Valence

Prologue

The night is gloomy, the moon looking like it has lost its bright demeanor. There are no stars, as dim grey clouds float across the naked sky. Darkness falls over the trees, giving the forest an eerie semblance. The rain has slowed down to a faint drizzle, rain drops pour slowly down the leaves. The thunder claps loudly, bullying the animals of the forest into silence. The air is cold, the wind chilling to the bones.

A stranger emerges out of the forest onto the narrow tarred road that passes through the forest. He is wearing a black coat, a black hat rests on his head. He walks over to a black Bentley Flying Spur with tinted windows parked by the side of the road.

As he approaches, the door to the driver's side opens, a young man in a black suit steps out. He stares at the man, his face void of expression causing the man to growl his displeasure at the lack of respect, then gestures for him to get into the car.

The man saunters over, his jaw clenched, dark gray eyes shielded from view by the hat, scrutinizing the exterior of the car. He pulls the door handle,settling into the leftside of the backseat and pulls the door shut. A man dressed in a three-piece ash suit is already occupying the right side.

"I see you bought a fancy car with my money", he tells him. Anger evident in his tone, his gaze fixed outside the window.

The man in suit clears his throat, adjusting the knot of his tie but doesn't respond.

"State your business", his tone still cold.

"I brought an offer", the man in suit speaks confidently, clearly not intimidated by the coldness he was giving off.

This gets his attention as his gaze shifts to the man in suit, just a few outlines of his features can be seen in the dark.

"The last offer you brought did not end so good for me. What makes you think I would consider this?", he states matter-of-factly. His eyes getting darker in remembrance.

"I will have you know the company itself deliberated on this and decided you should be a suitable choice as you are willing". He takes a break,speaking professionally. "Don't you want to compensate for last time?",the man in suit says, throwing the question at him.

"Compensate for last time? You owe me", he spits angrily.

"We both know that the outcome of last time was inevitable", the man in suit chides softly.

"Inevitable", he scoffs, with disgust. He definitely isn't ready to let the matter slide as he was at the receiving end of the 'inevitable' incidence.

The man in suit sighs. "Consider this a way of making it up to you then". The man in suit pauses, continuing when there was no objection. "It turns out the project you provided us has some flaws and glitches. We heard from a reliable source that the scientist had programmed and saved an upgrade on a hard drive and was going to give it to another company before he died"

"So that's why you need me", he interrupts.

"He told none of his workers the location of the hard drive but we believe his family might know something. You are most likely the only one who can get to them, that's why you are the man for the job".

"We are ready to pay you double the prize of last time's deal". His eyes peer up at that, his gray eyes glinting. "Well, that is if you are ready for what the job requires", the man in suit adds.

"I will do whatever it takes to get what I want", he gloats.

"Good then. My assistant will mail over the necessary details. You are expected to commence immediately and get the job done as soon as possible. You surely know what happens if you fall through". The man in suit tells him, the threat obvious in his voice.

He nods stiffly.

"Good". The man in suit smirks.

"That ends this discussion. No more meetings, whatever that needs to be said will be done over the phone. Is that clear?", adjusting his tie once again.

He looks at the man who was clearly enjoying being in charge here. He was only keeping quiet for now until when he can make his true intentions known.

"Crystal", he snarls lowly.

He hops out of the car and slams the door behind him. Hands in pockets, he watches the young man of earlier get in and start the engine. The car zooms off.

He looks up. The night sky is sour like it's a portent of what's going to happen in the future. A wicked grin on his lips, he whispers into the dark of the night.

"I'm back".