It was beginning to look bleak. What hope would we have in times like these?
"Will it ever change?"
Echo was staring unblinking at the green light on the very top of the television tower. The world was filling with mist from the bottom up and the night that slotted into the spaces between weren't helping with visibility at all.
"Is it supposed to?" Cascade whispered up to Echo, ashamed he didn't know.
"Hell if I know." Echo turned around to Cascade. Their arm twitched in indignation, it's wires and inner workings stressed against it's owner.
"It should do..." Cillian narrowed his eyes at the light. "Soon."
And then, perfectly on cue: the light went off. It's surprising how much it was helping them see, and they were plunged into darkness for a couple seconds till Echo shook awake their torch.
"Damn thing, needs new batteries."
"Okay. We're off. You guys should-"
"You didn't bring more batteries?"
"They wouldn't fit in my bag, I brought the laptop!" Echo basically stage whispered.
"You guys-" Cillian attempted to shush the both of them, but he wasn't the most authoritative when they were arguing.
"Is there no storage in your freaky fake arm?"
"I'm sorry when it got blown off my first thought wasn't to ask for a battery compartment."
"Well, that's your oversight. If I-"
"Oh my god, shut up. Both of you. We are currently on top of the biggest news center in the known world and our plan is not going to work if you ruin all the effort I've taken in turning off their communications by immediately alerting them that we're here with your incessant bickering!" Cillian regained control of the atmosphere, then took a moment to regain the same control over his breathing.
Echo let go of the tower and dropped next to Cascade's awkwardly hovering arms. "Due for a module check up in a week. I'll be sure to let the doctors know."
Cillian glared down at them. They shut up, but shared a glance.
Offering his hands up, Cas brought Cillian down to the rooftop floor.
"In: plans, numbers for Cas- the fucker; out."
"We know." They replied in unison, like kids on a school trip.
One of them only agreed to this plan so they could spend time on a cold rooftop on a misty night, the perfect scenario that leads to a cybernetic arm getting the weekly big cooling it needs without having to take it off, one of them agreed to the plan on the account that the lottery numbers for next week were pulled off the scripts along with the plans that had been triple stolen by Cillian's arch frenemy, Jo-Jo Kingston; Cillian made the plan.
Echo's real job on the roof had begun. Two bobby pins released their hair, some of it came with the stripped metal heads, but most of it was still in tact. The lock was indecipherable, by Cillian's standards, having no flashing lights or a motherboard, but to them: It was as simple as a slice of pie with whipped cream.
They were in.
Well, after some more hushed judgements from Cascade, upset shushes from Cillian and quiet focused grumbles; they were in.
Cillian darted straight into the writer's room.
Cascade leaned on the doorframe. He was a king of leaning like he had nowhere to be.
Echo crouched low, next to the doorframe. Echo was a monarch of crouching like it was more comfortable than sitting.
"How much did you lose then?"
"I actually- didn't. Don't tell Cillian, but... I'm about to pay him back with a two hundred percent turnover."
"Why?" Echo scoffed. "Pay him back, keep the rest for yourself. You in love with him?" They paused but didn't stop. "Honestly that would make more sense; you guys are completely different."
This was interesting to hear, since Cascade saw him and Cillian as basically the same people with different colour palettes. Or closer even: two different shades of the same colour.
"I think I'd know if I were in love with him." But then Cascade actually took a full breath in and realised he was categorically bad at identifying his own emotions. "I'd hope he'd know."
"If you were in love with him?"
"No, if he were in love with me. I wouldn't blame him, obviously." Cas looked down, with that same horrendous smirk, and locked eyes with Echo. "I'm very lovable."
Their eyes could've rolled out of their head; but he was right.
"Wouldn't blame you either." He winked. He actually winked.
"I don't have a response for that. I don't have a response for most of the things you-"
Cillian dashed back out, with another stage whisper. "Go!"
Jo-Jo just looked disappointed, but he was running- as fast as someone who clearly doesn't really care can, so 'go' still seemed like a good idea.
They came up through the fire escape, but as Jo-Jo did this round sort of move in an attempt to grab Cillian's messenger bag, I think he might've been falling, but he caught himself, and blocked the way. Down the windowsills was the only real route.
It was a bad idea. But they had to go, so Cascade took his jacket off, tied it around his waist, and dropped off the edge like he did it everyday. Cillian followed. Echo, trapped by the other side of the round move, ended up reclimbing the tower and hiding in the non-green darkness.
Who knows if it worked. It was usually a while till the necessity for them all to meet arose, and Jo-Jo liked Echo more than he liked Cascade. It was hard to tell how much he liked Cillian.
After a grand pursuit, in which Cas and Cillian ran for about an hour longer than was needed- Jo-Jo gave up quite easily- they stopped at The Wrong Turn for a drink and the good news.
Except Eugene wasn't there. Myriad was working, and the new bartender, Arlo, wearing a bored frown the size of the Mariana trench, was drying the last glasses of the day.
"Where did Echo..." Cascade trailed off and walked behind the bar.
The new bartender went to stop him. Myriad waved him away nonchalantly. "It's fine, he basically owns the place."
Arlo wandered into the back in response. Too many cooks, or something.
"They fully disappeared. I'm not sure."
"Drink?" He was already pouring himself a whiskey over ice.
"Water." Most people are mostly water. Cillian was almost completely water, Cascade had never seen him drink anything else. "Well, it's lucky. They didn't have anything important on them, usually they hold my heavy stuff when we go out."
This was the moment when Cascade realised he was the third wheel in this mission. It was the lowest moment of his modern life. Okay that's dramatic, but so is he.
While Arlo and Myriad closed The Wrong Turn around them, Cas and Cillian drank their respective drinks, talked about the money he'd won and waited for Echo.
Eugene had the plans in his mailbox by 4am the next day. Along with a CD of Cascade singing horrible karaoke in the street, you can tell from the sound quality that it's being recorded on Echo's player they left at The Wrong Turn before going on the mission, you can also tell from the quality of the singing that Cascade was on their fourth whiskey; at least.
The Turners were a month away from being completely ruined by the best security system Cillian had ever built.
They wouldn't even know it happened. Hopefully.
Hopefully.
