Time was ticking We had to go We had no choice There was no escape

“Time’s ticking! Better get moving!”

He yells at us Screams as us This is torture

None of us move None of us speak None of us do anything But breathe And blink

He acts like it’s a game

“30 seconds.”

It’s not These are real people Real lives This is real

“20 seconds. Chop chop! Get moving!”

If we disobey We die

“Why aren’t any of you moving?!”

Death is better than this This **torture **

“10 seconds.”

We made a plan

“9”

To stick together

“8”

No one is left behind

“7”

We die together

“6”

All at once

“5”

To end the torture

“4”

We want this

“3”

We need this

“2”

We’re doing this

“1”

Together

“Your time is up. You all better run! Or else.”

We stayed Still as ever Calm Relaxed

BANG

Shot after shot

BANG

One by one

BANG

They all disappear

BANG

Goodbye-

BANG

Me and my friends were playing a game I made up. We called it, escape the Killer! The rules were you had to find items while being hunted so you'd be able to unlock the door and escape the killer! You had 1 minute to do so, but if you didn't, the door would unlock, and the killer would count to 10, and you'd have to run as fast as you could, as the killer now had a gun! But the trick was the killer now knew your every move so there was no more hiding! You had to make it to base before the killer caught you or “killed” you or you're out!

I was selected to be the killer this round. I counted to 20 and waited for my friends to run off, I heard the Pitter patter of their feet and giggled. one I reached 20 I said,” Here I come!” Before skipping off around my house. The first person I found was my friend Katie. She was being really loud in a room and I skipped on in, seeing her feet peaking from under the bed. I giggled before walking out and hiding behind the door, and when she walked out bam! I hit her with the pillow I had and she fell on the ground giggling and screaming, and then laid there as if I actually killed her!

I ran off and looked around, hearing movement in the kitchen but not seeing anyone. I assumed it was my friend Keith as he was a good hider and really sneaky! It doesn't matter tho as I'll just get him later.

The next person I found was my friend Kayla, who was oh so kind to sacrifice herself for Mattie! I walked in on Them finding an item and Kayla spotted me, but before I could get to her and Mattie she shoved the item into Mattie's hand and pushed her into the hall! Damn this double-door room! I gave her a good beating with the pillow for that! She was screaming so loud it almost felt real.

Now it was only her and Keith left, and there were only 20 seconds left on the clock! I spotted Mattie and chased her for a bit, and I almost had her, but when I grabbed her she was crying, which threw me off and allowed her to escape. Why was she crying?it was just a game?

I was thinking about stopping the game but then my alarm went off, starting the most fun part. I'd laugh like I was crazy to add effect. I then counted to ten before speaking,

“Your time is up! Better run!”I scream loud enough for Them to hear before grabbing my toy gun and my tracker I had placed on them earlier and skipping towards the little dots. By the time I got close to the dots, they were already running out the door, and of course, I quickly chased after them!

They were so fast! They almost made it to base but I managed to hit Keith in the foot with one of my shots, maddie tried to help him up and quickly pulled him around a corner, probably forgetting I could see them! When I walked around the corner, Mattie was trying to pull Keith over a fence, but I shot him in the arm before he could, making him fall. I then walked up to him lying on the ground looking scared. He was so dramatic! so I decided to be just as dramatic as I pulled the pillow back out and started hitting him with it. He screamed so loud before stopping, but I kept hitting him.

I looked up at Mattie who was watching with a scared look on her face, she was still crying “Why are you crying? It's just a game” I'd say in-between giggles, but she looked angry now.

I climbed over the fence, about to get her to, when she suddenly hit me! She wasn't supposed to fight back?! She then tackled me, hitting me multiple times with my pillow! “You're cheating!” I shouted as I pressed the barrel of my fake gun and pulled it, making her fall off. I quickly climbed on her, grabbed my pillow, and hit her in the face with it multiple times till she stopped moving.

I stood up off of her and threw the pillow at her face “Cheater!” I'd say, but suddenly began to cough. I covered my mouth and once I stopped coughing I saw glitter on my hand, but the more I blinked, the more it seemed to melt into a liquidy red substance.

“Y-you hurt me..” I said as tears began to fill my eyes, but as I looked back at Mattie, something looked off. The pillow-it wasn't a pillow anymore. It looked like something stuck in her face.

Then suddenly I'd remember. We weren't 10 anymore, and I stopped playing games long ago, so why am I now? I mean, the game was stupid and didn't even make sense!

I'd touch my face, feeling the same sticky red stuff on my face before looking back at Keith, who was now lying in a pool of blood, before looking at Mattie, who had an axe stuck in her face

I fall to my knees, the sharp pain in my stomach getting stronger and my vision going dark as I slowly realize that it wasn't a game.

The men stare open mouthed at me. Frankly, I’m suprised at myself. Then the men do something else that is completely surprising. They jump off their horses, kneel, and bow their heads.

“Queen Cassiopeia.” Their leader says. “We are sorry.”

I stare coldly down at him, emboldened by his meekness.

“You killed my boyfriend.”

He stands and meets my gaze.

“With good reason.”

“Really? What good reason do you have to kill a fellow being?”

“To learn if you are the one we seek.”

“What?”

“Get her.”

Two men grab my arms and drag me to the captain. So, they were just playing me.

“Judging by your face, you had no idea who you were until two seconds ago. Eros knew who you were.”

This revelation is a blow to my face. I look up at him. He laughs coldly.

“Right, your precious boyfriend is not who he appears to be. Now. Let’s take you back to King Theron and it’ll be in your best interests to do whatever he says.”

I stand tall and meet the captains eyes. He smiles at my defiance.

“Right then, up you go.”

I hear one of the men say proudly.

“What day! Catching the sovereign and Queen Cassiopeia all at once! That should be worth a raise _and _a day off!”

Merry laughter resonates as I’m carted back to Odyssey Castle. I’m marched to the Throne Room and I swallow in disgust as I see the bodies of the kids who didn’t have enough sense to run. King Theron stands when he sees me.

“Is it her?”

The captain nods proudly.

“Played right into our hands.”

King Theron smiles coldly.

“Notify the royal scientists immediately.”

“King Theron, please. Have mercy.”

I turn and see Eros in the corner. I stare at him. His shirt is stained with blood and his eyes apologetic. I turn away and face the king.

“What is _he _doing here?”

“My apologies Queen Cassiopeia. I didn’t realize that you were in charge. Unfortunately I need young Eros here to complete the prophecy.”

“Prophecy?” Eros snorts. “You just want to marry her.”

“It would be wise of you to shut up.” King Theron snarls.

The captain stalks over to him and knees him right in his stab wound. He coughs and looks at me desperately.

“You can still fix this.”

I stiffen, the king looks at me with excited expectance.

“Your time is up Eros, sovereign of the Ancients. You’d better run while you still can!”

The king whistles.

“Impressive. It would seem that we are right about the Ancient Queen choosing her host. She can control her whenever she wants.”

I swallow and look at Eros, who is pale with fear.

“Cass.” His voice is low. “What have you done?”

I look at my hands. What have I done?

Part Three coming soon!

Me and my sister were living happily in the town we came across after we were forced to jump off the cliff. This town did everything for themselves to survive. They didn’t go to the supermarket to buy food and water, but instead they did it all themselves. Because I’m the age of 15, I’m old enough to teach, since I’m the only one who knows how to read and write and so on. My little sister is also in the class I teach considering her age of only 6. She still has a long way to go just like the others. I have two classes everyday. I have the children from morning to mid afternoon, and I have the women from mid afternoon to dinner. “Where is Michelle and Emma!” I heard men shouting for me and my little sister. My name repeating in my head over and over and over, ‘Michelle. Michelle. Michelle.’ But quickly changed to my sweet little sisters name, ‘Emma. Emma. Emma.’ The leader of the town, or chief, as we call him, ordered all the men to attack. He ran up to me and asked, “Are these the men that forced you to leave your home?” I nodded. “Don’t worry lead all the women and children into the bunker.” He quickly left and went to attack the two men. I led everyone into the bunker, but I came back. The men had guns, and we only had swords. So far half the men were baldly injured. I’m”STOP!” I shouted, hardly thinking of what I was saying. It took me a second to realize that I said those words aloud. Everyone froze and looked at me. That’s when I realized that the words really did come from me. But I couldn’t stop now, I already interrupted. So I took a deep breath and walked forward. I said. “If I go with you guys, will you leave all of these people alone? Including my sister?” They talked amongst each other. Once they came up with a decision, the one said, “Deal.” “Let’s make this a little fun.” The other said. “What? Are you crazy?! We finally have her!” “Calm down. The boss said to kill her, not bring her back.” “Fine. You have the countdown of 10.” As the seconds ticked away, I prepared myself to run as fast as I have ever ran before. “Your time is up. Better run!” I ran as fast as I could, dodging all of the bullets they kept shooting at me. I ran for miles until they lost track of me.

Now and then are two different things. Then this sentence had a different meaning.

“Your time is up. Better run!” I screamed as me and my classmates darted across the field. My messy pigtails and pink unicorn shirt blowing in the cool breeze. We darted across the field to the shady tree that glistened in the sun, our rainbow light up shoes shingling brightly. We enjoyed our school days, fun lessons and friendly faces.

Now and then are two different things.** Now** this sentence has a different meaning.

“Your time is up. Better run.” A hooded figure whispered menacingly. My high brunette ponytail bouncing as I sprint across the cold hard pavement towards refuge. My red and black jumpsuit stretches and my fitness watch beeps as I inch closer and closer till I am safe.

Then I would have preferred this exciting lifestyle, but now I yearn for a simpler time where life was safe and good.

Defeated, I stopped spilling my guts to Jane, and looked up from the table and met her eyes. You could tell from her expression that she had genuinely heard every word I had spoken. Jane glanced to the side, sighed, and looked back at me before saying, “You’re right. You’re time is up. You’d better run, kid. Run and don’t look back. The bridge is up in flames and if you don’t leave now, I don’t see you getting to the other side. If you stay, you’re going to fucking burn.” I started sobbing. I didn’t want to be right.

“Kid, you awake?” A man’s voice said. God damn, that was a DEEP voice. I open my eyes, slowly gaining consciousness. Who fucked up? I did. I was currently tied to a chair. “Wuh-..What?” I mutter, looking around. Such a dark room…Emo. “Jace Dwyer Lovelock. Don’t play dumb with me. Don’t do it. I know what you did, you too.” The man said. “So, for the sake of both of us, don’t pretend.” He added on. I laugh, looking more closely at the man. Oh SHIT. I immediately stiffen up. “..Y-You. It’s you. You. Nick. I didn’t…I didn’t…Nick, you don’t really believe i did that, did you?..Sir.”

“Dwyer, you can’t save yourself from this one. I’ll let you off easy. Tell me.”

“Tell you what?”

“EXPLAIN why you did it, hm?”

I laugh, quickly regretting my actions.

“Did you just…You just LAUGHED. You think this is funny, huh? All just a game to you, right? Right?” Nicks voice boomed as he grabbed my collar, rather harshly. “Don’t FUCK with me. Explain. You betrayed my trust, betrayed my friends…All for some money? Money, huh?…gets people to do anything nowadays.” Nick let go, scoffing. “If you don’t manage to explain, I’ll make sure you go through hell.” Nick added on, still staring at me. Damn why was this guy so creepy? Who kidnaps people in order to confront them?

“Right. We could be here all day, really. All week, even.” I say, rolling my eyes. Luckily Nick didn’t notice i rolled my eyes, or he just didn’t care at this point…

Nick just shook his head in response. What the fuck was THAT supposed to mean? I tried to come up with a good ‘story’ (a fake one, at that.) But i just couldn’t bring myself to actually say it. I can lie all right, im a ruthless liar. Social anxiety just hits different though. As I sat there constantly tripping over words and contemplating how i should lie, Nick grew impatient.

“Dwyer. Hurry up. I actually have a life, unlike you.”

I tried my hardest to not give him a dirty look.

“Alright, then…” I say. Nick rolled his eyes.

Another 2 minutes passed….Two minutes turned into four, and four minutes turned into seven. Eventually 25 minutes had passed.

“DWYER.” Nick yelled, grabbing my collar. I wasn’t intimidated one bit by this little wannabe tough guy. Nick sighed, and his demeanor changed. He got off of me and just stood there, with his hand behind his back smiling. Nick was acting hella weird, but then again, he always is. “Alright, Jace, er- Dwyer sounds better, right? Although it wouldn’t really matter, since…This would be the last time anyone’s called your name.” Now I knew i actually fucked up. “Listen, Dwyer. You probably guessed right?…So let me just state the obvious, Your times up, better run!—well, you can’t because…..Anyways, you know what’s gonna happen now?” I scoff and look down, nodding.

“Well, your fucking dead. Shouldn’t have done it!”

I hated track practice. Even though my main event was the mile, which was technically considered "long distance" for track, I still had to complete the sprint workouts each day after school. I hated sprinting. Today's torture was eight 200m repeats with thirty seconds of rest in between. We went in groups. At first I had been honored to be running in the fastest group with the upperclassmen, but now I just wanted to be done. After the fifth time sprinting halfway around the track - which sounds easy but trust me, it's not - I was ready to be done. I slowed down on the sixth rep, falling to the back of my group, hoping to conserve as much energy as possible for the last two that were inevitable, but at the same time knowing that Coach would be timing with her stopwatch. Finally, six done; two to go. We leaned on the wire fence that surrounded the track as we took our breather, using it to help us stay standing. I bent over, gasping for breath, knowing that the thirty seconds were almost up. The grimaces on my teammates' faces mirrored my pain. Two left. We lined up by group on the start line, knowing what was coming next. "Your time is up. Better run!" Called the assistant coach. We took off again. I used the inside lane to give me a little head start as we rounded the turn, then push hard on the straightaway. Once I was done with this one I only had one left. I could do it. Arms pumping, my breathing shuddering, I tried to go a little faster, chasing the two girls in front of me. 200 meters had never felt so long. I could not wait to go home.

“Okay! You’re times up you better run!” I heard my friend call out. We were playing hide and seek with our whole friends group. I was hiding in a closet behind a whole bunch of clothes when I suddenly heard the door open. I held my breath, but when the person came into view I frowned. It was my enemy. “What are you doing here?! Go find your own spot!” I exclaimed. I act like I hate my enemy being in my friend group, but it’s not that bad, we just don’t talk to each other at all. “Shut up, you’re gonna get us caught.” He said in a low voice. I rolled my eyes, pressing my fingers to the space between my eyebrows. “No! Go away!” I said loudly. “Stop talking.” He whispered, walking closer to me, backing me up against the wall. My breath hitched in my throat and Intried to turn him away again. “No. Please leave!” I whined, pushing him back, at least I tried to, he was so strong. My hand’s rested against his chest for one second too long and he raised an eyebrow at me. I quickly pulled my hands away and put them behind my back before quietly saying “please go, you’re going to get me caught.” He smirked and shook his head. “I don’t think so, Avery.” “Okay then at least be quiet!” I loudly whispered. “Uhm. I hate to break it to you but your the one who’s yelling.” He said. I was about to protest but then we heard footsteps outside the closet door. I quickly shrunk into the wall, Nathan pushing his body against mine so we take up the least amount of space as possible. I felt my cheeks heat up l, but to hide it i pressed my forehead to his chest, trying to be as quiet as possible. Nathan snaked his arms around my waist, pulling me into an embrace. “Natha-“ i started, but before I could finish he brought his lips to mine to shut me up. I decided I was better off quiet and kissed him back. I wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling him closer. He pushed me further against the wall, and then some. The door to the closet opened and we just kissed more, keeping eachother silent. The door closed again. Victory. I tried to pull away, but Nathan kept me close, not letting me go.

Jane knew what she was getting into. It was a deliberate decision. One last heist. The riskiest one yet, and the one with the most profit. After this she would be set for life. Nevertheless did it turn out harder than she anticipated.

She and Felix have done heists together since they were old enough to walk. First, they were small childish things. Stealing something from their parents or siblings. A toy, or a piece of jewelry. Nothing much, but enough for them to learn the basics and get into a routine together. Then they started stealing from classmates and shops, sometimes getting caught, but improving more and more. As children, you get away with a lot.

Their whole lives whenever they saw something they wanted, they just took it. But not just simple stealing. They lived for the thrill of planning and then executing the plan as perfectly as they could.  So after they dropped out of school and ran away from home, that is how they lived. One heist after another, getting into a community of criminals but also being able to afford many luxuries. It was a good life, full of risks, but also of thrills, excitement.  That was until Jane met Kyle. Kyle was a teacher. He was a good and honest man. And Jane fell for him. They met in a Cafe. Jane was reading and enjoying her coffee. The cafe was full, so Kyle asked if he could sit with her. They started talking, small talk at first, then decided to go on a proper date together. They got serious very fast and Jane needed to get out of the life. She couldn‘t let Kyle get involved, he couldn‘t know. He thought she worked as a consultant for property security, which was kind of not a lie. After all, she showed security vulnerabilities by using them to steal. Felix understood it. He was sad of course. His partner would be gone, but he wanted the best for her. And he was sure that being with Kyle and getting out of this life would be best. There are a lot of creeps in the scene and some of them have been disrespecting Jane behind her back. Her being around those people regularly was only a matter of time until something bad would happen. He could only protect her so much. But there was one last thing they had been wanting to steal for a long time now, never feeling ready for it. It would be only a job for the two of them because there was no one else they could trust enough. And it would be a good last heist for Jane.  Together they decided to finally do it, as a last goodbye. The loot they got would help Jane settle into a normal civilian life and even Felix would be able to retire if he wanted to, though he probably wouldn‘t. The target was the jewel collection of one of the richest persons in the world. It was located in an underground bunker on a private island. The billionaire was of the paranoid type and built an island to go to in case of the next world war. It was fully equipped to defend itself against whatever would come its way and included a whole underground system of bunkers that would resist any kind of bomb or aftereffects thereof. He planned to be the last surviving human in the world if the worst came to pass.  And in one of these bunkers he had a collection of unmarked and unregistered, highly valuable jewels he plans on using as money in whatever kind of trade system will come after the apocalypse. Jane and Felix had planned this heist multiple times, collecting all the information they could, stealing plans from the builders of the facilities on the island, even having stolen some plans and documents from the man himself. They created more plans for this heist than all the separate heists they did together. They planned it to perfection. Just that even after all this it wasn‘t a 100% safe plan. It was impossible to create such a plan. They would need to depend on luck and their own abilities. But this was their last chance to do it and they were determined to go through with it. So they did.

Felix was to be the outside guy, keeping an eye on the overall situation and hacking the systems from the outside where possible, doing what he could to support Jane. Jane would be the one physically breaking into the island and collecting the loot. Both roles were essential, but Janes was of course the riskier of the two. But she didn‘t mind. This was how they had worked for decades now and Felix saved her life more often than she could count.

The first step of getting on the island was easy. Jane got a cleaning job to work on the island. Faking her background was no issue, they had multiple identities they could use for it. But security was tight. They would rather go for it at night when almost no one was on the island, but there was a people count when arriving and leaving. If any person is missing, the island would go into a lockdown and a manhunt would start. Additionally while on the island everyone had to personally check in every hour.  That meant that instead of the whole night, she only had a maximum of one hour. And an island full of people. Not the most optimal circumstance but one has to work with what one gets. Jane had a total of 8 hours to scope out everything she still needed to do and do the steal. The security was so paranoid, that staff like the cleaners would only be hired for one day and then never again. They took biometric data to ensure no one would be able to step foot on the island more than once. Everything worked perfectly. Jane was able with the help of Felix to find the pattern the guards did and figure out the ideal timeframe to slip into the bunker complex. When the opportunity came Jane managed to enter the bunkers unseen. She found a panel fast and opened it without a sound. She was lucky, behind it was just what she needed to get Felix in. She attached the hacking device she got from him to the cables, just as they had trained too many times. ‚Good one, now go straight until you reach the first security gate,‘ Felix instructed through Janes's earpiece. He had hacked into the security system and was able to see not only where Jane was located, but also where everything else inside the bunkers were. Including the guards roaming the tunnels. He hopefully also will be able to open any locked doors she encounters but that was still to be confirmed.

Jane made her way through the tunnels as fast and silently as she could, keeping an ear out for any sounds of steps that might be coming closer. She trusted Felix to warn her if he saw anyone, but better be safe than sorry. It didn‘t take her long to reach the gate. Just as she was approaching, the sound of unlocking could be heard, and the lights around the gate that were all red a second ago turned green. Jane was able to go through without having to stop and also didn‘t stop to watch the gate close behind her again, instead just confirming it by sound.  First gate done. We are doing really good so far. Only 7 more security gates and 43 minutes until you have to do a check-in, 53 until they start hunting for you,‘ Felix informed her. Jane didn‘t answer, just rolled her eyes which she was almost sure he could see through the cameras. He always likes to put on extra pressure. Not like she had a watch that reminded her every 5 minutes of the time left. She continued hurrying forward. She couldn‘t tell if someone had heard the gate open or closed. There were still no steps to hear, nor did any alarm sound.  ‚Next turn left,‘ Felic instructed. He sounded serious. She had studied the plans intensively and was supposed to turn in 3 crossings, not the next one. Maybe a guard? She wasn‘t in a position to worry about it though. Trust Felix. That is all she could do. So she did as he instructed, not even slowing down. Keeping a steady pace helped Felix calculate where she would be when.  ‚There is a door to your right in about 5 meters. Hide in the groove.‘ That is what she did. Jane pressed her body as flatly as she could against the door. Now there were step sounds coming closer, running. Maybe someone had heard the gates?  The steps stopped for a few seconds, then continued, now moving away. ‚It is clear. Continue down the tunnel.‘ That was what Jane did. They continued on like this, Jane following instructions and Felix making sure she would arrive at the target location fast, safely, and unseen.  After the last gate, Jane stepped into a large room. It reminded her of the sitting room in a mansion. The walls were covered by curtains, red velvet furniture that looked somewhat uncomfortable, large bookshelves covering one whole wall filled with antique-looking books, expensive statues standing in illogical places. Nothing showed that this was a bunker underground anymore. The metal walls that she got used to in the tunnels were nowhere to be seen. Even the gate looked from this side like a big wooden door.  ‚37 minutes. Better hurry up!‘ Felix's voice brought her back from analyzing all the art that was collected in this room. Together it was worth at least half a billion dollars, a lot of it considered „lost“ art, which is short for stolen. Some of it was even stolen by her and Felix.  ‚Ok, so which book was it again?‘ she asked, just to make sure. Part of the bookcase is a hidden door. One had to pull the correct book for it to open. When they found it out they thought it rather cliche. But the richer the target, the more they tended to follow the classic cliches found in movies and books. It did make things usually easier for them. Pulling the right book would reveal the door of the save, behind which the jewel collection was stored. She would have to open it. Felix had no way to access it and the lock was purely mechanical. Safe cracking wasn‘t her favorite discipline, Felix was better at it, but with her being the one physically there, she would have to do it. She did practice a lot. They got a safe of the same type for her to learn how to do it fast. ‚You know the one. The encyclopedia botanical volume J to O.‘ Jane just nodded in response and approached the bookshelf. With more time she would have had a better look, maybe browse a bit and even take some. But with the little time she had left, she solely focused on finding the correct book.  It didn‘t take long for her to find it and she pulled on the book. Just that she now had the Encyclopedia Botanical Volume J to O in her hand, and nothing happened. Panic started rising in her. ‚That's not it. It is the wrong book…‘ she whispered, not covering her panic in front of Felix. ‚Stay calm. Maybe you just chose the wrong book, maybe the mechanism is different. Check in the gap, maybe there is a button or something.‘ Felix instructed. The best thing against this kind of panic is structured instructions. Jane nodded and did what he told her. With her gloved hands, she first felt around the gap she created by pulling out the book. But there was nothing. Then she had a thought. She opened the book to look inside and indeed, there was a hole cut in the pages and a remote control hidden inside. ‚Perfect!‘ she muttered to herself, pressing the open button on the remote. Almost without a sound, the bookshelf slid to the side to reveal a safe behind it. With a sigh of relief Jane informed Felix ‚It is the right safe. I‘m putting on the device and start cracking it now.‘ The display of the magnetic device rapidly showed number combinations at a speed Jane couldn’t make out any of them. She did as she had trained and started slowly turning the dial, one ear to the safe. The time seemed to not move forward and run at high speed at the same time. After the first couple of numbers were confirmed by the device her watch gave her the signal for the 30-minute mark. She was slowly running out of time. ‚Come on…‘ she mumbled, urging the device to reveal the correct sequence of numbers to her, tempted to turn the dial faster, but knowing that that would likely reset the progress.  ‚Stay calm. You know that the worst case time is 10 minutes for this safe.‘ Felix reminded her in a calm voice.

Hearing Felix's calm voice used to always help her stay calm herself. When they were little and their parents would fight, shouting so the whole neighborhood could hear it, Jane used to cower in her closet, crying, holding her ears in a desperate attempt to not hear the anger and malice in her parent's voices. Felix would come in, asking in a low kind voice if he could join her in her cave. He would bring a flashlight and a book and upon her nodding sit beside her, doors closed, and started reading the book out loud to her. Calming her down with his voice and stories, managing somehow to drown out the noise with his low voice, almost a whisper. Despite the circumstances, these were some of Jane’s fondest memories. 

A „beep“ brought Jane back from her memories. The display was showing a number sequence. With somewhat of a routine, she removed the device and entered the code into the safe, careful to not do it wrong. The safe rewarded her with a click and she was able to pull it open. Inside she found bags of satin filled with little hard things. Just to be safe, she peeked inside one and was met with colorful sparkliness. These were definitely the right bags. She shoved them into a sachet she brought and then hurried to close the safe and return the bookshelf to its place. The later someone realised the gems were missing the better. ‚Ok, 19 minutes left. You need to hurry now. The tunnel outside the room is clear.‘ Jane wasted no time and made her way back the way she came. She almost ran, hoping that she wouldn’t be heard. On the way in it took her almost 20 minutes to reach the room. Now she had a maximum of 10 to get out so she could send the loot away and reach check-in before they started the hunt. She ran, trusting Felix to open the doors and warn her about guards. ‚Stop! Silent!‘ Felix instructed her suddenly. She immediately stopped and pressed herself against the wall, desperately trying to suppress her fast-going breath. After some moments she could hear the steps coming closer. Someone was around the corner of the next crossing, getting closer. Jane wanted to curse. She didn’t have time for this. Then the steps stopped. She couldn’t see anyone and now also not hear them. Why did they stop? ‚It’s alright. They are just binding their shoes. Their route is to turn back at the crossing.‘ Felix answered her unspoken question. How long can someone need to bind their shoes? Finally, Jane heard the steps move away again. Her nerves were at breaking point and fear came in. If she didn‘t get back in time, they would hunt her down and she was trapped on an island. They did have an escape plan, but that one was risky. ‚Ok, the coast is clear. You should not encounter anyone else. No alarm has been raised yet. You are below 10 minutes now though, so they have noticed that you didn‘t check in in time.‘ Felix informed her in his calm voice. He must also be frantic by now, but he did a good job of not showing it. Jane continued running. She was only about 3 quarters of the way out. When she finally stepped out into the sunlight a wave of relief washed over her. She took a second to catch her breath and took a look at her watch. The 5-minute reminder came up already, and now the watch told her that she had 3 minutes left. No way she would be able to report back in time. She would go over to plan B. ‚Drone is waiting.‘ Felix reminded her. Without answering she turned the corner and saw the small device hidden in the shade of some trashcans. Quickly she attached the bag with the gems inside to the drone.  ‚Done, bring those babies to safety.‘ she announced with a smile and immediately the drone with a quiet buzzing sound flew up and was out of sight in seconds.  ‚Better bring yourself to safety too. 1 minute until they start the hunt.‘  She didn‘t need Felix to tell her twice. ‚I won’t be able to report back and we know they don’t ask questions. We read about enough people who vanished here…‘ Jane said, though both of them were fully aware of that fact. She hurried to where she knew the camera's few blind spots were through which she would have to go to even have a chance. She needed to reach the port area and then go around the isle to reach the jetski they had hidden there some time ago as preparation. She was fast and didn’t need Felix to tell her where to go, but he instructed her anyway. Just as she reached the point where the big gap in the wall towards the port was visible, alarms started to go off and she could hear dogs barking. ‚Your time is up. Better run!‘ Felix said in her ear as if she hadn’t noticed.