"Did you find anything yet?" The sound of Rodger's voice could be heard, echoing out of the room he was rummaging in.

Helen sighed, hearing Rodger's loud voice. "You know, I'm glad to know we're only alive due to that thing not giving a shit."

Abigail's emotionless face apathetically remained silent.

"If Bella didn't tell us about the noise not being the real danger, I would be trying to find something to shove in Rodger's mouth, right now." Helen continued talking to her unresponsive friend, feeling better talking while rummaging through another room.

Hearing Bella's plan and having already reached a similar conclusion, Helen and the others were trying to find supplies to take with them for the journey into one of the portals.

Across her shoulder, she used a duffel bag she discovered to store the medical supplies she found inside of the medical station. Helen grabbed a small glass container, looking at the label and checking a booklet close by. Penciling another line, she grabbed a marker and wrote on the grey reinforced tape the name of the drug. Double-checking the spelling, cotton balls were stuffed into the appropriate slot before the vial was inserted. Closing the lid, a light hiss was heard before it was closed all the way and latched.

"I don't think the cotton balls are really necessary," Timothy remarked as he stuffed supplies into his bag.

Choosing not to answer him, Helen looked at Abigail. "With the cotton ball securing the glass vial, we don't need to worry about our fleeing from danger breaking any of them." She paused as if listening to something. "I know. It's really silly to assume things are going to go smoothly and hope the container does its job. I'm glad you agree with me, Abigail."

"Are you going to keep ignoring me? Seriously? I already apolo..."

Pointing an accusatory finger at Timothy, Helen glared at Timothy. "No! You don't get to walk away with just an apology! The moment we entered here, you knew the portal was going to be the inevitable outcome! Portals, I remind you, which you don't even know will take us to someplace safe! We're just guessing things are going to be okay!"

Hearing the stress and pain in her voice, Timothy didn't meet her glare and remained silent.

"Fuck!" Abigail grabbed a handful of cotton balls and threw them at Timothy. "Fuck you! Fuck you! Fuck you!" The cotton balls wabbled in the air before falling to the ground, failing to even hit.

She stared at the cotton balls, now growing hazy.

"We're going to figure out what happened to Abigail." Timothy gently said.

Turning back to the shelf stockpiled with medicine, Helen didn't say anything, getting angry at her tears. "I'M going to find what happened to you, Abigail." She vowed in her mind, not willing to trust anyone else with this task.

Grabbing a container, she opened it to see the rows of slots matching the shape and size of the medicine. Helen angrily wiped her tears away with a forearm, before grabbing a few vials and setting them on the counter next to her. Checking the highlighted names in the booklet, she went back to recording the number of vials she found of the crucial medicine. Her eyes flickered to the metal mirror showing the image of Timothy picking up the cotton balls she threw at him.

Familiar sounding footsteps were heard before a voice asked, "How is it going in here?"

"We're good, Catharina," Helen set down the medicine in her hand before turning to look at one of the women they had encountered.

Half of Catharina's smile could be seen due to the form-fitting metal mask covering half of her face. Brushing back her hair on the side not covered, her eyes scanned the room and landed on Abigail's form. "I just wanted to let you know Bella advised we should be getting ready to leave soon."

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"What about the medicine?" Helen waved an arm at the abundant supply of vials filled with life-saving liquids.

Looking at the bag nearing capacity, Catharina slightly shook her head. "We can't carry all of them safely. There's no telling what the environment is going to look like, meaning we may be walking for a long distance. Bella said it was the reason why she only had you grab those specific ones."

Helen couldn't help but look at Abigail. Worry evident.

"I'm sorry, Helen. Taking any more could put your friend, Abigail, in danger if we're too tired from carrying the medicine." Catharina tried to be sensitive.

Returning to look at Catharina, Helen nodded her head. "I know. I appreciate you thinking about that."

Grinning foolishly, Catharina said, "I guess the training we all had to go through is poking out, huh?"

"A little." Helen smiled at seeing a woman who could, likely, mow down tens of soldiers bigger than her in minutes looking girlish.

"You know." Catharina looked away. "Even though it's only been an hour or so since we met. I hope you can rely on me, I mean, Bella and all of us." Returning eye contact with Helen, she said, "We'll make sure you guys are safe on the other side of the portal."

"I know." Helen gave a half-hearted smile, the idea of the portal bringing about a feeling of butterflies fluttering inside of her. Wanting to get away from the topic of the portal, Helen asked, "How are the others doing?"

Stepping into the room, Catharina leaned against the frame of the doorway with one of her boots resting in the same manner. "Bella and the others are just doing some last-minute preparations. They should have found what was needed by now. The others in your group have been called over by my teammates and waiting with the spy." Catharina grimaced, refusing to say Katya's name.

Helen could understand the feeling. Katya felt like someone who always had an angle they were playing, never maintaining alliances any longer than necessary. Thinking of the woman made Helen wonder how many powerful people were screwed over by her duplicitous nature. This made her look at Timothy who was foolish enough to fall for Katya's beauty and silver tongue.

"Be careful of her," Catharina spoke up.

The expression on Catharina's face was grim as if she could tell Helen was thinking about the woman. It felt just like when they had first encountered Bella and everyone, a feeling of death in the air.

Catharina looked at Timothy. "Even this man's exposure to that woman is nowhere near the actual surface when describing the things she is known for and rumored to be involved in."

"She's right, Helen," Timothy answered while continuing to gather bandages and other supplies. "Even when I was being used as an asset by her, I felt as if there was a darkness inside of her. After I learned she had been playing me the entire time... It just made everything fall into place. I can only imagine the missions she has been involved in and people she has mercilessly killed to reach her objective."

Their current circumstance was dire, but after the two had put in their two cents related to Katya, Helen felt as if the room had dropped several degrees. She felt herself shiver unconsciously, goosebumps crawling up her neck. "I think I've underestimated how much of a danger she is," Helen came to such a conclusion after both Timothy and Catharina explained the danger.

"If Bella is willing to bring along Katya, who's as dangerous as both Timothy and Catharina described... How much more is our present circumstance... Or the portal we'll eventually have to enter? Could Bella be thinking Katya will be a valued ally even knowing how quickly she could turn on us if things go south?" Helen thought to herself, a cold sweat spreading on her back.

"What are we getting ourselves into?"