Ari followed the two girls through the hole in the wall and into a dark corridor. Dim lights flickered overhead. The rubble on the ground became sparse the further they moved, dissipating like the red mist. Churning of machinery left a dull hum in the air – apparently not all the electricity was turned off when Area Six was abandoned.

Tucking a stray strand of blonde hair behind her ear, she made sure she was hidden in the shadows every time the girls gave a backwards glance. It made keeping up with their conversation impossible, particularly without a height advantage, but at least they were leading her somewhere. They must be part of the terrorists, otherwise who else would stay in a depressing place like this?

Ari tracked them down several flights of steps; that was no mean feat, as the see-through metal grates that formed the floor of the stairs meant she had to wait till the girls passed onto the corridor before she could race down without causing a racket. They were well and truly in the depths of the old research area now. Every door they passed was either sealed by old Peacekeeper tapes or so rusted they would never slide again. Windows looking into the labs were dusty and cracked, having not seen a life form for over two years. Ari wondered if Mina was held in a place like these: dirty and draughty. She was so little. She would probably catch something nasty and be suffering. And this lot of people wouldn't bother to give her medicine.

The worry that had become almost a permanent part of her gnawed again, making her heart flutter. The place was an endless maze of corridors and dark tunnels. She hadn't bargained on how big it would be. It was like finding a lost pin in a wire circuit. The state of the corridors was abysmal: the metal doors were rusted and some were collapsed; grime and mould grew in the corners; no windows opened to the outside world as they were underground but the dust on it looked like it hadn't been disturbed in decades.

Eventually, the girls reached a corridor junction where others were passing through, too. Ari didn't recognise any of them – although, considering how many lessons she'd skipped, that came as no surprise. The girls were too young to be anything other than new recruits or young impressionable teens bowled over by the glamorous lifestyles. Ari might have more of a chance if she caught onto one of the older ones. She wished she could just pretend to be a new recruit, too, but ranking third meant she was relatively well-known, cringe-worthy as it always was. She would be recognised within seconds.

Snippets of conversation floated over when more people passed the girls. Ari waited at the edge of the corridor. The two students disappeared round the corner.

"It'll be a good chance for the new recruits to get involved. Stops them from chickening out when the time comes."

"I don't think they'll chicken out. Mina has them pretty grounded."

Ari's blood ran cold at the mention of her sister's name. She really was here. What's more, it sounded like these terrorists had her in their clutches. She checked out the speakers' faces. One of them had her hair tied at the side, bouncing with each step. The other was a scrawny boy with short hair.

"It's adorable how sincerely she believes in our cause," said the boy.

"She's been so oppressed all her life. I think this chance of letting her spread her wings has truly given her the freedom she deserved – and that makes her the best advocate for our leader's dream. She's a gem, for sure."

"Put her for the first treatment, then. She can be the first out of the new recruits – to show them how it's done."

"I've put her name forward already. It'll happen in two days."

Put her name forward? For what?

Ari followed the older two down another long corridor. There was no way she could find her way out now. She wondered what they'd put Mina's name forward for. With a drop in her stomach, she hoped they weren't referring to the power-up programme. If it was that, she had to bust her out of there or Mina would be dead. She clutched her necklace. She was an idiot not to wait for Rale to come and give her reinforcement. Ari was in far too deep, now, and there was no escape. Perhaps she could ring him when she finds an escape, but right now – the two in front of her were still making steady progress ahead – she had to find Mina, or at least ensure her safety.

They slipped into one of the rooms. From the outside, the dusty windows gave it the appearance of a classroom, but Ari caught a sight of rows upon rows of seats before the doors clicked shut. It was an auditorium. Were they heading for a meeting? Or were they just passing through it to go to their destination? Ari waited outside, her ear pressed against the gap in the door. Low-volume chatter reached her ears. There were probably at least twenty people in there – too many for her to take on at once.

And Mina might be there, too.

Ari gave the corridor behind her a backward glance. Nobody was in sight. Everyone was probably in that room. Taking in a deep breath, she listened at the door again, keeping a keen eye out for anyone coming up behind her.

"Thank you all for coming," said a boy's voice. It sounded rather familiar. Ari felt like she was being told off. "It's great to see so many new faces. Please welcome our new recruits."

There was a flow of murmurs but no claps.

"We have a great deal in store for all of you. I'm very pleased to see that all of the newcomers have accepted our cause and are keen to follow us on the path of righteousness. Our leader is wise and has the interest of struggling March City students at heart. We may not understand the mechanics of her experiments, but the outcome is one and the same: we will attain great power. With that great power, we will ascend the corrupted ladder of March City, and then once we seize the control of the city, we can change it."

Ari bit her lip. The voice was so sincere and proud she almost believed in him. They were planning to overthrow the March City government. This was anarchy.

"No longer will the high-achievers sneer at us and stamp on us like rats. No longer will we have to grovel and beg at their feet. No longer will the Peacekeepers bully us and turn a blind eye to the blatant illegal activities of the rich. We are citizens, too, and we deserve equal rights!"

Another flow of low murmurs.

"And how will we do that? Attain great power, attack March City where the infrastructure is at its weakest. The bombings are only the beginning. We take out the electrical plants in Area Eleven. We destroy the rich residencies so the Investigators and civil servants have nowhere to hide at night. They will be the ones to tremble at our feet!"

Ari hadn't realised how quick her breathing had become. This was huge. They were going to destroy March City altogether. She wouldn't bother to interfere in something like this if Mina wasn't part of the other side, now. She probably was wholly unaware of the depth of this insanity, but against people like these, there was no way she could escape. Mina wouldn't willingly join a group who prided themselves on destruction and injury. These were the same people who injured and killed students and were now forcing these horrific mutating experiments on fellow students. She needed to get a message to Mina.

"From tonight, we will start the initiation rites. All of us that stand before you – Vexi, Wyld, Urio, myself, and so on – have gone through this. We have amassed tremendous power, more power than you can imagine. This is our leader's gifts to us, and there are more to come once she makes progress. But we need your help. We need to start destabilising this farce of an advanced city, and we need resources. We appreciate your abilities are weak now – we've been in your shoes not that long ago – but there are many things you can help with. Scavenging, laying down the bombs, recruiting – these are all very important things that we cannot do by ourselves. The future of March City is in our hands. We need to grasp it!"

Soft clapping responded to his words. Ari's mouth was dry. The whole group was crazy. They were going to overthrow the peaceful and advanced system that runs March City without a fault? They wanted to blow up crucial areas that kept the city running and abduct more students? This must be shut down immediately. Much as Ari hated the Peacekeepers for what they did to her recently, this craziness had to stop. Mina could be killed if she got swept away by these nutters.

With a trembling hand, Ari fished out her phone. She switched it on. The screen loaded, and then she swiped her thumb across it. The digital screen changed from red to green, allowing her access. There was still good signal down here. She tutted to herself. Five missed calls. Two from Fris and three from Rale; the last from Rale was ten minutes ago.

She started tapping on the screen with her thumb.

Underground lab in Area Six. Terrorist group planning to bomb March City. Power-up experiments on-going. Warn Peacekeepers. She sent it. Biting her lip, she looked at the two missed calls from Fris. The way she'd reacted to Fris's warning had perhaps been over the top. They'd been best friends for so long and Fris had never done her harm nor used her relationship to The Transformer to pull strings. Perhaps she should have given her more time, listened to her, and then reacted, rather than shouting and storming off like a child. She only had Mina on her mind, but Fris had always been there, looking out for her.

A new message popped up, stating 'tracing coordinates' and asked for her permission.

She reached to press 'yes', but before she could touch it, a jolt of pain shot through her body. She yelled, her arm jerking and throwing her phone across the corridor. Her muscles contracted of their own will. Ari landed on her elbow on her side; agony exploded at the joint as she writhed on the ground, still in a spasm.

She forced her eyelids open. They seemed to be the only muscle still in her control. Most of the pain was fading away, leaving a dull numbness behind. She panted, sweat breaking out over her body. She was on her back, staring up at the ceiling. There was a person by the door where she stood, her hands covering her mouth in horror. Red hair spilled from her ponytail and her dark eyes were wide. Ari blinked, recognising her features.

"Well, well, well," said the speaker from earlier with that familiar voice. Ari's eyes twitched but couldn't see his face. "Fancy you joining us, Transformer Ari."

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