Team Midnight

Team Midnight

Crouched below the sharp edge of the shadow, the moonlight is the enemy, as darkness is my only ally. Creeping through the glass, it forbids my cover of night. Again, the moon is full, impeding the hidden path I must take. There is no sign of my enemy, although a faint sound does tell me he is near. Shall I risk being seen or heard, for the mission I am to complete? Two steps then a tiptoe, two more, should I just go? Four more, just past the gate. Still in darkness I continue until I reach the corner. From here I am exposed. Like trying to cross a river, the moonlight flows ahead. It could mean certain death should I not make it to the other side. In this river, I am at the mercy of the open space. Nowhere to hide, nowhere to run, no weapons to protect me. Illuminated and alone, the perfect target for my enemy. I turn to look at my soldiers behind me. They are waiting for me to make my move. I cannot delay much longer, as we are running low on supplies. Our food rations ran out yesterday, and we lost two soldiers to our enemy, as he became trapped within the grasp of the metal bars barricading the only source of food we could find. I won’t make the same mistake as him.

The clock is ticking, our time is short. We must complete this mission before sunrise. I signal to my team to hold back while I attempt to cross the river of moonlight. Only in the middle will I be able to see exactly where the enemy awaits. Will he be looking for me as well? To my hands and feet I slump to the floor, ready to make my move. One look left, then right, then straight ahead, then GO!

Dashing through the moonlight, stepping only in the dark. Left to right I shift my movement trying to increase the look of fluidity and not of a solid object. Seconds feel like hours. My heart races and my lungs are working at full capacity as I hold my breath, not to utter a sound. With only a few long strides left I catch a glimpse of something sparkle in the corner of my eye. I dare not look, as I already know that glimmer of my enemies eyes-glowing in the darkness, they catch me in the light.

“RETREAT!!!” I am too far to turn back now, but my team must not continue. They scatter to their hiding spots in silence as I continue racing towards more darkness. My only chance is up ahead, under the rubble of the broken wall. But can I make it before it's too late?

We gather under the setting sun, before it leaves us in darkness and out of time. Once we are all together, I try to rally the troops

“Our only hope is the slumber of those that hunt us, that we may acquire what we need. If at first we survive the rulers of the land, then we only need to outrun the guard. It is risky, but we have no choice. For without this mission, we will all starve. We will be divided into groups. The runners, the grabbers, the lookouts, and the bait….I am the bait. To the east we go at midnight, and we take nothing with us. We must keep our weight light so as to run swiftly, nothing to weigh us down. We must keep our arms empty, able to carry anything we can find. Our last mission failed, as the rulers kept the late watch until early morning. Tonight, they have already settled for the evening. Only the guard remains. He is the one we must bait if we should encounter him. Let us hope it does not come to that point.”

“Each runner shall join one lookout at all four points of the danger zone. Stay within the shadows of the night. If I run, the runners run in all directions to distract the guard. As soon as the runners have taken the guard out of the danger zone, we shall deploy the grabbers. If I do not run, and I make it across to the other side unnoticed, grabbers and runners all walk quietly to the ration house. Even if we all make it safely there, the runners will not grab. They must be free to run if the guard finds us. We cannot leave a trail, or else the rulers will know we were here, and if they do, it will be certain death for all of us. We shall initialize the bait at 0015 hours. Good luck.”

Full speed ahead I manage to slide the last few feet under the rubble. Peering out from underneath through a small crack I can only see the area touched by the moonlight. The guard has now come to the area right in front of me. Looking behind every corner and pushing his way around the debris. He doesn’t see me. I wait in silence, occasionally catching a glimpse of one or two of my soldiers, patiently anticipating a sign from me. The guard paces back and forth in frustration. Occasionally looking towards the gate, he is considering leaving the area, then changes his mind and continues his search. Finally he succumbs to his urge to go elsewhere, strutting angrily towards the gate. He stops and turns, for one final look at the area, then he makes his way through the gate and it closes behind him. The anticipation wells up inside me. My heart beats the sound of a thousand horses racing in unison. Dust has clouded my vision slightly but I can still see just enough to know it is safe… for now.

“Go ‘Team Midnight” Go!”

Swarming in perfect form, they emerge from the darkest corners of the night. Two lookouts dash towards the ration house. One crouches firmly near the door while the other sprints forward, leaping onto the shoulders of the crouching lookout, then is catapulted into the air. Arms high above his head he barely grasps the lever, using his weight to pull it down. It opens just enough to let the light through, and the lookout is left hanging up above. The runners push the door open as the grabbers flood in like flies. Chaos it may look like, but strategically it is implemented. With the final grabber having filled his arms, the hanging look out jumps down joining the last two runners by the door. Together they begin to close the door when one of them stops. The feeling of someone watching him overcomes him and he turns away from the door.

Horror ensues as he faces the guard in front of him. His presence towers above them, as they are paralyzed in fear. Gasps are heard from shadows.

I must do something, I am the bait. Hearing the words inside of my head makes me want to vomit. I search the darkness for some form of distraction. Then, I see it. It shines like gold in the moonlight. Can I make it there before he gets them or catches me? I have to try. I find some loose utensils not far from where I am, and grab some string. Tying them to me, I make my move. The silence is shattered by the clanking of the metal utensils across the stone floor. The guard does not hesitate in his curiosity to investigate the sound. As soon as he has turned away, the soldiers escape the danger in different directions.

Having followed the sound and now just out of reach of capturing me, I make a final slide into the small hole in the wall. He tries to follow, but realizes he cannot fit so instead he reaches his arm into the hole grabbing and swatting frantically.

SNAP!!

The sound echoes within the wall, followed by the howling of the guard. Thrashing about in pain and wailing in agony. Rolling and flipping he tumbles, knocking into everything in his path. The commotion was intense and tremendously loud. From above there is a thumping, closer and closer. He has awakened the rulers. They blast into the space where the guard is still in distress. Angrily they search for the source of the disturbance, finding the guard rolling around in one corner.

“Stupid cat”

The male ruler reaches down and picks up the guard, realizing what happened. He carefully peels the mousetrap away from his paw.

“I told you that wasn’t a good idea.” replied the female ruler.

“Its your stupid cat”

“You set the trap”

“I was hoping to catch the mice”

“There are no mice! We have a cat!”

“Whatever. Let’s go back to bed. Hey, did you happen to forget to close the refrigerator? It's open. “

“Maybe it was your mice,” she taunted sarcastically.

From deep within the walls, the mice giggled amongst themselves.

“Mission Complete.” I whispered, twirling my tail.