Asylum *HF* Chapter 8
By collaborative
"Ok people, we're going into lockdown!" one man boomed authoritatively. "You will be escorted quietly to your rooms.... one way or another," he added, smiling with cruel anticipation.
Rage didn't know what would happen if Siren was able to shut down the generator. It was their hope that all systems would be shut down. They didn't know if there was a surplus of power in case of such an event. So, to be on the safe side, Rage decided their chances would be better if they could avoid being put in their rooms. How long before the generators were out? No way of knowing since that depended on Siren's progress. They had to buy time. The hell with it. Might as well start a fucking revolt.
"Hey, ASSHOLE. I have two words for you. It begins with an "F" and ends with a you!" Rage figured goading him was the best approach, or at least, the only one that came to mind.
His smile broadened. With an almost imperceptible movement, he motioned one of the enforcers to subdue her. The man behind her leaped forward and was met with a well-placed elbow to the gut, followed by a punch to the face that sent him sprawling backwards. Blood gushed from his newly broken nose. That was all that was needed to get everyone fighting back.
At that moment, Siren called out to her. The girl opened her thoughts and left them as such so Rage could watch her progression. She was momentarily lost in what she saw, until someone brought her attention back to her current situation. Blackfire had relieved one man of his "cattle prod" as they called them and stabbed another man in the chest with it. A man that was about to use his weapon on Rage.
"Do you have a death wish or something?" Blackfire asked incredulously.
"Siren's trying to shut down the generators. We should stick together until she does," Rage explained quickly. "I'm trying to monitor her progress."
Blackfire nodded and proceeded to kill another orderly. It wasn't looking good for them. Many of the "patients" were falling and more enforcements were arriving. Blackfire was lucky. The drugs she had last been given only seemed to make her groggy. They had begun to wear off since the injection had been nearly four hours ago. So, fighting was not as difficult as it could have been. Still, even she would soon have to submit to the fact that the numbers were too vastly against her.
She heard Rage's gasp and spared a second to glance her way. Her face was one of shock and fear. Whatever that was it couldn't be good. Blackfire didn't have time to inquire about the problem though, she had to keep fighting.
"NO!" Rage screamed. In the next instant, all lights went out. The room was now lit only by the fading red glow of sunset and the sharp electric blue of the enforcer’s wands. A powerful shudder ran through the floor beneath them. Blackfire felt the presence of her powers and it was evident everyone else did too. Within moments, the men that had been their captors turned into their fugitives. A handful of them managed to get out the door but the others were killed, as a myriad of powers were unleashed upon them.
"Rage...Char?! What happened?!" Rage looked stunned.
"She's...she's dead." She sounded as if she couldn't believe it. "She blew it up."
Blackfire didn't know what to say. There was a painful moment of silence for their lost friend.
"Come on. We have to get everyone out." Blackfire prodded quietly. Rage nodded. They responsibilities to the living. The dead would have to be mourned later.
By the time they got out to the hall, exit lights and dim reserve lights had come on. The doors no longer required the magnetic keys to be opened. More than likely the same would hold true for the patient's quarters.
"Let's split up. We can cover more ground that way," Blackfire suggested.
Rage nodded, forcing herself to forget what she had seen. She didn't want to rage. She wasn't sure how much help she would be to the others trying to escape. So she did her best to keep her anger in check. She proceeded determinedly down one direction of the hall, while Blackfire went the other way.
Blackfire soon came to her first opposition. Six men armed with some sort of energy gun. They were about to open fire on her when she used her power to melt their weapons, which were quickly tossed aside. Blackfire walked towards them looking very much like a great cat stalking it's prey. The men began to turn and run, but she erected a wall of black flames in their path. She also blocked the way behind her. She flexed her hands in anticipation of the fight. Having no other way out, the men attacked her. She didn't kill them immediately. Rather, she beat the shit out of them, and then killed them. And she enjoyed every moment of it.
She repealed the flames and continued on, in search of her next victims.
* * * * *
Marcus was still "staring " at the blank screen through the impenetrable darkness. A moment later, the battery stores went into effect, bringing back minimum power only. They now had lights and air circulation, but as far as the security of the compound was concerned, there was nothing. There was not even enough power to keep the magnetic doors sealed. All the security monitors were blank. He turned a cold gaze to the young man who was at the controls. "Divert power to the visual system. I don’t care how you do it, just do it quickly!" His tone of voice did not require a response, only an action. The technician hurried off to accomplish his new task. Behind him, his son said nothing, but it still seemed as if he were smiling. I will win. By GOD I will win! he thought to himself.
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As she and Siren had suspected, blowing both generators had left no power for the operation of even the simplest of security features, such as the doors. Siren getting herself killed in the process, though, had not been part of the plan. It looked like the only way, but that didn't mean that she had to like it. But that was a matter that would have to be dealt with at a later time. Now that the first part of the plan had succeeded, it was time to let certain other parties know what was going on. This was still no guarantee that they could get out alive. So, there was another plan to follow that would hopefully ensure their freedom. Well, let's get to it then!
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Siren awoke quickly, her powers of healing taking over as soon as the power had been interrupted. She could feel strength returning to her, though she hurt all over. It was dark where she was, but it wasn't black. There was a dim golden glow like firelight. It was then that she realized that she was buried under a mound of equipment that she was going to be unable to move. That was alright. If she couldn't move it, she'd just have to go under it. Using her shifting abilities, she turned into a mouse and easily made her way through the heap of scrapped metal, parts of which used to be the generator. She changed back when she found a clear spot near the wide open door.
Siren headed back towards the elevator. There was some power, probably surplus that had been stored up, but she didn't know if there'd be enough to operate the lifts. She was very pleased to find that those did work, which made her advancement much easier. She took it up to the second level, which was where the "patients" were housed. On her way up, she remembered the sudden way her connection with Char had been terminated. She took a deep breath, cleared her mind, and opened up her barrier. Char, are you there? There was a moment’s pause.
Siren!! You're alive!!............... What did you think you were doing, trying to give me a heart attack?!
Siren smiled a bit to herself. It had been a desperate move, but it had worked. It wouldn't do any good, you'd just come back, she quipped good-naturedly.
That's entirely beside the point! Scare me like that again and I 'd ...I'd...I’d just have to kill you!
Siren chuckled at that. Are we ready to get outta here?
Almost. Where are you?
At that moment, the elevator doors opened up on the second floor. Siren hadn't even bothered seeing if anyone was there as she stepped out. Thankfully, the only person she ran into was Char, literally.
"Well, I couldn't have done that any better if I’d tried." Siren stated, the relief evident in her tone. The two looked down the hall lined with doors, some of which were now opening as people were learning that the locks no longer worked. The rush to freedom had begun, though now they had to insure it.
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Mystikal half noticed the door opening. Her mind swam in and out of the realm of comprehension. The drugs they had her on not only shut her off telepathically but also inhibited her normal functions. She wasn’t sure how long she had been in this place. The days had melted, one into the other. She had been trying to hide the pills lately, and spitting them out when she could. It only helped a little. They still had the shots for when she was less than cooperative.
She peered around the corner of the door entry and looked up and down the hall. She noticed that as soon as she stepped out the door, she had a faint buzzing in her head. She realized that she had some telepathy, not anywhere near the power she normally had, but it was there nonetheless. She looked back at the room with a smirk. Heh, a Mysty proof room, she thought sardonically. She began to head down the darkened hallway cautiously.
As screwed as her perception was, she still had enough sense about her to know that she might meet opposition to her sudden freedom. She stayed close to the wall, trying to keep within the shadows that the half lights created. Ahead of her, she thought she saw movement. She stopped and waited. There was nothing, so she continued on. Now she knew she saw something. It was lurking like a predator in the shadows on the other side of the hall ahead of her. What was worse, it was moving towards her. She pressed herself as best she could against the wall, hoping that perhaps by some miracle, it did not see her. She cursed her silver hair for making her such a spottable target, but she didn't move.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _
Rage and Siren had known where Mysty was heading. They knew if they had informed her of the plan, she would buck and try to find a way out of it. So they chose to tell her at the last minute. This was assuming they got to her in time.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _
As she watched the thing’s steady progression, she couldn't help but think that there was something oddly familiar about it. It took a few moments for her brain to register that the figure moving towards her was a man, not a beast as the drugs would have her believe. In fact, it reminded her of...Loki? Try as she might, she couldn't remember if Jacob had been with them in their imprisonment, or not. She knew Char and Celeste had been, and she could barely pull up images of them through the haze of her mind.
The dark man stopped only feet from her, and she was almost sure it was him. "Jake?" she whispered uncertainly. The man shifted at the utterance of the name. She went to him cautiously, and was relieved to find that she had been right. She certainly felt safer with him than by herself. She grabbed his arm," Jake, come on, we have to go,” she said softly. He didn't move. She pulled on his arm, but it was like trying to move stone. "Jake? Jake come on, we have to get outta here!" What's wrong with him? Still he didn't move, and Mysty was getting very nervous. He turned his head away from her. "Jacob, what the hell's the matter with you? We have to go! Jacob?!"
In the next instant, Mysty found herself in Loki's tight grasp. She looked into his eyes, and there was something there that scared her. Insanity, maybe, the thought popped into her head. Roughly, he pulled her as close as possible and bent his head forward. The kiss he gave her was rough, forceful, though not necessarily unfeeling. Then, as if he were disgusted with her, he pushed her to the floor and turned away. "Loki! What the hell?!" she exclaimed as she came to a half kneeling position. When she looked up, she was facing the barrel of a gun he had stolen. This is a really bad dream, that's all it is. He wouldn't kill me...would he? A slight grin crossed his face.
"Goodbye, my love." he said in a nonchalant tone. For a moment, the shock was evident on her face. The gun went off, the sound of the shot resounding through the halls. Mysty's body was thrown backwards by the force. Gore from the wound was splattered on the nearby wall. She fell still, her silver hair stained by the blood that was fast forming a puddle beneath her. The man named Loki walked through the mess with disregard, eager to make his own escape. Alone.