Reborn- Apocalypse 2

by L. M. Kerr

  A square of glass fell inwards.

  His free hand shot out and snagged it, not letting it fall. He then crawled through the opening like a lizard, quickly sneaking inside as he pushed the blinds aside.

  The moment he crawled inside, actually, the moment he pushed the panel of glass inside, a warbling alert began to echo. Some type of alerting Ability or Artifact had come into play, sounding off. He absorbed his Life Orbs back into his feet as he fully stepped in and heard that, frowning.

  'Alright, Plan B it is.' His eyes flashed as he heard this, immediately switching his plans to his backup. If he had been able to sneak in silently, he would've just stayed put and read through all the intel he could. There was a chance there was an alert and alarm system here, but he had hoped there wouldn't be one.

  The inside of the room was like he expected. A bunch of filing cabinets, a table, lots of pieces of paper.

  He quietly tapped on the piece of glass he'd cut, storing it in his Spatial Ring. The wind outside was blowing very lightly, not interfering with the room at all due to the smooth angle of the cut. The hole was unnoticeable unless you were standing right next to the blinds.

  He quickly began to look at the filing cabinets, stepping up to several of them and scanning them. He read the labels on the outsides, not taking the time to open and check them.

  'Department promotions plans, no. Enforcer Team adjustment plans, no.' He mumbled in his head, glancing from bin to bin.

  It was at this moment, as he was checking over the 6th cabinet to no avail, that he heard footsteps and people moving towards him, just barely audible under the echo of the alarm system.

  'Ah, dammit.' The guards hadn't reacted instantly, but they still gave him far too little time to find anything of value.

  With that thought in mind, he began to take a step forward towards the door. However, as he was moving, the doorknob began to twist. The keening echoes of the alarm had thrown off his hearing, making him think the guards were farther away then they had been.

  When he saw this, he did the only thing he could think to do.

  He threw himself backwards, calling his Life Orbs into existence as they knocked into his legs and back, zooming him up to faceplant into the ceiling.

  'Come on, come on.' He mentally grumbled as he knocked his head into the stiff, wooden ceiling, his nose wrinkling. His entire body was pressed up against the roof.

  Not an instant later, the alarm turned off as Micheal heard someone walk in. His heart pounded slightly as he sensed the presence of one of the guards, hearing them talk out loud.

  "Oh, there we go." A gruff voice spoke aloud, sounding like a wizened, grungy man that had seen a lot in life.

  "Must've been that." A younger, more cheerful voice returned.

  Despite the tense situation, Micheal remained perfectly calm. The two guards looked around in confusion, completely unable to see anything out of the ordinary.

  The Magic Paint he wore blended him into the ceiling. While it wasn't perfect, it absorbed the texture of the surroundings he was pressed up against or near, making him very hard to notice. This, combined with the fact that they weren't looking at the ceiling, led them to miss him completely.

  "Just another false alarm."

  The door slammed shut as the two guards left the room.

  The moment Micheal heard that, he dropped down from the roof silently, putting away his Life Orbs.

  Without even a speck of hesitation, he jumped forward and sprinted to the entrance. He then jumped up into the air, his hands pushing against the wall as he climbed above the doorway.

  As he ran, the warbling alarm resumed as Micheal predicted it would, alerting the guards to his presence.

  The doorway was located on the left side of the room, next to a wall in a corner. Micheal took advantage of this, forcibly holding himself up in place using the raw strength of his legs and one arm. He opted to not use his Life Orbs, knowing they couldn't react as quickly as he could.

  As he tucked himself in, he tapped on his Spatial Ring.

  Immediately, several darts appeared, ones he held at the ready as he looked down intently.

  'Come on… this needs to work perfectly…'

  Not a second later, the door opened once again and a guard took a step inside.

  It was the older speaker, a man with thinning grey hair, wearing the standard leather armor that the guards of the Angels Arcadia wore

  The guard began to speak, his voice full of confusion,

  "Did it get messed up or-" Before the guard could finish speaking, Micheal flicked his hand.

  Silently, one of the small darts he held shot out and pinched into the guard's neck. The attack was completely secretive, almost impossible to detect.

  The guard stutter to a stop, gasping out loud as the effects of the Knockout Poison came into play. The numbing agent on the dart prevented him from recognizing the direct attack.

  "Huh?!"

  Before the man could do anything else, Micheal shot out a Life Orb, commanding it to slam into the man's chin. The guard fell forward like a log, knocked out instantly. The combination of the surprise attack jarring his brain plus the Knockout Poison affecting his mind overwhelmed the man, not giving him a chance to respond.

  "Randy, are you okay? You trip again or..?" The other guard's voice echoed out as the first guard fell to the ground, filled with concern. Micheal felt a minor twinge of guilt for attacking innocents, but crushed it down with experience.

  "Randy," The guard continued, his voice drawing near,

  "Are you alri-" Just as the guard walked into view, Micheal flicked another dart, sending it flying into the man's neck. Right after, he shot a Life Orb forward.

  "Where?!…" The guard's voice trailed off as the Life Orb slammed into him and knocked him unconscious, rendering the both of them down on the ground.

  Throughout all of this, Micheal remained perched on the ceiling, staying out of view of the hallway.

  'Got them!' Micheal smiled as he saw the results of his handiwork. He flipped off the wall, taking one last glance around the room as he quickly picked up the darts.

  He then booked it at top speed, running away without hesitation.

  He sprinted over to the window and then…

  Threw himself out it, falling off a 60 plus story skyscraper.

  His Life Orbs caught him in midair, preventing him from falling as he twisted around and looked at the hole in the window.

  He tapped on his Spatial Ring, his heart pounding with tension as he brought out the large glass section he'd cut out. He brought out his Magic Paint and a set of strong superglue he'd bought from the Shop, as well as a small brush.

  He slathered the glue on, and then the Magic Paint on right after, taking only a second or two. The Magic Paint adhered to the glass and covered up the glue, helping disguise it. While it wasn't perfect, it would hold up to most forms of scrutiny.

  He then fit the glass section into the hole in the window, moving quickly and precisely.

  'Come on… come on…' A feeling that he was taking too much time began to fill him.

  The piece of glass sank into the hole, fitting perfectly. He set it in with care, watching as it came to rest. The Magic Paint did its work fine, making the window look like it had always been whole. If he looked closely, he could just barely see some fine cracks, but that was only because he knew where to look.

  His cuts had been extremely precise and, when the window was fitted in, they blended back in almost perfectly.

  As soon as he finished that, he dived into a near freefall.

  'I need to hurry!'

  Only a few seconds had passed, yet Micheal was aware that this was the most crucial moment.

  The warriors here were going to do one of two things. They’d either race up the building when they get the alert that the guards were down, or they’d race down and check on him. He would likely be the prime suspect, given that he had arrived the exact time they were attacked.

&nbs
p; 'They might even do both.' The thoughts swarmed through his head as he fell through the air, rushing downward.

  It took him only a few seconds more to reach his room, moving as fast as he could.

  The moment he reached his window, he dived through it, knowing that every second counted.

  Everything was as he left it. The first thing he did as he jumped in was snag the piece of glass from the ground, pulling out the glue, Magic Paint, and small brush.

  He repeated his actions, coating the side of the piece of glass. Just as he was close to finishing, however, he heard footsteps echo in from the hallway.

  'Damn, that really was fast.' He swore as he rapidly finished coating the edges of the cut section of glass.

  "Emissary Heron! Sir! We have an active threat on base, we need to confirm your status!"

  Micheal recognized Sub-Commander Kathleen's voice, full of unrestrained suspicion. It seemed she was well into suspecting him as the criminal, though he couldn't blame her. The timing of all of this was rather suspect.

  And, of course, she was right.

  'Not that I had much choice in that matter.' He tossed the stray thought from his head as he picked the glass up, wrenching it into place and watching it seal. It fit just like the previous one, sliding in and sticking together perfectly.

  An ominous silence had appeared as he fixed the window. Micheal's heart continued to pound with adrenaline as he felt this, knowing he absolutely had to avoid being discovered as the culprit.

  He rapidly began to throw off his clothes, storing them in his Spatial Ring. He took or wiped off everything that had Magic Paint on it, stripping off his outerwear.

  As he did this, he could hear Kathleen speaking aloud,

  "Get ready to blow it, we need to check the room, time is of the essence!" Her voice echoed in a commanding tone as Micheal finished stripping to his boxer-briefs.

  He rapidly threw on a pair of random pants and a shirt from his Spatial Ring. He didn't have time to button anything up as he sprinted for the door, feeling out of breath as he hastily put on his mask.

  He stopped right before the door, taking a deep breath to calm himself and look casual.

  "Inform the Commander and Sub-Commander that we have a possible Code 9. Prepare to inform the Headquarters of a possible betrayal!" Kathleen's voice continued to speak commands from outside of his door.

  "On my count, we begin-" Sub-Commander's words abruptly cut off as, before her eyes, the door began to open.

  "Yes?" Micheal adopted an annoyed tone, his heart shivering in his chest as he finished pulling open the door.

  He looked disheveled, his hurried motions of getting dressed making it look as if he had just woken up. A single bead of sweat fell down his forehead, blocked by his mask as he looked back at the Sub-Commander.

  "Can I help you?"

  .

  Chapter 20

  Micheal perfectly played the part of an annoyed Emissary that had been rudely woken up. He played it so well, in fact, that even he was half convinced, his voice filled with a hint of genuine irritation.

  "Uh-ah, err." Kathleen stumbled over her words, Micheal's abrupt appearance taking her completely by surprise. She had been almost completely certain the intruder must've been him, sneaking through the base.

  While betrayal wasn't a common thing in Arcadia, it wasn't unheard of. The only thing she couldn't figure out was why an Emissary would go through all that trouble for the floor Randy and Marlo had been guarding. There wasn't anything of too much note there.

  As she began to try and come up with a reply, she blinked, taking in Micheal's outfit.

  A set of ripped abs, lean pecs, bulging arms, all perfectly proportioned. Muscles that blended together seamlessly with each other, forming a body that was close to perfectly built, looking like an ancient statue of a Greek God. His body gave off a feeling of casual, virile masculinity.

  Kathleen's face flushed crimson as she found herself at a loss for words, Micheal's appearance and the sheer surprise of the situation overwhelming her for a few seconds.

  "Well?" Micheal gestured at her. Behind her, he could also make out two other figures, one of them familiar. Enforcer Ayer stood back, giving him an apologetic shrug. Next to him was a pale woman with brown hair that was tied up in a sharp ponytail, a gun held loosely in her hand. Unlike Kathleen, she looked at Micheal cooly, ignoring his attractive body.

  "Sir! My sincere apologies!" Kathleen bowed deeply, her voice shaking slightly.

  "There has been an attack and I wanted to inqui-, no, my apologies again." Kathleen cut herself off, her voice stabilizing as she recovered, her demeanor becoming serious,

  "I thought you might have been a suspect in the attack, but I can see that I was wrong." She ducked her head apologetically.

  Micheal was surprised by her honesty as she corrected herself, being open with him.

  "What?! An attack?!" Micheal's voice was full of outrage,

  "Where?!"

  A few moments later, Micheal could be seen rushing up the stairs, following Kathleen as they headed towards the 36th floor. He didn't take the time to even put on clothes, just wearing a pair of pants and an open shirt.

  In just a few moments, their group arrived on the scene on the 36th floor. They passed through a hallway that opened up into the large amphitheater, running into a squad of more than 20 guards.

  "Keep the search up! Look over every corner, leave no stone unturned!" A slightly overweight asian man that Micheal assumed was Sub-Commander Borial had taken charge and was ordering everyone about, his eyes blazing.

  He was also tearing at his thinning hair, his anger at the disturbance very apparent. If anything, the man's reaction was far outside of Micheal's expectations. He seemed to take it as a personal attack on himself.

  The guards were swarming over the Directive Storage Room, the nearby rooms, and anywhere they thought someone might take a chance hiding. They searched every nook and cranny, throughout the entire area without question.

  Micheal wasn't particularly worried. Not only would they have no reason to check the windows, the Magic Paint and superglue blended in very well. Almost none of the windows in a skyscraper could open in the First Layer.

  When Sub-Commander Borial saw his group and Kathleen, he waved them over.

  "Kathleen." He began, nodding at her. His voice was hoarse, his words sounding as if this was the end of the world.

  "Borial. Emissary Heron was in his room, I can confirm he isn't a suspect. Do we know what happened? Are the guards roused?" She cut straight to the point.

  Borial sighed,

  "No, they're still unconscious. One of the healers is coming up from the infirmary to fix them up, we'll see what we can get then. My poor data..." He returned, and then smiled a somewhat forced smile as he looked at Micheal.

  "Emissary Heron. Our sincere apologies for the intrusion."

  "Think nothing of it. We're all on the same side here." Micheal sounded understanding.

  Borial gave him a grateful nod.

  Over the next several minutes, the 36th floor was a beehive of activity. More than 50 guards swarmed in and around the floor. By this point, every room had been checked and confirmed to have no one. There were no signs of forced entry that anyone could find, no hidden traps or obvious signs of an infiltration.

  "Hmm." Micheal watched everything, his eyes cool behind his mask. Everyone treated him with cool respect, no one daring to interfere. However, all he did was watch, letting everyone deal with the scene in their own way, drawing little attention to himself.

  After these few minutes passed, he walked up to where the two downed guards were resting.

  The Iron Eye Branch's main doctor had arrived on the scene, a B Ranker with the Bright Touch Ability, a power that cost 38,000 Points in the shop. It allowed one to use their own energy to heal basic injuries, on oneself or on another person, one of the many healing Abilities that could be purchased.

  Before the doctor could heal the
guards, Micheal knelt down next to them, looking over their body. He drew a few odd stares from the nearby guards and a dissatisfied expression from the doctor.

  "Can I help you, Emissary Heron? I was just about to heal them." Despite his obvious displeasure, the doctor, a middle-aged man named Ryan, was respectful. The man had only arrived on scene a few moments ago, alongside another group of guards.

  "I just need a moment." Micheal replied calmly.

  After a few seconds of looking up and down the downed guard's body, his hand rested on the neck of the guard. He shifted the downed man, revealing a tiny pinprick on the man's neck.

  "Hmm." He checked over the other downed guard, finding the same thing.

  "They were attacked, Emissary. Their wounds are a result of that. I need to tend to them lest whatever injuries they have sustained worsen." Ryan replied impatiently after he watched Micheal casually search each man, his patience reaching a limit.

  Micheal simply glanced at him without responding, standing up. He stood up and walked over to the Directive Storage Room, looking around.

  He studied the floor, the files, the cabinets, seemingly looking over everything. The guards and officials of Arcadia continued to guard the room and look around with him, though all of them left Micheal to himself.

  Sub-Commander Borial glanced at Micheal momentarily before returning back to ordering the guards about, still controlling the scene.

  After making sure he was seen, Micheal turned around and returned back to where the doctor was.

  By this point, the guards had been roused and the poison in them cleansed. A few of the officials, including the familiar Enforcer Ayer, were questioning them.

  When they came to, both guards were confused and disoriented. They couldn't remember seeing their attacker or much of what happened to them.

  When Micheal overheard them being questioned, he chimed in with a few questions of his own.

  "Hello, gentleman. I am Emissary Heron, I hope you won't mind answering a few questions for me." He began by breaking into the conversation directly, announcing who he was. Enforcer Ayer had been leading the questioning and nodded back at him, letting him take over.