Heart of Gold

Chapter Seventeen - Hope

They did not move with quite so much care on the way down. They were still stealthy, but considering there was no sign of life, they were not overly worried with being caught by enemies, or having to potentially fight their way out.

The building was as dark as the forest surrounding it, and as they grew closer, Cade noted that the outside was stone, different shades carefully utilised to help it blend into its environment. It was not a place meant to be found.

They circled the building, once, twice, and found no other entrance than that of the front door. It went against every instinct Cade possessed, but he knew that their way in was through there.

"Cover me," he instructed, and he waited just long enough for his teammates to do that before he moved in towards the door. Unsurprisingly, it was locked. The lock was manual, requiring a key, but of course, they were not in possession of that. Brute force would have to be sufficient.

Considering the door seemed to be made from the same stone as the rest of the building, Cade resisted the urge to simply ram his way though the door and instead used his weapon to shoot the lock.

The loud blast resulted in the shattered lock tinkling to the ground. They all stood still for a moment, listening intently, but the sound did not bring anyone running.

"In we go," Zandin muttered to himself.

Cade entered the building first, Zandin and Zalon following close behind. Inside, the building was just as abandoned as it had appeared from the outside. No lights lit the room, and the air smelled faintly musty, as if the door had not been opened in days. Zandin consulted the tablet.

"This way," he said, pointing down a corridor on their left.

Cade fell back and let Zandin take the lead. They still held their weapons at the ready, though at this stage they were not really expecting to have to use them. Zandin led them down the corridor, marching straight past rows of closed doors. The corridor ended in a T intersection, and he turned left again. He slowed, eyes focused on the tablet as he assessed their location and its proximity to the beacon.

He halted.

"In here."

He gestured to a locked door which blocked them from entering the room from which the signal was emanating. Cade considering the scene for all of a heartbeat before sweeping Zandin aside, and using one powerful leg to kick the door in. It collapsed satisfyingly beneath his feet, hitting the ground with a crash.

The smell of waste, filth and unwashed bodies drifted out of the room, however Cade barely noticed as he barrelled into the room, only to come to a sudden halt as he spotted Sunny.

For a moment, Cade was afraid his heart had stopped.

In the corner of the room lay Sunny, alarmingly small and fragile. Her hair was stiff with dirt and oil, and lay in hanks around her face. At first, Cade was not even sure she was still alive, but then she drew in a rattling breath and a semblance of relief flowed through him. He stepped closer to her, only to get pushed out of the way as Zalon rushed past, already slinging his back off his pack in order to better access his medical supplies.

As he already had his aural device in, Zalon merely placed his head on Sunny's chest to listen to her heartbeat.

"...got her."

With a start, Cade realised that there had been a conversation going on through the ear pieces. Zandin had just informed Kilnor that they'd found Sunny.

"She will be okay," Zalon removed his head from Sunny's chest and sat up. "She is severely malnourished, and I would like to get her back to the medical bay and with a feeding tube and fluid as soon as possible."

Cade stood still for a moment, still shocked, but a sharp gesture from Zalon had him reaching for Sunny.

She was so small. So light. Cradling her in his giant arms as he might an infant, Cade carried Sunny back to the ship.

***

If he had been able to, Kilnor would have paced the room. He could feel the nervous tension through every part of his body. As it was however, his poison-weakened body was still unable to bear the strain of constant movement.

The occasional word came through the communicator, but mostly his team were working in silence. On top of his sore chest and weak body, Kilnor felt sick to his stomach.

Would Eowan and the slavers really have abandoned the place and just left Sunny behind? Was all they were going to find just a lone tracking scale that had been forgotten or abandoned? Or worse, would they reach the origin of the signal only to find that Sunny was dead.

"In here."

Kilnor heard the words, and the tension ratcheted up yet another notch. He couldn't stand this waiting. He wished he was there, leading the charge to rescue her.

He heard a crash through the communicator, and then... nothing.

He could not help himself.

"What?" he spoke into his wrist. "What is it?"

"It is alright," even through the communicator, Kilnor could hear the relief in Zandin's voice, and his own heart swelled fit to burst. "It is alright, we have got her."

A/N: Alright guys, the chapter I think you've been waiting for! Not long left now, so please let me know what you are thinking with a comment ;)