Young Writers Society

Leroy Jenkins

I whipped the map tube off my back and rolled it out on the floor, trying to make sense of the labyrinthine tunnels and passages that made up this level. After a moment, I had a rough idea of where we were.

"Well, the good news is I kinda know where we are. The bad news is we are a long way from the cache, and further from the exit."

I heard footsteps echoing from some hallway god knows how far away from us it was. Maybe it was extremely close. I flicked the safety switch off my rifle and started heading down the hallway.

"Hey, kids with the pistols, cover the rear to make sure they don't surprise us from behind. Judd, if you'd watch our flanks."

And with that we set off once more.

Vi:
Leroy stared at the map for awhile until he thought he knew where we were. I covered the rear with my pistol. I was glad someone had tooken charge, but by the sound of it, we still had a long way to go. I unlocked by gun, just in case. The click the gun made when I unlocked it somehow always comforted me. It was familiar. It was constant. And down here, that was a novelty.

Storm:
I stayed with the group, but most importantly, Drustan was by my side. I took a deep breath and smiled. I had almost everything I dreamed of as a child. All but freedom, and that was closer than ever.
Vi, standing at the back of the group, had tears in her eyes, threatening to spill over her lashes and stream down her face. I nodded silently at Drustan and turned around, walking toward Vi and hoping he understood that I meant for him to stay where he was.
"What's wrong?" I ask Vi. "Don't say nothing either. you're almost crying."

Drustan:

Storm gave me a nod that probably was a stay-where-you-are kind of thing then walked away. I stood there, feeling stupid and embarrassed about all the things I'd recently done.
Really, I should apologize to Vi because she seemed to like me a bit. Then, I should... sort things out - I guess - with Storm.

But, right now I needed to focus on finding out where we were going. We'd just walked a little ways since our run-in with the guards and I had no idea where we were. I watched Xia and Leroy bending over a map, seeming like they knew where they were.

I stepped over to them and voiced, "Where are we?"

Vi:
"What's the matter?" Storm asked me, "And don't say 'nothing' either. You're almost tearing up." I glanced at her. Really, we were a lot alike. She looked like she could handle, and had handled, a lot, like me. I sighed.
"I'm just... tired. That's all," I said.
"We could-" she began
"NO," I hissed, "Sleeping would just make it worse." She looked at me questioningly.
"Don't worry about it. I can deal with it." She looked at me. She didn't think I could. But I can. I've handled it for so long now. I could handle it a little longer.

Xia
"Where are we?"
I turned around and gave Drustan a quick smile.
"Hi."
It sounded kind of weird to friendly greet people in this situation but I did it anyway.
I turned back to the map and showed him where we were.
"Leroy thinks we're somewhere around here. Are you okay by the way? You know with the wounds and stuff?"

Drustan:

I'd totally forgotten about my rubs. I felt them, "They're fine." I replied to Xia's question.

"So, we're here?" I pointed to a place on the map. "Where do we want to be?"

Leroy Jenkins

Drustan had started manhandling the map, pointing it, touching it. He asked where we needed to be. I gestured at a small section of this level about three quarters of a mile away.

"It'd be easy if we could make a straight shot to it, but this level is older and fairly labyrinthine so it could take hours if we don't navigate carefully."

I turned to go and continue, but I heard a voice that was dangerously close.

"They're in here, come on!!!"

I ducked low and waddled towards the group. I approached them and handed Talia to Xia.

"Okay. If you have a weapon or are Judd, follow me!"

We moved slowly, deliberately, until a cluster of about ten guards was down the hall from us.

"There! Blast 'em!"

They opened fire on us, bolts of energy momentarily lighting up the dim hallway.

"Get behind a wall, or something!"

Vi ducked into an open room full of aged medical equipment. I continued to fire at the guards, trying to prevent them from reaching the other unarmed escapees to the rear. One of them fell, chest smoking. Soon another had as well. Eventually we managed to whittle it down to one lone, injured guard. He reached for his radio, but Judd blasted it before he could get it.

"You know..."

He coughed feebly, spattering blood against the wall.

"You know you won't escape, right? It's impossible. Others have tried. They...they failed. So'll you."

He laughed, shaking in agony as he did. Finally, he collapsed. He was gone. I spat on him.

"Alright, let's grab their gear and lights. We're gonna need it down here in the dark."

Storm:
I hear someone, probably a guard, yelling, then Leroy, then guns. Vi leaps into a room for protection. I follow her, everything turning into a blur around me. Much worse than usual. My head spins and the floor rises up to greet me as I fall through the door. Before my head slams into the ground, I form a single rational thought.
"Stupid side effects."

(OOC: Remember, she just came out of a test when she slipped away. It makes sense, at least to me, that someone would react to one of the medications they used.)

Drustan:

I saw Storm fall to the ground and, in the midst of everything, managed to grab her and stand her back on her feet.

"Storm! Storm!" I cried, but she didn't reply.

I dragged her on to where the others where now all running.

Storm:
This is new. Am I conscious? Or am I just floating around in the fuzzy world of dreams?
I can hear Drustan's voice. It's calling my name. I struggle to respond, but I'm trapped inside my mind, unable to respond.
What was the last test for? I can't seem to make the memory surface.
Here in my mind, there's no sense of urgency I allow myself to let go of what little progress I've made and sink back into the peace of unconsciousness.

Xia
I held Talia close to me and stroked her hair while trying to ignore the sounds of dying people. It was a sound I hadn't heard very often in the past few years, because all I had done was pretty much sit in a lab getting injected and lying on my bed in my cell.
I didn't like the sound..not at all.
I started to whisper random things to Talia so that she would pay attention to the sound of my voice and hoped that the people that were dying weren't any of our group.

(OOC: sorry my part was supposed to come after loller's part..just pretend it's there XD)

Drustan:

Once we'd stopped moving I pulled Storm to me and made sure she was still breathing - she was.

"Storm..." I whispered in her ear. "Stormmm..."

I saw Drustan holding Storm and felt for a moment a sting in my chest. I pushed the emotion that caused the pain down. There was no time for the now. Storm could be hurt. I leaned over her. Seeing no wounds, I guessed that it was probably a side affect. She was still breathing, but her heart rate was erratic and she was sweating badly. I pulled a packet of what looked like poprocks out of my sock. I'd been saving this for a long time, but I was willing to let Storm have it. It would regulate her heart beat and fix a variety of other problems. The only problem was that it gave the person stomach aches for a few hours, but given what it could fix, that was nothing. I poured it into her mouth, where it dissolved on her tongue.
It was a good thing she was unconsious, because it tastes like rancid milk. Soon her heart rate returned to normal and she stopped sweating. But that was my last one, so if I needed it, I would be in trouble.