Play of Shadows

Chapter 50: Ghost Carnival

The call to assemble came in the early hours of the morning. Ann stifled a yawn as she shuffled to the elevator, already in her VR suit. She had spent much of the night tossing in her bed like a landed fish. Even so, her mood was stable. Action suited her better than sitting still.

The same could not be said for Amanda. The tech trailed a step behind Ann, head bowed over her pad as she ran diagnostics on Ann's suit. The grim-faced officer that rounded off their party kept glancing the woman's way, unnerved by her nonsensical mumbling.

The elevator opened into a familiar hallway. Ann's stomach dropped, but she did not dare drag her feet. She followed their uniformed guide through the security checkpoint, Amanda stumbling blindly behind them. The officer led the way down a sloping path, delving even further underground. By the time they reached a heavily-secured door, Ann knew what they would find on the other side.

They walked into a vast, open space. The ceiling was so far above their heads that it could not be clearly seen. In the distance, a row of walls rose like a house of cards. Behind hid the honeycomb of corrupted player pods. The glow they emitted made the emptiness around them seem darker in comparison.

Ann tilted her head up, briefly glancing at the glass walls of the observation deck directly above them. She then focused on the men and women waiting for their arrival. Barton was also naturally present, as was General Hull. She even spotted Senior Developer Sipos. The man was engaged in a one-sided conversation with a younger tech, so deeply engrossed that he noticed neither Ann's arrival nor the fact that his companion's eyes had long glazed over in boredom.

Alexander and his put-upon bodyguards were conspicuously absent.

"Looking for someone?" Amanda asked.

Ann pulled her eyes away from the hive of researchers and uniformed personnel. "Are we the first ones here?" she said, pretending that she had been searching for the other players.

"The meeting time is set for nine," the officer spoke up, tone a little meaningful.

It was just after eight. Ann looked at Amanda with raised brows.

The woman flushed but did not back down. "So what, we're a little early! You held up everyone last time. Do you want a repeat? A grand entrance? Hmph!"

Amanda stomped off. Ann watched her go, amused despite herself.

"Miss Sufort, this way please," the officer bid.

Seven massive VELES pods loomed nearby, flanked by the busy personnel. Barton broke from the congregation to meet Ann and personally lead her to her assigned pod.

"Thank you for your diligence, Miss Sufort. We are ready to begin as soon as the team is fully assembled," she said.

Amanda had reappeared at some point. She handed her pad to Barton with a disdainful glance Ann's way, as if whatever complaint she was about to make was somehow Ann's fault. "I can't get a good baseline from the suit. Let's hook her up and check the sync, since we have the time."

"The fluctuation is within the expected range for a remote diagnosis," Barton said. Nonetheless, she approved the test sync under a better-safe-than-sorry policy. The upcoming mission was simply too important to risk even the smallest disadvantage.

"It will not take more than a few minutes. Once you are ready, please come back down and join us for a pre-departure brief," Barton instructed.

Ann watched the woman closely. She had spent no small amount of time thinking up ways to ask Barton about the young NPC sprites that allegedly shared her name. In the end, she held her tongue. Nothing good could come from provoking the woman at such fragile time, whatever Barton's intentions.