Prodigy (Complete)

Chapter Forty-Two

Aris opened his eyes and was relieved he had made it to the other side in one piece. He slowly stepped out of the matter transporter, checked his pulse for any irregularities that may have occurred during the transport, and made sure no one was coming after him. Everything seemed to be normal and as far as he could tell, his presence was unknown.

His mind was a little foggy at first as he was still collecting his thoughts, but after a few deep breaths, he re-established his mission objectives.

The ship was enormous, and despite only having looked at a smaller scale of it for a brief moment, Aris was confident he could find his way around. Based on his memory of the 3D schematics, he was able to recall enough of the layout to orient himself. Leaving the matter transporter room, he began to explore the craft.

The lack of personnel struck him as odd. He figured there would be dozens of maintenance crew workers or scientists walking around, but there was no one. It was reminiscent of the Leader’s palace.

Nearly every fifty metres was an elevator and a stairwell. As much as he would have liked to take the elevator, he did not want to risk what could be waiting on the other side when the elevator doors eventually opened. He also did not want to take the stairs because there would be no place to hide once inside the stairwell, but the stairs seemed to be the better of the two options.

“Sir, our security system has detected recent activity with the matter transporter,” Agent Archimedes said.

“Did you check the video feed?”

“It has been disabled, sir.”

“Have we been breached?”

“That has yet to be confirmed.”

“Then confirm it.”

“Yes, sir. I will get to the bottom of this immediately.”

Aris descended down several flights of stairs and aimlessly walked down a lengthy corridor, inspecting rooms along the way. He passed by a few people, but he kept his head up and walked with confidence as if he belonged there, and no one bothered him.

Once at the end of the corridor, he came across a cargo area. He felt snooping around the cargo area would provide him more insight about the mission. Plus, he felt like it would be the last place he would encounter any personnel so he would be left to his own devices.

Aris placed his hand on the scanner box and the door slid open. When the doors opened, they revealed a warehouse-sized room that contained several large marine tanks. Aris walked slowly throughout the room and peered into the various vats of water. Inside the different tanks were brightly-coloured tropical fish, large squid, dolphins, and some other species that he could not identify.

“What the heck is this place?” he muttered to himself.

Suddenly, Aris felt someone grab him by the back of the neck and lift him off the ground. He was startled and tried to squirm, but Agent Archimedes’ powerful hands gripped tighter, constricting his air passage. Aris’ feet desperately searched for footing as they dangled in midair. When Aris’ face started turning purple, Agent Archimedes decided to let him go. Aris dropped to the floor, gasping for breath. Once on the floor, he rolled under one of the large aquatic tanks. This maneuver did not please Agent Archimedes as he was too large to fit underneath the tank. The agent hurried around to the other side, but Aris was nowhere in sight.

Aris was in full stealth mode as if it were a real-life video game. Competing against the best guardian in the world provided a unique opportunity to test his wits. As a master gamer and strategist, Aris was up for the challenge.

The agent made a few laps around the room before cutting off the exit. He placed his hand on the digital panel, shutting the door and sealing them both in. Aris peeked from behind one of the tanks and saw what the agent was up to.

Agent Archimedes turned around, forcing Aris to take cover behind the large tank. Without a visual, Aris relied on his other senses. Amidst the occasional squawks and splashes of the marine animals, Aris could hear the sounds of Archimedes’ footsteps as he crept around the tanks. Aris took a deep breath before he made his move. As the agent’s footsteps came nearer, Aris scurried in the opposite direction.

Archimedes caught on to how Aris was evading him so he took off his access pod, placed it next to one of the containers, and cranked up some music. He then took off his shoes and crept silently around the large aquarium. Aris was wise to the tactic and figured the best defence would be to get as close to the music as possible since the agent would likely be making his way out from that point.

Aris crouched down low to peer under the tanks. Luckily he caught a glimpse of the agent’s movements as he navigated the room. As Archimedes moved, Aris relocated his position. Eventually they were on opposite sides of the aquarium. Aris was now standing by the agent’s shoes and access pod, and Archimedes was standing thirty feet away.

Aris picked up the access pod, affixed it to his wrist, and then tossed the agent’s shoes in one of the large squid tanks. Archimedes heard the splash and began running in that direction. Aris made a mad dash for the exit. Without bothering to reduce his speed, he slammed into the door and frantically placed his trembling hand against the scanner box. The door slid open and Aris bolted out of sight.