Evelin accepted and recorded the video with Golbert by her side as the others carried the shipments of ammunition weapons to the subway.
Before they left, Kurtrick told the agents.
“It's good you don't screw me over. I know a lot about you, and I can end your revolution with a snap of your fingers. Don't forget.”
“We will not.” Golbert said. “You won't regret being on our side.”
On the subway, Evelin saw a series of metal boxes levitating with magnetic capabilities, trapped in the wagon by ropes.
Norna's communicator whistled and they could hear Dijo's voice.
“Norna, are you listening?”
“You can talk.”
“Are you ready to enter the Ziggurat? The bombs are already in position.”
Evelin could see the worried expression on Norna's face.
“We just picked up the guns, we're still far from the meeting place.”
“Well, we're not going to have much time here. The window is small.”
“Our troops are ready,” Norna said, “but lacking weaponry. If it starts now, it'll be a massacre!”
“I will try to buy some time,” said Dijo also concerned, “but we certainly will not get more than twenty minutes.”
Norna quickly ordered everyone to enter and turn on the wagon, forcing it to move faster, still pulling all the extra weight from the equipment.
“We have twenty minutes to make a journey of thirty-five.” Announced the pilot. “Hold on!”
The Ball
Hours earlier, Sorom was piloting his civilian ship, with Dijo and Willys in the back seat. The bald man interacted with an object the size and shape of an egg, completely metallic and with a button on top.
“Will this work?” Asked Dijo.
“Have you ever seen me fail by chance?” Asked Willys.
“Well, three of your four members have, I think they reveal more of you than you expect.”
Willys squeezed Dijo's cheek with his metallic fingers.
“My explosive WOOL-3 is incredibly strong. There was no time to finish the great Dyna40, but what we have is enough.
“You two,” said Sorom seriously looking in the rearview mirror. “Behave inside, I do not want any sidetracks, you hear?”
“Yes, captain!” said Dijo saluting.
“When you are inside find out as much as you can from the Ziggurat, any secret passage or place where a ship can be guarded. Find the point that should blow up the subway passage and notify Norna.”
“From what I've seen from the Ziggurat material my EXPL02ION will be able to boom boom in the hull and give plenty of room for the agents to pass.
“Why don't you follow a pattern of naming your explosives?” Sorom complained “Finally, after that we will meet to deploy the WOOL-3. Dijo will lead the way and Willys will start the bomb with a timer so we're safe.”
“And will you be enjoying the view?” Provoked Dijo.
“I will make sure you don't die. By the way, I'm not going to be able to get into the dance carrying a gun.”
Sorom took his katana-pistol in the front seat and handed it to Dijo who looked thrilled at the leader.
“Will you give me your katana? It's the greatest honor of my life. I won't let you down, master.”
“Shut up and take it seriously. This is a very rare weapon and I like it very much.”
“Of course, you like it, she is a legendary weapon full of stories!”
Willys looked at the gun in Dijo's lap equally thrilled.
“The way she cuts people is really fantastic. Besides it’s the gun that killed the chosen one.” Said Willys.
The two in the back seat worshipped the gun while Sorom took a deep breath.
“I should have stayed with Norna and Gol.”
Soon the ship was flying over the peripheral city and it was already possible to see the colossal structure of the Ziggurat-City ahead.
“Don't let me down,” Sorom said when a communicator started beeping.
“This vehicle is on route to the Ziggurat-City of the Pharaoh. Tell me your purpose.” Said the voice on the communicator when Sorom triggered it.
“I am a guest for the Pharaoh's ball, the surname is Sorom. I'm on the list.”
There was a silence on the radio while the three waited tense for confirmation.
“Very well,” said the voice of the radio, “you can land.”
The feeling of relief took the vehicle for a moment, until Sorom returned to speak to his colleagues.
“If you are scanned, they will find that you are from chaos. That can't happen at all.”
“Let us enjoy this victory before thinking about the next challenge,” complained Dijo.
Sorom entered a much larger hangar and better cared for than that of his base. They started looking at the landed ships and noticed that most of them were civilians. They also saw several anti-aircraft guns prepared for any unforeseen event.
“The guard ships should be more isolated,” Sorom said. “Find out where they are; is also part of your mission.”
Once again Dijo hit salute and Sorom landed in a spot indicated by a woman in the ground. He lowered the window to talk to her.
“These are my security guards; can they accompany me?”
The woman's first reaction was to be surprised at the comment.
“Do you drive for your security? That’s... Different.”
Immediately Sorom felt defeated. Something as simple as that and went unnoticed by him.
“Yes,” replied Sorom “I like to feel the steering wheel myself; you know...”
“You do not owe me explanations.” The woman replied. “Unfortunately, only your name is on the list, so they will not be able to leave the hangar.”
“Okay, I'll just talk to them and then I’ll join you.”
“As I said, you do not owe me explanations. Make yourself at home.”
Sorom closed the window and looked embarrassed in the direction of his colleagues.
“This has barely begun, and I've already screwed up.”
“You don't usually get nervous like that,” Willys said.
“Yes, relax boss, you just need to get into the character. Think you're a rich snob and act like one.”
“Or think that you are your father,” Willys suggested.
Sorom was troubled.
“I don't know if it helps, but thank you,” replied the man. “Find a window to get out of the car.”
“But the car already has several windows.” Joked Dijo.
Sorom took a long time to understand it was a joke.
“I'll shoot you next time.” Threatened Sorom, but his companions knew he wasn't serious.
The leader got out of the car trusting his partners and followed the woman to a passage into the city.
“Is this your first time in the Ziggurat-City?” Asked the woman.
“No, but I was too small the last time I came,” Sorom said.
Treadmills took him through the environment, showing the huge space inside. There was indeed an entire city with buildings within the Ziggurat structure. On the ceiling were light projectors that made the environment reflect the time outside, now showing a starry night.
“This place is a technological marvel,” said the woman. “Don't you think about moving here? Most of the guests already live in the Ziggurat.”
“This place is rubbish,” Sorom said unceremoniously. “People are trapped in these walls without seeing the real world out there. Did you know there are people who have never really seen the sky?”
The woman was quiet and Sorom noticed that she was uncomfortable.
“Have you… never seen the sky?” Asked Sorom.
“I was born here in a very lucky family to work in this beautiful city.”
“Right. I advise you to come out sometime to see the outside. Today seems like a good day to get out of this place.”
The woman was silent and led Sorom towards a structure made of the same purple
metal outside the Ziggurat. It was huge and it went from the ground to the top of the Ziggurat.
“That is the Heart, where the Pharaoh's chambers and his closest team are,” the woman continued timidly. “The ball will take place in a hall inside it.”
She was quiet the rest of the way and Sorom made no point in talking.
The Heart was much less broad than the city outside, but it was still impressive. The metal corridors were very polished, and the lighting of the environment gave an air of superiority.
The route took several minutes to walk through the corridors. Along the way he saw other people very well dressed and the Royal Guard: men and women in blue armor almost two meters high carrying spears.
Sorom did his best to memorize the ways of the Heart and identify points of interest.
“And where are Pharaoh's chambers?” Asked Sorom. “It must be a very fantastic place; I imagine they're higher up.”
The woman looked insecure at him.
“On top it is as dangerous as below if there is some kind of attack, but I cannot talk about that sort of thing.”
In the middle then concluded Sorom with the woman's comment.
After more five minutes, they finally reached the party venue. At the doors two Royal Guards were positioned together by a man in a suit inspecting the guests.
“Name?” Asked the man.
“Last name Sorom.”
The man looked suspiciously at him.
“Are you related to that general?”
Immediately Sorom's face turned into a frown.
“Very distant.”
The man smiled and, after looking at his name on the list, let him in. The woman accompanied Sorom at the entrance to the hall.
“Would you like Mr. Garreth to be contacted to find you? He must want to know that his guest has arrived.”
“You don't have to; I know we're going to meet here. Thank you for everything.”
Sorom moved on to the party. The hall was even bigger than he imagined, noting three floors connected with guests in all of them. People dressed in the flashiest ways possible. Some had neon lights in their suits and dresses. In a way, Sorom stood out for being dressed in a simple suit.
He took his sleeve close to his mouth and spoke on his communicator.
“Willys and Dijo, how are you?”
As Sorom walked to the hall, Dijo and Willys waited for the perfect moment to get out of the car. In that time, Dijo managed to hack into the camera system and made them loop momentarily.
Even without the danger of the cameras there were several people there and two Royal Guards who seemed to inspect that part of the hangar.
“Willys,” Dijo said, “we're going to need a distraction.”
The man smiled sadistic and picked up an explosive from his bag, rolling it out of the car toward a more distant ship. When he was at the ideal distance, Willys pressed a button and instead of exploding, a black smoke began to be expelled.
He saw one of the guards heading in the direction and the other was also focusing on the event. The two agents got out of the car and began to walk discreetly to one of the doors.
“Will you be able to hack the doors?” Asked Willys.
“How can you still ask me a question like that?” Answered Dijo offended.
“So, you can do it?”
“I have no idea.”
He passed his tablet in front of a scanner at the door and saw the guard looking in their direction. The door opened and they did not wait to see if there would be consequence; just moved on.
They walked through the city and, despite Dijo's green hair and Willys' mechanical limbs, did not draw much attention. The other people who crossed the artificial night also had colorful hair and prostheses of the most varied.
“What now?” Asked Willys.
“I'm not sure. I know the coordinate where the opening is, but I don't know how best to get there. It would be nice to find a manhole for a sewer and move on from there.”
Willys looked around.
“I don't see any manhole.”
They walked following the tablet's coordinates and trying to deviate to the maximum of any authority.
At this point you heard Sorom's message.
“Willys and Dijo, how are you?”
“We have already left the hangar, but we do not know the best way to get to the meeting point.”
“You will find. And then come to the big purple structure in the middle of town, that's where the rooms we want to find are.”
Sorom heard an affirmative answer from his companions and proceeded to the ball.
He quickly noticed a black-skinned woman in a long yellow dress holding a microphone in front of a small reporting drone. She was broadcasting the dance live, which made him conclude that people who don't want to be seen would be on the top floors. In addition, a band played on a circular stage, right in the center of the ballroom, with colorful bubbles floating around them.
He was looking for people of interest. Pharaoh Tess, or any of the guardians present. But it was someone who ended up finding him.
“Sorom,” said Garreth's voice.
Sorom turned and saw the man behind, wearing a blue asymmetrical suit much more elegant than his. The two smiled when they saw each other but were unsure how to greet each other and ended up giving a handshake.
“What would I do without you?” Asked Sorom. “Thank you for this opportunity.”
Garreth looked suspiciously at the man.
“I'm just happy to see you... This is another one of your plans, isn't it?”
Sorom made a sign for him to speak lower and pulled him back from a pillar where there were fewer people.
“You are a savior, Garreth, the world will reward you for your help.”
“I don't want a reward from the world. I want to help people, but I don't know if your way is working.”
“What do you mean?” Asked Sorom.
“After your last play, Tess created new laws, making CCCs worse, he is retaliating his actions with innocent chaotic!”
“But you are the guy who organizes the CCCs” Sorom said, confused.
“And he is the Pharaoh! His word is the law.”
Sorom was thoughtful, while Garreth got them two drinks. But Sorom refused.
“I should not drink. Garreth, I'm going to release all the chaotic, just give me a little more time.”
“While you use this time, these people are suffering!”
“They will suffer forever if they do not do something about it!”
The two of them stood silently looking at each other for a few seconds.
“Could you help me a little more?” Asked Sorom. “I have a little time to kill here and would like to meet Guardian Simeht.”
Garreth looked disappointed at Sorom and took a deep breath.
“Of course, come with me.”
He took Sorom to the second floor. On the way began to ask.
“And does your special interest in Simeht have anything to do with his daughter? Is it true the story you tell?”
“You know that stories are never true, but they are not at all wrong either.”
“My God, Sorom, you're playing with very great forces.”
“I'm not playing, and it was her choice; I'm not going to stop someone who wants to free herself from fate.”
Sorom noticed a certain melancholy in Garreth's eyes.
“Hey,” said Sorom in a delicate tone “I will do this in twenty-eight days.”
The politician looked surprised at Sorom.
“Do you remember?” Asked Garreth.
“But of course, the day you told me I wrote it down. I'm not going to let that deadline go away.”
“We don't know what will happen when the date comes,” Garreth said, trying to look confident.
“Oh, yes. Because having a destiny that is a countdown must be something very reassuring.”
Garreth raised his arm and the glyphs arose, but instead of being static
as other people, they transformed themself. When translated, they showed numbers on a countdown.
“How do you expect to be able to do all this in less than a month?”
“That's why I need your help even more,” Sorom said. “And let us continue to search for the guardian.”
Garreth was still and only then remembered that he had a goal and returned to guide Sorom.
“I saw him around earlier, maybe he didn't get very far. But what do you intend to do when you see him? You're a guest here, be careful what you plan.”
“I'm not going to shoot him, I promised that. Don't worry, I just want to have a normal conversation and maybe get some essential information.”
Besides being big, the hall was very crowded, and it was hard to find people like that, until Garreth noticed a very big man. With two meters high and extremely muscular drawing a lot of attention.
“That's Guardian Dunna,” Garreth said. “Simeht may be with him.”
They walked among people until they saw the wheel where Guardian Dunna met three other people, a man and two women.
The two women wore dresses with complementary colors and were holding hands. The man was not as big as Dunna, but still seemed to be muscular underneath his white suit with blue details. He had short blond hair and blue eyes.
“Excuse me, guardians,” said Garreth interrupting the conversation “I would like to introduce a colleague to you.”
The two men said goodbye to the women and looked at Sorom.
“This is Armsés Dunna,” began Garreth, “and I imagine you've heard of Abraham Simeht. Guardians, this is my colleague Sorom.”
Dunna greeted Sorom. The leader seized the moment and gave Simeht a strong hug, who inspected him curiously.”
“Sorom?” Asked Simeht. “Are you a relative of the general?”
Sorom tried not to show irritation with Simeht's question.
“I hear this every time. We're distant relatives, we don't even know each other.”
Simeht didn't seem to be conformed to the answer, but he kept his mouth shut.
“And where do you know each other?” Asked Dunna.
“Garreth helped me once, a while ago, and since then we have become close.”
Destiny Sorrow Page 10