Cursing in every language she was fluent in—and that was quite a few—she hovered just above the elevator doors. The soldiers would go into the space, but it was confined, a relatively small space, and that meant she would have to be very close to them. The men were already on alert. The slightest mistake would cost her. More, she could blend into her environment, but it took a few seconds for her skin and hair to change. Her clothing would mirror her surroundings, so she would have the look of the elevator over her body, but her head and hands and feet would be exposed for that couple of seconds.

Heart pounding, she edged over to the very top of the elevator. Should she try to start blending into that color now, or wait until she was inside with a dozen guards and guns? She had choices, but the wrong one would end her life. Changing colors to mirror her background was more like the octopus than the chameleon, but it still took a few precious moments. She began, concentrating on her hands and feet first. She was already clinging to the elevator doors now, high up, so as she mirrored the colors around her, she appeared to be part of the doors.

The ping signaled that she only had seconds to get inside and up the wall to the ceiling of the elevator. She waited until soldiers stepped into the elevator and she slipped inside with them, clinging to the wall above their heads. The door nearly closed on her foot before she could pull it in. The men crowded in, and there was little space. She felt as if she couldn’t breathe. The car didn’t have high ceilings, so they were mashed together and the taller ones nearly brushed against her body. Twice, the hair of the man closest to her—and it was just her bad luck that he was tall—actually did brush against her face, tickling her skin.

She rode floor to floor as men got off to sweep each one, making certain that all personnel did as the siren demanded and went immediately to the dormitory, where they would be searched.

The last of the soldiers went to the roof. She knew this would be her biggest danger point. She had to exit the elevator right behind the last soldier. It was imperative that all of them were looking outward and not back toward the closing doors. She was a mimic, a chameleon, and no one would be able to see her, but once again it would take a minute to get there in a new environment.