Dead End

The Awakened behind the wheel turned a corner in the compound. The cart snaked between two tightly packed buildings. The walls were so close that the vehicle nearly scraped both sides. 

The driver shrugged. "I am taking a shortcut."

"She's lying," Noble called frantically. She could feel the driver's emotions spike when she spoke. They were not heading to the front gate at all.

Unfortunately, the professor's voice was overshadowed by the sudden screech of tires as the vehicle came to a stop. They were at a dead end. 

The woman escorting them frowned. "I must have taken a wrong turn. One moment." 

"Stop her!" Noble yelled.

But it was too late. The driver seemed to disappear into thin air. Her emotional signature evaporated with her. The lights in the alley went out.

Thinking quickly, Kenz slid into the driver's seat and threw the cart into reverse. The side closest to Fort raked against the wall in a spray of sparks.

The Deputy Director pulled back just in time to keep from crushing his hand when the armrest collided and sheered off. 

Kenz pushed the vehicle to its limit, forcing it to reverse at full speed. Fort was glad the Director knew how to drive at all. 

"Get down!" the Master cried.

A spark on the hood of the vehicle was punctuated by a loud hiss. 

"We are under attack!" one of the ladies screamed. Her mouth was quickly covered. 

Kenz considered abandoning the vehicle in search of the assailant. If he could find the culprit in the darkness, he would make them pay. The Master was infuriated that he had been tricked into an ambush.

But then Kenz thought of the three mundane humans with him. His job first and foremost was to get them to safety. 

And that was not easy in the confined space.

He clenched his jaw. "Put down some cover while I get us out of here!" 

Someone in the seat behind him summoned a Memory. An oversized shield began to form over the top of the open cart, but not before another invisible projectile came flying their way.

It blew through the floorboards next to Fort's feet. He scrambled onto the seat to avoid falling through the hole. 

Frantically, the cart continued to grind against the wall as the tires spun. The shield Memory solidified just in time for a third hit to ricochet off of the tempered metal. 

"Go!" 

Kenz twisted the steering wheel and the cart came free of the alley. 

"Stay down and hold on!" the Director ordered. 

He turned and drove as fast as the cart would let him back toward the main road. The vehicle thumped along, barely keeping control. Another one of the unseen projectiles must have hit one of the tires. 

It was a rough ride.

But no more invisible missiles came tumbling in their direction. Wherever the assassin had attacked from must have finally gotten out of range. 

"We'll get to the main road as soon as we can," Kenz called over his shoulder. "Is everyone alright?" 

The voices echoed and overlapped under the large shield, but it seemed like no one was seriously hurt. At least, no one was crying out in pain.

It was possible that someone could have died.

'But surely their neighbor would have reported it...if they could see them.' The Deputy Director pushed aside the thought for more pressing matters. He hadn't yet heard from his wife.

"Are you alright, my love?" Fort squinted to pierce the darkness.

The adjustable shield was like a canopy over them. It was keeping them safe, but also blocking any light from penetrating the space beneath. 

Noble didn't answer, and Fort furrowed his brow. "Are you in pain? Did you hit the seat of the cart too many times?" 

If the woman had gotten one really good hit with the 'ground', the professor could be suffering immeasurable agony. 

Fort was met with silence once again. 

While still holding onto the seat, he reached out with his other arm to pull his wife into a hug. 

That is when he realized...

Noble was gone.

-------------------------------- 

Before the first hit landed in the hood of the vehicle, Noble was already aware of the incoming attack. 

If she had been paying better attention, she would have recognized the driver's strange appearance and behavior before they had made it to the dead end. She felt so stupid!

So when she suddenly sensed someone on the roof, the professor sprang into action. 

Without a word, Noble leapt from the cart and flew around the corner. Then, she lifted high into the air. 

The sound of the first shot hit her ears just before she reached the roof. There was no time to lose. 

Sparks surrounded her body as the familiar black and gold armor enveloped her torso. She lamented the loss of her dress, but there was no getting around it. She needed to keep herself and the others safe. 

That would require her best armor and most faithful weapon. The [Fraudulent Facade] and [Unlikely End] manifested a moment after as Noble peeked over the top of the building.

'I don't see anyone.' 

Keeping close to the wall, the professor crouched as she glided along the flat stone surface.

Screaming rang out below. Noble hoped no one was hurt, but she knew better than to go and see. Her best option was to stop whoever was attacking. 

But there were just too many shadows. The figure remained hidden. 

'Not for long.' 

Noble shut her eyes. The world took shape in colors that had no names. Most of the things in the professor's altered vision lay dull and lifeless.

Without the emotional component, objects were dim in this altered state of being. It had taken great effort for Noble to make them appear at all without being held by a human. 

That is why the figure moving in the darkness was lit up like a beacon in her view.

The figure knelt in the shadows at the corner of the roof. It wavered slightly in her vision.

Their emotional reading was erratic and garbled. Something was being used to hide the assailant from view, and it was interfering Noble's special sight as well. They did not want to be seen. 

Despite the dire circumstances, a smile crept onto her face. 

'Found you.' 

The assassin was shifting to find a new angle. She had to stop them before they found a clear line of sight. 

Moving silently forward, Noble gripped her estoc in her hand. One quick strike and it would all be over. 

Did she really have it in her to kill someone in cold blood? She had ended countless lives in the Dreamscape, but this was the waking world. People did not disappear in a rain of sparks. 

They bled and died never to be seen again. 

But this person was trying to murder the people in the cart below. People she knew and cared about. 

Fort was down there. He needed to be protected at all costs. 

So even though her soul ached to preserve all human life, her sword lifted high into the air. 

And swung.