The Institution - the roleplay page

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Institution Log 1
Institution Log 2
Institution Log 3
Institution Log 4

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Rain beat outside, accompanied by lightening and thunder-the whole works.

There was a whining audible in all the rooms, like electronics going crazy. Then, with a single click, the doors were unlocked.

It was time.

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Alex woke with a start. He honestly wasn't sure if he'd be able to hear the door open when it happened, but now that it did, he was wide-awake. He untangled himself from around Amber, with whom he had naturally obtained the 'big spoon' position, and shook his arm, which was asleep. "Hey, it's time," he said, climbing out of bed and pulling on a sweater and his shoes.

Ry's opened his eyes shortly after hearing the locks retract. He hadn't slept very long and he was feeling that lag now. What the hell was up with Skywalker... Whatever... Time to go. Ry stood and pulled on a pair of jeans over his boxers, an undershirt and t-shirt and then his sweater. He brushed a hand through his messy hair. I need a haircut. Ry looked around the room, waiting for his eyes to make sense of the dark. Do I need anything else? His book? No, better leave it behind. Ry stepped towards the door and placed his hand on the door knob. Here goes...

Lucas' eyes jolted the second the doors unlocked; he couldn't sleep at all that night. He rubbed his eyes with both fists, trying to conserve all the energy he will need before the night is over. Lucas reached over to his dresser for his jet black silk button shirt. He chose that shirt for the escape for two reasons, to blend into the night and also to look presentable to any girls. Once dressed, Lucas picked up his favorite deck of cards and proceeded to venture into the hall.

The cold spot Alex left woke Amber from her light sleep. She scratched her head, pulled her hair back into a ponytail, and hurriedly changed back into her own clothing. She was in too much of a hurry to care what Alex saw. As she tugged on her own sneakers, she asked Alex, "Do you have another sweatshirt? I could run back to my room, but..."

Lily opens her door and peers out into the hallway. No one is there yet, but she can hear a faint shuffling from the other rooms. Good, they're getting ready quickly. She begins to tiptoe down the hall toward the meeting spot, preparing another electrical charge in case a staff member tries to stop them.

Tom sat on his bed, also listening to the sounds outside. The voices in his head were discussing something, but it was muted, as though they were hiding it from him. Great, he thought. My crazy is having a meeting.

Lucas saw Lily slip out of her room towards the meeting spot and followed. "Hey, good job with the power outage." Flipping out the first card in the deck, Lucas readied it in his right hand just in case any guards come through the hallway.

Alex tossed a sweatshirt at Amber before he grabbed Megan's journal, and the map. "Here," he said, his voice steady but his face nervous. "If they let us outside every so often we'd have an occasion to own an umbrella." He creaked open the door to see Lily and Lucas already outside. Not awkward unless you make it awkward, he thought, wondering if they'd notice Amber come out of his room after him.

Tom heard the voices and footsteps outside and got up, already ready. He had been ready for hours now. He slipped outside and lightly tapped on Sarah's, Ea's, Lainey's, and Hassan's door, just to see if they were coming along. He didn't bother with Amber's. He knew.

Sarah emerged from her room quickly; she had been waiting by her door the entire night (since she didn't sleep normally). She floated up alongside Tom. "Help?" she asked.

Ea opened her door, peeked out, then followed Tom from a distance, her heart beating hard in her chest as she thought about what was about to unfold.

Tom cocked his head at Sarah, his ears already scouting the darkness. The storm was obvious and easy to shut out. He could hear a steady heartbeat or two, some freaking out. Ea's was a strange heartbeat, to say the least, and... A stranger heartbeat further along in the darkness. A smile crossed Tom's face at the fluttery nature of the uninvited guest. "None from you, little bird," Tom said, reaching out and tapping the implanted headband gently with a bony finger, wondering if it was truly 'off.'

Alex walked out, stretching and hearing a few bones in his back pop. He looked down the hallway. The sounds of panic from any of the staff were absent, which he guessed was a good thing. "Alright," he muttered. "Almost time now."

Lily hears movement behind her, and checks that it's other inmates and not staff members. So far so good. She makes her way to the meeting place.

Lucas looked towards Alex and nodded in approval to his statement. "Where's Amber? Maybe she didn't hear the door unlock. Anyways, you ready dude?"

Alex's ears turned red to match his hair. "I'm ready," he said, trying to look away and seem innocent, knowing that Amber was in his room. "Erm... If... anybody has to go to the bathroom... they should do so now?"

Amber quietly caught up with the group. "Nah. I'm good. Don't need to pee. Definitely fine." She shoved her hands in the sweatshirt pocket and rocked back and forth on her heels. Apparently she thought it looked nonchalant.

Ry opened his door and stepped into the hall almost directly behind Tom and Sarah. "Good, you're here," he said to Sarah. He was concerned with not being able to find her room or her when the power went out. Not too far down the hall at all was Alex and Amber. Alex was talking to Skywalker in hushed tones and Amber looked suspiciously too carefree to not have been up to something. Up ahead, past Skywalker, was Lily. There was still a very faint tingle on his stomach where she had burned him. He was very suddenly overcome with the urge to kiss her. He walked quickly past the rest of the group whispering to Amber as he went by "You're trying too hard." Ry smiled. He was sure Amber would now try to continue being nonchalant without being too nonchalant. He didn't look back to see her try, he had his eye on something else. Ry caught up with Lily and took her hand from behind, trying to get her to turn. "My night blooming starlet," he greeted her.

Ry gets a little tingle in his hand has he touches Lily. She turns to him, slightly startled. "Oh, hey. Wow, you scared me for a sec." Then she goes quiet, clearly uncomfortable. Why is Ry back to being flirty with her? And why now, of all times? She likes the attention, of course, but still thinks that she weirded him out before.

Amber quickly toned down the act, but Ry kept moving before she could reply. She shut her mouth and turned her attention back to Alex and Lucas. "How long do we wait? I mean, what's our cutoff?" She didn't have to mention Lainey's name. The thought of leaving a specific person behind seemed much crueler than just not being able to wait any longer.

Lucas just smiled through Alex's and Amber's whole act. He had been in many poker tournaments in his time and could definitely tell whenever someone was trying to cover something up. "Had a good time tonight?" He whispered to Alex jokingly before Amber's attention was on the conversation. Lucas turned to Amber and replied, "Well, Don't you think we've waited long enough? I mean she's a good kid but what if she doesn't want to leave?" All the while Lucas was trying to look into Amber's eyes to see what exactly happened between her and Alex tonight.

"Goddammit, man, just fucking ask," Alex snapped, slapping a hand over Lucas' eyes. "Jesus Christ."

"Lainey isn't coming," Tom said.

"What?" Alex asked, shocked.

"She's awake," Tom murmured, his eyes distant. He was pretty sure he could hear her moving... almost 100% certain it was her he heard. There were other shuffling noises that seemed to be coming from everywhere. "But she doesn't want to come." This was a shame. She was the only other one with voices. Granted, she was certain that they were legit. Then again, at times, so was he.

Alex withdrew his hand from Lucas' face, deep in thought. Worry lines creased his face. Finally, he spoke. "Alright, people, let's move out," he commanded. He felt horrible making the call, but somebody had to do it. They had wasted enough time as it was without standing around awkwardly waiting for the first person to say it. He took out the map and began moving towards the door.

Amber saw Alex shield Lucas' eyes-- she hadn't even realized what Lucas had been trying to do. She mouthed a "thank you" at Alex before Tom spoke and then joined him in moving out. They couldn't waste any more time.

They began to get closer to the door, Alex's heart beating faster. Then suddenly, from around the corner, a figure appeared.

"What are you guys do-" Kelly started before Alex practically tackled her, putting a hand over her mouth and getting her into a headlock. Tom put a hand over his mouth, laughing softly at the annoyed look on Kelly's face.

"Guys, get through the doors!" Alex snapped. Tom walked over to the first door and began to pull. It was unlocked, as Megan predicted; however, after the first inch, Tom's disgustingly skinny frame wasn't doing much.

Amber grabbed the door, too, and leaned her weight against it.

"Grab her walkie-talkie," Lily says to Alex. "It'll be good to know if they're on to us." Then she, too, helps to push on the door.

Damn it.. Ry thought, he should have kissed her sooner. What if he never got the chance again? Ry crossed quickly to Alex, pushing thoughts of Lily aside. Now we have work to do. "I got it." Ry pulled Kelly's walkie-talkie from her hip. "Now what do we do?" Ry motioned to Kelly. He wanted to talk to Alex about what they were going to do but he didn't want to give anything away infront of Kelly either. "Saints preserve us..." What have they gotten themselves into?

The door slowly slid open, revealing a few more of the same. With everybody's help, the next two slide open, as well. When they got to the fourth door, just as in Megan's journal, a voice stopped them. "Whoizzit?" a guard's voice snapped. It wasn't suspicious, just annoyed and slightly on edge from the blackout.

"Kelly," Tom answered, his voice now that of the nurse Alex held captive. "I think I fell asleep." He wasn't a bad actor; the voice even sounded embarrassed. In Alex's arms, Kelly managed to look even more put off.

The guard laughed outright, and the sound of a lock manually clicking open ran through the doors. "Welcome back to the land of the living, Nurse--" The guard paused in shock at the sight of the inmates and their captive, unable to speak, giving them a precious few seconds to act.

Lily sends a good shock to the guy - not enough to do serious damage, but definitly enough to hurt and stun him for a bit. At the very least, the zap might short out any kind of communicator he has on his person.

Lucas turned a come on look to Alex when he covered his eyes but didn't press it; there were more things to worry about right now. He couldn't contribute too much for the actual assult or escape so Lucas just hung back and followed the rest. I'm not to helpful here but I'll be so much more outside this Institution, reading people's mind for any miscellaneous information.

The guard staggered back, almost making too much noise, his eyes wide as he fought to control his breathing.

Ry lunged forward and caught the guard's arm, gazing into his eyes. "You're tired, very tired. Let your eyes shut and breathing steady..." The guard's eyes fluttered and Ry helped him to his seat. "This is a dream. When you wake in several hours you will feel refreshed and recall a very vivid dream. Sleep. Sleep." Ry let go of the guard, smiling to himself. Just like the games I played with Iz and Ben.

The guard's eyes fluttered close and he sank into sleep. Alex nodded at Ry, then looked at the nurse he had captured. "What are we going to do with Kelly?" he hissed. "Same thing as with the guard?"

Tom laughed again, softly. "Alex, the woman has a third-degree black belt," he reminded Alex softly. "If she was going to stop us she could have by now. She probably only hasn't kicked your ass because it would have slowed us down."

Alex's eyes widened just in time to catch a glimpse of movement, and with a twist, Kelly was holding his arm behind his back. "Thank you, Tom," she growled. She eyed the other patients. "Escaping, huh," she asked in a weak voice.

Lucas' eyes widened when Kelly took hold of Alex. Ohhhhhhhhhh shit. He slipped the top card from the deck into his right hand and quietly aimed for Kelly's eyes. Lucas was just waiting for the right moment when Kelly was most distracted.

Lily puts a hand on Lucas's arm and squeezes it, letting him know to calm down. "Tom has a point. If she'd wanted to turn us in, she'd have done it already." She turns to Kelly and asks, "What do you want?"

Kelly was silent for a second, staring at Lucas with an incredulous look. "A card? Really?" she asked, smirking. Her face got more serious as she regarded the group in whole, as though debating with herself. "...I'll help," she finally said, releasing Alex, who began massaging his shoulder.

"Why?" Ry didn't trust Kelly in the least. He hadn't even flirted with her, how could he trust her. Thinking about it, could he really trust any of the inmates? It didn't matter what the answer was because he doesn't have much of a choice. Is it the same with Kelly? He thought. "Why help us? How do you benefit from our escape?"

Kelly frowned, folding her arms as she refused to look at any of them. "Tell them," Tom urged.

"And how would you know anything about this," she snapped at Tom.

"Did you know you panic aloud when you think no-one can hear?" Tom replied with a crooked grin.

Kelly huffed, a little startled at that, although she shouldn't be. There was a pause, then she said, "Because I'm one of you. ...a mutant." Another pause, then she stumbled on. "I didn't know until recently. It was really only a matter of time before... Well, I knew, or suspected, enough about this place to already feel guilty. Didn't want to end up in the same place."

"What do you do?" Alex asked, skeptical.

Kelly glared at him, then closed her eyes. In a matter of seconds, she was a foot taller, then she towered over them. Her shirt was now a midriff top, and her pants capri's, although she didn't get any skinnier. It looked a tad ridiculous. "I just kept waking up a 7-foot giant," she said, shrinking back down, keeping a careful eye on the hem of her pants until she was back to normal.

Lucas' jaw dropped as well as the card he held ready in his hand. He was about to comment the irony of locking up mutants when Kelly was one too until he thought about she could easily snitch on him to the whole group about earlier. Bending down to pick up his card, Lucas exhaled and said, "So...this will definitely help."

"Wow... This explains... a lot. Well, you have the insiders scoop, so what do we do now?" Skywalker was right, Kelly's knowledge could really help them escape. Ry was beginning to feel very hopeful.

Before she could speak, Alex handed her the map. Her eyebrows lifted in surprise for just a bit that they had such a tool, then went around to studying it and the route. "Seems accurate," she stated. "Best way to go is down these halls. They're more custodial than anything." Her and Alex headed down the dark hallway together, only dimly lit by some light coming from outside. Their pace led the group at a brisk walk, not quite a running pace, so as to remain quiet.

They had gone down a few hallways without incident when Alex happened to study the map, using the dim light and his concentration. Suddenly he froze. The fire escape was almost in sight, but he had spotted something on the map. "Uh, I gotta do something," he said, shoving the map off on Lily as he cut through the group, almost backtracking, heading into a side door that led to another hallway.

Sarah looked at Alex strangely as he headed towards the other door.

"What're you doing? We're so close." Ea said as Alex strayed.

Lily looks at where Alex is headed, then double checks the map to see if she can figure out where he's going.

Ry watched as Alex ran by. "Alex?" Ry stopped briefly and watched as the group walk towards the fire escape and Alex ran back down the hall. Ry took a deep breath and turned to follow Alex. What is that crazy guy up to?

Lily can see that on the map, towards the room Alex seemed to be heading towards, there was what looked like a couple of rooms. Where it would be hard to see was the word labeling this place: Containment and Research.

Alex shoved open a door that was a bit sticky and found himself in what looked like a long, narrow office. He started walking past shelves and shelves of things towards the door on the other end, hurrying towards that sign that said 'Employees Only, Containment of Dangerous Persons.' Something froze him in mid-stride.

Sitting on one of the desks, in a box marked 'outgoing,' were a few envelopes. What froze him was the fact that the addresses on them were written to his family. In his handwriting. He picked them up, studying them, nearly in shock. He tore open a letter. In his words, in his writing, there was a message to his parents. He barely read the first paragraph that told them to not worry before he tore his eyes away. There was no real doubt; he wrote this. But... when?

Tom shifted on his feet, pointing down the hallway. "Guards coming," he muttered to the group. "...two. They're walking, relaxed. They don't know we're out."

Lucas let out, "What the hell are you doing," as loudly as he dared when Alex darted from the group towards the door. Looking from the fire escape back to Alex, Lucas weighed the situation if he just left Alex and escaped the rest of the way. In the end, Lucas headed towards where Alex ran off to, to find out why he left the relative safety of the group. "Dude, are you out of your mind? We're almost out it seems." Lucas looked around to get his bearings of where he was.

"Fine, go on without me," Alex mumbled, shoving the letters into his pocket as he made his way to the back door. "Got something to take care of." With that, he opened the door, walking into the new room, stopping short at the sight.

It wasn't particularly horrendous, just scary, and it sent a wave of relief down Alex's spine. The room was sort of the one out of Lucas' images, a wall covered in sharp implements of torture... But they seemed cleaner, less threatening than in the guard's memory that Lucas had read. There was a heavy smell of antiseptic in the air, but Alex's attention was focused on the figure in the middle of the room, strapped to a table, an IV coming out of their arm.

It was Megan.

Lily rolls her eyes. If someone didn't take charge of this situation soon, there was a good chance none of them would get out. "Ry, Sarah - go take care of the guards that are coming. Remember that they've got communicators and weapons on them, and we don't want more coming after us. Amber, Ea - check out the fire escape and make sure it's actually a way out of here. You might need to open it, but I'm sure it's made of metal. Kelly, Tom - listen to any communication lines they've got and make sure they're not on to us. If they are, try to interfere with the signal or give them false directions." With that, she also darts down the side hall where Lucas and Alex are. "Guys, we need to-" she stops suddenly when she sees Megan.

Lucas rolled his eyes to Alex. "Alright man, whatever, have it your wa..." but suddenly found it difficult to say anything when his eyes ventured into the room where Megan was. It was as though he stepped into the guard's memory with the sharp instruments and chair in the middle of the room. After a while Lucas finally spoke outloud, "I've seen this place before..."

Alex ran over to Megan's side, undoing the straps that had held the girl down. It almost seemed unnecessary, as she was out cold. He took out the IV, then cursed himself. What if it was important? "Wake up," he said insistently, patting her on the face once all her restraints were gone. Her eyes opened as if on automatic, although her gaze was distant. He stared at the drip that had been hooked up to her. He had no idea what it was, but the common name was 'Vistonin,' apparently, looking at the little hand-written label. "What the fuck is Vistonin?" he growled. Then out of the corner of his eye he saw a table, covered with folders, that was obviously used for paperwork, next to a filing cabinet labeled as containing information on the patients. A small table light was on, and a briefcase was out. They wouldn't be alone for long.

Kelly held up her walkie-talkie. "It's an open communication," she whispered. Tom merely cocked his head in the direction of the guards, the air around his ears shimmering a little.

"The larger one needs to pick up milk on the way home," he murmured.

Ry was still looking at the assortment of boxes in the first room. He heard Alex murmuring to someone in the next room and just as he turned to follow Alex and Skywalker into the containment area something caught his eye. There was a box of incoming mail and on the top was a letter addressed to Alex and underneath was a letter addressed to himself. He broke it open quickly and scanned the contents. It was Ben. He wrote him telling he had moved in with Josh and they were staying in the city. Ry folded the paper up and stuck both letters in his back pocket and push on the door to the containment room. "Holy..." Ry stopped himself. "What is this place? Saints preserve us, is she alright?"

"Hell if I know," Alex said. "She's not responding. Megan, get up." As if in a trance, she stood, simply obeying Alex. Alex took her arm and began to lead her from the room, glad she was wearing normal clothing, then stopped at the table. He saw a file with the typical chemical warning symbol, and the word 'Vistonin.' He scanned it, quickly, his face growing grimmer before he put the paper down. "The stuff's an antidepressant, but used at the concentrations they were giving us, it's more of a mind-control hormone. Makes people obey everything without question, even if they can't remember it later." He grit his teeth and grabbed a few of the files on the table, then slammed open a file drawer to grab a few more patient files--for they were files about the patients. He shoved them into the briefcase and took Megan's arm.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" someone exclaimed. From another door not too far from where the boys were standing stood the professor that had visited the Institution earlier. He looked shocked at the sight of the group in the lab, and that Megan was freed, but that would wear off soon.

Outside, in the hallway, the two guards rounded the corner. Due to the blackout and them not looking very carefully, they hadn't seen the group yet.

Lucas looked from Alex to Megan, and at that moment that rare courageous inspiration struck the mind reader once more. "Dude, don't worry about about Megan, I'll carry her," he said to Alex. Out of the whole group, Lucas was one of the least offensive mutants in there, and by the sounds coming from the hall he thought they would need everything and more to escape. For a second Lucas thought about the courage and told himself that to get himself out of here, Alex would probably need his concentration on something else than holding up Megan. "Dude, I heavily suggest that we make for the exit right now," Lucas told the group that he was with presently.

However, with the scientist in the room, Alex just grimaced at Lucas, taking his courage as cowardice. "Fine, I'll just..." He trailed off as he leaped towards the guy, delivering a powerful right-hook to his jaw. The scientist was out like a light, falling to the floor and dropping his metal tray, on which he had been carrying a few medical supplies. Alex winced at the crash it made as it hit the floor.

In the hallway, the guards jolted at the faintly muffled crash. They didn't seem too alarmed-it might happen, along with a few screams, every so often. But as they shined their lights down the hallway, they jumped at the sight of the group still there.

In a moment of clarity, Tom held out his hand, the air around the hallway shimmering. The guards took out their walkie-talkies and began to shout into them--but no noise came from their mouths.

Lily is impressed by Alex's sudden act of manlines. But she quickly refocuses on the issue at hand. "Come on, someone's bound to have heard that. We need to get out of here fast." She grabs Ry, the closest to her, and drags him with her back down the hall toward the rest of the group.

"Uh-huh," Alex said, grabbing Megan by the arm and rubbing his now-sore knuckles. He began guiding the girl from the room as she yet acted as though under a spell, grabbing the briefcase on his way out.

Amber had made her way to the fire escape door, and pushed it open. She looked down the stairs-- the escape looked legit, and she thought she could smell the rain. At least it was colder in the stairwell, so they were close to the outside.

Lucas gave Alex a look that said What the hell when he took Megan's hand and led away while Lucas was trying to do the same thing. Accepting that it wasn't the time to argue, he ran towards the rest of the group. A smile could be found forming on his face when he gazed past Amber where the stairs were. Freedom, sweet freedom!

Amber held the heavy door open for the rest of the group, motioning for them to hurry up.

"Follow Amber," Alex instructed Megan, assuming she was still under the affects of the drug and would just obey. Her movement was getting a little more sluggish. Instead of following Amber, Alex turned towards the guards now heading towards them, as they had definitely not been taken care of.

Instead of waiting for the guards to reach the group, Kelly stepped forward. The guards saw her and started backpedaling too late. She charged straight towards them and, with a grace that came from years of practice, landed blows and kicks that knocked the two guards out.

In the meantime, Tom ambled past Amber towards the stairwell, hands in his pockets, looking more interested in the outside than the fight taking place behind him.

Lily pauses for a moment when she sees the guards, but resumes running when Kelly joins the fight. She continues to drag Ry with her towards the fire escape.

Kelly lifted her walkie-talkie to her ear. However, no alarm was raised; the static click of the walkie-talkies remained quiet. "Be lively," she hissed to the others. "We're on the third floor, so we have to hurry." With that, she began walking down the stairs. Megan began to follow Kelly, and Alex walked over to the stairwell, standing there with Amber as he motioned for the rest to follow.

Lily goes through the fire escape. "See you on the other side," she says with a smile to everyone generally.

Lucas didn't hesitate at sprinting towards the fire escape. Turning back to see the rooms where he has been before, he thought Good riddance. With that he started down the stairwell while wondering why everyone was just standing there and not going forward.

Alex wondered the same thing, so he just ushered everybody into the fire escape whether they were willing or not. He looked behind him quickly, then everybody headed downstairs.

Once they got down to the ground, Kelly tugged at the door, but it refused to budge. She stepped back and groaned. "The hinges are rusted shut," she said. "That is such a fire hazard."

"Now what?" Alex said, taking out the map and trying to squint at it in the almost absolute darkness, panicking slightly.

"Quickest route out is through the lobby," Kelly said, pointing. "But it might be busy... We'll just have to make a break for it."

Having previously followed Lily through the fire escape with very little choice he turned to address the group. "I could try and kick it in. Done it plenty of times; even have a video of it up on You Tube." Ry smiled a little. True, he had never kicked a door in that was rusted shut but he did kick in a door made of solid oak with a bolt on it. "Should I give it shot? Tom can muffle the sound."

"You can try, but this door and the frame are metal," Kelly pointed out. "If you kick a door in it's usually to knock the frame loose."

Well, duh! Ry thought. He should have thought of that before suggesting the idea. Choosing to save himself the humiliation he asked "Anyone have any ideas on how to make crossing the lobby safer?" He didn't like the idea of having to cross a potentially busy lobby and hoped there was a way to get through without getting caught.

"Run, don't walk," Alex replied, getting jumpy. Tom giggled at that, inching next to Sarah.

Kelly headed down the hall to another door. "The lobby's right here," she said, putting her hand on the handle and creaking it open a crack, looking through. After a second or two, she frowned, straightening up. "...there's nobody there," she said, chills running down her spin. "There's always somebody there."

"Luck," Tom whistled. "But what kind?" He gave a toothy grin.

Lucas became uneasy; his fingers started to twitch as he knew they were so close to freedom, apparently just beyond the lobby. Still wondering why they were just waiting there, he began to think. Screw them, I'm so close to getting out of this prison. If they want to follow they can, but if they want to stay here, fine by me. Running his hand through his hair, Lucas cleared his mind and readied himself to sprint. "Well, see you guys on the other side," he exclaimed out loud as he pushed past Kelly and ran as if though the devil was chasing him out into the middle of the lobby.

Kelly flinched, as if expecting Lucas to get jumped by the million security guards she usually saw wandering the premises. When nobody arrived, however, she couldn't relax. She followed Lucas out and saw the doors outside. They, too, were unguarded. From there, it was a straight shot along a cement walkway to the gate to the inmate's freedom, about a football field's length from the front door. She looked behind her and cocked her head for people to follow. She felt like she should run, like Lucas, but her steps were slowed down by fear. She wasn't stupid.

Alex, too, felt like something was up. He wasn't sure, but if there was going to be a fight, he wasn't going to be caught unawares. He cracked his knuckles and began to walk towards the front door.

Lily also follows Lucas out. She's decided to take the middle-road, so to speak, and pace herself with a fast walk. She doesn't want to be caught off-guard should anything happen, but she also doesn't want to stay in the building any longer than she has to.

Ry was caught walking somewhere between Alex and Lily. Having been drug around by Lily for the better part of the escape Ry walked a little faster and caught up with Lily. "Hey," he said as he approached her. Ry rubbed his fingers on the inside of her palm, hoping it would be okay if he took her hand. His stomach was in knots. Where are the guards? why isn't anyone around? He was getting an eerie feeling. Their escape was going questionably well and right now he could use a little comfort; preferably from Lily.

Lily squeezes Ry's hand, welcoming the comfort herself. This is all very nerve-wracking, especially since things have gone just a bit too well so far. That might all change once they get outside, though. How many patients have made it even this far?

Alex takes up the lead, making sure the whole group was in front of him as they headed outside. He shivered when they opened the door, more from the blast of cold air that greeted them, and the spray of water. Within seconds of getting outside, the whole group was soaked. Alex hugged the briefcase to his chest, hoping the papers wouldn't get too soaked. It was all the evidence he had.

Lightening flashed the first time they walked outside. Ten feet later, lightening flashed again, lighting up the walkway, revealing two figures that hadn't been there before.

Jared was there, without an umbrella, getting soaked. A taller man was there, an umbrella in his hand, standing in nice clothes, his hair slicked back, and impossibly wide grin on his face.

Megan's eyes widened, and her hand went out to grab the sleeve of Amber's sweatshirt. Her lips moved frantically, but all that came out was a weak whisper. "Marcell."

Sarah promptly hid behind Tom.

Tom was currently in the process of frowning and waving his fingers outside of his ears. He had tried to amplify Megan's voice so he could hear it... But was unable. That, and the voices were gone. The voices were never gone. Where did they go? He looked around accusingly to see if anybody had stolen them, and his gaze settled on the tall figure with the umbrella.

Ry moved up behind Alex, pulling Lily with him. "How did they find out? We could have done this any night. How did they know we would try tonight?" Ry kept his eyes on the men infront of him as he whispered to Alex. God help them, Ry thought.

"How are you tonight, my little wayward ducklings?" the tall man said. "I'm afraid this area is off-limits to patients. Would you mind heading back inside?"

Kelly had paled at the sound of his voice. "Who are you?" Alex demanded.

"Why, my dear Alex, I am Marcell," the tall man said, his grin only growing wider. "I am the owner of this fine establishment."

Sarah peeked out from behind Tom...she seemed unusually self-aware.

Lucas kept running all the way without regard until he cam across Jared and Marcell. Just taking one look to Marcell's face made Lucas skid to a stop but ending with falling down on his face. On his hands and knees, Lucas looked up with horror and hatred etched on his facial expressions. No one had to tell him that Marcell was running the Institution, or at least very high up in the staff due to the visions he had seen before. The air around his and the lighting flashing all around gave Lucas the courage to flip the bird to Marcell and Jared; the two that stood in the way of Lucas' freedom. Lucas knew there would be consequences to that and he didn't look forward to them if they managed to capture him, but he couldn't help himself when he spat at Marcell's feet. "Go to hell, Marcell." If this had been any other situation, Lucas probably would have given more thought to the rhyme and most likely laughed at it.

"MMm, I see," Marcell said, pulling out a gun at that, weighing it in his hands almost thoughtfully. "What a shame. Then I must tell you, children, that you shall either turn right around and go inside, or you'll die here. I really cannot have you escaping."

Kelly suddenly lunged forward, her arm in front of her. Her eyes widened when nothing happened. "Wha..." she started.

Marcell chuckled. "Your little abilities mean nothing here," Marcell murmured. "I am one of you, and yet the exact opposite. I am responsible for canceling out your powers."

As though hoping to defy Marcell's words, Ea winked at Lily, and pointed at Lily then at herself, then at the sky. Then she put her hands out in front of her. "You be positive, I'll be negative." Ea thought. She wanted Lily to release electrity towards her, to that they could start a circuit and maybe catch Marcell in it.

Lucas yearned for freedom so much he actually stood his ground and folded his arms across his chest. How much does life mean when all of it is behind bars? We've never been this far to escaping before this. "So, how many bullets are in that gun there? Got enough time to reload before whoever is left to get you?" Throughout all of this, Lucas didn't flinch; freedom was just beyond those two figures.

"Are you willing to bet that you'll be one of the ones left?" Marcell said, laughing softly. He looked at Ea, cocked his head, and pointed his gun.

Bang.

A neat little hole appeared in Ea's shoulder. There was barely time to think before sparks appeared in the air around her, not enough to travel through the moisture there. She collapsed, dead before she hit the ground.















"Main artery, in a sense," Marcell said. "I cut off the flow of electrons, which had already started to stop in my presence. Shame. She was a bitch, but I'd rather cure you than kill you." His eyes flashed as he tapped the barrel of the gun against the handle of the umbrella. "But both will prevent the release of the mutations into the general public. Next?"

Kelly took a fighting stance without even realizing it, her eyes darting from Marcell to Jared and wondering just how good Marcell's aim was.

Ry gaped at Ea's dead body. "Is the price of freedom worth it to you?" Ry asked Alex. "What should we do?" Ry definitely did not want to get shot but he was debating if the price of freedom might be worth it. It might be... it really might be. "How do we get the gun away?"

Alex didn't say anything. He couldn't-what was there to say? He honestly didn't know. Alex just balled up his fists. Kelly glanced over. "We don't need powers to beat you," she said, assuming another fighting stance.

"Yes, my little karate kid," Marcell said before shooting her in the leg with another bang. Kelly yelled in pain, her leg suddenly not supporting her with the shock, and she dropped, clutching at the wound in her thigh. Gritting her teeth, she tried to concentrate as she felt around the wound. He hadn't hit bone, and by the looks of it, probably missed any main arteries. It was her good luck-but was it?

Tom suddenly frowned again. He heard a whisper, so briefly, but the voices were coming back. Maybe he was just genuinely crazy now.

It was then that Sarah zipped out from behind Tom, hovering over to Kelly's aid. "Help." she said softly, putting her hands over the wound.

Kelly winced again, a groan of pain escaping her lips that she bit off at the last second. For a second, there was what felt like a pull at her leg wound, lessening the pain... then nothing. But Kelly still stared at Sarah. Marcell said he canceled out their powers, and Kelly knew the feeling of not being able to use them... But Sarah could?

With everything happening so fast, Lily wishes time would slow down. It seems like she hasn't done anything in a week. The loss of powers doesn't mean anything for her, really, as the rain would be preventing her from using her electricity anyways. She glances down the courtyard area, wondering if a full on sprint would do her any good at this point. Doubtful. Maybe if they all ran at once, at least a few of them would get away...

Ry followed Lily's gaze. "We wouldn't all make it," he said, feeling he knew what she was thinking. He glanced back down at Kelly and Sarah. Kelly looked... fine. But Kelly shouldn't look fine. He gazed at Sarah. Had she healed Kelly? But that meant... "He can't completely neutralize our powers, or at least not Sarah's," Ry whispered to Alex and Lily. "Can she... shield us, or something. Just something. Do either of you know?" What if Sarah could protect them? Or, at the very least, what if they made a run for it and Sarah could heal them? Ry didn't know, but he knew they had to do something... fast.

Kelly grimaced at her leg, still on the ground. She wasn't that fine, but she had figured out that Sarah had pulled the bullet wound up to the surface of the wound. When she pulled the bullet all the way out, blood began to flow once more, and she ripped off some of her scrubs to make a tourniquet.

Alex saw this, and saw that Sarah had done... something. "Looks like his powers don't totally neutralize our's," Alex muttered, his voice hesitant. "Maybe... maybe if I go in front, and he shoots me... Maybe I can get close enough for... Well, maybe my blood is still acidic." And you guys can get away.

Jared scoffs as best he can at the group of would-be escapists, but it is quite difficult for him to look intimidating when he is drenched from the rain. But he's noticed that the majority of the group is now just standing around dumbly. Apparently they hadn't considered the possibility of being caught in their escape, despite the Institution's advanced communications technology. He raises an eyebrow at Marcell's theatrics. The guy was batshit crazy, and everyone who worked for him knew it. Whatever. This would be a lot easier than they'd told him. "Alright, children, play time is over. Let's go back to your rooms quickly and your punishments won't be quite so severe." He grabs the nearest patient, Amber, and forcefully pulls her hands behind her back so she can't attack him. His grip is much tighter than it needs to be, and he seems to enjoy that knowledge.

"Hey!" Alex yelled in objection, suddenly at Amber's side and fisting his fingers into Jared's collar. "You let her go right now, or I swear our escape will be the least of your worries," Alex growled, his face mere inches from Jared's. He was suddenly hesitant to punch the guy, as his boss was not too far away watching the whole thing with a gun in his hand, but he wasn't going to let this go.

Marcell shifted on his feet. "Yes, let her go," he murmured, too quietly for anybody to hear.

Barely audiable above the rain, Ry began to whistle. It was nervous habit he developed at school. However, this time it wasn't unconsiously. Even if Marcell was impervious to the hyponotism, Jared most likely wasn't. Ry took slow steps towards the small, angry huddle.

Jared isn't surprised that Amber is not struggling. He's obviously very intimidating. The man-nurse reaches into one of his coat pockets and reveals a rather large needle with a murky colored liquid inside of it. He jabs Amber with it in her arm, not bothering to be careful about it, and smiles wickedly. She falls limp to the ground. "That'll keep you quiet... who's next?" He eyes Alex, who is now the closest to him.

Lily's eyes go wide. Is Amber still breathing?

Ry dove for Amber, managing to catch her head before it struck the soaked and muddy ground. Ry looked up. Jared was eyeing Alex. "Hey Jar-head," Ry shouted. "Why don't you pick on some one your own size." Ry pulled Amber's body to the side, towards Lily, and set her head down gently. He stood and looked at Jared. Ry definitely could not take this guy alone. He was probably faster though, a minute plus on his side. "Shit... Alex?" Ry was betting Alex would be willing to back him; or at the very least not just sit back and watch him get his face pummeled. "Rugby anyone?"

Alex was already moving without Ry, his eyes narrowed to little slits of anger. "What the fuck did you give her?!" he yelled, throwing a punch that connected with Jared's jaw, making him stagger back. He didn't seem to care about the needle. "Fix it! Now!"

Before any of this started, Marcell's mouth twitched from a grin into a frown. His gaze locked onto Amber, then the needle, and focused more specifically on Jared. "These are my patients," he said in a long, drawn-out hiss. He watched Alex punch Jared, watch the man stagger back, then lifted his gun and emptied the contents into the nurse. He was as good a shot as Kelly feared: none of them missed. He kept shooting until the gun clicked empty, pulled the trigger a few more times, looked at his gun in disdain, then threw it away from himself.

Kelly got up and limped over to Amber's side. She had gotten a good enough look at the needle to suspect what Jared had given her. "Lily, can you keep her head elevated?" she asked. "I'm gonna need to go back inside for the antidote..." She tried to stand again, her leg almost failing this time around.

Ry was about to lunch himself at Jared's legs when the first shot rang out. Ry shifted and wrapped his arms around Alex's legs, toppling them both. Together they watched as Marcel emptied the gun into Jared.

Tom's eyes narrowed as they stared at Marcell, now lacking a weapon. He glanced down at his hand, and stared until the air above his fingers shimmered in the rain. Gritting his teeth, he held out his arm to Marcell and focused all of his might to the side of Marcell's head. A high-pitched whine was heard by the group, but Marcell yelled and clutched his ear, red staining his neck. He dropped his umbrella and reached into his jacket, drawing out a gun and firing at Tom. However, his shot went wild, although Tom ducked anyway.

Amber moaned softly and squeezed her eyes shut at the noise-- she wasn't quite dead yet, but she was looking very pale.

Alex pushed Ry's arms away and sat up, staring at Jared, now on the ground. His blood mixed with the rainwater, and for a second, all Alex could hear was the sound of falling rain. Then another shot, aimed at Tom, rang out, snapping Alex back to reality. He jumped up, going to Kelly. "You're not gonna make it," he said, glancing down at the increasingly pale-looking Amber. "Lily? Run back into the building to..."

"To the medical supplies closet." Kelly quickly gave Lily directions-there was one on the first floor, for the bulk stock. "Not much further than the receptionist's office." Kelly eyed Alex, who was already rooting through Jared's pockets, then glanced up at Marcell. "So this canceling-out effect... isn't absolute," she murmured, her gaze falling on Tom. The skinny patient was currently trembling and staring wide-eyed at the group, waiting for something.

"G-get back inside!" Marcell yelled, shakily pointing his gun at the others. "You're my patients! Mine!"

Sarah hovered towards Marcell, her hands outstretched in front of her. "I'm...not...yours!" she said in hushed but angry voice, and she directed a blast of telekinetic energy towards him.

Lily shakes her head and blinks. She needs to concentrate. When she feels confident that she can make it to the medical supplies closet, she sprints back toward the entrance of the Institution, hoping that Sarah's recent blast will distract Marcell long enough that he won't shoot at her. And hopefully there won't be a bunch of staff members waiting for me inside, she thinks.

Marcell barely dodged the attack, getting clipped in his gun arm. Having abandoned his umbrella, he easily switched hands and shot back at the group in general. This time, Alex got clipped, gritting his teeth as pain sheared through his body. He stared at the wound; it was light, and blood dripped down his arm. Alex's eyes widened as the cloth of his sweater began to sizzle, then looked down at what he held in his hand. The only sharp object Jared had on him, a pocketknife. He crouched and glared at Marcell, waiting for his chance.

"You are all mine," Marcell purred, the panic gone from his voice... replaced with pure crazy. "I own you until you are normal, and until then, you are all my... little... freaks." He lifted a gun straight at Sarah, all reason gone, ready to pull the trigger.

Sarah then attempts to lift the gun from Marcell's grasp with her powers, and at the same time began to cause the ground pull out from underneath him.

Marcell felt a tug at his hand and the ground shift under him. He growled and focused, intensifying his own powers in his area, decreasing Sarah's as-

bang

He jerked as another gunshot rings out, his own shot going wild from the sudden movement. Marcell glared at Tom, who was holding hold fingers out in front of him in a fake gun. "Bang," the schizophrenic whispered. "Three bullets left." Tom was thinking along the lines of the last gun having six bullets, and Marcell using three just now. He couldn't be totally sure-the whispers in his ears were worse than the voices just outright talking, and were driving him to distraction.

Once inside, Lily sees nothing to stop her from going to the supply closet. The whole building seemed abandoned.

Lily opens the supply closet, and after searching for a moment, finds the antidote that Kelly described. She shivers when she hears the gunshot. While she's at the supply closet, she grabs a small first aid kit. Then she heads back outside to the action.

Kelly yanked Lily to her knees as soon as the girl reached her. Without hesitating, she took the antidote and opened the first aid kit, loading a syringe with the lightly opaque liquid. The nurse swiftly slid the needle into Amber's upper thigh, pushing down the syringe slowly, holding it there for another ten seconds. She took out the needle and breathed a sigh of relief when color began returning to Amber's cheeks, even in the rain. "She should be better in a few minutes," Kelly murmured, only then looking through the first-aid kid and working on her own wound.

Alex ran the knife along his palm, hissing at the pain and watching the blood well up. He crouched and began circling around Marcell, fist clenched as he tried to sneak around without Marcell noticing.

Ry looked at Alex as he began to move behind Marcell. Ry moved in the opposite direction, hoping to distract Marcell so Alex could do whatever Alex was planning on doing. Ry stopped when he got to Tom. "Could you..." Ry looked for the right words. "Could you make it so he is the only one who can hear me?" Ry whispered to Tom. "Tom?" Ry touched his shoulder.

Tom flinched, tearing his gaze from Marcell to Ry. He considered the words a second, the nodded. "Possibly," he answered. "Worth a try." His face turned back towards Marcell, whose attention was spread thin, and stared right back into the face, ignoring the gun. "Come into my parlor," he muttered to himself.

Lucas had no idea what to do in order to help the group get away from Marcell; it seemed like everyone was doing something else. Sliding his hand into his wet hair, Lucas started to circle Marcell as well, just opposite from Alex. If anything else if I get to the other side i could just make a break for freedom while Marcell is busy with everyone else.

Amber shook her head and opened her blurry eyes. The sound of gunshots helped snap her out of it, though, and as soon as things came into focus she mentally yanked at the gun in Marcell's hand.

The yank wasn't hard, but Marcell was busy focusing on Tom and wasn't expecting Amber to wake up or even have powers. The gun left his loose grip and skittered on the ground a bit, landing directly between Lucas and Marcell. Marcell's eyes narrowed as he lowered a hand from a bleeding ear, lunging at his weapon.

Ry, being nearly situated between Marcell and Lucas, darted forward and kicked the gun behind him. "Tom!" Ry hoped he was focused and ready to do whatever Tom does. "Let it be..." Ry began to sing, focusing on Marcell. "When I find myself in times of trouble Mother Mary comes to me, speaking words of wisdom, let it be. And in my hour of darkness she is standing right in front of me, speaking words of wisdom, let it be..." Ry hoped Marcell was weak enough to be hypnotized, all he could do was keep singing.

Lily reaches down and steadies Amber. She puts the girl's arm around her shoulder, trying to help her stand. "We need to get out of here," she says to both Amber and Kelly.

Freedom! Lucas thought as the gun fortunately landed in between Marcell and himself, and even better fortune when Ry kicked the weapon behind him. Lucas fell to the ground and grabbed the gun, all the while looking towards Marcell to make sure he didn't have any aces up his sleeves. Returning from a prone position, Lucas felt the cold steel in between his fingers and knew that his freedom was almost at hand. But once the gun came into his possession, Lucas' poker face soon started to melt away; sure he had immense anger for his captors but he had never killed anyone before. Brushing away his newest revelations, Lucas looked dead into Marcell's eyes. "Stop you sick freak! I bet that anti power of yours doesn't stop ordinary bullets from hitting you, huh."

Tom shuddered, breaking out of his reverie. He had looked into Marcell's eyes and found only madness. "Sound, sound doesn't reach ears always deaf," he muttered, shaking. The voices he heard were silent for once, of their own volition. "Ry, Ry, all, run away, please, just leave the place where even I am among the whole..."

True to Tom's rantings, Marcell grinned silently at Lucas, unafraid of the bullets, looking back into Lucas' eyes. His gaze was steady, and for a second all Lucas saw of Marcell's heart was himself reflected back on Lucas. Then Marcell let his own power slip and Lucas fell into the broken glass that was Marcell's mind. "Just for you," Marcell purred, as though giving Lucas a gift. It ended as quickly as it began, Lucas pulled slowly from the crazy.

"L-lucas," Alex said, growing cold in the rain as the adrenaline drained away. He was only ten feet from Marcell, but the situation had turned. "We win. Don't use the gun unless..." He looked at Lucas. "We win."

Lucas didn't stop peering into Marcell's eyes, even well after the leader of the Institution placed his defenses up again. The mind reader just kept looking back at Marcell, trying to make sense of anything that he saw in Marcell's mind. Anger was replaced with hatred; Lucas became oblivious to everything around him except Marcell and the gun. Holding the gun, he kept standing there, the rain pouring on him. After what seemed like an eternity, Lucas finally replied. "You sick bastard, you sick bastard..."

Marcell spread his hands, grin widening under Lucas' scrutiny. "Oh, please spare my life, please, I'll do anything," he said in a voice dripping with sarcasm. His gaze traveled to Ry, the sway of hypnotism lapping at the edges of his consciousness, and he waved a hand in front of his face as though batting at a fly.

"Lucas," Kelly shouted, swaying to her feet. "...give me the gun."

The look on Lucas' face was of pure hatred by the way Marcell was making fun of the very serious situation. Training in on Marcell with his eye, Lucas extended his hand as though about to shoot, but at the last second he pulled the gun up and shot six feet above Marcell's head. Then slowly, without his eyes leaving the evil insane mastermind, Lucas slowly walked over to Kelly and handed her the gun.

Kelly took the gun and placed her hand on Lucas' shoulder. She could guess how hard that was, but she didn't waste much more time. "Marcell, release the other patients," she said, pointing the gun at him much more levelly than Lucas had done. When Marcell started to speak, she cut him off. "Don't give me that crap. I'll let you live, but only if you promise you'll get the patients out of this place."

"As you know, my life is my most valued asset," Marcell sneered. However, he took out a cellphone from his pocket, rain still beating down on him as everybody else. "Miss Kilner," he said into the phone after dialing a short number, "please begin to make arrangements to transport the patients to places suitable for their individual needs... or release them back into the wild, as it were." He paused, listening. "Yes," he replied, then hung up.

Alex frowned. That was too easy.

A shot rang out and broke Ry's concentration. He watched as Skywalker gave the gun over to Kelly. He was really glad that no one had actually been killed. Ry was fine with throwing a couple of punches but he wasn't entirely sure he was comfortable with some one dying... any one dying... Though now he thought himself past due of getting over that; especially considering the circumstances. He tried to take in Marcell's gaze as he glanced at him. The glance wasn't enough. Ry edged towards Kelly as she demanded the release of the patients. Alex's face showed what he felt. Probably another trap, he thought. "Do we trust him and this..." Ry addressed Kelly, all the while never taking his gaze from Marcell. "This so called arrangement?"

Lucas shook his head, still trying to process the white noise he had seen in Marcell's eyes. "I wouldn't trust him with anything." Taking a look around at his surroundings and seeing everyone drenched to the bone, Lucas kicked the ground and finally stated, "Screw this guys, I'm outta here. Come if you want." With that he started to walk away from Marcel and the Institution, wrapping his arms around himself to warm up.

"Best run," Marcell said, the smile still on his face. "Nobody's coming to get you, nobody to snatch you up for more experiments... But how long will that last?" He raised up his hands and turned his face to the rain. "Keep your special powers a secret, unless you can find a cure like myself. If another agency found out, well then... Oh, think of the government. You'll be running the rest of your life."

"We'll risk it," Lily mutters in response. Drenched from the rain, she is completely useless in assisting the others in keeping Marcell at bay. Keeping hold of Amber, she begins to make her way to the exit.

Alex clenched his teeth, shaking his head in disbelief. His injured hand was throbbing, his blood flow slowing, hissing as it hit the ground, now worthless. "But you'll leave us alone?"

"You're my life," Marcell said, somehow at Alex's side. "With you gone, my life ends, so isn't it appropriate that you repay the favor?" Then there was a knife in his hands.

A flurry of movement and Alex was sprinting away, sporting a new cut on his arm. Marcell was screaming and clutching his face. The building's power came back on, the courtyard was flooded with light, and the sound of cars was still in the distance, but coming closer. "Let's, uh, run," Alex said eloquently, grabbing Megan's arm with a non-bloody hand, keeping a careful eye on his bleeding.

Ry ran with and then past Alex. He took up Amber's other side, helping Lily out. "Let's go!" Together they picked up the pace.

Lucas was already two steps ahead of everyone when the flood lights came on and sounds of cars approaching came closer to the proximity of the group. The little sense of freedom was now dwindling away as the fear grow more intense; the fear of beign caught and being placed back in that prison. Not even stopping to survey the scene, Lucas just looked away to see what was in front of him, hoping one of those cars didn't cut him off.

Kelly gripped her gun, backing away from Marcell, who was just starting to make small groans of agony. "You're a man of your word," she said, reminding him, hoping he remembered the deal though the pain. His life for everybody's freedom.

Marcell stilled, then laughed. "Yes," he said, uncovering his face. Kelly jerked back from what she saw there. "But the question is... now what?" Kelly shook her head, backing up, then running with the rest of the group, pushing along Tom and Sarah in front of her. She led the group out of the courtyard, then into a nearby grove of trees to hide. The cars passed them without incident, so Kelly decided to repeat the question back to the group. They weren't totally free, but if Marcell was going to search for them to bring them back, they still had a few minutes before something was organized. Now what?

"Could we loose them in the forest?" Ry didn't know how far the tree line extended or even if it led anywhere. "Is there a way out from here?" Ry adjusted his grip on Amber. They had minutes to get ahead; perhaps less. "Let's keep going. It's better than just standing here trying to think of what to do." Ry thought they had done enough standing around for one night.

"We're wasting precious time guys, let's have our little group therapy session and run like hell away from that place," Lucas exclaimed to the group, not at all panting from the exertion of running; exercise always pays off. Taking one look at everyone hiding behind the trees, Lucas stepped out and started to run as if though the devil was chasing him. He could only hope that he was going the right way.

Amber was still putting most of her weight on Ry. She was running entirely on her rush of adrenaline, which was starting to wane.

Tom shook his head at the sound of his voices returning. Concentrating, he focused past them and back towards Marcell. "They're not following us," he said. "Marcell is relaying the orders he promised." He didn't add that they were transferring the truly insane individuals to other institutions. Tom was staying out of that.

Alex looked back towards the mansion, letting go of Megan's hand. Megan followed his gaze. "There's something I need to do, so I'm gonna stay in the area a few days," Alex muttered, putting pressure on the cut on his hand and arm.

Lily paused at Alex's comment. It may have been the stress from escaping, the fact that she was wet and therefore powerless, or just general exhaustion, but she sorta snapped. "What do you mean, there's 'something' you gotta do? I'm sick of all this vague macho bullshit. We all just risked our lives to get away from this place, and now you wanna stay?"

Lucas turned back to see which way the others were running only to find they were still in the same place as before. Not taking a step back towards the Institution the mind reader yelled as quietly as he could. "What the hell is going on over there guys?" He couldn't make any sense why they still weren't running, mostly due to the fact that he didn't hear Tom announce that they weren't being followed.

Alex gave Lily a lopsided grin, although it was as tired as she felt. "Just gonna fix a mistake," he said, glancing back at the building. "With some good old fashioned arson."

"Boom," Megan muttered, her eyes clearer and more focused. She looked over at Lucas. "No danger," she yelled over to him, not bothering to be quiet.

"I'm not gonna get caught," he said. "They're not catching us anyways."

"Alex, let's just get out of here. Okay? Seek retribution later. Right now is our best chance for escape." Ry shook his head. If he came to it, would he help Alex or would he stay and help those in need? Ry felt Amber slip in his grasp. I have my answer, he thought.

Alex looked at Ry, then the ground. "That place shouldn't be left standing," he said, but then looked at Amber. "Let's get everybody out of here," he acquiesced, quietly.

"We can go to my apartment," Kelly said, nodding towards where the local town was. "If they're not following us, we can get dried off and figure something out."

Since nobody objected, the group found themselves drying off in Kelly's apartment. She told them to be quiet as she tossed out towels. She muttered something and left, only coming back a few minutes later. "I checked up on it," Kelly stated. "They're moving the people now. Like, right now."

Alex sat on a table, holding what appeared to be a ragged beach towel around his neck, catching drops of water from his red hair. "I'm gonna go finish my last year of college," he said in a low voice. "First check up with the 'rents. Dunno what I'm gonna tell them."

Tom rolled a shoulder, unsure of what he would do now, just glad to be out. Even the voices had calmed down. Megan shifted her feet. She hadn't even gone through high school.

Lucas truly didn't know how to feel right now. For so long he had been wanting to either escape from that prison or be set free. Now that the dream had finally come true it was hard getting used to it. "I'm definitely going back to the casinos, back to my riches and all that jazz."

Lily looks uncomfortable, mostly from the water all over her that she's furiously trying to dry off, but also from her newfound freedom. She hadn't even finished middle school before she'd been locked up. Now what? Where could she even begin looking for her parents? It was overwhelming, but glancing at Megan, she knew she wasn't the only one dealing with these problems, and that made her feel a bit better.

Ry carefully unfolded the now soaked letter from his brother. Inside was an address and an invitation for Ry to come stay with him if he ever wanted or needed to. Ry sighed and glanced around the compact living room apartment and listened as a few people talked about what they would do. Lily looked confused to him. And Megan... Megan definitely had better days. "If you two need a place to stay until you figure out what you want to do, I'm staying with my brother for a bit and you're more than welcome to come with me." It was the best Ry could do until he figured out what he was going to do with himself. "Truly, he wouldn't mind."

"That'd be great," Lily smiles, inching closer to Ry. She reaches out a hand and gently brushes up against his- not quite holding his hand, but still making contact.

Megan looked up at Ry, gave a hesitant smile, and nodded. She then went to staring at the floor.

Tom tried to think. Could he get any of his old stuff back? His bank account should still be open, and he was making alright money at his old job. "Going back home," he said simply.

"Well, you can crash here for the night, or head home right away," Kelly said. "Any of you can crash here as long as you'd like, actually. But after two week's you'll have to start paying rent." Kelly looked over at Sarah, wondering how exactly she'd be taking care of, and figuring that it was probably going to be her. She walked over to the girl and knelt beside her. "Would you like to stay with me?" she asked in a soft voice.

Sarah had been just sort of tagging along, somehow having managed to get out of the facility without her headband being triggered. But she seemed a little happier now. "Tom." she said, staring off into space.

"Yes," Tom replied, as if it were the most natural thing in the world. He held out his bony hand to the little girl as Kelly looked on, apprehensive and a little shocked.

"As long as she's taken care of, Tom." Ry had been thinking of bringing Sarah along, provided she didn't have somewhere else to go or some one else to go with. As long as she's taken care of, Ry thought.

Tom nodded. He had kept a pet cat alive before he left for the various asylums. Or it might have been his old roommates' cat. Either way, it was cute and well-fed. Plus, Tom didn't doubt that if he slipped up, the small one would let him know. In other ways, the two belonged more with each other than anybody else in the group.

Alex found himself alongside Amber, their forearms brushing. He gave her a shy smile. "You going to see your family?" he asked. "Because eventually, I got a promise from you that we'd go bar-hopping."

Lucas plopped himself on a couch, folded his arms behind his head and said, "So we're all crashing here tonight, and tomorrow everyone is going off on their own way?"

"I'm not confident that's not a good idea. What if they come looking for us? And they come looking here? They know Kelly is with us." Ry was siding with caution. "Where are we anyway?" Kelly do you have any maps of this place and surrounding areas?"

Kelly nodded, then went to a shelf. She took off a few maps and laid them out on the table, then silently pointed out where they were. The Institution was also labeled, a few miles away. Tom glanced at it and shook his head, not wanting to stay in such close quarters with all these people. "We'll leave tonight," he said, only the touch of question in his voice as he looked at Sarah to make sure she was alright to travel. "If we can borrow bus money." Kelly nodded again, pretty certain Marcell wasn't going to come after them immediately, but letting everybody make their own decisions. Marcell was a man of his word. A crazy man with a messed up honor system, but an honor system nonetheless.

"So..." Ry gazed at the map. It didn't help much, he still didn't know where they were. "So, do we leave tonight or tomorrow morning?"

The group shared a moment of silence. It was a parting of ways. After a near-death experience, it seemed appropriate to have a few words for the occasion.

Nobody could think of anything, and somehow that too was okay.

---

Some left that night, some crashed at the place. They all were out before the week was up.

Three days later the Institution burned down in a fiery blaze.

Nobody really kept in touch.

A few years later, Alex was running his own sports business. He sold equipment and held lessons. Despite a few minor incidents his condition didn't bother him.

He was traveling to another city for a conference when there was a commotion at his bus stop. A pair of suits were chasing after a young girl. Alex didn't know what compelled him to do what he did, but his hand reached and and snagged the girl's elbow, dragging her behind him. She ducked behind a trash can. Alex looked perplexed to his left, like following the flight of that girl, and the suits caught this and ran past. Alex didn't turn to look at the girl until they were far out of his sight.

He knelt next to her. "Hey, want to tell me what's up?"

She looked up at him. Her eyes glowed a bright green. As they made eye contact he could hear echoes of his own thoughts back at him.

Alex stood back up, but didn't move away. Suits. Chasing a girl with strange powers. This was all very deja vu. Unwanted, which is why he said words he probably shouldn't say in front of a small girl.

"Oh, fuck."

---

---

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Institution: Inhabitants}