24 hours earlier.
Elizabeth Grey stood in a line, in front of Black Omega 7, staring them down.
"You know why you are here." She said quietly, in a stern voice.
"Your traitorous thoughts against The Academy." Tessa Dauntet growled, and Elizabeth glared at her, but did not respond to her, instead stating,
"When I first joined The Academy, I learned quickly, that there were rules. The rules were the foundation of The Academy. But the most important one of all, was that when we were here, at The Academy, we would never lie. But, I believe that this rule had been broken, by Madam Nikolai, herself." Elizabeth said, and her team stared at her with wide eyes.
"I am done with these accusations. I say we vote. Who wants to report Commander Elizabeth to Madam Nikolai?" Tessa said, standing up and raising her hand.
"Sit down Tessa. Elizabeth, explain." Malka said, running her hand through her silvery-white hair nervously.
"Cassandra. The other 99 girls that went missing. The fact that last week, all training, and all missions stopped. The fact that we aren't allowed outside." Elizabeth said, staring the facts, her Hungarian accent thick with anger.
"People disappear here all the time Elizabeth." Zilla said softly, trying to be kind. Elizabeth glared at her.
"But tell me Zilla. You are the oldest. You have been here the longest. Have you ever seen this many girls disappear, in this amount of time? Has The Academy ever gone into lockdown before? Tell me Zilla, tell me." Elizabeth growled, challenging Zilla.
"No. Nothing like this has ever happened before." Zilla said, retreating, lighting a cigaret, letting Elizabeth take command once more. There was something almost feral, and animalistic about it, this wolf pack mentality, Elizabeth, the pacing alpha, fighting to keep control.
"So there is something wrong. What do you propose we do about it?" Malka said, crossing her arms over her chest.
"She wants us to break into Madam Nikolai's private quarters." Becca suddenly said, her voice quiet, but unwavering.
Her team turned to look at her. It was rare to hear Becca speak. She only contributed when absolutely necessary.
"That's right. That's exactly what I want to do." Elizabeth said, shrugging in agreement.
"Why Elizabeth? Why would you suggest such a travesty? Do you know that you have just proposed a surefire way to get us all killed? To get yourself killed? Are you not happy here, with this life? This second chance? Do not think that I have not noticed your scars. I know that you have died. Why forsake your place of rebirth? Tell me Elizabeth! Are you not happy here?!" Malka said, her pleading tone slowly turning to a wail as her eyes scanned Elizabeth's stony face frantically.
"I am not." Elizabeth said, bowing her head, not looking Malka in the eyes.
Malka's eyes grew wide with horror, and she stumbled backwards a little, running a hand through her long silvery hair, before steadying her shoulders, and clenching her jaw, raising her head, high and proud.
"Then I will support you." She whispered, and Elizabeth looked up at her in surprise, before nodding.
"So will I." Becca said quietly, standing up, moving away from the couch, to stand by Malka.
"Might as well." Zilla said, shrugging, taking a drag of her cigaret and standing up, sauntering over to the group of standing girls. They all turned to stare at Tessa.
"Hell no. I'm blowing this joint. " Tessa said, reaching into the couch cushions and pulling out a sleek black pistol and sticking it in her waistband.
"The team needs its medic. We need our sister." Elizabeth said, trying to reason with the angry girl.
"You get hurt, you die. Tough luck, sisters. You won't see me crying." Tessa growled, before pulling her signature butterfly knife from its hidden place in her hair, and flipping it open, pointing it at the group of girls, who stood in front of the door.
"Move." She ordered, and they complied, moving to the sides. Tessa stormed past them, out the dorm room door, letting it slam behind her.
Elizabeth turned to her sisters.
"Our mission is to find out every dirty secret the Academy has ever tried to hide, and to find what they did with Cassandra." Elizabeth said.
"This will be the death of us." Becca whispered.
"Not if I can help it." Elizabeth muttered, raising a hand, flicking her fingers around, as tendrils of black energy flowed out of them. The tendrils stretched out in all directions throughout the circular room, eventually reaching every closed bedroom door. Her teammates watched in awe, the sight of their leader using her powers very rare.
Elizabeth threw every bedroom door open at the same time, with a bang.
"Suit up." She muttered, and then turned, marching into her bedroom and shutting the door.
___________________________
It was midnight.
"Its time." Elizabeth whispered, and the three other girl rose to their feet, reading their weapons, adjusting their black suits.
The four girls marched to the door, and then their fearless leader turned back, and whispered forcefully to them,
"Remember." She started.
"We are gods." Her sisters replied, steel-like determination on their faces.
Elizabeth threw open the door.
Creeping along like night, the four girls slinked down the many moonlit staircases of the academy, Elizabeth silently strangling every guard with her powers as they passed.
Eventually, they reached the basement, the place where Madam Nikolai conducted her most secret business, lived, and kept her office. This was the lair of the beast. This was where they would find their answers.
"Itt találja a választ a kérdésekre." Here lies the answers to your questions. Elizabeth whispered to herself in Hungarian, a small, almost psychotic smile on her pale lips.
Then she quietly opened the large wooden double doors, with a flick of her hand, pulling out her sword, the silver and black metal glinting, the red handle gripped tightly in her hand.
The hallway behind the wooden door was metal. It looked like a lab corridor. It was abandoned, and only a few lights were on.
They strode inside, Elizabeth leading the pack, throwing open every door that they passed with her powers, peering inside, always finding it to be an empty white room, with a white cot on it, just like the one she had first woken up in.
But eventually, they encountered a door that led to a dark hallway, with a dimly lit room at the end of it. Elizabeth rushed down the hall, and burst into the room. It was dim, and as her eyes adjusted, everything came into focus. It was a simple room, with monitors and other medical equipment, and 5 medical cots, each with a patient laying on it.
Everything was silent.
Elizabeth raised a hand, gesturing for her team to follow her silently, as she crept closer to the people laying on the beds, katana held high, ready to strike down any possible attackers that might jump out of the shadows.
But as Elizabeth reached the cots, her breath hitched in her chest. 3 of the 5 people on the beds were most definitely dead, skulls crushed in, blood staining the cots. But the strange thing was, even though the corpses were dead, their arms and legs were still strapped to the cots, like the other two. Elizabeth moved to inspect the other two people, who's skulls were intact, but she gasped and stumbled forward, as she recognized one of the people.
"Cassandra?" Elizabeth whispered in disbelief, quickly sheathing her sword and patting Cassandra's cool cheeks, trying to get the girl to wake up.
After a moment, Cassandra's brown eyes flicked open, revealing the dull, dead look in them.
"Elizabeth?" Cassandra said softly, voice cracking because of fatigue.
Elizabeth's eyes widened, and she quickly used her powers to rip the restraints of off Cassandra's fragile body.
"Cassandra." Elizabeth said, letting out a sigh of relief as her friends arms wrapped around her scarred neck, holding onto her like her life depended on it.
"W-we have to get out of here." Cassandra mumbled frantically, scrambling out of Elizabeth's arms and trying to climb off the medical bed, but she stumbled, and Elizabeth caught her with her powers, lifting her to her feet, holding the weak girl upright.
"Why? What happened to you?" Zilla said in shock, rushing over to Cassandra, Malka and Becca following.
"They were experimenting on us. The h-hundred girls that went missing I mean." Cassandra whispered.
"Where are the other girls? Becca questioned, softly, but with steel-like commanding in her voice.
"D-dead. We were all experimented on. Only I, and one other girl, survived them." Cassandra moaned, and Malka gasped in horror.
"Cassandra. This is urgent. What did they do to you and the other girl?" Elizabeth, worry in her tone.
"T-they said they were trying to- they were trying to recreate.."
"Trying to recreate..?" Elizabeth urged.
"They said... that they were trying to recreate... Lolana. Project Lolana. Whoever Lolana is, Elizabeth, she has the same powers as you." Cassandra whispered, turning to Elizabeth.
"No.." Elizabeth said in horror.
And for once, Lola Romanoff, and Elizabeth Grey, were one in the same.
"I'll kill her. I'll kill Madam Nikolai for what she's done." They whispered.