Ariel, Russell, Sheridon and Edwin, lay strewn on the floor.
The Ecnals that Lance had left behind were just too powerful to beat — and they were about to finish the job!
However, the men had managed to hold the guards off long enough for Treen to move Elizabeth and Regina into the clear, then charge back over with the flare gun.
“Stop!” Treen shouted as the Ecnals moved in for the kill. They turned towards her. “You know what this flare will do to you, right?”
“Yes, but we have orders to kill you,” said one of the guards.
“True. But you’re no longer in control. Your orders were to kill, not be destroyed, which is what’ll happen if you don’t leave this room now.”
“But Master Lance said — ”
“Forget Master Lance. He doesn’t care about you. He cares only about the Merafuel. Why would he leave you in here, knowing I have this gun?”
The guards stared at one another. Then, they turned and walked towards the doors. The guard looked back. “Thank you Treen Alee, for allowing us to exit safely.”
Treen exhaled loud enough to drown out the hissing doors. She then glanced over at Ariel and held up the flare gun. “Could you please load this thing...?”
Now that the room was clear, everyone embraced, shook hands and kissed — the latter involving Regina and Ariel. However, even though Garrison Blue’s body lay twisted in a corner, everyone realized that the ordeal wouldn’t end until Lance and Tsara were shut down.
While Ariel loaded the flare gun, Treen dashed out of the room, into the foyer. She ran along the curved wall until she reached RM 75, then stuck the card in the slot. She punched in the code then smiled along with Detective Redworc and Natalie Newberry who sprinted out the door.
Ariel had the flare gun loaded when Treen returned with the freed hostages. She put the gun back in her holster, then led the whole group out of the room.
Everyone followed Treen into the tunnel towards the narrow sidewalk. They all stopped when they noticed that the Ecnals and Arasts had for some strange reason, filed into the tunnel and stood frozen in the middle of the road.
“What are they doing?” asked Russell.
Suddenly, behind them, the mountain door began to roar shut. An alarm blared through the tunnel, along with a digital voice that buzzed, “Lab destruction in three minutes. 2:59-2:58-2:57...”
“Mom, Regina, take off those high heels — we have to haul ass!”
Sprinting down the sidewalk, Treen searched for a vehicle that wasn’t burned up or flipped over. She could see the ramp leading below, but didn’t think there was enough time to get to the Cruiser. Then, a black SUV moved slowly up the ramp and stopped before turning out into the tunnel. Suddenly, Tsara leaped out with a machine gun; Lance waved at Treen and sped away.
Tsara sprayed the bullets. Everyone scattered from the curb, dashing into the road to duck behind the wrecked vehicles. Sheridon and Russell leaped inside a bashed up SUV where they found the key still in the ignition. With the bullets clanging though the hood, Sheridon turned the key; the engine sounded much better than the SUV looked.
“2:20-2:19-2:18...”
“I’ve had about enough of Tsara,” said Sheridon, shifting the vehicle in gear.
“Me too,” said Russell, ducking when the bullets shattered the side window.
Tsara kept firing as she sprinted towards the others who’d knelt behind a barricade of twisted metal. Sheridon stomped on the gas pedal. The tires screeched. The SUV banged through a wall of debris and swerved towards the Arast droid. Sheridon slowed and steadied the vehicle, aimed the grill at Tsara, then pushed the pedal to the floor again. He and Russell shut their eyes as their big truck smashed Tsara into segments. Soon after, the SUV skidded and Russell jumped out.
“Come on!” he shouted, waving the others to the open doors.
“1:59-1:58-1:57...”
Treen sprinted with everyone else toward the mangled SUV, which she hoped would run long enough to get them out of the tunnel. While everyone else quickly piled inside, Treen glared down at Tsara’s shattered frame. Ariel jogged up and put his arm around her. “Come on, Jazz,” he said quietly.
With everyone packed inside the sputtering vehicle, Sheridon swerved around the burned out helicopter, then continued towards the exit.
“Hurry,” Russell shouted, pointing ahead. “That other door’s goin’ down!”
“Don’t worry we’ll make it,” said Sheridon, who zigzagged past the remaining debris and sped into the clear.
The vehicle reached the end of the tunnel then zipped beneath the descending rock. Sheridon switched on the headlights, the SUV bouncing over the terrain and into the darkness. Then, as if the vehicle’s sole purpose was to get them out of there, the engine died.
Everyone jumped out.
“:04-:03-:02-:01-:00. Destruction in progress.” Those were the last words from the computerized voice.
No one knew what to expect. Would there be a huge explosion? Would the mountain collapse? In any case, the group sprinted away before the mountain door closed and whirred forward like a gigantic trash compactor. It might’ve moved slowly from the start, but the door picked up speed, tearing down every light and slamming everything on the tunnel road backwards. Treen realized now that the droids at the opposite end stood waiting to be crushed between the two monstrous slabs of stone. Moments later, a tremendous boom echoed from the darkness of the tunnel. The ground rumbled; anything left inside would’ve been flattened.