Date: January 18
Time of Data Transfer: 0648
Sender: "Skylark"
Subject: My Story
I opened my eyes, waking once again from the torture of sleep. I hadn't had any good dreams since I left home, to be honest. I sat up and rubbed my eyes groggily, blinking to try to adjust to the dim light that fell on my face. I stretched my arms out and grabbed a hold of the drawstring for the shades and pulled, opening the curtains and exposing the sky outside. It was gray, as it usually was. Smoke billowed in the distance and I could see some of the infamous AIR Squadron scouting the zone ahead. I looked down at my watch and blinked. 0740. They're early today. I groaned and somehow managed to drag myself out of bed and over to my desk. I searched for a pen or quill for a few seconds before finding it. I quickly scrawled a message to HQ and lit my lamp. I made sure my smoke detector was still off and, seeing that it was, burned the message. The flames burned green as I cast my spell but quickly flickered back to its usual orange-red. I closed my eyes and sighed. I don't get paid enough for this, I thought groggily. In reality, I did get paid more than enough for my services. Princess Luna had literally begged for new recruits and I was in no shape to refuse her offer. I wanted to get this job in the first place, anyway.
I opened my eyes and knelt on the floor. I bent down and fumbled with the latch under my bed. The latch clicked and I slid the briefcase out of place. I picked it up and laid it on my bed carefully. As I unlatched the briefcase's two silver latches, a muffled pop came from behind me. I turned around just in time to see the last trace of blue fade from the scroll that was now falling into my hand. I quickly removed the seal on it and unfurled it, almost eager to read the response. My hopes were dashed, however, when I saw whose hoofwriting it was. As I read the scroll, my heart dropped into my stomach and I clenched my teeth. I clenched my free hand out of both anger and of fear. My heart hammered in my chest as I finished reading the note. Time to go! I thought as I threw the note on the bed. I grabbed my suitcase and gathered my few precious belongings. I reached down to my waist and pulled the blue charm that Princess Luna had gifted to me upon Kyle's execution and shook it three times. It glowed a faint blue and grew somewhat warm. Knowing that the signal was sent, I grabbed my bag and walked to the door. As I undid the latch and went to unlock the door, I could hear voices shouting. That was fast.
I hastily latched the door and got down on all fours. I crawled quietly to the closet and moved the empty bookshelf from the trapdoor. I opened the door and climbed in, sliding the bookshelf back into place with my magic when the trapdoor was shut. The tunnel was dimly lit, but I was used to darkness. I ran down the dark, moist path to freedom. As I ran, a spare thought rattled in my head. I forgot the note.
Skylark, you've been compromised. A spy infiltrated our mainframe and found the names of a dozen agents in the field. The Empress has sent out an elite task force to hunt down our troops. I'm on the run right now; they aren't too far behind and I'm in the Everfree Forest. If I don't make it out alive, tell my children I love them and that I only wanted the best for them. They're coming. Get to Haven before it's too late.
