Sealed

Part 2 - The Hive

 After a while, Alex and Leonard returned. Alex was fuming.

"They got away," he said, sitting down on one of the fallen cushions.

"They're smart," Alice said weakly. Everyone looked at her. "They knew our plan and our weakness. They sent everything they got to bring it down and surround us."

"But they seemed to act more like robots," Alex said. "The first ones moved without any worry about themselves, then they tried to run when the others got here. Then they got the orbs from the dead ones. It was like they all knew what to do without communicating."

"They're a hive," Jason said.

All eyes turned to him now. He had finished bandaging Alice's wound and leaned back against the fountain. He looked up at all of them, his eyes peeking through his bangs.

"A hive," he said again.

"What, like bees?" Alex asked.

"Something like that," Jason said. He sighed and leaned forward. "It's more like... they have a shared mind. All their thoughts combine. They hear what the others think and tell everyone else where to go. They can plan without having to talk. Without having to be in the same room!" Jason stood up. That's how they knew where we were going. Remember? The clothes store. They were already there, blocking us off."

"So, they're not just smart," Alex said. "It's like one person... but that person can be anywhere?"

"Pretty much. Yeah."

Alex swore.

"That's fan-freaking-tastic," he said. He turned and kicked a cushion. "We barely survived this time, and now it's gonna form a better strategy."

"Then we need to go," Lindsay said. "Find a way out."

Alex sighed.

"We need the orbs for that," he said. "And they took them all. We have no idea where they're hiding them!"

"I have a couple ideas," Lindsay said quietly. Everyone looked back at her. "I've been... hearing things."

Alex nodded.

"What sort of things?" he asked.

"Someone... is warning me," she said. "Us. A voice told me... where to find a security room. With cameras." She looked around. "We can use those to find a way out. Or where the orbs are."

"And how can you trust this voice?" Alice asked. Her voice was a t ad raspy as she spoke. She coughed a bit when she finished.

"I don't know," Lindsay said. "But maybe... maybe we can use the information, at least."

"When did you hear it?"

"First at the store where we got the medicine," Lindsay said. "Then again just after the dogs ran off."

"What did it say the first time?" Jason asked.

Lindsay shook her head.

"Something about... 'here,'" she said. "'Over here, over here.'"

"Were they looking for you?" Alex asked.

"I don't think so," Lindsay said. "They would've been in a rush if they were. They were going more causally."

"Then their home might be there," Alex said. "We need to check there."

"What about the security room?" Lindsay asked. She was beginning to shake again. "We should go there first!"