Chapter 12
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“Harley, did you check to make sure the AI pilot is competent?”
“Ethaniel, for the last time, I based the AI off of real life pilots and normal flight patterns, and if something happens to the AI, I’ll be notified within two-tenths of a second. Don’t worry,” the petite girl assured Ethaniel.
“I’ll stop worrying when every tiny bit of turbulence stops sending pain through my torso,” he grimaced, knocking back more Tylenol.
Cameo turned to the window, muttering Russian curses under his breath, not noticing the Idahoan terrain.
An alarm began blaring from the overhead speakers.
“WHAT IN THE WORLD IS THAT?” Infinity yelled, hands firmly over her ears. Harley launched into the cockpit and glanced wildly around at the gauges and dials embedded in the walls. Gasping, she raced back into the body of the plane.
“GUYS, GUYS, GUYS! WE GOTTA GO!” she cried, dashing to the tail of the plane. Wrenching what looked like backpacks off the wall, she tossed them to the rest of the gang and screamed, “MISSILES!”
Cameo lurched and bolted for the emergency exit, strapping his backpack onto his chest and his parachute to his back. Throwing the red lever, the door swung open and he was nearly sucked into the swirling stratosphere. White-knuckling the edge of the door, he glanced back to make sure everyone was ready to jump. Ethaniel jumped, followed by Harley. Tanner was trying to help Infinity with her parachute, but the straps kept coming loose. Cameo shoved Tanner out of the way and yelled for him to jump. He disappeared into the sky.
Scooping Infinity up, he ran for the door.
The plane bucked violently.
“Мы поражены ракетами! Мы должны идти!” Cameo growled, flames exploding behind him. Holding Infinity close to his chest, he leapt into the atmosphere.
Cameo had never done anything more terrifying in his life. He hated to admit it, but he was dead afraid of heights. One arm wrapped firmly around the girl, he released his ripcord. The two jerked as the parachute caught the air and slowed their descent. He bit his lip, squeezing his eyes shut.
Infinity couldn’t look away from him. Tentatively, she brushed his hair out of his eyes. Putting her lips next to his ear, she whispered, “We’re nearly to the ground. Open your eyes.”
Breathing out slowly, he hesitantly opened his eyes. The ground quickly rose to meet him, and he hit the ground running. The parachute cords tangled around his ankles and he tripped, tumbling through the long grass. Infinity landed on top of his chest and she quickly scrambled away from him.
“Thanks,” she whispered, breathless.
“Don’t mention it,” he replied, teeth chattering, face pale, whole body shaking with fear. He clambered to his feet, legs wobbling. “Let’s go find the others.”
They hiked through the dry grasses, Infinity holding her phone high above her head, trying to get service.
“Put your arm down, I see ‘em,” Cameo said, breaking into an unsteady jog. Finally, they caught up to the others.
“What happened just then?” Tanner asked, Canadian voice trembling ever so slightly.
“Can we get under some cover, please?” Harley pleaded, holding her suitcase full of technology close to her chest. “Or at the very least run? That plane’s burning up this grassland like it’s covered in gasoline!” Cameo slowly turned around and sighed.
“Of course. Giz? Did you manage to grab those things you’ve been working on?”
Harley paled. “Y-yes, but they’re still highly experimental! They haven’t once made it out of the test phase! We can’t possibly-”
“Bring ‘em out. We’ve got nothing to lose.”
“What about our lives? We got those to lose,” Ethaniel muttered under his breath. Cameo glared at him.
“I mean, what are these mysterious inventions, my dear, beloved girlfriend?”
Eyes wide, Harley opened her suitcase.
“Are those legitimately skateboards?” Tanner asked incredulously.
“Hoverboards,” she whispered.”Extremely fast, no detectable emissions. Won’t show up on any scanners or satellite images.” She paused. “I hope. Like I said, they haven’t been out of the test stage.”
Handing one to each member of the group, she powered her own on and stepped onto it. Slowly, she applied pressure to the front of the board and began to move forward.
Ethaniel shook his head. “Gizmo, you never cease to amaze me."224Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIsTs5NVgfj
