In the end they actually had to leave her there until the MegaMuck dissolved. They had no idea of how long it would take and Speedster knew that it would depend on the mixture, but by the time she could actually stand again Luna had finally gotten a turn and had managed to work her way up to her.
“Oh thank god.” Luna breathed the moment she spotted her.
“Don’t come any closer.” Speedster warned, watching the three hazmat suited guys still struggling with the mess on the floor. “MegaMuck, stickiest substance ever.”
“Is that why you didn’t come back?” Luna asked, “Because we were worried and Tails is freaking out.”
“Couldn’t, I got stuck.” Speedster shrugged, “Sorry.” She grinned slightly, “But hey, once this stuff dissolves I’ll catch up to you. Keep going.” She pointed out a safe path, allowing Luna to get going.
She wasn’t too worried as the last of the MegaMuck gluing down the three guys dissolved before the last of the mess pinning her did the same and she got reshackled, pulled free and dragged back to the cells.
Luna didn’t lose. The bad guys had made this a game. They didn’t stand a chance.
She was more worried, however, when not twenty minutes later their cells were flooded with men who looked severely pissed off.
“Take it Luna won then.” She smirked at one of the men, who reacted by backhanding her hard enough that she hit the floor.
“Yes. Now shut up.” He snarled at her, a second thug pulling her to her feet by her hair.
“Sure, whatever,” Speedster agreed easily the moment he let go, refusing to let them see that that had hurt, “But wouldn’t this whole walking thing be easier if I could actually move my legs properly?” She asked, making out that the short chains connecting her ankles was hindering her more than they actually were.
“Don’t.” The first guy said, when the second moved to unlock the shackles around her ankles, “She has superspeed, moron. Free her legs and...”
There was a crash from Mako’s cell, causing both the men to turn in that direction. That was all the distraction Speedster needed, she managed to pickpocket the keys from the second guard, who didn’t even notice. The speed freak kept a close eye on everyone as they were half dragged, half marched up to a shortcut through the maze, an elevator that went straight up the middle of it, and were shoved into a room where, in glass walled room above and to the left of them, the Shadows were swirling like mad.
“Okay, I’d like to point out that if that’s your leader in there, he’s not walking out again.” Speedster snorted, “And bringing us up here won’t make Luna stop. She won’t even know we’re here till the game’s over.”
“Just shut up and wait here.” With that the small army of goons left the room, locking the door behind them.
“Seriously?” Gold sniggered, “How many was that?”
“I counted twenty three.” Speedster replied, pulling the keys out and unshackling her legs and wrists before moving down the line, “Now, it looks like Luna’s busy so we’re going to have to work in two teams.”
“Oh?” Mako asked as Speedster freed her and she started breaking the chains of those Speedster’s pilfered keys didn’t work on.
“One group to get the main group of us out, one group to back up Luna when she’s done dealing with the boss. She’s going to be exhausted and they probably won’t let her leave easily, so we need to get to her before the Game finishes.”
“And you’re putting yourself in that group.” Sparks frowned at her.
“Actually I was going to suggest that I was the only one in that group.” Speedster admitted, “You lot can get out easier if I don’t hog the best fighters for myself, and I’m fast enough to get up there even if I lose my way, so...”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” Mako scowled at her, “They know how to deal with you, you need back up.”
“I only got caught because of the MegaMuck.” Speedster shook her head, “I can get in and out easily now I know to watch out for it.”
“I’ll go with her.” Tails’ voice came from the back of the group as she pushed her way to the front, giving Speedster an amused smile as she did so, “I can handle their tech and I know how to dissolve most MegaMuck concoctions quickly.”
“That leaves you guys to get the hell out of here.” Speedster looked at Mako and Gold, who didn’t look pleased at the idea, despite the logic behind it.
“If you’re not out within twenty minutes of us escaping, we’re coming back in after you.” Mako informed her with a grimace.
“Deal.” Speedster agreed, certain it wouldn’t take that long.
Shorty started it off, using his alchemy to form an exit in the walls and making Speedster grin at the thought that it would be practically impossible for anyone to contain the teen for any length of time when he set his mind to it. Mako led the escaping party, while Gold brought up the rear, aided by Sparks.
Speedster and Tails didn’t wait to see them go. They didn’t have time if they wanted to reach where Luna was before the Shadow Game ended. Speedster rocketed off, instinct telling her that Tails would keep up at this pace and pleasantly surprised when it was true. It wasn’t anywhere near her top speed, but it was fast enough that the mooks still hanging around and reacting to the escape attempts couldn’t draw a bead on them.
The pair of them worked together in a way that spoke of years of familiarity. Juliet’s mind slipping into the mind and instincts of the life she had Fused with when she had gained her World Sphere. In comparison to some of the bases the pair of them had assaulted over the years in the other world, this was laughable. The two underground layers had obviously been the booby trapped ones, the ones prepared to hold them. The upper floors, the ones above ground, were ridiculously easy to traverse in comparison and though the building was complicated in design, it didn’t take them long to get a feel for the layout.
Speedster didn’t realise she had lost Tails until she had to double back two corridors and a set of stairs, where she found the other girl raiding a computer room. “Tails? Now? Seriously?”
“I’m just...” Tails spoke from her position under what looked like a security console, an unconscious goon off to one side, “Adjusting the... there we go!” She crowed.
Speedster caught movement on screen and spotted the huge security shutters, which had been blocking off several of the corridors they had tried to go down, rise and put themselves away.
“Nice one, little sis.” Speedster grinned at her.
“Now we can go.” Tails blushed slightly, always pleased to get a compliment from the much more experienced and older former hedgehog.
“Right. Luna.” Speedster nodded, shooting off again. Tails caught up, amused when she managed to push Speedster into a slightly higher speed by trying to overtake.
Now the shutters were up, it was obvious that the building was laid out in a spiral pattern and they zoomed up and around the building, dodging goons as they went, pausing as they reached the fourth floor when Speedster heard a rather familiar ringtone.
“That’s my phone. My new one.” She commented to Tails once the younger girl had realised she had doubled back for something and returned to find out what.
“Give me a sec,” Tails grinned at her, hacking the electronic lock on the door to find a room full of the stuff that had been confiscated from them upon capture.
“Speedster’s Super Family Funfair. Good clean fun for all the family.” Speedster managed to find her phone and answer it before it stopped ringing.
“Very funny.” Rowena’s voice was just dripping sarcasm as she replied, “We have been trying to get a hold of you for almost a full day now and when we happened to send someone around to your house we found the door knocked down and the house looted. Sitrep. Now.”
“So you’re not the ones who caught us?” Speedster double checked, just in case, trying not to think about all her stuff having been stolen.
“Miss Rhodes, I can assure you it’s not us.” Rowena informed her, “Though I can assume this has something to do with the moron we caught downloading sensitive information on the Consultancy Project. Now report.”
“Can I get back to you on that?” Speedster asked, “I’m kind of in the middle of a breakout.”
“Giving details on the move is an important part of the job, Speedster.” Rowena tutted, “Move and talk.”
“Okay.” Speedster agreed, darting off the moment she had filled a backpack with things she was pretty sure her friends would miss if she left them behind and glad Tails had thought to do the same, making a mental note to come back when they had a moment. “Some point a load of hours ago, I don’t know how long exactly I didn’t have a watch, they kept drugging us and we’ve been underground, I got into a fight with a Fused male with black and red spiky hair and red eyes who has superspeed like me and appears to know my Fusion.”
She turned down the next corridor before she continued, “He gave me a crystal of some kind that I can hand in when I get out of here that showed me images, supposedly of things to come and then left. Not long after he vanished, I was assaulted by a couple of men who shot me with a tranq gun.”
“And that was when you went down?” Rowena asked.
“Ha! No way.” Speedster chuckled, happy to gloat at someone who wouldn’t yell ‘ego check’ at her, “No, I trounced those two and then darted back to the house to find Luna and Tails under attack. Luna had gamed most of them...”
“Explains the ‘pile of crazy’ in the police reports on the break in.” Rowena sounded like she was nodding.
“But I gave them time to get away. Got hit by two more darts before I went down.” Speedster continued, “And woke up in a cell. The bad guys have been testing us and what we can do by getting us to run a gauntlet. One of us gets out, we all leave.”
“A game?” Rowena sounded amused.
“Yeah, you’ve got it already.” Speedster chuckled again, “Luna won, first time.”
“And yet you’re in the middle of a breakout?” Rowena questioned.
“Luna’s Gaming the Leader. She’ll be knackered by the time she finishes.” Speedster explained, “Tails and I are going to go get her out safely. The others have already left the premises. If you want a location, you’d probably be better off phoning Mako or...wait, I have their phones...bloody bad guys.”
“We can get your position from your phone.” Rowena sounded amused, “Do try not to die before we get there.”
“Please, I’m Speedster, they have to catch me first.” She came to a dead halt in front a glass wall, behind which the Shadows were just beginning to fade, “Now excuse me, I have a job to do.” With that she put the phone down.
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