White on Black

Chapter 12

"Hello, Harvey."

"Good evening, Karl. I suppose you can tell me what happened today."

Doubts fester in my mind. Should I tell him the truth? Or leave some of it out? Or should I just lie and say everything is ok? I take a deep breath and tell him what he needs to know - I don't want him to feel like I've failed him on the first day. 

"Well, I uh, I mean... Everything went quite well." I want to mention Larry SO bad, but I know that Harvey will drag me out of there before I try and make friends with people. Maria pops into my mind and I also want to talk about her too. Not a good idea. An awkward silence follows.

"Well?" Harvey responds. "I think there must be more than that. I want a detailed explanation, if you will."

I take a deep breath and explain Blood, the fight. I talk about the trainer's appearances. "Last of all, there's this, uh, key  in my trainer's pocket."

Harvey snaps to attention. "I want you to get that key. I also want you to interrogate and find out where that scroll is. Do you understand me?"

"Of course. Uh, Harvey, how am I supposed to do that?'

A pause follows.

"Check the third pocket of your bag. There are 2 vials. The blue vial is a forgetting chemical. The green one is the truth serum. Don't get them mixed up. You need to knock someone out and then drag them to somewhere secure. I recommend your ring on notch 3. remember, don't burn their retinas."

"Got it. Do I have a specific target?"

"Your trainer, Night, will do perfectly. Do this as fast as possible. And remember, keep a low profile."

***

I creep slowly, keeping my back down and my footsteps light. I finger my ring nervously. Water droplets drip from the ceiling. Drip. Drop. Drip. The tranquil silence is broken by nearing footsteps and distinct chatter. I quickly shrink into the wall and take shallow breaths. The shadow and my black suit camouflages me into the rock and I stand very still, trembling with effort. I see Poison and Night walking down towards me. Their shoulders brush and they jump. They laugh at their mistake and keep talking.

"Hey, Night," Poison begins. "It's a bit dark in here, right? I think we should get our flashlights."

"Agreed," Night answers. They both turn around to reach for their flashlights and I see my chance. I quickly duck behind Night and put my palm around her mouth and drag her down. She struggles, but I quickly pull her around the corner and twist up my ring. Her eyes widen, then roll to the back of her head. 

"Night? Night! Where are you?"

I curse under my breath and quickly start to run, dragging her along with me. 

"Night!" Poison shouts. I hear the click of a flashlight and the thumping of footsteps. I quickly  run towards a small opening on the side of the walls. My foot slips and I tumble down the slippery stairs. By the time I stop and my eyes slowly open, I am centimetres away from a cliff  face. I quickly scramble back into safety and eye the steep rock face. Night stirs and looks around her, confused. I jump up and strike her on the nose, hearing a satisfying crack. Blood drips out of her nostrils and down her chin. 

"Ungh," she says drowsily. I take out the green vial and force the liquid down her throat. She jerks uncomfortably and jolts upright. I bind her hands with rope as her eyes snap open. 

"I hate you," She seethes. Not after I make you forget, I think to myself. 

"Now, I want to make a few things clear," I say in a firm voice. "You don't have to get hurt. All you need to do is answer my questions."

"Never!" She spits. I grin. "Let's start off simple. What's your real name?"

She grits her teeth with rage, but keeps quiet. 

"Let's try that again. I nudge her closer to the cliff face. "What's your real name?" Night stiffens as the truth serum settles into her brain.

"I'm not allowed to tell," She counters. She starts to pant. 

"The more you resist, the more painful it will be." 

Night whimpers and gives in. "Nea Trobelo." 

"Good," I say, grinning harder. "The truth serum has taken effect. Now," I say, reaching into her back pocket and yanking out a brass key. I dangle it in front of her face. 

"Where does this go?"

"Give that back!" She hollers and tries to punch me, forgetting her hands are tied. She twists over in an awkward position. I cannot help but laugh. 

"Fine!" She bellows impatiently. "Fine. This opens to the control room door." 

"Where is that?" I ask politely, barely keeping the smugness out of my voice.

"It's five rights down your dorm, then up two flights of stairs." Her sterling grey eyes shine in the moonlight reflected off the waterfalls way down below. "Security is everywhere. You need special permission to enter, as well as facial recognition, finger scans and an iris scan." She lifts herself onto her knees and eyes me even more closely. "Whatever you're planning, it's never gonna happen." I smile down at her cruelly. "You underestimate me," I sneer, as I drain the blue vial down her throat.