The Last Elementalist

Chapter 20

Tears streaked her face as she ran straight into a person who was running in the opposite direction. She knew better then to hope that she had run into her friends, but a man's voice asked, "Cassidy?"

Strong arms squeezed her body, but she slipped through his muscular grip and threw her knee as hard as possible into his stomach. She didn't have time to worry about how he knew Cassidy for she was running down the hall, ducking into a room in the dead end corridor.

As her eyes adjusted, she spotted the shine of a mirror and she crawled toward it. Glassy, lifeless eyes stared back at her and she scrambled backward, bursting through the door behind her. After slamming into a wall in the narrow corridor, she dashed through a maze, praying for anyone to help her.

The back of a boy with a hood met her face and she fell over. He helped her up and her eyes widened.

"What are you doing here, Eves?" Connor asked as his fearful eyes met hers. "Where is Layla?"

She bit the inside of her cheek to keep from sobbing and shook her head. "Shot. Twice."

He turned his head back to the wall he stood in front of and then back at her. "Callie told me Finn teleported right into a bullet, but it only took a bit of his ear because he's short."

She nodded and pointed at the wall. "She's in there?"

"Seeing what she can hear." He stepped to the side to give her a view of the small vent that lay embedded in the wall behind him. "Convenient."

A dusty arm covered in a jean jacket emerged from the vent, followed by a just as dusty body. "They're locking the place down," Callie panted factually.

"Oh, ya, uh, forgot to tell you," she laughed nervously.

They ran to The Pit, but everyone sat in neat lines in row after row of chairs. Evie backed away slowly while the Travises turned into flies and zipped away. A gruff voice asked where she was going and seated her in a nearby chair toward the back.

A young girl with a serpent tattoo marked onto her wrist brushed her hand. Evie nearly lost it as she saw her friend that had been sent down there before anyone else sitting in the seat behind her. She smiled and turned to stare at her stony, serious face, expression unwavering. She exchanged a short nod and acted as if nothing ever happened.

"Agents," the man who had called her Cassidy began. "Intruders have entered our base, Thunderthriller intruders to be precise, and we must all keep an eye out for them. Everyone in this room will be searched for their symbol of the serpent and for any signs of association with a Thunderthriller. If you are guilty, you have the option to turn yourself in now and suffer a lesser punishment. Any violation of our rule about association with an enemy will lead to suffering beyond your imagination, or, depending on what you were doing with being in contact, death."

Each individual lined up before an Agent and held out their wrist to be examined. Evie began to sweat from nerves and Bri whispered in her ear, "Get it together. What are you even doing here? Think I couldn't handle things?"

Shaking her head, Evie hissed back, "We got a hint to a side entrance and came in to see if we can find out their plans for the upcoming battle, but we didn't know how to contact you. Next time we can use Morse code or something."

Bri scowled, but remained silent, fortunate for them, as they passed by Agents bearing guns and walkies, only a clue away from turning them in. Minutes ticked by, but each felt as if an hour had passed. Evie used this time to improve her heart rate and think of some excuse for not being marked. Worst comes to worst, she thought, I'll let them run right through me.

"Arm, miss," the Agent asked the girl two spots in front of her.

In no time, it was her turn. "Arm, miss," he asked, and she made a show of rolling up her sleeve, talking in the process in hope of distracting him. He did not move so she hung her head and showed her wrist.

"I just got here this morning, I haven't been marked yet."

"Really," he asked. "Because I was marked upon arrival after proving my loyalty which only took minutes actually."

"Really, sir. I swear they were going to, but they must have gotten distracted with the intruders and everything."

He scowled and whispered to the Agent next to her. She spoke into her walkie and shook her head. "My friend here says that there were no new arrivals today-"

"Ya, that's because I was a special case, I'm a special type of Agent and they didn't want it getting out-"

"She just asked the general," he argued.

"Really? 'Cause the Lieutenant checked me in."

"Oh, really? Well in that case... INTRUDER!" he shouted.

People rushed at her from all directions and she panicked. Her panic triggered just the thing she needed and she became as difficult to touch as a gas. Agents ran into each other and before she knew it, an ear splitting whistle sounded and the room around her froze. Lielle, Connor, Cassidy and the twins dropped down next to her and they engaged in battle.

Fists and feet flew through the tight space as they fought for freedom. They headed for Callie's vent firing guns behind them, but one blast of ice from Lielle caused chaos to break out.

"It's her," yelled the voice that had mistaken her for another girl, either his daughter or colleague she assumed.

Everyone attacked at once. Their group continued to run, Connor screamed in agony next to her, but kept going, turning into wild birds to confuse them. Lielle started using everything she'd got, but it was not enough, for Evie saw her arm twisted around at a painful angle through her peripheral vision. She turned back to get her, but was propelled forward by the flow of the Agents against the few Thrillers. She could only hope that Lielle was still behind them.

* * * * *

Agents stopped chasing them once they entered the vents, but that did not stop them from going as fast as humanly possible. Evie definitely thought it was odd that they had stopped, possibly been called off, and it was no doubt extremely sketchy indeed. Connor whimpered behind her, pushing through whatever pain he was in, until they finally emerged in a sewer over the vents, then into the bright moonlight.
Adrenaline kept them going for miles, until Cassidy assured them that they were not being followed or tracked and had surely put enough distance between Callahan Agencies and themselves.

"Where-where is Lielle and Layla?" Finn panted.

Evie hung her head and spoke after a minute. "We lost a talented Thunderthriller today. She was the best fake sister and real cousin for the short time I knew her as one." She pulled out bottles of water from her bag and passed them around. "We will miss Layla."

Everyone paid their respects with a moment of silence, then Finn asked once more, "Where is Lielle?"

Cassidy stared wide eyed at the ground. "I saw someone knock her out as we were climbing into the vent. She's not dead, they wouldn't kill her. They need her as much as us. I know she's vital, I just couldn't go back, not once we escaped so narrowly," she explained shamefully.

Connor scowled and turned away his tear-filled eyes, wincing and cradling his arm. His hand was bent at an odd angle and bleeding in multiple places which Cassidy seemed to realize too.

"Connor, you need medical attention," Cassidy worried.

He looked back harshly and reprimanded, "We all do."

"Connor, that looks serious," she argued. "We should get you home."

She watched his face for any sign of giving in, but none came. All she saw was how much he seemed to have aged in the past few days.

"Connor," Evie said softly. "I think Cassidy is right."

He turned away his banged up and bleeding face and tramped down the street, flipping on his watch as he walked.

Cassidy watched him turn the corner before saying, "And then there were four."