Most of the guards throw down their weapons and run at the sight of the leopards turning on them, and the few who remain follow the others once they see us and our powers. As soon as the guards are gone we try the front gate, but it’s locked tight. There’s an electronic lock on it unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. ‘Can you crack it, Sam?’ asks Jay. I bite my lip. ‘I’m not sure,’ I tell him. ‘But I’ll give it my best shot.’ I close my eyes and connect the wiring in my hand to the lock panel. I rearrange the circuits, shifting them into place in a way that I think will unlock it. ‘Access denied,’ drones an electronic voice. ‘That’s okay, Sam, try again,’ says Asuka. I nod and try another combination of circuits. ‘Access denied,’ says the voice again. ‘Last attempt before lasers are activated.’ ‘Uh oh,’ I mutter to myself. My circuits fizz, knowing that if I mess this up it could spell the end of our rescue mission. I take a moment to steady my central processing unit and try again.
