Mission: Sunburst 1
Ilya was not having it.
She woke up late, messed up the preparations that took her forever to finish, and just barely made it in time for her destination.
Just as things seemed fine for a while, she had to suddenly trip and stumble splendidly on the floor, right in the centre of a public walkway.
Embarrassed beyond belief, she quickly picked up her scattered belongings and started running away, finding a place to hide from the crowd. After hiding behind a wall, she took a deep breath before starting to walk again.
"Stupid me! Always being so clumsy. On this important day of all time..." she muttered to herself while slowly walking in her path.
"Can't help it, though. It is what it is. All I need to do is be positive about it!"
Growl~
"But it's pretty hard to stay positive on an empty stomach. Let's see where's the nearest restaurant... Aha! This one looks promising. And it's very nearby. That's it, I'm going there after I am finished with the orientation."
A few minutes later, she arrived at the supposed destination of the orientation. Yet what in front of her was the restaurant that she had looked up earlier.
"Eh, am I mistaken or something? Is this the place they told me to go? Why am I at the restaurant? Is my navigation sense corrupted by my clumsiness, too? Nooo~" Ilya started to wail in agony, although her overreaction is only happening in her mind.
"Nah, you are in the right place. You're Ilya, I presume?" Suddenly, she heard a voice from behind. Ilya looked back and saw a tall man with a gentle yet firm smile.
Ilya nodded to his question. "I am Ilya, but who are you? Have we met each other before?" she asked.
The man smiled even brighter until his teeth appeared. His smile was so bright, it blinded Ilya's eyes (at least in her imagination).
"You're here for the special orientation, right? Alright! Let's go!" The man enthusiastically invited Ilya to the restaurant. The confused Ilya doubted on whether to follow him or not at first, but decided to trust him and went inside the restaurant.
The restaurant is called Mamak Maju. It was a mamak-styled restaurant, which is abundant and popular among all residences of Cyberaya. They served a variety of dishes, from Roti Canai to fried rice and so much more.
The man found an empty table that is quite hidden from the sight and quickly sat on one of the four chairs under the table. He waved to Ilya as she was walking slowly, visibly confused by what's happening.
"Come, sit here," the man invited her to sit on the opposite side of the table. As she slowly walked to the table, a thought sparked into her mind.
"Uhm, I think you're mistaken here. I am here for work, not dating. I trusted you, but if you're wasting my time here, I'll have to leave. " Ilya asserted her opinion on the matter and decided to leave the table.
"Hey, wait. I'm just kidding. Here, I'll introduce myself," Just as she started to walk away, the man stood up and started talking.
Ilya looked back at the man. With a sigh, she sat down on the chair. "So, is this the orientation? I have to say it's pretty laid back from what I imagined, " muttered Ilya in a rather sarcastic voice.
"Haha. Don't worry. This is just the entrance to the orientation."
"That means we will start with eating first, huh?"
"Hmm, not exactly...
"So what are we doing here? Not to be rude, but I'm quite late for the orientation now. If you'd be so kind as to hasten our conversation now, please?"
"Ah, don't mind about that. You're quite on time when you arrived here. So I'd say that's a pass."
"What do you mea-"
"Alright boss, what's your order?"
Just as the conversation is starting to heating up, the waiter arrived to take their order.
'I am late either way. Might just order and put the bill on this dude' Ilya started scheming her way for free food.
"Nasi Goreng Telur Mata, sans the Mata, for two people," just as she began to open her mouth, the man had quickly ordered for both of them. And with a strange order, too.
Telur Mata (sunny side-up), without Mata (yolk)? Why not just order an omelette or scrambled eggs? Or are you allergic to egg yolks? If so, why order for two people? Why not let me order for myself?" A barrage of questions quickly burst out of a seemingly annoyed Ilya.
"Haha. You are quite the chatterbox huh? Good, good. You might have a better time bonding with the others in our team." the man snickered at the flustered Ilya.
"Wha? I'm not a chatterbox! And that was just-"
"Get ready."
"Huh?
Suddenly, both of her hands were handcuffed onto the armrest. Her body was also wrapped with safety belt from shoulder to waist. The same thing also happened to the man in front of him.
"What is this?!"
"You'll see,"
'This man with his smile! It's getting pretty annoying now!' thought Ilya.
"What is there to see?"
"Below you,"
"Huh?!"
Just as she looked down, the ground below her chair suddenly slide to the side, revealing the deep hole underneath.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa~"
Just like that, the table became empty again.