EDEN (Completed) (EDEN Series Book 1)

Chapter 15

The entryway can only fit one through at a time. A guard rushes in, his weapon aimed high. Mute snaps her fingers and his head twists with a loud, crunching sound. He drops to the floor, and I see Mute grinning and twitching with whimsical glee. Aroma rests her hands on Mute's shoulders and stares deep into her eyes.

"Mute, honey, come back to me. This is not you anymore, remember?" Mute's expression snaps back into reality. She nods, hesitantly, with her eyes staring at the floor.

"I guess it's time to get serious," Decoy says.

He touches the deceased guard, and a clone raises to his left. It's the spitting image of him, down to the articles of clothing. The clone picks up the gun and holds it the same way as the guard. Decoy pats it on the shoulder and steps back behind it.

The room chills as a flurry of sharp ice shards swirl around Snap, like cold bullets harder than steel. His arms encase in ice, as he holds his right hand out like a gun and the frozen shards all point forward. They spin at an incredible speed, ready to rip through the air and find their targets.

Sol hunches over, and wings emerge from her back. They look like angel wings, but they're made of pure fire. She lets out a faint groan, revealing a set of razor-like fangs, flames weaving between them and out of her mouth. Her hair ignites into a scorching red blaze that illuminates the dull room.

Aroma begins to dance; it resembles a dance a ballerina would spend years perfecting. A sweet, calming scent fills the room. Her body starts to deteriorate into a pink mist. The cloud travels to the air duct and seeps into the ventilation.

Gadget takes his game in his hand and closes his eyes. The game breaks apart, and wires slither down his torso and legs, reaching the ground. At least a dozen snake-like coils slide before him, all sparking at their tips with loud pops. Everyone looks so strong; they may even rival my own powers.

I walk out into the hall, the rest of them following behind me. The guards, eight or so, cock their rifles. Red lasers place themselves on our heads. I know there's more of them, probably closer to Sydney. These poor, unfortunate souls were chosen for a suicide mission. I can almost taste the fear radiating from them. It makes me feel stronger, in a way. I love it. I need more.

"I'm insulted, only eight of you?" I say, before letting out a wild outcry of cynical laughter. "If you wish to live, go now, and pray we don't catch up to you." The guards look around at each other, trying to decide the right choice in this situation. Three of them drop their guns and run in the opposite direction. My chains block their path, wrapping them all together. I push my hands together and hear their bones crunch as they yell with pain. It's such a beautiful sound. The chains dissolve and the guards fall to the ground, lifeless. "Oops, I guess I lied. Only five of you, now." I feel a hand on my shoulder.

"Did your friend know you were a murderer?" Snap asks, before examining my locket. I... I'm not a murderer, right? Don't they deserve this? I rub the necklace between my index finger and my thumb, once again. Lucy wouldn't want this, a murderous killing spree in her name. Who am I becoming? I just took people's lives. People who may have had a family, or children, or a best friend like Lucy was to me. I have to get out of here, but I don't have to kill, I don't want to kill anymore.

We all start to inch forward, slowly, as they start to move back. Their bodies are trembling so much; I don't know if they could hit their targets if they wanted to. One guard, wailing a valiant battle cry, runs forward and open fires. Mute holds her palms out, and the bullets ricochet off of an invisible barrier. I raise chains around his feet, binding him from head to toe, and pull him against the wall.

"Four," I announce.

They start to move back even faster now. Our pace, however, remains the same. One guard drops his gun and begins to shake, aggressively. He twitches and shakes as he falls to the ground. The slithering wires surface from different spots all over his body. They spark and slide their way back to Gadget's feet.

"Three."

The guard furthest from us starts choking. He drops his weapon and grabs his throat. As the other two turn their heads, distracted by their suffocating comrade, Snap shoots three ice shards into their legs, instantly freezing them up to their mouths, but leaving their noses uncovered.

"One."

The last guard falls over, passed out. A pink mist drains out of his mouth and nostrils. Aroma's body begins to materialize, still dancing like she's the star of a ballet. She curtsies in our direction and smiles.

"Zero," she announces.

Mute walks up to the soldiers frozen in ice and gets inches away from their shivering faces. She wraps her arms around her body and quivers, imitating them. Pointing at them, she holds her stomach pretending to laugh at their misfortune.

We turn the corner to see that one of the usually guarded exits is fortified behind a large steel door. A red light swirls above it, setting a panicked feeling throughout the hall. Of course, they'd have some precaution just in case all hell broke loose here, I guess this is it. Gadget steps forward and places his hands on the door.

"It seems to be some type of lockdown procedure. I'm afraid there are no electrical currents, rendering my ability obsolete," he confirms.

"So, what now?" Decoy asks.

"If I could somehow get ahold of Sydney's computer, I believe I could override the system, allowing for our escape through any exit. Although, I would imagine the security surrounding her office would be much greater than the number we just encountered."

"I'll handle them," Sol says. She turns to Snap, and he nods to her. She's looking for approval, but for what?

"That would be the most logical course of action," Gadget says. "The corridors are quite narrow; a grouping of enemies would be very susceptible to fire."

Sol leads the way, her movements jumping from wall to floor and vice-versa. She's almost too fast to keep track of just by looking. I'm glad she's on my side, she looks the most terrifying out of the group.

Nearing Sydney's office, we hear a stir of guards. One turn divides us, from them. Snap puts his arms out to push us back a couple of dozen feet from the hall holding Sydney's office and our ticket out of here.

Sol turns the corner and dashes forward with a bright flash of light. Mute steps forward and places her palms outstretched. She grounds her footing like she's ready to push forward. A burst of fire erupts from around the corner, almost knocking her off her feet. She falls to one knee, struggling to keep the barrier up. I spring into action, barely even thinking as I act, placing my own wall of chains to reinforce hers. I see what she's going through, now, the power of the flames is immense. There's no way these flames can be normal.

The force weakens, and we drop the shields. Mute, still kneeling, tries to catch her breath. I guess she has a limit that she's apparently close to reaching. Aroma helps her to her feet, and we turn the corner to find a trail of ashes, clumped together near Sol, who has returned to her normal, frail state. She drops to her knees, her palms pressed together, praying.

"Please Lord, guide these souls to your infinite kingdom. They've been cleansed in your name, Amen," she whispers.

I'm impressed by how all of their powers complement each other and how they move as one solid unit. It's like they're all inside each other's head, simultaneously. I could almost tell what they were feeling, too. Maybe I'm integrating into the group already.

"How can you all act so quickly, like you know what the others are about to do?" I ask.

"Training," Snap says, "they said it was to keep our skills sharp so we could do some good once we're out. It turns out, it was to keep their superhuman 'weapons' top-notch."

He scoffs and stares at the ground. Reality seems to be setting in on him. All that lies between us and the outside is one door, one person who holds the key to our futures. I can only imagine the rush of emotions they're feeling right now. Years of false promises and imprisonment, soon to be met with joyous freedom. We stand outside of the office, eagerly awaiting one of us to reach for the doorknob. It's time to end this.