HAWK

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN: INCOGNITO (1/5)

Kas passed two other soldiers on her way back to the shuttle but they were immersed in conversation and paid her no attention. She was just grateful there were no panthers. She walked at a brisk pace while Astrid drifted ahead of her like a fairy guiding the way. They were nearly at the shuttle when Kas swore under her breath.

'What is it?' Astrid asked.

'I forgot the nightstriker.'

'It doesn't matter; weapons aren't allowed in the BMR lab.'

'BMR?'

'Bio-mech research. That's where Worm is.'

The shuttle doors slid open as Kas and Astrid approached and they went inside.

'What's Worm doing in BMR?' Kas asked as the doors closed and the shuttle began its journey.

'Swanne has been forcing her to work on the X1 you arrived with. She is downloading its data into Eidol's archives which are located in BMR.'

'Does that mean Hik's still alive?'

'Hik?'

'The X1.'

'From what I can tell, Hik's computer has been heated to extremely high temperatures and has shut down. While he's no longer active, Swanne is using Worm to try and access the data stored on him.'

Kas was shaking her head. She couldn't believe Swanne would go to so much trouble simply to get Sae-quin Lor's private bio-mech research.

'Alright. So what's our plan to get Worm? Am I going to need to fight?'

'Hopefully not. I think there's a way we can get into BMR and rescue Worm unnoticed.'

'Why does that sound too easy?'

The shuttle slowed to a stop. 'We've arrived.'

Kas glanced at her HUD and triple checked her veil was active. She drew a deep breath as she prepared herself. The shuttle doors opened.

Level nine was the lowest and smallest level on Eidol, and as such the corridor was more scaled down than the ones Kas had previously seen. It also seemed much busier. Without taking a single step outside, Kas could already see half a dozen people in identical blue and black research suits weaving in and out of each other's paths. Some sped by in a hurry while others ambled along staring down at slimline terminals clutched in their hands. There was a buzz in the air that made time flow faster and raised Kas's already fast heart rate another notch.

'This way,' Astrid said as she fluttered out of the shuttle.

Kas exited as calmly and confidently as though she'd been there a hundred times before. She turned left and entered the small circular corridor feeling like a fish swimming against a current of sharks. There were upwards of fifty scientists roaming the corridor that she could see, some walking in pairs but most of them on their own. Kas had to step aside for a couple of workers pushing two large black anti-gravity trolleys her way.

'How far is this place?' Kas whispered.

'Not far. At your current speed, you will be there in just over a minute.'

Kas picked up her pace as Astrid led her around the tunnel. After thirty seconds, she saw they were heading towards an archway with a sign above it reading:

BMR: RESTRICTED ACCESS

Two soldiers were stationed on either side of the arch, each holding large rifles that Kas didn't recognise.

'Uh, Astrid?'

'You'll be fine, don't stop.'

'What weapons have they got?'

'Prototype energy rifles. Very powerful.'

Great...

The further she walked, the more she realised nobody else was going in or out of the archway. In fact, everyone passing by it seemed to be giving it an unusually wide berth. Kas figured the two soldiers might have something to do with that. She held her breath as she headed straight towards it and saw a band of thin blue light following the underside of the arch. The soldier on the right turned his head towards her as she approached.

'What am I doing, Astrid?' Kas asked in a sing-song voice.

'Just keep walking.'

Kas raised her chin to encourage some self-confidence. She arrived directly in front of the archway and saw the soldier on the left nod to her. She nodded back but didn't stop. She passed straight under the archway and heard a soft bling sound as the thin band of blue light turned green. She kept going, not daring to turn her head to see if the two soldiers were still watching her in her peripherals.

Astrid continued directly ahead as the archway became a short straight tunnel, at the end of which was a rounded door cut down the middle with 'BMR' printed in large letters on the front. Once Kas was halfway, the surrounding walls sprayed a clear mist that Kas had no choice but to walk through.

'What's that?' she asked.

'It's a disinfection spray,' Astrid replied. 'The BMR lab is a highly sterile facility.'

Kas had barely taken five steps before the mist disappeared entirely, leaving no trace. Astrid stopped just in front of the hatch and hovered above a silver square on the floor.

'Stand here.'

Kas stepped onto the square and it immediately turned blue. The hatch hissed as the doors slid open, revealing a small white room measuring ten-feet each way with another set of doors on the other side.

'Go inside,' Astrid prompted. Kas went inside and heard the doors slide shut behind her. 'Stand with your arms and legs apart.'

Kas widened her stance and held her arms out like a child pretending to be a spaceship. She felt like an idiot.

'What are we doing?' she asked.

'Getting you suited up.'

The air began to fill with white smoke. Kas watched a green laser scan its way up her body from her toes to the top of her head. She briefly wondered if it might be checking her identity or searching her for weapons, but when the laser vanished and the smoke cleared seconds later, she was intrigued to find herself fully encased inside a white containment suit. The smoke was apparently some kind of vaporised fabric. The green laser had presumably followed the contours of her body and 3D fabricated the suit around her using the smoke as its foundation. Kas looked at her hands and spread her fingers. The laser hadn't been able to create gloves, but the fabric covering them was elasticated so that her fingers appeared webbed. The most impressive part, Kas thought, was the clear round window in her headpiece.

'The suit will keep you and the lab uncontaminated from one another while serving as a disguise,' Astrid explained. 'When the door opens, follow me to the back of the room.'

'No problem.'

The doors in front of her hissed open and Astrid fluttered out. Kas was about to follow her when she froze.

What the...