The Curse of Gold II: The Curse Lives On

Chapter 5: Investments

           It had been six days since the coffee date. Alana never came out of her apartment since. She was testing out the suit. She knew what buttons to correctly push after she had made a call with the colonel.

          The suit was a little skintight. Though stretchy, the suit was impermeable to radioactive liquids. Belt straps were attached. The straps were for carrying ammo, weapons, and other equipment.

          Alana found the button to push to activate the holographic clones. It looked like a protection for the palm. When Alana pressed it, five clones appeared on both of her sides. They were in a curved pattern to avoid suspicion from the enemies. The eyes of replicates followed the direction of the original. Guns would not be shooting real bullets since the only goal of the clone suit was to stall the opponents.

          Alana was busy pushing buttons. 'V-formation,' "What's that?" Alana asked herself. Alana had been busy all week that she forgot the food package Lewis sent a day ago. The food -- Chili Egg and Sweet Cheesy Noodles was -- fortunately, wrapped in aluminum foil so the food would last longer. While Alana had practiced her knife skills with the holographic clones, she heard a knock on the door. She quickly ran to put on her trenchcoat to hide the suit. Opening the door, she saw her neighbor, Mara, with a worried look.

          "Hi!" Alana said nervously.

          "Hey there, Alana. Sweetie, I just want to know if you're feeling okay. You haven't left your house since, darling. Look, you didn't even tend to your delivered food."

          "Oh yeah! The food! I told Lewis to give this to me."

           "It's okay, sweetie. What's keeping you busy?"

           "Oh, just some piled-up work. Nothing much is going on. Coffee is water now."

           "I'm sure you can get through that! Sweetie, if you're feeling something, just tell me, okay? I live two blocks down."

            "Thanks, Mara. I will," Alana said. When she closed the door, she let out a big sigh. Then, Alana remembered about the food. Opening the door while crouched, she saw the feet of a man. Alana panicked. She slowly pulled out her knife. Alana didn't want to look at the man's face. Then, she attacked.

             The man later grabbed Alana's hand and let her fall onto his arm. It made the trenchcoat lose and drop on the floor, which revealed Alana's suit. When the man finally took off his mask, Alana glanced at him. It was Lewis. Before Alana could process the whole situation, Lewis said, "It's time, Alana."

Next Chapter:
The Plan