All Hail the Shifter King
Title: Escape
Word Count: 614
Crossposted here at runaway_tales
By the time she reached the mess hall, skidding to a halt in the metal corridor with her heart in her throat and her ears singing from the incessant alarm, the distant gunfire wasn't quite so distant anymore. Blinking muzzle flashes punctuated the darkness beyond the tall windows, and the voices of the security teams were a chorus of frantic, desperate yelling as they circled around the perimeter of the base. Biting her bottom lip, Katrina tightened the straps on her backpack and dodged into the room, keeping tight to the wall and the deepest of the shadows as she made her way into the kitchen. After wasting several crucial minutes trying to find her way in the pitch black room, she managed to secure several of the survival meal kits the staff sent out with the field crews, and stuffed the compact bricks into the cross-body bag she'd awkwardly slung on around her backpack. A few bottles of water later and she jogged back into the hallway, the weight an uncomfortable tug on her shoulder.
The only thing left to get, at this point, was a vehicle. She knew where the Jeeps were parked, but had no idea where the keys were kept. Ducking into the recessed doorway of the library, she dug her cell phone out of her pocket and checked it again. Nothing. Gavin hadn't returned her call or responded to any of her messages, and her stomach fluttered nervously as more gunshots sounded over the wailing alarm. She couldn't bring herself to leave without him, but it was obvious from the noise outside that the base security was highly compromised and it wouldn't be long before the things made their way inside. Frustrated, she stared down the hallway toward the dormitories, trying to will him to appear while mentally running through her options. If she went to find him, she'd lose even more time and might not -
"Kat!"
Rebekah grabbed her arm before Katrina could even register the sound of her name, and with a shriek she jerked back and away, tumbling through the half-open door to the library floor and backpedaling until she collided with one of the large tables. When she finally recognized the thin blonde, her mouth fell open.
"Becca?" she asked, stunned. "What are you -"
"Come on, we have to go," Rebekah said, her voice drowned out by the klaxon, darting into the room and grabbing Katrina by the arm again in a bid to haul her to her feet. She succeeded, with a bit of struggle and cursing on Katrina's part as she fought against the uncomfortable weight of her backpack, and immediately pulled her into the hallway. "Eli's outside, we have to -"
"Wait, wait!" Katrina pleaded, tripping over her own feet as she tried to keep up with the young woman. "Becca, no, Gavin's still here, I can't -"
"He's with Eli." Rebekah hesitated at one of the wide intersections in the hallway and peered hesitantly around the corner, her fingers clenching Katrina's wrist in a death grip. "They're just waiting for us." Satisfied the hallway was clear, she tugged Katrina into the hallway after her. "We need to get you out of here before the caseiya find you."
"Whoa, hold up." Katrina planted her feet to bring herself to a halt, nearly toppling the other girl in the process. "What do you mean, find me?"
"Not you specifically. All of you, everyone in this facility." Rebekah nervously checked the hallway again, her dark eyes flicking to every doorway, to the dark windows. "This isn't like the attacks before. This is punishment, it's retribution. Nobody is going to survive this."
Word Count: 614
Crossposted here at runaway_tales
By the time she reached the mess hall, skidding to a halt in the metal corridor with her heart in her throat and her ears singing from the incessant alarm, the distant gunfire wasn't quite so distant anymore. Blinking muzzle flashes punctuated the darkness beyond the tall windows, and the voices of the security teams were a chorus of frantic, desperate yelling as they circled around the perimeter of the base. Biting her bottom lip, Katrina tightened the straps on her backpack and dodged into the room, keeping tight to the wall and the deepest of the shadows as she made her way into the kitchen. After wasting several crucial minutes trying to find her way in the pitch black room, she managed to secure several of the survival meal kits the staff sent out with the field crews, and stuffed the compact bricks into the cross-body bag she'd awkwardly slung on around her backpack. A few bottles of water later and she jogged back into the hallway, the weight an uncomfortable tug on her shoulder.
The only thing left to get, at this point, was a vehicle. She knew where the Jeeps were parked, but had no idea where the keys were kept. Ducking into the recessed doorway of the library, she dug her cell phone out of her pocket and checked it again. Nothing. Gavin hadn't returned her call or responded to any of her messages, and her stomach fluttered nervously as more gunshots sounded over the wailing alarm. She couldn't bring herself to leave without him, but it was obvious from the noise outside that the base security was highly compromised and it wouldn't be long before the things made their way inside. Frustrated, she stared down the hallway toward the dormitories, trying to will him to appear while mentally running through her options. If she went to find him, she'd lose even more time and might not -
"Kat!"
Rebekah grabbed her arm before Katrina could even register the sound of her name, and with a shriek she jerked back and away, tumbling through the half-open door to the library floor and backpedaling until she collided with one of the large tables. When she finally recognized the thin blonde, her mouth fell open.
"Becca?" she asked, stunned. "What are you -"
"Come on, we have to go," Rebekah said, her voice drowned out by the klaxon, darting into the room and grabbing Katrina by the arm again in a bid to haul her to her feet. She succeeded, with a bit of struggle and cursing on Katrina's part as she fought against the uncomfortable weight of her backpack, and immediately pulled her into the hallway. "Eli's outside, we have to -"
"Wait, wait!" Katrina pleaded, tripping over her own feet as she tried to keep up with the young woman. "Becca, no, Gavin's still here, I can't -"
"He's with Eli." Rebekah hesitated at one of the wide intersections in the hallway and peered hesitantly around the corner, her fingers clenching Katrina's wrist in a death grip. "They're just waiting for us." Satisfied the hallway was clear, she tugged Katrina into the hallway after her. "We need to get you out of here before the caseiya find you."
"Whoa, hold up." Katrina planted her feet to bring herself to a halt, nearly toppling the other girl in the process. "What do you mean, find me?"
"Not you specifically. All of you, everyone in this facility." Rebekah nervously checked the hallway again, her dark eyes flicking to every doorway, to the dark windows. "This isn't like the attacks before. This is punishment, it's retribution. Nobody is going to survive this."