"Santana!" I turn to see Quinn jogging toward me. I'm still standing in the same spot I was when I watched the helicopter fly away. "Come on, let's go!"
I focus my attention back to the sky, silently praying that Brittany is safe. Wherever she is.
"You can explain more on the way, but we gotta get to The Shadow League!" She grabs my arm when she gets within reach.
I snatch it back out of her grip and glare. "No, I'm not going there. You think they're gonna do anything, anyways?"
"Santana, someone's been kidnapped. I'm sure they'll pull their heads out of their asses for this one."
"It doesn't matter." I shake my head. "They didn't bother to help when it was a threat, so I don't want their help now."
"Well then, what do you propose we do, then?" She crosses her arms over her chest.
"I have no clue, Q," I mutter quietly, gazing at the twinkling stars above us. "That's the worst part."
Her features soften and she takes a step closer. "Look, why don't you get in the car, and we can figure something out, okay?"
I don't respond for a while as my brain starts going through all the scenarios I hope Brittany isn't facing right now. God, thinking about it is giving me a headache. I can't seem to stop, though.
"Okay," I say with a slight nod of my head. "Where are we going?"
"We can just go back to my place for now and brainstorm. If you feel like we should call Mike or The Shadow League, I think it'd be a good idea."
"But what do you think they're gonna do? Ice us out? Say they'll handle this on their own." I let my hands fall to my side, hopeless. "They're going to do the exact same thing they did when I first came to them when all this started. We'll be left in the dark, Q…and I can't let that happen." I say the last part with determination in my voice.
"Okay, you win." She puts her hands up in surrender. "And I hate to admit it, but you might have a point. God, I can't believe I'm agreeing with you twice in the span of one day." She mutters.
I can't help the small smile that graces my lips, knowing that I have Quinn's support with this.
"I get that you want to go to The Shadow League…I do. And if this was anybody else, I might agree with you. But this is my girlfriend, my fight, and it's my fault she's gone…so I have to make it right."
I breeze past Quinn and start walking in the direction she came from. She furrows her brows in confusion and stares at me for a second before jogging to catch up with me.
"Wait, hold on…how is this your fault?" We're walking side by side now.
I take a deep breath, willing myself not to tear up while explaining. "I let her go out by herself. We had a fight and I just…let her go. God, I knew the circumstances and I knew that something wasn't right…but I did it anyway." I shake my head in shame.
"Okay, let's get one thing straight. This, in no way, is your fault." I can feel her gaze boring into my side profile. "You may have had uneasy feelings about it, but she's a grown woman…you can't be looking after her all the time. It's not good for you, and it's not good for her. It puts unwanted stress on both of you."
"Right," I say, unconvinced. "But I knew something would happen! They always say to trust your gut, and I didn't."
I watch as my feet move one at a time, one step in front of the other. I'm trusting that Quinn's leading us to her car since I'm not really watching where we're going.
"So you're telling me you knew for a fact that something would happen if you let her go out alone?" I don't have to look at her face to tell that her eyebrows are almost to her hairline.
"Well…not exactly. But I had a gut feeling about it."
"Exactly. A feeling, Santana. Look, I don't know what I would've done in your situation, probably the same thing, but you didn't do anything wrong. She wanted to go, Santana, which is understandable. Did you just expect her to be under your gaze for the rest of her life?"
I start to think…you know, that actually wouldn't be so bad.
"Maybe," I mutter.
"No. She won't," She deadpans. "I get that you love and want to protect her, but I think this was going to happen one way or another."
She reaches into her pocket and pulls out her car keys. I see a flash of yellow from her lights in my peripheral vision, showing that she has unlocked her car. We part ways and walk to the appropriate sides of the car to get in.
"You really think this was inevitable?" I ask, looking straight out the windshield.
"In some form or fashion…yes. When Rory wants something, he gets it…no matter how long it takes."
"You really think Rory's the one behind this?" I finally turn to look at her.
"Well, I doubt that Sebastian guy has enough balls to plan an operation like this." She chuckles.
I crack a smile, knowing she's probably right. He does seem a little wimpy.
"Rory's not one to be messed with, though." Her smile falls as she continues. "He's really powerful, smart, and sneaky. Getting anything past him is going to be tricky."
I knit my brows together. "But, you guys saved me from him once. That seemed pretty easy. Why can't we just do it again?"
"It's not that simple." She lets out a sigh. "For your rescue mission, I had all The Shadow League's technology. I had a jet to get there, gadgets to get past the system…we don't have any of that now."
"Is there a way to get it?" I ask.
I can tell she has an idea by the way her lips purse and her eyes shift slightly downwards.
"There might be one way." She says, taking a deep breath and starting the car.
/
"Thanks for meeting us here…I know you probably have plans, and it's a work night and everything, but we really appreciate it."
"Really, Quinn, it's no big deal. I wasn't doing anything anyways." Artie wheels from the front of Quinn's apartment over to the living room where I'm sitting. "But, I am a little confused as to what exactly you want from me."
Quinn lets out a nervous laugh and rubs her forehead. "You want anything to drink? I have water, soda, alcohol…"
"I'm good, thanks. What can I do for you ladies?"
He has a smile on his face, but I think it has a pretty good chance of being wiped off once he figures out what we want from him.
"Long story short," Quinn starts. "Brittany's been kidnapped, and we need your help…" She trails off and glances at me. "Stealing some of The Shadow League's equipment so we can rescue her."
She winces, like she's nervously expecting to be hit with something, and holds her breath as we wait for a response. I can't really find it within myself to be worried or nervous about anything but Brittany's safety.
His jaw drops open, and he stares at us, dumbfounded.
Yup…I was right. That smile went away pretty quickly.
"W-wait," He stutters. "You want me to steal top-secret Shadow League equipment…so you can rescue…" He trails off, not remembering who the target of the rescue mission is.
"Brittany," I snap, not liking how unimportant this seems to him when it means all the world to me.
"Well, maybe steal was the wrong word…" Quinn bobs her head from side to side. "I guess the right word would be borrow."
He looks back and forth between us like he's trying to decipher if we're being serious.
"Um…I don't think that's the best idea. I say if you need The Shadow League's help, then you tell someone with higher authority about it."
"That's the whole point!" I say exasperatedly as I stand from the couch. "I tried…multiple times. Mike said they 'had everything under control,'" I use air quotes to emphasize my point. "And kept blowing me off!"
"You told them someone was kidnapped?" He raises his eyebrows.
"Well, not exactly." I roll my eyes.
"I'm confused…then what exactly did you tell them?" His eyes squint and his brows furrow in confusion since he's clearly lost.
"Santana's been spotting Sebastian on the street recently, and she tried to warn Mike about it, but he just blew her off and said it was nothing to worry about. Now, her girlfriend's gone, and she feels like it's her responsibility and doesn't need The Shadow League's help." Quinn explains.
"If they wanted to help, they would've done something when the threats started." I shrug my shoulders.
"Oh-kay," He drawls out. "Do either of you even have a plan of action?"
"Well," Quinn turns to look at me. "Not yet…but we were kinda hoping you'd help us with that part, too?"
Artie lets out a sigh and looks at his lap. "And when is this taking place?"
"As soon as we can…the less time Rory has with Brittany, the better." I step closer, really hoping he'll agree.
"Okay…" He takes a deep breath. "I'll get you the jet, but neither of you knows how to fly it."
"I know how to fly the-," Quinn pipes up.
"Not like I can," He interrupts. "And I can get you clearance into the equipment room, but I'm not going to be caught taking it…that's up to you."
A big smile comes across Quinn's face at hearing his agreement. We both start nodding our heads, agreeing with his plan.
"I'll give you my card, but you have to be quick…in and out, got it?" He questions. We both continue nodding our heads. "And I'll fly the jet to Rory's compound, ensuring we stay hidden, but the rest is up to you."
"We get it," I say. I'm glad that he's willing to help us out, I am, but the worry sinking deeper into my stomach by the minute overpowers everything else.
"I'll drive us there," Quinn says, grabbing her keys off the front table.
/
Twenty minutes later, Quinn and I are stalking through the dark halls of one of The Shadow League's buildings that holds the mission equipment. We have to walk quietly since other supers are living on this floor, and they're probably all asleep.
"Do you even know which room it is?" I ask Quinn since it seems like we've been walking for forever.
"Um…not exactly, but I know what the door looks like, so we'll find it eventually. I've never been there, but I know it's on this floor."
I roll my eyes. If she didn't know where the room was, why didn't we ask Artie for directions before entering the building?
Artie's up on the roof, preparing the jet for the flight. He said he had to program the coordinates in or something like that, along with making sure it had enough fuel to get us there.
"Well, if you could try to find it faster, that'd be great. Time's ticking, and we don't know how much of it we have." I grit.
"God, calm down, would you? You don't even know that Brittany's in danger…you're just assuming the worst-case scenario."
"That's how I was raised, Quinn. Expect the worst, and you can never be disappointed."
I don't need to be able to see her to know she's rolling her eyes. "We've been down most of the halls, so it should be coming up soon."
We continue walking for a few minutes before Quinn spots the door. As we get closer, I recognize the symbol on the front of it. It's the same symbol that was on the warehouse that Mike took me to when I visited him at work. The day everything changed.
Quinn places Artie's card on the scanner and waits for the green light to flash before opening the door. The room before us is filled to the brim with various tools and equipment. There are guns lined up on the wall, ranging from small to large, and there are desks and cabinets lined up, I guess holding the smaller gadgets.
"What do we need?" I ask as I enter the room and shut the door behind me.
"We should only need a couple of things. One, look for a tiny black stick, almost like a screwdriver…that'll get us past the security system. Two, grab a gun and some gear…any extra protection wouldn't hurt."
Quinn starts looking along the wall and through various drawers on the right side of the room while I search along the left.
"Okay, I found the pick…just grab some gear and the gun." She says as she shoves two small black objects into her belt. "And please," She stops to look at me. "Don't get a huge one…I know it seems fun, but the smaller ones are better for this situation."
I stop in my tracks, honestly offended that she just assumed I would go for the bigger weapons. "Why do you think I'd go straight for those?"
"Santana, I can see you walking towards the bazooka." She points to where I'm standing, which is in front of the wall with the biggest guns.
"Okay, I was just observing them. Can't a girl look?"
She rolls her eyes and continues rummaging around the room, gathering different chest plates and utility belts that could come to use.
I grab a smaller handgun off the rack and fiddle with it. "Is this one okay?"
"Perfect…grab one for me too, will you?" I nod and reach up to grab an identical one. "And grab some ammo… the last thing we need is to run out and be stuck."
"Good idea." I open the drawer below the handguns and grab several bullets. "Where are we gonna put them?"
"Here," She tosses me a utility belt, which falls to the floor since my hands are full.
"Now how would I be able to catch that? You see what's in my hands, right?" I stare at her, expressionless.
She gives me a sheepish smile and hurries over to pick it up off the ground. She takes the second gun out of my hand and places the belt in its place.
"Put it around your waist and it'll hold all the stuff we grab. Your gun, ammo, everything."
"Cool," I nod, setting the items in my hand down on a nearby desk to put the belt on.
"Alright…I think that's everything," Quinn says as she puts on her belt. "You ready?"
I place the gun and ammo in the slots on the band around my waist and nod determinedly.
"Ready."
"Let's get this show on the road, then." She smirks.
/
"Five minutes out, guys!" I hear Artie call from the front of the plane.
Part of me is extremely nervous for what we're possibly about to face, but the other part is determined to do whatever it takes to get Brittany back in my arms.
"We should probably head towards the back." Quinn walks up to where I'm sitting. "Artie said he's going to open the exit ramp and we have to get out fast so no one spots the jet here."
"Okay," I say, sounding distracted.
"Hey, you okay?" Quinn reaches out a hand to pat my shoulder as I stand.
"Yeah." I let out a breath. "I'm good…"
"Hopefully, it'll all go smooth…in and out…so there isn't anything definite to be worried about right now. Plus, I'm here with you, so we got this." She smiles, trying to cheer me up.
"Thanks, Quinn." I give her a side hug and walk toward the back of the plane. Quinn follows shortly after.
"Okay, girls! I'm opening the back in exactly 30 seconds! Be careful out there, okay?"
"Promise!" Quinn responds as we both brace ourselves for the journey that lies ahead of us.
Just as Artie said, the ramp started to descend thirty seconds later and Quinn and I sprinted out. As soon as our feet hit the ground, we kept running until we reached a dark side of the building. I turned to look at where the jet once was, and it was already taking off again.
Well, that was quick.
"You remember the plan?" Quinn whispers.
"Yeah, I think so. Go in, stay in the shadows, find Brittany…simple." I shrug my shoulders as I look at our surroundings, making sure no one is outside.
"Santana." Quinn smacks my shoulder. "This is serious…I don't think you realize how dangerous this could get if either of us fucks up."
I glare at her and rub my now throbbing shoulder before responding. "Quinn, I understand…I just don't care. All that's important right now is getting Brittany…I don't care about my safety."
"Well you should!" She whisper yells. "Because if you get caught, that puts Brittany in danger too. How are you going to rescue her if you get stuck?"
She has a point. As much as I want to get in there as fast as possible, we have to play this smart.
"Remember…stay on the down low! We're splitting up, but we both have comms, so if we get into trouble or find Brittany, we let the other one know."
"Got it." I roll my eyes.
"Good…now follow me. We have to get in the building if we want to find her." She starts tiptoeing away, making sure to stay close to the wall, in the direction of the nearest side door.
"Do we even have any clue where she could be?"
"Nope…that's why it's so important for us to stay hidden. We have no clue where she is, or what will happen to her if we get caught."
I gulp down my nerves at hearing her sentence. I didn't think about it like that before. If we get caught, of course they would know we were there for Brittany!
"Okay, I'm gonna bypass the security on this door, and when it opens, we split into opposite directions. Got it?" She reaches into her belt, gets out the slender black tool she grabbed in the equipment room, and holds it out in front of her.
"Yes, Quinn." I say sarcastically.
She rolls her eyes and inserts the sharp end of the tool into the lock on the door. She twists it a few times and presses the star key on the nearby keypad. When it lights up green, she quickly turns the handle and opens the door.
We enter the building as fast as we can and shut the door behind us. There's an adjoining hallway connected to the door, and Quinn motions to the left, silently telling me to go that way.
I nod and start slinking down the hallway, making sure I'm light on my feet. I look behind me to see Quinn walking similarly in the opposite direction. She has one hand on the gun in her belt, so I copy her position and do the same to mine.
I gotta be prepared…just in case.
The hallways are mostly dark, other than a small can light that illuminates just the center of the hall to create a walkway. I guess if someone was really looking, they could spot me, but they'd have to have an eye out.
I made sure to keep my card in my bra, just in case Quinn finds anything or gets in trouble so that I can have easy access to communication.
As I continue walking, I pass by various doors with no clue what they lead to. I don't want to just bust the door down without knowing what's on the other side, so I keep walking.
I wonder if Brittany is on the other side of one of these doors that I passed. I could be so close to her, yet so far at the same time.
Right now, I think the best bet would be to keep walking until I come across any clue as to where she could be. Maybe she's in an open room? Maybe I'll come across someone talking about her?
My thoughts are interrupted when I hear footsteps coming in my direction. I press my body as flush to the wall as I can and hold my breath, trying to remain as still as possible.
A man in a dark blue exercise suit walks past me, and I immediately recognize him as one of Rory's Warblers. But what's he doing walking the hallways this late?
When he gets far enough away for me to move again, I continue walking. I only get a couple hundred feet further when another Warbler comes down the hall. Maybe Rory has them patrolling the buildings when everyone's asleep.
That's actually kinda smart.
I decide to keep going after the second guy passes, but when I spot a third one a few minutes later, I decide it's no longer safe to keep walking down the hall.
Honestly, I have no clue where else I would go. There's literally one hallway, and if I turn around, I'd just be backpedaling on ground I've already covered.
But if I keep walking forward, I risk the possibility of getting caught eventually. Who knows how many more Warblers I'm gonna come in close contact with?
I look to the ceiling and search my brain for ideas on what I should do from here. I look at the grey tiles connected to each other, willing an idea to come to me.
My eyes roam to the left and I spot an air vent. I snap into motion and move closer to the metal plate. I cock my head to the side and study the entrance, pondering if I'll be able to fit through it.
It's too tall for me to reach up and pull the metal plate down to give me a way in, but luckily I have other skills to help me out. I look both ways down the hall to make sure no one's coming.
I look at the piece of metal blocking the way in and move it out of the way. I made sure to stay pinned close to the wall so I didn't cause any attention to myself.
I silently thank Mike for training me to use my powers without using my hands since it's coming in handy now.
As the metal plate starts to move, it makes a slight scraping sound, causing me to wince.
Please no one hear me. Please no one hear me.
I keep the metal in motion, just trying to get it over with, until it's completely slid to the side. I let out a breath of relief when I see no one coming down the hall to inspect the sound.
I look both ways again before moving out into the light of the hall and jump up to grab the edges of the entrance I made. I do a pull-up and shimmy myself into the air vent before turning around and placing the metal plate back in place.
I lean against the interior wall and let out a breath of relief. The inside of the air vent is a pretty narrow tunnel, so I'll have to be on my hands and knees to navigate through it.
I slowly move into a crawling position and start moving down the path. It seems to be pretty sturdy, so it's not making any noise with my movement.
As I continue to crawl through the vent, I start to think about what advantage I could have from up here. I could have easy access to the rooms since I can see and hear through the grates, but I also can't move as quickly as I could on the ground.
Occasionally, I come across an air vent peering down into the hallway. I can see Warblers walking past every so often, and I make sure to be as quiet as I can when I see them come into my vision.
After a few minutes, I come to an intersection in the vents and can choose to go either right or left. I look both ways, trying to figure out which way could lead me to Brittany.
Suddenly, I hear muffled voices echoing through the vent. I snap my head to the left and decide to move closer to the source of the sound.
I see another air vent a few hundred feet ahead of me, but this one must lead down to a separate room instead of the hallway. I slowly move closer and closer to the slits of light coming through and reflecting off the walls until I can get a semi-clear view of the room below me.
I crane my neck in different directions, trying to survey every inch of the room I can. The voices hadn't spoken in a few moments, so I wasn't able to see who they belonged to.
Just as I start to move past the vent, I hear a slight groan and what sounds like papers slamming down on a wooden desk.
"He's so impossible!" I recognized the voice instantly. "Do this, Blaine. Do that, Blaine. Oh, but no matter what you do, and how well you do it, it'll never be good enough!"
God, is there ever a day when he's not complaining about something?
I changed positions to get a clearer look at the room, making sure Blaine was alone. Although I doubt anyone was in the room with him since he was backtalking whoever was just talking to him.
I hear him plop down in his seat and let out a sigh. Assuming now is as good a chance I'm gonna get to find out where Brittany is, I slowly move the metal grate from its spot.
Once I have a clear hole in front of me, I position myself so I'll land on my feet, and jump down.
Oh, and you know I made sure to do one of those cool superhero poses when I landed.
I quickly hit the ground with a soft thud and landed in a crouching position with one hand bracing myself in the front.
"Ahh!" Blaine yells and falls back in his chair, successfully tumbling out on his back. I raise my head with a smirk and stand to walk over to him.
"Well, well, what do we have here?" I cross my arms and look down at the man scrambling on the ground beneath me.
"Santana?" He asks, confusion written on his face. "What are you doing here?" He's still lying on the ground, but he's not writhing as much anymore.
"I think you're the person that should be answering that question." I cock my head to the side and scowl at him.
"T-this is where I work," He says nonchalantly as he stands to his feet. "I told you I got the new job, right?"
"Sure, sure." I nod. "But you left out the fact that you're working for Rory."
His eyes widen briefly before he screws his face up, pretending to be confused. "I have no clue what you're talking about."
I stare at him for a moment. "Do you think I'm stupid?" I deadpan.
"What? No, of course not." He shakes his head.
"Okay." I start gesturing around the room. "Then why would you be in Rory's compound if you didn't work for him? And why were you having interviews with Sebastian if you didn't work for him?"
His shoulders deflate, and he looks down at his shoes.
"So let me ask you this…why are you working for him?"
"Because why not?!" He yells and throws his arms out dramatically. "It's great pay, a great… opportunity. I couldn't pass it up."
"I don't believe that…not for a second." I grit. "But you know what? I don't really care that much anyways. If anything, I should be happy you're here."
"Why?" He looks up at me with knitted brows.
"Because." I smirk. "It makes it so much easier to find Britt knowing you can access her location." I take a step closer.
He takes a step back. "And why would you assume that?"
"I'm not assuming that you specifically have access…but you can get me access."
"Well, you're assuming wrong. I don't have access to the confinement quarters…only certain people do." He shrugs his shoulders.
"Fine. But you just gave me what I needed." I start to walk back towards the air vent. "You wouldn't happen to know where this 'confinement quarters' is, do you?"
"Nope," He smirks.
For a second, I think about walking back over and slapping that stupid smile off his face, but then I remind myself what I'm really here for. I can have fun with him later.
"See ya, Blaine." I jump up and grab hold of the edges of the air vent, hoisting myself into it again. "Oh!" I peek my head back down to look at him. "And if you tell anyone about your encounter with me…well, let's just say we hope that doesn't happen. For your sake." I say with a charming smile before leaning back in and placing the grate over the exposed hole.
I move further down the vent, making sure I'm out of earshot, before taking my card out of my bra to dial Quinn.
When I hear a slight click on the other line, signaling she had answered, I start talking fast.
"Quinn! I think I found where Brittany is! And guess where I got it? Blaine, of all people. I don't know exactly what he's doing here, or what his part is, but he slipped and told me where they're keeping her."
When I hear nothing but dead silence on the other end, confusion takes the place of where my excitement is.
"Quinn?" I ask into the line.
"Are you done talking?" It's not Quinn's voice on the other end of the call. Instead, it's the familiar accent I hoped never to hear from again. "I'm gonna forget what I was going to say in my evil monologue if you don't shut up."
I don't say anything but blink rapidly in shock. How did Rory get hold of Quinn's card?
"Ah, thank you. Anyways…I must admire your courage to break in and attempt this rescue mission. But you didn't think it'd be this easy, did you?" He laughs. "See, I have this thing called control, Santana. I have it on Quinn, and I have it on you."
My brows furrow in confusion as my heart drops into my stomach.
"I'm honestly offended you thought I was so dubious that I wouldn't notice you two sneaking around the building." His voice goes even. "And I have to thank you, as well, because now I know I have a traitor I need to take care of." He clears his throat. "But you'll know all of this soon enough. I have every Warbler scouring every inch of the halls, the rooms, and it'll be impossible to avoid your capture."
He pauses for a moment, waiting for my response. I don't have anything to say to him, though.
"Let me ask you a question, though. Do you still think it was a smart plan to withhold this from The Shadow League and go rogue?"
I swallow thickly as I hear loud footsteps coming from below me. I hang up the call and grip the card tight in my hand. As I hear the steps grow closer and closer, I shut my eyes tightly in anticipation of being caught.
However, I notice the steps recede just after reaching the peak volume. I furrow my brows as I hear another set of stomps come down the hall but then do the same thing.
I shuffle quietly towards the vent that gives me view into the hallway only a few feet away, and peer down. I see Warblers surveying the halls, checking every shadow, but then keep walking.
They don't know I'm in the air vent. They must assume I'm on the ground.
I smile a little in relief, but it quickly fades when I remember the conversation that took place moments prior.
Quinn's been caught.
I wonder if she's going to the same place as Brittany. How could I find out where the confinement quarters are now? Quinn was my only hope in finding it.
I rest the back of my head against the metal wall and look around, wracking my brain for any ideas. Maybe this was reckless. Who did I think I was trying to hide this from The Shadow League?
I look down at my hand, still clutching my card, and get an idea. Well, I don't know if it'll work for certain, but I can try.
Does this thing have a location tracker? If so, maybe I can locate Quinn's card to the last place it was active. Hopefully Rory was in the quarters so I can have a pinpoint as to where it is.
I tap on the card a couple of times, willing something to happen. It's not quite like a cell phone, so I'm not totally sure how to work it. I press and hold the surface for too long, I guess, because an automated voice rings through the tunnel.
"Yes? How may I assist you today?"
"Shut up!" I whisper shout at the device.
Then, bold print appears on the screen, displaying the words: Silent Mode Activated. I let out a breath of relief and continue fiddling with the device to find what I'm looking for.
I grow frustrated as I can't figure out how to work the damn thing. I'm just about to give up when I slap my hand across my forehead, feeling stupid.
I press and hold the screen for a moment, just like I did before, and a message pops up on the screen instead of the automated voice.
Yes? How may I help you today?
I whisper into the card, "Location." and hope it works. After a few seconds, a new message pops up.
Which contact's location are you interested in?
I whisper Quinn's name into the speaker, and a tiny map appears a few seconds later. I smile and breathe out a sigh of relief at seeing the blinking red dot showing where her last location was.
I use the card as my navigation device and follow the directions it shows to get to the pinpointed location. I look down at the ground below me every time I pass by an air vent, and I notice that the lights seem to get dimmer the further I go.
Towards the end, there is a steep decline in the tunnel, making it to where I'd have to slide down instead of crawling. I keep my hand on the surface, so I wouldn't slide too fast and lose control, as I inch down the rest of the way.
The pinpoint is getting closer and closer now, but when I look down, there's nothing but pitch black beneath me. I shuffle a few more feet until I reach the next opening, and notice a single dim light hanging from the ceiling.
This looks all too familiar.
I keep moving until I'm right on top of the blinking red location marker and try to look around for any sign of movement in the room.
Just as I was about to move the air vent out of the way and hop down, I hear a door open and shut, along with heavy footsteps on the staircase.
I see Sebastian walk in a few seconds later with a wooden chair and rope.
He smirks as he walks further into the room and sets the items down. "Aw, ladies…don't be sad. You'll have more company in just a few minutes. Santana won't be able to stay hidden for very long." He chuckles.
"I'll be back once they find her!" He shouts with a small wave over his shoulder as he ascends the stairs.
I wait a few moments after I hear the door shut to make my move. I make sure to be quiet as I move the grate out of the way to create an opening. I position myself over the hole once again and hop out.
I make sure to land in my super-cool-superhero-pose again as I land softly on the ground. It was a much farther drop than when I jumped at Blaine, but I landed on my feet all the same.
"Really?" Quinn deadpans.
"What?" I stand and wipe my hands on my pants. "You know I like to make an entrance."
My eyes move over to Brittany, excited to see her safe and sound, but my face falls when I see her condition. She's tied up with her hands behind her back, duck tape on her mouth, and passed out.
"What'd they do to you, Britt?" I walk over to where she's sitting and crouch down to be at eye level with her.
I brush a strand of hair out of her face and move it behind her neck when I see the giant bruise sitting atop her skin.
"Quinn, what is this?" I run my finger smoothly along the outside of the thick purple bruise on her neck.
Quinn cranes her neck to try and get a view before shrugging her shoulders. "I don't know…can't really see from here." She says simply. "But maybe if you untied me, I could help you figure it out and get us out of here!" She raises her voice and thrashes under the ropes holding her still.
"Can you not use your powers to get out?" I ask, looking at her with an incredulous expression on my face.
"Gee, I wish I had thought of that." She bites sarcastically. "Santana, look at my ankle." I look down at her right ankle and see a thick device wrapped tightly around it. "It's keeping me from using my powers."
"Okay, how do we get it off?" I ask, but not moving from my position in front of Brittany. I moved by hand from the side of her face to rest atop her knee.
She looks at me like she can't believe what I'm asking. "Look at it again, Santana…really hard." I gaze down at her ankle again, trying to figure out what she's talking about. "What's it made of?"
I reach out to run my finger along the side of it. "It looks like it's some kind of technological device with a hard-"
"It's metal! It's made of metal, Santana." She sighs exasperatedly.
My eyes widen in recognition, now understanding what she's been trying to bring my attention to. I focus on the device until I hear a loud crack as it snaps off her ankle.
"Okay, we have to go. Now." She says urgently as she helps me untie Brittany's hands and feet.
"Is Sebastian coming back soon?"
"No clue…they could pop in at any moment, and we gotta get out of here before they do. How'd you get in here, anyway?" She looks up with her eyebrows furrowed.
I point up to the open air vent and her eyes go wide.
"How are we supposed to get up there?" She shakes her head.
"Well, you have access to your powers, right?" She looks at me and nods her head. "So, I'll help you get up first, then use your powers to get Brittany, and then I'll jump up and meet you halfway to get me in. Simple." I shrug my shoulders.
"Won't that make a lot of noise? I hear those air vents are really loud."
"I haven't had a problem. I've been crawling through them pretty much the whole time we've been here."
"Okay," She relents, letting out a sigh. "Let's get a move-on then."
/
"Call Artie," Quinn says from behind me.
I stop crawling and turn my head to glare at her. I have Brittany laid across my back, so I'm not too sure how she expects me to do that.
"Why can't you call him, Fabray? Don't you see how it could be a little hard for me to, given my current position?" I roll my eyes.
"Rory took mine, wiseass. Yours is the only one left we have, so you have to make the call."
"Here," I take the card out of my pocket and throw it back to her. "You do it."
She groans and taps the device a few times before bringing it to her ear.
"Artie? Hey, we're ready for pickup…yeah, we got her…thanks…well, we couldn't have done it without you-" She talks sweetly.
I snatch it from her and hang it up.
"Hey!" She exclaims.
"Sorry, Q. You can talk to your boyfriend later, but we have to figure out how to get out of here right now."
"Fine." She relents. "We need to go back to where he dropped us off, so our best bet is to get as close to the doors as possible before jumping out."
I nod in agreement. This plan might be easier said than done, though, since we have an unconscious Britt to take care of.
"Do you know the way back from here?" I ask her as we continue crawling.
"Somewhat. If we just follow the hall, it'll take us there. This building's just a big circle, so it shouldn't be too hard."
"Easy for you to say…you're not having to carry another person on your back."
"No, I'm just gonna have your ass in my face the rest of the way…I think that's a whole lot worse." She snarks back. "And besides, you're the one that has enhanced strength, so it's easier for you than it would be for me."
I roll my eyes. It's not that I have a problem carrying Britt, just that it's slightly inconvenient. I pictured her being awake when we rescued her, and I'm honestly a little annoyed she isn't. I know it's not her fault, but all I want to do is apologize and kiss her senseless - and I can't do that if she's unconscious.
"Here." Quinn speaks up after many minutes of navigating through the air vents. "I can see the door. We just have to figure out how to get down without getting caught."
I look below us at the hallway, which still has Warblers coming and going rather often. I knit my brows, thinking hard to come up with an escape plan.
"Okay, here's what we're going to do. We'll hope down, one at a time, and make sure to keep out of sight. I'll jump down first, you give me Britt-"
I'm interrupted by a loud siren echoing through the walls. The once-white light in the hallway is now turned to a bright shade of red, blinking on time with the siren.
"What the hell?" Quinn practically yells as she covers her ears.
"Attention! Attention! Captives have escaped! Captives have escaped!" We hear an automated female voice drown out the siren repeating the message over and over.
I look down and see Warbler after Warbler running in the same direction…probably toward the quarters where Quinn and Britt were being held.
"Now's our chance." I turn to Quinn with a determined nod. "They're all running in the opposite direction. If we go now, we might make it out."
"Is Artie here?" She asks.
"No clue. But we have to go now. It's our best chance of getting out of here."
She nods her head in agreement. "Ready?"
"Don't have much of a choice." I chuckle. "I'll go down, and you give me Britt, okay?"
"Okay."
I move the metal grate out of the way and look both ways before hopping out of the air vent for what I hope to be the last time. I look back up at Quinn and open my arms, telling her I'm ready for Brittany.
She slowly lowers her body into my arms before hopping down herself. I use my powers to move the grate back into its original position after she clears the entry.
We make a break for the nearby door, running as fast as we can. Quinn grabs the handle, but we hear someone yelling right before she opens it.
"Hey!" I turn around and see Karofsky running towards us.
"Uh, Quinn?" I call out to her.
"Run." She says simply before pushing the door open and sprinting outside.
We look up and see Artie's jet just beginning to land. We run towards the plane, hoping to make it inside before Jumbo can catch up with us. Despite his size, the dude's actually pretty fast.
Not to mention, my speed is significantly slowed since I'm carrying Britt.
Artie must see our predicament, because he doesn't fully land the jet on the ground. Similarly to when I was rescued, he opened the entrance ramp and started inching forward again.
As soon as we could reach it, Quinn and I jumped on the ramp, allowing Artie to switch it to close. I sat Britt down on a nearby seat and let out a breath of relief, believing we were in the clear now.
However, just as the ramp was getting out of arms reach, Karofsky jumped and grabbed onto the edge, pulling himself up and onto the plane.
Quinn immediately ran over to him with a swift kick in the stomach as he was regaining balance, but he didn't fall off. He stumbled backward, but got in position to charge her. There wasn't much she could do, given their position on the closing ramp.
As he started running towards her, I jumped up and met him halfway with a smooth punch in the jaw. I immediately felt my hand cramp up with pain…I'm pretty sure I just broke one of my knuckles.
He must've not seen me coming, only having eyes on Quinn, so my punch blindsided him. The power of my fist connecting to his face knocked him out cold as he fell limp to the floor with a loud thud.
I bent over, gripping my hand tightly, and saw Quinn use her foot to scooch him out of the plane just before the ramp closed.
"That was close." She breathed a breath of relief, plopped down next to Brittany, and closed her eyes.