“Hey!” Fort shouted, and the doctor laughed.

“You should see your face,” Dr. Opps said. “Do you really not know who this is?”

Fort’s eyes widened. “Sierra?”

“C’mon,” Sierra said in Dr. Opps’s voice, then gave Fort a firm push down the hallway.

“Um, what do I do with the guards?” Jia asked, still standing next to the two soldiers.

“They’re fine!” Sierra said, looking back over Dr. Opps’s shoulder. “Just shove them down some hall and run. You’ve got, like, two minutes until reality clicks back in for them.”

Jia’s eyes widened, and she began pushing the guards toward the next hall as Fort and Sierra/Dr. Opps reached the end of theirs. Fort paused, waiting for the doctor to lead, but Sierra just stared at him. “Do you think I know where to go?” she said. “I’ve never been here, not outside your mind.”

“Oh, right,” Fort said, looking both ways at the intersection, having no better idea where they were than Sierra did. Fortunately, a sign pointed to the elevator, so he grabbed the doctor’s hand and pulled him in that direction. “I think we go this way.”

“You’re not really inspiring a lot of confidence, Forsythe,” Sierra said, mimicking Dr. Opps’s tone. She giggled, which sounded even odder coming out of the doctor’s mouth. “Forsythe. I can’t even say it without laughing.”

“It was my grandfather’s name,” Fort whispered as a guard turned the corner. The soldier gave them an odd look and it took Fort a second to realize he was still pulling someone who looked like the headmaster of the school down the hall by the man’s hand. He immediately dropped it, and Sierra laughed again.

The guard passed them with a few more looks, but didn’t say anything, and Fort pushed the elevator down button so hard he nearly broke it. “Can you please take this seriously?” he hissed at Sierra as the doors finally opened, and they moved inside.

“I’m in the body of a grown man, and all I want to do is make him pick his nose,” Sierra told him, slowly raising a hand toward her face. “So, no, I’m not sure I can.” Seeing Fort’s expression, she put up her hands in surrender. “Okay, okay! I get it. I’ll play nice. Lead on, Forsythe.” She covered her mouth to stifle a giggle, but Fort just shook his head as the elevator descended.

Two floors down and four guards later, Fort turned a corner toward what he was sure had to be the way to Colonel Charles’s office… and almost collided with the colonel himself, carrying a duffel bag over his shoulder. Colonel Charles looked from Fort to Dr. Opps in surprise, then narrowed his eyes. “Forsythe, why are you out after curfew?” he asked.

Cyrus, Fort hissed in his head. He’s not in his office yet!