Epic of the Kronky Ninjas: Chapter Two

The light in that small room was brighter than any Chris had ever known. She covered her eyes with both hands and tried to fall asleep. She didn’t want to wake up. When she was asleep, she didn’t have to face the fact that she certainly wasn’t any place she’d been before.

But it was no use. She couldn’t fall back asleep, no matter how hard she tried. Last night was flooding back in on her. “I might as well have a look around,” she thought as she slowly sat up. She remembered with a smile her inspection training.

The teacher had looked like an oversized dog as she crawled around on the floor, examining every nook and cranny. Chris had asked her why it was necessary to crawl around in such a way. The teacher had stood up and put her hands on her hips.

“Chris, I am surprised that a clever ninja like you wouldn’t know the answer to such a simple question. Did you forget to read the pages I assigned in the ninja handbook?” Chris had decided not to respond, and the teacher continued. “The purpose of inspection is to discover a way out of a trap. Or if there is no way out, then the means to get out. Another important factor may be if you are located next to a room that holds another prisoner; you may be able to communicate by developing small holes in the wall.”

Chris had almost gotten away with forgetting her homework, but at the last second, the teacher had given her a slip that required her to spend three extra hours of inspection training. The work had been grueling, but now that she had a chance to put the skill to use, Chris was glad of it.

She rolled out of the bed and got on her hands and knees. The first thing she came to was the leg of the bed. “Steel, of course,” she thought, “what a classic.” Maneuvering around the bed she saw a smooth wall, unperturbed by any small cracks. She leaned in to knock on it. If it made a hollow sound, then there was no supporting beam behind it, and it would be easier to break through. But when she knocked on that wall, all she got was an abrupt, solid sound. She went around the room, knocking on the walls. Not one hollow sound. Her room was completely surrounded by supporting beams! “This must be some sort of special security room,” she thought.

Chris realized with a start that a room with that type of protection would also have at least one security camera. She bit her tongue, looking around the top corners of the room. Sure enough, four tiny cameras gazed back at her. Chris then noticed that though the room was confined, it was tall, so that the cameras were well out of her reach.

“These people seem to have already planned out everything I would do!” Chris thought with amazement, “well, if I can’t inspect the room, I might as well see which of my possessions my captors have left me with.” The search didn’t take long. All she had was the black bandana she used to confine her hair and her black suit (she had the slightest wish that they had given her different clothes, the skin-tight suit wasn’t made for comfort), minus all of the hidden weapons and tools that they contained. Her sandals had held even more weapons, but they had been taken, and she was left barefoot.

Her search over, Chris sat on the bed. She knew that the next step was the interview, where her captor would come and try to get information about the Kronky Ninjas from her. Before that came the wait. Chris prepared for many hours spent alone.