I woke up with a jolt, feeling a cold sweat coming down. I looked around at the familiar room, letting myself calm down. I looked at the sports jersey with the number ten on it. The name Mori was plastered over it in proud golden letters. (Hisashi never missed a goal, did he?) I thought proudly. Next to it was a wall filled to the brim with medals, some for valour, others for school work. Warmth washed over me as I rose and took a deep breath, smelling the lavender and a hint of vinegar. Hisashi was in the corner getting dressed as he turned to me and frowned a little.
"You don't look okay. Do you need time?"
"No...no, I'm okay. I just need to freshen up." I stood up and walked into the shared bathroom to get dressed in my uniform. The afternoon sun was beginning to descend, so the club would be opening the night shift soon. Hisashi and I gathered what we needed and headed out, meeting Vesta on the way.
"Hisashi." Said Vesta. "You slip into the party, Hida and I will see if we can get you an opening to sneak in and scan the room. Hisashi, you mentioned that you have ties to The Peacekeepers, right?"
"Ya."
"We can't risk anyone seeing your face, especially when you go into the kitchen. You may be short on time, but they have been hunting Peacekeepers for some time, I'm guessing.
"You don't want to risk it...got it."
We broke off as Vesta and I went to work. Drinks were flying off of the shelf as the people partied like crazy. Vesta walked up to me and passed a note for me to take, pretending it was a customer's order. Then, she said it aloud. I quickly made the club soda and then excused myself to the bathroom. The room was so clean and pristine a lady stood in the corner of the room, she was dressed in a lovely suite and had a tray of sweets and mint. She was pretty short, but even under her clothes, an air of danger hung over her. She recognised my uniform and smiled sweetly, but it lacked sincerity. I waved as I walked into the stall to read Vesta's note.
"I need to take out the camera if we hope to get away with letting Hisashi into the backroom. I convinced a group of salarymen to buy a bottle special. They are seated under the camera that faces the kitchen. A corc and splash of alcohol should make short work of that lens."
I crumpled up the page and flushed it, then moved to wash my hands. "Ma'am ." A tap on my shoulder sent a jolt of electricity through my body. "mint?"
"Oh...thank you." I took one
"Are you okay? Something is on your mind. You did come in here to use the bathroom, there was another motive. Something you wish to talk about?"
"Wha..." My heart increased pace "n...no. I'm fine, I just needed a minute."
"That so. Do you want me to call Lady Sif? I'm sure she could solve your problem." Her voice was cold and a little sinister.
"That won't be necessary." I chuckled uncomfortably, trying to act natural.
"That so, understood then."
I stepped out of the bathroom and made my way out as she waved me off. Vesta gave me a nod, then walked to the customers with a huge tray full of all sorts of alcohol. Hisashi was sitting at the main bar. Vista walked up to them and began socialising. Many of them were immediately captivated, and she grabbed a bottle before, all sly like, aimed it at the camera, shooting the cork right at the camera, covering it in alcohol and bluring it out. Hisashi knelt down, clenching is stomach as I walked toward him
"Oh god, my stomach. I feel a little woozy." He said while wheezing a little.
"I think you drank too much, sir. Hold on." I lifted him up and walked him to the kitchen but took a turn towards the master chef's office before any of the cooks could see his face. We rushed in and closed the door.
"Alright, let's do this." He whispered.
The office was like a little Zen temple. Oak wood floors and Burch walls. Scented candles at every corner of the room and a desk with a bonsai tree and...Legos? There were two large bookshelves at the end of the room and a few bean chairs darted around randomly.
"Make sure to look for any cameras in here. We both searched around but found nothing.
"Nothing. Let's find that vent then." My first instinct was to try and pull a few books out to see if that would work.
"What are you doing?" Asked Hisashi.
"Ever watch a Jones movie?"
"A what?"
"That American adventurer guy, they always hide secret doors in bookshelves."
"Movies are a waste of time, Hida. I prefer documentaries." He knelt on one knee and touched the ground, his veins started to glow as he sent a pulse into the ground. Like tendrils, his eyes began to glow. His skin turned extremely pale, and the smell of Vinegar permeated everywhere. "And above that, I prefer reality."
I looked down at the floor, my heart slowed down for a second, and heat washed over my face. "Sweet used to love movies..." He looked up at me, a hint of sadness on his face.
"Hida, the mission. I know you miss him, but you must focus."
"R-right." I turned around and began pulling out books again but this time slower.
"Hida, can we watch a movie together tonight?"
"Really?"
"Ya, maybe I might like it."
"That's great, I'll start thinking of a few for us." I quickly moved to the shelf again with renewed vigour.
"Hey, Hida, I'm getting a weird blank space right over that book over there, the red one."
I pulled it out, and behind it was a little safe with a rotating dial.
"Seems Mr Jones was right." Said Hisashi.
"Okay, now it's my turn," I said, chuckling a little. I used the miso to scan the box. "I studied safes, pretty extensively, and this is one's no ordinary safe, it's metal is chromium steel but there's something off about it," I put my hands down and stopped scanning it. "-something that's repelling my Miso."
"Same thing is happening to me. When I scanned the room, all I saw was a square-shaped empty space."
"We'll need more tools if we are going to break in through here but we also don't know where this will lead us...damn."
"His body shifted a little. Well, that's interesting."
"What?"
"After we found the box, I decided to take a closer look at all the empty spaces in this room, and there is a massive empty shaft just behind the shelf going down, but I can't scan any further down. I think that's the elevator they mentioned, and that safe must hold the key."
"Well, we can't open it now. I can't crack this one, but I can break it by either freezing it or melting it. It's melting point is a thousand eight hundred degrees Celsius, so that's out."
He stood up and let the tendrils run up his hand turning his veins a normal colour again. "You don't always need heat to melt something."
"Hydrochloric acid. Nice. Okay, let's get out of here then."
We cleaned up the room quickly and walked out of the office. As we walked down the hallway to the club, we could see Lady Sif scolding Vesta for breaking her camera. I quickly shoved Hisashi away from me. "Move before she sees you." I whispered. Hisashi quietly dashed for the door. As I walked back to the bar.
"Shitarin." Called Lady Sif
"Yes, ma'am?"
"You were missing from your station. Why?"
"A customer was sick, ma'am so I took him to the back to give him some water and meds."
"I see. Next time, pass him along to the concierge and get back to work. Hinami over there had to work double shifts for almost an hour, thanks to you two. Don't let it happen again. This place only accepts the best of the best, the elites in mixology. I put my faith in you both. Do not fail me." She spoke with such command and essence that I didn't even realise that I was already saluting her.
"Yes, captain!" We both said while standing at attention.
"Good girls." The seven-foot giant rubbed our chins like we were her pet dogs, with her hand so close I could smell it; it was so familiar, like home...butter scotch. Her hands were warm and loving but also firm and reassuring. She let us go, and with a spin, she walked away from us gracefully. "Back to work, children."
"Yes, ma'am!" We saluted again and began to work again. The rest of the day went rather smoothly. Before long, it was closing time, and we headed to the parking lot. The rain settled in slowly as the cool air of the night washed over us. The last embers of sunlight are long gone, replaced with the ghosts of fire in the sky. In the distance, we saw a figure talking to Hisashi. It was Lady Sif. They shook hands, and she walked away. Vesta and I jumped behind a car to hide from her gaze. As she walked past, she had a very irritated look on her face. We got up and stepped towards Hisashi.
"What was that all about?" I asked.
"She recognised me, wanted to know what I was doing at her club."
"You you or you?"
"Me me, as in relative of a former Peacekeeper."
"Are we busted?"
"Probably not. But we can't stop now anyway. Come on, let's just hope Liam does his part too."