ACT 3 " The Escape"

The air between Jax and the girl buzzed with tension, their glowing marks pulsing in tandem. The storm's ferocious winds howled, the energy intensifying as if feeding off their connection.

Lila held her hands up in a calming gesture. “We’re not here to hurt you,” she said, her voice steady but laced with urgency

The girl narrowed her eyes, stepping back into the eye of the storm. “Then why are you here? Are you with them?”

“Them?” Jax asked, glancing nervously at Lila.

The girl pointed to the sky, where faint streaks of black helicopters were slicing through the sandstorms' edges. Their rotors churned the air, the sound growing louder with each second.

“Who are they?” 
“I don’t know,” the girl snapped, “but they’ve been chasing us for weeks.”

Lila frowned, confusion etched on her face. “Wait. Us?”
The girl hesitated, then glanced over her shoulder. “Sam, come out.”

A ripple distorted the space, and a boy materialized, his form shimmering.

"Woah, is he invisible?" Jax exclaimed, eyes wide with wonder.
"Something like that," the girl replied, her voice urgent. "We need to go. Now. This storm won't hold much longer. I don't how to control it."

Before they could react, the first helicopter breached the storm's edge, its spotlight cutting through the swirling sand. A voice boomed over the loudspeaker. "Stand down and surrender! This area is under government control!"

“The government? Dr. Lila are you in on this?” Jax demanded anger rising in his voice.
Lila shook her head firmly. “Of course not! Probably a foreign government. I can't tell which yet so we need to leave now—and we can’t let them see us.”

Before they could react, the first helicopter breached the storm's edge, its spotlight cutting through the swirling sand. A voice boomed over the loudspeaker. "Stand down and surrender! This area is under government control!"

"I won't let them take us!" the girl declared, her mark flaring, and the storm responded with a deafening roar

Lila’s scanner buzzed wildly in her hands. “Hey! Look at me!” she yelled over the roar of the wind. “Calm down. “You’re using too much energy. If we focus on it, we can escape—but I need all of you to trust me!”
Sam came close to where the girl was and held her face gently.
"Okay," she said nodding her head.

Lila pulled out her field scanner, its display flashing wildly. "If we can focus the energy, we might be able to escape. Jax, your mark is reacting. You might be able to stabilize her output."

"How?" Jax shouted back.

"Focus!" Lila yelled. "The Pulse is energy from the core itself. Remember our tests?" Jax nodded. "You children aren't just from the Pulse; you're connected to it. That pull you felt, that's the energy trying to bring you back."

"What's your name?" Lila asked. "Kate."
"Kate, and... Sam. Okay, Kate, I need you to stop what you are doing with the storm thing. We need control right now.” Kate clenched her fists, closing her eyes. The storm began to calm, the violent winds slowing to a faint shimmer in the air.

“The Pulse isn’t just random energy,” Lila explained quickly. “It’s a bridge or...a doorway. If we synchronize your powers, we can open a way out of here. This is purely theoretical but I have research that proves it just might work."

"Okay, so what should we do?" Kate asked.
"Try... opening a door, find where you feel the most pull...and pull back."

Three of them clasped their hands on the shimmering light, their marks glowing brighter, and the light intensified. The ground began to shift, the air vibrating with energy.

The helicopters closed in, soldiers climbing down ropes as the storm started to falter.

“Hurry up please!” Lila insisted.

With a final surge of energy, the Pulse erupted into a blinding flash, enveloping them in light.

When the light faded, they found themselves in a dense jungle. The oppressive heat of the desert was replaced by the humid air of the rainforest. Jax collapsed to his knees, his glowing marks flickering weakly.

“Where… where are we?” he panted.

Lila scanned the area, her device sparking from the overload.  “Somewhere in South America, maybe? Yeah..., I think there’s an old base nearby, let me see.” 
"Are you sure?" Kate asked in a worried tone.
"Yes, we used it years ago before the Pulse went public. It’s not perfect, but it’ll give us a chance to regroup.”

As they trekked through the jungle, the faint hum of another portal echoed in the distance. Little did they know, the 'door' they opened was left wide open fir anyone to follow...