Collision

Chapter 11 - Many POV's

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"Can't read my, can't read my,
No he can't read my poker face."
-Poker Face, Lady Gaga
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Cisco's POV:

We were trapped in a room, everyone around me screaming at each other. I couldn't think. I messed up big time. What was I thinking?! This was arguably one of my worst ideas ever! Peter and Percy were trapped in a closet, Barry was in another room crying, and for all I know, the game operator was laughing his ass off.

How did we get here?

*34 minutes and 42 seconds before*

"Really, Cisco? A super-hero themed escape room?" I didn't have to look at Barry to realize he was rolling his eyes.

"What? It's gonna be fun!"

"Whatever."

"God, Barry, you sound like a teenager."

"Pffffft."

We walked into the large building. I had done my research, and apparently, this was the highest rated escape room in the state. Lucky for us, it was located only about 20 minutes away from Central City. I walked up to the counter, smiling. "Cisco Ramon, party of 15. We're here for the Heroes vs Villains Escape Challenge."

The young girl operating the front desk looked up at me, processing what I said before shouting, "Robert! They're here!" She then turned back to me and explained. "Robert will be your game operator for today. He's specifically trained for the rooms you and your friends will be competing in today."

A tall, blond man walked into the room, greeting us with a smile. "Hello, everyone! I will be your game operator for today! That basically means I will be watching over you all to give you hints when needed and making sure you follow our rules. Firstly, no meta-powers of any kind are allowed. We have had to spend way too much money to repair the rooms after a meta-human decides to escape without using the intended strategy. Apparently insurance does not cover meta attacks. We value your privacy, so we do not ask you whether or not anyone in your group has powers. That being said, we always must assume the answer to that question is yes, so we spent lots of money to put power-dampening technology all throughout our rooms.

"Secondly, if something is bolted to the floor, please leave it that way. Anything you need to access will be able to be accessed without removing screws, nails, or bolts of almost any kind. If you have a question during the game about something you aren't sure if you should move, look into the camera and just ask. It will not count as a hint or clue.

"Now that all the boring stuff is out of the way, I'd like to thank you for booking our Heroes vs Villains Escape Challenge! Unlike most escape rooms, in here, we will split you all into two groups. Each group will either be filled with heroes or villains. Each group has a different set of riddles and a different door to unlock. Your two groups will not be able to communicate to each other, but solving certain puzzles will provide setbacks for your opponents. Before you pick teams, I see that you have an odd number of participants. Along that note, I would like you all to take a moment and decide amongst you who you all collectively think is the smartest out of you all."

I turned around, and we huddled into a circle. It was a lopsided circle, but it was still a circle! "Hey, everyone, I know Annabeth is the daughter of Athena, but Barry's pretty smart too. He's a CSI, the best CCPD has had in years."