The night air was thick with tension as Monique and Aldegar rushed to reconvene with Fornicus. Their faces were grim, etched with a mixture of determination and worry. Synnove, still unconscious from the purple gas, lay draped over Aldegar's shoulder.
Aldegar pulled out his phone, an opened an app labeled with the Oracle insignia. He scanned his fingerprint and inputted a passkey, before recording an announcement.
"Good evening to all currently awake Oracle officers, privates, and trainees. This is Liutenant Silvius speaking. Me, alongside Captain Tosseti and third rank Cosineau are located on 7th Street, Dawnvale industrial district. We are heading to 9th Street, the pier. Our target is an abandoned warehouse that previously belonged to Severance Industrial, our old weapons supplier. We have a good reason to believe Feyr's Vessel, Aiden Silvius is currently being held there and guarded by multiple associates with the Cult. Our estimated ETA is T negative 20 minutes. At arrival, us three, alongside another ally, will storm the warehouse alone. Any ranked officer or unranked private who notices this message before the mission's end is to reconvene with us on 9th Street, and be ready outside the warehouse in case we either fail or someone needs medical attention. You aren't to rush in without confirmation from someone on the inside. This marks the beginning of Operation Pier Strike."
"Jeez, Aldegar… always so formal." Monique lightly giggled, running ahead of Aldegar.
He sighed, looking at Synnove, who still wasn't waking. "Formality and clarity will help convey the situation better. If they hear panic in my voice, they will panic as well."
"Monique, hold on." he said as he came to a screeching halt.
Monique was frantically looking around her, "What is it? It's not another ambush, right?"
"No, no…" he reached for his phone again. "I just don't want to worry about Synnove, since she's clearly not waking yet." He pressed 1 on the speed dial again, calling Dr. Ishikawa once more.
"Hello, Dr. Ishikawa? Have you taken the wounded assailant yet? Alright, perfect, can you just drive by my location to pick someone else up? Afterwards, we can meet up again after the operation's end?"
He placed Synnove down on the floor, and sat down. Monique soon followed, and they waited for Dr. Ishikawa's ambulance to come.
They came, and a older man wearing rounded glasses stepped out, opening the ambulance van's back door. Inside was the attacker that Aldegar injured, encapsulated in a orange, pill like ellipsoid.
"The amber does wonders, huh, doctor?" he said as he stepped in the van and placed Synnove on the empty stretcher. "No need to Encase her, she's not wounded, just knocked out."
"And who is she, exactly?" the doctor asked. "I haven't seen her before."
"Long story," chimed in Monique. "She's an ally, that's what's important."
"Agreed. Just, please make sure she stays in the emergency room, and doesn't come to the warehouse." he closed the doors, before shaking Dr. Ishikawa's hand firmly, and seeing him off.
They continued before meeting up with Fornicus, the dead silence of the empty streets broken only by the occasional bark of a stray dog or hum of a generator. The street lights dimly glew on the area, every now and then, one appearing that didn't even work.
"Status report?" Fornicus briefly inquired.
"All good. We got Synnove, and sent her off with Ishikawa. Now, we only need to save Aiden."
Monique nodded too, before giving her end of the story. "I got two, and sent them off with Ishikawa as well. They weren't as severely wounded as Aldegar's was, but, they were terrified."
"Alright," he said, trying to recall the original ambush. "There was five of them, plus the one with the gas, in total six. We got rid of three, three remain, but I doubt there is going to be less than a dozen of them at the warehouse…"
"Dozen?" Monique chuckled. "I'm willing to bet my money the warehouse is empty. Because, even if the scum I interrogated gave me correct information, they wouldn't stay there longer than a few minutes, just to come up with a plan."
Aldegar gestured with his hand for them to begin moving. "Unless, they were waiting for someone. Remember what Synnove said? A man called Garnet who appeared alone out of no where, and then took Gabriel with him. Teleportation."
"Either way, we have no time to lose. Hurry."
All the while, countless phones of Oracle members rung at this late hour, chiming with Aldegar's announcement. A few actually got ready, and prepared to come. Dr. Ishikawa too sent a few unranked Medical members, and Dr. Carruso and Dr. Arroyo tagged along too. This was a large scale operation, with everything on the line. They have Aiden, and if the Separator is real… they could get rid of his Soul and return Feyr. If he got truly incarnated… it was game over more or less.
They made their way to 9th Street, preparing themselves for the entry into the Severance warehouse. They sat behind a dumpster, near the front entrance, before brainstorming an approach.
Whispering, Aldegar began. "I doubt all of us entering the same way is going to end well. If we all enter through the main entrance, they can escape through the back."
"I think I have an idea." said Monique. "You and Fornicus rush in through the back, and try to lure them close to the main entrance, maybe even wound one. I'll Sanguine Blast the door, and if I get a kill, my strength'll return. That way, they're cornered."
Fornicus looked over to the warehouse, noticing all the lights off, and no noise from inside. "Smart, but we need to account for that scarred bastard, with the gas. When I chased after him, he released a blast so big, it completely blocked my view. If he does something similar in a closed space, were done for."
"I have an idea. This warehouse was in use until quite recently, it's still wired to the city's power grid." Said Aldegar as he pointed to the power line above their heads. "We could call the Mayor and have her sanction opening power to the building. That way, the ventilators will surge on and any loose gas could get sucked out."
Monique looked at her wristwatch, noticing the clock approaching midnight. "Good idea, but it's late at night. I doubt the Mayor would be able to do much even if she was ready to act immediately, since I doubt there are any workers active right now."
"Doesn't hurt to try…" said Fornicus, pulling out his phone. He scrolled through his contacts list for a few seconds before dialing a number labeled 'Mayor Moreira'.
The phone rang for a few moments, before someone picked up with a light yawn.
"Evening, Mayor Moreira…" Fornicus began awkwardly. "I- I know it's late at night, but, we need your help." He put the phone on speaker, letting everyone listen in.
"At this late hour, it better be urgent…" she said hoarsely, clearly woken up by his call.
"To summarize it, we were attacked by Feyr cultists. They captured Aldegar's son, as well as another person. We got her back, but Aiden is still captured…"
"Okay, and, how am I of any aid here?" she inquired, running water being heard in the background, followed by a few notable sips and gulps. "For all I know, you guys are the high and mighty Oracle. Isn't stuff like that your job?"
"Yes, Miss, but, precautionary measures. One of the attackers has a peculiar toxic gas power, and it seemingly puts anyone out cold instantly." he faintly continued, trying not to raise his voice, to avoid being detected. "We want you to sanction power being returned to this warehouse they're in, so we can attack without the risk of the gas. The ventilators on the roof would suck it out."
"I'm here too, miss." said Aldegar. "Me and Cosineau. It's a high stakes mission, so, any help is more than welcome. So please."
The whirling of a PC fan could be heard, and a few light taps on a mechanical keyboard. "Alright, tell me the address. I'll contact Hathaway."
"Building #713, 9th Street, Industrial District." said Aldegar. "Thank you, miss."
Without even returning the gratitude, the Mayor hung up.
"Damn. Power got to Eleni's head bad. I can't believe us two were friends as kids…" said Monique.
"Don't give her a hard time," said Aldegar begrudgingly. "At least she helped."
"Do we wait?" said Fornicus, peeking over the dumpster's side. "Each second is a bigger risk that they'll escape, if they're even in here."
Aldegar peeked over from the dumpster's other side. "The only thing we can do is wait. We won't rush without the fan, and if we approach to check if they're actually here, we could reveal ourselves."
Monique lightly nodded her head, before leaning against the wall behind her. "Yeah, give it a few minutes."
The air was thick with tension, and it was palpable. Despite trying their best to remain calm, it was clear that no one was certain in success. The stakes were high, personal and world-shattering. And, as they sat in silence and each came up with their own entrance plan. Until, the lights flickered, and a spinning of fans began…