Grasping at straws (Private: Capt'n Sinnarr)

I really didn’t think this through.

A low humming from the fluorescent lights in the ceiling was the exception to the otherwise silent hallway that Derek was skulking through. But Derek knew that the silence was a lie. There was no way the organization would leave one of their bases unguarded, even at the dead of night. Somewhere around here, someone would be waiting. But he was ready. The cool temperature in the building didn’t bother Derek, not even as it dropped drastically when he cautiously rounded a corner. However, the temperature drop was curious. The young man slowed his steps and searched for the reason behind this curiousity. Nothing special caught his eyes as they roamed the sterile looking walls and ceiling. What was he even doing here? He had sacrificed everything to escape these guys and now he was desperately trying to get the revenge he childishly craved.

It had taken him an almost a suspiciously short amount of time to hear about this place. Crescent Organizations local Chicago base. Not the official one of course, since that one was squeaky clean from all illegal activity. After just a few weeks of running around as “The Shard” and threatening the criminals he stumbled across, he had found someone who had connections with the local Crescent Organization couriers. Apparently, the Chicago division mainly focused on smuggling and harboring high class technology devices. And this guy he had stumbled upon was one of the minor smugglers. Someone far down the chain. Probably more hired to spread the word through the proper, or rather improper channels than to actually do anything of importance for the organization. He didn’t even know about the front, the “fake” local base. The thug did however have a rumor about a new advanced computer that had the ability to shut down all electrical devices in its proximity. If Derek would listen to the rumor its radius was enough to cut the electricity to entire cities at a time. It seemed farfetched, but by grasping at that straw, he had now, weeks later, found the haystack. Or at least, he hoped so.

Derek’s gaze was drawn towards a flow of steam that was flooding out from the gap between the floor and a metal door farther down the hall. Almost forgetting to sneak, Derek walked to the door. When he got close it was obvious that the steam was the source of the cold. But for some reason, knowing that only made him more uneasy. Why hadn’t he been caught yet? Or at least seen another living soul guarding this place? And now he was facing a mysterious door that probably had something incriminating behind it, maybe even the legendary computer from the rumors, with no obstacles in his way. Sure, he had been faced with a couple of security cameras and other measures to keep people away on the way into the building, but nothing human.  By cracking the glass camera lenses he had easily been inside in a matter of minutes. It was simply too easy.  This was feeling more and more like a trap, but it was too late to turn back now. So Derek turned towards the door and considered his options. First he placed an ear towards the door. It was cold to the touch. Derek felt an involuntary chill run down his spine as he listened for something, anything from the other side of the door. To his surprise, he actually heard something, but it wasn’t from the door. It was from the other side of the hallway. It sounded like steps, but then the sound stopped abruptly. Had he simply imagined it? Or was he just being watched, observed? Derek, dressed as his alter ego “The Shard”, stared down the corridor but the dim lightning gave his vision minimal support. However, even though he was staring, the white lenses without pupils on his eyes kind of made it hard to tell he was. Not knowing what was out there was killing him. So, preparing for anything, Derek called out. “Who’s there? Show yourself.” The relatively inexperienced vigilante tried imbuing his voice with as much confidence as possible, but only succeeded partly. After all, who knew what, or who, was lurking in the dark?

"Stand down civilian, do not interfere. Attempts at intervention will not be tolerated."

Okay. He was prepared for almost anything. He hadn’t expected this. It seemed to be some sort of robot talking to him, probably another half assed security measure. Derek decided to leave it alone as long as it returned the favor. After all, provoking it was both unnecessary and stupid. But he still listened closely for any possible attacks the robot might make against him. He had to assume the worst, like it being able to blast him to pieces with a laser beam. Though, the thought of him lying on the ground, blown to smithereens, wasn’t very comforting and made him feel uneasy once again. He turned towards the door, quickly pulled out two mirrors from his pockets, whereas he slid one of them through the cold steam and under the door to the other side. This was the only way he could think of to get through the door and away from this robot. The moment he was about to teleport, a though struck him. If this robot had a camera, Derek would be screwed. It would record him using his unique ability and would correctly assume that the one who broke into their facility was no other than the person who ran away from them just weeks ago. However, he saw no other way to get his revenge.

Derek focused his gaze on the other mirror’s shiny reflection and as let his thoughts wander a while before focusing on the other mirror. In his mind he pictured its simplicity, but also its details. Its metallic frame with a slight dent on its upper left side and that one spot that never gets clean no matter how much Derek tries. The clearer the mental picture gets, the more Derek fades until he seconds later vanishes from the hallway just to reappear inches away. A metal door being the only thing dividing him from what he firmly believes is a security robot.

The sight that Derek faced in this new room was more advanced than anything he had ever seen before. Cold steam dispersing from tubes filled with some kind of cooling agent. It seemed to keep the machine in the center of the circled cooled, or at least that was what Derek would guess. Not that he was a computer genius or anything. He wasn’t even sure it was a computer. It more looked like a ticking bomb you saw in those action movies. The ones that keep counting down to the end of a city, or worse, the end of the world, but that is always negated only seconds before the explosion. And if Derek was supposed to listen to the rumors, the only difference was that this time, the hero didn’t know how to stop the countdown.