Binary Abyss

Three

It did not take long for the group to jump into action. Jack and Ethan found a shelf and pushed it over to where Mark stood, his back pressed against the door the two Alters were attempting to break down. AJ stood by, in case he needed to help. They got the shelf in place, and AJ muttered the one word they all were thinking; "Hide."

The four scramble, all heading to different sides of the room. Mark slid underneath one of the several shelves. He pushed himself all the way to the other side, pressing his back against the wall-- and that's when a loud THUD echoed throughout the storage room, quickly followed by the clattering of metal poles and thuds of boxes. There was an awful screeching sound as the fallen barricade was pushed out of the way.

"Really? You make us almost as powerful as a god, and expect a single shelf to stop us?" Dark's growl echoed throughout the room. "Pathetic."

"We havE No tIMe fOR THis," Anti snaps, his voice warping with each spoken syllable. "FInd at lEASt him, ANd we'LL bE gOOd."

"Calm down, Anti, forcing this will only--" Dark's interrupted by the sounds of boxes falling to the ground.

"YeaH, yEAh. WHateVEr," Anti grumbles.

Mark couldn't help but notice how much closer Anti sounded. He swallowed as the uneven footsteps approached. He pushed himself further back into the shadows, hoping for at least some cover. Mark barely made out a muffled shuffling to his left; his head whipped in that direction, and much to his relief, he saw Jack pushing himself further into a corner.

Mark jumped as a box fell from one of the shelves to the floor right in front of him. He heard Anti humming to himself as the Alter pushed the larger items off the shelf, avoiding the smaller ones altogether. He shivered when he realized that Anti was having fun.

Suddenly there was a pause, a long, uncomfortable one. Even Anti had stopped humming whatever unrhythmic tune he had in mind. Then, he was laughing, "WHAt if..." and the shelf hiding Mark from Anti began to to shuffle away. It would move a few inches then stop, and Mark had no idea what to do, then it would move a few more inches away. Anti was playing with him, and Mark didn't even know if Anti was aware he was back there, but the Alter just seemed to be throwing spite everywhere. Mark stood and slowly moved with the shelf, staying close to the wall, but hugging the small corner that was furthest from the opening Anti was creating. A black show appeared from behind it, and a green-tinted hand suddenly latched onto the metal pole. Mark slowly added his weight against the shelf, ready to shove it down to give himself an opportunity to run--

"HEY--"

"You won't--"

The shelf stopped moving as Anti's attention was turned to the commotion on the opposite side of the room. Mark watched as Anti's hand and foot disappeared, and he slowly let out a breath he'd been holding since Anti had gotten way too close for comfort.

Despite all instincts screaming at him to run over and see who was struggling against both Alters; to go help whichever friend was in danger-- he stayed put. Mark knew he could have been of no help. Literally, one hit to his swollen jaw and he'd probably go down. The best he could do was spare whoever was in danger the peace of mind, knowing that Mark didn't get caught trying to play hero. So, he settled for watching Jack, who had slowly stood from his hiding spot and was watching whatever was happening.

The commotion ended, and Mark could hear Dark groan and Anti laughing.

"WEll, wE ACtuallY NEEd hIM," Anti was saying, "TAke hiM ANd at LEAst mAke sOME PRogress."

"True," Dark agrees. "Let's go. We'll come back for these three later."

Within a few minutes, the door slammed shut again, and silence fell upon the room. Slowly, Mark and Jack left their cover, and Mark watched as AJ walked towards the two. Mark then knew not to expect Ethan to come back from his.

"What the hell do we do know?" Jack mutters.