Alert

Faint tinkering and murmurs left me on edge. In front, a desk that sat like a pandora’s box of unknown. I banked a lot on the security being weaker. If I was wrong, there wasn’t going to be a second chance. I’d be sunk. Breaking into the Basilica wasn’t how I pictured it.

So let’s try not to be that end.

I rested my hand on the desk letting the relic begin to access the computer. It displayed the network as I held my breath. So much hinged on this working. I felt the pressure on my back. All I could do was fight through it. As much as I contemplated whispering something to Sol, what was the point? The outcome was already decided, I just didn’t know the answer yet.

A blink from the relic turned my eyes down. The held breath finally came out as I saw the scans. It had a firewall, but nothing it couldn’t handle. They thankfully didn’t treat the port with the same care. Which made sense, they probably wiped the data after they were done. But I should be able to find the traces.

Filtering through the layers, I had to dig through files and folders, reams of data. All logs and reports recorded from each flight made. From the look, the Basilica ran regular patrols for the town. They appeared to completely cover the town's security and defense. I didn’t know why the Coulen Corpus gave up those responsibilities, figured they would have held tightly onto it.

Regardless of how it came to be, I guess it worked out in my favor. I couldn’t even begin to imagine having to break into a Corpus. I didn’t have the skills for that.

Either way, my breech reached down into the logs from the day at the park. They had already scrubbed them from the drives. I needed to use the relic to aid me in rebuilding them. But this wasn’t going to be it. More evidence was required if I wanted the Corpus to get off their asses about this situation.

“Hey Lloyd, what you doing awake?” The voice was close, too close. Shit, did I get detected? I thought the relic was successful. A quick tap closed the display and cut the lights to the station. However, I heard footsteps coming and two sets.

Quickly, I jumped up grabbing out the whip to attach to the ceiling. I tapped on the screen of my sleeve in a four series pattern. My clothes sharply snapped to the metallic surface while I kept my arms free. I didn’t have the body strength to prop myself up on the ceiling, so this would have to do. Just pass by, please. I don’t have the time for this.

The two footsteps I heard came into view out of the corners of what I could see from the ceiling. There was roughly three meters to the floor, so I was out of the general vision of anyone. I just needed them not to look up, please!

“Lloyd?” one man called once more, finding that the area appeared empty. He flipped around trying to see if their coworker disappeared. But he only looked more confused. “Hey, Erec, did Lloyd come your way?”

“Nope, nothing. Ghosts in the ship again?”

“Ghosts don’t turn on terminals. Someone was here.”

“If not Lloyd, then who?”

“That’s what I asked. No one else is working the third shift. So someone’s breaking in and squeezing in extra time.” The young man gave a rough laugh that the other joined him in shortly. It seemed I was safe for now. They just needed to leave so I could get back to work. C’mon, beat it!

The two workers searched around the station and pad for any signs. Problem was that they were going to be disappointed. Yet not finding anyone meant they kept looking around even more thoroughly. I felt myself getting sweaty again. The more they lingered the more my heart pounded faster. Just leave, please!

They however remained. The lack of anyone discovered only made them more insistent. Finding nothing seemed to frustrate them. You killed the time I have! I wouldn’t have enough at this rate. I wanted to throw something at them, but held my breath instead when they came back.

I froze in my hiding spot as I noticed a casual glance at me. The constant scanning of the area finally failed me. He looked confused. “Erec, what is that? The light playing tricks on me?”

His friend tried to share the view with both just staring at me. Each only became more confused. Only thanks to my camouflage did I escape immediate detection, but the game was up. They were too interested in what didn’t look right. It didn’t matter that they couldn’t tell who I was. Dammit!

Snapping my hand over to the screen, I released the magnetic lock and swung down from the whip. Even if they didn’t fully recognize me, I was a clear object moving towards them. They tried to dart away, but I still got one of them.

I landed with my legs around their neck. I bent down in my motion to pull them back. Gripping the ground plating as my exo-clothes fully powered on to slam the man into the floor. Shit! I needed to be quiet, there were others.

It only momentarily stunned them, but it gave me the time to retrieve my other relic. Fitting it snugly to my palm, I slammed my hand down as it released a bolt that arched over their chest. In another moment, they completely froze and passed out.

That was all the time it bought me, as the second guy, Erec, recovered from the shock. He looked like a regular of the Clergy, but still charged me quickly throwing out his fists. If he had a little better skill I’d be in real danger. Even still, the speed alone was threatening enough that I respected each punch.

I weaved between the blows as his frustration grew over his face. The size difference helped a little as I could get under him easily. He tried to compensate for the height by striking lower. I raised my arm up to take the blow straight on. My jacket protected me well enough from the damage that it only felt like a firm thump.

It gave me what I wanted. With his arm in a place I knew, my free hand came up and jabbed his forearm with my handheld relic. Sparks shot up his plating as the entire arm dropped dead to his side. “What the hell did you do to me?!” As he staggered back trying to fix his arm, I lunged in to finish the job. I struck straight at his chest with a second flash of bluish light to wash over him.

“That’s two…” A heavy crack echoed immediately to my shock. I smashed into the station nearly head first. What happened? I can barely hear my thoughts. Dammit, it had to be the others. I made too much noise.

“Did you get it?”

“Dunno, not quite sure what I hit. I think it was a person?”

I rolled over feeling a warm drip slowly coming down. I must have cut my head open. Not good. My shoulder throbbed and my jacket had a bit of a dent jabbing my back.

With a proper look at my attacker, I saw a large wrench in hand from their work. It was a woman carrying the heavy thing easily in one hand flanked by two other men. Shit…I can’t take more like that.

Bracing myself with the ground, I sprung up. My vision blurred momentarily, but I fought with it to focus. Just last me a minute! I snapped out the whip to wrap around the wrench. However, they had a tight hold on it. I got flung forward instead.

I tapped to trigger my magnetic boots once more allowing me to snap to the side of the ship hull. It halted my motion and disoriented them for a necessary moment. I dropped down on the two men striking them with the reboot relic.

“Amadour and Cosme! Damn you, bastard! Stop shifting in and out!” They swung through the air with the wrench narrowly missing me. The whip did nothing to slow them, they powered through me. I needed to disarm her, but I can’t take that straight on!

Dodging side to side as she stepped closer, I did the only thing I could. I baited her towards the ship. With a wide swing wound up, she smashed the wrench into the fuselage. It slowed her down enough. I quickly jumped up and struck her hand. Just as I went in for the final blow, her still functioning hand swung at me. She must have expected me.

My body flew back across the ground raked over the plating. The relic fell from my hand as blood bubbled up on my cheek and lip with a heavy bruise. Everything rang and felt under water. I think only because I took her by a bit of surprise she didn’t get her full strength. It was still enough to slow me down.

I tried to push myself back up, but everything spun. My sight doubled and swayed. If I didn’t move they’d catch me or kill me! C’mon body please just a bit more! I heard my breathing in my ears and heart in my hands. My body shook. And then I saw the vague shape of the woman over me.

“Got you whatever you are!” Using their one good arm, they reached down for me. I tried to roll away, but they tracked me. Their hand gripped my jacket pulling me towards them. A moment later, B sprung forward on their face.

The woman flailed back scratching to get B off her. Panic and confusion ran through her as B got thrown with a hard bounce to the ground. I struggled to pull myself together dragging myself towards him. I can’t let B… She stomped around blind for him. My arm got caught under her protecting B. The sleeve caved a bit with sparks as she damaged it. I bit through the pain seeing B escaping.

Once she realized she had me, she leaned down to grab me up again. Her eyes tried to focus on me still getting the disruptions. “A boy? What, who are you?” She squeezed her hand forcing the jacket to tighten against its will. Her fingers overpowered the support making the whole thing spark and shock me.

I ground my teeth trying to figure a way out. If I could just get my jacket off, but her hold made that impossible. I needed something. But at least B was safe. She shook me in her hand trying to get me to talk, but I refused.

Suddenly, I felt the light steps of B on my back. Out of the woman’s sight, he climbed over to my hand. You clever little monkey. I squeezed on the relic, he returned, to keep my hold as I struck my arm up. She was so close to me that there was nothing for her to see until it was too late.

She collapsed with her system in reboot mode with the rest of her friends. I crumpled to the floor bleeding from the right side of my face trying to ignore the stabbing pain my arm felt.

B climbed up to my left side rubbing my cheek. The shaking the woman gave me cleared up my head a good bit. “Thanks, B. Let’s finish the job…” I pulled myself to my feet limping towards the station one last time.