The Gemini Age: Book One

[14-3] The Break - Part Three

    Her eyelids began to droop from the toll of the past hour's watch. In all parts of life, Skye thrived on activity. She could perform at her best for a full day without sleep and still have the energy to make any assailant regret their opportunistic strike, provided she could stay moving the whole time. Crossing the soot-stained rooftops focused her, combatting insolent Tempereds thrilled her, yet sitting behind a disused whiteboard in the dustiest room of the facility's lower level would be her undoing. 

    She missed Taylor and Cole's shared unfailing ability to incense her. After all, she was in the mood to torch another pair of Taylor's shoes. With Sam home, she even had a chance of getting away with it.

    If Sam was still home, that was. Skye had no way of knowing what took place at Ashburn down here and the longer she spent wandering these dismal corridors, the more suspicious she became that her father had sent her here on purpose. There were other, lesser gangs around if her father had really wanted to demean her with grunt work. Yet the Nomads had the largest presence in the city, along with resources to provide enough assistance to any project of her father's to become indispensable. They managed to stand alongside rather than serve underneath the Farron family's own personnel, and they did not hassle anybody with questions.

    By dumping her on the Nomads, her father had ensured she would be cut off from contact with home for a decent length of time. Just like when he sent Sam to the remotest parts of the island, her father was plotting something. Byron Farron was always plotting, as he made little time for anything else but this was something bigger. It had to be something that would fundamentally change the family's standing.

    It had to be something he did not want her or Sam to witness.

    Spite soured Skye's tongue again at the realisation of yet another way in which her father underestimated her. She would find out the full details of whatever major move he was about to make, and she would drive its success through her own substantial, unprompted contribution. 

    If her father needed to pacify the unstable Gemini population to achieve his ends, then she would personally deliver the choicest targets to his office. If he wanted to use the microscopic talents of brainless thugs and a loudmouth lord to get the political influence he needed, then she would refrain from burning their eyebrows off. If he wanted her to make the most of her power, then no underground facility could stop her, nor could any untamed Gemini. Especially not this singularly infuriating threat.

    It was too quiet for the patrol guard to sneak up on her, yet with the help of a soft impulse of air Skye got the jump on him in a second. Her fingers jabbed in the small space of his neck visible between his jacket collar and his hair. "I know you can open this door," she said by his ear, letting a small stream of sparks singe the hairs on the back of his neck. "Do it."

    The guard fidgeted, his brow already moist with sweat. "I – I swear, I don't know the passcode!" His voice broke apart as he spoke until all he could stutter out were shattered fragments of vowel sounds.

    "Nice try, grunt. Everybody who patrols this route knows the code for security reasons. That includes you." Skye wrapped one arm around the man's neck and aimed her other at the door, two fingers outstretched. "This door's protected by a reflective barrier. Do you think you can break free before my lightning bounces back at us? I have other guards I can coerce for the code, but you've only got one brain to fry."

    "Please! I don't – "

    Skye's hand sparked with pure white energy. "Three. Two..."

    "Stop! I'll open it!" The guard collapsed to the floor as soon as Skye released him, and it took a fiery flick of her eyes across his face to inspire him back to his feet. He stood knock-kneed at the console, conscious of Skye's still-fizzing fingertips over his shoulder, and after a few shaking swipes of the screen the door shunted open. "There, I did it. It only stays open for about –"