Panic Room by Au/Ra

Natasha

11 months later

It's been a year since we've been here. It's been horrible staying here. Taking tests, going to bed all sore, planning our escape, and then there's Blake. I'm still mad at him and won't stop.

Tomorrow was the day we escaped and nothing is going to stop us from escaping this hell. Bryan, Hunter, Alex, Daisy, Ethan, Megan, and I were going over the plan one last time. We were all in my room. "We all know the plan, right?" Bryan asks. We all nod. "We meet up at five in the morning in here with all our things packed in our backpacks and then we book it" Ethan says.

We say our goodnights and wish for the best. Ethan, Meg, and I get to packing our backpacks. We pack two sets of extra clothes, water bottles, and sandwiches we got from lunch. We packed light because we never know what could happen. After that we went to bed.

The next day we woke up and did our daily routine. We did a light workout for training so we weren't tired.

It was finally time for our escape. We were all ready. We waited till everyone was asleep and we slipped out.

Bryan and I led the way. We made sure we were clear of cameras, or tried our best at least. As we were climbimg up the fence we heard a door bust open. Stellar and Blake were headed to us. "Stop right where you are" Stellar yelled. "Hurry up" Ethan yelled. We got over the fence and started running. "Get them" we heard Stellar yell. "Hurry run" Bryan yelled grabbing my hand. We heard a growl behind us. My eyes widened and I took Megan's hand. I glanced back and I saw Blake chasing us. "What the hell" Alex yelled. "Hurry" Ethan yelled. We ran even faster. "I'm coming for you guys" Blake yelled. It didn't even sound like him. He snarled and we ran faster. I glanced back again and I could see fangs, claws, yellow glowing eyes, and veins sticking out. "That's not Blake, that's a beast" I say. "It's the experiment" Alex says. "It's getting closer" Megan yelled.

We ran for three hours. We started running at five in the morning and it's now eight in the morning. "I'm tired Ethan" Megan said. "I know, just a bit longer." Blake got closer and grabbed my arm. I yelled as his claws dug into my skin but I kept running and rammed him into a tree with all my strength. We ran as fast as we could. We went down a trail and ran for a little bit longer. Alex glanced back. "We lost him" she said slowing down. We all slowed down to a walk.

We stopped for a little bit to get hydrated. We kept on walking. "Now what" Daisy asked. "We keep going" Hunter said. Megan was struggling a little bit so Ethan carried her. After a while he gave her to me. "Let's stop for a little" Bryan said. I put Megan down and take out a sandwich. We stayed in that spot for ten minutes before moving again.

We heard a branch snap and we started to run again. We were running so fast we didn't even realise that there was a group of people in front of us. We stopped because one of the guys brought out a gun. "Woah slow down" Hunter said to us. We all came to a stop, Megan hid behind Ethan still holding my hand and I grabbed hold of Hunter's shoulder. All three boys stood in front of us.

"Stand down" the man ordered. "We mean no harm" Bryan said. I moved my head to the side of Hunter's head and see the man. "I know you're one of them" he yelled. "One of who?" Alex asked. "Those beasts." "We would never" I yelled. "That's what we're running from" Ethan yelled.

I feel Megan let go of my hand and starts to walk in front of the boys. "Megan! Get back here" I run after her. "Don't do that" Ethan said sternly. I see the man lower his gun. "But it's daddy" she pointed. I looked up and studied the man's face. He had dark brown locks and brown eyes. "Dad?" I asked. He nodded and dropped his gun. Megan ran to him and gave him a hug. I got up from kneeling down and ran to him along with Ethan. My dad engulfed us in his arms. A tear escaped my eye but I didn't care. After he let go I quickly wiped my tears and smiled.

"I've missed you guys so much" dad said. "We did to" Ethan said. "You guys have grown so much. Natasha your finally sixteen, Ethan your fifteen, and my little Megan your nine." "I even forgot about our birthdays" Hunter said.

"Who might they be" dad asks nodding towards our group. "These are our friends" Megan says going to hug Bryan. "This is Alex, her sister Daisy, Bryan, and his brother Hunter" I say. "Nice to meet you guys, I'm David" dad says shaking their hands. "Pleased to meet you Mr. Queen" Hunter says. "Please call me David." "Yes sir" Hunter chuckles.

"You guys managed to escape huh" dad said impressed. "Yeah, with a year of planning" I say as I wrap an arm around Ethan.

We continue walking until we reach a hidden campsite. "Hey, where's mum?" I ask as I see everyone at the campsite. "Well, after we left you guys at The Elevated we had to split up. Just know that we did all of this for a reason and you'll soon understand. Where are your bracelets?" dad asked looking at our covered wrists. Ethan, Megan, and I raise up our sleeve and show them to him. "Good, now don't ever take it off, especially now." "But why?" Ethan asks. "You'll know when the time is right. So how was The Elevated treating you?" "Well Blake turned up there, he's actually who we're running from" I say. "Wait what?!" "They turned him dad" Ethan says. "It doesn't even look like him" Meg says. "He's not even human, he's- It is terrifying" I say. "Well, how about you catch some rest and hope he won't find us" dad says. We nod and go into a tent.

The tent was big enough for four beds. The only ones sharing a bed was Alex with Daisy, Bryan and Hunter, and Megan and I. Everyone was already in bed but they were still up. I get in bed with Meg and she almost immediately falls asleep.

"What if he finds us?" Bryan asks. "They'll protect us. They've been hunting them, so they have the necessary weapons" I say. We finish up our talk and say our goodnights. I fall asleep immediately, exhausted of all the running.

It felt like I only slept a few hours when I was woken up by screaming. I quickly shoot up and peek through the tent. I look behind me and see that everyone is up and looking through the tent too. I see someone, someone I hoped not to see. It was Blake. He was attacking people, killing them. He went towards my dad. "Blake it's me, David. Do you remember me? " He hesitated for a second but then snarled and launched toward him. My dad brought out his gun and shot him in the stomach. Once he did that, he growled in pain and stuck his claws in my dad's stomach. Before he left he yelled, "I'll find you guys!"

Once I couldn't see him anymore I ran to my dad with Ethan and Megan following behind. "Dad" I drop down to my knees. He was loosing a lot of blood. I'm going to kill him! "Get me something" I yell. Alex runs to me with a towels in her hands. I grab them and press them on the place where the blood is coming from. "Dad it's gonna be alright" Ethan says. "I love you kiddos" he says and winces in pain. "No daddy" Megan says crying. "Take this" he says taking something out from his pocket and handing it to me. "Stay with us, we just got you back" I say as tears stream down my face. "I love you guys" he says once more. "I l-love you" Megan says. "I love you dad" Ethan sniffles. "I love you" I say through tears. "Take care of them" dad tells me. I nod. "Find your m-mom" dad says as he takes what sounds like his last breaths. His breath starts to pick up and gets heavier. All of a sudden I couldn't hear him breathing anymore. I quickly check his pulse and don't feel it. I look at Ethan and shake my head. We look at Megan who's laying on his chest crying. "Come here" I say grabbing her. I hug her as she cries on my shoulder and Ethan hugs us. He releases us from his embrace and I pass him Megan. I get off and quickly wipe my eyes. I open up the envelope that dad gave me. I get a piece of paper out and unfold it. It read:

Dear Natasha,

If your reading this then something bad must have happened to me. I want you to take care of your siblings. Just know that I love you and always will. Go find your mother, she'll protect you better than I ever can. I know that you hate Blake, but if revenge is your route, do it correctly. Plan it out thoroughly, take your time. I stayed in the woods as close as I could to The Elevated for a reason. Calm down, you'll find out soon. Use the map on the back of this paper to find your mom. It'll be a three day long trip. Please be careful out there. The place where your mom is will be hidden. There'll be a cave and most likely guarded. If they ask who you are you say your names, especially your last name. They'll be different, so don't be scared. Your mother should be there, but if she isn't, then you stay there, work with those people, trust them. I know you don't let people in to easily but they'll help you, they're good people. Just know they are nothing like those experiments. Be safe, I love you guys, and NEVER take off your bracelets. Never do it unless instructed by your mother. Other than that never take them off, especially now.

Love, Dad

I was highly confused by the people he was talking about and how they weren't like those experiments. I am desperate to find out why we can't take off our bracelets and why they left.

I flip the paper over and there's a map. It did look pretty long. It had coordinates too. I fold it back up and put it in my pocket.

I look around and everyone is dead. How could Blake ever do that. He would never do that. I look at our little group. Alex is holding Daisy looking a little bit pale, Hunter is just standing there looking around, and Bryan is looking at me. I look back at him with a blank expression.

Megan finally calmed down. I stood her up and Ethan also stood up. "We're going to find my mum. It's a three day long trip so gather up some stuff" I say. We all get our backpacks and spread out. "I'm sorry about your da-" I cut Bryan off. "It's fine" I say harsher than I wanted it to be. I gather a few more things and then wait for the rest. "Ready" I ask. They nod.

I get out the paper and start following it. I hold Megan's hand and Ethan held her other one. "You wanna see it" I ask Ethan who kept looking at the paper. He nods and I give it to him. He reads it and hands it back to me. He looks confused but also sad. "I don't know what he means" I say. He just keeps walking and looks like he's thinking.

We walk for about four hours before we stop. "Here's your sandwich" I say getting it out of Megan's backpack and handing it to her. We all eat and drink some water. We rested for a few more minutes until we started up again.

It was already mid day. Everyone was following behind me and they were all talking. All of a sudden I heard leaves crunch and branches brake. I stopped and put a finger up to my lips. They all shut up and look around. At the corner of my eyes I see something move and I turn quickly. It's a bear, wonderful, just what we need. "Go run" I say pushing Megan. I hear it growl and I look back only to see it running towards us. "Get the gun!" Ethan yells. As Bryan is running he takes off his backpack and takes the gun out. He runs ahead and goes behind a tree. He shoots at the bear and it growls. He keeps shooting until it fell on the floor. "Ok let's get out of here" Ethan says.

We kept on walking for three hours. The sun was already setting. "We should find somewhere to stay" I say. "I agree" Alex says. We walked around trying to find some sort of shelter. I find a tree with a space in the middle of it, like a tunnel through it. "Look" I say pointing to it. We pile in and take out the few blankets we brought and lay them over us. "On the map it shows that there's a river to the right of here so we could go tomorrow to wash off and stuff" I say. They nod and we say goodnight. This is gonna be one hell of a trip I tell you.

*********
The escape finally happened! Can we just talk about how Blake could kill Nat's dad!? Like not okay! (Says the one who wrote it 😝) Enjoyyyy!
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