Cassius balanced on the tips of his toes, peering out the slit of a window at the top of the cell. He couldn’t see much beyond the siding of the closest building. There was a street below. From his vantage point he could only make out the very edge.
Alarms rumbled along his ribcage. The Pearl Warning System. He recognized it immediately, though there was no telling how close the thing was to the city.
He’d been stupid and careless, allowing Fisher to get the jump on him. Part of him conceded that he deserved to be in the cell after underestimating the guy, but that didn’t mean that he was about to surrender. He’d contacted the head of security seconds after being locked up. They were taking their time.
He knew he had to stop Fisher and the girl from heading out of the city. If Madame found out that their escape was his fault, there would be consequences. He’d seen it before-confident trainees reduced to whimpering children after a meeting with Madame. What she said or did to them was a mystery, but the results spoke for themselves. No, he could not let Fisher and the girl get away.
He frowned. The girl.
She’d made an already complicated mission even more treacherous. She’d known to stop him at the elevators back in the Academy. And the way she’d looked at him in the hallway… it was as if she knew who he was. Cassius had never seen her before. He’d need to be careful.
Footsteps echoed in the hallway outside, nearing the cell door. Good. They were coming.
He rested his heels back on the ground and turned away from the window. But something caught his eye outside, stopping him.
He recognized it immediately, the reason for the warning alarm.
Like a falling star, the Pearl plunged toward the building. Its radiance grew stronger the nearer it came.
He analyzed its descent, amazed. With all the empty Fringe space, Pearls didn’t often fall inside Chosen Cities. It was considered a good luck omen when they did, though a dangerous one. Worse yet, this Pearl seemed to be heading straight for the security building.
Cassius watched as it grew in size, unable to turn away from the window even though he knew the danger of staying close.
Then the Pearl made an unusual change in direction, curving past his cell and down to the street below. He’d never seen a Pearl curve before. Something was wrong.
He grabbed onto the thin windowsill and craned his neck to look down at the alley, but couldn’t find an angle where he could discern anything of note.
So he waited, impatient. There was nothing worse than a fallen Pearl with nobody to capture it. He longed to hold it, to be the first to touch it.
The lock slid open behind him and a guard pulled on the cell door. Before he could get it completely open, an explosion from outside rattled the building.
A blinding green energy coursed through the rectangle window, throwing Cassius backward into the guard’s legs. The guard stumbled into the hallway, crashing against the wall.
The energy lingered only a second before disappearing into the air. All was still once more.
Cassius rubbed his neck and waited for his breath to come back before standing up and returning to the window.
Two figures darted off to the left. Fisher and the girl. They’d be heading to the Chute, probably. Quickest way out.
He dusted off his jacket and prepared for a sprint. He’d need to be fast.
On his way out of the cell, he stepped over the guard. “You were late,” he muttered before racing full-speed down the hallway and out the open door of the emergency exit.