In Memoriam - An Unus Annus Fanfiction

20.01 - 01/20 - We cryogenically freeze ourselves

Luís felt as bad as he looked. Dark circles not even coffee could fix had formed underneath his eyes. The last 48 hours have been rough ones. He hadn't slept since the nightmare. Instead, he had used the time to talk with as many people who had contact with Mark as he could.
The results have been more than sobering. Everyone had either been strangly busy, or completely unreceptive to what he wanted to discuss with them.

Then again, he was acting on a hunch here. All he had was the feeling that something about this new channel of Mark was off. He couldn't put his finger on it, but a cold shiver ran down his spine when he thought about it. The returning nightmare, combined with Rachel's rather strange behavior, was enough to ring his alarm bells. Or perhaps trigger his paranoia, depending on how this whole situation panned out.

He knocked on the glass door. A muscular man appeared in the unlit room on the other side. He spoke through the closed door.
    »We're closed.«
»Sorry to bother you.« Luís tried to stay as professional as possible. »I'm a friend of Mark, can I talk to you for a second.«
The expression on the man's face became more receptive. He unlocked the door, and let Lixian in.

   »I'm Alex.« Lixian's hand seemed to vainsh in Alex's massive palm.
»Luís Costa. You may know me as Lixian.«
The man shook his head apologetically. »Don't think Mark ever talked about you.«
Typical. »I'm his editor. Well, sometimes at least. They filmed with you today, right?«
   »Yeah. Is this about today's video?«
»Exactly. Could you maybe show me what you did today?«

Alex shrugged. »Sure. Right this way.« He led him into a backroom, in which a large metal cylinder was placed. The temperature shift from the entrance to this room was massive. Luís shivered, watching the white fog that welled out of the cylinder.
    »You sold them to Jabba the Hutt?«
Alex barked a laugh. »Close. They tried out Cryotherapy.«
»I see.« Time to get to the grain of why he was here. »Has he been acting strange lately? Mark, I mean.«

Alex scratched his brow. »Strange? No. Why?«
Luís tried it keep his voice casual. »He's been kind of distant ever since he started with Unus Annus. I'm just worried about him, that's all.«
Alex shook his head, a definitive motion that didn't leave any room for further questions. »You're a good friend, but Mark's been, well... Mark. Not stranger than usual.« He mustered him, cocking his head to the side. »But you look real bad. Is there anything I can do for you?«

Luís thanked him, but politely declined. Something tugged at his mind, telling him that he was in the right place. But he wouldn't get anywhere right now.

Alex made sure that Luís was out of earshot. He locked the door, turned the light off and retreated to his office. He took the phone from his desk. It rang once, twice, three times.
Finally, somebody picked up.
   »Hey, it's me. Another editor just questioned me about Mark. Do you know a guy named Luís Costa?«
He waited for a response. »He's not affiliated with you? Alright. Watch out for him.«

He hung up, staring at the screen. Images of Mark and Ethan flashed before his eyes. He smelled the smell of disinfectant, and hospital air. The rhythmical beep echoed through his ears. Once again, he wondered if he did the right thing.