Sera must have had a trickle more luck left in the tank, as she was quite early enough to make it to the meeting.
The Cetus Foundation was a multinational corporation with branches all over the world. It delay with two important branches; pharmaceuticals and minerals.
The US branch was located not so far from Sera's house. It was a huge plot of land with a lot of buildings on it. It was divided into four sectors, all organized and grand. Sera's office was in one of the buildings in the South Sector, which was one of the oldest in the whole compound.
As she was panting into the building, she waved at the security man as she always did. She went through her early morning protocols at the reception and was on her way to the lift.
"Hello! Hey! Good morning! Hey! You look good today!", Sera was greeting as many people as she could. She really did not have time for chitchat that day.
"Hey, hold the elevator!", Sera called out to her colleague and junior, Charlie.
"Oh boy, I thought I was the only one who would be underprepared for today's meeting. I'm just glad."
"Yeah, you were supposed to compile all the reports. And then send it to the excavation team for further checking and get it attested, but noooo-", Sera was livid.
"Okay, okay, we will figure it out."
"You're lucky I'm nicer than your other superiors. Others wouldn't have let you take advantage of their kindness,", Sera said.
"I know, that's why I still work for you", Charlie said with a flattering smile.
"Ugh, we are almost at our floor."
"Yeah, level 26. The dreaded level 26", Charlie was not mentally ready for work. Anyone could relate with that sentiment.
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Eva's school.
"Alright class, today we will be learning about definite integrals."
Eva was in math class with Caden, Chloe, and Josh. They were close friends who knew each other from their preschool days.
"Yo, do you guys think calculus is over-hated?", Josh asked the quartet.
"No, Josh,", Chloe replied.
Math wasn't Chloe's cup of tea, or anyone's, but Josh was the only person in the class who actually enjoyed doing math. They usually clashed about their opinions on math. Today was no different.
Eva and Caden were just laughing silently, not even focusing on the class. The teacher didn't bother, as they weren't very loud. That had been the norm for a while.
"Hey, what's up with these dreams you're getting?", Caden asked Eva.
"What dreams?", That question interrupted the conversation about integrals Chloe and Josh were having.
"Uh, I don't know. I have these weird dreams. I see this dark, cloaked figure just screaming their lungs out in the dark forest. Like it scares the hell out of me."
"Tik Tok, clearly some Tik Tok videos are bothering her", Josh said, adding his two cents.
"I call dibs on some K-drama; she's been watching a lot of that these days", Caden made his argument.
"That could be true, bro", Josh agreed with Caden.
"See, I told you it was the K-drama."
"What's wrong with Tik Toks or K-dramas? They are both so good!", Chloe argued back.
Just as Josh was about to reply, they were interrupted by a comment from a fifth person.
"You know, what's better than both of them? My goddamn math class!"
The class broke out in laughter until the teacher had to say something.
"You four, please focus here. You can chitchat after my class."
All four of them nodded and decided to focus back on class.
"Thank you, now, as I was saying, when you integrate-"
Now that the class was getting back on track, Eva was feeling dizzy. Caden had noticed this and had to inquire.
"Eva, are you alright?"
"Uh, yeah. I think I'm good."
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Back at Sera's office.
There were 13 people in the boardroom waiting for Mr. Klaus, who was one of the board members of Cetus Corporation. It was very unusual for one of the members of the board to call an emergency meeting.
And since they were all bored and tired of waiting, they decided to waste their time by talking to each other.
"Did you hear about the vigilante dude? Second time this month", Charlie asked Trin, the person who has to carry Charlie's metaphorical butt around.
"Oh, the dude came back again? I didn't read it in the paper today,", Trin replied.
"It was reported after today's papers were printed. You can't add it in after you print the papers, Trin", Charlie replied.
"That makes sense. Where did you read it, then?"
"It was in many online news outlets,", someone else replied.
Everyone suddenly started talking about this ruthless vigilante. Everyone had some opinions on this person.
"Many call him by different names. I heard a few of them."
"Like what?", Charlie asked.
"Here are a few: the Man in the Shadows, the Nightmare of the Damned, the Eradicator, and so many more."
"That is so corny", said someone.
Everyone was talking about it.
Except for Sera.
"Hey, ma'am, what's your take on this guy?", one of the juniors asked Sera.
Sera was hesitant to answer at first, but she decided to chime in.
"Ah, I think this person is just doing what law enforcement should be doing. Also, we don't really know if it's a guy; it could be a woman,", Sera replied.
"There are multiple witnesses who have said that it's a muscular guy,", Charlie replied.
"My boyfriend also told me that he leaves his victims in a bloody, broken mess. His victims are even scared to talk about him. Many people can't even walk, let alone work, after this guy goes through them,", Trin said.
"Boyfriend?", Charlie was stunned.
"Third one this year, the market is so tough.", Trin replied.
Sera somehow felt the need to say something.
"Hey, get this; I heard this from somewhere on the news. I heard all those weapons and stuff, it was all Cetus property."
There was a sudden shift in the mood in the room.
"No way", one of the ladies replied.
"OMG, seriously?", Trin said.
"That's what I heard, and I don't know if it could be a lie."
Just when they were going to talk more about it, Mr. Klaus entered the room.
He was a very strict man who looked like he was in his 50s. He was all business, well dressed, and wasn't there to get to know his employees much better. From his cold-hearted stare, it was evident that there would be at least two furloughs this week.
"What was all the discourse about?"
"Oh, we were talking about the local news, Mr. Klaus."
Mr. Klaus took a while, almost processing what he wanted to say next.
"And that is exactly why I'm here."
The mood changed in that room.
"Some scoundrel has been causing us huge losses by raiding our export centers, and we believe that one of you has been helping him with it."
Everyone started looking at each other, not knowing who the mole was. Sera was tensed, and so was Charlie. Trin was shaking.
"Whoever you are, or maybe it's a group of you, you will be held accountable for the companies' losses. And when we do find it, the consequences won't be sweet. I want all the reports I requested sent to my table before lunch break. That's all I had to say to you."
And with that, Mr. Klaus left the room.
Everyone was anxious.
No one was sure about what just happened. They couldn't understand what had happened.
"Did that guy just accuse us of helping that street fighter guy?", Charlie spoke first.
"I can't believe our loyalty is being questioned here", Trin also had to speak out.
Sera had to say something.
"Hey guys, let's get our job done. As long as we are confident that we haven't done anything wrong, why even bother?"
Everyone agreed with her.
"Come on, back to work."
Sera was able to diffuse the situation among her colleagues, but it was only a distraction to mask her fear.
Just as she made sure no one was around, she immediately took her phone out and started texting someone.
"Hey, the meeting will begin in a while. Things aren't well here. I think they are onto us."