Slow and Speedy Win the Fight

70. Independent

Sheldon

Helicopters weren't easy to come by and if there was any place where antiheroes and villains alike could get their goods, it would be the old warehouse next to the docks.

Instead of my complete villain attire, I opted for a cloth mask and a beanie as I scanned my surroundings. The water was still, the nightguard seemed to be sleeping at the gate, and the only other signs of danger were just raccoons that skittered across the road.

I took a step forward before hunching over with my hands on my knees. I had let Rudra convince me to eat too much and I was now facing the consequences.

I sucked in some air through my teeth and tightened the straps of my backpack. I better get this fast and over with if I wanted to actually sleep tonight. I never understood how heroes could do their daytime stuff while running around at night to crime fight.

This was the only place I could think of and if it wasn't here then I was out of ideas.

I walked past the guard with my head lowered and made my way toward the back entrance. I checked the back door by jostling the handle and was disappointed to find it locked. I suppose they learned from the time I broke in to steal one of these things an hour early before my rental time.

I looked up to see if there were any open windows and sigh when I see there weren't. Time to do this the old-fashioned way.

I riffle through my bag and get out a grappling hook. If I wasn't trying to be sneaky, I would've used my jetpack but this would have to do. I loaded the hook into a makeshift gun before launching it into the window breaking the glass and it bouncing off the ledge, flying back to the ground.

Well, fuck.

I jumped back to avoid the shards of glass and hook while I adjusted my glasses hoping it would protect my eyes. Think, think, think.

I gave a quick scan of the area and saw a tennis ball laying on the ground. I quickly threw the ball into the window and wiped my forehead. Hopefully, they'll think some rich asshole busted their window.

My eyes scanned the building again to see if there was any other place that I could gain access to. I could go through the window I just broke but I'm not a big fan of being cut by glass.

I readjusted the grappling hook and aimed it at the roof. There had to be something on the roof.

After a lot of struggling and effort, I was able to reach the roof with my face covered in sweat. The more villain acts I perform, the more I realized how out of practice I was. It took just as much effort to make my way inside the building but I managed to keep my composure. I can moan about how much everything hurts tomorrow. I just need to go inside, grab the rental records, and get out of there quickly.

I gave a quick glance at my surroundings and made sure no one was around. I was on a raised platform with railings guarding the edge of the platform. If I crept towards the edge and looked down, I would surely see the lower floors including the area where they kept the helicopter. There was only one door towards my left and I twisted the knob only to find it locked. Out of the smallest pocket of my bag, I took out my multitool and began to sift through the options.

Once I settled on a satisfactory option, I began to work on the door. Just as I was about to give a final twist, the door opened and I saw that someone was standing in the doorway.

I jumped back. I jutted out my multitool in front of me and squinted my eyes at my opponent. If I had to come back another day, I was going to be so pissed.

"Sheldon. I thought you were at home."

I raised my multitool higher at the sound of their voice. "Haresa, are you here to foil me again?"

"I literally just said I thought you were at home," they said it in a way where they tried not to yell. "I'm not being smug here, I'm genuinely confused. How did you even get here?"

They clearly weren't dressed in their usual hero attire as they had a black hoodie on with black sweatpants to match. They even had tinted sunglasses on. I doubt they could see anything at night but that was their decision, not mine. If they didn't speak, I wouldn't have been able to recognize them since it was so different from their signature hero look.

"A better question would be why you're here."

"I'm investigating the show off incident, of course."

I paused before folding in the multitool and putting it into my bag. "Hm, of course."

I began to walk past them but they quickly caught up to me. "Aren't you going to explain why you're here?"

"You're not the opposition to my goal tonight so I don't owe you a monologue."

They had shut up for a bit and the only sound that could be heard was our footsteps as they followed me. My agitation grew with each step before I spun around.

"Why are you following me?"

They almost crashed into me from the sudden halt. They took a tentative step back and had their hands raised to the shoulders as if they were caught in a crime. "I'm guessing our missions have the same goal and we'll probably have to do teamwork paperwork after this—"

"No," I said. "No, no, no. This is independent work. We just happened to be here at the same time and doing related research. That's all."

"So, you're investigating the incident at the show off too?"

Shit.

I turned back to my route and found another locked door. I continued to do my work and I could feel Haresa hovering over me the whole time.

"Believe what you want. But I'm not helping you, and you're not helping me." I unlocked another door.

"So, you don't need the records of all the helicopter rentals from the past month or so?"

I resisted the urge to bang my head against the door at that moment and just let the door open soundlessly. I took a quick glance at Haresa to see if they were still there and they had their eyebrows raised in anticipation.

I mumbled the answer and they leaned toward me.

"What?"

"I might need the stupid document too."

"So, we have to do teamwork paperwork."

I was about to sigh dramatically when the distinct sound of a helicopter's blades whirring echoed through the hallway.

"Did someone rent out the chopper?" Haresa asked, eyes fixated on the direction it was coming from.

"No idea, but we need to grab the document fast if someone is renting it out tonight."