Lance and Adam carefully made their way to the opposite side of the floor they were on, intending to use the stairwell closest to their destination.
“This has got to be Bartholomew Midas waiting for us, right?” asked Adam nervously.
“I mean... who else would it be?”
“Or at least someone representing him,” Lance said as he peeked around a corner.
He moved forward to check the next hall, then motioned for Adam to follow. They ascended the stairwell and followed a directory to find the conference room they had been summoned to. The doors were closed, but a green light informed them that the door was unlocked.
“Well… here we go…” Lance said after a deep breath.
He carefully opened the door, revealing a deceptively high ceiling and a wide open space. Rounded tables were set in each corner, focusing on an advanced holographic projection in the center of the room. A fashionably dressed elderly man stood before an active projection that displayed various security feeds from around the facility, an ornate cane with a round glass-like orb at the end of it supporting his stance.
“The floor was cleared for you. This area is locked down so we can have some privacy,” the man spoke.
The doors closed behind the two automatically and the sound of locking mechanisms sounded.
“Bartholomew Midas I presume?” Lance said tentatively, though he knew without a doubt who it was.
“No need for such formalities, dear boy…” chuckled Midas.
“While this room is secure, for your own sake we won't bother with such trivialities as names and the like…”
He turned to face them, a knowing glint behind his spectacles.
“Not that I don't know who both of you are… it wasn't hard really to put things together,” he said with a smile.
Adam was about to say something, but Midas raised a hand and cut him off.
“Don't worry, your secret is safe,” Midas said with assurance.
“And that knowing is part of why I called you here.”
He took a step forward and made a gesture with his hand. The holographic display shifted and suddenly there were a multitude of images and videos showing Lance and Adam in action.
“Where are all of these from?” asked Lance.
“I founded and own the company that produces the most advanced technology in the world,” Midas said.
“Anything and everything is at my disposal, including surveillance throughout the city and algorithms that feed anything I want to see… up to and including social media posts of a pair of young men taking the law into their own hands.”
Lance tensed at the statement, though he knew it was the truth.
“I would presume as well that with such technology, you could see exactly why we are doing this?” he asked defensively.
“Of course! Do I seem like such an old fool to not notice the corruption that is happening right under everyone’s noses?” Midas countered.
“The incident at N.A.U. wasn’t even the beginning! You know this. You’ve seen what Mythos is working on firsthand!”
Midas took a deep breath and shook his head.
“Suffice to say, there is a lot more work that needs to be done, and I believe you will need all the help you can get,” he continued, his head bowed pensively.
“You may even want to consider putting together more of a team than operating alone with just the two of you.”
Midas waved his hand again and the hologram shifted to a generic display of the Midas Corp. company logo.
“In the meantime, I am offering you my resources to give you the edge that you will most definitely need in the times to come,” he said as he looked at each of them.
“Consider it a bottomless check for anything and everything you may need for your endeavors.”
Adam and Lance looked at each other in shock, further speechless by what they had just been told.
“What’s the catch?” Adam asked, recovering only slightly from the surprise.
Midas shrugged.
“Save the city. Return us to what New Atlantis was envisioned to be from its conception.”
“Thank you, sir…” said Lance.
“We will try.”
Midas nodded.
“Now… you will receive a message tonight for further instructions,” he said.
“Otherwise we need to get the two of you out without the police seeing you.”
Lance smirked.
“And I presume you have a way for us to do this?”
Midas smiled mischievously.
“Of course, my boy! Follow me.”
He led them out to the opposite end of the conference room and down the hall to a point that felt like the center of the floor they were on. A large mural portraying a Greek-inspired scene of an ancient-looking king holding out his hand was painted across the wall. Midas placed his hand on the king’s outstretched palm and a line appeared around the figure. The wall slid apart within the border, revealing an elevator behind it.
“Super secret elevator!” Adam exclaimed.
“Nice!”
“This will take you to the sublevels below the Midas Corp. complex,” Midas informed.
“I have already programmed the lift to go to a sublevel that will be best for you to make your escape, and from there you should be able to find your way home.”
Lance nodded and extended his hand.
“Thank you for your help, sir.”
Midas reached and shook his hand.
“Don’t mention it,” Midas replied.
“Let’s just say, had I been in your position, I’d presume you would do the same.”
Lance and Adam entered the lift, which closed seamlessly behind them and quickly made its descent into the base levels of the city.
“Wait!” Adam said suddenly.
“What about the creatures? How are we supposed to get samples of them now?”
“I think we need to chalk this one up to a miss,” Lance said as he leaned back against the elevator wall.
“Besides, by the time anyone could get to them, they might have evaporated… if their remains behave anything like those of our previous encounters.”
The elevator finally completed its descent and opened into a well-built tunnel that was large enough for three people to walk side-by-side. As they entered, lights came to life above them and along the base of the walls, illuminating the path ahead. They moved with intent, but more out of urgency to finally be finished for the night more so than out of concern for their safety. The tunnel eventually connected to a service tunnel that ran through the main areas for each sector of the city and from there they took familiar routes to return to Lance’s apartment.
Having returned exhausted but safe and undeterred, they removed their gear and stowed it. Slumping over different chairs, they sat in silence, waiting for the other to make a comment on the night’s events.
Adam suddenly perked up slightly.
“So does this mean we are getting a secret lair?” Adam asked.
Lance rolled his head to the side to look at him.
“Maybe,” he said.
“A ‘bottomless check’ from the most wealthy man in New Atlantis can buy quite a bit.”
He grinned.
“Who knows, might even get that super hero car you were asking for.”
Adam pumped his fist excitedly.
A light beep sounded, signaling a notification on Lance’s computer. He turned and saw that it was for a message.
“Sector Three. Dock 25. 0800 hours.”
Lance read the message out loud, then turned to Adam.
“It sounds like our benefactor has given us our directions.”
There was a long pause, the two each in deep thought over the night’s events.
“So… I’ve been thinking a bit about what he said last night…” Adam said after a while.
“About the whole team thing.”
“What about it?”
What if we go by a different name that we can associate ourselves with -- one that represents our crime-fighting business if you will…” Adam continued.
“Like a team but with almost a corporate name that allows us to be a moniker that represents us as the defenders of New Atlantis… like… Vigilantes, Incorporated or something…”
“You want to give us a business name?” Lance said with a tired laugh.
“Is that a bad idea? I can go back to the drawing board…” Adam said.
“No, I actually kind of like it,” Lance stated.
“It has a nice ring to it and provides a bit of levity to what we are doing.”
“Vigilantes, Inc.…..” Adam said with a satisfied chuckle.
“We might as well make business cards to go with it.”
“Business cards might not be a bad idea,” Lance added.
“Though I’m thinking of something a bit more electronic, like a digital calling card for when people need our help. Besides, even with our new ‘funding’, a giant spotlight in the sky is a bit too comic book cliche anyway.”
We’d have to be careful about those though…” Adam said.
“We can’t just go passing them out to anyone: no need to have kids prank calling us.”
“In spite of tonight, your brother is actually the first person who came to mind as an ideal recipient of such a card.”
“Yes, he would! He would never know when he might need a little extra help,” Adam agreed.
“Well that’s what we’ll do then,” Lance said.
“Lt. Chase, maybe the mayor, and a few other prominent first responders. We can tap into the emergency network as well and install the card’s program into it so we receive the same alerts.”
Lance paused and smirked.
“Do you have any idea how much more trouble we could get into for all of this on top of what we are already doing?”
Adam thought briefly.
“Hmm… life in prison without parole for operating outside the law, piggybacking federal and law enforcement communications, and beating the daylight out of criminals… Naa… we won’t get into that much trouble!”
TO BE CONTINUED…
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