Travis found himself running down a dark hallway, his heart pounding in his chest, his breathing heavy from the run. It was just after 3 a.m., and the sharp, shrill blare of the fire alarm echoed through the building. The estate's emergency sirens hadn't stopped since the alert came in: multiple intruders and a fire.
Unfortunately, Travis had been stationed away from the main house, isolated on the perimeter due to his upcoming test later that morning. He was in an unfamiliar part of the estate, and the unfamiliarity made every shadow seem like a potential threat. Sweat dripped down his brow as he dashed through the flickering lights and emergency strobes, the tension mounting with each passing second.
He knew he had to help. He knew he had to protect. But what came first?
As he rounded a corner, Travis spotted a heavy door ahead—his potential escape route from this maze of corridors. He sprinted toward it, hitting his shoulder into the door, but when he kicked it open, a blast of heat knocked him off his feet.
The door swung back violently, sending him flying into the opposite wall. The impact was big enough to knock out a small group of children, and for a moment, he struggled to get his bearings.
The fire in the room behind the door was fierce, consuming everything in sight. Thick black smoke billowed out into the hallway, and Travis quickly realized the fire had been building up pressure behind the closed door. His lungs burned as smoke filled the air, and though his body protested, he forced himself up, pulling his shirt up over his nose and mouth to filter out the worst of the smoke.
Causiously looking into the room through the billowing flames, Travis scanned for any sign of life. "Is anyone here?" he called, his voice hoarse from the smoke. But the only response was the crackling of the fire consuming the room. No one was inside. Hopefully.
With the fire contained in that room, Travis turned around, jogging down the hallway toward the lower floor. He needed to take care of the intruders—and fast.
The building's flickering lights were disorienting, casting strange shadows along the walls. His instincts screamed at him to stay alert, and it wasn't long before his gut feeling proved right. As he turned the next corner, a figure lunged at him from the shadows, slamming him into the ground.
Travis grunted in pain as his head smacked against the cold floor, a sharp ache spreading through the back of his skull. His vision swam for a moment, leaving after images and a high pitch sound, but through the pain, he blinked away the daze, focusing on the three figures now hovering over him now.
Three men dressed entirely in black stood ready to fight, their faces hidden behind hooded masks. They moved with the calculated precision of trained fighters—no doubt these were the intruders who had breached the estate.
"Who are you?" Travis demanded steadying himself while following protocol. But the intruders had no intention of talking. They looked at each other before they crowded him slowly, circling him like predators stalking their prey.
The high-pitched wail of the smoke alarm suddenly stopped, its absence replaced by the faint sound of the fire roaring in the background. It was the only warning Travis had before the three intruders attacked in unison, their feet pounding the floor as they rushed him.
The first one threw a punch, but Travis sidestepped it easily, his reflexes honed from years of training. He had no time to celebrate his dodge, though, as the other two moved to flank him, cutting off any escape route.
The overhead lights flickered, plunging them into brief darkness. At that moment, Travis made his move. He spun toward the two behind him, launching a quick punch to the first man's side. The intruder staggered, and Travis ducked low, sweeping his leg out and taking the second man's feet out from under him.
The room seemed to pulse with the on-and-off rhythm of the emergency lights, casting the fight in strobe-like flashes. It was disorienting, but Travis moved with precision, his mind clear and his body like a finely tuned machine.
The fight may have felt like an eternity, but in reality, only seconds had passed by. Travis stood, panting, over the three unconscious men, he wiped the sweat from his brow, fixing his jacket as he stepped over the motionless figures on the floor.
Just as he began moving toward the next floor, a spine-chilling scream echoed down the hallway. The sound pierced through the chaos, sending a jolt of urgency through Travis's already tense frame. It was a woman's scream—high-pitched, terrified, and coming from the opposite end of the building.
Travis looked behind him, obviously exhausted but he turned and sprinted towards the scream. Trying not to second-guess himself, Travis focused on the part where someone was in danger, and time was running out.
As he reached the source of the scream, Travis came across another locked door. His mind raced as he considered his options. He had already been burnt by the backdraft from the first door.
There was a chance the same thing could happen here, but he couldn't afford to stand idle. If someone was trapped, he needed to act now. His eyes darted around the hallway, searching for something he could use to breach the door.
Amid the flashing emergency lights, Travis spotted a glass-encased emergency axe hanging on the wall. Without hesitation, he smashed through the glass with his elbow and grabbed the axe.
With a well-aimed swing, he struck the doorknob, splintering the wood and breaking the lock. He paused for a brief moment, listening for any signs of a backdraft, but there was no rush of smoke or heat this time. Relieved, he kicked the door open the rest of the way and stepped cautiously into the room.
"Hello?" he called, his voice cutting through the tense silence. "Is anyone here?"
A muffled sound came from the far corner of the room, near a large closet. Travis's heartbeat quickened, and he moved toward the noise. As he neared the closet, the door suddenly flew open, and a woman—out of it, terrified and scared—threw herself at him.
Travis reacted quickly, grabbing her by her arms to calm her down. She was shaking uncontrollably, her eyes wide with panic. She wore a tattered dress, the fabric ripped in several places, and her face was smeared with smudged makeup.
"Calm down," Travis said, his voice gentle but firm. "I'm here to help."
The woman was in no state to listen. She continued to thrash against him, too consumed by fear to register his words. Travis's mind raced—he didn't have time for this. The fire was still spreading, and every second they stayed here was another second closer to disaster.
He considered his options. He could either keep trying to convince her that he meant no harm, or he could knock her out to make the rescue quicker. It wasn't an ideal solution, but it was the only one that would allow him to get her out safely.
"I'm sorry about this," Travis muttered under his breath before pressing down on a pressure point between her collarbones. The woman went limp in his arms, unconscious.
Travis carefully draped his jacket over her body and slung her over his back. The smoke was growing thicker, and he could feel the heat from the fire intensifying as he made his way back through the hallway. His makeshift mask, a shirt tied around his nose and mouth, did little to filter out the smokey air, but he pushed on, focusing on getting both of them out alive.
As he descended the stairs, Travis's mind wandered briefly to the intruders he had left behind. He had knocked them out, but he hadn't secured them.
Would they still be there when he returned? Would more of them appear? He scolded himself for the oversight but knew there was nothing he could do about it now. His priority was the woman.
They were almost out when another explosion rocked the building. Travis shielded the woman's body with his own, gritting his teeth as the heat of the blast radiated through the building. The fire was spreading faster now, devouring everything in its path.
With one final burst of energy, Travis sprinted the last few steps and burst through the main entrance, stumbling into the cool pre-dawn air. He fell to his knees, gasping for breath as he carefully set the woman down on the grass. His vision blurred for a moment, but he quickly checked her pulse, pressing his fingers against her neck.
Nothing. She wasn't breathing.
A surge of panic shot through Travis as he checked again, pressing his ear to her mouth to listen for any signs of breath. Her pulse was weak, fading. Her chest remained still.
"Come on," Travis muttered, his mind racing. "Fire… CPR…"
He quickly interlocked his hands and began compressions on her chest. He had learned the technique as part of his training, but this was the first time he had to apply it in a real-life situation.
Five compressions, then two breaths. He repeated the process, his heart pounding with each push, each breath. He couldn't fail now. Not when they were so close.
After what felt like an eternity, the woman gasped, her chest heaving as she sucked in a breath of air. Relief flooded through Travis's body, and he sat back, exhausted but triumphant. She was alive.
And then, the sound of cheers filled the air.
Travis blinked, confused. He looked around, spotting a crowd of guards standing a short distance away, clapping and cheering as they approached. He hadn't even noticed them arrive. Among them were Levi and Penelope, both smiling proudly.
Confused, Travis started at the both of them then, it hit him like a ton of bricks.
This was his test.
Travis collapsed onto the grass, completely drained. He stared up at the sky, not sure whether he felt angry, relieved, or just plain tired.
Travis stepped forward raising his hand as he began. "Travis O'Neil, tonight you had a surprise test and even though you were not in the same area or aware of the test, your swift response to the task was admirable but you made a lot of mistakes that could have cost the life of one of the family members or your colleagues."
"You compromised the safety of the estate by not securing the intruders or getting information that would have helped us track down who had sent them." Travis felt his head fall, knowing that was a dangerous hazard on it's own.
"But, you prioritized a life and that was what we wanted to see from you, now we know if the chairman or his daughter was in danger you would prioritize their lives over everything."
Levi stood over him, grinning. "Welcome, Travis O'Neil. You have officially passed the test."
Travis let out a weak groan, the adrenaline finally leaving his system. He didn't even have the energy to respond to the congratulations. Instead, he closed his eyes and let the exhaustion take over.
Before the cheering died down, Travis had already passed out cold.