The Species of Power [Draft 1]

Chapter 31

One of the benefits of having the title that Eryx had was that you were invited to any and all events that concerned the Species of Power. He never attended the events, but he wasn't to be questioned if he showed up. His job was simple; to accompany Miranda to the banquet. That way it would be easier for Miranda to sneak Ruth inside. The goal was to leave no trace of Ruth behind, meaning that this mission was purely stealth; no shadow weapons allowed.

It was an elaborate party. A complete black tie event. People arrived in black cars and limos; flaunting their best jewelry and designer clothes. Ruth watched from afar as Eryx and Miranda entered the banquet in their formal attire, along with the rest of the guests. Eryx had worn a simple black and white tux, while Miranda had worn a forest green dress with black lace over top. She added a bit more fluff and shine to her normal pixie haircut; Ruth was jealous she of how quick Miranda could achieve a formal look. Ruth was wearing a full body black suit that covered her entire body; everything except a thin slit for her dark eyes. As expected, the place was crawling with Shape Shifters and Children of Rage, which worked to their advantage. There was no way that Ruth's presence would be sensed among members of her own kind. When they were inside Ruth headed straight toward the entrance Miranda had directed her to go.

Miranda had told her to sneak in through the garden, where she climbed over the stone walls to enter. In the center of the garden was a beautiful circular fountain. All around her there was a display of multicolored flowers and rose bushes that looked to be extremely well cared for. By the entrance,there were two Children of Rage boys who stood as guards. They were young, and obviously rookies. Ruth remembered doing missions like these in her early days of field training. Getting by them would be easy; she knew she could do it herself, but she had to follow Miranda's orders and stick to every step of the plan. So Ruth concealed herself and waited for Miranda to deal with guards.

Moments later, Ruth saw Miranda appear in the entrance. She was holding a glass of wine and she looked like she was about to topple over. She looked like she was in a intoxicated state of delight. Ruth watched as she approached the boys, and drew their attention towards her.

"You," Miranda said, pointing in the general direction of both of the boys. "Why aren't you at the party?"

"Um," one of the boys said. "We're on guard duty."

"Duty?!" Miranda said. "Nobody should be on duty!" At this point the boys had their backs turned to the garden. Ruth seized the opportunity and slipped by them. Miranda then toppled over, and the boys immediately rushed to help her up. While the boys lifted her up she didn't stop laughing. Once Ruth was out of sight Miranda stumbled back in to the party. Ruth was impressed; Miranda was a fairly convincing drunk.

Since hiding in the ballroom wasn't an option, Ruth had to blend in with the kitchen staff, where she had a direct entrance to the ballroom, and it was closest she could get to where they stored the crossbows. This time Ruth didn't need a diversion to slip by, however she did need a disguise. Ruth broke into the staff area and found a server uniform in the locker Miranda had arranged for her ahead of time. It was a classic uniform; a white buttoned down shirt, with black dress pants and a black vest. Along with the uniform, Ruth found green coloured contact lenses and a (surprisingly) convincing looking blonde wig, that reached the same length of her jet black hair. She slipped her uniform on over top of her suit, stuffed the mask of her outfit in the pocket of her pants and put in her contact lenses. Ruth saved the wig for last; and when she was done she looked in the mirror that hanged on the locker door. She went from Ruth Mayhem, to a blonde haired green eyed server name Tiffany, according to the name tag. It was scary how much Ruth reminded herself of Samia. 

"Seriously?" Ruth had asked Miranda during the planning process. "This is the elaborate plan? Old school spy movie clichés?"

"I have an appreciation for the classics," Miranda had said. "Besides, it's so stupid that nobody would think anything of it."