Project Starfall (Completed)

Chapter 24

They only made it several more feet before alarms blared overhead. Pierce cursed, covering her sensitive ears while still hanging onto the gun. As they ran, a previously hidden door opened beside them and Pierce caught a glimpse of several black-clad guards attempting to file out. Pierce shot the first, causing the others to back up. Then she kicked the door shut and she and Grey continued sprinting down the hall. Behind, the guards reopened the door and chased after them.

"Not much farther," Pierce huffed. Every one of Grey's steps was equal to her two, yet she was still able to keep pace beside him.

Every few minutes they would run into more guards, but Pierce and Grey made quick work of them. "Is this it?" Grey asked as they came to a dead end. In front of them was a heavily fortified metal door. The sirens had quieted and Pierce uncovered her ears.

Yes." Pierce nodded, the map flashing through her mind. "There are several security cameras trained on us right now," she said without turning to look at any of them. "Terra said some NOVA agents would hack into them to see when we made it here. They'll be unlocking the door right now."

"You still have the device?" Grey asked. Pierce nodded, pulling the metal sphere from a special pocket that had been built into her hoodie.

"So when the door opens we just toss it in and run to the exit point?" Grey clarified.

"Not exactly." Pierce sighed. "I expect we'll have company once the door opens. It's their main security system, after all. They will be guarding it carefully." She stared at the sphere in her hand. "If we leave it behind, they will destroy it."

"Well, in case we don't survive ...." Grey smiled. Pierce waited for him to finish his sentence, but instead he leaned forward and kissed her again, lighter and faster this time, but leaving Pierce just as breathless as before.

"Thanks for distracting me," Pierce muttered, but she was smiling too now.

The door whirred, and Pierce's face tightened with concentration. She and Grey moved so that they were on either side of the entrance, out of range of any bullets waiting for them.

The door quieted with a final click, then swung forward. Pierce's hands tightened around her gun. "Okay then," she muttered once the door was fully open; there were only two people inside—a man and a woman—who stared at them fearfully. Guess they weren't expecting us to break in here ...

"Out." Pierce waved her gun, and the man and woman hurried from the room.

Most of the space was taken up by rows of desks and computer screens. On the far wall hung dozens of flat screens filled with footage of the complex. Several screens showed guards running around in search of the hybrids. One screen in particular caught Pierce's attention. It showed a fight between the other hybrids and a flood of guards. A group of masked guards seemed to be fighting on the hybrid's side, and Pierce guessed they were the NOVA agents. Together they were holding their own, but Pierce was worried for them. She turned to Grey. "Let's hurry and get this done so we can help them." She glanced at the door. "And before those people call in some backup."

He nodded, fiddling with something in his hand. "Is that a letter opener?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I figured I needed some sort of weapon." He grinned.

"Well, I'm not sure if that will be much help." Pierce laughed. As they talked, she pulled out the metal sphere and clicked the button on its top. The sphere hummed and began glowing a calming white. Pierce set it on the one of the desks and looked around. The monitoring screens had gone fuzzy.

"We should hide it," Pierce decided, talking to herself. She began scanning the room for a suitable spot.

"Pierce," Grey said, suddenly urgent. "I just heard something."