La Façade des Plumes

Chapter XI - Isley Swann

May 28th, 7:58 am (16 years later)

Throughout the building, every hall remained silent. Everyone exchanged nervous glances. The erratic energy kept everyone on their toes. Frantically, some stared at the clock, watching each second ominously tick by. Others stared at the elevator, fearfully waiting for it to ding.

The receptionist fought to silence her timid breath. Putting on a warm smile, she glanced down under the desk to see her young son still fascinated with his toy ball. She ran her fingers through his thin blond hair while keeping her eyes glued on the elevator. "Of all days, you picked today to bring your son?" a colleague whispered. "Not my fault my sitter bailed on me!" she shot back. The colleague shook his head, grabbing a pen from her desk before writing down his signature, "You-..."

The phone rang loudly, abruptly pausing the room. "Unknown," the caller ID read. Hesitantly, she picked up the phone while everyone stared. "H-hello?" she whispered. The line remained silent as she and her colleague stared at the call time. "...9...10...11...12...13" the line went dead.

Lowering the phone to her neck, her hand rested on the child's head. The elevator dinged. Everyone stared, watching the floor level rise. Tears emerged from her eyes, watching the elevator grow closer to the top floor. The colleague kept his head lowered, forcing himself to read the words on his stack of papers. Finally, the elevator stopped.

Everyone shielded their eyes, listening to the doors slowly split open. A tall, dark figure emerged from the elevator, swiftly walking down the hall. The receptionist raised her eyes, seeing he was staring back at her. Tinted, glass lenses over his eyes reflect her image like a mirror. His mask looked similar to a raven's face as his dark uniform covered him from head to toe with daggers draped all over his body. The hilt of his sword peered ominously over his shoulder as if its eyes stared her down as well. She raised her hand, pointing at the office down the hall. Before he could turn his head, he felt something bounce against his foot.

Looking down, a small, plastic ball, resting between his feet. The receptionist's eyes fell to her child, running toward the ball. "OH, MY-..." she gasped, running around the desk only for the colleague to grab her, preventing her from going any further. Frozen, everyone stared at the two, leaning forward with anticipation.

The child froze while his eyes traveled from the raven man's feet up to his masked face. He stared in amazement, shifting his gaze to the metallic claws on his gloved hands. The boy remained stunned with curiosity as they both tilted their head at each other. Cautiously, the raven man knelt before the child, handing him the ball. Smiling, the boy accepted his plastic toy, "Thank you," he whispered, lowering his head in shyness.

Suddenly, the boy was swept off his feet and into his mother's arms. The ball fell from his hands, rolling to the other side of the hall. The receptionist buried his face within her neck, shivering at the raven man's cold, empty stare. Sighing, he continued down the hall while the receptionist and her colleague retreated behind the desk. His inaudible footsteps declared an internal war of fear and curiosity, leaving everyone debating to either raise or save their head by keeping it lowered. Security guards pressed their spines against the wall, creating as much distance as they could. Eventually, the cold hallway grew warm from the sweat of the bystanders.

Quietly, as the raven man approached the door, the guard locked eyes with his mask, blindly searching for the knob. Pushing the door open, the guard quickly stepped aside, ignoring the cold sweat that slowly trickled down his spine. The raven man paused, snapping his head to the guard. Slowly, he leaned closer, inhaling the guard's pungent scent. "The morning won't last forever," a female voice called out from the office. Leaning away, the raven man stepped into the office leaving the guard releasing his deep, long-held breath.