Monique walked behind Takumi as she strode confidently down the hallway. They were mere hours away from springing their trap, and that thought alone kept her nerves on edge. If a guard entered the armory for any reason while they were inside, their rebellion would come to a screeching halt.

  Though, she doubted she would be able to care much after being executed for what amounted to sedition. On Earth, the punishment for the crimes she and Jean had committed together landed them in prison, but killing prisoners was so divisive, many areas refused to even consider the idea. Despite the attempted benevolence, it often ended in overcrowding and cost the taxpayers obscene amounts of money.

  Not that she wanted to be killed for her actions on Earth, but there were times when it would’ve been preferable to prison.

  “Do you really think it will be tonight?” Takumi asked, slowing her pace to match the other woman.

  “Honestly? I don’t think so. I think we will do little more than arm ourselves and know how to get back in when we need it. The guards haven’t been chittering the way they do when they normally change shifts… Something is on the wind, and I don’t like it.”

  The thief nodded her agreement, eyes locked straight ahead like she was marching to her doom. Which—if this infiltration went poorly—would be.

  Monique noted their path, engraving the route they took into her mind. If they needed to escape quickly, knowing the way back into the mines would be paramount to their survival. Even if they managed to pull off their plan, getting the weapons out of the armory would be even more difficult than getting in.

  Cameras dotted the ceiling like the eyes of an indifferent god, waiting to catch a prisoner in the act of rebellion. Upon their arrival to the mine, she had questioned why the floors were made of steel instead of stone. From a construction aspect, it only made sense to use material that was already present in the environment. But they hadn’t built this fortress with frugality in mind. They’d built it to ensure the prisoners housed inside its walls could be controlled.

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  The pair of women eventually came to a steel door that blended into the surrounding walls with near perfection. A recessed circle no larger than a fingertip sat beside it as the only indication anything was there. With practiced nonchalance, Takumi stretched her arms and flicked her wrists. A pair of heavy needles she’d made from scrap metal sailed through the air with deadly accuracy, piercing the two cameras closest to their prize.

  “How did you know?” Monique raised an eyebrow and stepped closer to the now unseen panel.

  “Our first day here, I noticed these cameras everywhere. I dragged my cot into the hallway to examine one, and found they were not glass like traditional surveillance,” she replied, touching the access key from the captured guard to the wall and pushing the door open. “They made them from some sort of gel? Honestly, touching the camera felt like poking an eyeball.”

  “They’re organic?”

  “Apparently. Though it’s hard to say, considering everything we’ve seen.”

  Several rows of armor waited silently, a soft glow emanating from multiple connection where wires stretched up to unseen points in the ceiling. Lined along the opposite side of the room, weapons sat nestled in a series of racks. The unfamiliar configurations alien to their human minds.

  “Do you see anything we can use?” Takumi asked, examining the weapons as she walked slowly past.

  “A few. Some of these are close enough to what we had on earth.” She picked up a bar of twisted, sword-like metal. Unlike a human sword, the blade was twisted into a spiral that resembled the stinger of several insects.

  Monique turned a dial at the base, and a low hum emanated from the blade. When she touched it with her fingertip, a deep vibration rattled her bones. She’d initially assumed it would be a type of taser. But if her guess was right, this weapon used sound to augment its damage.

  “We’ll take these. Grab two of these and we’ll sneak back to the chamber.” Monique said, turning off the weapon and pressing it against her ribs.

  “The blade is cold,” Takumi replied, doing the same. “I hate cold metal against my skin.”

  “Think about it this way. One way or the other, this is the last time.”