MisPrints

•Chapter 11•

There's a tap on my Cavity Glass and I quickly slide out of the hole and climb down the ladder. Zak is waiting at the bottom, but he doesn't look as cheerful as he normally does.

"Hi." He says, when I reach the floor. I smile at him but he looks away, refusing to meet my eyes.

"What did you want?" I ask, "you said you wanted to see me."

"Did you forget that too?"

"Forget what..." I ask slowly.

"You said you would take me to the window....remember?"

"Did I?"

He rolls his eyes in annoyance. "Yes Ely, you did."

"Oh."

"Don't worry, it probably got wiped with the rest of it by accident."

"What's the rest? What else did I forget?" I ask, slightly worried by his somber tone. He refuses to reply and instead walks towards the door, expecting me to follow.

"Wait....... You know? You know what I forgot right? You didn't forget did you?" I say, urgently, 

"Tell me Zak! Please I have to know!"

He shrugs me away and simply stands outside the door waiting for me to come through. I pass by him and then he walks to the left.

"Arn't you going to shut it?" I wonder aloud.

"No, they've changed the security so it can only be opened and shut once. Don't worry, the guardians don't have this corridor on their routes tonight."

"And you had something to do with that I'm guessing."

He shrugs and smiles faintly, "they're just so easy to hack."

I tut at him and then follow him silently along the corridors. Once or twice I think I can hear a Guardian behind us and turn around, but there's nothing there of course.

After a while, when we've finally reached the main corridor that splits Floor 4 in two. Zak stops and turns to me.

"You still remember where to go from here... Right?"

I search through the passageways and thoughts stored in my brain until I can bring up image of the path I've taken so many times.

"It's a bit blurry but I'm sure I'll remember it better as we go along."

"You sure?"

I hesitate. "Yes... Yes I'm sure."

"Ok lets go."

We walk in silence, the sound of our feet thudding on the floor being the only noise around us, apart from the occasional hum of motors and hover machines.

Soon we reach the door. I stare at it.

"this isn't it." Zak says flatly.

"Yes....." I murmur, "yes it is it. This is the room I know it is!" Zak raises an eyebrow at me. "I'm telling you it is!"

I look back at the door.

Yes this is definitely it. No doubt about it. I reach forward towards the panel to open the door but Zak grabs it before I can touch it.

"Stop." He says. "Look at the sign." 

I look up and read what the writing says. Strange, a piece of paper had been stuck over the door sign with writing printed there in black ink ....

I read it out loud. "Sanitarium.... What does that mean?"

"It means hospital." Zak replies quietly. I scan over the other words printed underneath and decide that they are names.