Incursion

/inˈkərZHən/

noun

an invasion or attack, especially a sudden or brief one

The three boys walked ahead of me as we headed to the hanger. I felt a hand jerk my shoulder back toward the person. My first reaction was to scream, attract any attention I could in hopes the unknown predator would release me, but when I saw the familiar blonde quiff, the anxiety I once felt in my body disappeared. His cold blue eyes stared into mine for a few seconds, debating what to say to me.

"You know that this doesn't make you better than me, right?" he asked, his voice full of anger.

The fury in his eyes scared me to a point, but inside I knew that he was feeling dejected. He felt inferior to me since I had a better plan than him; because he didn't think of the simple plan that I had suggested.

"Never said I was," I responded to him sharply. I didn't want to talk to Luke anymore than was completely necessary. He was the bane of my existence while walking thinly on my last nerve, and I preferred not to yell at him in front of the other boys and Bob. I began walking away, too tired for any arguments between us.

"I'm just telling you before you get a big head," he yelled back at me.

I rolled my eyes at him. That was the stupidest thing I had ever heard. My heel turned as I headed back to where he is standing a few feet away.

"Maybe you should check your attitude before yelling at me for mine," I sneered at him, toe to toe with him as I stated up at his tall frame.

His face grew angrier when I said this. A yell sounded from toward the bus from Michael telling us to hurry up. I was the first to stomp away, heading to the six passenger van.

"What happened between you two?" Mikey asked when I sat down next to him.

"Luke was just being the jerk he usually is," I responded lightly as he took his seat next to Calum.

Michael looked at me questioningly, confused as to why I referred to Luke as a jerk, but dropped it when he noticed Luke was in the van.

The plan was to attack lab headquarters and collect any and all information possible. Of course we knew they didn't have the code located there, but we still wanted to get all the information we could and that was the whole point of this incursion. Luke, Ashton, and Michael were set to go in and do a physical raid, killing anyone they came across, and I was in the computer room, getting the computer files from them. Calum was to stay in the car, waiting for us to come out.

"We all know our jobs?" Luke asked one last time from the front seat. We were passing the large skyscrapers and only about a mile from the lab headquarters.

"Yea," the four of us chorused back to him as we pulled up.

"Stay safe," Michael whispered in my ear before he ran to catch up with the others as they entered a side exit.

He was gone before I could respond and Calum was pulling away from the curb seconds after the first shot was heard.

"Here's your stop," he said, pulling up to a single door entrance. "All the security cameras are disabled. All you have to worry about is getting the files and getting out."

"Got it," I said, flinging an empty duffel bag over my shoulder to carry the files I found out in.

"Don't take anything if you get caught, it's not worth dying over," he grabbed my arm as he spoke and looked me in the eye, assuring me that I don't have to die for this mission.

"But where's the fun in not living on the edge?" I asked, smirking as I jumped out of the van and ran up to the door, unlocking it quickly with the key Calum managed to produced.

Apparently, it was easy to make an exact replica of a key when you have security camera footage of all government property.

The halls were blaring with sirens, telling people to evacuate and that intruders were in the building. Something about being called an intruder felt empowering, but by the same token, it was morally degrading. It was not that I was breaking in for an unjust cause, but the fact these people were running for their lives from me was scaring. And something inside me slightly snapped as I saw a twenty year old woman running, screaming in fear.

I knew this was coming, so why was it affecting me so negatively?
I reached the file room quickly after snapping out of my phase. Unlike the one at the colony, this one was completely on the computer, gigabytes upon gigabytes of information that could be saved on a flashdrive in a little over ten minutes. The only actual files were in the corner of the room, all fitting in one compartment.

I took out five flash drives I had put in the bag, inserting one into each of the computers and starting the downloading process. All the computers had tiny boxes with bars filling in with green. No complications yet.

"Downloads in process," I spoke to Calum through our communication devices.

"I can see that," he almost immediately responded, a laugh detectable in his voice. "Do you have all the computers downloading at one time?"

"Yep," I said into the black earpiece they provided. "There are paper files I'm grabbing from the other side of the room. The downloads should finish in under five minutes," I assured him.

"And if they don't?" he asked, his voice dull as if he was looking at some of the information feeding into his computers in the van.

"You can get the boys and circle back around for me," I told him, picking up the black duffle bag and taking over to the file cabinet.

"But-"

"Calum, shut up," I cut him off, "If it's too much, I can always just grab the devices and go."

With that I muted Calum's side of the radio, tired of talking to him and everyone worrying over my safety. I started taking the files from the top cabinet and moving them to the bag. When I was finished with that I went to the next one until I was approaching the last one. I finished moving all the files just as the familiar voice came on over the intercom.

"All personnel please evacuate the building. Doze gas will be released in two minutes," the voice from the lab's intercom announced giving the workers, and us, proper warning time to get out.

I decided to turn my radio on after this to communicate with Calum.

"Cal?" I asked into the earpiece.

"Lissa? Is that you?" Calum's voice erupted from the piece.

"Yea, it's me. You need to get the guys out of here," I told him, zipping the bag closed and going around the computers for the downloads activity without missing a beat.

"What?! Why!?!" he practically shouted, giving me a mind splitting headache.

"They are releasing gas to send people into a state of unconsciousness."

The downloads still had a little bit to go, but the first three finished just as I was about to respond.

"What about you?" he asked as another flash drive beeps, indicating a finished download.

"I'll be out before they release it. Get the boys," I demanded, stuffing the drives into my pockets and shutting down all traces of hack and download.

"Michael is going to kill me," his voice trailed off as I heard the van start and take off to pick up the others.

"Don't worry," I laughed into the mic, taking out the now completed flash drives and exiting out of the programs as I had before.

It wasn't long until I heard three boys enter the van, curses coming from under their breath. Then I heard the question Calum was probably dreading.

"Where's Lissa?" Michael's voice erupted, confused as to why I was not there.

"Ugh.....she um," Calum began, but is cut off by Mikey.

"She's still in there?" his voice erupted in a shout, freaking out furiously.

"Michael, don't worry. She's probably just fine," the voice of the person I hated at the moment assured him.

"I told you to get her out before us!" Michael yelled at Calum. I can only imagine how red his face is in anger and the vein protruding from his neck as he yells.

"She's on the line Mikey!" Calum defended his actions. "Do you want to talk to her?"

Michael's voice invaded the line soon after, "Are you okay?" That was the first thing he asked, and I had to laugh at that.

"Mikey, I'm fine," I assured him, reiterating what Calum had said before to him.

"We are at the entrance Lis. You need to get out of there," he demanded, his voice gravely and full of concern.

I looked at the computer monitor again. Sure enough there is still a little to go in the downloading for the last remaining drive.

"I need a minute," I argued with him, not wanting to leave any information.

"Melissa, if I have to come and drag you out I will. That file is not worth your life," Michael spat at me harshly.

"I'll be out when it's finished," I told him, keeping a close eye on the screen.

"Lissa-" He was cut off when I muted his side of the radio, keeping my full attention on the little bit of white needing to be filled in with green.

"C'mon," I muttered under my breath, fidgeting my foot impatiently.

Finally the green filled the last spot, and the drive beeped as I snatched it out of the computer, shutting off the programs. Shoving it in my pocket, I grabbed the duffel bag full of files and make my way out of the computer room.

When I reached the once chaotic hallway, white, puffy gas is filling the hall and drifting along the ground. My eyes widened at the sight as I quickly made my way to the door.

"Hey you!" I heard called out from behind me.

Without thinking, I turned around and am only a few feet away from a guard dressed in a hazmat suit to protect him from the gas.

My legs moved quickly as I tried making it to the door and away from the dangers he could bring to me, but was too late as a crack went off from behind me.

I landed on the floor, blood seeping from the spot in my leg where searing pain was evident. A gasp emitted from my mouth as I got over the initial shock and tears well up in my eyes from the pain.

Knowing I wouldn't be able to walk on the injury, I began crawling to the exit, turning on my earpiece as I did so.

"Liss, what happened? I heard a gun," Michael's concerned voice came in over the speaker in my ear.

"Leg....hurt," is all I can managed out as I squeezed my eyes shut, keeping myself from crying out in pain.

Curses slipped from a husky, accented voice I immediately recognized in the distance.

"Keep talking to her," the voice instructed as a door to the van closed, and Mikey's voice sounded again in one of my ears.

"Hey, Lissa, I need you to get out of there. Okay?" he asked, probably knowing that what he was asking of me was a lot for a person who just got shot for the first time.

"I'm trying, but I can't walk on it," I said lightly as if that will take the pain away magically. More curses slipped from his mouth as the door a few feet in front of me.

"Melissa?" the comforting voice asked, looking for me in the smoke along the floor that was now covering me and making me feel tired as I breathed in.

"Here," I half coughed half yawned out. A pair of arms encompassed me in a moment, pulling me up to their chest.

"I got you," the hero whispered into my ear, his husky voice sending shivers down my spine.

He carried me to the van and held me closely to him the entire way back, tightening his grip when we hit bumps and whispering encouraging to decrease the ill effects the bullet and gas would have on my injured body. I was dropping in and out of consciousness the entire ride, and only catching certain sentences when I was awake.

The van came to a halt and people came flooding toward us, some taking me to put me on a stretcher. Others coming to collect the files. Throughout the whole process though, my hands stayed intertwined with the boy I had come to forgive for being a jerk to me.

"Thank you Luke," I whispered to him before falling out of consciousness.

Edited: 17 October 2016