Hidden Enemies | The Prime Archives #2 ✓

sixteen

A day had passed since the team's visit to the Smithsonian and, more importantly, the attack on The Vault.

Emily, along with the other original six members of the Prime Task Force and a few senior Atlas agents, sat in Director Shaw's office, waiting for him to arrive. Over the past couple of weeks, he had been meeting with various members of the United Nations committee in an effort to sway them to their side.

Following the news from The Vault, he had canceled all his scheduled meetings and rushed back to The Acropolis.

Out of breath and red in the face, he entered the room and took a seat at his desk. "Sorry I'm late everyone."

"No problem, sir," Chase said.

"I'm sure we all know why we're here, so I'll skip the boring parts." Director Shaw looked around at anyone, checking if anyone objected. No one did. "Good." He typed something on his desk's keyboard and the television on the other end of the room switched on.

A video relay from a security camera in The Vault played on the screen. Emily squinted at the footage, which might have well been a picture of nothing. Every now and then, a flicker of light would disturb the darkness—but it was often fast and fleeting.

"What exactly are we supposed to be looking at?"

Director Shaw fast-forwarded the video. While still dark, red and white lights pulsated through the shadows. Emily spotted Chase battling a man who seemed to be shooting bolts of electricity out his palms.

"Wait a minute," Theo said. He zipped out of his seat and materialized next to the screen a millisecond later. He pointed at the platinum-haired woman standing next to the Prime Chase had been fighting. "Is that Frost? How'd she even get out her cell? And who's that guy? And why're the lights off?"

"One question at a time, pal," Oscar told him. "Your head's gonna overheat."

Nodding, Theo returned to his seat with his rapid fingers tapping the wooden armrest. Emily grit her teeth at the noise and shot him a pointed look.

He gulped and stopped. "Sorry, Em."

"We don't have all the answers yet, Theo," Director Shaw replied. He turned to Chase, whose gaze was stuck on the televisions screen. The boy's jaw was taut as his blue eyes flashed with hidden fury. "But Chase might have some. He was there."

Everyone turned to him.

Chase folded his arms across his chest. "I don't know much, but I do know that whoever broke Frost out The Vault is affiliated with the same Primes from the Times Square attack."

"How do you know that?" Emily asked.

"And why would they be freeing ex-Kismet mercenaries?" Theo asked. He held his head in his hands. "Is anyone else feeling light-headed? Where's my asthma pump...?"

The video on the television screen resumed for a few seconds before pausing again. The camera had followed the action to the ground level of the cellblock, where Chase and a squadron of Atlas agents had cornered Frost and her accomplice. Emily squinted at the image. Through the hazy footage, she noticed shadows gravitating toward the two Primes.

What the hell?

The shadows, which had taken the shape of a massive raven, lifted from the ground like a marionette. In the center of the darkness, she could see a hooded woman floating. Before the Atlas agents could even react, she, Frost, and the other Prime had vanished from view.

"That's Shadow," Stella revealed. "This isn't good."

"No," Director Shaw agreed. "It is not."

"How'd they even know where The Vault is?" Andre asked. He stroked his chin, which had begun to sport a beard. "It's not exactly an easy place to find."