The Museum Raid

That man had a strange knack for getting under my skin. Picturing his face, I ground my heel into the pack of cigarettes lying on the ground. Crackle! A tiny spark of blue electricity flared, incinerating the cigarettes instantly. Stepping out of the alley to avoid the rising white smoke, I made my way toward the museum.

Despite the massive commotion earlier, there was no sign of movement from the museum. I ran toward the truck the man had approached earlier, waving my hand. Crackle! A blue light rippled through the air, forcing all the nearby security cameras to pivot away.

"Hmm..." Bzzzz. My pocket vibrated. I pulled out my ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠phone to check, but it wasn't Amy. Instead, it was a list of missed calls from Shine and Rain. Seeing over a hundred missed calls in such a short span of time sent a shiver down my spine. Swallowing hard, I answered the phone.

"He—"

A high-pitched scream nearly shattered my eardrums. Clutching my throbbing ear, I hastily pulled the phone away.

"Shine..."

"Where Amy went. I'm in front of the museum."

She was absolutely furious. Shine's fiery wrath radiated through the speaker. Cold sweat broke out on my forehead, and I squeezed my eyes shut.

"W-Well... it's just, you guys didn't seem all that interested in the mission..."

I shut my mouth, unable to argue with the voice coming through the phone. Wedging the device between my shoulder and cheek, I began rummaging through the truck. Rustle, rustle. The interior was a mess, littered with delivery invoices. Whoever drove this clearly wasn't big on cleaning; trash was crammed into every nook and cranny.

"Yeah... I'm listening," I replied, letting out a soft sigh.

Instantly, Shine's voice sharpened.

"N-No! It's just... I'm a bit tired..."

I didn't really have an answer for her. I felt a bit drained, to be honest. Keeping those thoughts to myself, I continued searching the truck. But I couldn't find anything of note. At best, there were a few peanut snacks in the glove compartment and an empty cigarette pack. I slipped the peanut snacks into my pocket anyway. Who knew? They might serve as crucial evidence later.

Having finished with the cab, it was time to check the cargo hold. Hopping down from the driver's seat, I glanced back at the museum. Even though I had redirected the security cameras, not a single soul had crawled out. Something had definitely gone wrong inside.

"Yeah, I'm waiting," I replied, walking over to the cargo hold. The doors were wide open, making it easy to peer inside. It was a vast, empty space—just a standard cargo truck. There were some scuff marks on the floor, but otherwise, it was completely ordinary. Sighing, I leaned back against the truck.

As I stood there leaning against the truck, spacing out, a taxi suddenly came hurtling toward us from the distance. It sped toward the museum's main entrance, only to abruptly swerve and charge straight at where I was standing. Startled, I leaped backward. The taxi screeched to a halt, its brakes squealing loudly. Screeech! Long skid marks burned into the asphalt, leaving behind the acrid smell of burnt rubber. As a plume of black smoke began to rise, Rain and Shine burst out of the cab.

Slam! The door flew open, and Shine practically flew out, lunging straight at me. I froze. I couldn't move, because I saw the faint shimmer of tears welling in her eyes.

"Jeff!" Hearing her voice right in front of me, rather than through a phone speaker, brought an odd sense of relief. The high-alert tension that had ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠gripped me began to melt away.

Shine threw her arms around me in a fierce embrace. She buried her face in my chest, her hands gripping my back with incredible force. Wincing slightly at her suffocating strength, I offered an awkward smile and patted her back. "Jeff!" Rain chimed in, throwing herself into the hug alongside Shine. She must have run here in a frantic rush, because one of her shoes was missing. For a long while, I remained pinned between the two of them, unable to move. Once they had calmed down a bit, Shine was the first to pull back.

"Is this the place?" No explanation was needed. They were on the same mission as me. Even though they had seemed indifferent earlier, they both knew the details I had gathered. "I can't get ahold of Amy. She's not answering my texts or my calls," I said, glaring at the museum.

"I know. I tried calling her on the way here, but she didn't pick up. Either there's no signal, or she's too busy to answer. It has to be one of the two," Rain muttered softly, having apparently tried to reach Amy herself. I hesitated. Is it really a good idea for all of us to go in together? All three of us? Isn't it too dangerous?

"Jeff." Rain's actions cut through my doubts. She gently took my slightly trembling hand in hers and looked up. "Let's go." Her demeanor had shifted entirely. It was a look I ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠had seen a few times during our training sessions. I nodded and stepped forward.

I kept my guard up as we walked toward the door the man had emerged from. I cast out a wide electromagnetic field, feeding me real-time data on our surroundings. Not even the movement of a tiny insect escaped my notice. Yet, until we reached the door, I detected nothing out of the ordinary. Right next to the door the man had used was a massive iron shutter meant for moving heavy cargo, but it looked impossible to open from the outside.

"I'm going in." We stepped inside the building. The door opened into a cluttered space strewn with all kinds of random junk. Looking around, I noticed thick layers of dust piled in the corners. This wasn't a room that saw frequent use, a fact confirmed by the faint, musty smell hanging in the air. However, there was one glaring anomaly.

"Over there..." I led Shine and Rain toward it. While the junk was scattered without any rhyme or reason, there was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠one spot that was completely clear, as if a large object had been removed. I immediately knelt and pressed my palm to the floor. Crackle! Current surged from my fingertips, sweeping through the building in an instant. That was when I realized something. There was a massive underground facility directly beneath us. I couldn't map out the exact layout, though; a strange interference was wrapping around the area, jamming my signals.

"I think there's something down here," I said, tapping the floor. Tap, tap. The cold floor met my palm, producing a dull, hollow sound. "Maybe a secret passage?" I nodded at Shine's suggestion and stood up. Then, I lightly stamped my foot. Crackle! A small current flowed from my body, tracing the ground through my toes. It warped the electrical currents connected to the passage, forcing the machinery to activate. Clunk! With the sound of gears shifting, the sealed floor began to open. What had looked like ordinary flooring slowly started to descend. It was an elevator.

The three of us immediately stepped onto it. My initial anxiety quickly dissipated. The simple realization that I wasn't alone brought an immense wave of relief. My heartbeat steadied into a calm, rhythmic pulse. I immediately dropped into a low stance, ready to spring into action at a second's notice. Rain and Shine mirrored my posture. Just as a subtle tension began to wrap around my body, the elevator finally ground to a halt. The heavy black iron doors in front of us slowly began to slide open. As they parted fully, my jaw dropped at the sight beyond. People were strewn everywhere.

"What in the..." A man in a white lab coat lay on the floor, his hand stretched out pitifully as if he had been desperately crawling toward the elevator. His eyes were closed, and he was unconscious, but the faint sound of his breathing suggested he was still alive. I looked around and cautiously stepped forward. Rain walked ahead of me, keeping a vigilant watch. Dozens of tiny water droplets hovered around her, and upon closer inspection, they were spinning at an incredible velocity.

I rolled the unconscious man over. A pair of shattered glasses lay nearby, suggesting he had been wearing them. "Jeff. Don't touch things like that." As I began rummaging through the man's pockets, Shine gently pulled me back. She looked extremely displeased.

"What's wrong?"

"They're bad people."

"I know that."

"Don't touch them."

"I need to gather evidence."

But Shine shook her head anyway. "Jeff shouldn't touch bad things. I'll do it." What difference did it make whether she did it or I did? Still, unable to refuse her, I simply nodded.

Shine searched the man's pockets and pulled out a small card. "This is..." She held it up to the light. A translucent sheen glinted off its surface. An ID badge—a familiar object. After examining it, Shine glanced back at me, then quickly hid the card behind her back. I didn't know why she was hiding it, but I didn't press her for an answer.

We bypassed the man and ventured deeper inside. More people lay collapsed along the corridor, looking as if they had been either chasing something or desperately running away from it. I silently ran my hand along the wall. Scorched black marks and deep, fist-shaped dents were punched into the solid steel. "It looks like Amy passed through here." We sprinted in the direction of the trail.

The deeper we went, the more violent the aftermath of the battle became. A heavy steel security door that was supposed to block the entrance lay crumpled in a corner, looking as if it had been battered to pieces. Amy had undoubtedly smashed it open with her bare fists. Rain stared at the mangled door and nervously patted her own head.