Jack snuck out of his room. He found it surprisingly easy. With his intricate knowledge of the Academy’s machinery and equipment, he knew exactly how to avoid certain security protocols. Even with all this knowledge I still can’t figure out where that damn trumpet sound comes from. He absently thought to himself as he slipped out a side gate, heading into the city. It was late, but the city never slept. Most shops were closed, but plenty of restaurants and entertainment houses were active all throughout the night. There was supposed to be an increased security presence. But when Jack walked around it seemed like most security was focused around the palace. Typical. Weirdly while he snuck along Jack noticed the city was surprisingly wquiet.

Jack snuck into the sewer and headed for his meeting point with Henry. The sewer was a dimly lit maze of concrete and brick walls. The stench made it difficult for Jack to breathe, but he had been in worse places. He continued on until he heard noises ahead. As he crept closer to the sound, his heart raced. He knew something wasn’t right. Is it the monster? He slowly crept forward until he reached the edge of a small room. Inside were three individuals that seemed to be working on something on the ground. They weren’t city workers, they were wearing all dark clothing and wore multiple weapons. Shit, are these some of the intruders? I don’t have time for this. Jack slowly backpedaled; he was almost out of sight when he slipped. For fucks sake. He didn’t even wait to see what the mysterious figures would do, he just ran.

He sprinted down the sewer. No more care for silence, all he wanted was speed. Reaching a turn he grabbed onto the corner to help him turn faster. Left, then a right, he continued dashing back the way he came. But then he reached a small clearing that he didn’t recognize. Shit, I took a wrong turn. And then, they were right behind him. The three figures ran into the room and began to slowly surround Jack.

“Who are you?” The first figure said. The one in the middle spoke as they slowly approached Jack. Jack slowly backpedaled, attempting to keep some distance between them. “I said, who are you?” The voice was much firmer this time.

“Uhm, nobody,” Jack said. I seriously need to stop getting into these kinda situations.

“What are you doing down here?” The situation was ridiculously similar to when Jack met Gant and Bones.

OK do a better job this time.

“Hello sirs, how are you?” Jack asked in his most polite voice.

“We should just kill him.” One of the other figures said. Oh. Perfect.

“Yeah he’s already seen us”, the third one said. They slowly approached Jack.

Jack's mind raced, trying to come up with a plan on how to get out of this situation alive. He was outnumbered and didn't have much time before they attacked him. Taking a deep breath, he slowly backed up against one of the nearby walls and looked around rapidly for an escape route. He spotted a rung ladder leading up to a round metal cover in the ceiling. It was his only way out. Adrenaline surged through his veins as he quickly scrambled up the ladder, but not before one of the figures managed to grab onto his leg. The figure pulled. Jack almost lost grip of the ladder. Knowing that if he didn't get away now, he wouldn't ever make it out alive, he summoned all his strength and used it to kick away his attacker's grip and make a desperate leap toward the top of the ladder. He was able to knock the pursuer down.

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“Fuck it, forget him. It’s almost time. We need to get into position.” With that the figures chasing him turned and ran back the way they came.

What does that mean? It’s almost time for what? Jack had a lot of questions. Fuck, I don’t have time for this. It took some time for Jack to get to his designated meeting point with Henry. Running into the figures had cost him valuable time. He had no idea what the monster was going to do with Ariel. I’ve gotta hurry.

Eventually, he reached the meeting point. Originally, he had planned to use the sewers to avoid being seen, but the streets were surprisingly empty. He just kept to the shadows as he made his way through the city. The meeting point was a small maintenance access point. It was near where Jack had first seen the beast.

When he reached the point, he looked around. A moment later Henry stepped out of the shadows. “Hello again.” His voice had a soft echo, but it sounded eerily human. He was wearing a cloak again and you could see him at all.

“I have taken control of more of my mechanical friends and I believe I know where to search for the beast.”

“What do you think it’s going to do to Ariel?”

“I do not know. Probably nothing good.”

“Let’s hurry up then.” Jack checked his equipment again. He had his rifle on his back, his sword on his hip, and his new gauntlets on his fists. I’m ready this time.

They began their descent into the underground, Jack felt his heart racing with anticipation. The night air was crisp and refreshing, but it was quickly replaced by stifling musty air.

Every now and then they stopped to listen for any suspicious sounds or movements that may have been coming from the beast.

“The last sighting I have of the beast is within this section.”

“Can you fight?” Jack asked looking at Henry.

“Not really, I will do what I can.”

They slowly continued through the underground tunnels. Now they were multiple floors beneath the surface. Jack checked his cyber pad. He was keeping track of his location with his maps. They were near the edge of the city. The time showed 11:32 pm.

Then he heard it.

Tick. Tock.

It wasn’t Henry. The sound the beast made was much deeper and slow. It’s close. Jack was creeping slowly forward with henry when the machine suddenly put its hand out to stop Jack. Looking forward there was a ticking rodent. A small rat, similar to Pyke was slowly meandering down the tunnel. It hadn’t noticed them yet, but it would soon. Jack slowly looked at Henry to see what he would do. The machine looked panicked. Shit. I guess this is it. Jack focused. He felt the electricity within him. The power was vicious, wild, and unpredictable. But throughout the year of practice, Jack had come to learn and understand electricity. He had slowly become friends with the element. If he could go back he wouldn’t accept any other element. Electricity had become one with him and he had become one with electricity. So, he called his friend. Not a lot of power. Just a spark. One lucky spark. He waited for the right moment before whizzing it into the ticking rodent.

The rat seemed to shake for a moment. Then it looked towards Jack and Henry. Its eyes were now blue like Pyke’s. Whew.

RRRAWWWR

Then there was a huge roar. Oh shit.

Henry looked towards Jack. “The reason I didn’t attempt to rest control was that the monster would know once its control was gone.”