The Vault

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The booming noises never ceased quaking the bunker

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The booming noises never ceased quaking the bunker. Luna stopped trying to count how many of them there were after an eighth crash outside the metal walls.

Strapping the bag to her back, Luna whistled for Lucky. "Let's go!"

She leaned under the bed to slide open the trapdoor, half lowering herself into the tunnel until an explosion lit up the other end of it. Luna swore, tearing back out of the tunnel and throwing the trapdoor shut.

"Help me find something to lock it shut!" Luna looked around, her heart pounding a tattoo against her ribs. What could possibly stop an army of droids?

"There's no time, Luna, we need to leave!" Todd's voice pitched up in fear, his eyes wide. He looked even more scared than she felt.

"What do we do? We need a diversion." Luna bit her thumbnail, smacking the side of her head to try to get her lazy brain to work faster. The booming was even louder now; it sounded like the droids would break through the bunker walls at any second.

"They're here for me," Todd said, reaching over to grab Luna by the shoulders. "I'll distract them, and you can escape with Lucky."

"Don't be crazy," Luna snapped, shrugging out of his grip. "I told you I wasn't going to leave you behind, and I meant it." She ran both of her hands through her hair, blowing out a huge rush of air as she tried to think of something that might work.

She didn't want it to come to this. The bunker had been her home for almost a decade; if only the droids hadn't found her escape tunnel... Luna shook her head, setting her jaw and rushing over to a small, ancient locker in the corner of the room. She jammed in the access code, slamming it open before it had time to properly ding its approval.

"What are those?" Todd's eyes grew even wider as Luna stood back up, her arms full of small red tubes.

She tried to smile reassuringly at him, but all she could manage was a grimace. "When I say it's time to run, you need to run. We only have one chance to do this, Todd." Luna looked down at the whining mop of fur at her feet, her gaze softening. "You too, Lucky, girl."

"But—,"

"We don't have time for explanations, Todd. You'll see."

Luna sorted though the little tubes, making two piles on the floor. She grabbed the first pile and quickly wrapped the wires together, beads of sweat dripping down her forehead and pooling in the bow above her lips. She wiped them away with the sleeve of her shirt as she fiddled with a small screen. Luna did the same thing to the larger pile, picking both up again and rushing to the bedside.

She opened the trapdoor, pushing a button on the bundle before tossing it into the tunnel and closing the door again. Taking a deep breath and closing her eyes, Luna tried to calm herself down. This was the only chance she had to make it out alive. She needed to stay level headed, or they'd all be roast chicken.

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