#Found

Part 2

It had been a long time since Justin had heard the words ‘Lights Out’. And good thing too, those words held an ominous meaning in the world of spies and agents. It meant the end was near. That safe havens were falling by the dozen and all whilst no remedy was in sight.

It was usually reserved for when a nation was near its end. When the coup, revolt, invading force or whatever else was threatening its security was drawing dangerously near. Justin supposed that a world-ending force rather than simply a nation-ending force deserved a somewhat cooler name than ‘Lights Out’, but it worked nonetheless.

“The Lost are approaching on all sides. At a snail’s pace, sure, but they’re approaching nonetheless,” the woman announced to the small collection of very powerful people in the briefing room. Incredibly wealthy elites. Politicians with more power than some nations. Some of the collective spy agencies’ best operatives. A few choice cats. Justin only liked one of those categories.

“So how do we defend ourselves?” Simone asked from her little table. Justin noted with some amusement that she had failed to distinguish between the small table and a seat. And promptly sat on said table as if it were a chair. Justin was also surprised to note that Simone was far more alert and attentive during this briefing. About as attentive as he should probably be.

“We don’t,” the woman started, eyeing Simone as if she too were surprised. “Forty-two days prior, we came into possession of a rather fascinating artefact. Agent Satter has been examining it just this morning.” As if on cue, all eyes in the room turned to Justin. Even the cats.

Raising his hand, Justin gave the occupants of the room a clear view of the crystal, its electric-blue glow almost uncomfortably bright. With so many eyes on him, Justin felt the urge to do something silly, inject some humour into an otherwise dreadfully boring briefing.

Without a second thought and still with the room’s collection of eyes on him, Justin twirled about on the spot, shaking his hands in a bizarre mix of a wave and a frantic gesture for help. He was trying to dance. Nobody even cracked a smile. Damn.

“Anyway,” the woman continued, ignoring Justin’s failed attempt at a celebratory boogie dance. “We’ve had sufficient time to test the shard and its purported abilities quite extensively. And I am happy to announce that it does in fact work.

It’s fine, Justin thought glumly. People are embarrassed by impromptu dancing, but I love it. History is nothing more than a tableau of crimes and misfortunes. And these people are the sum of that. So who cares if they don’t appreciate my sick moves? Simone certainly does. But peaking over, Justin was repulsed to find that Simone was not in fact amused by his outburst. In fact, she wasn’t even paying him any mind. She was a strange woman indeed.

“And we’ve also been able to confirm that the crystal remains enchanted after being broken up. And that each resulting shard’s potency depends on its size.” Looking at the piece in his hand, Justin noted again the odd edges and sharpened corners. As if what he was holding was merely broken off from a larger piece.

“Therefore.” The woman turned on the projector to reveal a map of the world, and a tiny red circle encompassing an island just East off the coast of England. “Our plan involves using the crystal to wipe out the Lost once and for all. And seeing as we haven’t yet figured out how to replicate its specific material, we’ll need to use what we have.”

She pointed a laser pointer at the projected image, circling the small island again. “With the piece in hand, Agent Satter and Agent Ciask will be tasked to rendezvous at the coordinates here and locate the nuclear fusion facilities there. The island’s natural sea defences should mean it’s fared better against the invasion. There they will be tasked to load their shard into the reactor core and then activate it. The resulting nuclear meltdown of uncontrolled fusion should by our calculations spread a thin layer of the crystal across the globe, thereby eliminating the Loss in one fell swoop.”

The resulting silence was deafening. And—Justin noted with more than a little concern—the woman seemed to be bracing herself too. A thin sheen of sweat coated her otherwise spotless skin. Despite all the eyes on her, she only looked at him as if waiting for the reality of what she was assigning them to dawn on him.

Justin remained silent, however.

“Well, better get to it then,” Simone piped up suddenly, getting up off her makeshift seat and impersonating Justin’s twirl. “World ain’t gonna save itself, eh?”

WC: 800