Game Of Saviors - ONC 2021

Chapter 14 - Overboard

It's nearly 1 AM. As Norae nervously gazes at the digital clock every few minutes, she finds herself calculating how many hours they have left. We leave at first light.

The sun will rise in approximately 5 hours, and they will be shipped away to some unknown place. Leaving any chance of escape behind. God, I hope Nash knows what he's doing.

At that moment, a soft knock sounds upon the surface of her door. Springing from her seat on the bed, Norae flies to the door and yanks it open. She is faced with her entire unit, crowding anxiously in the hallway.

As Norae steps aside, Nash hurriedly leads them into the room.

"Alright, what the hell is going on, you guys?" Mikayla asks, the first the speak up as always.

Raising his index finger to his lips, Nash's eyes shoot restlessly across the hallway as he closes the door. "We need to stay quiet. Any guard or initiate alerted could mean the end for us." Nash whispers.

Instantly frightened, every voice in the room is silenced for a moment. Until Shane finally replies in a hushed tone. "Did something happen?"

Returning to her seat on the bed, Norae sighs deeply. "We used the keycard."

"Without us?" Mikayla responds, appearing mildly insulted, something Norae choses to ignore.

"What keycard?" Mateo cues in.

"Last night I stole Lt. Brass's keycard. I've been looking for a way to escape this place." Norae explains to the final initiate not yet in on the scheme. "And with good reason, as it turns out."

"Dr. Carvel has been lying to us." Nash jumps in. "We read her personal notes, which heavily implied that the whole story about the war is a hoax."

"She also spoke of a phase 2 of Project Soteria, and taking us all to a place called Fortunata." Norae adds.

"So that's the move the guards were talking about..." Mikayla concludes, her voice now soft. It appears the fear underneath all her anger has finally come to the surface.

"We overheard Dr. Carvel talk to the lieutenant. They're planning to move at first light. Today." Nash announces further. "Which means we have less than 5 hours to make our escape."

"How in God's name do you suggest we do that?" Shane replies.

"Norae isn't the only one who has been investigating this place." Nash reveals. "I've done a lot of exploring of my own, and a few days ago I discovered an entrance to a maintenance shaft. It leads down to the floor below us, the one at sea level. There I found a type of garage, inside the ship. It holds lots of boats, and exits out to the ocean. Probably for the guards to get in and out of this place."

"Nash, that's perfect." Norae reacts. "If we can steal one of those boats, that'll be our way out of here."

"Exactly." Nash agrees. "But..."

"Oh, of course there's a but." Mikayla mumbles tensely.

"The place is crawling with guards." Nash continues. "We would have to be insanely careful, and even then there's a good chance we won't make it out."

"You really know how to sell it, bro." Mateo remarks.

"This is the best chance we've got, guys." Norae asserts.

"What about the other initiates?" Shane asks suddenly, "Do we just leave them behind?"

"There's no way we can escape with everyone. Five people is already pushing our luck." Nash assesses. "The best chance we can give the others is by escaping and alerting the authorities back on the mainland."