Apex

Chapter 1 - Prison Break

It was a bad day, even by Matt Texer's standards. He raised his trusty sniper rifle, the cold gunmetal black finish glinting in the moonlight, the long elegant weapon pointing towards the starlit night sky as Matt surveyed the compound through his custom made goggles. The optics zoomed in on a large guard tower that protruded into the air above the base, silhouetted against the moon.

The guard inside was blatantly bored out of his mind, a lit cigarette in his hand and a rifle casually held in the other, his salvaged desert camouflage fatigues illuminated by a large spotlight. Suddenly, the guard made a move, his weather-beaten face breaking out in relief, Matt gave a barely audible sigh of annoyance as he was replaced with a much more alert guard, just about to start his watch shift. A full minute early. This would make his job much more difficult.

Matt assessed the front gate in trepidation, watching the two guards that stood vigil over the facility. Then, his chance. The moment he had been waiting for all night.

Matt leapt off the catwalk with practiced grace, tucking into a roll as he hit the ground to absorb the impact. With a quick look at the gate to his right, he began his approach, creeping slowly towards the small hut where the guard on duty stood. For a single minute, there was a window of opportunity. The guard relieving the previous tonight was named Archer Greenholt, and he was notoriously lazy. Even now, he would be sauntering over the vehicle depot the way he had done for the past few days. Matt crouched alongside the concrete wall, wrapped in a cloak of shadow as the door in the hut creaked open.

Then, Matt rushed forward and with little to no effort and sailed through the air in a great bound, grabbing the solid guttering of the hut and hauling himself on top. Archer, unbeknownst to his presence shut the door behind him. Two minutes late. As always. Matt slid down the other side of the building, and crept sideways to the back of the vehicle bay. Old military trucks were kept inside of large green tents, and they made perfect cover to shield him from the now sweeping gaze of the searchlight. And there it was. The reason he was here. Matt quickly traversed the small assembly quad and made his way into the large sheet metal and concrete bunker. The holding cells.

It was a bad day, even by Holly Wren's standards. She hated holding cells. Holly wrapped her long red hair around her fingers, the way she always did when she was nervous. She had been so close to escaping with the artefact. So unbelievably close. But, Dexter Griffin's forces had caught her on her way out of the Citadel. She had barely been surprised when she had found herself encircled by rifle wielding trigger happy soldiers. But, Dexter Griffin's forces? You had to be kidding. Holly had run into him before, even trusted him at one point. But now, being captured by him meant far worse things than her being stripped of her precious artefact.

For the millionth time, Holly re-adjusted her perch on the hard bed, so different than the one in her apartment at the citadel. "Holly Wren?" She jumped, the clear but quiet voice startling her out of her stupor. Outside the thick bars of her cell stood a boy about her age. She could see nothing of him apart from the dark goggles he wore over his eyes, any other features hidden by the close cut hood he wore, and the small metal mask that covered his mouth and the lower half of his face. He was dressed in traveling clothes comprised of dark colours, but she could make out the various weapons that adorned the sleek pack he wore, and the holsters at both hips.

"Yes?" Holly said, keeping a guarded expression. If anything, Holly was a good judge of people, and it slightly disturbed her that she could see nothing of the boy's features, or his eyes. It made her uncomfortable, and she began to unwrap the lock of hair from her hand. "Right." The boy said, having confirmed her identity. He moved to her cell and pulled a set of lockpicks from a small pouch that was strapped across his chest. In a matter of seconds, there was a tiny click, and he swung the door open a fraction, checking for any sound the hinges would make when he opened it further. Satisfied, he pulled it open, and gestured to her. Holly, having no choice, crept out of the cell, her tall lithe form illuminated in the bright light of the corridor. "Follow me. Make no noise, and do as I do." The boy said. Holly nodded. If this guy was her chance of escape, she could deal with keeping quiet.