Tales of Light

ESCAPED!

PART III

In the wee hours of dawn, when the lights had not stirred and the few birds surviving extinction had not sang their mournful chorus, a lone figure in a dark hood could be seen creeping stealthily up the path that led to Nephert Telecom Corporation Headquarters.

The figure blended well into the shadows, dodging the watchful eyes of the patrolling robotic guards and ever-scanning surveillance cameras.

He should have taken the elevator, but he didn't. Instead, he clambered up, as quiet as a mouse through the steel and aluminum framework of the skyscraper like a preying panther.

He got to the topmost floor.

Room 665.
He grimaced at the memory of the torture he had gotten here, that they had all received.

Bile rose up in his throat and his fingers almost slipped because his palms were now sweaty from apprehension. He had to succeed with this mission or else, they were in trouble.

They had been separated, still in the same room, but unable to comfort each other.
All he ever heard were their screams and cries.

Until, three had succumbed. The siblings and the woman.
They had been moved to the adjacent room. Room 666, where, he could guess, they were to be branded with that accursed chip.

Everything was pitch-black here as opposed to the normal bright glare it should normally have.
He was almost tempted to rethink and go back.

Maybe she had been relocated to another place, or worse still, maybe she had received the mark.
His heart broke at that thought.

He heard a soft cry of a parched voice in pain.

He strained his ear as he clung to the steel scaffolding with his sticky pad.
The sound floated to him again.

Good. She's still alive. It was not in vain that he had felt the push to come get her.

He rolled onto the topmost floor of the roof and silently brought out his gadgets.

The silent chain saw cut through the ceiling. He heard the soft gasp down below.

Don't scream, please.

He jumped down and his eyes had to adjust to the lighting-or darkening-in this room.

He moved closer to her. She was tied hanging to the wall. He could feel her fear oozing out.

"Alexia," he called, no whispered, out.

"Ke- Kevin?" she replied cautiously. Her voice was full of relief and wonder.
"Is that you?" her voice quavered as she asked this.

He moved closer and held her trembling form. She was cold and he could feel the caked blood on her face as he ran his hand over her face.

She sobbed into the croon of his neck. And oof, she did need a bath too.

"Yes. It is me. And I'm bursting you out of here."

He quietly removed his gadgets that graced the entire circumference of his waist.

He proceeded to dislodge the encrypted lock of her chain with his state of art uncoding key.

The darkness was stifling. He worked as fast as he could.

He carried her frail body and latched her to his back like a baby koala to its mother.

He got up the ceiling onto the topmost floor with the help of the sturdy rope he had positioned for this particular purpose.