The sun started to go down causing crystals to glisten across the surface of the water. Alexandria and Tyra steered the small vessel into a cove protected by a few rock faces. Tyra set the tether pulling it tight. Any other ship wouldn’t be able to fit here so it was a good thing they decided to keep it when they traded up. Alexandria would make it a point to keep small vessels like this for situations similar to this one in the future.

“Is there still enough light for you to properly assess the area for your sniper point?” Alexandria asked in a low tone of voice. Even though they were still a little ways from the facility there was no telling what kind of patrols could be nearby.

They both climbed out of the ship making their way up the narrow path that led to the facility. “There are different settings on my scope so I can see anything at just about any time of day or night.” Not to mention the fact her eyes allowed her to see at long range. That was one of the other reasons Alexandria brought her along.

The rest of the climb was made in silence just in case there was anything or anyone listening. They moved low once they were out of the cove making their way to some tall grass not far from the facility fence. Alexandria pointed to the ridge she had mentioned before. They both nodded and made their way to it since it was in a spot they could hopefully talk freely.

They made it there quickly and quietly. The search lights were on but they were not pointed in their direction. The sun was gone and crickets chirped in the grass near them. “How about you see what you get from this spot since once I leave here I will need your support so moving around will not help either of us?” Alexandria asked looking around just to make sure there were no patrols nearby.

Tyra should have felt a bit annoyed at the way Alexandria said things. However she enjoyed the spunk that her captain brought to the table. She nodded, setting up her rifle and peering down the scope. Alexandria had the right idea to choose this spot for the vantage point. Tyra could see everything inside the facility just about.

“Well your choice to make this my spot was an excellent one. I should have no trouble taking out any obstacle that gets in your way.” Tyra gave Alexandria a wink flexing her trigger finger hoping for a bit of action.

Alexandria was glad Tyra was in a good mood. She decided that moving forward would be the best option. She carefully made her way to the gate on the outer edge of the fence. This was the same gate she escaped from not so long ago. It was the only gate that didn’t have the biometric locks installed since no one had ever escaped before her.

She opened the gate sliding inside moving towards the nearest door to the facility. She pulled the keycard from her jacket pocket hoping that it still worked. Sliding the card down the reader held her breath for a moment. The light flashed green and the door opened. Alexandria contained her excitement and moved inside right as the spotlight passed by.

Tyra breathed a sigh of relief as she watched Alexandria slip inside just in time through her scope. She could see why Alexandria decided to bring her along. Even though the others were highly skilled Tyra was the only one with the experience and skill to be her support. “I will not let you down, captain.” Tyra mumbled under her breath following it with a chuckle.

Inside Alexandria moved quietly through the halls glad to see the guard intervals were the same as when she was there. She had not been gone that long so why wasn’t anything changed due to her escape? Were the ones in charge really that full of themselves that it would never happen again or was it a trap to lure her back? She shook those thoughts out of her mind, focusing it back on the mission at hand.

She needed to stop soon in order to get her bearings. There were two objectives to this mission. The first being getting her hands on the files about all her shifts from day one. The second would be freeing her friend that shared the cell next to her. Her name was the only thing Alexandria knew about her; it was Isa.

Using the map she had made for herself in her journals she located the uniform storage room and slipped inside. This was the only room inside the facility that was never locked since uniforms were always getting trashed by patients' powers. She slipped into one concealing her weapon and other items inside. Taking the keycard she had swiped and pinning it on the uniform just in case.

Once she looked presentable she walked outside trying to be as normal as possible. The cameras would now be watching her every move and if she messed up even once fighting would ensue.

She could feel the cameras tracking her movements but having Tyra outside with her rifle was all the comfort she needed at the moment. There was no way anyone in her was a match for Tyra’s marksmanship. A small smirk crossed her lips as she moved towards the file room. Hopefully the keycard would allow her access if not she would have to ditch getting the information and go straight for Isa.

The directions for the file room kept repeating inside her head. ‘Two rights and a left from the uniform storage room.’ It seemed like an eternity since she left the storage room. She was now standing in front of the file room looking at the keycard scanner. It was surprising this room didn’t have a biometric lock on it. Of course again the administrators never think about such things due to their arrogance. She swiped the keycard and waited.

That feeling of eternity crept back into her mind just watching the signal lights on the door. Red meant she needed to fight her way out. Green meant she was one step closer to figuring out what the hell was going on with her. Beads of sweat formed all over her body slowly running down her skin making her feel uneasy. Her heart started to pound a bit and she could hear the camera behind her zoom in and focus on her.

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Thankfully the green light blinked and the door unlocked. She let out a captured breath moving into the room as casually as possible. There are no cameras in the file room so she was free to freak out. Of course there wasn’t time for that since she still needed to find her file. Turning on the light in the room she moved to the filing cabinets. The researchers kept files on paper as well as digital. Since she didn’t have a machine to read the digital files she would have to steal the paper copies.

Moving around the room she read the labels on all the filing cabinets. She would be filed under A for her first name. When she found the cabinet it took her only a moment to open it and find her file. It was pretty large since she had been here all of her life. Most of the information she already knew so all that was needed were the files on her abnormal shifts.

She made it through half the file with no luck. It was starting to get a bit discouraging until she flipped over a piece of paper. The one underneath it read; ‘Unknown Shift Anomalies.’ A smile stretched across her face as she flipped through the rest to make sure it was all information she already knew. Thankfully that was the case and what she would take was only a quarter of the file. Alexandria decided to leave the rest and grabbed an empty folder from the table by the door. She arranged the files inside, secured them with tape, and tucked the folder into her jacket underneath the uniform.

Now it was time for part two of the plan. This is where Tyra would most likely look a bit confused while looking through her scope. Breaking someone out was never told to anyone and makes the mission that much harder. However Alexandria is confident that after Tyra gets over the shock she will be able to adjust and stay on task.

She took in a few deep breaths knowing that one mess up now could mean she would be killed and experimented on in pieces. That was something she never saw happen but it had been used in conversation as if it did happen. There was no one in hell she was going to test that theory. Now was the time to get to her cell and free Isa. Whatever her ability was, the guards, researchers, even the admins were frightened. If she could get Isa on her side there was no telling what they could accomplish together.

Walking to the door she took a few more moments to ready herself before opening it and walking out into the hall. It was a straight shot from here to the cells. The only issue was the gate to get into the area. That one had two cameras and a guard to check ids. Her plan was to use the key card to get through while wearing the uniform along with the mask. She never once saw or heard anyone asked to remove their face gear.

Alexandria pulled the face gear from her belt and fitted it into place. It was required to be worn in all cell areas for the guards protection from the “subjects” as they were sometimes referred to. If she was caught here even with Tyra’s help there was a chance she could still be killed. If protocol was kept there would be no issues. She crossed her fingers inside her pockets for luck since she needed every single bit available.

The final walk to the gate area felt like she was going in slow motion. Cameras were on her and the guard on the other side was staring at her. She made it to the gate and held up her keycard. “What is your business here after sundown?” The guard asked. That sent a chill up Alexandria’s spine. She had not thought of an answer to that question beforehand. If she didn’t answer within the next few seconds the guard would sound the alarm.

Her brain scrambled around searching for an answer. Going through everything she remembered hearing from her cell when anyone would pass through the gate checkpoint. She was about to just give up when a memory hit her hard. She looked up at the gates speaking in a monotone voice. “Nightly cell detail check.” She froze in place, not taking her eyes off the guard who was staring back at her.

That was the only thing she could remember would be the reasoning for a guard to venture back to the cells at night. The only reason the check point guard didn’t perform the task was because they were not allowed to leave their post for any reason. The guard looked at her key card then back at her. The guard nodded and hit the buzzer for the gate to open.

Alexandria breathed a quiet sigh of relief nodding to the guard as she passed through making her way to Isa’s cell. The hardest parts were over now all that was left was getting Isa out of here through the emergency exit at the end of the cell block.

She walked a bit faster while still looking as though she was doing the cell detail checks she had seen done a million times. Passing by her empty cell almost knocked her off her feet thankfully there wasn’t a camera there to catch it. She moved passed quickly looking in for the first time at Isa. She was sitting at the desk that everyone was given in their cells writing something down. There was something different about her uniform that Alexandria couldn’t quite figure out at the moment.

Isa must have felt someone watching her. She turned from her writing with a bit of shock on her face. Alexandria pulled off the mask and took down the hood. “No need to worry Isa I am not a guard. It is me, Alexandria, your cell neighbor. I am here to get you out if you want to come, that is?”

There was a pause and Alexandria could tell Isa had to think about the request. She must have been born here not to want to leave at the first chance at freedom. Alexandria was about to walk away until she saw Isa stand up.

“Sure I will go with you. How do you plan on getting out a second time?” Isa asked with a voice that made Alexandria want to bottle up and keep. It was also just what she wanted to hear minus the sarcasm with the question.

“We can get out through the emergency exit down at the end of the block. I have a key card so we can open the door without setting off the alarm.” Alexandria didn’t waste anymore time. She slid the keycard into the door to Isa’s cell which slid open.

Isa couldn’t believe what was happening for a moment. Everything was going so fast it was as if this was a dream. She needed to be reassured that everything wasn’t going to disappear when she woke up.

Alexandria extended her hand with a soft smile. “We need to leave now. It is only a matter of time before the checkpoint guard wonders why I am not back yet.”

The hand would be all the proof Isa would need. In her dreams that would also be the thing that woke her up touching someone else in a dream. She grabbed Alexandria’s hand waiting to feel the sensation of sitting up in her bed with a cold sweat. A few moments passed and she opened her eyes to see Alexandria just staring at her.

“We need to hurry up. Are you coming or not?” Alexandria asked with a smirk nodding her head in the direction of the exit.

Isa nodded as they both took off for the door. Once they reached it Alexandria slid the keycard into the reader. The green light flashed and the door opened without the alarm going off.

Tyra watched through her scope in disbelief as Alexandria and Isa came running through the gate towards her. Alexandria had a lot of explaining to do which would have to wait since a few moments later an alarm echoed all around them. The guard must have triggered it when Alexandria didn’t return from her supposed sweep.