“Woah,” Jaxson said. “It’s changed.”
“Just wait and see how much,” Drake said with a twinkle in his eyes.
“Is it my turn?” Jaxson asked hopefully, looking over at Micah and the Non.
“Who approved Micah to join in this training?” I asked curiously as he tried to teleport into our bubble.
He was unsuccessful. One second he was there, and the next he would blink out and return. In the past, he was able to enter one of our forcefields with no issue. This really was blowing my mind.
“We did. Remember?” Remy said with a smirk. “And yes, Jax, go for it but remember… that’s your brother in law.”
&nbs
p; Jaxson looked down at their feet. “Careful, boys, the red stuff is lava. If you want to stay alive, you should stay where you are.”
The ground below the two guys gave way. They were now standing on a small boulder. The guy who held the gun nearly stumbled in before Micah reached out and firmly grasped his arm. His rifle wasn’t as lucky as it melted away.
“Not fair, Jax,” Micah said in a dissatisfied voice.
“All’s fair in love and war, bro,” Jaxson said gleefully.
Lincoln knelt, and I quickly grabbed his hand. “Careful,” I warned him. “Jaxson’s illusions aren’t really illusions. They’re real.”
“Let’s go,” Remy stated looking down at his watch.
We picked up our pace as we went to find the red room.
“What happens if they really fall in?” Lincoln asked in dismay.
“Now?” Jaxson asked with a confused look. “Nothing,” he stated with a laugh. “It’s no longer tangible. The moment we left. It really is just an illusion, but they don’t know that.”
Lincoln chuckled. “That’s evil.”
“That’s genius,” Elvis laughed as we finally reached the door that Darren directed us to.
“There aren’t any guards here,” Jace frowned in confusion.
“Maybe our three traitors got to them,” Troy said hesitantly.
“Or they’re inside,” I added tentatively.
“The door’s locked,” Troy frowned as he attempted to open the door.
“I got this,” Sylvia, the Non, stepped forward and pulled out a lock pick set. We looked at her in surprise. She smiled and shrugged. “I grew up on the streets of New York.”
We were almost done untying the last hostage when I looked down at the person I was untying. “Stop,” I yelled out.
“What’s up?” Remy asked, freezing in mid-motion.
I saw one of the hostages to my left make a move. He was trying to remove a weapon from the fake plant that none of us had even seen.
“Freeze!” I compelled them. “All of you!”
I waited for my heart to quit beating rapidly before I turned to glare at them. “They’re not the hostages,” I finally explained. “We have to go to the other room.”
“But this is the red room,” Elvis said in exasperation. “Come on. We can finish in less than ten minutes.”
“They’re not the same people in the images,” Lincoln confirmed. His eyes went vacant for a moment. “And they’re definitely still tied up.”