Hi people. Thank you for all the amazing reviews. And if you are actually reading this part instead of skipping ahead to the story, thank you, you're amazing. We've all been guilty of that, I think. Including me. I'm so happy. Only one more day of exams to go. Thank goodness I go to a Christian school that has a rule against no tests or exams on Thursday because that's our school's chapel day. (For the lucky people who have never experienced a chapel day in their school, chapel is when all of junior high gathers in the cafeteria to listen to a person preach and stuff and we have to wear an oxford shirt tucked into a skirt (well, only the girls, the guys can wear khakis). I hate skirts. And it's also just one giant excuse for the mean, eighty thousand year old science teacher to give out dress codes. Trust me; I'm not sure there's a kid in our school who hasn't gotten a dress code from that guy. Okay, on with the story.

Chapter 7

Max pov.

"So are we all clear on the plan? Max? You're flock?" Shane asks.

I nod. "Anyone under thirteen stays here with Skye and Beth," out of the corner of my eye I see Fang flinch, "we break in, make sure it's completely abandoned and search for and take anything they left behind." I try not to take it as a personal insult that he actually thought we wouldn't understand the plan.

We were about to raid TDI's newly abandoned headquarters. Trying to find anything they left that would give us a clue where they went.

So we decided to travel there with in groups. Me, Fang, Iggy, and Heather in one, and Shane, Trevor, Blaze, Isabelle, and Scar are in the other. My group's job is to go check it out before the others get there and make sure the place is safe with no traps or anything. Then we send a person to report back to the other group to give them the status.

"Well then," Shane says, "let's go."

His group leaves ahead of ours while Heather gives Beth some last minute instructions.

"Okay," she says when she comes back over to us, "since today happens to be Thanksgiving Day there is probably going to be people everywhere. S o we're going to have to be careful where we fly, land, and take off. I want Fang in the back, then Iggy after that, then Max, and then I'll lead. No one go jerking around and trying to communicate unless someone's dying. Stay in formation." She starts to walk off but I stay planted. Fang understands something's wrong and doesn't move, along with Iggy.

I can't help but glare at her. She was ordering my flock around. No one orders my flock around like that except for me.

I shake my head. "People will notice. We should fly one on top of the other. That way it will just look like one of us."

She stops and turns around and gives me a look that practically says are you trying to order me around? Give her a look back that says yeah, I am. What ya gonna do about it?

She rolls her eyes with just irritates the heck out of me even more. "Okay, look," she crosses her arms, "we'll go with your idea. Happy?"

"Barely." I reply. I bite my lip to restrain from saying any other unwanted comments.

"Right then," we step out into the crisp morning air.

We arrive at TDI's old building and it looks completely deserted in a freakishly eerie way. The feeling is like seeing one of those old western movies where the cowboy goes into this old village and tumbleweeds roll around.

There just seemed to be nothing there. And as we enter and walk through it, it just seems more and more deserted. "So who are we going to send next to the others?" I ask.

She things for a minute. "How 'bout Fang?"

I look at Fang. He shrugs and takes off, heading back to the others. As he leaves I think about how strange he's been acting lately. He hasn't said a word to me or anyone else . . . okay, maybe with Fang that isn't all that unusual, but still. Something about him just doesn't seem the same. I try to ignore the thought.

"Let's split up." Heather suggests, no, orders to me and Iggy.

I glare at her again. She doesn't seem to notice. "Max, since you're so independent you can go alone till Fang gets back. Iggy, you can come with me."

"Or," I step up angrily, "I can take care of my own flock and Iggy can come with me and when Fang gets back he can come with us too, and since you're so independent you can go alone."

She gives me a look that's hard to read. "Whatever. Let's just not split up."

We walk through building after building, finding nothing. Finally when I start to think this is all hopeless we go into a big room, probably an office, with about ten file cabinets and a desk.

We open a few cabinets. The tenth one I open is empty, along with all the others, but on the bottom is a button, painted the same grayish color of the cabinet. I press it down carefully. As soon as I get it all the way down a wall on the opposite side of the room slides to one side. Inside it is what looks like a drawing table, slanted up slightly. Like the kind of table architects use.

The three of us go up to it. At that moment Fang and everyone else comes through the door. They come up to it too. "What the . . .?" Blaze's voice fades off as we stare at it.

On a large piece of paper lying on the table is what looks like a blueprint. But not to a house. To a weapon.

So? Tell me what you think? I know, I was going to make it longer but . . . I have a lot to do tonight. Unfortunately. Including memorizing a script before tomorrow. Yay for me. And I have a lot of parts too. Ugh. And then mom's going to make me watch some boring TV show with her like every night (imagine that, a parent who wants you to watch TV). And study for math and Bible finals. And take a shower, no, not because of any more condiment issues. And then a bunch of other boring things I won't bother telling you because it could go on forever. Anyways, REVIEW!

-Kristen