Labyrinth

Chapter-6- Unseen Connections

She was crouched behind the closed door, listening for signs of movement. Her bare knees scraped against the mosaic, cold surface of the uncarpeted floor. With one ear stuck to the door, her eyebrows were drawn in a faint crease. There were no sounds at all. She let out a groan and stood on her feet.

Out of sheer boredom rather than instinct, her gaze flickered around the room. Though she had been kept occupied for more than four hours in the small bedroom, she hadn't noticed anything more than the four poster bed where she had slept. Looking beyond the bare essentials that a bedroom always consisted of, she also found a dresser in the left corner. A tall, elegant mirror was attached to it and she also noticed a series of pin-pointed buttons at one side. Rena walked towards it, fumbling on the way due to cramps in her thigh muscles. When the blood supply finally relieved her, she managed to stand erect on both feet.

Her hands reached out on their own and felt around the tiny switches. Curiosity overwhelmed her reasoning and she began flicking them one by one. A sudden rumble took her by surprise. For a moment, she was shaken to see the mirror splitting into two and opening forward. When the opening revealed a cabinet, she let out her pent-up breath nervously.

Come on, Rena. Don't be so jumpy!

The cabinet had two longitudinal shelves and an inner closed compartment at the lower bottom. Many medicinal bottles were cramped into the tiny shelves. She began reading the names in her mind. Perhaps, she could find an aspirin to get rid of the throbbing migraine that was troubling her.

Tylenol, Paracetomol, Gelusil, Digene, Torospar, Biotin..

At the edge there was a half-empty bottle with white tablets inside. Though they did seem like Aspirin yet the bottle had a label. Inscribed on the chit, was a hastily scribbled name 'Acetoxy Benzoic Acid' . Having never paid any attention in high-school chemistry, she didn't know of the contents of the trademark. She decided to pass the chance since she didn't want to end up in hospital for swallowing an unknown pill.

On second thoughts, it would atleast get her out of her dungeon. She longed to breathe fresh air again.

She stepped back and her eyes traveled towards the small compartment. It had a small hole which she assumed to be the lock. Surprisingly, it was triangular.

That's odd.

Tracing the shape, Rena scrapped the surface with one nail. But it didn't budge.

Hitting the door with her palm, she gave up on her attempt. By flicking the pins randomly, the doors of the cabinet closed and the mirror was restored again.

She shrank back and her eyes drifted towards the closet. Getting dressed was probably the only thing she could do while he was gone. She walked upto the closet and looked at it hesitantly. Back in her time, she had seen only wooden ones. But the closet of Crash's room was metallic as if made out of aluminum. It was wedged onto the wall. One could easily mistake it for a door. She rubbed her temple in stricken disbelief. The most unique aspect about it was- it had no knob.

"Damn these new prototypes," she cursed. Raising one hand, she touched its metallic surface while wondering where the switch was.

To her surprise, the doors of the closet slid open horizontally with just one touch of the finger. She took a small step forward warily. A long stretch of hangers was revealed. Her fingers grazed the fabrics, as her eyes surveyed the clothes. Crash obviously wasn't someone who went for the bright colors. All the outfits were dark; predominantly black and sometimes brown.

Weird, she muttered to herself. But then again it wasn't surprising when one reviewed his dark gothic character. With a shrug, she rummaged through the hanging garments. As her search slowly turned out to be futile, she began to grow impatient. Her hand accidentally flicked something hard at the back of the closet. With curiosity edging the lines of her face, she discovered what was hidden at the back.

A second row of clothes.. But surprisingly, they were feminine. From night gowns to casuals, she could find them all. A snort escaped her lips.

Crash was a sexist. Yet, he had a hidden stash of 'women' wear. It puzzled her.

Setting aside her worries, she picked up a tight set of black pants and a white top to go with it.

Rena pulled back from the closet. With one gentle touch on the door, it closed again. She grinned to herself pleasantly and let out a satisfied whistle.

Maybe the future isn't a bad place after all..

After quickly changing into the clothes, she found herself standing before the mirror near the bed. She studied her reflection while straightening her tousled black hair. The outfit made her look like Lara Croft, the sportive game character famous in her time. The tight black pants hung off her waist, supported only by a solid belt with a silver buckle.

Nice, she told herself. The right outfit to make an escape again..

After casting one final look at her reflection, she tiptoed to the door. There was a tiny slit at the lower right edge. Feeling it through, she tried to figure out of how deep the slit was. She estimated it to be half the size of her index finger.. which ruled out any chances of breaking through the thick door. It was at that moment when she heard it.

Soft noises of clicking.

What's that?

It was unmistakable. Someone was outside.

"Who's there?" she called out.

No one answered but the clicks continued monotonously.

I guess I will just have to break through the door!

She stood up on her feet and pulled back a little. Giving herself in enough room, she raised one leg and kicked the door at its hinges. A loud thud resonated throughout the apartment. A sharp pain ran through her legs from her lower heel but she numbed it with hand-rubs. Getting out was at the top of her priority list. When no-one answered her aggressive moves, she continued abusing the door. Three kicks later, she could no longer stand the pain and gave up on her futile attempt.

She remained seated on the ground with her arms wrapped around her knees. Clasping her head in her hands, she sighed out in frustration. She had vowed not to cry but her helplessness in the new-found situation, was finally getting to her. No matter what she did, they never seemed to allow her to escape. Biting back her fears, she knocked on the door to draw the attention of the person outside.

"I am NOT going to stay in here forever, moron!" she yelled at the top of her lungs. "Why can't you just open this freakin' door?"

It was then when the clicks stopped. A haunting silence enveloped the apartment for the few seconds that followed. Then suddenly, the door slid open.

Rena had expected it to be Crash or one of his accomplices. She wouldn't have been surprised even if the detective Derek Woods had been standing outside the door. But what she had least expected to find, was an adolescent girl. The girl had blond hair with mild streaks of brown. The teenager was staring at her with furious green eyes.

"Do you mind keeping it down? I am trying to play Hotogawa Empire- The Revenge of The Samurais, Version III Edition 2. It's a game that involves a lot of concentration. So, keep it down, will you? You don't want me to lose because I HATE losing!"

All she received was a dumbfounded stare in response. The girl shook her head in exasperation and flitted away before Rena could ask her any question.

With her mouth hanging open in shock, Rena followed the girl into what seemed like the living room. It seemed ordinary. There was a sofa at one end and lots of very small discs lay cluttered around on the polished glass table. The girl sat down on the floor because there was no other space available to sit. She picked up her controls and reached out for the headphones that lay on the ground. The adolescent turned her attention to a huge flat screen which was embedded on the wall.

Rena watched her as she put it on and soon began divulging herself in the world of videogames.

Zit! Flash! Using the Dragon blow- Click! Opponent is dead!

Using the kid's distraction to her advantage, Rena stalked to the main door on delicate feet. Much to her disappointment, it had no knob and the door didn't budge.. not even with random touches on various spots.

She sighed and went back to the only living person, she could converse with.

The teenager was still engrossed in her game and wasn't paying any attention to her.

Who was she and why was she in Crash's home? Was she also a captive? Didn't seem like that.. but then again, it seemed absurd that the bad ass Crash aka Burn would leave Rena under the charge of a fourteen year old videogame fanatic.

Yes, it was indeed ridiculous.

"Hey.." she tried calling.

"I am busy."

"Will you listen to me?"

"No."

"I need to know some things-"

"Sorry, I don't have the time."

"Listen kid. I just want to ask you some questions."

"I am NOT a kid!" the girl muttered scornfully. By now, Rena had lost most of her ability to stay calm and controlled. Well, there was a limit to everyone's patience and hers had truly been over-ridden. She stormed over to the girl's side and yanked away the headphones forcibly.

The girl tried to snatch it back but Rena's height proved to be an advantage. She held the girl's precious belongings over the top of her head and refused to hand them back.

"I JUST need a couple of answers and I'll be gone! Got it?"

The blond haired girl glared at her and submitted to her orders reluctantly. "Fine. What do you want?" she asked in a voice that suggested boredom more than anything.

Rena relaxed her shoulders and let out a huge sigh of relief. If the girl had resisted, she knew she couldn't have put up a good fight without straining her tired muscles. She glanced down to meet the younger one's green eyes and nodded in gratitude.

"First of all, who are you?"

The girl raised one eyebrow in suspicion. A snort erupted from her throat and she burst out laughing.

Rena stared at the small form, wriggling with laughter. Her confusion easily showed through her face. "Wh-what's wrong?"

"It's- it's just that-" the girl said between fits of chuckles, "Never mind. My name is Corel but you don't have to remember it."

"Why is that?"

"They never last for more than a one-night stand!" Corel muttered with a slight shrug.

Rena was taken aback by her sly comment. The words echoed in her brain until she realized how the girl had misunderstood. She crossed her hands over her chest crossly. She hoped that her appearance was intimidating. It was the only way, she could dig out information from this over-smart kid.

Ignoring the kid's comment, she decided to ask the only thing on her mind.

"Is there a way out of this place?"

Corel looked up at her again. Her mouth was twitching to burst out in giggles. She raised one hand and pointed towards the end of the room. Rena followed her direction and found a curtained window. Hopeful anticipation filled her heart as she strode towards it. She pulled away the maroon curtains hurriedly and glanced out of the window. Only three words erupted from her mouth when she saw the view outside.

What the hell-

A cold wind hit her face, tickling her nose and making her face burn in shameful frustration. She spun around and cornered Corel with a furious glare. The girl was almost rolling on the floor with laughter. One hand clutching her stomach, she wiped away the tears from her eyes.

"God! You are so dumb!" Corel managed to utter between her fits. "We are on the twentieth floor. Unless you want your photo to appear on tomorrow's news, you don't want to get out. I can just imagine the heading on tomorrow's net edition. Miss. Irrational jumps off a high rise building!"

"What did you call me, kid?" Rena stormed back to the girl with two giant strides.

Corel ignored the issue with one slight shrug. She grasped hold of her headphones and placed them back on her ears. In a moment, she was cruising down a stony lane before a dojo and flexing the blade in her hands. Rena watched as the screen cluttered with blood and multi-dimensional figures began toppling one after another.

Seemingly, the kid was skilful at the controls. With a sigh, she sat down next to her. Clasping her hands over her face in disappointment, her head drooped onto her knees.

Though Corel was concentrating on her game, yet the fourteen year old was observing the young woman from the corner of her twinkling green eyes. The black haired twit wasn't like the 'other' women Crash always brought over every week. She was different.. and definitely clueless. So, why did her guardian bring her to their home?

Corel let out a soft groan. There could be only one reason. She must be related to his work. Rena was probably some VIP who needed protection against the rebels. The Detroit police force must have chosen Crash to be her body guard. Pitifully, the man wasn't even worthy to receive an assignment. Yes, Corel didn't hold a good opinion of the man. Truth be said, she despised him from the core of her heart.

A sadistic smile broke out on her face. So, Rena was somehow connected to his confidential assignment. Well, the fourteen- year-old's mind had already begun to plot schemes. This was possibly the only chance she would get to sabotage her guardian's work.

She stood up gently and sneaked towards her room. All she needed was a single picture..

..--..

The rain had stopped an hour ago, drowning the street in an unusual silence. A cloaked woman sat on a stool, gazing out of the window while watching the clouds part against the dark sky. A half-burnt cigarette hung from the tip of her lips and the smoke danced its way upwards until mingling with the mist hanging in the room.

A compact communicator lay on the counter and she twirled it out of sheer boredom. The palm sized object spun in a circle until finally coming to rest. She sighed and took another long drag of the narcotic.

She had been waiting for the past few hours.. and now her patience was beginning to fade. Her fingers urged to contact the man again but she decided against it.

Julia was the leader. She shouldn't go around asking for reports.. The members of her group were supposed to be at her service and not the other way around. As a leader, she had dignity to hold. Any sign of weakness would probably wreck their strong hold. She didn't want that. No, to Julia, the most important thing in life was the upliftment of The Underground. As weird as it may sound, it was the sole motive that drove her to the top ranks of the rebels.

The C.C.B knew she was dangerous. Yet what really amused her was their helplessness in the situation. She could have been convicted of vandalism, treachery and various other violations many years ago. But the only reason they were unable to do so, was because there was no proof. That's why she was working with The Underground. They were the only hope.. to save the city against the clutches of the C.C.B.

Julia's attention turned to the half-empty cup of coffee lying next to hers. She ran a hand through her auburn hair, untangling the wet strands. Her mind drifted towards the girl who had occupied the seat next to hers.

Who was she? And where was she now?

As if in answer to her questions, the communicator began to vibrate, signaling an incoming call. Julia opened the flap and stared at the screen. It was one of her men, another member of The Underground. His face was visible from the portal at the center of the screen.

"Did you get anything?" she asked in a serious tone.

"I am sorry. I didn't."

Julia shook her head in exasperation. "How is that possible? I placed a bug on her shirt. You must be able to track her location!"

The man hung his head grimly. "I am sorry, Juliana. I can't pick up any reading. Perhaps, it fell off when she ran away.. "

"Well, you did your best. Thanks anyway," she broke the contact link and turned away in disappointment. Julia had hoped to track Rena's location and offer any kind of assistance. Strangely, she seemed attached to the girl and wanted to protect her against the likes of people such as Crash. Her tired eyes shifted to the broken doorway. A massive hole in the middle proved what a hard punch could do.

She would have to fix it.

She got up from the stool but stopped midway. A new message was blinking on the screen of her communicator. Assuming it to be a report from her group, she didn't hesitate to open it. With a beep, the letter opened to reveal a picture. Julia squinted her eyes to see it properly. Her 6 by 6 vision couldn't have mistaken it.

The letter contained a photo of her squashed bug. It seemed as if her electronic tracking device had been stamped on with full force.

Gritting her teeth, she read the small message written under it in bold black letters.

Better luck next time.. Keep away from Avery. Otherwise your door wouldn't be the last thing I hit.

- Crash

Julia spit out the cigarette from her mouth and allowed it to drop to the ground. In a fit of fury, she crushed it against the sole of her boots. Clenching her fist tightly, she stared at the message. It was then when she realized a significant point.

Crash had revealed the girl's name.. unintentionally.

..--..