Persistence of Vision by Liesel Hill
***
It was midnight before the team made it onto the island. They left the ship five hundred yards out hidden in the black ocean, and swam ashore. They couldn’t make noise, so they had to do their swim strokes beneath the surface, gliding slowly and noiselessly through the water.
The island was somewhat tropical, and though it wasn’t particularly hot, the humidity was oppressive. The brush was jungle-like, and Maggie hoped there weren’t snakes. That was one thing that might make her scream before she could catch herself.
A cinderblock wall surrounded the entire facility. Two guards paced around the outside of it in circles. The team’s minds were concealed, so the guards would be unable to sense them, but they still had to get inside the wall without being seen. That meant they’d have to wait until the two guards were as far from the entrance as possible before they used it.
“I’ll be able to sense when they reach the opposite side of the compound,” Doc had explained. “Then we’ll move. We’ll have to be sure that nothing is disturbed. They can’t sense us, but if they sense that something is out of place—the door not shut all the way, more dirt moved than an animal could have done—then they’ll be onto us.”
They reached a small side entrance that was used very little. It consisted of a cinderblock door carved out of the wall, which swung outward on rusty hinges. Doc motioned for them all to duck down behind the shrubs that faced the door from ten feet away. A few seconds later, a man marched by. He was alone, but the two patrolling guards marched in opposite directions, which gave them much smaller windows of opportunity.
Once he was gone, Doc got up and motioned for the others to follow him. Marcus and Clay each put a hand over one of the doors hinges. Maggie couldn’t be sure, but she thought they were inserting air between the parts to make sure the hinges didn’t creak or groan when moved.
Doc swung the door outward, and it moved in utter silence.
Karl was the first one in. He had a conduit stone wrapped around one hand and a small wooden stick in the other. He could use them as either physical or neurological weapons. He jumped inside, ready to surprise anyone waiting for him. Apparently seeing no one, he did a quick three-sixty then motioned the rest of them in. The door shut silently.
As soon as it was done and the men stepped away, Doc threw his hands up in alarm. Everyone looked at him. He put a finger to his lips, and everyone became perfectly still, rooted to the ground where they stood. The wall was made of cinderblock but was not tall. From the other side they could hear footsteps crunching toward them—the other guard.
The footsteps bypassed the cinderblock door and went another six feet. Then they stopped. Maggie was six feet to the left of the door. The guard was level with her. If not for the cinderblocks, she’d be face to face with him. The guard turned around and went back to the door. He seemed to be inspecting it. He jiggled and prodded around for several minutes. Then there was almost two minutes of complete, deafening silence.
He was listening.
Finally, the footsteps crunched slowly away. When they could no longer be heard, everyone let out their breath.
Doc made a placating motion with his arms.
They went on. The courtyard looked like a civilized place from Maggie’s time. The grounds were landscaped and well kept. There were plants, strategically placed rocks and boulders, little stone pathways, and even fountains. If the place weren’t so foreboding, it would have been beautiful.
Doc led them through the grounds, stopping only twice when night guards walked by. The team hid behind rocks or shrubs until the guards passed. Maggie knew these guards were probably doing all kinds of scans with their minds, but because Clay was Concealing the team, the scans would pass right over them.
They came to a large garden of shrubs situated against the main building. Doc pointed to a small, round cove created by the intersections of several plants. He motioned Clay and Joan into it, indicating that this is where they would be stationed. Joan gave Doc a thumbs up, and Clay gave an a-okay sign. Then they both disappeared into the brush.
Doc led the rest of them around the side of the building to a small, mostly concealed door. Once there, he waited for what must have been five full minutes. Maggie decided that he must be waiting for people inside to pass before he opened the door. Either that or he’d fallen asleep.
Finally he pulled the door open and motioned everyone in.
The first noticeable thing about the interior was air-conditioning, or whatever it was called in this century. The humidity of the outdoors disappeared completely upon coming inside. The corridor they were in was carpeted with the thin, tough, industrial carpet for high-traffic areas.
Three sets of lights lined the ceiling above them. The row in the middle was large and looked to Maggie like the white, fluorescent lights of her own century. They were probably the main light source, but they were not on—probably turned off when most people were asleep. The other two rows on the outside gave off a soft, orange glow, making the corridor cozily dim.
Once inside, Doc turned to Maggie. He took one of her hands in his and then one of Marcus’s in his other. He gave them each an encouraging smile. Marcus returned it, and Maggie hoped she did as well, but she couldn’t be sure whether she was smiling or grimacing. Doc and Nat also exchanged glances.
Karl did the same thing, taking each of their hands. Maggie wondered if it was a ritual, a way to connect and tell each other good luck even when they weren’t allowed to speak.
Then Doc and Karl disappeared down the corridor to the left. Marcus took Maggie’s hand and went right. Nat followed.
Well, Maggie thought, here we go.