Chapter 25: Before the storm

The docks lay deserted in the nighttime gloom. Few hours remained until the grand ceremony of the opening of Darklighter Tower. Aenriques hastened down the piers and arrived at what seemed like a closed-down warehouse, once a shipping outpost for container ships. The really big ones.

He stopped at the doorstep and glanced around before removing a small lid for a hidden side panel with buttons and a small display. He entered a code, the door unlocked and he seeped in.

From the outside there was no light visible because the windows had been closed up with boards and black plastic bags. On the inside though faint light showered a long hall with tables - more crates with long boards atop - stood down the middle. At the walls bags and boxes, wrapped in plastic stood stashed. Some were open and revealed its contents: guns and magazines, wires, harnesses and loads and loads of equipment. There were twenty people in there all together. At the furthest corner of the hall stood a rickety table with monitors showing the overview of the finished Darklighter Tower. Blue prints were scattered here and there, but they only had access to some of the floors and not the entire building which had made them curious - especially Aenriques. What was in the floors that they weren't informed about??

A guy standing right inside the hall ended a phone conversation and hung up as he saw Aenriques. His face had distinct features, sharp eyebrows, high cheek bones and the black hair was drawn back. The smile revealed a series of sharp pointed teeth at the corner of his mouth.

"Ah, Aenriques, glad you could make it," he said, his voice sleek and hissing.

"Always, Petyr. How are the preparations?" Aenriques asked and stopped beside the man.

"Fine, fine. Darklighter will have his worth," Petyr smiled. "I don't like that he'll get away with everything he does."

Aenriques raised an eyebrow and shook his head with a despondent smile. "That's what he does," he said quietly. Petyr glanced at him with narrow eyes.

"Yeah, you'd probably know all about that by now," he said and something in his voice showed dislike and contempt. "You've probably also taken advantage of your position as an agent. They say the girls in the family are good but that the boys are even better."

"I sincerely do not know," Aenriques said with as plain a grimace as he could make it. Somewhere inside of him a light hint of anger boiled up, but he forced it down again and remembered what Frederich and Lyndon had said. All good things come to those who wait. Just a few more hours...

Petyr said no more. They went to one of the long tables and glanced at the hand-drawn plans for the attack. People began gathering as they put on their harnesses, prepared and loaded magazines into weapons and covered their faces with black masks.

"All right, guys and girls! Listen up!" Petyr raised his voice in order to reach each and every one of them. "I want no failures. No half-hearted attempts to play heroes. It's all a matter about going there and back again, do you understand? We'll have the world's eyes on us for those few seconds so please keep your head clear. The first thing we need is the documents and then to get out. This is not a theft; it's a demonstration of power. Thanks to our friend here," he patted Aenriques' shoulder, "and other semi-loyal servants of the Dark Lord," silent laughter was heard among them, "we're going to break through the security barriers and show them that we're not afraid anymore. And because we're in public, magic and energies are prohibited. Got that? No spreading your wings, Sully!"

"Sorry!" came an apologetic answer from the crowd, and they laughed.

"Good. Now, as you know we're going under the guise of our friends S-" He was interrupted when Aenriques' phone rang. They all turned and watched him as he took it and answered it.

"It's on," the young Darklighter's voice said. Aenriques nodded and merely hung up, looking back at the Butterflies.

"We're in now," he said.

"Great! No more time for small-talk! Let's get going!" Petyr clapped his hands and they broke up, each with their specially appointed task. Aenriques went out through the back with the others to the helicopter waiting for them. He looked up at the sky as the helicopter ascended into the air while he himself remained on the ground. This was going to be a night to remember.