R I L E Y

Doing my best to keep my face clean of shock, I tore my eyes off of the missile and onto the people readying it. They wore the same colors I wore: black and gold. Imperium's colors. However, they weren't dressed like the soldiers and they weren't carrying any visible guns.

I wondered what their stories were. Had they been forced into this, or had they joined the ranks for themselves? Surely a few of Imperium's allies had been threatened or blackmailed into working for them, but the majority of the soldiers here seemed to revel in the darkness that was so present here. Some people in this world were pure evil. Most of them dwelled within this fortress.

Then, so softly that none of the others in the room could hear, I whispered, "They have missiles."

I could hear Delphinium and the rest of the crew's loud reactions on the other end, but the other soldiers beckoned me closer, wanting my help unloading the trolley we'd come in with. I stepped forward as gracefully as I could, picking up the packages and handing them off to the engineers. With every move I made, I felt as if I was somehow doing it wrong, like they'd catch me simply because I wasn't acting like a soldier would. But I was being too anxious, I told myself. There was nothing to worry about if I didn't get caught.

Delphinium must have heard a part of the clipped conversation between the other soldiers and engineers. "They're talking about the fuel for the rockets." I glanced down at the metal package in my hand. Of course, I didn't have a clue what rocket fuel looked like, but this certainly didn't look like it. She then told me to ask a question in Russian that I—yet again—did not understand a single word of. The engineer closest to me gave me a strange look but answered.

"I had you ask what kind of fuel that is—the stuff you're transporting, apparently. He said that it's a new power source they get shipped in from an unknown maker. It powers many of their weapons now, along with fueling the central power source of the entire place." In the middle of her explanation, I nodded my head at the engineer, showing that I understood him.

Relief washed over me when the last round of fuel was handed over. This was what they were here for. Now that the task was done, they'd go back to the surface. At the thought of being back aboveground, I began to panic when I realized that I would need to eventually break away from the group undetected. But I would deal with that when it happened. For now, I would focus on not dying.

I followed them to the elevator and waited behind the group when the doors didn't immediately open. But they never opened. I could sense the other soldiers' agitation and restlessness as the time prolonged, but still the doors did not open.

After a quick discussion, the group peeled away and began walking toward a side exit—the only other exit in the entire room. "They think the elevator is broken or under maintenance," Delphinium translated. "They're going to take the long way up."

I wasn't sure whether to rejoice or hold back my fear. Yes, we were still going up to the surface, but it would take a trek through the entire fortress to get there. The more time I spent here, the more at risk I was to be found out.

Having no other choice, I followed behind the soldiers, still holding my gun. I'd only fired one in my entire life, but I wished I could put a bullet in every soldier here. I was dangerously close to simply forgetting all my common sense and opening fire on this wicked place.

For a while, we simply walked through tight corridors full of Imperium soldiers heading off to do dark deeds that I doubted I wanted to know more about. No one in our group spoke. On the other end of the earpiece, Delphinium was silent, though I could hear sparse conversation between my teammates in the background. It was a miracle any of them were even still speaking to each other after what happened.

We could have been down there navigating through hallways for days and I wouldn't have even been able to tell. It was strange how time and reality seemed to be altered here. Maybe being in the presence of such unspeakable evil did that to you.

Then the cold underground hallways gave way to white walls and tile floors, almost like some sort of twisted hospital. The people walking through the hallways and entering side rooms wore the white coats of doctors. I supposed that it would make sense to have doctors here; their injured agents would need fast care to resume their conquests.

As we passed by room after room, I caught glances inside the white rooms. Some sharp, pointy medical equipment hung on walls and laid on platters, making me wonder if this was a hospital or a horrific torture ward.

The medical ward seemed to end as we walked on and there were no more doctors roaming the halls. Up in front of us was clear now and the group sped up in the absence of hallway foot traffic.

I kept my eyes forward, carefully watching the soldiers in front of me. The fear hadn't left my system, but I was becoming more accustomed to the dark stares and multitudinous weaponry. Shooting a look over my shoulder, I saw that no one walked behind us. If I wanted to, I could kill the four people before me and sneak off.

I didn't have time to pursue the idea because another doorway laid before us. But this one was different. Not in the way it looked—although it was larger and double-doored—as opposed to the single doors of the hospital rooms. No, I was getting an eerie, uncomfortable feeling from that place. A shiver went down my spine as we neared.

The door being open a crack, I peered in for as long as I could without arousing suspicion. What was inside made me frown despite the growing lump of dread in the pit of my stomach.

It was completely white inside, not a speck of color in sight. It was much larger of a space than I'd expected, but completely devoid of any furniture besides a strange machine in the middle of the room. A series of pointed needle-like spikes shone off of it, a seat fashioned in the middle. It seemed to be incomplete, but whatever it was, it gave me an irrational wave of fear.

What was this room? And what was that machine? Perhaps Delphinium had an idea, but something inside me hoped that she didn't.

Tearing myself away from that place, I took a few faster steps to catch up to the other soldiers. They'd begun to converse again and Delphinium listened to what they were saying. "They're talking about the engine room," she said. "The Romanian fortress had—has—one, but I wasn't sure what powered this one. From what I'm guessing, they're very similar." She paused for a moment. "Make a note of your location inside the building and be prepared to tell me exactly where you were when you come back up."

I glanced down a high-ceilinged hallway to my right and heard that the loud humming noise I'd been hearing was coming from down there. The engine room. Here, several scientist-looking people walked in and out, transporting the same metal containers that we'd delivered to the lab downstairs. That meant the same fuel that used to power their weapons was also a power source for the entire fortress.

We'd been walking for long enough to have been at least halfway up. The engine room seemed to be in the very center of the fortress, with the labs and most likely prison cells and things of that nature down deeper. From what I'd seen when we'd first entered, there were weapons being produced and soldiers being given orders upstairs. And of course, there were hundreds of other things going on here that I didn't know about. I wasn't sure if it was better that way or not.

The soldiers continued to speak as we walked up many flights of stairs. I only hoped Delphinium could hear them. She gave no indication that she did.

My legs ached and my chest was heaving, but there was no end in sight. I cursed the broken elevator, the never-ending stairway, the entire fortress. If I was risking my life down here, couldn't I at least do it semi-comfortably?

Finally, we reached the top. I had to slow my breathing to cover the fact that I was winded. None of the other soldiers even seemed fazed, despite the fact that we'd climbed over fifteen stories. It was yet another attribute of theirs that made them seem inhuman. What had their masters put them through to make them so obedient and conditioned?

As we made our way into an open area up ahead, I recognized the front hallway by its many soldiers, impossibly high ceilings and whirring machinery. Natural light shone ahead from the massive front doorway, the iron door itself raised into the ceiling. I'd been down there long enough for the night to turn to day in my absence.

Our group marched toward the exit. Freedom was so close. I had to force myself to walk at a normal pace and not run out of this horrible place.

As we walked through the open doorway, I looked up. The iron door was sheathed inside the wall above us. I didn't like standing under it, like it could come crashing down at any moment. It was basically a guillotine.

I heard Delphinium and the crew talking over the earpiece but I was too relieved to listen. As I found myself in the fresh, open outdoors again, I let out a breath that I hadn't known I'd been holding. My relief increased tenfold as the soldiers made a beeline for the truck they'd arrived in. I knew they planned to load in the empty trolley and leave. Somehow, I would have to slip away unnoticed...

They all circled the truck and opened the back. There was my chance. No one was looking at me and the front door was far enough away that none of the others would catch me slipping off either.

The thick forest enveloped me as soon as I stepped in. The trees were so closely placed that I walked a few yards ahead and turned around. The fortress could barely be seen even though it was right there. Even if they did come after me, I still held a gun of theirs. Now would be a wonderful time to practice shooting targets. For the first time since I'd gone in there, I felt safe. Well, safer.

Stepping over the slightly raised mound where the real Imperium soldier had been, I began to make my way back to my team. I wasn't sure exactly where they were, but the worst part was over. I'd gotten out alive, and that alone had been a miracle.