The Voyage

1. Lone

08:26.

Erebus felt like he had been waiting a lifetime. With only four minutes to go before his plan set into action, he felt nothing but guilt for what he was about to do. Months of meticulous planning, all came down to this one, crucial moment. If one slight thing was out of place, all of his efforts would be completely wasted. His palms sweating, he checked his watch once more.

08:27.

He couldn't wait much longer. Since 06:00 he had been in position, waiting for his moment to strike. His legs started to shake, his hands rubbed together, ready for the hell he was about to go through.

08:28.

If you saw Erebus in the street, you would see nothing but an ordinary guy. That's exactly what he was. An ordinary guy. However, only one thing set him apart from everyone else... his determination to succeed.

08:29.

With every second painstakingly moving past, Erebus gathered his thoughts. He knew his next task wouldn't be easy, he knew that he would have to work hard. Yet all that went through his head was one solitary thought.

'Wealth'

08:30.

As if right on cue, the sound of sirens began to approach. Erebus knew that his plan was already in action and nobody around him had a clue about what was going down on the other side of town. Only he knew what had caused the commotion that had mobilised emergency vehicles to speed past him down the street and around the corner. Perfect.

Confused, the cacophony of voices around him speculating what had happened to cause such a response engulfed his mind. The exact buzz he needed to feel...

Alive.

With one last glance at his watch, Erebus set into motion. His feet starting to move him, he stepped towards the best building he knew.

Security cameras, guards, civilians. The three main assets Erebus needed to focus on to be able to pull off the biggest job of his life. The cameras, easy. He had already hacked them, and they were under his control in minutes. Civilians, even easier. He knew the people of this city and he knew they wouldn't even dare to contradict someone with as much power as he was about to possess. The guards would be his toughest challenge, with one steady hand, Erebus reached into his jacket pocket.

His most prized possession. From a very young age, Erebus had been skilled with a pistol, from simple target shooting to more complex agility courses, he definitely knew his way around his piece. Two guards near the door, two guards on the balcony above him. He knew this wasn't going to be easy and he knew there would be certain risk to his mission. The one thing he told himself was that he would rather die than be caught by the hands of the police.

With one swift movement (and four precisely aimed shots) all four guards dropped. Not even a second later, Erebus was focused on the civilians in the bank. Screaming, crying, running, he knew he had to do something. With one bullet into the ceiling, with four simple words, everything was under control. "On your fucking knees" seemed like the most natural thing for him to say. Civilians all around the building instantly lowering themselves to the ground. With one push of a button, the whole building entered lockdown, making sure nobody left, but more importantly, nobody got in.

He was content. For the first time in Erebus' life, he was happy with his actions. His purple hair glistening under the white lights of the bank, his piercings and tattoos on show for everyone to see, everything had all gone to plan. Well, everything except one slight anomaly.

Pacing towards the centre of the room, Erebus had not anticipated one major thing that had happened in the short moments he had entered. Standing in the middle of the lobby, by himself was one man. tall, lanky, dressed in all black, with short brown hair, sharp green eyes staring Erebus down like a tiger ready to pounce.

Erebus knew he couldn't predict everything and knew there would be some hitches along the way. Approaching the man, with a smirk on his face, Erebus was ready to make an example of the fool who had decided to go against his order.

The one thing Erebus hadn't anticipated, the one little detail that never crossed his mind...

He reached the man standing in the centre. With no emotion on his face, Erebus reached for his gun, ready to show everyone how he handled rebellions and revolutions in his plan.

There was just one tiny problem.

Erebus couldn't even have predicted what was about to happen. Every little part of his plan was coming to his mind, his vision was clear and he knew exactly what he needed, and how he was going to get it. That was until...

*click*

That was until the barrel of a gun was put to his temple...