What should have been a triumph quickly turned into a panic, as their upward momentum stopped. For a few moments gravity halted, then it reversed. They picked up speed, and soon they found themselves almost floating as the ground dropped away beneath them.
Edward lightly tapped the roof as they fell before drifting back toward the floor. Their fall speed appeared to have stabilized, but they had only seconds. "We have to get out of here!" he shouted. The room was oddly silent, and his voice echoed far louder than he'd intended. No wind rushing past his ears. No rumbling as they fell. If they hadn't been floating, he wouldn't have noticed anything different.
OVERRIDE COMPLETE. ERROR. SAFEROOM GRAVILYFT OFFLINE. TROUBLESHOOTER MALFUNCTIONING. EJECTING SAFEROOM IN TEN, NINE, EIGHT...
Oh no. "Luna!" he shouted, and his brain had a brief moment of total shutdown. "If we survive this, training sounds good!" Then it all snapped back together, and he shook himself into focus. He glanced wildly around, looking for anything that might help them. There! A hatch above them, out of reach before, but now..."Aim for that door!" he said, pointing.
THREE...TWO...ONE. EJECTING...
That was a real lurch. The room's floor shot up to meet him, and he hit the ground with a hard thud. "Ugh, my god..." he moaned. Through slitted eyes, he saw out the door they had entered. He saw the lurch, saw Juliette slip and fall. He heard Raymond's anguish, and felt adrenaline rush through him.
He forced himself to his feet and stumbled out into the area they had just exited. They were sort of floating again, and Edward had to work very hard to not simply slip sideways and fall to the wall. "Get her, Raymond!" he shouted, twisting to maintain his body's upright position. He was still for a second, and then sort of...pushed off from the wall toward Raymond and the unmoving girl.
"Come on!" he said, getting his arms around part of the unconscious woman. "Easier if we both push Raymond. Luna, I don't care how you do it, but get that door open! And be ready to get sucked out!" They had no room for error here. Either they all made it up to the...control room...and floated out into the air, or they died here. Maybe if they were supremely blessed, someone would somehow scoop them up from the air. That was their best bet.
How insane was that?
Edward lightly tapped the roof as they fell before drifting back toward the floor. Their fall speed appeared to have stabilized, but they had only seconds. "We have to get out of here!" he shouted. The room was oddly silent, and his voice echoed far louder than he'd intended. No wind rushing past his ears. No rumbling as they fell. If they hadn't been floating, he wouldn't have noticed anything different.
OVERRIDE COMPLETE. ERROR. SAFEROOM GRAVILYFT OFFLINE. TROUBLESHOOTER MALFUNCTIONING. EJECTING SAFEROOM IN TEN, NINE, EIGHT...
Oh no. "Luna!" he shouted, and his brain had a brief moment of total shutdown. "If we survive this, training sounds good!" Then it all snapped back together, and he shook himself into focus. He glanced wildly around, looking for anything that might help them. There! A hatch above them, out of reach before, but now..."Aim for that door!" he said, pointing.
THREE...TWO...ONE. EJECTING...
That was a real lurch. The room's floor shot up to meet him, and he hit the ground with a hard thud. "Ugh, my god..." he moaned. Through slitted eyes, he saw out the door they had entered. He saw the lurch, saw Juliette slip and fall. He heard Raymond's anguish, and felt adrenaline rush through him.
He forced himself to his feet and stumbled out into the area they had just exited. They were sort of floating again, and Edward had to work very hard to not simply slip sideways and fall to the wall. "Get her, Raymond!" he shouted, twisting to maintain his body's upright position. He was still for a second, and then sort of...pushed off from the wall toward Raymond and the unmoving girl.
"Come on!" he said, getting his arms around part of the unconscious woman. "Easier if we both push Raymond. Luna, I don't care how you do it, but get that door open! And be ready to get sucked out!" They had no room for error here. Either they all made it up to the...control room...and floated out into the air, or they died here. Maybe if they were supremely blessed, someone would somehow scoop them up from the air. That was their best bet.
How insane was that?