R.O.N.A.

Chapter 12

*Sephora*

The building that had seemed so small from far away now loomed in front of Aris and me.  At this close proximity to the building, I realized just how extensive Thaeoul’s headquarters really was.  Rather than having many floors, the building appeared to have only four or five stories.  However, the levels were huge, unlike the R.O.N.A. building which had numerous, yet small floors. The building reminded me of the size of department store, only doubled.  From here we could see the intricate lines of red Tamine flowing decoratively through the face of the huge establishment.

After studying it for several seconds, I became thoroughly impressed.

“Sorry,” I said, “You were saying something before weren’t you?"

She seemed to want to say something, but she must have changed her mind. “Nothing, I’ll tell you later,” Aris finally said, “Let’s get to this.”

“Okay!”

We moved a bit closer to the building, being cautious to make sure there were no guards in the area.

I pulled out my scanner, glad that the two friends, who helped Aris and me, had transferred the map to each of our portable scanners.  That way we could have the map at the touch of a button.  I pulled it up and made sure to triple check everything before putting it back in my utility belt.

“I hope this works,” I said anxiously as I pulled a slender cylinder, similar to a pen, out of my belt. We moved in a bit closer and spotted out the three motion sensors before I aimed the beam from the tool in my hand at one of them. The intense heat from the particles slowly melted through the outer case and then suddenly the sensor exploded.

Scared that someone may have heard it, I flinched at the sound and then took a quick glance around the area with wide eyes. When I saw no one, I relaxed a bit and started on the second and third sensors.

“You did it!” Aris cheered as quietly as possible.

I smiled back. “Now on to the ventilation shaft.”

We carefully made our way to the side of the building and studied the entry to the shaft. It was held in by four peculiarly shaped bolts. I quickly whipped out a tool and started removing them.

“I think someone’s coming!” Aris whispered frantically as I was taking off the last bolt. My hands shaking, I tried to finish as fast as I could. The figure turned the corner, but thankfully Aris and I were able to slip in the shaft just in the nick of time and set the cover back in behind us.

I held my breath as the robot passed. I waited a moment before slumping a bit, relieved that it hadn’t noticed us.

            “Few! That was a close one!” Aris said nearly inaudibly after the robot passed.

            “Yeah,” I answered and took a deep breath, “Let’s press on.”

            Aris nodded in agreement and we silently made our way down the shaft. It was just wide enough that we could turn to each other, but also just narrow enough that we couldn’t make our way down it side by side, so Aris followed my lead.

            At a junction in the vent, I quickly pulled out my scanner and looked at the map before turning down the left branch. After only a trichron or so, I pulled out the map once more and realized that we were in perfect position. I listened intently to see if I could hear anything from below, but I heard nothing. I motioned to Aris, but she signaled that she didn’t hear anything either. Noticing a small knob on one of the ventilation tiles, I carefully turned it. It revealed slits that opened into the room below. I crouched down a bit lower and peered through the tiny openings.