Falling Through Portals

Ten Roses and Eleven Rivers

Chapter 107

They didn't even make it to the elevator before the alarm started going off.

As the doors slid shut a voice came on through speakers in the ceiling reporting escaped prisoners.

Rose grabbed her husband's hand as the elevator started its decent. They were cutting it close. She glanced at Jack who was weighed down by the white haired girl. The girl would slow them down but there was no way Rose was leaving her here.

Everyone was silent, as if their silence would disguise them from those outside the elevator shaft. They made it to the tenth floor before the elevator came to a sudden stop.

Panic raced through her as she leaned over to hit the buttons on the side. But nothing happened.

"They must have stopped the elevators," her Doctor said, pressing a hand against the cold metal.

Rose swallowed hard and pulled out her sonic. Scanning the edges of the doors she was able to unlock them. The doors slid to the sides and they dashed out.

"Hurry," Rose whispered, heading towards their nearest escape route, the stairwell.

By some miracle the halls were empty, but she could hear the echoing conversations of people close by. Rose was the first to the door and began rushing people inside. Her Doctor and the other man raced down first followed by Jack.

"Stairs?" Jack said a bit breathlessly, "You have got to be kidding me."

"Down we go Captain," Rose said before shoving him inside.

She was just about to softly close the door behind her when a man down the hall spotted her.

"HEY YOU! STOP!" he commanded as he sprinted towards her.

Rose slammed the door shut and soniced it closed before racing down the first flight of stairs.

"Guys you better run!" Rose yelled.

The stairwell echoed with the pounding of their feet as they descended. Her mind raced as she urged her feet not to miss any stairs. She imagined a single misplacement ending in her tumbling down the stairs at break-neck speed.

"How tall is this building?" her husband yelled breathlessly.

Rose grimaced as she spotted the door on the next landing that was labeled "7." Seven more flights to go. She glanced down at Jack. His face was beet red as he did his best not to send himself and the girl tumbling down the stairs.

There was a loud crash as the door they had come from was busted open. Shouting and more footsteps echoed down to them.

There was no way they were going to make it.

The other guy in the bow tie must have realized this too because as soon as he got to the next landing he threw open the door to the 5th floor and hurried the others inside. Rose raced past him and he shut the door as quietly as he could. Rose soniced it so that it locked before following the guy down a deserted hall. There were doors on either side of the hall of what looked like offices. The hall was unusually loud with a humming that was unfamiliar. About halfway down the hall the guy in the bow tie chose a room and ushered everyone inside.

Rose heard a gasp before she entered the room.

She rounded the corner and realized that it wasn't an office at all.

There was a four foot cat walk pressed against the hall that they had come from. The railing looked out across a huge maze of machinery and scientific equipment. The humming noise was much louder in here and the whole chamber was washed in a bluish light.