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Sector 54 led Riley and his Dad through the abandoned warehouse. Riley glanced around at the dust-covered boxes stacked against the wall. Even the ground was covered in dust, with the exception of the path they were taking. It was almost shiny and looked like it had been polished it'd been walked on so often.
She paused in front of a latch in the ground and punched in a code. The floor shook as the door slowly opened.
"This way," Sector 54 said as she pointed into the hole.
Riley glanced at his father. Mr. Kilhan kissed his cross necklace before following after the girl down.
"Be sure to close the latch behind you," she called back to Riley.
He hesitated over the stairs before taking a deep breath and lowering his leg to the first step.
"Here we go," he whispered under his breath.
Riley followed after the pair down a long cement hallway. It didn't look like it went anywhere but Sector 54 suddenly stopped.
"Here we are," she said.
Riley glanced at his dad, who appeared to be just as confused, then back to the girl. She pulled a long pin out of her sleeve and pushed it into a crack in the cement wall.
A light began to glow and the rock wall shifted revealing a metal room.
"After you," she said as she waved them in.
Riley's dad went first. He twirled and looked around the metal compartment. When Riley and Sector 54 entered it felt cramped.
Now what? Riley thought as he pushed his way to the wall to get some space.
"Careful," Sector 54 warned as Riley leaned against the wall.
He raised an eyebrow in question but when the walls started to shudder he backed away. It took him a few moments to realize the walls weren't moving -- they were. They were going down.
There was a static sound then a man's voice boomed into the elevator.
"Name and destination."
"Agent 474, Sector 54," the girl said.
Riley rolled his eyes when he heard Agent 474's response. For a second he had thought he'd finally get to know her name. At least Agent 474 was better than calling her Sector 54.
The elevator picked up speed and Riley spread his legs to keep balanced. The fast drop flipped his stomach and he took deep breaths to calm himself. When the elevator finally rumbled to a stop he nearly hugged Agent 474.
"Oh thank the good Lord," Mr. Kilhan said.
The doors opened and Agent 474 adjusted her bag and squared her shoulders before walking into the room.
Riley couldn't believe his eyes -- they were underground in a space large enough to fit a football field. Bellow, him was a control room where men in long white coats pulled knobs and dials that moved a machine behind long glass windows. As he looked closer he could see dozens of people behind the glass.
