Suddenly, Stark sat up on his bed with a gasp, and his eyes flew open. Panic seized him as he surveyed the sterile white room, an alien environment he didn't recognize. He ripped the IV from his arm, earning a surprised yelp from the nurse, and swung his legs over the side of the bed. "Where am I," he roared. His voice was like an invasive bark.
The nurse held up her hands in a placating gesture. "Please, boy, you need to calm down. You're injured."
"Injured," Stark scoffed. Looking for his elemental sword, he reached and grasped empty air. He tried to stand but stumbled back onto the bed as a wave of dizziness washed over him. "What is this place? Who are you? Why are we here," he demanded again.
Instantaneously, Hafen's eyes snapped open at the commotion. He kept quiet, taking in the unfamiliar surroundings, the antiseptic smell, their missing weapons, and the panicked state of his brother. His mind raced, piecing together the last fragmented memories of the forest, the queen and the overwhelming force that had sent them flying. He inquired softly, "Were we captured perhaps?"
At the same time, Matteo turned to Stark with relief. "Stark! You're awake," he exclaimed. He then soothed, "It's okay. They saved our lives."
Stark shot Matteo a fiery glare. "Saved us," he retorted. He pointed at the nurse with a trembling finger. "They have us locked up in a room. They took our weapons. This isn't rescue. This is imprisonment," he accused. Next, he turned to the nurse, and his eyes burned with fury. "Where are our weapons," he interrogated.
The nurse flinched at his anger. "Your weapons are safe. They're in the armory," she stuttered.
"The armory," Hafen repeated with a whisper. He pushed himself off the bed and stumbled out the door without anyone noticing. In a hallway, he held his head and leaned against a wall.
In the infirmary, the nurse reasoned with Stark, "Please, you need to calm down. You're not well enough to be walking around."
"I'm fine," Stark insisted, and he managed to stand up. He shambled forward with a few steps.
In the meantime, Matteo noticed Hafen's bed was empty. "Hafen's gone," he blurted out, and he immediately covered his mouth.
The nurse turned to Hafen's bed and gasped. She grasped a device from her hip and alerted, "My radio. Soldiers! A patient, Hafen, has escaped!"
Stark took the opportunity to slip out of the infirmary. "Come on, Matteo," he called out, and a smirk spread across his face. He ran down the hall with a slight limp.
Matteo hesitated for a moment before following Stark. "Wait, Stark! We don't know where we are," he warned.
"It doesn't matter. We're getting out of here," Stark replied without looking back.
"They ran that way," the nurse shouted in the distance.
Stark and Matteo ran through the hallway. The nurse's shout faded behind them as they navigated the maze of white corridors. Every turn presented another identical hallway and another set of impassive doors. Each one was a potential dead end or a trap.
The alarm blared. Red lights flashed on the walls, and a metallic voice echoed through the base, "Danger alert. Level three. All units, converge on the medical wing."
In a different corridor, Hafen shook his throbbing head and knelt. He took a deep breath to steady himself, and the world swam back into focus. His hands grasped the collar of a downed soldier.
From the soldier's perspective, Hafen's face swam into view, and a glint of a gun in Hafen's other hand caught the light. The soldier's eyes widened, and he pleaded, "Please, I..."
Hafen's other hand clamped over the soldier's mouth. His movements were precise and calculated. "Lead me to the armory," he whispered.
The soldier's muffled protests died in his throat as Hafen pressed his stolen gun harder against his neck. He gave a frantic nod.
Hafen pulled the soldier to his feet and shoved him forward. "Move," he commanded with the gun aimed at the back.
The soldier nervously scurried down the corridor.
Later, two soldiers rushed down another corridor. They stopped in front of Hafen's hostage, raising their eyebrows. "What are you doing? Help us look for the kids," one of them suggested.
The soldier held hostage gulped and signaled behind him with his eyes.
The two soldiers squinted and spotted Hafen. Their breaths hitched as they noticed the gun. They raised their own. "Halt! Lower the gun," one of them commanded with a stern expression.
Hafen gritted his teeth. "Take another step, and I'll kill him," he threatened. His eyes darted to the door beside them.
The door had a sign that read "Armory" in bold, silver letters.
Hafen's hostage stammered, "Don't shoot. Please."
The two soldiers looked at each other and exchanged glances. They lowered their guns.
"Your piece of plastic should open it, right," Hafen asked his hostage while holding a keycard. He held it to the lock.
The door clicked open.
"What the," one of the soldiers exclaimed.
Hafen pushed the soldier aside and entered the armory. He quickly scanned the area.
Inside, racks of weapons lined the walls. Their elemental weapons rested on a velvet cloth in a glass case in the center of the room.
"There they are," Hafen asserted. He rushed to the pedestal and grabbed his elemental katana and elemental gun. He swiftly grabbed Stark's and Matteo's elemental weapons, as well. He holstered the three guns and carried the three swords with difficulty.
"Hey! Stop right there," a soldier objected, and the two of them aimed their rifles.
With his hands full, Hafen focused his gaze.
The two soldiers' rifles were ripped from their hands and clattered against the ceiling. Then, they aimed right back at them.
"Don't get in my way," Hafen ordered.
The two soldiers backed away with their hands raised and obliged.
Just then, Stark and Matteo rushed inside. They skidded to a halt, and they stared at the scene. Their eyes opened wide in shock.
"Hafen," Matteo gasped.
Hafen threw the elemental weapons to their respective owners.
Stark and Matteo barely caught them.
"Hafen, well done," Stark commended with surprise.
"Let's go," Hafen replied with a nod.
In an instant, two suppressed shots rang out. Thin darts protruded from Stark's and Matteo's necks.
Stark and Matteo stumbled back and groaned weakly. Their muscles went slack, and their vision blurred. Their elemental weapons clattered to the floor. In unison, they collapsed with a thud.
"Stark! Matteo," Hafen cried out. He took a step towards them but stopped from taking another.
Dr. Plinius entered the armory with a smoking tranquilizer gun. He stepped over the paralyzed bodies of Stark and Matteo with a mischievous smirk. "They're resilient, but not immune to a concentrated tranquilizer," he noted. He turned to Hafen and sought to know, "Now, will you surrender quietly?"
Hafen unsheathed his elemental katana. "I'd rather die than be your lab rat," he snarled.
More soldiers appeared behind Dr. Plinius for support. Most of them held rifles with tranquilizer darts aimed at Hafen. A couple of them handcuffed the temporarily paralyzed.
"You're outnumbered. There's no escape," Dr. Plinius pointed out with a calm tone.
Hafen refused to surrender. He tightened the grip on his katana and prepared to fight. "I'm outnumbered. When was that a problem," he mused. With a swift motion, he swung his katana and sent a wave of water at the horde of soldiers.
The soldiers were knocked off their feet and washed back against the wall. They slid in a heap of drenched bodies.
Dr. Plinius sidestepped the attack with practiced ease and raised his tranquilizer gun again. "You're impressive, Hafen. I like that," he praised. He suddenly felt his weapon being pulled.
Hafen, narrowing his eyes, gained control of his weapon.
"Stand down," a stern voice suddenly commanded. His voice boomed through the room and cut through the blaring alarm and the groans of soldiers.
Everyone froze.
Dr. Plinius lowered his gun with a reluctant sigh. "General," he acknowledged.
The soldiers scrambled to their feet and stood at attention. They trained their rifles on Hafen, but their expressions now held a mixture of fear and respect.
Hafen, however, held his ground. He looked up at the doorway and met the general's unwavering gaze.
A large, imposing figure stood in the doorway. He had a weathered face and a long mustache that drooped down the sides of his mouth. A hat with a Striboran insignia sat on his head. He wore a decorated military uniform, and rows of medals gleamed on his chest. He looked at the chaos in the armory with a frown.
Hafen narrowed his eyes and questioned, "Who are you?"
On the ground, Matteo and Stark realized the man's importance and wondered the same.
"I'm General Bobby. You've caused quite a bit of trouble, haven't you, boy," General Bobby noted with a gruff tone. He took a step forward.
The soldiers immediately parted like the sea.
General Bobby stopped a few feet from Hafen and stared at him with an intense, unreadable expression. His presence alone demanded everyone's attention. "Kids, sorry for the mistreatment. I'll let you roam free if you concede violence in my military base," he offered and forced a smile.
"General Bobby, they should be contained and studied," Dr. Plinius intervened. He gestured to Stark and Matteo.
General Bobby didn't even look at him. "They are not specimens, Dr Plinius. They are the future of Stribora," he claimed. He turned back to Hafen and clarified, "I have a proposition for you. A way for you to make a difference in this war."
Hafen hesitated and weighed his options. He glanced at the still forms of his brothers on the floor. He looked at the general, a man whose name was whispered with reverence in The Sacred Forest. He peeked at the door, a potential path to freedom but also to the unknown dangers of a world he'd never known. "What do you want from us," he finally inquired.
General Bobby motioned for his soldiers to release Matteo and Stark.
The soldiers reluctantly uncuffed them.
Stark and Matteo, the effects of the tranquilizer wearing off, groaned and slowly sat up. They exchanged bewildered glances and rubbed their necks. They stared at General Bobby with a mixture of confusion and concern and joined Hafen's side. They held their respective elemental weapons.
General Bobby smirked, expecting them to understand his motives.
General Bobby has confronted Hafen, Matteo, and Stark. What could he want from them?