We made our way towards the warehouse, using the information provided to us by Gilmar and Fawna's ability to sense when the guards were changing shifts. We were both wary of being seen, so we took the back alleys and side streets, ensuring that no one would stumble across us in the darkness.
Finally, we reached the warehouse; it was a massive, dark building with a tall wall surrounding it and several layers of guard patrols guarding it against the outside. There was no way we could just waltz in without getting caught, so I left my rat on the wall while I used my power to make an entrance through the roof. The plan worked out, and Fawna and I managed to get inside undetected.
Inside, it was even darker than the night sky, but I didn't need light to see with my enhanced vision. We moved carefully and silently, searching for the secret door that Gilmar had mentioned. After a few wrong turns, I found it behind a large stack of crates hidden beneath a thick layer of dust.
Carefully, I opened the door and motioned for Fawna to stay back as I stepped inside. Instantly, I felt a chill run down my spine as the darkness engulfed me, and the air was heavy with dread, putting me on high alert. It was almost like something far worse was lurking in the shadows, waiting for us to make a mistake.
At first glance, it seemed empty, but then I noticed a figure standing at the other end of the room. He was cloaked in a hood, and his face was hidden in the shadows, but I could still feel the intensity of his cold gaze.
I already liked the guy.
"Who are you?" He said in a dark voice, but it didn't phase me.
"I'm the one who's going to give you a deal you can't refuse," I said simply, my tone business-like yet imposing. The man raised an eyebrow, obviously surprised and intrigued.
"What kind of deal?" He asked skeptically, his gaze never leaving me.
"You let me use this place as a base of operations in exchange for some...favors," I said, keeping my face expressionless. "In return, you'll have access to all the resources that come with it to barter and sell, but we will draw up a contract on the exact amount."
The man was silent for a moment before he nodded slowly. "It seems we have ourselves an arrangement."
I smiled; I had gained access to a base of operations, and I could now continue my rise to becoming a crime lord. Though, the old dark fart had agreed far too readily to my proposal. My glowing red eyes gave the room a red hue in the darkness, so the man clearly understood what I was.
The man stepped forward, his face still hidden in the shadows. "You understand that nothing is free, right? You will owe me." I nodded, not wanting to show my apprehension. I would hear him out since I was on the losing end of this arrangement, no matter how I spun it. Supply and demand; he had something that I needed, and I needed him alive for it to work, so no matter what, I was bound to take a hit on this.
The price of progress.
"And if I ever find out that you have betrayed me," he continued, his voice low and menacing, "there will be hell to pay."
"Ditto, old man. I don't think I have to tell you what I am, but you should know well enough that I am not what you would consider legal merchandise," I said, and the man nodded as she waved for me to follow him to a door.
"Yeah, you are Numera's man, and word about you is spread like wildfire. The fact that you came to me is in both our best interests," The man said as I was led to a hall will a door at the end to the left that had a light on inside.
"How so?" I asked with suspicion, but then grabbed the man by the neck and slammed him into the wall. Fawna had just said, "wait."
"The three leaders of the three biggest crime families are on the other side of that door. I can't see them doing anything to harm you, but I will keep you posted if anything looks even remotely suspicious," Fawna said as I held the old man's mouth shut.
"Good girl. Very good," I said from inside, then returned my voice to my mouth.
"When I let go of your face, you had better have a truthful answer for me, or I will crush your head like an egg before you can ever dream of getting your hand out of your pocket," I growled in a barely imperceptible voice, and the man slowly pulled his hand out empty from his pockets, but the flinch and tried to scream as my rat climbed up his leg, into his pocket, retrieving whatever was in there. Then it ripped through the pocket and crawled to the other pocket to rip it open and see if there was anything. after it dropped out of his pant leg, cutting the belt, holding a hidden danger, then pulling one out of each boot. "Now, what are the three most influential people in the underworld of this city doing in that room, and why didn't you tell me? Remember, fast-talking."
I let the man drop, and he gasped and then started to cough.
"They are coming to see what is going on!" Fawna exclaimed, and I put my hand on the door, willing it to become steel and fuse into the doorframe. As soon as time sped back up, the man started talking.
"Sorry! They are people you need to meet if you are going to work in this town!" The man coughed, but I grabbed him by the shirt and brought him up to my face, which was filled with anger and churning gears. The man's confidence had been stripped from him.
"That doesn't answer why you didn't explain what was going on," I growled, and then the man put his hands up.
"It was just for dramatism! I was literally just about to tell you as I opened the door!" The man whined, and I tossed him to the ground.