Silence Falls

Coming back into the hallway, this time with Demitria, Natasha, Alexis and Onika in tow, Bert switched back to the brand-new elevator door that was their only stumbling block in getting to the surface. With a nod to Connor, they began to undertake opening the polished metal doors, choosing to overlook the evident mechanism installed not too long ago within the wall next to it. When no amount of strength seemed to work, Connor let out an obscenity and stepped back from the door only to give it a kick with his foot. “Goddamnit, this door is like fucking welded shut or something! It won't fucking budge an inch!”

Bert shook his head, out of breathe from exertion as he hunched over with his hands braced on his bent knees. “He's right, we can't open this fucking thing!”

Cris could only keep his mouth shut for a minute before conveying the pronounced way to trigger the doors to open...and it through a way no one else wanted to propose. “That's because we're gonna need a guard to help us get in there. They're the only ones that have access to every area locked down here.”

“Oh yeah, and how the hell would that work out in our favor? 'Oh, hello mister guard I know you wanna shoot me and all, but can you do me a solid and open these doors so my friends and I can leave this here compound for good? You will?! Golly, that's just swell!' Yeah right, asking them for assistance isn't going to be an option here, so what's your next plan?” Connor spat, treading in place as he ran two large hands through his long dark hair.

Cris merely shrugged, not having considered this idea through any further than that. “I-I don't know.”

“Well, do you have a better idea on getting that print analysis to work, Cannibal Dickhead?” Bam mocked Connor, who was ready for him when he turned unexpectedly to cram Bam against the nearest wall behind him.

“Alright, Cock Breathe, you wanna fucking fight? Cause trust me, this is the perfect time to do it considering we're gonna be dead in a couple of minutes when they catch up to us!” Connor growled down at a fuming Bam who was, surprisingly, not backing down.

Bert, Cris and Otep all strode forward to strive together to try to wrest Bam back from Connor, who was a much bigger size than the rest. Hermanni simply monitored from a distant, interested as to who would win, but Bert wasn't about to let him find out. Managing to thrust them apart, Bert yelled out. “Alright! Alright, you assholes, calm the fuck down! We don't have time to fight each other here, we can do that when we're out of this place, okay, so just wait until then and keep focus!” He was comforted when they heeded him and kept away from each other, shooting glares back to back. Running a wobbly hand through his hair, Bert took a deep breath and tried to fixate on the challenge at hand. “Now look, we need to figure out a way to open this stupid door! We're running out of time! Does anyone have any ideas?”

Everyone peered at each other, not wanting to articulate the obvious solution to this present quandary which was Cris's vague idea. Instead, they all looked around with agitation in their eyes as they tried to think of another answer that wouldn't obligate them to solicit cooperation from the enemy. Connor, however, being a cannibal, began to see Cris's solution in a different light, and was now in accord with him. They required a guard in order to get out, it was the only option.

“Fine, I'm just going to go on ahead and state what we're all thinking at this point in our bold pursuit to escape this hellhole.” Otep irritably spoke up, letting out a long breath as everybody bounce with alleviation that someone else other than themselves had the balls to speak it out loud. Sighing with comfort, they all gathered close around Otep, giving her their complete attention. “How about instead of getting a guard's help to get us through this door, we just slice off that dead guard's finger back at the station and use his fingerprint on the analyzer.”

No one spoke a word in return to Otep's horrifying tip. The girl's backed away with a gasp of incredulity at hearing those words out loud, Alexis shaking her head behind her hands. “Oh my god, this can't be happening?”

“Girl, you wanna cut off a fucking finger?!” Onika proclaimed, not believing that this was a feasible plan. “What medication is your ass on?”

Cris and Bam exchanged mute distressed glimpses, wondering who would be the one chosen to carry out the cleaving operation.

Bert blinked a few times, shaking his head in disapproval as he said with ambivalence. “No, no we can't do that. There has to be another way...”

“That's excellent! It's exactly what needs to be done to get out of here!” Connor grinned as his nodded his head in compliance. Of course, that only drew him disapproving glances from the others, but Connor only shot them a look of contempt right back. “Oh come on, don't act like you guys weren't thinking it either! We can't possibly haul his dead corpse around this entire compound with us, he's too heavy and it'll only serve to slow us down!”

Everyone looked to their leader, Bert, as he mulled over this option. Rubbing the back of his neck and biting his lower lip at the same time, his eyes narrowed at a random spot on the floor. They couldn't get anywhere without a staff's fingerprint, there was just no other way around it. If instead this door needed connection with a key card instead, than this would be no problem. Sadly, that's not case here. The solution was evident, and they couldn't keep dancing around it. There was no rewiring of any form that could be done successfully to operate the doors nor could they lug the dead body all the way to the surface with them until they were safe...no, it's best they left the bastard behind...only without one of his fingers. Bert sighed as he came to a settlement, then addressed the others. “I hate to say this, but Otep and Connor are right.” Holding up a hand to subdue their grievances, Bert proceeded. “Now before you start haggling and saying this is immoral, I just want you to know that I feel the exact same way. This is some fucked up shit we're about to do here, but we honestly don't have any other option. We certainly can't make it to the surface toting this dead guy with us. Like Connor said, he'll slow us down...but his finger won't.”

“Okay so...who's gonna be the one to do it then?” Onika demanded him, a nauseated expression on her face as she scanned the faces around her, stopping at the new guy, Hermanni who she spotted gawking at her.

Conner grinned with excitement. “Me, of-fucking-course! Unlike the rest of you weak bellies, I don't have a problem with extracting limps from bodies...for discernible reasons.”

Everyone cringed all at once before nodding in accord. Bert felt his stomach lurch, and had to cover his mouth with his hand. “S-Sure, Connor, do your thi-”

The group suddenly rebounded as the fingerprint analyzer abruptly burst from the inside out, a small shower of sparks launching as the hall reverberated with the sound of the power dwindling. Magically, the elevator doors swished open with ease only to unveil the cold elevator shaft dimmed with weak lighting. Bert and his friends stood like statues nearby, glimpsing between the elevator shaft and themselves in perplexity. Otep was the first to speak. “Well...”

“I guess we, uh, better get going?” Bert queried, not perceiving why the device randomly malfunction as he stepped forward. Mystified, Bert stuck his head into the elevator shaft to seek out the elevator box only to distinguish it far above them. It was jammed on the facility's first floor. Cursing, Bert retreated back to distribute the grim account with the others. “Fucking hell, the elevator is jammed! There's no way we can call it down here.”

“What?! Are you sure?” Cris prospected, zipping over to take a peek for himself just in case the medication was finally liquidizing their leader's brain. His face fell when he saw for himself that Bert's claims were legitimate, the elevator was jammed and was in no condition to move.

“Check it out for yourselves. You should be able to see how it's sort of tilted weird on the left.” Bert described while indicating upwards from beside him. “Well, that's cause it's damaged. It's not going anywhere anytime soon.”

Joining them to investigate herself, Otep demanded. “So then what are you saying? That we're trapped down here and there's nothing we can do about it?”

“No, no I think we can still make it, Bert! If we can all just climb the ladder there built inside the shaft, squeeze past the elevator and then climb on top of it, we can break into the elevator box, pry the elevator doors open and then presto, we're safely on the first floor!” Cris conspired in detail, his blue eyes alight with confidence that he might have just recovered them all from certain death.

Bert was back at his side in seconds, scrutinized more intently the situation and saw that he was right. “Holy shit, he's right! He fucking found the way out!”

“Well then, what the hell are we waiting for? Let's get fucking going!” Bam cheered, bulldozing past them to reach for the ladder by the door to begin the climb upward. “No point in talking this shit over and wasting time!”

“After you, Princess.” Otep grumbled to the others, crossing her arms over her chest.

Bert rolled his eyes and spouted to the others. “Okay, since Bam enlisted to go first, I guess, how bout Otep goes next, then Cris, then the girls and lastly Connor, and Hermanni. I'll bring up the rear.”