Chapter 12: Finally Caught
I was right. There were quite a few paths in the ventilation. However, all but the one we were on went straight up. Have you ever tried to climb stainless steel? Don't try. Not to mention some of the vertical paths had fans moving quickly inside them.
"I hope da heat doesn't turn on." Ro said.
"Don't worry, Ro." I responded, looking back at the dog. "The heat can't run without power. The power plants around here can't run without workers. And with the disorder right now, I doubt there are any."
"Wat about generators? Dere could be one of dose here." he said back.
I shrugged. "Guess you're right. We'll just have to hope that this place doesn't heat up."
Ro looked past me, wide-eyed. "I don't think dat's our main problem now."
I looked forward. "What the heck is that?!"
Moving slowly toward us was a strange robot-like machine attached to the ceiling of the vent. It sported spinning razor blades jutting out from every angle. There was one open spot, where it had a red light, presumably the eye.
"I think that's the army's way of keeping out intruders!" I said quickly.
"Dey know we're here?!" Ro exclaimed as we backed away.
"No, it just seems to be making its rounds. Let's get outta its way-Ro!" Ro had stopped moving, and I had run into him.
"Dere's...a....gate..." Ro said dismally.
I looked back. Sure enough, a metal gate had come from nowhere, and prevented us from going any further.
"What now!!?" Ro said, scared. I thought about what we could do next....
I looked up. "Where there's a will, there's a way!" I had remembered about the fan blades. They were not that far up, and I easily reach them. "I'm gonna singe the fan so it falls off, Ro!" I said, while placing my backpack to the side and carefully raising my tail to the base of the fan.
"Ahhhh....I'll keep the robot busy!" Ro said back.
I accurately melted the metal so the blades would fall off. All the while, I heard Ro say, "Back, back you stupid thingy! Don't make me mad!"
The blades fell in front of me. "Here's where it get interesting." I smirked. "Get outta the way, Ro!" After Ro had gotten next to me, I charged the robot, fan blade in front of me. As I reached the robot, I thrust the blade with all my might into the mech's eye. It crackled and sparked for a second, and then began spinning aimlessly, still working.
"We getting it destroyed!" Ro smiled.
"Yeah, but it's still in our way..." I had two more fan blades in front of me. I took one and began pusing the robot the other direction. It didn't put up much of a fight, in its condition. I got to another vertical vent passage.
The robot was designed to run in all the shafts, so it wasn't hard pushing it up into the upper passageway; with the fan blade lifting it, of course. Once the robot was out of the way, I motioned Ro to get by with the backpack. I then quickly let go and moved forward before the robot crashed down. It landed on its side, unable to move and still running.
Later on, we reached a vent cover. We looked around the room it entered into. It was a small office, with no one in it. So I gave the vent a few kicks, and it fell out. As we crawled into the room, I realized how organized I was. Something I hadn't seen for a while.
"Really clean, isn't it Ro?" I said, wanting the dog's opinion.
He was looking at the backpack. "Uhhh...yeah....can we eat?"
"Sure. Here you go." I said, pening the backack and throwing him a jerky stick. He gobbled it up quicker than he had this morning. I took one myself and ate it.
"How many left?" Ro asked.
"Umm..." I started, glancing into the backpack. "Two left. Enough for one more meal."
"Kay." Ro simply said.
As I finished my jerky, I surveyed the room. To the right of the vent was a desk, made of some polished wood. To the right of that was several tall file cabinets. Next was a smaller desk, with many papers on top of it. Last, there was a door.
I tried the handle of the door, and it didn't budge. "There's gotta be a key somewhere...." I said aloud.
As I fished around inside the drawers, I went over the plan with Ro. "When the doors' unlocked, I want you to go out and quietly see if you can talk to one of the kids."
"Which ones do you want me to talk to? Ones with clothes or ones without clothes?" Ro strangely asked.
I paused. "What do you mean by 'with or without clothes'?"
Ro laughed. "Didn't you see dat half of dem were wearing clothes?"
I resumed searching. "I guess I didn't notice."
"Well, one of da birds was wearing a helmet, one of da plants was wearing a big hat, one of da bugs was wearing a backpack, one of da tigers was wearing a yellow shirt, and one of the seals was wearing glasses." Ro summed up. "Oh yeah! And one of the cats was wearing a shirt, scarf, and whistle!"
I shook my head. "How did you notice all these things without me seeing it, too...." I suddenly found what I was looking for among the papers of the small desk. The key. "Ah, never mind..."
As I unlocked the door, I continued the plan. "So, after you talk to one of them, any of them, tell him or her to come back here, to this room. Tell 'em that they can escape. Alright?" Ro nodded.
I opened the door very slightly and slowly, and Ro snuck out. I then closed the door.
After what seemed like hours, I heard some scratching on the door. Opening it, Ro slunk inside.
"How'd it go?" I questioned.
"I talked to da tiger with da shirt. He looked different."
"Different? How?"
"Um, a little more human, I guess." Ro loosely said.
I leaned against the door. "Okay, now this getting confusing....how did he get more human?"
"Don't look at me." Ro responded.
"Ah, well, what did he say in response?" I said while trying to put two and two together.
"He didn't say anything. I dunno if he believed me...." he answered. "It was easy ta talk to him, though."
"Why?" I asked.
"Da place is a place with beds an' food an' stuff. No cages!"
"Hmmm...A refuge? Interesting. I never would have expected this..." I guess things can be a lot different than they look.
"Yeah!" Ro agreed.
All of a sudden, someone outside yelled, "He's gonna blow!"
I hit the desk beside me with my fist. "Great, now we have to deal with a bomb?"
The door swung open at that point. Before I had even turned my head toward the intruder, I felt a sharp pain in my shoulder. It was a traquilizer dart, administered from a guard standing expressionless in the doorway. My vision blurred as I fell to the floor.
I was right. There were quite a few paths in the ventilation. However, all but the one we were on went straight up. Have you ever tried to climb stainless steel? Don't try. Not to mention some of the vertical paths had fans moving quickly inside them.
"I hope da heat doesn't turn on." Ro said.
"Don't worry, Ro." I responded, looking back at the dog. "The heat can't run without power. The power plants around here can't run without workers. And with the disorder right now, I doubt there are any."
"Wat about generators? Dere could be one of dose here." he said back.
I shrugged. "Guess you're right. We'll just have to hope that this place doesn't heat up."
Ro looked past me, wide-eyed. "I don't think dat's our main problem now."
I looked forward. "What the heck is that?!"
Moving slowly toward us was a strange robot-like machine attached to the ceiling of the vent. It sported spinning razor blades jutting out from every angle. There was one open spot, where it had a red light, presumably the eye.
"I think that's the army's way of keeping out intruders!" I said quickly.
"Dey know we're here?!" Ro exclaimed as we backed away.
"No, it just seems to be making its rounds. Let's get outta its way-Ro!" Ro had stopped moving, and I had run into him.
"Dere's...a....gate..." Ro said dismally.
I looked back. Sure enough, a metal gate had come from nowhere, and prevented us from going any further.
"What now!!?" Ro said, scared. I thought about what we could do next....
I looked up. "Where there's a will, there's a way!" I had remembered about the fan blades. They were not that far up, and I easily reach them. "I'm gonna singe the fan so it falls off, Ro!" I said, while placing my backpack to the side and carefully raising my tail to the base of the fan.
"Ahhhh....I'll keep the robot busy!" Ro said back.
I accurately melted the metal so the blades would fall off. All the while, I heard Ro say, "Back, back you stupid thingy! Don't make me mad!"
The blades fell in front of me. "Here's where it get interesting." I smirked. "Get outta the way, Ro!" After Ro had gotten next to me, I charged the robot, fan blade in front of me. As I reached the robot, I thrust the blade with all my might into the mech's eye. It crackled and sparked for a second, and then began spinning aimlessly, still working.
"We getting it destroyed!" Ro smiled.
"Yeah, but it's still in our way..." I had two more fan blades in front of me. I took one and began pusing the robot the other direction. It didn't put up much of a fight, in its condition. I got to another vertical vent passage.
The robot was designed to run in all the shafts, so it wasn't hard pushing it up into the upper passageway; with the fan blade lifting it, of course. Once the robot was out of the way, I motioned Ro to get by with the backpack. I then quickly let go and moved forward before the robot crashed down. It landed on its side, unable to move and still running.
Later on, we reached a vent cover. We looked around the room it entered into. It was a small office, with no one in it. So I gave the vent a few kicks, and it fell out. As we crawled into the room, I realized how organized I was. Something I hadn't seen for a while.
"Really clean, isn't it Ro?" I said, wanting the dog's opinion.
He was looking at the backpack. "Uhhh...yeah....can we eat?"
"Sure. Here you go." I said, pening the backack and throwing him a jerky stick. He gobbled it up quicker than he had this morning. I took one myself and ate it.
"How many left?" Ro asked.
"Umm..." I started, glancing into the backpack. "Two left. Enough for one more meal."
"Kay." Ro simply said.
As I finished my jerky, I surveyed the room. To the right of the vent was a desk, made of some polished wood. To the right of that was several tall file cabinets. Next was a smaller desk, with many papers on top of it. Last, there was a door.
I tried the handle of the door, and it didn't budge. "There's gotta be a key somewhere...." I said aloud.
As I fished around inside the drawers, I went over the plan with Ro. "When the doors' unlocked, I want you to go out and quietly see if you can talk to one of the kids."
"Which ones do you want me to talk to? Ones with clothes or ones without clothes?" Ro strangely asked.
I paused. "What do you mean by 'with or without clothes'?"
Ro laughed. "Didn't you see dat half of dem were wearing clothes?"
I resumed searching. "I guess I didn't notice."
"Well, one of da birds was wearing a helmet, one of da plants was wearing a big hat, one of da bugs was wearing a backpack, one of da tigers was wearing a yellow shirt, and one of the seals was wearing glasses." Ro summed up. "Oh yeah! And one of the cats was wearing a shirt, scarf, and whistle!"
I shook my head. "How did you notice all these things without me seeing it, too...." I suddenly found what I was looking for among the papers of the small desk. The key. "Ah, never mind..."
As I unlocked the door, I continued the plan. "So, after you talk to one of them, any of them, tell him or her to come back here, to this room. Tell 'em that they can escape. Alright?" Ro nodded.
I opened the door very slightly and slowly, and Ro snuck out. I then closed the door.
After what seemed like hours, I heard some scratching on the door. Opening it, Ro slunk inside.
"How'd it go?" I questioned.
"I talked to da tiger with da shirt. He looked different."
"Different? How?"
"Um, a little more human, I guess." Ro loosely said.
I leaned against the door. "Okay, now this getting confusing....how did he get more human?"
"Don't look at me." Ro responded.
"Ah, well, what did he say in response?" I said while trying to put two and two together.
"He didn't say anything. I dunno if he believed me...." he answered. "It was easy ta talk to him, though."
"Why?" I asked.
"Da place is a place with beds an' food an' stuff. No cages!"
"Hmmm...A refuge? Interesting. I never would have expected this..." I guess things can be a lot different than they look.
"Yeah!" Ro agreed.
All of a sudden, someone outside yelled, "He's gonna blow!"
I hit the desk beside me with my fist. "Great, now we have to deal with a bomb?"
The door swung open at that point. Before I had even turned my head toward the intruder, I felt a sharp pain in my shoulder. It was a traquilizer dart, administered from a guard standing expressionless in the doorway. My vision blurred as I fell to the floor.