While peering at the stores and repair shops in the east gate district, Elyas' attention fell onto a particular cafe. On one of the tables set outside, shielded from the miniscule amount of sunlight by an umbrella, sat two familiar faces.
Julius wore a dapper creamy colored tuxedo and to Elyas' amazement, was sipping his tea with perfect etiquette. In front of him sat Angelica, her blond hair fluttering along with her light cyan dress matching her earrings.
He wasn't the only one staring either. A few customers or passerby slowed down or turned, stealing glances at the unusual couple. A few men even got a slap from their dates for looking at Angelica for too long.
"Well I'll be damned, the couple know how to dress." Elyas muttered under his breath as he picked his way to greet the giants.
Julius, noticing him approaching, immediately put down his cup. "Can't I get a break from you?"
"What?"
"Nothing, just nothing…What do you want?"
Seeing that the giant wasn't pleased with his presence, Elyas tried to keep it short. "I need your help with the enrollment test of the Protocol."
At this, Angelica turned, giving him a concerned look. "You want to join? Ely, I'm sure this grumpy cat of a man has already complained enough about the job, but you still want to join?"
Elyas nodded. He was well aware of the horrible pay and work hours, but that meant nothing to him. He just wanted to join for the residential records. After I get what I need, then I'll make up my mind if I want to stay there or not.
Seeing that Elyas was serious about this, and wanting to enjoy his quiet morning with his wife, Julius told him all he needed to know. "Okay, so the earliest test is two days from now and happens on the backside of the first floor. To get—" Elyas cut him off.
"What do you mean by the backside of the first floor?"
"Ely, did you never notice that the first floor was smaller compared to the rest? It's because it's split in two. One side for public use, another for the Protocol to access. The latter is the backside. To get there you need to find a marked pillar in the far back and walk inside the wall in front of it." Angelica explained as if it was common knowledge.
"Ummm, alright. But where do I go to fill out the forms? I can't just barge in two days from now and say I want to be in the test, right?"
"The fifth floor." The giants exclaimed in unison.
After asking a few more questions and getting them to write him a few pass tickets, he bade the couple farewell and headed for the D.E.B. As he left, he could see from the corner of his eye, the baffled expression of Julius. He looked surprised to be left alone this quickly.
Elyas had to. He hadn't slept that much last night, meaning he was short on time. I'll get this sorted out and spend the rest of the day in the void, experimenting with the runes and the windows. And with that, he rushed to town square.
…
The Protocol has seven floors. The first two are accessible by the public and for the rest, you are required a pass ticket. But even with a ticket, some floors are still inaccessible. Floor three is guarded by several Defenders at all times, making sure no one passes through. Elyas wasn't sure why that one in particular had such a high level of security, but he didn't mind it.
His destination was elsewhere. Ignoring the heavily guarded asphalt slide connecting the second and the third floors, he strode near one of the walls. There, sat an elevator with a single sentry.
"Hey pal, I gotta stop you right there." Said the elevator guard. "Do you have a ticket bud?"
"Yes, here." After receiving the ticket, without even giving it a single look, he walks back and places it in the hands of a humanoid clay statue. The clay figurine examines the piece of paper in its hands. After a while, the orbs of glass acting as its eyes blink green.
"You can go." The Defender says as he pulls the sliding door away and gestures for me to enter.
After stepping inside and pressing the key, the elevator door retreats to its original place. As it starts to move, a familiar tune begins to play. "Huh, they have elevator music." Elyas found it interesting that technology hadn't advanced that far despite all the available knowledge. Considering that the Librarian's whole job was to collect and keep information, he found the current level of progress to be rather lacking. But hey, it worked just fine for now.
Who knows, I might be able to utilize my knowledge of modern technology to make a profit. There's only radios, plays and magazines to fill one's free time… yeah, I can definitely make improvements in the entertainment industry. As he was planning to become the first Hollywood executive of the new world, the elevator stopped, and the door groaned open.
The warm light of the elevator stretched across the tiles of the floor, illuminating just a fraction of the hallway. This floor had been completely renovated. If it wasn't for the first floors, Elyas would have had a hard time believing that this was a parking lot.
He stepped forward, his shoes' tapping echoing loudly in the quiet hall. The darkness latching onto the walls had turned them gray, and made patterns on the wallpapers turn unnoticeable. As he walked further down the hallway, Elyas soon came to a realization.
He wasn't the only one making sound.
Down the hall stood a single pair of doors and from inside, came the sounds of blades against skin and flesh. But as he approached, his worries ceased entirely. He had found what he was looking for.
"Forensics Lab."
Elyas had come down to the fourth floor instead of the fifth for this one room. He felt like he hadn't been convincing enough yesterday, so, he came to make an impression. But as soon as the door opened, he found himself the target of a hateful glare.
"Sir, what are you doing here?" A woman spoke. Her colorless face alongside the dissected body beside her was lighted up by the harsh light above, giving her a haunting quality.
"I need to ask you to leave sir, this area is for staff only." She said, rapidly approaching. Within a second, she was face to face with Elyas, her colder breath gracing his skin and her sharp eyes piercing his soul.
This… is this the best she can do?
To calm her a bit and buy some time, Elyas decided to act intimated. "A-alright lady, just give me a second." At this moment, a man with graying hair walked out of the red room in the back. Seeing the uncomfortable man confronted by his coworker, Gen called to her.
"Lena, leave the young man alone, I know him."
"But he's a hazard—" Just as she opened her mouth to refute, Gen raised his hand. From his open palm, a mouth opened and a dark goo-iy substance lunged out, heading for Elyas.
What the—!
The substance extended far and wide, forming a giant maw with rows upon rows of teeth that were facing Elyas, threatening to bite down. Before he could react or even use his speed to dodge, the mouth closed on him.
"Don't struggle, it doesn't hurt you." Gen said, willing the goo to pull taut on Elyas' body and cover everything in a thin, shallow barrier. Elyas clawed at his face with real panic, but the substance didn't budge, holding firm and choking him relentlessly.
Gen raised two fingers and poked the air, creating two small holes in the barrier and finally allowing Elyas to breathe. And breath he did. He drew a long, heavy gasp, his panic subsiding. As if he had been submerged under water and could now taste the air, he greedily and with haste inhaled all he could.
What's wrong with these people?! First that annoying child and now this guy… Are all my future coworkers going to try to kill me?
Unaware of the harsh criticism flung his way, Gen turned to Lena. "He's not a contagious hazard anymore." Seeing that she was still looking at his visitor with her usual harsh, questioning look, Gen sighed. "Lena, could you do me a favor and go fetch some blood samples?"
"Blood samples? But we already have—"
"Now. Please." Gen didn't say anything else, and he didn't need to. Lena left the room without any other objections.
Gen then turned to face his visitor. "Sorry for the trouble…Forgive me, but I never got your name. Could we be properly introduced?"
That was a lie. Noah had called his name In front of the man before, Elyas was sure of it. So, he figured Gen just wanted to appear well-mannered. From this little observation, Elyas narrowed down the actions he could take in his presence. He wanted to leave a good impression, and part of that was getting the silent approval of the other.
"My name is Elyas, Elyas Mortalle Mister Gen."
Gen nodded. "Nice to meet you Mr. Mortalle, can I ask the reason for your visit?"
"My friend Joshua asked me to come here and inquire about the case's progress. Mainly anything regarding his manager's murderer. I believe he personally wants to thank the culprit, but who knows, maybe he's angry he didn't get to do it himself."
Gen laughed, "Good, good. A young man with a sense of humor, I thought your kind was extinct! All the ones your age are just too occupied with how they appear to enjoy some levity."
Too occupied with how they appear huh… Only if you knew old man, only if you knew. Elyas mused to himself as he widened his polite smile. "Exactly! I couldn't have said it better myself. But as much as I like to say that I'm here by his request, that would be a lie."
Gen raised an eyebrow. "If not for him, then why are you here?"
"Oh, don't get me wrong sir, I am here to get news for my friend, but that's not all I'm here for. Since I've been down on my luck in finding an occupation, I've decided to join the Protocol."
The middle aged man's face brightened for a moment before his excitement died down. Noticing this, Elyas asked, "What's the matter Mr. Gen?"
The man placed a hand on Elyas' shoulder. Not a hint of humor was in his eyes as he stared into his.
"Whatever you do, don't become an Enforcer."