Dante was on his way to Theo. It almost seemed as though luck was finally on his side. It was hard to believe that after two long weeks, he finally had the chance to grab Theo's keycard.
If everything went well, the plan would work. If.
He wasn't a thief, but a warrior – yet in this situation, he had to act like a thief. Fortunately, he didn't need to crack any locks, just steal the card without drawing attention. Had it been necessary to force his way in somewhere, he probably would have had to give up quickly. The thought of relying on his dexterity while also taking the risk of breaking in was simply too dangerous.
The plan was simple, but risky: distract Theo, steal the card, and then search the archives. But he knew that this task would be far from easy. After all, he was far from blending in as an inconspicuous lab technician or office worker. Thanks to his massive build and muscular physique, anyone who saw him would immediately know that he wasn't your average office employee. He would have to think carefully about what he said if he were caught. Either he had very good excuses ready, or the plan would fail quickly.
But that wasn't all. There was also the challenge of searching Helios' lab. The young man worked tirelessly, and over the last two weeks, they had only seen each other during their shared meals in the lab. Dante had hoped that the gunshot wound Helios had suffered a few weeks ago would force him to rest more. But the injury seemed to have no effect on him, and work continued as if nothing had happened. Dante imagined that the important information would be kept in Helios' office or lab. It would be disastrous if such sensitive data fell into the wrong hands. What if there were more people like him? He didn't even want to think about how catastrophic that would be.
But he could worry about that later. First, the archives were the priority. Later, he would take care of Helios and Vale once he had the right keycards in hand. His best chance was Thomas' card. But unfortunately, he couldn't search Thomas, Helios, or Vale first. Doing so would risk his trail being discovered quickly – whether he stole the card from Thomas, Helios, or even Vale. Such an approach would rob him of any chance of finding something concrete for his case.
Helios would probably figure out what he was doing far too quickly. Dante had to be extremely careful.
Ding!
When the elevator reached the 80th floor, Dante found himself in a completely different world. In contrast to the sterile, almost clinical lab floors, this one was decorated in warm, inviting tones. Paintings hung everywhere, and large potted plants created a pleasant atmosphere. It seemed as though this floor was designed for people to relax. Dante assumed that case studies were conducted here, focusing on people who needed a break after stressful days or difficult decisions.
The relaxed atmosphere was good for him. The stressful day had unsettled him, but as he walked through the halls, he noticed how his inner restlessness gradually began to subside. The big question was, though, where was Theo?
After a few minutes, he came across two young men who were engaged in an animated conversation, holding hot coffee cups in their hands. Dante approached them. Maybe they could tell him where Theo was. The coffee in their hands gave him an idea. Shortly after, he too had a steaming cup in his hand and knew where to find Theo. The coffee was freshly brewed, still incredibly hot – exactly how he needed it.
He made his way toward the open doors, and within moments, he had found Theo. The young man was standing in an office, completely absorbed in the documents he was holding. A clipboard with many papers, some of them turned over. Theo was muttering softly to himself as he flipped through the papers. Dante immediately noticed that Theo looked far from refreshed. He had deep bags under his eyes and didn't seem to notice Dante's presence as he approached.
This was perfect.
"Hello, Theo," Dante said loudly as he got closer.
Theo jumped and, startled, dropped the clipboard. A loud curse escaped him as he quickly bent down to pick up the scattered papers. While Theo was distracted, Dante quickly placed Helios' documents on the table and positioned the hot coffee in such a way that it would fall if someone tugged on the envelope.
Theo's keycard was also lying on the desk.
Dante crouched down next to Theo and helped him pick up the papers.
Poor Theo. It must really be tough working under Helios. Part of him wanted to apologize to Theo, but the circumstances left him no choice. It wasn't personal. He just had no other way to get the card he so desperately needed.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," Dante said as they gathered the papers.
Theo jumped again and gave him a nervous glance. It was obvious how tense he was, a bundle of nerves. The hand that he nervously ran through his hair trembled slightly. He was still wearing a ponytail today.
"N-no problem," Theo stammered, trying to regain control. "I was just lost in thought."
"Busy?" Dante asked in an interested but casual tone.
Theo let out a nervous laugh and nodded. "Pretty much. The paperwork is just overwhelming." He briefly looked at Dante before continuing to place the remaining papers into the stack. "Dante, right? You were with Helios last time."
"Exactly," Dante confirmed. "I'm his new bodyguard."
Theo looked at him with a smile. "You already know me, I'm Helios' personal assistant. Or rather, his handyman." He chuckled and placed the documents on the desk. "What brings you to me, Dante? Though I probably already know why you're here."
Dante seized the moment to point at the envelope from Helios that was lying on the desk. "The aforementioned paperwork. Helios asked me to hand you the documents," Dante said, swiftly ripping the envelope from the desk.
"Careful!" Theo exclaimed in surprise.
The cup flew off the desk and raced directly toward Theo. In shock, Theo bent down to catch it. Dante simply let it happen, hoping that Theo wouldn't burn himself too badly. The coffee had cooled a bit by now, so he thought it would be okay. But when Theo's hand touched the cup and he couldn't catch it, the hot coffee spilled over his hands. Theo's white lab coat was immediately soaked, and he screamed in shock.
He curled in pain, clutching his burning hands. Dante quickly glanced around to make sure no one else was present and grabbed the keycard that was on the desk. Without hesitation, he hastily stuffed it into his pocket.
"Did you hurt yourself?!" Dante shouted, with all the alarm he could muster.
Theo inhaled sharply and rubbed his reddened hands. "It just stings a little," he groaned. "But of course, this is just typical. Today's just not my day."
"Damn, it's my fault!" Dante immediately apologized, genuinely feeling remorseful. The coffee had apparently been hotter than he expected. He felt guilty for Theo getting hurt because of him. He rubbed his neck awkwardly. "I placed the cup so stupidly that you got hurt."
Luckily, it seemed that Theo hadn't noticed the keycard was gone.
Dante helped him clean up the mess a little while fighting with himself internally. His guilt gnawed at him. But at the same time, he felt relieved that Theo had been so careless and he now finally had the keycard in his hand.
After a few more apologetic words about the situation, Dante made his way back. He felt the relief of finally having the card rise within him, but the guilt still wouldn't go away.
He stopped the elevator on the archive floor. As he entered the hallways, he immediately noticed the system with which the archives were divided: medications, distribution, case studies, and materials. In another room, it seemed everything was related to accounting and finances. Dante decided to first take a look in the room with the medications. Maybe he'd find a clue there. Afterward, he wanted to check out the case studies and distribution lists – they could be important too.
What he hadn't expected was that the archives were surprisingly not very well protected. Every door had a security lock, but there were no guards patrolling this level. Dante quickly looked around to make sure he was really alone. Then, he took the keycard from his pocket and held it up to the security lock. He held his breath as he waited for the lock to open. A soft click sounded, and the door opened.
His heart was pounding in his chest. He was far too excited. He quickly stepped into the room, flipped the light switch, and closed the door behind him.
He had to take a few deep breaths to calm himself before he could move on. Once he had somewhat regained his composure, he looked around in awe. The room was huge, much bigger than he had expected, and it didn't seem particularly organized. Files and documents were scattered everywhere. The shelves were crammed, but chaotic – papers and binders were stacked on top of each other. It didn't look like a well-maintained archive.
"Damn," Dante cursed. He didn't really know what to expect here, but this room exceeded all his expectations. He wondered if the archives were so empty and disorganized because no one really cared or if it was a deliberate mess to confuse unauthorized people.
It would take hard work to find something useful here. But Dante was determined to search through everything. Any clue could be important, and the question of how far he needed to go to uncover the truth didn't matter to him in that moment.
He glanced quickly at his watch. Only a quarter of an hour had passed. Helios had given him permission to look around, so he still had some time – maybe another half hour before he had to check back in.
Dante turned his attention to the shelf on his left. He had to start somewhere, and he knew he couldn't put off the work any longer. The room was enormous, and the shelves were packed with files and binders. It was an overwhelming sight, but he couldn't just give up. He had no other choice.
He had come up with a strategy: first, he wanted to look for clues about the medications, as they might be connected to what had happened to him and the others. But the sheer volume of material in front of him made him feel almost helpless. How was he supposed to sift through all this information without missing something important?
With a determined step, he walked over to the shelf and pulled out one of the binders. He quickly flipped through the pages. It was a list of medications, but none of the formulas or information he had hoped for. Unimpressed, he set the binder aside and reached for another. He didn't have much time, so he mostly skimmed through.
He glanced around the room at all the binders waiting to be looked at. He sighed.
This was going to take a while.