I'd like to say the following week got easier.
It didn't.
There were some improvements. The showers were still three minutes long, but we got better at jumping in, scrubbing ourselves raw, and climbing out to make room for the next person. We learned to eat less for breakfast, more for lunch, and finish with a large dinner. As far as everything else went, it was still a nightmare.
The physical regime got more difficult every day. The distance of the run increased by only a few hundred feet, but you knew about it. Then there were endless sit-ups and pushups. Mister Henderson seemed to only know three words—faster, harder, and faster.
Okay, that's only two words, but you get the idea.
Even the skill-building sessions in the afternoons got more complicated. Every day it was more challenging. Every day more demanding. As soon as I mastered one skill, Mister Brown got me to move onto something else. After a few days, he got me to start combining my skills. I got to the point where I had to stay in flight while creating a barrier and throwing invisible balls at a moving target. The whole thing gave me a headache.
Finally, we moved onto speed and distance trials. Mister Brown fitted me out with a device that registered height and speed as well as a special suit to keep me warm. Then he got me to fly upwards as fast and as high as possible. It turned out to be the single most enjoyable part of the training.
The first time I did it, I erred on the side of caution. Returning to Earth, Mister Brown was waiting with a frown on his face.
'You call that fast, recruit?' Mister Brown asked. 'I want that sound barrier broken!'
'Yes, sir!'
I took flight again and gave it all I had. This time I went so high, the sky started to turn an indigo shade of blue. This time I returned to base to find Mister Brown examining his tablet.
'You broke Mach One today,' he said. 'Tomorrow we'll try for Mach Two.'
On the eighth day, I stumbled into the dining hall, feeling both tired and energized all at the same time. I had to give The Agency credit for one thing. They knew how to build a healthy body. In under a week, I'd grown muscles I never knew I had.
During dinner, Chad kept on trying to catch my eye. When the catering assistants went to the kitchen, he leaned across the table to me.
'We need to talk,' he said quietly.
'About what?'
He eyed the kitchen staff suspiciously. 'We'll talk later.'
Leaving the dining hall, I lagged behind with Chad. We found a quiet recess leading off one of the corridors. I wondered why he'd chosen this particular spot until I realized no cameras monitored this part of the facility.
Even then, he looked around carefully for listening devices. 'Okay,' he said, finally. 'I think we can talk.'
'What's this about?'
He leaned close. 'It's about this place,' he hissed. 'It's Stalag Thirteen! It's a nightmare. I'm getting out of here.'
I wasn't sure I'd heard him right. 'You must be joking,' I said. 'This place is more secure than Fort Knox. And what about Ebony?'
'I'm not leaving forever,' he said. 'I just need a break. Maybe twenty-four hours of rest and relaxation.'
'You're crazy.'
'I want you to come too.' His mouth turned into a smile. 'I can't party on my own. There's gotta be a town around here. We can get some booze. Listen to some music.'
'No way!'
'What are you? A saint?'
'I don't want to get into trouble!'
'Get a life!' He poked me in the chest. 'This place is run by aliens and mad scientists. They're not in control of our lives. We are.'
'And what about the poison capsules they inserted into our bodies?'
'They're not going to kill us for just blowing off some steam.'
I turned my back on him. 'Goodnight!'
Neither of us spoke as we returned to the dorm rooms. Dan had been lying on his bunk, staring up at the ceiling. He frowned as we entered.
'Where were you guys?' he asked.
'Don't worry about it!' Chad snapped.
After getting ready for bed, the lights went out. At first, I lay awake and stared at the ceiling. My eyes strayed to the clock. I didn't want Chad screwing everything up for us. Despite the hardships of the last week, I knew I'd developed further in that time than I would have in a year. My eyes grew sleepy. 10:00pm. Darkness. My eyes slowly creaked open. It's still night. This was the first time I'd woken without the lights snapping to attention since we started here. What's going on? Why aren't I asleep?
Then I heard the muffled sound of someone getting dressed in the dark.
Chad.
I climbed out of bed, fumbled around, and found a light. Chad was already pulling on his shoes.
'Hey amigo,' he said cheerily. 'Coming out to play?'
'You're insane,' I hissed. 'You're just going to get us all into trouble.'
'Are you coming or not?'
Sitting on the edge of the bed, I stared down at the floor. This is a stupid idea. We need to be getting ready to take on Typhoid. Going out to party was crazy. However, there was a nagging thought in the back of my brain. How bad could it be? If we got caught, we'd just make light of it and promise to be good boys from now on. Besides, they needed us more than we needed them.
'Okay,' I sighed. 'I'm coming with you.'
'Good man!'
Dan stirred and drowsily sat up. 'I bag's first shower.'
'Go back to sleep,' I said.
He did. Dragging on my gear, I followed Chad to the door. He peeked out, and I heard a low crackling sound.
'Okay,' he said. 'Follow me.'
I wondered about the camera—until I saw the burnt wires attached to it. Chad had used his powers on it. Shaking my head, I followed him down the hallway.
This is dumb, I thought. Dumb. Dumb. Dumb.
I was already regretting my decision to follow him. Reaching the next cross passage, he repeated the same stunt.
'Where to now?' I asked.
'Stairs lead up from here,' he said. 'It's an emergency exit.'
'How do you know?'
'You think I'm stupid? I checked them earlier.'
We entered the stairwell where a camera was positioned halfway up one of the walls.
I grabbed Chad's arm. 'Leave this one for me.'
It was on a pivot mount. Focusing, I pushed the camera to point at the wall. We scurried up the stairs, and within minutes we were heading out the exit door.
I took a deep breath and let it out as we stepped into the chilly, clear night, and looked up at the sky. A million stars looked back down at us. Chad was an idiot for suggesting this, but I still loved being out in the open again.
Free at last.
The wind churned in the trees. Then I realized it wasn't the wind. It was more rhythmic than that, like a machine. The darkness was extinguished as a spotlight beamed down from the sky, blinding us both.
A helicopter hovered overhead.
'Put your hands up!' a voice boomed down. 'You are under arrest!'