The elevator arrives before the Black Daggers do

The elevator crawled toward Kira and Jol, who both kept an eye out for the other Black Daggers. Jol cursed the fact he'd only grabbed a baton and not one of the numerous firearms in the armory. If any of the Black Daggers had managed to acquire a firearm, he wasn't going to be much help to the Princess. All those thoughts prove to be for naught when the elevator finally arrives.

Inside, Kira hit the button for the top floor. As it traveled upwards, Jol realized what the Princess had been up to. The silk robe she had been wearing had barely remained on, her cleavage on full display. She looked down to the floor as her cheeks turned red. Whilst Jol said nothing, she knew that what she'd been up to was obvious.

Heren tapped her hand on the desk as her password cracker worked its magic. Every second that went by was one that a counter-**** could occur. Suddenly, shots rang out as a target entered Ismak's sights. As shots continued to be exchanged, Heren suddenly found herself logged on. Her first priority was to get the sentry guns activated, especially as she heard screaming. A bullet flew passed her head, mere inches away from blowing her brains out. Her fingers worked frantically to activate the sentries, which popped out from the roof and opened fire on the defenders of the building.

The sound of gunfire surrounds the elevator as it continues to travel upwards. Kira covered her ears as Jol remained stoic. At the end of the day, he was the last line of defense between the princess and the attackers. He had his doubts the attackers could've hit every floor, so he knew the sentry guns had been turned against his fellow guardsmen. The question was, if the attackers had control of those, they likely could see him in the elevators with the princess as well.

Heren locked eyes with Jol through the camera. Realizing that the Princess was possibly making an escape, she focused her efforts on shutting down the elevator. Meanwhile, Corvis placed Portable Sentry Guns around the server room to ensure that Heren would be as protected as possible. With the guns set up, the assaulters head off, leaving Heren to her work. Whilst the Cloudseeker's network was relatively primitive, Heren still needed to figure it out as soon as possible. If those two got away, then everything she was doing would be for nothing. She watched the elevator come to a stop as her fingers continued to frantically type.

"I've got them locked down on Floor 176." Heren said as she watched Jol tap on the keypad. A smile filled Heren's face, right until the wall on Jol's right opened. Panicking, she looked back at the screen to see what Jol could possibly be up to. The elevator might have secrets, but the network code could give Heren at least some insights into what those secrets might be.

The elevator eventually arrived at the hangar that stood on the top of the tower. The doors opened but Jol presses a sequence of buttons that caused the elevator to turn and face a secret compartment, where an escape shuttle waited. The two-person craft was shaped like a cylinder and had seats for two people. Whilst the space was cramped, it'd be enough to get them out of the tower.

"Come on."

Jol led her to the escape shuttle. The cockpit window of the compact vehicle opened as Kira headed for the back seat as she shivering in the cold. Before entering the pilot's seat, Jol grabbed a survival blanket and passed it to Kira, who simply said "Thanks."

Jol then sat in the pilot's seat. A display came up for Jol to set a flight path. He did so for Tavar-Marskov's nearest fleet. The onboard computer does its best to calculate the fuel needed to ensure the shuttle makes it to its destination and does so without crashing. Once the destination was set, Jol said "This might be a rough landing, but you'll be safe."

"Where are we going?"

"I've got a friend in Tavar-Marskov Industries. She'll help us."

Before Kira could ask any more questions, Jol hit the launch button, causing the pod to pneumatically launch out of the building. Once it had enough distance, the thrusters activated, causing the shuttle to fly toward its predetermined destination. Jol hoped others could see the craft and its flight, and that may raise alarms for what was occuring at the Cloudseeker.

As the shuttle neared its destination, it began to slow down. The two grabbeed onto the railing as the shuttle hit the tarmac, grinding along as it came to a halt. Once it stopped, Jol opened the window to be greeted by the cold wind of the Seranis night. Jol stood up with his hands raised as private security moved towards him, weapons raised at the guardsman.

"Who are you?" A guard barked.

"Stand down. Stand down." Kira shouted as she stood up.

Upon seeing their princess, the security guards lowered their weapons, so Jol said "The Cloudseeker tower is under attack. I am seeking passage with the Princess to ensure her safety. Are there any ships we can get up and running?"

"Come with me." Said one of the security guards.

Jol and Kira followed the man towards a hanger, where he said "Has anyone pursued you?"

"Not to my knowledge, no." Jol said.

"Good. Hopefully The White Sparrow can take off soon enough."

"The White Sparrow? Is Eris around?"

"I don't know to be honest. Why, you know her?"

"We served together in the military."

The security guard nodded as he tapped on the buttons of a keypad to a hanger. The door opened to the hangar for The White Sparrow. The square-ish craft was brutalistly pragmatic, down to its metal grey color-tone. The Guard opened the bay door for the two, before saying "We'll get reinforcements here as soon as possible."

"Of course. Thank you."

The two entered the spacecraft, where Jol led Kira to the private quarters. There, they sat down on the bunk. Kira then looked at Jol and said "Do you think my father will be okay?"

"I'm sure he'll be fine. He has the best men and women protecting him right now."

Deep down, Jol wasn't so sure, but he didn't want to show that to the woman who proceeded to hug him.