There is a black car in the street with a flashing red light on top. The doors read ‘Blitzkrieg Bowsers’.
All three men speak in unison, “Is this your ostrich, sir?”
TWENTY
GOING UP
Jools Dethbryte frantically types in a numeric code on a dial-pad located in a secret location against her back wall. The dial-pad beeps and the keys glow green, releasing the lock on a secret vault door camouflaged perfectly behind a large mirror. Dethbryte pulls back the mirror revealing a small rectangle-shaped cavity inside the wall. She reaches inside and removes its contents: a glossy bright pink hat box .
She sets the box on top of her bed, just as the lights click off. She is in total darkness now—but only for a few seconds. The safety lights flicker on and the alarm sounds. BLAARP, BLAARP, BLAARP, BLAARP, BLAARP! The alarm blares like a trained seal honking a bicycle horn with metronome-like timing—except as if it were amplified through the speakers in a baseball stadium.
The faint sound of static hums from a walkie-talkie sitting on the desk in the corner of the room. Click. “Security has been breached! I repeat—security has been breached! Lady Dethbryte, we are sending up our men to help you evacuate the building immediately. Please remain calm. We will have the situation under control soon. Over.” Click.
Dethbryte lifts the lid off the hat box, seemingly not too worried about the security breach. She pulls out a black velvet bag from inside.
Click. “Lady Dethbryte, do you copy? Over.” Click.
She reaches into the black velvet bag and pulls out a grey and black rubber glove—a Nintendo Power Glove. She puts it on over her right hand. The glove fits snug against her slimy skin.
Click. “Lady Dethbryte?” Click.
She plugs the cable into the port located on the fat roll underneath her chin. She inhales deeply, feeling the power of the glove surging throughout her body. She slithers over to the desk and grabs the walkie-talkie.
Click. “Don’t worry about me, blah. I can take care of myself.” Click. She tosses the walkie-talkie back on the desk and slithers over to the window, waiting.
● ● ●
With the alarms sounding and the safety lights flashing, Vandenboom and his Damned Dirt Devils abandon their vehicles and ready their weapons. Krebb opens his glove box and removes Qoser’s cue-ball eye. He kisses it for luck and stuffs it into a small leather sack attached to his belt.
No matter how lightly they step, the broken glass underneath their feet immediately gives away their positions. Luckily there isn’t anyone within earshot that can hear it.
They spot an elevator at the end of the hall and quickly run over to it. Vega hits the call button, but the elevators have been disabled. Krebb and Gluum check the steel doors leading to the stairway, but they are locked as well.
“ I could hack into the system and override the alarm, but I’d have to find a port or a direct connection somehow,” T-Dakk says.
“ I think I can manage that,” says Vega, surveying the drop-ceiling. He reaches up and pushes aside one of the ceiling planks, revealing a series of wires stretching across. “Oh, definitely.”
Vega jumps and pulls himself up past the drop-ceiling. He removes a small blade from his belt and begins to slice through the wires, pulling and loosening them from their ties. He manages enough slack so they reach T-Dakk on the floor below. T-Dakk studies the wires, tossing aside the ones he doesn’t need and bundling up the ones he does. He strips the protective plastic from the wires about two inches back. He then twists them together along with the exposed wire of a hacking tool connected to his laptop.
As Vega prepares to hop back down to the floor, a sliver of light catches his peripherals. It appears to be coming from the top of the elevator cab. He pulls himself across the ceiling, his back to the floor, using the
All three men speak in unison, “Is this your ostrich, sir?”
TWENTY
GOING UP
Jools Dethbryte frantically types in a numeric code on a dial-pad located in a secret location against her back wall. The dial-pad beeps and the keys glow green, releasing the lock on a secret vault door camouflaged perfectly behind a large mirror. Dethbryte pulls back the mirror revealing a small rectangle-shaped cavity inside the wall. She reaches inside and removes its contents: a glossy bright pink hat box .
She sets the box on top of her bed, just as the lights click off. She is in total darkness now—but only for a few seconds. The safety lights flicker on and the alarm sounds. BLAARP, BLAARP, BLAARP, BLAARP, BLAARP! The alarm blares like a trained seal honking a bicycle horn with metronome-like timing—except as if it were amplified through the speakers in a baseball stadium.
The faint sound of static hums from a walkie-talkie sitting on the desk in the corner of the room. Click. “Security has been breached! I repeat—security has been breached! Lady Dethbryte, we are sending up our men to help you evacuate the building immediately. Please remain calm. We will have the situation under control soon. Over.” Click.
Dethbryte lifts the lid off the hat box, seemingly not too worried about the security breach. She pulls out a black velvet bag from inside.
Click. “Lady Dethbryte, do you copy? Over.” Click.
She reaches into the black velvet bag and pulls out a grey and black rubber glove—a Nintendo Power Glove. She puts it on over her right hand. The glove fits snug against her slimy skin.
Click. “Lady Dethbryte?” Click.
She plugs the cable into the port located on the fat roll underneath her chin. She inhales deeply, feeling the power of the glove surging throughout her body. She slithers over to the desk and grabs the walkie-talkie.
Click. “Don’t worry about me, blah. I can take care of myself.” Click. She tosses the walkie-talkie back on the desk and slithers over to the window, waiting.
● ● ●
With the alarms sounding and the safety lights flashing, Vandenboom and his Damned Dirt Devils abandon their vehicles and ready their weapons. Krebb opens his glove box and removes Qoser’s cue-ball eye. He kisses it for luck and stuffs it into a small leather sack attached to his belt.
No matter how lightly they step, the broken glass underneath their feet immediately gives away their positions. Luckily there isn’t anyone within earshot that can hear it.
They spot an elevator at the end of the hall and quickly run over to it. Vega hits the call button, but the elevators have been disabled. Krebb and Gluum check the steel doors leading to the stairway, but they are locked as well.
“ I could hack into the system and override the alarm, but I’d have to find a port or a direct connection somehow,” T-Dakk says.
“ I think I can manage that,” says Vega, surveying the drop-ceiling. He reaches up and pushes aside one of the ceiling planks, revealing a series of wires stretching across. “Oh, definitely.”
Vega jumps and pulls himself up past the drop-ceiling. He removes a small blade from his belt and begins to slice through the wires, pulling and loosening them from their ties. He manages enough slack so they reach T-Dakk on the floor below. T-Dakk studies the wires, tossing aside the ones he doesn’t need and bundling up the ones he does. He strips the protective plastic from the wires about two inches back. He then twists them together along with the exposed wire of a hacking tool connected to his laptop.
As Vega prepares to hop back down to the floor, a sliver of light catches his peripherals. It appears to be coming from the top of the elevator cab. He pulls himself across the ceiling, his back to the floor, using the
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