"Please! There's two Outworlders out there and they're going to—"

The trainee wailing at the two Purist guards in the doorway was cut off abruptly as another trainee shoved him mercilessly to the ground. "Shut up!"

"Stop that." The trainee that had done the shoving froze like a deer in headlights when the girl guard trained her gun in his direction. She turned back to the other trainee trembling on the ground. "Keep talking."

The traitorous trainee glanced up and around his companions, who were all looking down with glowering fury in their eyes.

"She said, keep talking!" The second guard now pointed his gun on the cowering trainee. "You made a racket to get us to come. Now quit wasting our time and talk!"

The trainee swallowed hard. "There's two Outworlders who managed to sneak in. They're going to try and free the others!"

Krystal sneered with the rest of the trainees in disgust.

"Should we believe them?" The girl, whom Krystal was closest to, lowered her gun and turned to her companion.

Her companion's gun was still positioned on the trainee shaking on the ground.

"Only one way to tell—"

Krystal flinched and looked away the loud crack of the gun followed by the agonized scream. The trainees around her tensed.

"Are you telling the truth?" The guy demanded to the trainee on the ground, who now had a hole torn right through his leg.

"Yes!" The trainee managed to scream, sobs choking through his voice. "Yes, I'm telling the truth!"

The male Reformist finally lowered his gun. "We should warn—"

There. All the trainees all surged as one at the guards. Krystal reached the girl first and tackled her to the ground.

Krystal easily disabled the surprised girl. However with her injured leg, when the Reformist lashed back, Krystal was easily thrown off.

She bit back a squeal of pain. By the time she rolled to her feet, though, other trainees had taken her place disabling the girl Purist. Soon both white-uniformed people were pinned to the ground with their own rifles now jabbed at their heads.

"Traitors!" The male Reformist snarled at the trainees. "All of you would seriously go to such lengths to defend the very creatures who invaded our planet?!"

"Old arguments," a trainee— Krystal vaguely recalled his name was Felix— snapped. Felix was one of the two trainees holding a gun to the Reformist's head. "Save your breath. We don't need to hear any more bullshit from your mouths."

"You—" The male began only to fall silent as soon as he'd started.

Felix had pressed the hard muzzle of the gun into the back of the head. His already deep voice lowered an octave more. He hadn't come to play around. "I said, shut up."

"You should shoot him in the leg," a trainee sneered venomously. "Just like they did to Sam!"

So that was the name of the trainee who'd been willing to put his life on the line to act as a traitor and summon the Reformists.

"Oh I will." Felix's grin was freezing cold. "I'll put it through both their legs. Unless of course, they're willing to talk."

The two Purists had fallen silent, their eyes wary as they finally sensed the brewing storm of hate circling the trainees. Hate for all the Reformists had done. Hate for the needless blood spilled from their hands. The two finally began to sense just how gravely in danger they were in.

"Now, I'm going to ask this only one time." Felix enunciated every word sharply, clearly. "Where are you keeping the Outworlders?"

The two hesitated.

Their mistake.

This time Krystal didn't flinch or look away when Felix pointed the gun down and pulled the trigger.

The male guard's wail of pain was like music to Krystal's ears. Taste some of your own medicine, bastard, she thought darkly.

"Are you going to be more willing to talk, sweetie?" Felix asked with false sweetness, turning the gun towards the white-uniform female.

She instantly broke. "The science ward!" She burst out tearfully. "They're keeping the Outworlders in the science wards."

Bingo.

Krystal ignored the pain in her leg and stepped forward. "I know where the science ward is," she said. She'd gone there with Jiyeon. "I'll lead the team there."

"Perfect. One more question." Felix turned his attention back to the trembling Reformist. "Where can we find the Infinity Council members?"

"Third level," the girl Reformist gasped.

"How do we know she's not lying?" A sneer rippled from the trainees. "You should shoot their legs anyways."

A sudden chill ran through Krystal as Felix tilted his head cruelly, grinning. The trainees were all beginning to act like the Purists had; and though the Purists deserved it, it didn't mean they had to stoop to the Purist's level.

"Enough!" Krystal burst out just as Felix tilted the gun and began to squeeze the trigger. "We need to move, now. Jiyeon and Suho might have already reached the Council room!"

Felix pursed his lips, obviously displeased that his shot was interrupted. Nevertheless, the other trainees were all beginning to split into their designated groups. He finally nodded and handed Krystal the gun.

And then Krystal was off with a group of about eight behind her, plunging into the dark base beyond.

Silence fell. Heavy silence. Eerie silence.

Only the soft thuds of their shoes hitting the ground mutedly echoed off the walls. The hallways that had once been starting to feel like home in its own way, were now forbidding and every shadow filled with promised danger.

The science ward was miraculously on the same level that the human trainees had been held hostage. She lead them down several vacant corridors. Each turn lifting her gun in preparation to see a Reformist. The group finally reached the entrance to the ward without any bastards in sight spied.

They all crouched and peeked out through the entrance. Krystal grimaced at the guards beyond, pacing before a large steel door. She counted almost a dozen.

"Alright. This is it guys. Exactly as we planned," she hissed at the people in her group. "Aim for the keys. Once we unlock those doors, it's game over. Ready?"

They all nodded and Krystal glanced around the corner once again. The guards all had their backs turned and were arrogantly chatting and laughing with each other. Her gaze narrowed and her lips curled in loathing.

"Now."

It took one second too long for the guarding Reformists to realize what was happening. By then, the trainees had launched themselves at the guards. Yells split the air, some of them abruptly cut off instantly.

Krystal engaged a Reformist who looked perhaps only a year older than her. A strained screech escaped Krystal as she braced her injured leg. She twisted her opponent's arms viciously before slamming her knee up, knocking the wind out of the Reformist.

Without missing a beat she brought her elbow cracking down. Right in the vulnerable place at the base of the skull. The Reformist slumped to the ground. Krystal's eyes caught sight of a single key tied around the now unconscious body's waist.

The guards were finally fighting back against the bone-weary trainees. Pushing them back. It was nor never.

Krystal ripped the key off the Reformist and sprinted to the door.

"Wait! Stop her!"

She clenched her jaw. She inserted the key.

Footsteps were running towards her. A gun clicking into place.

Another click reached her ears. The key turning. She flung open the door.

Hansol stood in the doorway, an absolute feral grin on his face. Behind him were rows upon rows of brightly colored, morphed predatory beasts— their pelts matted and beaten, but the snarls on their faces promising certain death.

"Game over," Hansol snickered.

And the freed Outworlders charged out of the room.

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