Elemorts

Chapter XXXI - Stab in the Dark

Doxonica fitted the last of the micro-injectors into her chip. She picked up the sonoprobe and applied it to it. A mental map of the chip formed inside her mind as she sensed the reflected vibrations. Finally got it right, she thought, satisfied.

She glanced around the empty dorm. Night had fallen, so she was already in her pajamas. She wore a yellow, knee-length nightgown with spaghetti straps over a short-sleeved turquoise shirt. She also wore calf-length, yellow socks.

Should I try it here or go back to my room? she wondered. She sat at her curved workbench tucked away adjacent to the wall. She was in the living room of their dorm at the Savvo Corporation headquarters. Rik had made special arrangements for the dorm to serve as the group's base of sorts as they planned the heist at the upcoming gala.

It was a spacious, round room with the gray wall becoming glass in its upper third, which continued to the ceiling. An aquarium could be seen through the glass, surrounding them on all sides except the entrance. Brightly-colored exotic fish roamed above the room as the seaweed gently swirled in their wake, casting dancing reflections all over the space.

In the center of the room was a depression floored with glass that revealed another aquarium underneath. When they had first arrived, Puff had relentlessly pawed and leaped at the unassuming fish before finally giving up.

The depression was decked out with sleek, minimalistic furniture fixed to the floor and subtly lit with dim strips of white lights.

To Doxonica's far right was a staircase leading to the wooden upper deck, where four bedroom doors were situated in an arc.

Although Rik had offered to have a lab in the facility reserved for Doxonica alone, she felt uncomfortable taking such liberties, which prevented her from being able to focus. Plus, she liked doing her work in the comfort of the dorm. Her Amphipod was still being repaired, so she couldn't use it as of now.

Everyone's gone, she thought. I'll just be quick. She picked up the vial of refined dragonsalt that had been procured for her. Using a pipette, she dripped some of it into an entry port on the chip. Next, she placed the chip on her arm.

Pinz burst out of her room on the upper deck with Puff scampering at her heels. She wore a soft red jacket and matching knee-length shorts, each with a navy crescent moon motif. Underneath, she wore a navy tank top with red trimming. Red ribbons fastened her pigtails.

She marched down the wooden stairs and made her way to the center of the living room. "Hey, Dox," she said as she settled into a white armchair behind Doxonica. "You still at it?" Puff proceeded to knead the armchair with her paws.

"Yes," Doxonica said with a sigh as she put the chip back. I can't do it with her here.

"That was my parents," Pinz said as she picked up her holopad, which she had previously left on the armchair.

"What was?" Doxonica said vacantly as she decided to refine the chip's components further.

"On the phone," Pinz replied. "I just got off a call with them."

"Oh."

"So infuriating!"

"What? Me?" Doxonica asked, flustered.

"Of course not, Dox! My parents! They were telling me how proud they were of me for helping all these people."

"That's... infuriating?"

"Yes, it is!" Pinz said, furiously tapping at her holopad.

Doxonica stretched her neck. Clearly, there's nowhere a girl can focus around here. She figured Pinz wanted her to ask more, but she chose not to respond and set to prepare another electrode.