Worlds Apart | Leo Fitz Book Five

Chapter Four

Notes:

TW - pregnancy, miscarriage

"Come on, this way," Asia urged, tugging Daisy's arm as they went down another hall and stopped at a corner, peeking around as they trailed Deke at a safe enough distance that he wouldn't notice. He didn't seem overly perceptive about the situation and the two spies tailing him, which was how they had wanted things anyways. Asia could have followed this guy for days without him picking up on it, of that much she was certain. She paused at a corner and leaned around, watching Deke speak with someone who sat on the floor before continuing on his way down the hall.

"Let's move," she said, as the two began to walk silently down the hallway, moving at the same time as the other natural noises in the space. They rounded the corner and froze. In front of them was nothing but a brown, dirty, metal wall. And no sign of Deke. Asia closed her eyes, sending her senses out. When she reopened them, they glowed blue. "There's people on the other side," she whispered to Daisy, as the blue started to fade from her gaze. Daisy glanced back behind them, double checking the coast was clear, then she raised her right hand and sent a pulse of energy out, the waves hitting against the wall until suddenly, a door popped open in front of them. "Thought so," Asia muttered, pushing forward through it.

Walking through the door, Asia was hit instantly with how quiet it was. But she knew there were more people than just Deke in here - she had sensed them when she felt for him. Pushing through a set of flimsy curtains, she and Daisy took in the sights around them. People were slumped over, passed out or asleep, in chairs, on tables, over one another. The light above them had almost a red light to it and dust filtered down in front of them. No one seemed to be moving, at all. "Where the hell are we?" Daisy breathed quietly.

"I don't know," Asia said, shaking her head slowly. "Let's just keep moving and get the hell out of here." Something about being in this space made her feel wrong. Dirty. Whatever this was couldn't possibly be a good thing. Around the corner, they saw an open curtain and a familiar head of brown hair, sitting and facing away from them. "There he is," she said nodding, and the two moved forward, ready to confront the guy they were following.

But as soon as Asia stepped through the curtains, something felt off. She had been through enough training with Shield to recognize what being drugged felt like at this was it. Before she could say anything, her eyes rolled back into her head and she fell down, down, down into blackness until suddenly she made impact with asphalt beneath her.

She blinked, unprepared for the sun that was blazing down at her. Looking up, finally able to see, she saw she lay in the middle of the street, with Daisy beside her. As Daisy began to sit up, too, Asia took in their surroundings. The sky was bright and brilliantly blue, a somewhat familiar sight after being trapped in that space station. It would be far more comforting if she knew where the hell she was. In front of them was a large building, grey with gold and red accents, that resembled a movie theater, but didn't have any signage. There was a whole town around them, but no people. No people, except for Deke, who had just grabbed a newspaper out of a box and entered the theater building.

"Asia," Daisy said slowly, as the two of them got to their feet. "We're in a Framework program." She nodded up towards the sky and the moving clouds, each one a carbon copy of the last, identical for miles and miles. Asia's stomach lurched as fear climbed up her spine. What if they had actually never left? What if they were trapped in some sort of elaborate hell? "Don't think the worst until we know," Daisy said, as if reading her mind.

"Let's go get this guy, then," Asia said, balling her hands into fists. She was thoroughly over and done with all of this.

Stepping into the building wasn't like walking into a theater, it was like walking into a bar. The lights were low, and the red accents of the building gave the room a hazy red glow. Deke was inside, ranting about newspaper being thrown away. Only the barkeep was with him, but there were others, sitting at tables, playing pool. Asia's ears perked when she heard Deke make a snarky remark to the barkeep about programming him. This was Framework nonsense for sure. But as she surveyed the room, no one appeared to be a threat. No one was favoring a certain side where they could be hiding a weapon, no one was watching them. And yet, Asia wouldn't let her guard down. Not in here.