Chapter 34: The Serum

    The elevator door opened and Faye and Thalia prepared themselves.  

    No one was there.

    "What?  I thought there would definitely be some security on the prison level," Faye said, looking around at the walls for any cameras.

    "Maybe all of the Chasers went to the top level to watch my execution," Thalia suggested.

    "But they would have rushed back down here to get us back."

    "How about we stop asking questions and wasting time.  Let's get Abby."

    Faye sighed and they slowly walked out of the elevator and into the wide hallway lined with cells.  The bars of each cell were electrified and if anyone touched them while they were on then they could seriously burn their hands.

    The first few cells were empty and Faye quickened her pace.

    She could hear yelling down the hallway and rushed toward the sound.

    "My parents are important people in Anoterian society!" someone was yelling. "If you don't let me out then they will come for me and have all of you stupid Chasers arrested!"

    "Abby," Thalia said as she looked into the cell. "No one's here."

    "What?  You mean I've been yelling at the prisoners?" Abby asked, dumbstruck. "Wait, how did you escape?"

    "Faye is here too and she rescued me.  And we are now here to get you out."

    "Good," said Abby. "It's stuffy and dark in  here."

    "How are we supposed to open the cell?" Faye asked.

    "My scales can probably take the shock for a few seconds.  Just long enough for me to rip the bars of their hinges," Thalia said, turning into the dragon.

    She stood tall and grabbed the bars.  Bolts of electricity ran up her claws and she grimaced but gave a mighty pull and the cell bars snapped off, small screws flying everywhere and creating a racket.

    Thalia dropped the bars and Abby ran out.  Her hair was all messy and she looked vey tired.

    They all ran back toward the elevator and were getting close once a knife flew out of nowhere and cut Thalia right in the face.

    Faye stopped as the queen fell over, holding her face.  The knife had cut her from her eyebrow down to her cheek, right over her eye.

    "Are you okay?" Faye asked as Abby stared in horror at the blood beginning to seep from Thalia's wound.

    "Faye, behind you!" Thalia yelled.

    Faye turned and saw Dr. Hale holding a gun to Abby's head. 

    "Why does this always happen to me?" Abby grumbled under her breath.

    "Silence!" Dr. Hale yelled.

    "I guess you're going to kill me now," Faye said, raising her hands.

    "Nah, cause then I know I will let down my guard and then the dragon girl will attack me.  I'm smarter than that.  I won't kill you.  I'll let her do it before the serum destroys her."

    He motioned toward Thalia and the queen looked confused.

    "Here's a little detail you should know about the special serum used on dragons.  We didn't just want it to kill one dragon.  So we added a small tweak so that the dragon has about ten minutes after the serum is injected before it dies.  And, during those ten minutes, they go completely mad and kill all the other Beasts they can find around them.  It helped us get rid of the dragons as well as more Beasts."

    "So," he continued. "I will leave you two to your fate.  That's too bad.  The fate of Faye Spring is her death by her friend and queen."

    Dr. Hale gave a chuckle and pulled his gun from Abby's head and the bullet holding the serum shot straight into Thalia's neck.  

    "No!" Faye yelled as Dr. Hale took off toward the elevator.

    Abby stood frozen as Faye bent down over Thalia. "Come on, Thalia, you can fight the serum."

    Thalia's body began to shake and she let out a yell.  She fell on her back and her eyes rolled back.  

    "Faye," Abby said in a shaking voice. "Get away from her.  You heard what the guy said.  We need to run now so we don't die."

    "No, she's our friend.  We can help her fight the effects of the serum."

    "You need to run," Thalia breathed as she began shaking more violently. "If you want to help me then get the antidote."

    "But there might not be one," Abby said.

    "We have nine minutes to find out," Faye said, getting up.

    Thalia sat up and her breathing softened and her body stopped shaking.

    Faye smiled and bent back down. "Thalia, see I told you you could fight it."

    "I don't believe it," Abby said. "No piece of Anoterian tech has ever been beaten before.  Are you sure she's okay?"

    "She stopped shaking didn't she?"

    Faye reached out and put her hand on Thalia's shoulder, "Now we can escape."

    But Thalia didn't move.

    "Thalia?"

    Thalia turned her head and Faye saw that her eyes were dark purple, with bright purple irises.  Her scar seemed to have healed and was just a long red line across her eye.  But Faye could see that it wasn't Thalia.  Her eyes seemed dazed and malevolent.

    "Faye, we need to run, NOW!" Abby yelled, jumping away.

    Faye jumped up as Thalia's arm shot out to grab her hand.  She closed her eyes and her body shifted into her full dragon form.  This form was quite bigger than her usual form, and Faye guessed that Thalia never gt this big.  Her horns scraped the high ceiling and Thalia stared down at them.

    Abby grabbed Faye's hand and they both began running just as the lights to the hallway went out.

    They froze and Faye quickly ran to an open, empty cell and Abby 

followed.  They hid in a small corner as Thalia stomped closer to them.

    It was pitch black and the only thing Faye could see were Thalia's scales glowing faintly, and her eyes piercing the darkness.

    "You don't think she has excellent night vision, do you?" Abby asked. 

    "I don't know."

    "But she told me that she can smell really well.  Oh, great, a blind monster who can smell us, this is just like a horror movie."

    "Just be quiet and maybe she'll think we've gone."

    "I thought we were gonna find the antidote?"

    Faye sighed.  They needed to save Thalia, she couldn't die.  But how on earth was she going to break back into a Chaser infested tower with just her powers and a dead-weight teenager?

    "Let's go," she said, crawling to the cell bars.

    "What's the plan?" asked Abby.

    "I . . . I will make it up along the way."

    "What, but we'll both die and then Thalia will die!"

    "Shhh, listen she's going to die if we stay here.  And if we even survive her then I'm sure Dr. Hale would find other ways to kill us."

    Faye snuck out of the cell and Abby followed silently.  Faye could see the glow of Thalia down a ways from them, still searching.  She ran toward the elevator and then realized that the power was out.  They were trapped! 

    Suddenly, Faye heard someone yell, "Ow!" and she saw that the sound had come from a small door not far from the elevator.  She ran towards it and began smashing her shoulder against it,

trying to break the lock.

    Thalia heard the sounds and began heading in that direction.  Abby heard her coming and squeaked, "She's coming, Faye!  We're gonna die!"

    Faye didn't pay any attention to her and kept ramming the door.  She finally heard the lock break as Thalia was only a few yards away from them.  Faye opened the door and ran right into a familiar face.

    "Cameron!"

                                  Chapter 35: In the Tower

    While Faye and Thalia had been escaping down the elevator to get Abby; outside, Cameron, Denarius, Abraham, and Dede had continued to push through the crowd.

    "I saw Faye up there as well.  She must have caused some sort of chaos because everyone's yelling now," Cameron said as a person stared at him with confusion.

    "Maybe we can get to them and escape before the Chasers get here," Denarius yelled over the crowd.

    They continued until they reached the main door into the tower.  Dede 

walked up to it and knocked.

    "What are you doing?" Abraham asked, pushing her aside and slamming the door open.

    "I was trying to be polite," Dede said defensively. 

    "There's no time for that right now," Denarius said as they entered the building.

    The main floor was completely empty.  

    "Where do you think everyone is?" Cameron asked.

    "they must all be distracted by Faye and Thalia," Denarius concluded. "That is why Faye made the distraction, so we would be able to get in unnoticed."

    "What if there's traps?" Abraham asked.

    "That's possible," Denarius said. "You are a citizen of Anoteros, Cameron, do you know what their sensors look like?"

    "Ahem," Abraham interrupted. "I was also a citizen of Anoteros who, not to mention, was obsessed with Chasers and all their technology.  I should be the one to identify their sensors."

    "Yes, well I definitely don't want to trust someone who actually worked for the Chasers." Denarius said, smirking. "Or have you already lost your brain from being around them?"

    Abraham smiled fakely and said, "I'd punch you but I'm against animal abuse."

    "Oh, ouch!" Cameron said

    "Ouch what?" asked Dede. "Did you hurt yourself little blonde boy?"

    "No, it's just what we say once someone gives another person a really good roast."

    Denarius's eyes had narrowed on Abraham and he said. "Well, I'd tell you to 'blow your brains out', but I'm sure there's nothing there."

    Now it was Abraham's turn to get angry.  But he didn't say anything, as if he was trying to come up with a good comeback.  He rolled his eyes and Denarius commented, "Why are you rolling your eyes? Are you looking for your brain?"

    Cameron began laughing and Dede copied, still not sure of what they were laughing about.

    "Anyway, can we just save the others," Abraham said, turning quickly and pointing to the ceiling. "There are sensors right there and there."

    "We will need someone tiny to go up there and switch them off," Cameron said as he choked back the rest of his laughs.

    Dede's face lit up. "Yay! I'm useful!" she said happily.

    Denarius pointed to Dede and said, "Go up there and hit the large red button, but only that button understand."

    "Yeah, I'm crazy, not stupid," the girl said as she turned into a possum and scurried across the floor and up some wires to the first sensor.  She clicked the red button and the sensor immediately turned off.

    She hopped down and hurried to the next one, turning it off as well.  Once that one was off she ran back to the others and changed back into her human form.

    "Let's go," Denarius said.

    "Wait, we should arm ourselves just in case there are Chasers hiding," Abraham said walking over to a rack of electric rods and handing one to each person. "Now who isn't thinking?" He glared at Denarius as he handed him one.

    "No thanks," said Denarius. "I can fight for myself.  I grew up under strong discipline and could defend myself from a Chaser by the time I was six.  Of course I wouldn't expect that from you, raised in the privileges of the Anoterian culture."

    Abraham frowned and threw the Rod away.  

    They walked into the main center of the tower where the reception desk was.  But there was still no one.

    "I don't like this," Cameron said.

    "You don't say," Abraham retorted.

    "If Faye and Thalia had gone to this level then we would have run into them by now, right?" Denarius asked.

    "Yes, so they must have gone somewhere else," Cameron said, stopping to think. "I didn't see Abby up on the balcony so maybe she's locked up and they went to rescue her."

    "So they are in the prison level?"

    "Probably."

    While they had been talking, Dede and Abraham had strode toward the desk.

    "This is a cool place," Dede said.

    "Really?  Then you must have pretty bad taste," Abraham said.

    "Well, anything looks nice once you live your whole life in a hole.  All I ever see is dirt."

    "Oh, I guess that's true.  But it's strange."

    "What is?"

    "You seem fine with Anoteros.  You aren't disgusted or angry at them.  While Denarius there hates every last one, except Cameron for some reason."

    "I don't like the government, but the people aren't to blame for what happened to us.  they are just lost, I believe.  Like you, you were lost and then Faye helped you." Dede sighed. "I want to be like Faye and help others find themselves."

    "Maybe you'll be a good therapist someday," Abraham said, smiling.

    "You really think?  Thanks!  I don't always get uplifting comments and I never expected to get one from you.  No offense but you seemed pretty mean once I met you." 

    "Hey!" Denarius called. "You two!  Back over here now!"

    "Jeez," said Abraham as they walked back. 

    " 'Jeez' what?"

    " 'Jeez', you have done nothing but yell at all of us for this entire mission."

    They all looked at Denarius who sighed deeply and said, "I know.  I'm sorry.  I . . . I don't have any excuse for yelling at you guys."

    "There's something on your mind," Dede said, getting closer. "It's okay, you can tell us."

    "I grew up thinking that I had all the responsibility and I had to make sure

everyone I knew was kept safe.  If anything happened to anyone then I would always blame myself.  And now Faye and Thalia, two people who I was supposed to take care of, are in danger and I am blaming myself.  It isn't any of your guys' fault."

    "That was very nice," Dede said. "And I understand.  I blame myself a lot because I keep losing my acorn necklaces."

    "I also understand," Abraham said. "I've also felt that guilt."

    "Me too," Cameron echoed. "

    "Thanks guys," said Denarius. "I will try not to yell at you now, but don't take it personally if I do."

    They all chuckled and then got serious, deciding to use the elevator to go to the prison level.  They ran toward the elevator and tried to click the