The Escape

by Teyla Branton

  “So how do we open the bars?” I asked.

  “The guard outside will have the keys. By the time you get back, we’ll be ready.” They were already doing something at the back of the cell. Gathering the hidden weapons we’d left for them in the planter near the lab, I assumed.

  “I’ll start a little distraction,” came a female voice. Francis, the summoner. As she spoke, the skitter of tiny feet sounded over the floors. “The guard hates my little friends. They make him nervous.”

  I reached for Mari, signaling her to get ready to shift. I was tempted to go alone and take care of the guard myself, but while I’d rather have Ritter as backup, two of us were better than one.

  Where exactly was Ritter? The question picked at my mind. Probably doing something dangerous. Oliver had better not get him or my brother killed.

  Pushing back the thought, I sent my mind to the guard outside the door, and called up my machete to break down his shield. It took longer than expected; despite absorbing as much as possible, all the shifting and mind games were taking their toll on my energy level. He was watching cockroaches, mice, and ants gathering in the hall, moving back as they approached his position. Perfect.

  Now, I told Mari, sending her a view of the exact location. She’d been in the hall and so could shift there on her own, but I wanted her behind the guard.

  He jerked as the soft pop! alerted him to our presence. He was not one of the men I’d seen before, but the sword strapped to his back signaled his expertise. I pointed a gun at him. “The keys, please.” Without hesitation, he went for his own gun, but I crashed my foot into his stomach. As he bent over in pain, I pushed deeper into his mind. “Where is the generator?”

  He didn’t want to tell me, but the sand stream of his thoughts betrayed him, bringing the information to the forefront. The generator was in a little room off the lobby. I jabbed my fist into his face and he fell unconscious.

  “Ritter always says we should shoot them,” Mari reminded me, removing keys from his pocket, “or he’ll just get back up in a few minutes.”

  As I fired three shots to stop his heart, two more Unbounded skidded around the corner, and I could feel other life forces coming toward us from elsewhere in the building, more than had been inside earlier. Delia and Edgel must have called for backup from the outside army.

  “Go!” I told Mari. “Free the prisoners.”

  We both shifted as the guards fired. I appeared behind them, shooting one but losing my gun as the second anticipated me and kicked it out of my hand. I kicked back, my uniform skirt ripping up the side, and he curled momentarily in pain. But he was combat Unbounded, and if I didn’t start channeling his ability, I’d be in trouble. First I had to get through his shield. It should have been relatively easy with my increasing ability, but a mental heaviness weighed me down. Too much effort too fast. I was drained. Could it have anything to do with the miniature snake Delia had placed in my mind?

  A tramp of feet filled the hall and more men appeared behind me, Edgel at their front. Reaching for Mari’s mind, I dove for my .380, grabbed the fallen guard’s rifle, and shifted again to the far end of the hall away from my opponent as the prisoners spilled from the room. “They’re coming!” I shouted, letting loose a volley of shots. “Take cover!” More shots erupted around us as everyone sprinted for the next intersection in the hall. Willis, who’d stopped to scoop up the first fallen guard’s assault rifle, almost didn’t make it in time.

  Dragon brought his fire to life. “No!” Willis slapped at his arm. “Later.”

  “They need more weapons,” I told Mari. She nodded and disappeared. I followed her mentally, still connected to her mind. She appeared behind the last guard in the opposing group, her knife slipping into his ribs.

  I scarcely had time to register my surprise at her bravery before she was back again, handing over another rifle to Guenter. “You go find the generator,” she said to me. “We’ll hold them here.”

  I’d have to channel her ability again to get past the Emporium soldiers and then go the rest of the way on foot since I couldn’t shift past the machine created shield. If the soldiers had any idea how important the generator was to us, they’d make their stand in the lobby instead of here in the hallway. At least Delia hadn’t guessed that yet, and I’d been using most of my failing strength to keep a tight lock on my mind and on Mari’s to make sure she didn’t discover our plan.

  “Delia’s still around somewhere, so put up your shield after I go,” I reminded Mari.

  “Okay. Just get to the generator.”

  I shifted.

  I APPEARED OUTSIDE THE DOOR to the lobby, quickly scanning the area to make sure I was alone. So far, so good. I edged to the door and appeared inside. One guard sat at the wide front desk, typing furiously on a keyboard. Another stood at attention by the outer door. Apparently all the Emporium soldiers Mari and the others were fighting in the hallway had indeed come from the outside. Were even more slipping though Renegade lines? How long would it be before the local mortal authorities were notified of the disturbance?

  Even if notified, I suspected they would look the other way for as long as the Emporium plants inside the organization requested. If only we could go above the regular chain of command and find someone on our side who could help. We were fighting for humanity, and I couldn’t help but feel a little resentful that there were so few mortals who were a part of the battle.

  I checked the silencer on my .380, glad Ritter had required them for the hotel, even for the backup weapons. I preferred my nine mil Sig, but with the hollow points, this pistol would do the job well enough. I only had two bullets left after fighting the guards in the hall, and I’d have to use those on the man near the door. I needed him out quick before he could signal others outside. The man by the computer would have to check out the sharp end of my ballistic knife.

  I hoped I didn’t miss.

  I’m here, I told Mari, pushing far too easily inside her shield. The weakness of her barrier told me she was distracted. Get ready for darkness.

  I’ll tell the others. Dragon is ready with his fire and can give us some light if needed. But I don’t know how long we can hold out. Hurry!

  I will. I felt bad that I was in relative safety while they drew the fire, but we had to turn off the generator.

  I stepped into the doorway, my connection with Mari immediately severing. Two shots and the man by the door went down. The guy at the computer stood as I ejected the ballistic knife. The blade embedded in his chest with a thunk! He gasped as I hurtled toward him. Grabbing his rifle, I slammed the barrel into him, knocking him to the ground.

  Now for the generator. I hurried toward the door I’d seen in the other guard’s mind, pushing my thoughts ahead of me. No one there. The door was locked, but a quick jab of the rifle butt made the entire latch assembly break through the door frame.

  Inside, the noise of the generator was deafening. The machine stood at the far side of the small room, taller than I was and more than double my height in width. No off button was in sight, or cables connecting it to the building’s electrical wiring, but there were a dozen dials and switches under a transparent cover that was locked. Upon closer examination, I decided searching for a key was useless since I’d need a degree in electrical engineering to figure out how to turn the stupid thing off. Too bad I couldn’t absorb all the energy without Brody’s help. But even with him, I’d only be able to take in the power as it was generated. Any faster and the machine might stall, and as long as there was fuel in the tank outside the building, someone could restart it. While I’d seen the location of the tank in the guard’s mind, cutting the fuel lines, if I could find them, would be a comparatively minor repair. Better to disable the machine permanently.

  Standing as far back as I could in the doorway, I showered the machine with bullets, using everything left in the extended magazine. The generator abruptly cut out. The dials were busted and the outside riddled with holes, but they didn’t appear dee
p. I had to do more. I had to make sure it stayed off.

  I threw down the weapons and pushed out my thoughts, the sudden effort making me dizzy. I needed energy—and fast. Brody where are you? Did I have enough strength to find him? I’d have to. I was at the front of the building and he shouldn’t be out of my reach if the Renegades were near one of our usual observation posts.

  There he was, standing near Dimitri under a dark, rain-filled sky. His shield wasn’t up or was too thin to make a difference, and without much effort I was looking through his eyes. Lightning flashed in the distance. He was empty of energy and scared, and I didn’t want to make that worse. I’d already killed him once, so I didn’t think my presence in his mind would be all that comforting, at least without warning. Stretching my limits, I pushed inside Dimitri’s shield, my exhaustion making it seem almost like a fortress. Once again, I had to call up the image of the machete. I didn’t know why the image gave me more power, but as long as it worked, I would use it.

  Dimitri, I said, it’s Erin. The generator is down, but we’re outnumbered. I need to channel Brody’s ability to destroy it completely and to help us take out the guards.

  Can you do it without his help? Dimitri asked. He just about blew us all up a while ago when he took out the electricity. He hasn’t learned to control it yet.

  That explained Brody’s fear. Almost killing everyone twice in a day would be frightening. I was scared myself, though I knew that I could send the power elsewhere if I needed. The trick was making sure I didn’t get too full. Or freeze with indecision.

  I’ll try. But tell him what I’m going to do. People usually can’t tell when I’m channeling their abilities, but his is different and I don’t know if he’ll feel me pulling energy. And wherever you are, there is enough distance between us that I may need his help.

  I left Dimitri to explain while I refocused on Brody’s mind. Channeling his ability, I reached for one of the two power lines I felt running under the street, happy that there were others in addition to the one feeding into the compound that Brody had disabled earlier.

  Absorbing. Pulling in energy. My exhaustion vanished almost immediately, and I felt my skin warm as my body filled. Pleasure flushed through me at the heat. I pulled harder until the fullness became uncomfortable.

  Now to find something to help me direct the energy.

  Sprinting back to the fallen guard at the desk, I reached for his sword. Electricity arced between my fingers and the blade as I touched the hilt. Stepping only a little closer to the doorway of the small room, I pointed the sword at the generator and released the energy. Lightning sparked from the end of the blade, smashing into the machine and splitting it wide open. Cool.

  I felt Brody gasp through our connection, and I realized I’d sent him images of the destruction. When nothing further exploded, he laughed with a relief that echoed my own. Belatedly I realized that if the safety valve on the hidden fuel line hadn’t kicked in, I might have blown up half the building.

  Thanks, I told Brody. I just need a little more.

  Again I pulled from the power line. It went dead after a few seconds, and I wondered if someone at the power company had noticed the drain and shut it down. I’d better take as much as I could from the remaining line. I absorbed more quickly.

  The lightning’s coming this way. The thought came from Brody. It’s attracted to the energy you’re taking.

  That’s when the second power line died. I guessed that was it. I stopped channeling Brody’s ability and reached for Mari. Coming.

  I shifted, materializing behind Mari in the dark hallway as she peered around the corner. I counted quickly in the dim light offered by Dragon’s fire. All our friends were accounted for, but at the edge of the group, farthest away from the hallway intersection, one figure huddled over a fallen one. Mandalyn over Guenter, the small life force of their baby between them, easily seen with the power radiating through me. I wished I had time to try to channel Dimitri’s healing ability to ease Guenter’s pain, but that would have to wait.

  I stepped close to Mari, who, with Mandalyn’s preoccupation, guarded this side of the hallway intersection alone. Willis and Dragon were on the other side, with Francis sitting on the floor, a gaping wound in her left shoulder and another on her leg. Her hands tented over her stomach, as if protecting the child who grew inside.

  Mari stuck her hand around the corner and pulled the trigger without aiming. “We’re out of bullets for the assault rifles, but they seem to be also. I took out three with my knife before they caught onto me, but there were at least seven left. We can’t see them in the dark, so it’s hard to do anything but fire blindly, but they’ve moved up. They’re shooting from two different rooms on either side of the hallway now.” Her gun clicked uselessly. “Oh, and apparently that was my last bullet.” She threw the gun aside.

  I reached out, feeling for life forces. With the energy boiling inside me, I was strong enough to push back their barriers all at once. So maybe instead of directing the energy at them as I had the generator, I could use it with my own ability. It seemed quite possible and far more effective since I couldn’t see where to aim a physical blast.

  Night, night, I said. And Edgel, I’m sorry about your daughter. Drawing on the power, I let off my mental white flash and the guns fell quiet. Had I killed them? I shoved guilt aside as I detected life forces. They would probably recover. Maybe.

  “Okay,” I said into the abrupt silence, “they’re out. I don’t know for how long.”

  Dragon brought fire to life on the palm of his hand, his pale eyes bright in the flame’s reflection. Willis sank to the tiled floor, and I could see he was bleeding from several wounds. “You couldn’t have done that before?” he asked.

  “Not without enough energy. I needed help from outside.” I couldn’t blame them. They had no idea how my ability worked. I didn’t even know half the time.

  Willis sighed. “That’s it then.”

  “We still have to get out,” I reminded him. “I don’t have near enough energy left to do that again.” In fact, I felt drained and weak without it to sustain me.

  My comment stirred him. “We need to secure the front doors.” He motioned to Mari. “First, can you find us some bandages and supplies?” Without responding, Mari vanished.

  “We’ll need any bullets they have left, Dragon,” Willis added. “And make sure they won’t wake up.”

  I wanted to protest, but it was no longer my call. Willis was in charge. Besides, I didn’t think one man would be able to slice up that many soldiers on his own. If he did, at least they couldn’t try to kill us again.

  Dragon moved down the hallway, taking his light with him. Five shots followed. Not enough to kill those who were Unbounded, but hopefully sufficient to put them out for as long as we’d need. I purposefully didn’t think about the mortal agents the Emporium invariably had among their numbers. Nothing I could do about their choices.

  Mari reappeared moments later with a box of Renegade supplies I recognized as coming from outside the compound. She turned on a flashlight and in silence we began bandaging wounds and injecting curequick as fast as we could. Mandalyn bit her lip, something wet glistening on her cheek, as she sewed up the gaping wound in Guenter’s stomach. Dragon returned in time to help me wrap Francis’s leg.

  “Let’s move,” Willis said finally, pulling his stocky frame upright.

  Guenter had lost consciousness during his treatment and stirred only slightly as Mandalyn whispered something into his ear. With a grunt, Dragon hefted the man over his shoulder.

  Willis glanced at me. “You two can shift out? Do it. They’ll need you outside.”

  “What if more of their soldiers come inside?” I asked. “There are other doors to the building.”

  “I heard them say everything’s been sealed but the front.” He gave me a smile before putting an arm around Francis.

  That’s right. I remembered a guard saying something to that effect when I was visiting as De
lia. “They could unseal them.”

  “I’m not saying for you to abandon us,” Willis said. “We’ll expect direction once we get there. But come along, if you’d rather. Or you can shift out and back in with more weapons. That would help.” Lifting a pistol, he started down the hall, half supporting Francis. The others limped after him.

  I mentally traced the path they would follow, but could find no moving life forces. Of course there was still the question of Delia. Where was she? Had she escaped to her forces outside? Or was she lying in wait for us somewhere? I doubted the latter was likely. She hadn’t lived seventeen hundred years without learning to protect herself.

  “Let’s go,” Mari said.

  “I have to get Patrick. I promised. You go outside and tell everyone what’s happened in here. See if you can get hold of Ritter and Ava. They might have some ideas. I’ll take Patrick to the lobby with the others and contact you there.”

  “You come with me. We can get him later.”

  “I can’t. He’s been through too much. I’m going to get him back to his family. Without the shield over the building, I can still use your ability.” Though I felt exhausted, I was sure I had enough energy left from the power line to reach her almost anywhere she might go outside. “I’ll follow you.”

  My determination must have been obvious because with a toss of her long black hair, she threw me a flashlight and vanished. I reached after her, channeling her ability, and shifted to the hallway outside the room that was Patrick’s cell. No guard, so the man had probably joined the fight at some point.

  To my surprise, Patrick’s doorknob turned easily under my touch. Why wasn’t it locked? There was only one person in the room that I could feel. Lifting my flashlight, I pushed the door open, wishing I had a new magazine for my empty gun.