"This does not happen in the home of Arthur Farris!"
The man who thought and said this, out loud, despite everyone being inches from his face, looked every bit the type who cared not for personal space when easily enraged. His formal velvet coat with initials AF radiating from the lapel in a way that drew in people's gaze to blind them. Strutting about the narrow space of his office in finely polished footwear, he took in every part of the disaster in front of him. He repeated a single path from his desk to the opposite wall several times, walking between his two groups of security, red beard burning with rage at three thieves on their knees, restrained.
"I am hosting a Party, the kind worthy of being remembered for years, and not one soul in London dares to bring disgrace on their entire family by even failing to keep their car tires polished despite the grime. Yet here I am, not downstairs gracing guests. No, I hear of an emergency, I expect cocktails are running low. Instead, I have three morons deciding to climb up my house walls and break into my study. And you sabotaged my safe!?"
That part stung worse than anything else. Security detected their device when activated, but it apparently scrambled anything within the walls of his office, specifically a safe of such sophistication detect it, let alone damage. Except, the device, which he ordered a servant kick for him. They broke their toes, but the device was scuffed so he took whatever smalls pains were necessary.
"Before the cops come to collect your sorry necks and then my lawyers sue you into the afterlife, I want to know, what the hell is this?"
"W-We don't know," one of the thieves mumbled, "They told us to go in and press a button on the thing, that's it."
"Did they mention a button that fixes whatever happens?"
The trembling and whimpering creates anger wrinkles in Arthur's forehead. He demanded they be stored out of sight for the sake of his pores. A knock almost made him want to demand violence from his staff with a word.
"WHAT?"
"Um, so sorry sir," the maid declared with a meek bow. "The company who made your safe sent a specialist to fix it."
"Well then, send him in!"
"She is already arrived, Mr. Farris."
The woman who spoke slipped past the maid with indifference to the owner's perplexed expression. Her bright blue overalls clashed with almost every décor inside Arthur's home, it hurt to even stare in the general direction. She carried an equally garish grey satchel on one shoulder. Arthur scowled, wondering how the stranger hadn't burst in flames from such horrific taste in attire.
"They dare send help in such rags to my home? After all the money given… I honestly should be less surprised that this is their method considering my safe is now a hunk of metal."
"Polymer, Mr. Farris."
Arthur could only stare, to hear another speak so openly was so rare he imagined himself successful enough to make it illegal in his presence. Yet the woman didn't flinch under his gaze, her equally offputtingly-colored hat was pulled down, showing a bit of brunette hair and pale neck. His stunned silence treated as invitation to speak further.
"You demand the best, and it was delivered. A newly customized safe designed with special polymer molecules that made it easy to move yet impossible to crack. Your whole home could be hit by a meteor and this safe wouldn't even need a paint job. By the way, where is the safe, I hope I don't have the wrong room."
He sneered, feeling like he was finally gaining control. With a gesture, all but his chosen two best guards left. Waiting until he heard the door close, Arthur studied this strange technician. Her figure… wasn't too bad despite the baggy attire. The woman snapped her heard in his direction and a partial glance of cold emerald eyes made him stagger.
"The safe?" Her tone was indifferent but that gaze…
"I-In the corner," he coughed out while regaining his voice. "Between my desk and Lion Stat—"
The woman walked towards her target too quickly to explain how to reveal it. Both guards rushed to intercept, but she paid them no mind. Arthur raised a hand, stopping what was starting to be the most curious person now at his party.
"You know," he walked over, oozing charisma with every step. "I chose this piece because it was crafted to resemble the Nemean Lion, whose hide was too strong for any weapon to harm."
"The one Heracles bonked to death."
Arthur stumbled, righting himself before spilling his drink.
"Um, yes, well… the hide was never broken. No one can anticipate internal damage."
"Indeed." She still had her back to him, yet he could almost picture a small smile had formed while putting on thin black work gloves.
A small glance about and she tapped lion's left back leg. The stone shifted, clicking some internal mechanism that buzzed. Several shelves of Arthur's books with pristine volumes never read pulled away from the wall. The woman ducked low while carrying her pack.
"Hmmm, the electricity got shorted out in here, no light."
Arthur grinned, snapping his fingers and looked at a watch to count the seconds for a flashlight to be in his hands. Nodding with approval, he moved to rescue his new guest from darkness. He pushed the door shut behind him. Both guards stood back, knowing they were not needed for what was next.
Turning on his tool, Arthur was blinded by a sudden second beam.
"Excellent thinking," the woman said, her own flashlight casting an even brighter sheen. "It is a rather large safe. Might help to have little more light."
Arthur could only nod, he had no desire to be flashed again. Together, they inspected Arthur's treasured large box. It was five feet by five, silver, strong enough to pulverize a car if dropped but could easily be carried by three men.
"Must have cost quite a bit of money to make a bigger room for a big box. What are you trying to hide?"
"I've paid more than that to make sure those questions never need to be known." Arthur adjusted his jacket. "So, let's see you earn your pay. What did those morons who broke in do to my safe?"
The woman walked around the box. She seemed good with darkness. Arthur almost jumped when he finally noticed her come around.
"From what I can tell, it was a short-range device that shut down anything within several feet. Our machines immediately lock up in case of abrupt power failure, no way to open, even with a proper handprint. They also notify the owners in case they try shutting down the safe."
"Which allowed my security to know when it happened," Arthur ran a hand over the console. "Your company promised me absolute security, I didn't expect it would deny even me. How do we fix it?"
"Already on it," the woman unzipped her pack and pilled several tools. She motioned to keep a light on the panel. "You see, this has one major weakness. Seems to be a common trait with your interests. Nemean lion with an Achilles heel, you like dealing with things that are almost unstoppable."
"Of course," he watched her take a thin scalpel and glide it along the panel's frame. "I recognize vulnerabilities. I won't be blindsided like the best were."
"There is humility in knowing one's flaws, there's always more than one." Using the scalpel, the woman tilted the whole panel up and out of the way. She carefully separated wires still connected to the circuit board underneath. Everything was fried. "For example, sadly, this can't be fixed."
"WHAT."
"Please keep your voice down, Mr. Farris, the room is insulated to cancel out noise, not my eardrums." She carefully placed the panel down. "That's why my supervisors called me in on my night off to come out looking like an idiot in front of London's best dressed, your belongings need to be relocated. We'll replace the safe, free of charge, but the rest needs to be secured. Without our safe functioning, it can't regulate the pressure and things may become damaged."
She looked back, indifferent to the owner's fury.
"A light, Mr. Farris, please."
Sighing, the wealthy man reluctantly angled his flashlight beam at the panel like the woman directed. She then pulled out a small device and attached it to the largest set of wires inside.
"Since the main power is 'OFF', it can't open. Unless, I trick the panel into thinking everything is fine and for it to open up."
"You don't need my handprint?"
"Handprint is a bit of stretch, Mr. Farris," the woman fidgeted with a dial while her device hummed. "Our scanner does something more akin to a deep tissue scan. No latex glove with fingerprints will cut it, this scans your DNA."
"Where'd they get my DNA?"
"From your medical files, that sudden checkup over a 'health scare', remember?"
"T-That can't be legal."
"It was after you signed a contract permitting Tondal Security permission to do our best to keep every part of you secure. Just be glad I'm only paid to deal with safes."
She then pressed a button after a specific frequency and the door made a soft groan. Pulling it open, inside there was a small bit of moisture along the walls. Inside, barely illuminated by the light, a black oval sat in the center, slightly larger than some pearls. The woman remained still but a shift in the air could felt, a sudden surge of tenacity.
Arthur almost reached past her to get the object when a knock echoed.
"What is it now?" He turned to glare at the door.
"Oh, probably the guards wanting to tell you the safe specialist is on their way."
His eyes went wide, turning back to see another device in the woman's hand, a gun.
The sudden hiss of compressed air and Arthur saw some kind of dart in his leg. Arthur's body immediately felt heavier, two firm hands guided him to the floor. He could barely curse or even glare while eyes rolled back.
"If you weren't so eager to keep the light on my backside, you might have noticed my toys." The woman shrugged while eyeing the dead safe, with no pressure alarms to deal with. "Not exactly a weak ankle, but it'll work."
Tapping his face, smug even when unconscious, the woman pulled out a special grey bag. She paused before reaching out, getting the strangest feeling that this wasn't some prized gem despite the request being clear for it. Harder knocking outside the soundproofed room implied Arthur's guards were really committed to getting inside. These odds only added to an already uneasy job, but if there were better options for fast cash, the woman wouldn't be here.
There were a lot of things she wished weren't happening but those details couldn't be changed, only her future.
Putting on a gas mask, she pulled out a cylinder and creeped carefully towards the only door. Both guards slammed into it hard enough to push the thing several inches inside. Now busted, the woman kicked it down from her side. Shock helped stunned the men with their nasty-looking guns and now with a pull of the pin, she tossed a smoke grenade that blasted them both. Charging through, she fired at their silhouettes and heard two satisfying thuds.
Then she heard a young woman's cough. She saw the maid, huddled in the corner, clearly the messenger who revealed her ruse. While these fumes were non-toxic, it could be very unpleasant to suffer for too long. Clenching a fist in irritation, the woman stomped over. Seeing her approach, the maid almost screamed but a gloved hand covered her mouth, panicked eyes reflected in goggles.
"No need to worry, I'm just doing some personalized house cleaning. How about I show you the door and we go our separate ways, sound good?"
Not able to speak, the maid nodded timidly and was quickly escorted out to the rest of the party. Satisfied, while bitterly knowing her escape window had been trimmed to seconds, the woman smoothly walked over to her exit. She opened all the windows to air out the space. Leaning out the last window, she set a specialized grapple claw on the sill, cascading the rope down. Using her packs long strap, she tightened it to her body and then carefully pulled herself out, grasping the rope. Taking a breath, the woman rappelled down the brick wall while smoke billowed out. Her boots touched grass, clearly built for running or survival in the wilderness but no one really looks down at footwear often. Tugging three times deactivated the grapple and hooks retracted. Scooping the device inside her pack, she bolted towards a permitter of the outer fence that had been 'adjusted' so someone could slip through without anyone noticing. On the other side was a series of side streets used for deliveries and sneaking out possible guests few wanted seen leaving the front door. Sneaking by homes of those with cash achieved through good or ill means, the woman ran until she came across a grey BMW parked where few would notice. Pulling out the keys, the doors opened with ease while the pack was placed below the passenger seat. Closing it, she finally had moment to lean back and relax.
"Took you long enough."
While most would scream at a stranger's voice in the backseat, the woman pulled out a knife. She turned to make a point about personal space but froze. Her unexpected passenger looked like he had woken up from a nap.
He wore a green turtleneck beneath his storm-grey jacket and pants. His deep brown complexion, short black hair, and bright smile expressed youthful energy which was unaffected at seeing the weapon. Both hands cradled the man's head while dark eyes locked with hers. All desire for violence faded, but the knife remained out.
"I wasn't expecting company," she said. "Mind telling me why you're in my car?"
"Sure," he didn't move, which meant the cramped angle kept him from proper cutting range. "You see, I was thinking about checking out a party in the neighborhood. Changed my mind when I saw this car. Nice park job, looks ready to get up and leave without anyone noticing. So, I figured someone parked like this knew the party would probably be over soon and I wasn't keen on taking a bus. Mind giving me a lift?"
The question almost made her laugh. Except for how it should have been difficult for any simple car thief to break inside thanks to some modifications. He burned with the clever talent of knowing they both knew someone like him couldn't be simply kicked out. The operation was now compromised over a nap.
Already, sirens were starting to echo in the distance. The nearest precinct was several traffic congested blocks away. But being in Kensington, near Buckingham, meant the window to merge without looking too suspicious would soon be closing. She looked about, as if seeing police cruisers storming towards their location before settling on her younger intruder who still smiled. Not seeing many options, desperate measures were demanded.
She turned about and unzipped her jacket.
"Um… what are you doing?" His shocked expression in the rearview mirror made turning her back on him worth it.
"Relax, young man, I have clothes underneath, just decided to get into something more comfortable."
She had thin black slacks and a purple blouse, looking the type who would be looking for fun in town and definitely not fleeing a crime scene in a grey BMW. Slipping into the outfit was easy considering how baggy the other attire was. She sighed from the ability to breathe easier and… other reasons.
"You have a name, stranger?"
"The Doctor." He said with frank conviction, as if no other name could fit him.
"Well, Doctor, I'm Mary. I'll give you a lift, just need some help. Would you mind taking these baggy things?"
She gathered her supplies as he naturally sat up to more easily take the worker attire. As Mary turned, handing them over, a soft hiss of compressed air was heard. The Doctor grunted, glancing down before looking to see Mary's reluctance.
"Should… have gotten… the bus…" he muttered before falling back in his seat, unconscious.
The clothes fell from his hands. Mary got out and carefully checked to see he was okay after removing the tranquilizer dart. She felt an odd pulse but was pleased her sudden guest was more or less okay. Opening the trunk, Mary dragged her slumbering stranger into it, using zip ties to trap both hands behind his back. Searching his pockets, she found an odd wallet, some kind of small gizmo, but no ID. The Thief used her disguise to cushion his head. Taking off the hat so Mary's long black hair was finally free, she closed the trunk and quickly started the car.
Driving out of the side street, she signaled and turned with traffic. There were several blockades starting to form she worked with other pedestrians to move around. Apparently there had been some kind of robbery.
They didn't have far to travel, and while moving further away from all the sirens the greater calm started to rattle Mary. Everything became riskier by the second. The drop off wouldn't be for another two days, and even then she needed to wait for instructions. Those numbers for that wonderful sum needed to get away were now obscured by a young man's cheerful expression turning sour. Squeezing the wheel tight, she managed to not show off how much screaming internally was going on.
I'm sorry Doctor, but it looks like you're staying with me for a bit.