Blackout

6. MINERVA

A scream ripped from my throat seeing the man pop out at us. His face was powdered white, a red dot over his nose, with black streaks falling from the charcoal around his eyes. A clown. Crimson flecks splattered his face as he twirled a glistening knife. A murderous clown. Stumbling back into Atlas, he grabbed my shoulders and shoved me aside just as the clown swung; slashing Atlas's arm instead of my face.

"Don't you touch her," he growled while clutching his arm.

"Hmm," the clown took a step forward, Atlas and myself moving backwards. We kept moving back, matching his slow stride. I felt Atlas' arm take hold of me, keeping me behind him. A sinister smirk crept onto the man's face as he observed us.

"Interesting pair," he chuckled before lifting his eyes to meet mine with a dark glint. Eyes lingering on me, he stopped and walked backwards, "Five minutes. Run."

At first, I was confused. Until realization dawned on me.

A chase.

Apparently, Atlas figured it out too because he immediately grabbed my arm and raced down the lockers. Looking around though made my heart sink; the clown had backed to the door, a bunny-masked girl blocking the second door. There were only three exits; one locked and now two blocked. I looked up at Atlas to see his brows furrowed in thought. After a moment his eyes lit up with determination and he bent his head down to meet mine.

He whispered in my ear, "Willing to take a risk?"

"Better than the alternative," I retorted, making him smirk lightly.

"Follow me," and I did. Rushing our steps, the adrenaline was pumping through my heart. The pounding in my chest louder each step. We made our way through the expansive rows of lockers, weaving through the columns so Clown and Bunny lost sight of us. Even so my skin pricked, like I could feel their gaze through the metallic lockers. At the farthest corner of the locker room Atlas stopped, myself following his lead.

"Four minutes!"

A laugh.

Seeing the metal door, I looked from it to Atlas to see him give me an affirmative nod. Holding my breath, I watched with anticipation as Atlas pushed on the door. It didn't budge. He pounded against it but it only creaked a bit. Taking a closer look, I realized it was rusted shut. Then, Atlas walked away. Shrugging his shoulders before turning back towards the door, I gasped as he charged into the door; forcing it open as he fell to the ground.

"Three minutes!"

Rushing over, I helped Atlas to his feet. "Like a tackle," he winced, cradling his arm. On instinct my eyes rolled, jocks. Peering through the doorway, I turned on my phone light to see a concrete staircase. It went around a bend. Barreling into a metal door definitely took its toll on Atlas though. Before starting our decent, I slung his arm around my shoulders to help support him.

Step by step we went down, as fast as we could without tripping. At the first platform we reached, Atlas was somewhat recovered; walking with less pressure on me. Halfway to the second platform he was walking on his own, only with a few grunts here and there.

"Two minutes!"

Reaching the second platform, we raced down the last section faster; Atlas' pain unimportant as time ran out. As soon as our feet hit the bottom, we ran. It was a single concrete tunnel leading into darkness. There was no light aside from my phone, showing us only a few feet before dimming into the unknown. The thumping of our sneakers against the ground echoed around us.

I heard a faint cackle resonating above our pounding.

"One minute!"

A split in the tunnel made Atlas and me pause in our tracks. Lighting up both paths, each lead to more darkness. They were identical in structure too. I turned to Atlas hoping he'd have an idea, "Which way?"

He pinched the bridge of his nose in worry, "No clue, you pick." Frustration laced Atlas' words as he spoke. I felt the same way; we manage to survive a run-in with a murderous clown and bunny, escape in a deranged game of hide-and-seek, only to reach a fork in the road. What luck - note the sarcasm. Left or right; that was the question.

"Ten!"

My heart pounded in my chest, threatening to explode.

"Nine!"

I had to make the right choice.

"Eight!"

One way could be a dead end.

"Seven!"

Maybe both are. Maybe neither are.

"Six!"

I took a deep breath. Relax.

"Five!"

Left or right?

"Four!"

Left?

"Three!"

Right?

"Two!"

Deciding, I grabbed Atlas' hand.

"One."

We ran into the left tunnel.