11:30 AM
An incredible rush of energy blasted through Daniel’s veins. It felt like everything he’d heard about adrenaline and caffeine and lovesickness at once. He inflated with strength and happiness to near bursting. His mind felt crystal clear, his vision acute to granular detail in studying the steel door’s micro-cracks. He wanted to run. To jump. To shout.
He wanted to break something.
Daniel stepped out of the swinging door’s path, body shuddering with excitement, and took his first look at the person inside by candlelight.
She was beautiful. Not more beautiful than anyone else or in particular. It wasn’t even the first thing he noticed but, in those initial moments, this fact seemed most important. He found himself more drawn to—more aware of—her beauty than any other.
This girl, who must be Lea, wore a white button-up blouse. It had long sleeves, a collar, and a black ribbon tied into a bow at her neck. The golden emblem of the Libra sign decorated her chest. Her ankle-length blue pleated skirt, black shoes, and leggings left no skin exposed. She’d braided her blond hair and pinned it into a tight bun behind her head.
Lea had a pert nose, expressive eyes happy to see her friends, a thin jawline emphasizing her bright smile, a clear complexion, and gentle features with an edge of hardness. Seeing her happy mattered to Daniel and knowing he’d helped make her happy made him glad—and a little proud of himself.
Rana ventured into the vault to greet her while Cassie chose to stay behind. As the frog girl’s movement drew his attention away from Lea’s face, other details gradually registered to him as relevant.
Eight globes of various sizes orbited the beautiful girl, each slick as glass and opaque as obsidian. Marbles revolved about the crown of her head while the wrecking ball she’d been hammering on the door smoothly withdrew. Judging by the pounding she’d given the vault door, Daniel estimated her strength at least on par with Kenta’s. This marked her as dangerous, whatever her intentions, and he could respect that.
As Rana neared, Lea interposed a black marble between them that expanded into a beach ball. Daniel saw a flash of emotion as Lea turned to Rana—who checked her enthusiasm. The frog girl didn’t attempt to circumvent the obstacle but folded her hands behind her head in an open stance. “Hey.”
Lea raised a hand and said, “My friends, I apologize for curtailing the reunion celebration. However, our situation both stands at the precipice of disaster and hangs below the final rung of success. Our time should be hoarded as a giant’s gold, our decisions intelligent, and our actions efficient. We must scrutinize our enemies’ communications. Cassie, discovering their plans and weak points for our exodus would be a critical advantage.”
Cassandra stood on leg-hands, wings folded, and closed her eyes to concentrate as Lea continued, “Kenta, forgive me if I assume you have secured the group’s perimeter.”
“Naturally,” Kenta said.
“Judging by your dimming light, Paul, I suspect you severely drained yourself today. I congratulate you on the work well done. No one here would criticize if you made no further contribution to our escape. Yet, if you stay vigilant, I suspect you might find another opportunity for action.” Paul the candlestick in Kenta’s grip met her eyes as his face in the flame nodded.
The way this new girl’s words flowed mesmerized Daniel. With some difficulty, he broke away from watching Lea to approach Cassie with an idea. His whole body itched with power. He stood by the bat girl, resisting the urge to scratch himself everywhere at once.
Cassie snapped out of deep concentration as she registered his presence. She ducked her face behind her folded wings to peek her eyes above the edge, took a step back, and asked, “What do you want? I’m busy.”
Why is she being so curt and defensive? Is she holding a grudge from three years ago? I have no idea what I did! Or, maybe, she’s embarrassed I saw her at such a weak and vulnerable moment, before. There was no telling when she’d forgive him that. Daniel made a mental note to get out of her bad books when the danger subsided.
He felt pressure in his chest like a held breath aching for release. He ignored it.
“I’m guessing you hear radio signals?” He didn’t need to ask; he just didn’t know how to start this conversation.
“Yeah, I’m not in a mood to play you any music… so, if you could go back to whatever it is you’re doing, I can do my job.” She turned away, forcing Daniel to talk fast.
“Wait, well, I thought it was weird at first you’re getting radio transmissions and could ‘hear’ electromagnetic waves. And I know this is a dumb question because you only shouted ultrasonic waves at the soldiers before but, I thought, if you could hear both kinds, it would make a crazy kind of sense if you could produce both.” Cassie looked at him as if he’d gone legitimately insane or started speaking another language. “All of that to say, can you make radio signals?”
“Yes.” Her expression shifted to curiosity. “I mean, I’ve messed with their tracking radar before.”
Everyone looked at him, and Daniel realized Lea had stopped talking.
His muscles twitched and shivered. It wasn’t nerves. The feeling would go away eventually.
Daniel swallowed. No use in pretending the others weren’t there. He faced the group and explained, “Radar uses radio signals—couldn’t Cassie jam the soldiers’ radios?”
Everyone looked to Lea. She stared at the floor, talking to herself, “Produce a jamming signal to interfere with their communications. Deny our opponents their eyes by disabling the control room and their ears by jamming the radios. Clever and devious.” Lea lifted her head to address him directly, “I like it.”
Her eyes, perfect black orbs swimming in pure milky white, were black moons he might orbit. His gaze dropped from hers. She likes it. Daniel smiled.
His blood ran hot and sweat beaded on his itchy skin, but it wasn’t just a blush. It wasn’t going away.
“Cassandra, if you concur I see no reason to stop you.”
“On it.”
“Well,” Daniel said and instantly regretted it. All eyes were on him again, and now Lea had a slight frown. “Let’s hold off on jamming until we make a break for it. That would maximize their confusion while ensuring the enemy doesn’t have time to engineer a solution.”
She responded instantly, almost cutting him off, “That is not how I would prefer to go about things.” His heart sank. Lea looked him dead in the eyes, “The strategy you proposed is far too reserved. Can we allow ourselves patience and preparation in the depths of enemy territory? We should press every advantage, forcing them constantly off-balance.”
“Cassie should choose,” Rana said from some distance to Lea’s right, having slipped away to the sidelines. “It is her magic.”
She’s supporting me? No, she’s removing the argument.
Lea agreed, “A reasonable thought.” The spotlight of Lea’s attention leaving Daniel released him from pressure like surfacing from a deep-sea dive. Unfortunately, that force turned on someone less prepared than him to endure it. “Cassandra, what do you propose?” It wasn’t Lea’s words or companionable tone—but a weight and intangible power to her focus.
Cassie rocked as Lea spoke her name and braced herself against a wave of mental energy, unable to meet the other girl’s eyes. “I agree with Daniel; we could scare them too much. I’m worried they might do something bad if they think they can’t nab us the same ways they have before.”
A bone-deep ache grew inside Daniel. It was getting worse. He pushed aside self-concern to focus on the conversation.
“Shouldn’t we vote if this affects all of us?” Paul said, likely thinking of Cassie’s doom predictions.
Lea sighed. “Our words produce nothing and consume time. Cassandra, as you will.”
After all that pressure she put on us, she yields so easily?
“Rana,” Lea said, as if she didn’t already have the frog girl’s attention, “We have one friend remaining—”
“—Actually,” Kenta interrupted. For a moment it seemed Lea might ignore him, but she settled back and let him speak. “I know this isn’t a pleasant suggestion, but it is a serious one. We should consider leaving Wendi.”
Daniel drew breath to shout his objection, but Lea was quicker, “There is absolutely no possible scenario in which we consider leaving anyone behind!” She bore down on Kenta with a glare but, instead of buckling under it, he grew cold and dark. “I will not abandon one of our own—”
“—In case you hadn’t noticed, Lea, time is not on our side,” Kenta continued to Daniel’s disbelief, “And some people aren’t worth saving. She wasted an opportunity for escape and made things worse for all of us. She’ll jeopardize our survival.”
“I am not about to concede defeat this close to winning our freedom,” she said. They stood opposite, neither willing to compromise, none of the others eager to intervene, and the group’s progress hit a deadlock. Daniel hated the thought of abandoning someone… but what had this Wendi done?
A sharp pain stabbed Daniel’s chest. What was happening inside his body?
A gasp from Cassie drew everyone’s attention, “She’s drowning!”
“So?” Kenta asked.
Appalled by Kenta’s dismissal, Daniel opened his mouth, but Rana sent him a private message, :Not as bad as it sounds… This time.: Her tone revealed distaste in defending Kenta, :This is Wendi we’re talking about. Drowning wouldn’t bother her.: Confusion kept him quiet.
“I know,” Cassie continued, “I wasn’t worried, at first. She’s been unconscious since Daniel started the breakout. I Listened around as Lea said and… peeked at some likely near-futures. Wendi isn’t in most of them. Her heart stops in a few minutes. She’s going to die.”
“At what time does Wendi meet her end?” Lea said, “What event or action taken kills her?”
Cassie shrank from Lea’s fierce urgency, “There’s interference from little decisions, and the static gets worse the further I Listen. I noticed because it almost happened like a second ago but got delayed because of… some reason. But, in all the scenarios where she dies, it’s at the same time. This is a countdown.”
Lea’s eyes darted around the room and landed, “Paul, can you say how many levels below us she is?”
His flame wavered under her gaze. “I don’t know, my magic doesn’t work like that. I can’t tell distances.”
Where before he played the devil’s advocate, Kenta now expressed regret, “We’d have to deal with the stairs, and the soldiers, and the traps, on top of the distance. We can’t get there in time.” He sighed, hating a surrender not on his terms. “We should face the fact now instead of later. Wendi is dead to us.”
“No, I cannot accept that. We are so close…” Again, the weight of Lea’s eyes swung, “Rana, you are the fastest individual present.” Unlike the others, Rana didn’t flinch under the attention while leaning against a wall.
Cassie preempted the plan, “The power is cut to the controls… Rana can’t open the door.”
Lea paced. “Rana, Paul, Cassandra… There has to be a way. Kenta, Leanan, Daniel—Daniel!” She advanced on him with a mad gleam of hope. As she came closer, her presence grew as if to mirror the change in forced perspective. Thoughts of Lea: her appearance, attitude, expressions, and how he felt about her dominated his mind, rendering the mounting pain in his skin burning like fire unimportant.
She stopped short of touching him, hands raised, beseeching. Yet Lea looked down on him by an inch of teenage growth spurt. The whole of her attention focused on him. He wouldn’t have looked away for anything.
“Daniel, you started this. It is your escape. We would all have remained imprisoned if not for you. If you feel you must do something, please do not tell me, nor speak of it for haste. All I ask is you act at once before something precious is lost. I am placing my faith in you, Daniel. Show me what you can do.”
All else fell away.
The idea that occurred to him wasn’t a bother. In fact, he cheered. He’d hated the thought of leaving Wendi; that wasn’t the right thing to do. He wanted to make Dr. Adelaide proud, to use his abilities to save someone. Besides, showing Lea his power would impress her and prove she could depend on him. All of Daniel’s motivations aligned.
Only he could get there in time.
The explosive bout of gunfire beyond the wall of hair didn’t distract Daniel. Nor the smell of smoke and burning hair, nor the flickering red light of fire as the group turned as one to engage the newest threat. Daniel simply lifted one foot and brought it down on the cement beneath him.
He fell amid a plume of dust, foot outstretched to kick through any barrier between him and his destination. A voice came from above, waning with distance, :Wait, Daniel—: Rana’s sending severed as they lost line of sight. It was too late to go back and see what she wanted.
He couldn’t fly.
Lea’s containment unit, the metal safe, sat high in the building’s layout. Wendi’s unit lay almost directly below in the depths of the Facility underground. He’d begun thinking of himself as a Rook on a chessboard—inflexible, yet unstoppable. In the minutes after releasing Lea, Daniel intuitively positioned himself above the last aura.
As he descended without regard for the wastefulness of blindly using his power, Daniel left a meter-wide shaft of floor/ceiling cross-sections in his wake. The pain inside him released like an exhaled breath, and he finally understood. His restoration from opening the vault had overcharged him. Holding excess power damaged his body.
Focused on the image of Wendi’s aura in his second sight fast approaching—all his eyes saw were dust and darkness—he didn’t worry about the sudden stop at the end. He expected a recharge from entering Wendi’s cell, if not as much as he’d gotten from the vault, to fuel his unconscious defensive ability.
If his power could stop a speeding bullet, why not stop a speeding person?
Daniel considered the forces involved. He approached terminal velocity in his descent at over a hundred miles an hour, approximating his weight at a generous hundred pounds. Force being the product of Mass and Acceleration, he’d hit the ground much harder than being shot by a bullet. And, though they hadn’t killed Daniel, bullets hurt.
11:30 AM
An incredible rush of energy blasted through Daniel’s veins. It felt like everything he’d heard about adrenaline and caffeine and lovesickness at once. He inflated with strength and happiness to near bursting. His mind felt crystal clear, his vision acute to granular detail in studying the steel door’s micro-cracks. He wanted to run. To jump. To shout.
He wanted to break something.
Daniel stepped out of the swinging door’s path, body shuddering with excitement, and took his first look at the person inside by candlelight.
She was beautiful. Not more beautiful than anyone else or in particular. It wasn’t even the first thing he noticed but, in those initial moments, this fact seemed most important. He found himself more drawn to—more aware of—her beauty than any other.
This girl, who must be Lea, wore a white button-up blouse. It had long sleeves, a collar, and a black ribbon tied into a bow at her neck. The golden emblem of the Libra sign decorated her chest. Her ankle-length blue pleated skirt, black shoes, and leggings left no skin exposed. She’d braided her blond hair and pinned it into a tight bun behind her head.
Lea had a pert nose, expressive eyes happy to see her friends, a thin jawline emphasizing her bright smile, a clear complexion, and gentle features with an edge of hardness. Seeing her happy mattered to Daniel and knowing he’d helped make her happy made him glad—and a little proud of himself.
Rana ventured into the vault to greet her while Cassie chose to stay behind. As the frog girl’s movement drew his attention away from Lea’s face, other details gradually registered to him as relevant.
Eight globes of various sizes orbited the beautiful girl, each slick as glass and opaque as obsidian. Marbles revolved about the crown of her head while the wrecking ball she’d been hammering on the door smoothly withdrew. Judging by the pounding she’d given the vault door, Daniel estimated her strength at least on par with Kenta’s. This marked her as dangerous, whatever her intentions, and he could respect that.
As Rana neared, Lea interposed a black marble between them that expanded into a beach ball. Daniel saw a flash of emotion as Lea turned to Rana—who checked her enthusiasm. The frog girl didn’t attempt to circumvent the obstacle but folded her hands behind her head in an open stance. “Hey.”
Lea raised a hand and said, “My friends, I apologize for curtailing the reunion celebration. However, our situation both stands at the precipice of disaster and hangs below the final rung of success. Our time should be hoarded as a giant’s gold, our decisions intelligent, and our actions efficient. We must scrutinize our enemies’ communications. Cassie, discovering their plans and weak points for our exodus would be a critical advantage.”
Cassandra stood on leg-hands, wings folded, and closed her eyes to concentrate as Lea continued, “Kenta, forgive me if I assume you have secured the group’s perimeter.”
“Naturally,” Kenta said.
“Judging by your dimming light, Paul, I suspect you severely drained yourself today. I congratulate you on the work well done. No one here would criticize if you made no further contribution to our escape. Yet, if you stay vigilant, I suspect you might find another opportunity for action.” Paul the candlestick in Kenta’s grip met her eyes as his face in the flame nodded.
The way this new girl’s words flowed mesmerized Daniel. With some difficulty, he broke away from watching Lea to approach Cassie with an idea. His whole body itched with power. He stood by the bat girl, resisting the urge to scratch himself everywhere at once.
Cassie snapped out of deep concentration as she registered his presence. She ducked her face behind her folded wings to peek her eyes above the edge, took a step back, and asked, “What do you want? I’m busy.”
Why is she being so curt and defensive? Is she holding a grudge from three years ago? I have no idea what I did! Or, maybe, she’s embarrassed I saw her at such a weak and vulnerable moment, before. There was no telling when she’d forgive him that. Daniel made a mental note to get out of her bad books when the danger subsided.
He felt pressure in his chest like a held breath aching for release. He ignored it.
“I’m guessing you hear radio signals?” He didn’t need to ask; he just didn’t know how to start this conversation.
“Yeah, I’m not in a mood to play you any music… so, if you could go back to whatever it is you’re doing, I can do my job.” She turned away, forcing Daniel to talk fast.
“Wait, well, I thought it was weird at first you’re getting radio transmissions and could ‘hear’ electromagnetic waves. And I know this is a dumb question because you only shouted ultrasonic waves at the soldiers before but, I thought, if you could hear both kinds, it would make a crazy kind of sense if you could produce both.” Cassie looked at him as if he’d gone legitimately insane or started speaking another language. “All of that to say, can you make radio signals?”
“Yes.” Her expression shifted to curiosity. “I mean, I’ve messed with their tracking radar before.”
Everyone looked at him, and Daniel realized Lea had stopped talking.
His muscles twitched and shivered. It wasn’t nerves. The feeling would go away eventually.
Daniel swallowed. No use in pretending the others weren’t there. He faced the group and explained, “Radar uses radio signals—couldn’t Cassie jam the soldiers’ radios?”
Everyone looked to Lea. She stared at the floor, talking to herself, “Produce a jamming signal to interfere with their communications. Deny our opponents their eyes by disabling the control room and their ears by jamming the radios. Clever and devious.” Lea lifted her head to address him directly, “I like it.”
Her eyes, perfect black orbs swimming in pure milky white, were black moons he might orbit. His gaze dropped from hers. She likes it. Daniel smiled.
His blood ran hot and sweat beaded on his itchy skin, but it wasn’t just a blush. It wasn’t going away.
“Cassandra, if you concur I see no reason to stop you.”
“On it.”
“Well,” Daniel said and instantly regretted it. All eyes were on him again, and now Lea had a slight frown. “Let’s hold off on jamming until we make a break for it. That would maximize their confusion while ensuring the enemy doesn’t have time to engineer a solution.”
She responded instantly, almost cutting him off, “That is not how I would prefer to go about things.” His heart sank. Lea looked him dead in the eyes, “The strategy you proposed is far too reserved. Can we allow ourselves patience and preparation in the depths of enemy territory? We should press every advantage, forcing them constantly off-balance.”
“Cassie should choose,” Rana said from some distance to Lea’s right, having slipped away to the sidelines. “It is her magic.”
She’s supporting me? No, she’s removing the argument.
Lea agreed, “A reasonable thought.” The spotlight of Lea’s attention leaving Daniel released him from pressure like surfacing from a deep-sea dive. Unfortunately, that force turned on someone less prepared than him to endure it. “Cassandra, what do you propose?” It wasn’t Lea’s words or companionable tone—but a weight and intangible power to her focus.
Cassie rocked as Lea spoke her name and braced herself against a wave of mental energy, unable to meet the other girl’s eyes. “I agree with Daniel; we could scare them too much. I’m worried they might do something bad if they think they can’t nab us the same ways they have before.”
A bone-deep ache grew inside Daniel. It was getting worse. He pushed aside self-concern to focus on the conversation.
“Shouldn’t we vote if this affects all of us?” Paul said, likely thinking of Cassie’s doom predictions.
Lea sighed. “Our words produce nothing and consume time. Cassandra, as you will.”
After all that pressure she put on us, she yields so easily?
“Rana,” Lea said, as if she didn’t already have the frog girl’s attention, “We have one friend remaining—”
“—Actually,” Kenta interrupted. For a moment it seemed Lea might ignore him, but she settled back and let him speak. “I know this isn’t a pleasant suggestion, but it is a serious one. We should consider leaving Wendi.”
Daniel drew breath to shout his objection, but Lea was quicker, “There is absolutely no possible scenario in which we consider leaving anyone behind!” She bore down on Kenta with a glare but, instead of buckling under it, he grew cold and dark. “I will not abandon one of our own—”
“—In case you hadn’t noticed, Lea, time is not on our side,” Kenta continued to Daniel’s disbelief, “And some people aren’t worth saving. She wasted an opportunity for escape and made things worse for all of us. She’ll jeopardize our survival.”
“I am not about to concede defeat this close to winning our freedom,” she said. They stood opposite, neither willing to compromise, none of the others eager to intervene, and the group’s progress hit a deadlock. Daniel hated the thought of abandoning someone… but what had this Wendi done?
A sharp pain stabbed Daniel’s chest. What was happening inside his body?
A gasp from Cassie drew everyone’s attention, “She’s drowning!”
“So?” Kenta asked.
Appalled by Kenta’s dismissal, Daniel opened his mouth, but Rana sent him a private message, :Not as bad as it sounds… This time.: Her tone revealed distaste in defending Kenta, :This is Wendi we’re talking about. Drowning wouldn’t bother her.: Confusion kept him quiet.
“I know,” Cassie continued, “I wasn’t worried, at first. She’s been unconscious since Daniel started the breakout. I Listened around as Lea said and… peeked at some likely near-futures. Wendi isn’t in most of them. Her heart stops in a few minutes. She’s going to die.”
“At what time does Wendi meet her end?” Lea said, “What event or action taken kills her?”
Cassie shrank from Lea’s fierce urgency, “There’s interference from little decisions, and the static gets worse the further I Listen. I noticed because it almost happened like a second ago but got delayed because of… some reason. But, in all the scenarios where she dies, it’s at the same time. This is a countdown.”
Lea’s eyes darted around the room and landed, “Paul, can you say how many levels below us she is?”
His flame wavered under her gaze. “I don’t know, my magic doesn’t work like that. I can’t tell distances.”
Where before he played the devil’s advocate, Kenta now expressed regret, “We’d have to deal with the stairs, and the soldiers, and the traps, on top of the distance. We can’t get there in time.” He sighed, hating a surrender not on his terms. “We should face the fact now instead of later. Wendi is dead to us.”
“No, I cannot accept that. We are so close…” Again, the weight of Lea’s eyes swung, “Rana, you are the fastest individual present.” Unlike the others, Rana didn’t flinch under the attention while leaning against a wall.
Cassie preempted the plan, “The power is cut to the controls… Rana can’t open the door.”
Lea paced. “Rana, Paul, Cassandra… There has to be a way. Kenta, Leanan, Daniel—Daniel!” She advanced on him with a mad gleam of hope. As she came closer, her presence grew as if to mirror the change in forced perspective. Thoughts of Lea: her appearance, attitude, expressions, and how he felt about her dominated his mind, rendering the mounting pain in his skin burning like fire unimportant.
She stopped short of touching him, hands raised, beseeching. Yet Lea looked down on him by an inch of teenage growth spurt. The whole of her attention focused on him. He wouldn’t have looked away for anything.
“Daniel, you started this. It is your escape. We would all have remained imprisoned if not for you. If you feel you must do something, please do not tell me, nor speak of it for haste. All I ask is you act at once before something precious is lost. I am placing my faith in you, Daniel. Show me what you can do.”
All else fell away.
The idea that occurred to him wasn’t a bother. In fact, he cheered. He’d hated the thought of leaving Wendi; that wasn’t the right thing to do. He wanted to make Dr. Adelaide proud, to use his abilities to save someone. Besides, showing Lea his power would impress her and prove she could depend on him. All of Daniel’s motivations aligned.
Only he could get there in time.
The explosive bout of gunfire beyond the wall of hair didn’t distract Daniel. Nor the smell of smoke and burning hair, nor the flickering red light of fire as the group turned as one to engage the newest threat. Daniel simply lifted one foot and brought it down on the cement beneath him.
He fell amid a plume of dust, foot outstretched to kick through any barrier between him and his destination. A voice came from above, waning with distance, :Wait, Daniel—: Rana’s sending severed as they lost line of sight. It was too late to go back and see what she wanted.
He couldn’t fly.
Lea’s containment unit, the metal safe, sat high in the building’s layout. Wendi’s unit lay almost directly below in the depths of the Facility underground. He’d begun thinking of himself as a Rook on a chessboard—inflexible, yet unstoppable. In the minutes after releasing Lea, Daniel intuitively positioned himself above the last aura.
As he descended without regard for the wastefulness of blindly using his power, Daniel left a meter-wide shaft of floor/ceiling cross-sections in his wake. The pain inside him released like an exhaled breath, and he finally understood. His restoration from opening the vault had overcharged him. Holding excess power damaged his body.
Focused on the image of Wendi’s aura in his second sight fast approaching—all his eyes saw were dust and darkness—he didn’t worry about the sudden stop at the end. He expected a recharge from entering Wendi’s cell, if not as much as he’d gotten from the vault, to fuel his unconscious defensive ability.
If his power could stop a speeding bullet, why not stop a speeding person?
Daniel considered the forces involved. He approached terminal velocity in his descent at over a hundred miles an hour, approximating his weight at a generous hundred pounds. Force being the product of Mass and Acceleration, he’d hit the ground much harder than being shot by a bullet. And, though they hadn’t killed Daniel, bullets hurt.
