3.20 Undercover Operations

The horn-less Unicorn continued to attract attention throughout the day, few could resist his handsome presence, many had questions about the myths they had been told, of the legendary and illusory horn.

         Bella and Bria were no exception, with great trepidation they squeezed their way through the crowd, trying to get  a closer look. The Unicorn was much bigger than it looked from afar, it's presence so majestic up close, the textbooks had done the animal little justice.

         "Why does his horn disappear?" Bria dared to ask, searching his forehead for a clue, all that remained was a spiral pattern swept in his fur.

         "It's not a horn" Vikkar explained. "It’s a manifestation of energy."

         "It's a Light science" Jasun elaborated.

         "Light science?"

         "Like… Lightning?" Bria wondered out loud.

         "Hmmm... No… It’s more like... The Northern Lights" he replied.

         The goddesses exchanged shrugs, neither of them knew what he was talking about.

In times of crisis, the Skin Club was a mandatory rest stop. Halios paused outside to read the drink specials and peer through the glass...

         Fed and inspired by what appeared to be a promising economic outlook for the New Empire, Adon headed back up the hill towards Headquarters, unwittingly tailed by Bell. As he neared the square he noticed Halios turn into the Skin Club. With barely a stall in his stride, he veered off course to follow him inside.

         "Aha!" Bell spotted the violation, the detour was revealing. The Skin Club was out of bounds for the aribu during work hours. It confirmed his hunch; Adon was an Insider… The fact that he worked in Gora meant he had Special Access Passes… What did Adon know?
         Slowly pieces of the puzzle were seemingly amassing… What connected the dots? The lab. The Soloha was an Undercover Operation playing out around him... This was why he was stuck moving boxes... This was why Halios wouldn't let them go to the courtyard... This was an operation he was being sheltered from... Then why would Halios ask him to keep an eye on Josh?

         The Skin Club was off limits to aribu during the day, however Adon knew it was just a deterrent, a verbal, selective law, he wasn't a god, however he was above the line, he had to be in his position. The club was quiet, the seductive beat was completely drowned out by the sounds outside, giving the place an uncomfortable feel. The smoke in the air made it even more uncomfortable, he didn’t like this new Soloha drug, it was toxic, mixed with wafts of perfume and old alcohol, it made him feel quite sick.

         As he wandered through the lounge he discovered the smoke was coming from the VIP table, apparently the gods were engaging in the recreational drug too, it explained a lot.

         "Adon!" Malodon was surprised to see him, he sat up.

         "Adon! Is everything okay?" Halios put down the pipe.
         He paid respect in smartest salute. "The lab is fine, it's almost all packed up now." He took a deep breath, giving his motives one last thought.

         "There's another missing box of Pineals."

         Halios sensed trouble right away. "What are Pineals?"

         "Pineal glands" Malodon reminded.

         "Dried, crystalized Pineal glands." Adon elaborated.

         "So?" Halios frowned, struggling. "Is there a sick rabbit eating them or something?"

         "It appears like someone is sabotaging or cashing in on the Crystal Program" Malodon informed.

         "Or hijacking it!" Halios sat up, understanding of their concerns now. With twelve Crystal Skulls being distributed throughout the New Empire this posed a real threat, given their historical family battles. "Since when?"
         "It's a recent thing" Adon explained. "We've lost six boxes so far. Torus is holding me accountable but I have no idea where they have gone! I know I documented them correctly, I always double check my work, you know that!"

         Malodon twisted his goblet around on the table, it was true, Adon was one of the best technicians in the Lab but someone had to take the heat and he was technically responsible for his lab.

         "Now don't you worry about Torus" he assured. "He's just doing his job, these are precarious times, let it play out. If you're not guilty, he won't be able to prove you are. Will he."

         "He says I have to prove I’m not! I don't understand why anyone would take them" he lamented.

         "My guess is they've been taken for private research, perhaps an expiring intern from the R&D lab thinks they can take over the world with a new slave race and forgot to sign them out. Find out which Expiree it is and Torus will be happy to remove your name from the list of suspects, I’m sure!"

         Bell noticed the smoke too, the second he opened the door of the Club. There was only one conclusion to be made: the gods were smoking it too! Angry about being kept out of the loop, he slipped into a shadowy corner booth close to the door. From there he could see a sliver of the VIP meeting. Thoughts raced, what were they discussing? Was the Soloha perhaps a part of the Farewell Celebration plan? A plan that went wrong? Why didn't anyone inform him? Was Adon secretly moving up in rank?

As if feeling his gaze, Halios turned around to look his way...

         Bell ducked back into the shadows a split second too late? His heart pounded hard now, he couldn't let Halios see him in the club… Then a horrible thought... Was Halios involved in the Soloha thing? Why would Halios deny him such information? Then another horrible thought. Was Josh in on it from the top? Was that why he was still wandering free?

         The truth was a bitter pill to swallow, his pulse had reached mach speed. Halios obviously knew about the drug before it hit the streets... He was the one who TOLD Halios about the drug HIMSELF! 

         Shocked, angry and confused, Bell slipped out of the Club and hurried back to the Hub to meet his crew, fraught with troubling assumptions and possible explanations tumbling through his mind. Was that why Torus's crew had been sent to help move boxes? So they wouldn't get in the way of a Drug Op? No soldiers, no security in the Grand Courtyard... Everyone wasted… Given the Coming War scenario, the picture was becoming clear; Someone was planning a coup! The more he thought about it, the more it made sense!

         He hurried down the steps to the Underworld, determined now to find out which god it was. He had no idea what was going on but he knew it was big. He began amassing the clues. Josh and Adon had an inside gig… This thing was coming from the lab… What did Nolan know? Who was he really working for? Did Atalon even know what was going on? Maybe there was more going on in the Firmary than he really knew....

         What if this was an opportunity presenting itself? He had seen things lately… Maybe Halios was ready to be replaced...

         As Below, So Above… He paused to consider the wisdom of the plaque, what a different view an opposing viewpoint could have. Suddenly it all became so clear; this was Opportunity, Knocking, so long as he played his cards right.

         "Ha!" He chuckled as he realized his fortunate insight was likely spot on. The god of War certainly wasn't doing a very good job of protecting the aribu from dangerous Sorcerers! Everyone in Atlan could see that today! Not only that, he was sitting in the Skin Club, getting high on Soloha! He had waited his entire career for an opportunity like this. This was his chance to save the day!