Shifting Eyes

CHAPTER SEVEN

The next morning, we get together before breakfast to make sure everyone was still on board.

We enter the breakfast line and receive our piles of mush.

"If we're gonna get out of here, we're gonna need to get into that watchtower. And to do that, I'm going to need a few things." Rocket says as we walk away from the lunch line.

"The guards wear security bands to control their ins and outs. I need one."

We watch one guard use theirs to open the door to another part of the prison.

"Leave it to me." Gamora answers.

"That dude there," He motions towards a man who's leg is completely gone. "I need his prosthetic leg."

"His leg?" Quill and I ask at the same time.

"Yeah. God knows I don't need the rest of him. Look at him, he's useless." Rocket says.

Quill glances back at him to get one last look. "Alright."

"And finally, on the wall back there is a black panel. Blinky yellow light. Do you see it?" We all glance back at the wall under the watchtower. We inconspicuously spot the light and look at each other to make sure the others saw where it was.

Quill replies for the group. "Yeah?"

"There's a quarry's battery behind it. Purplish box, green wires. To get into that watchtower, I definitely need it."

I listen to Rocket as he lists off all the things he needs in order to break us out.

"How are we supposed to do that?" Gamora asks the question we had all been thinking.

"Well, supposedly, these bald-bodies find you attractive. So, maybe you can work out some sort of trade." Rocket shrugs as he gestures around the room filled with all the other prisoners.

"You must be joking." Gamora warns angrily.

"No, I really heard they find you attractive." I punch him hard in the shoulder and he whips around to hit me right back.

"Look," Quill says, breaking up our small cat fight to redirect the discussion back to the break-out. "It's 20 feet up in the air, and it's in the middle of the most heavily-guarded part of the prison. It's impossible to get up there without being seen."

I take a moment to actually notice how many guards and drones are flying around, keeping every prisoner monitored.

"I got one plan and that plan requires a frickin' quarnyx battery, so figure it out!" He shouts in Quill's ear.

"You talk like you're 12." He looks at me before snarling out, "You're not helpful. She's not helpful." He points towards me with a sharp claw whilst lookin between Gamora and Quill. I try to bite his claw but he pulls away at the last second.

Gamora rolls her eyes and scoffs while Quill looks off in the opposite direction, looking just as angry as Rocket.

"Can I get back to it? Thanks." He asks and answers before continuing. "Now, this is important. Once the battery is removed, everything is gonna slam into emergency mode." He slides his food away from himself before using the empty table space to drag his finger along, making an invisible plan. "Once we have it, we gotta move quickly, so you definitely need to get that last."

All of a sudden, the main nights go out and we all look around. Confused, I stand from the table and look towards the watchtower. Alarms blare as Groot stands next to the wall, holding the quarnyx battery out for Rocket to take.

"Or we could just get it first and improvise." He shrugs his shoulders before running off.

"I'll get the armband." Gamora says urgently.

"Leg." Quill replies, already running off.

"I'll clear a path for the watchtower." I say, sprinting towards the stairs and up to the watchtower.

Guards with tasing sticks, guns, and shields run past me, unaware I was running towards the watchtower instead of the sleeping cells they yelled at us to return to.

I pass them all, eager to seem complacent and innocent. That all ends, however when I pass my cell where a guard was waiting there for me.

"Hey, wait! Prisoner 18529 is resisting cell return!" He says into his earpiece.

I look back to see if he's chasing me when I hear one of the guards in the watchtower bark out orders to Groot.

"Prisoner, drop the device immediately and retreat to your cell, or we will open fire." I take a quick glance at Groot to see how he was doing. He's turning in circles, watching the drones line up to get ready to shoot him.

Branches and twigs grow out of his hide, showing how agitated he is. "I AM GROOT!" He shouts, building a wooden shield to protect himself against the shots.

"Fire." The man inside the watchtower says. On his command, all the drones start to shoot at him. The shots reflect off of him or miss completely, making me duck down to avoid getting shot.

The guard right on my tail had the same idea. I decide it's now or never so I pop up and sprint towards the watchtower doors. I round the corner and I'm face-to-face with the end of a gun.

"Put your hands up and retreat back to your cell!"

I slowly put my hands up, acting like I'm about to turn and leave, then snap my leg around in a kick to send the gun flying. I then immediately launch myself onto the man and use my fangs to tear out his throat. His screams are drowned out by the blood filling up his mouth. His breathing is reduced to a torturous gurgling sound. I guess now I understand why I was top security.

After I had quickly taken down the first one, another had run up with a tasing stick, swinging and missing me. I throw a hard punch at his face, disorienting him for long enough for me to kick him down onto the ground. I rip the stick out of his hands and use it to tase him.

The next guard comes running at me with a shield while another stands behind him and tries to shoot at me. I use the railing next to me to jump off of and over the shield as I land in front of the guy with the gun. He shoots at me, but I dodge and it hits the other guard instead. I tase his thigh, making him drop down to his knees.

While he's there, I bring my knee up to his face and smash in his nose. He falls down, clutching his face. I continue past him, determined to create a path for the other people to get into the watch tower.

Jumping over the bleeding guard, I walk around the corner of the railing and head towards the closed doors.

Unfortunately, I don't have an arm band like the guards do, so I can't open the door.

I make sure to stand with back against the door to keep watch of any incoming guards. Around the corner, though, comes a drone, shooting at me.

It manages to clip my shoulder, making me yelp and dodge out of the way and onto the ground. It was about to shoot at me again, but Gamora had come up and threw a guard's shield at the flying machine. She knocks it out of the air, causing it to fall to the ground where it explodes.

"Thanks," I wince.

She stands above me, watching as I get up and clutch onto my injured shoulder.

"I don't need thanks." She walks away over to the railing to help Rocket up.

"Okay then..." I say to myself.