swore. "They lied."
"No, wait—" Zack's mind was spinning now, faster than before. "They didn't lie."
Everyone stilled.
"What?" Arya asked cautiously. "Zack—what are you saying?"
"Think about the phrasing," Zack said, every word coming slow and calculated. "The second question we asked was: 'Were you one of us?' And It said yes."
"So?" Jake asked, impatient.
"So," Zack continued, "they answered in the past tense. Were implies they used to be part of us—but not anymore. And now, when Jake asked if they're part of our group before this trial, they said No."
A cold realization gripped them all.
"They were part of the group," Zack continued, breathless, "but not before this trial started. That means they became part of us during the trial."
