Calamitous (Kaylor)

37

The sprint across the exposed ground to the building was nerve-wracking, but luckily uneventful. Karlie kept watch as the other two pried the grate open and climbed in, then followed after, pulling it closed again behind her. The duct was sturdy and big enough to support them, but it was still an uncomfortable fit. It would be difficult to turn around, and the cool, slippery metal was unpleasant to crawl on.

What was worse was the darkness. Karlie couldn't see either of the other two ahead of her - she knew they were close by because she could hear their breathing, but if they stopped suddenly, she'd crawl right into them.

Luckily, after a few minutes, it began to get better. Some light filtered in through vents in the duct, and it widened considerably so it was possible for two to crawl next to each other. Karlie took advantage of this and moved up next to Taylor, leaving Cut Throat to lead in front of them.

"We're getting near where there would be people," Cut Throat whispered. "Stay as quiet as possible and always whisper, don't talk." By now they had passed many smaller side passages in the duct which led off in different directions to various rooms within the factory. They finally arrived at a major crossroad: they could continue straight, or take the passage that ran perpendicular and was just as large as theirs.

"This is the center of the building. Try to remember how to get back here, because from this spot there is one exit grate in each direction," Cut Throat said.

"How are we supposed to find this place again? Once we start going down side passages, it will be a maze," Karlie pointed out.

"I thought of that," Taylor said, digging through her pockets. She pulled out some tubes of lipstick.

"Babe, as much as I hate to admit it, I don't think makeup is the answer," Karlie said. Taylor shot her an annoyed look.

"We can mark which passages we've taken. We can even write where they lead."

"What if we mix each other's marks up and get even more lost?" Karlie asked. The blonde rolled her eyes.

"Honestly, Karls, do you think I'm an idiot? I brought three colors."

"You do know who your girlfriend is, don't you?" Cut Throat said to Karlie, laughing.

"Okay, okay. I'm sorry for underestimating the power of lipstick," the detective groaned.

"As you should," Taylor sniffed. "So where are we heading?"

"Well, I'm going to head toward the barracks," Cut Throat said, motioning to the left. "The control center should be down there somewhere -" she waved her hand to the right, "-but there's no telling where the weapon is actually being kept, so you'll have to cover a lot of ground." Taylor nodded.

"Okay. We don't have time to waste; let's get going." She turned and marked a bright red spot of lipstick on the path they'd be taking, handing Karlie a pink tube to do the same. Cut Throat marked purple on the other side, and the three headed off on their chosen paths.

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"I'm so sick of crawling," Karlie groaned after a few minutes. "Everything hurts."

"That's what you get for being a giraffe," her girlfriend grunted, heading for a large vent that had light shining through.

"You're not so short yourself," Karlie said, following her. "Whoa. I guess we found the people." The vent looked down on the factory floor, which had been repurposed into a training facility. There were women practicing various fighting techniques, and others in large groups, just talking. "What are they all doing here so late?" the detective whispered. "You wouldn't expect them all to be training at 9:00 at night."