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Chapter Nine: Echoplex

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The three turned, ans only Carly could make out who it was. It took her what seemed to be forever, but she finally made the connection.

"Lindsey? Is that you?" Her voice shook with disbelief.

"Yup. How do you know.. oh! Carly! It's you! How've you been?"

"Uh... as good as I can be after surviving a nuclear bomb..."

Sam whispered into Carly's ear.

"Another person you hate?"

"No Sam, she actually made this place bearable."

"Alright." Sam stepped back, and looked at Lindsey. "Sorry about that, Lindsey. I'm Sam, this is Fredderina."

"The name is Freddie. And Sam, how can you still harass me in THESE conditions?"

"It's a part of my life."

Lindsey laughed.

"Sam, the one that got Carly thrown in here?"

"Hey, you can't-.. Oh yeah, you can. Uh... I'm gonna go hit Fredward with something large and heavy." She turned around, grabbed Freddie's collar, and pulled him out of the room.

"Lindsey, shouldn't you be searching for your family?"

"Carly, I just really started living. I mean, the bomb dropped only yesterday, and for that entire day, everyone panicked, and gutted the place. There were some creepy hobo-looking people out in the facility rec, near the pool. At least, that's what I had heard from Penny, before she went off. Have you seen her? I ended up hiding all day yesterday."

"Uh... nope. Don't know where Penny is. No clue."

"Yeah you do. I heard shouting earlier. that got me moving, and I found you guys.

"SAM NO! ARE YOU INSANE? NOT A BEDPOST! FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, NO!" Freddie screamed from the the other cell, followed by the sound of a clubbing to the stomach.

"Uh.... I think we should leave."

"Mind if I tag along?"

"Oh! Not at all. In fact, we need someone to keep an eye on Sam." With that, the two girls left, and Sam peered out.

"You guys done?"

"Yeah, are you? Oh yeah, Lindsey's tagging along."

"Alright, just remember this Lindsey, I am the alpha blonde, you are the.. uh... lesser blonde."

"Sam!"

"It's alright Carly. I think we'll get along just fine."

A few minutes later, the four had reached the rec area. Sure enough, there were some unaware Vestigials hanging out around the pool area. The water was mostly gone, and there was an unfortunate Vestigial lying at the bottom, motionless. Carly realized that Sam still had the bedpost, and the other three were unarmed. Carly whispered to Sam, full of devious intent.

"Hey Sam. I just heard that guy on the left talk about ham. He said there was a stash that he has the key to, and his friend over there has the map to it."

"Ham? HAM? HAAAAAAAAAAM!!"Sam wailed, dashing at the about-to-be-unfortunate Vestigials. Smacking one in the face in an uppercutting motion, he tumbled into the pool, and landed headfirst into the bottom. The other Vestigial, realizing the shit he was in, began to run. Sam wasn't about to let these ham-hiding fools escape, and she boomeranged the bedpost and hit the man, knocking him to the ground. Sam finished him off using her bare hands, tossing him into the pool as well. She carefully climbed down to the bottom, and searched their pockets. One man didin fact have a map. Although it didn't look like the Detention Center. Instead, it seemed... well, not like it was to ham. She pocketed it, and checked the other man. He indeed had a key. Sam had thought this could have been a simple ploy to get her to eliminate the two, but was proven wrong. Carly, however, just stood, jaw dropped in shock at the fact they actually had the stuff she had made up. Sam handed the map to Carly. "Doesn't look like it has anything to do with ham. I hope you weren't lying." Carly just sat there, amazed. Sam began to check out the surrounding area with Freddie and Lindsey. Carly slowly regained her composure, and caught up. Sam had found a maintenance door. The key she had was a perfect fit, and they followed a dark tunnel to another door. It opened out a stairwell, which itself lead into a watchtower. Up above, they had one of the best views they had ever had.

"Woah....." Sam couldn't help but submit to the amazing landscape she could see.

"Well... where now...?" Lindsey responded, showing the same amazement.

Author note: Yup, the characters Penny, Lindsey, and KCJDC STILL belong to SquishyCool, whom, as of now, hasn't updated any fics! :(

And hey, where do you guys want to see them go next? For my (as of now) 2 reviewers.... SUGGEST THIS STORY TO YOUR FRIENDS! TELL THEM YOU LIKE IT, SPREAD THE WORD. Don't be greedy with meh.