Adventures with Laura Lockster: The First Strike

Chapter 8

"Am I dead?" I asked in a dazed whisper.

They laughed. Charlotte smiled, "No. Not yet Laura."

I smiled back and looked down at my leg. It was completely bandaged from my ankle to my hip. I tapped it with my nail. It was hard as a rock. They must have used some fiberglass or plaster, but my guess would be fiberglass.

"How long was I passed out for?" I asked, trying to get up.

"I would say about two or three hours," Logan said while helping me up.

I was surprised; what only felt like a half-hour was actually two or three hours. I grasped Logan's shoulder so I could walk. My wound didn't hurt as bad. They must have cleaned it out while I was asleep.

Charlotte snickered at me, "Hey Laura, you know you sleep talk." Oh no. What did I say?! Was it embarrassing?

Charlotte began giggling and did an imitation of me, "Oh Logan, Logan! Please don't leave." My face got really hot. Was I getting a fever?

I slowly turned toward Logan, "Did I really say that in my sleep?"

He nodded his head as a yes and turned away. I was dumbfounded. I wasn't even dreaming about him! I had to focus on the mission. We needed to get out of here and soon.

I looked at everyone and said, "We need to keep going." I felt like such a leader when I said that!

Although I knew I could never fit into the role of a leader. Having everyone look your way whenever there was a problem. That is too much pressure for me.

We began walking. Everyone was walking slower because I couldn't walk as fast. I felt like such a burden. I was holding up the team. I let go of Logan's shoulder and started walking on my own. It was painful, but I didn't want to be a burden. It was hard walking with a leg covered in fiberglass with a deep cut in it. I couldn't bend my knee in my right leg, so I had to swing it. Then I got an idea!

I walked over to the wall and lit my finger on fire. The others stared, wondering what I was going to do. I put my fingers to the wall and made a cane shape. It only took a few minutes but I now had a large cane that worked just like crutches. This way I could walk much faster without the pain of walking on my wounded leg.

The laboratory was a labyrinth; corridors going every which way, and many were dead ends with a door. We would try to open the doors but you needed a keycard to pass. Everything was quiet then the alarms began blaring, someone had sounded the alarms!

It was probably that stupid doctor. I pulled out my knife and lit it on fire. I didn't want to freak my friends out so I used my blue flames instead of my purple flames. Another reason is that I was in a near-death state, I may be sucked into the flames. It was best to play it safe.

Down the corridor you could hear it; the footsteps of men in iron boots marching down the hall. The echo of the footsteps grew louder and louder with every step. We stood ready.
I looked over at Presley, she looked like a frightened kitten. I thought for a moment. then an idea popped into my head, "Presley can you use your ability on me?"

She stared at me like I had six heads. "B-but-"

Presley got caught off, "No buts just do it!" I said in a rushed tone.

She nodded and put her index fingers on my temples.

I closed my eyes. I could feel myself gaining more and more intelligence with every second. Presley removed her fingers and I opened my eyes. The world seemed different now. I don't know how to explain it, maybe it felt like I was being reborn. No, it felt more like I was being enlightened. I saw how stupid and pointless this all was. We could just break out of here, we just needed to go up. Although there may be traps. So, the safest way was to navigate through this labyrinth.