Subtle Off White Colouring

After a mostly sleepless and restless night, at least for Lucius, deep within the Sanctum the four met on the morning of stage one of the plan, sitting around the long steel table.

Changes of clothes had been left in all their chambers, perfectly fitted and crafted around their own appearances. Umbra and Caesar’s outfits were most similar to their original clothes, with Lucius’s had the most drastic changes. He was now equipped with a full black outfit enhanced with padded armor and combat boots, with jade green highlights that ran throughout his figure out from his chest, like veins pumping neon blood.

I feel like a superhero, he thought to himself. Like from a comic book I wrote as a kid.

“I trust you all rested well. Your new suits look as impeccable as I had hoped,” Ultra said to the group. “But without any further distractions, let’s begin with today’s focal point.” He pulled up an array of holo documents on the screens in front of him.

“Hold on a second, Ultra, none of us have eaten in what feels like an eternity. I’ve already inputted an order, the food should be arriving any moment,” Umbra said in between a yawn.

And in a moment it did.

With a soft hydraulic sigh, the ceiling panels split apart and a platform descended down, hovering in the air above them. The platform settled seamlessly onto the long table, locking in place with a muted click.

Among the monstrous spread were platters of grilled meats, marbled and glistening, arranged beside bowls of slick, jewel bright fruit, grapes, pomegranate halves, and citrus. Whole roasted fish gleamed beneath a layer of glassy glaze, and stacks of fresh bread sat steaming as though just pulled from an oven.

Bottles of synthetic liquids shimmered with shifting neon hues, and at the table’s center, a dessert tower rose, a marvel of baked goods, spun sugar, and crystalline chocolate that reached to the sky.

Lucius and Caesar gave each other one quick look, before pouncing on the feast in front of them.

“A bit overboard, don’t you think, Umbra?” Ultra sarcastically asked.

“Oh, relax. Think of it as a celebratory meal before the success of our mission. We don’t want anyone passing out from hunger on the job, do we?” Umbra replied, grabbing a single apple out of the cornucopia of abundance and twirling it in her hand.

The boys were too busy stuffing their faces to speak, but nodded along in agreement.

“I suppose it has been a while since we’ve all eaten. I’ve been so focused on planning out everything, not letting a second go to waste. But for right now, yes, this will do,” Ultra conceded.

The four of them ate together like a family, partaking in jovial conversations that left out all the worries of the world. Between the glowing walls of the Sanctum, Lucius felt as comfortable as hanging out with a group of old friends he’d known his whole life.

Who would’ve known that this is what my life would become, he thought. Things like this remind me that there’s more than what’s inside my head, so many things I’ve yet to experience. Later on, there will be work to do, but for now, this is nice.

After they were all finished and the platform had ascended back into the ceiling, they got back to the topic at hand without the interruptions of growls in their stomachs.

“Now, is the plan today all clear to everyone? Petrarch will be arriving at the club very shortly, it is crucial that it succeeds without hiccups” Ultra asked, his face a tinted blue behind the holo screens.

“All good with me,” answered Caesar.

“Same here,” replied Umbra.

Lucius just gave a half nod in agreement.

“Lucius, I know you feel pressured about all this, especially about using your resonance. But it will all be very smooth, you have nothing to concern yourself with. We would not have tasked you with something that we didn’t think you could complete. Everyone is here to help one another, and in the worst case scenarios, there will always be someone to fall back on. Do you understand?”

Lucius turned the black box in his hands, pushing the intrusive thoughts out of his mind and centering his attention on what really mattered.

“Yes, I do. I’m ready to go,” he said, trying to make his voice sound confident.

“Glad to hear, then let’s disperse. Remember, fortune favours the bold.”

Umbra had already stood up and began to glow apricot orange, opening up the portal to return to the Gemini Club.

The square on the floor rippled like a chunk had been cut out of a storming sea, and one by one they jumped into the roaring waves, leaving the Sanctum behind.

Standing in the center of the office, without another word needed, everyone got into formation.

Caesar left the room and made his way downstairs to the dancefloor, where crowds of people were already partying, unbothered by the early hours of day. Umbra went to speak to Fuschia and see to the arrival of Petrarch, leaving just Ultra and Lucius to wait in the quiet room.

The Phantom Vault pulsed in Lucius’s hands, the shut eye waiting for its opportunity to open.

Keep it together, you’ll be just fine. Just do what you’ve been shown to do, they all believe in you.

Ultra tensed his eyes like he was focused on reading a message, then turned to Lucius.

“He’s here, Umbra just saw him in. Fuschia will be escorting him here momentarily, after a quick encounter with Caesar.”

“Right, okay,” Lucius replied, taking his place behind the large desk.

Downstairs, Caesar stood by the bar holding a glass with a lucid liquid. He had done jobs like this countless times before, and expected nothing but a smooth ride.

There, that must be him, he thought, spotting a man being led by a uniformed woman with pink hair through the strobing lights of the dance floor.

Petrarch had the thin, restless frame of a man who survived on stimulants and obsession more than food. His hair was considerably lacking, falling in a few gray wisps over his ghostlike face. His fitted black turtleneck struck contrast with his bright lemon toned pants, tailored with precision. But it was the eyes that anchored him. Wide, pale, and fever bright, they carried an intensity that made the rest of his being look like a hollow shell.

Right on schedule.

Caesar slipped into the crowd, pretending to dance to the music in the area between the target’s position and the back stairwell door. He could overhear Fuschia’s voice getting closer to him, leading his prey right to him.

“Right this way, sir,” Fuschia loudly said to be heard over the music.

Perfect.

Caesar stepped out from behind a dancing patron, slamming drink first into Petrarch’s expensive outfit and drenching him in a fruity scented liquid.

“Dudeee, I’m so sssorry,” Caesar slurred, acting impaired.

“You miserable fool! Disgusting! Do you have any idea who I am?!” Petrarch growled, trying to wipe off the fluids seeping into his clothes.

“Heree, I got that for you my man, let me dry youu off.”

Caesar used his right hand to messily wipe off his chest, drawing his attention away from the left hand that inched closer to his back pocket, hovering above the identification card.

“Get the hell off me!” Petrarch yelled, pushing Caesar backwards so that he fell to the floor in an exaggerated act.

“Bring me upstairs immediately, I cannot stand another second here,” he ordered to Fuchsia.

As she escorted him away, she looked back for a second at Caesar with a concerned look, unsure if he had succeeded in his task.

Sitting flat out on the dancefloor, he smirked up at her and gave her a wink, holding up a tinted card with subtle off white colouring in his left hand.

The two made their way up the stairs and down the hall, right up to the two toned door at the end of the corridor.

Fuschia knocked twice, and Ultra from inside the office called out for her to open it.

“He is ready to see you now, sir,” she said to Petrarch, who had already pushed past her and waltzed into the office.

“Thank you, Fuschia. You may leave us,” Ultra replied, shutting the door and greeting Petrarch.

“The nerve of some of your patrons, Ultra, is second to none. Such disgusting creatures they are down there,” he loudly complained.

“I apologize for any disruptions you have faced, Petrarch. But please, have a seat,” Ultra cooly offered.

He took his own seat behind the desk, with Lucius lying in wait underneath.

The two men immediately began talking business, as Lucius waited for his cue to strike.

Okay, any moment now, he thought.

From above, Ultra slowly lowered his right hand and tapped twice with two fingers against the underside of the desk.

There! That’s the signal.

Lucius closed his eyes, focusing on the solid box in his hands. He turned the shut eye towards Petrarch’s position, and turned on the Phantom Vault.

Breathe. In. Out. In. Out.

“No matter-” Petrarch’s voice was suddenly cut off, as a blinding flash covered the room in.

Held in the base of Lucius’s hands was the etched black box, its white veins now glowing a deep jade green. The gleaming eye was now wide open, its ghastly pupil taking back in all the light.

He immediately hustled up from under the desk, and saw the empty seat sitting across the room.

“See, I told you there would be no issues,” Ultra said with a smile.

Lucius was still shaking with nerves, his heart pounding so fast he wasn’t able to reply.

The door to the office swung open, and in stepped Caesar and Umbra.

“So, all good?” Umbra asked, her question being answered by the glowing Phantom Vault on the desk.

“Of course. And Caesar, I assume your portion was also a success?”

Caesar replied with a grin, throwing the identification card down next to the black box.

“Well, it seems we make a good team,” Ultra said to the three of them, examining the card in his hands. “We’re ready for the next stage.”