City of Light

Chapter One

“To the King eh old friend?” Glasses clink in the near empty bar as Lucius and Petrelli drink to the good health of their Oppressor.

“Don't even get me started on the bastard,” Lucius replied, “ I don't wanna be pacified for treason.”

“Hey watch yer mouth! The King's done more for this country then your sorry ass ever will.”

“No doubt.” Lucius pointedly turned his face from Petrelli, burying his face in the alcohol before him. He was drunk enough to hint treason, but still knew not to pick a fight with Garmand's Second.

“The fuck is wrong with you buddy?” Petrelli shifted his not inconsiderable weight to face Lucius full on.

“You think you're better than me or somethin'? Some kind of badass? Just because you were the First of the Guard doesn't mean yer shit now.”

“Wow quite the speech Pete. How many weeks it take you to memorize that one?” Lucius kept his tone calm, though his speech still sounded a bit slurred.

“Fuck you! I'm a fuckin' Angel now, so you better show me some fucking respect!”

“Such language, good sir, is not appropriate for public speech. I'd advise that you... I'd advise...” Lucius lost his train of thought and felt slightly angry. The liquor was a bit stronger than Lucius expected, he'd never had much of a head for alcohol. Petrelli threw himself to his feet, Lucius looked towards him blurrily, just in time to receive a fully drawn fist to the face. Pain exploded into darkness.

When Lucius awoke he found his head and thinking clearer, if quite a bit more painful. Observing his surroundings, he realized he was in Stasis. Lucius had thrown a lot of protestors to wait in these rooms, but he'd never been on this side of the field before. He wasn't quite sure how the tech worked, but he knew that a man could be in Stasis for weeks, and be released merely hours after capture. Something about speeding up brain function or some technical jargon. Lucius never did care to listen to scientists ramble on about the hows. As long as it worked, Lucius was happy. A bar fight would most likely gt him a night in Stasis, real-time, so Lucius could look forward to about a week. A quick look at the wall confirmed this. “You have 6 Days 16 Hours 54 Minutes until release” was blazoned on the wall in large crimson letters. He'd been out for a while. Thinking back to the bar scene, he came across a strange unfamiliarity in the conversation. Petrelli had said he was a member of the Angels. Lucius had never heard of any group or unit by that name. Could be a new unit, a mercenary company, hell maybe it was just an “I Love the King” fan club. He decided to check it out as soon as the Stasis ran down. He was a civilian now, he had to look out for any threats to his existence, which included new King related groups. Lucius laid back down on the fairly comfortable bed. Man but did his head kill.

“ALARM ALARM! CODE RED SECURITY BREACH DETECTED! CODE RED SECURITY BREACH DETECTED!”

“Hol... What the fu..” Lucius jumped out of bed. Alarms were blaring loudly. His time in Stasis was replaced by a sign stating the Code Red emergency level he was in. The cool female voice also calling out this message continued over the high pitched screeching.

“ALARM ALARM! BREACH IN LEVEL BZZZZT” Lucius was left to wonder exactly what level the breach was on as the voice ceased to exit in a buzz of static. Unfortunately the alarms kept up the volume, that is until their speakers were blown off the wall. Or, more accurately, the wall was blown off them. Lucius leapt out of the way of the flying debris, and covered his head with his arms.

“Clear!” An unfamiliar voice called. Lucius heard the sounds of footsteps behind him, and rolled onto his back to get a look. A troop of heavily armed soldiers were filling the room, holding large energy rifles. They wore the same tight-fitting body armor of the Guard, but in a muted gray rather than the customary white. The soldiers stood to attention as the sound of clicking heels came from the next room, and a heavily robed figure swept into the room.