Chapter 50 (Vanguard, Alice Jones)
Over three days had passed and Alice had seen no sign of Elvis. She was told repeatedly he would be around to explain his actions, but as time went on, she began to think he'd forgotten about her.
"How long will we be forced to wait?" she sneered at the guard who was outside her door. Her sudden outburst must have woke him because he had not been chatting to anyone for a whole hour.
"I don't know, ma'am. I've been instructed to watch over you during the day until I am relieved by the night shift."
"This is ludicrous," Alice sniffed. "You have no right to detain us. We are Vanguards-"
A voice spoke up from the other side of the corridor. A tired Zack marched towards Alice with his hands in his pockets. Something was bothering him, Alice could tell by the puzzled look in his face. "You're quite right. We should not treat you like this, but it's Elvis's order. He believes you're in possession of a data crystal that Garibaldi gave you. If you hand it over to me, you will be free to go; he also said that he's willing to write a 'mission delivery job' for the help you provided. He's seen your insignias, he knows you're training and you're in a race." Zack moved closer, his hands still in his pockets. "I suggest you take the offer while you can."
Alice was stuck with a moral dilemma. She could take the offer and return to present the official document stating that her team had been removed from the race to participate in an official mission. This, by default, would promote them to the status of Intermediate level. But this would also go against the code of the Vanguards. They were sworn by oath that once they accepted a job, they'd make sure the letter was delivered even if it cost them their life. The content of such a message was always kept secret, so they could be carrying a message that could save or kill millions of people. Alice was not going to take the easy way out
"I will have to decline the offer. It would be disrespectful to the Vanguard guild if I did that."
Zack appeared regretful. "I'm sorry, if you are not willing to help yourselves, then there's nothing I can do. Elvis would like to see you soon, so be prepared."
With those final words, the security officer turned in the hallway and walked out of sight. Alice knew this day was bout to get interesting.
Alice was escorted to Elvis's office alone. She wondered why Samuel was left behind. Sure, he wanted to come and protect Alice, but the guard at the door had other ideas. So, with little choice, Alice walked through the offices and watched uneasily as everybody suddenly hid behind their desks and the rattle of computer keyboards suddenly stopped. The silence was uncanny. Alice did not like it one bit.
Elvis's office was on the other side of the room with his name bronzed on a plaque signalling he was the top dog.
With a cautious hand on the handle, she pressed down and the door creaked open.
"Alice Johns?" Replied the dark skinned man behind the desk. "Please, sit down."
Alice reluctantly walked past the threshold that split his office from the rest of the complex. She felt like a stranger in a foreign land, vulnerable. There was no one to protect her, no one to speak on her behalf. Anything could happen and the only thing she believed would protect her was her Vanguard status.
"Do you know why you're being detained?" he said, staring at his computer screen, avoiding eye contact.
"N-No, detaining me or detaining a Vanguard is unthinkable. I can't believe you've done something like that."
Elvis smiled and looked into Alice's eyes. "Believe me, Alice, when I say that I did not want any of this. I respect the Vanguards just as much as anyone, but someone," Elvis paused and appeared to re-evaluate a word he used. "Some traitor gave you a data crystal that must not leave this facility. If you hand it over, you and your partner can leave."
Elvis paused for a moment, as he appeared to think.
"As a token of my appreciation and an apology for all your troubles I'm willing to give you a class five mark of approval. Mission status." He leaned back in his chair and stretched his muscular body beneath his blue shirt.
"That's a very tempting offer, Elvis, but you should know that once a Vanguard takes a job, they must deliver that message. To hand it over would be breaking the oath we took."
"I know," Elvis replied with understanding. "It's a noble gesture, but under the circumstances, I am sure you can bend the rules."
Elvis moved forward, spouting more words of wisdom. "You see, right now, you're way overdue for your race. The race organisers think you, your vessel and partner are dead." He then leaned back, believing he'd won the argument. "Now, I can release you and you'll return a failed Vanguard, a prospect that would scar you for life, or I can create an official mission status that will tell the race officials that you were employed to fill out a mission of utmost importance. This will, by default, graduate you to the next level."
Alice wrestled with the offer and could not make up her mind. It was a sound problem she was in. All hopes to win the race were over and she would be classed as missing in action. If she turned up later, that would class her team as unfit. She would lose all status and be removed from the guild. And what was more terrifying was the damage this could cause for her partner. A prospect she was not looking forward to.
Alice looked at Elvis and tried to discover any sign of deception. A sweaty forehead, eyes pointed in the wrong direction, even a nervous swallow. But there was none. The man was as calm as a rock.
"I'll have to discuss this offer with Samuel. We work as a team."
"I think that's a start. But don't take too long about it. The offer will expire in one day. If you don't hand the crystal over, you and your partner will be searched invasively, your ship destroyed and you two will be dumped on a random planet with a long-range communicator to call for help. Accept my offer or not, I will get what I want. The choice is yours yours, my sweet."
Alice swallowed that knot in her throat. There was little choice, but she had to discuss it with Samuel. Perhaps he could figure a way around this mess.