R͟u͟t͟h͟l͟e͟s͟s͟ {Q͟u͟i͟c͟k͟s͟i͟l͟v͟e͟r͟/ A͟v͟e͟n͟g͟e͟r͟s͟}

Chapter 37: Cave

I pulled away the foliage and rolled underneath the tree. In plain day, we would be completely obvious, but the darkness was a mask that I appreciated as Pietro mimicked me. I got to my feet cautiously and looked around. The "guards" continued to stare forward like statues, unmoving. I moved forward, taking a slow breath.

A flash of blue streaked by me, startling me for a moment. As soon as I realized what it was though, it made me roll my eyes. Pietro was on the other side of the lot, smirking. I sighed. Such a show off. I gathered my stuff and joined him in the blink of an eye, praying the statues wouldn't recognize us.

A heavy metal door lay in front of us. Pietro gave me a questioning look. "Should we wait for someone to open it?" He mouthed hesitantly, "Or just go in?"

I hesitated, mulling it over. There could easily be motion sensors on the doors, if we opened it ourselves, revealing our location. But if we knocked out a couple guys out who were walking out of the building, and left their unconscious bodies for unsuspecting bystanders to discover, it'd be a little more obvious. I shrugged and mouthed, "Just go in."

He nodded amiably and pulled open the door for me. This was not the time for chivalry, but I appreciated the gesture. We crept into the complex, my heart beating louder in my chest. Pietro put a hand on my shoulder, startling me.

"You're glowing," He mouthed in warning. I looked down at myself and cursed my stupid powers. Purple glow emitted from my skin. Focus. I calmed my heartbeat momentarily, and my glow faded.

The hallway was sleek and modern. Each wall was covered in a sheet of black. I could see my reflection in the mirror-like glass, walking dangerously next to Pietro with a hand on the gun in my holster. The ground was regular tile, but, like the walls, it was also a modern -looking shade of black. The hallway was illuminated by bright, white lights. It was quite a change from the dirt outside, to say the least. Pietro and I began to walk down the corridor aimlessly, hoping we could find something if we just kept walking down this main hallway. I had an impressive memory, so it wasn't like we'd get lost in the complex, but I had no idea where we were going. I was so used to having blueprints, or an actual plan. It was like all we were doing was wandering until we found some random possessed people to help. I made a face. I hated feeling helpless, and I'd been feeling it a lot lately.

There were additional hallways branching out from every side, but I had no idea which ones were safe to go down, and I knew Wanda could be around every corner. In fact, she could be watching us now. Paranoia slipped into my emotions. The silence in these halls was disturbing.

Stiffening, Pietro suddenly took hold of my hand and pulled me down one of the sub-hallways, ripping my feet out from under me and almost making me fall. When I recovered, my eyes were wide in confusion. Alarmed, I mouthed, "Where are we going?"

He nodded down the hallway and mouthed back, "Smells like dirt."

I was about to protest about how weird it was that he was smelling as we walked, but the overpowering smell of dust and metal hit me too as we continued walking. I was impressed. I would never have thought to look down here. It hit me that Pietro was still pulling me along by the hand, and I quickly pulled back my hand, my cheeks warming. Imagine if we'd been attacked. Neither one of us would've been in position to give a quick retaliation. Pietro only took a sharp intake of breath, but made no recognition of my embarrassment. Good.

The smell and feel of dust began to become more and more prominent as we continued to walk down the hallway, and the bright white lights began to become darker. I needed to cough, but I pushed back the feeling uncomfortably.

"Whoa!-" Suddenly, Pietro dropped out from in front of me, making my hand instinctively take hold of my gun and pull it out, in position to shoot. I circled around myself quickly, looking for an attacker, and then ducked down to find out what had happened.