Mismatched Eyes part 5

The plane descended slowly, cutting through the night air as it approached their destination. The hum of the engines filled the cabin.

“Felix?” Maria called out.

He slowly opened his mismatched eyes. His arms folded. His face barely rested.

“We’re here. Are you ready?” She asked.

Clutching his shirt, he glanced out the window and saw the darkness. “Yeah… I’m ready.”

The plane landed in a clearing just outside the city.

Maria stepped down and stretched out her arms, dressed in a black cat suit, adorned with an array of belts and straps that carried her limited equipment.

Felix set his iron-soled boots on the ground. Nearly his entire body had been covered in a thick black trench coat that was left open in the middle, on his collar was a strip of metal with both points shaped like arrows.

Ahead was a dense woodland, behind was a short runway for the private jet.

The faint blue light from his left eye stood out in the evening darkness.

With a weak voice, he muttered, “China…” His fist tightened.

He breathed in, the evening air filled his lungs. Explosions could barely be heard in the distance.

“Enjoying the view, Cappuccino?”

“Cappuccino?” He raised an eyebrow.

“You don’t have a codename yet, right?”

“Doesn’t mean you get to call me whatever you like.”

“Fine. Felix is better anyway.” She shrugged.

They marched through the thicket, the sounds of the city grew louder with every step forward.

As an alleyway came into view, Felix crouched behind the bushes, scanning the shadows. But he was caught off-guard by how Maria pulled out a grappling hook, swiftly swinging through the buildings.

Felix blinked, then followed. He quickly climbed up through the old windows and ledges. When he made it up the building, a Chinese dragon kite flew overhead, pulled by a drone through the haze.

The dusk sky was filled with excitement and color, as the loud sound of bangs, clangs and crackles could clearly be caught in every direction.

“A festival?” he asked as the flurry of lights reflected in his eyes, “Enjoying the fireworks?”

He looked at her, the wind brushing her hair.

“Well… ” She responded vaguely, pointing forward.

The whereabouts of their targets were supposedly unknown, but standing atop the buildings, it did not take long for them to discover what they were looking for.

In the center of the excitement stood a wide, twenty-story office building. At its front was a tall metal gate with only one entrance. Though the town had buildings, none came close to as tall or as gaudy as the one in the center.

“Now why would a skyscraper need a guarded gate?” She asked.

He glanced over to her and replied, “Unless they’re hiding something worth protecting.”

They exchanged smirks before jumping off and moving on ahead.

Red lanterns swayed left and right, painting the street in a warm glow, while banners fluttered in the breeze.

Both of them walked through the streets, their dark outfits sticking out like a sore thumb, while everyone in the crowd dressed in vibrant red and gold, with minor tinges of jade-green. Some of them even wearing decorative masks lined with yellow markings.

Maria walked with a lackadaisical smile, humming. Felix walked slowly behind her, his eyes scanned the surrounding stalls. Several of the stands had logos of Golden Lion Pharmaceuticals, as well as the other organizations from the alliance — all of them vandalized and covered with trash.

Smoke from used fireworks drifted across the rooftops.

Rows of food stalls lined the streets as the two walked through the crowds.

Only for them to stop at a particularly small stall. One with a red bird standing on two intersecting arrows shaped like an ‘x’.

Felix knocked on the wooden counter, “Excuse me.”

“English?” The man inside the stall glanced at the two agents, wearing a red durag, chewing on something, hanging on the walls were festival masks, trinkets and other knick-knacks, “Anything you like, anything you see, all only a hundred.”

“You’re a robin, right?” Felix asked, “We’re from the agency.”

“We need the word, word bird.” Maria added.

The man turned around and with a grumpy tone replied, “There’re a lot of agencies.”

Felix pulled out a small golden pin from his pocket, engraved with a lion and other symbols.

“Golden Lion, huh? I take it you two wanna get in that big building over there?” The man responded as he pointed towards the structure with his chin.

“How’d you know?” Maria asked.

“Another operative came by earlier, lookin’ for a way in, same as you. Requested me to scout the area. Left a while ago after I told ’em there was no other way in.”

“From which organization?”

“Confidential. From the twelve agencies, but not Golden Lion. Looks like you’re both on the same mission. Tough luck, place is crawling with guards. Can’t even see it from above. They shoot down my surveillance drones whenever they get too close.”

“Is that so?”

“Mafia with a skyscraper. Subtle.” Maria said in exasperation, staring at the tallest building in the town.

The robin scratched his chin, “It got renovated just a month ago. According to sources, it was funded by some corrupt politician who wanted to line his pockets. Made it bigger and faster, with cheaper materials. As if this country wasn’t already full of ghost towns.”

“Thanks for the info.”

“Before you go, care for a mask? Maybe some bubblegum? Only a hundred.”

“No, thank you.”

“Then how about taking these with you? On the house.” He said, reaching out to give him a pair of sunglasses.

“What? Why?”

“Might want to hide those eyes of yours, Black Cat. You’re already dressed in all black, might as well complete the set.”

“You know who I am?”

“Only person I’ve heard of with a glowing blue eye. Wasn’t too sure at first, but after showing me your badge… Well, word goes around in the Robin Network.” His grin widened as chewed, “I doubt anyone’s gonna recognize you, but better to be safe than sorry.”

“Thanks.” Felix answered as he took it.

“Got anything for me?” Maria perked up with a cheeky smile.

“All out of freebies, I’m afraid.” The robin shrugged.

Maria waved goodbye to the old merchant and followed Felix.

He put on the sunglasses, fireworks bursting in the reflection of his lenses. When the light faded, a red dot flickered in the distance — the private jet had left.

From this point onward, they were on their own.

Further down the main road, the festival’s energy strangely subsided, only interrupted by the occasional pop of fireworks. The streets were still busy, but the area surrounding the building was noticeably more guarded.

~