Operation : Lose the Guard {Alpha}

It was around midnight, the halls of the Venington club facility were as silent as they were dark with only a slight glint emanating from the night guard's flashlight. Three gentlemen were walking slowly across the research and investigation section of the building. The plan could've gone smoothly if Ricardo hadn't alerted a guard. Thank god, I managed to turn it around quickly, otherwise, things would've taken a troubling turn.

*Flashback Begins Momentarily*

"So, um, how'd we end up in such a compromised predicament?", Ricardo asks Carl while sporting a dumbfounded face.

*Rolls Flashback*

"Sir, may you kindly refrain from sneaking around and about at an hour this late? You might raise suspicious aspersions to yourself. It is for public safety that visitors should not be on their own in this University! Should you attempt to jeopardize our prestigious grounds with your rotten shenanigans, I will be obligated to apprehend you!", the night guard spoke as he starred at the slim lad approaching him.

"Whoa, chill out Mr. uptight, I work here." Carl's chances of fooling the guard dropped significantly as those words flew right out of his mouth.

Carl had to think of a way to get on the guard's good side without giving hints of their scheme. If he had to do this, a poker face was required in order to divert the guard's caution away from himself. His attempt ended disastrously as the face he displayed was one percent short of ridiculous.

"wtf, dude, you look like one of them clowns. just ask him normally without pissing him off.", Ricardo whispered.

"I wanted to get in without causing too much fuss since I dislike talking to strangers. So would you please let us in?", Carl spoke gently as if he was a lost child looking for their guardian.

"no, dude, now you just sound gae. ok, you know what? lemme do the talking.", Ricardo.

"Dude, just let us in, look, he even has an ID card as proof that he has relations to this University. You can tag along if you feel GREAT discomfort with two random gents snooping around in the facility.", Ricardo casually spoke to sentry eyeballing them.

"Very well sirs, allow me to *escort* you lot to that office of yours.", the night guard said as his tone changed from slight anger to mild irritation as if the two friends were adding more nuances to his job.

"Easy enough", Carl thought, "I can't believe I missed the easy way in. I could've just waltzed in through the front gate"

"mAn, why did you have to try and use Excalibur to cut a soft steak?", Ricardo asked Carl rhetorically as if mocking him.

"Sometimes, I really do wonder how we are still friends. Not gonna lie, you literally have god's divine blessing or something because you have a knack for recklessly doing things and always drawing the good straw.", Carl.

*Ricardo thumped his chest while silently gesturing "dis bad boi can fit so much plot armor"*

"And that was the end of our flashback. Even though Carl was the one explainin.", Ricardo to Carl.

Carl made a disappointed face with his lips and his eyelids slightly close to closing.

To Carl, the dark hall felt like it stretched even further into the horizon as Ricardo fawned in awe over each different departments of the University's club rooms. Each club isn't organized based on a category at all. The clubrooms are arranged according to the date that each club had first been established because back when the University was at it's infancy, we ran the policy of "first come, first served", leaving the later entries forced to stay at the longer end of each hallway.

After a long horrendous journey of watching and listening to Ricardo make stops at every office to check the wonders of research of every aspect, the three lads finally arrived at their destination. Before them stood a mighty door of great resemblance to most office doors, but to Carl, it was an entrance to his stronghold, a kingdom renegaded from the rest of the University. When the gates of his castle opened, the door room lit up using simple trigger-based technology.

"Alright, boys, we're here, the 'Department of Exciting News' as the sign puts it.", the night guard said with a weirded out face.

"I can see why no one visits here, lul.", Ricardo whispered to the guard.

Carl gritted his teeth as he took in the comments of his group. He thought to himself "Okay, I've got to lose this guard somehow. I guess I can ask him to wait outside while I scrounge through my belongings as I don't want my privacy invaded.". Moments later, the guard left to watch the hallway as if he knew of Carl's intentions but didn't want to intervene.

"Would you look at that, I'm good.", Ricardo thought as if his previous actions were purposely done to annoy the superstitious guard into not wanting to be in his vicinity.

After giving the two chap what felt like an endless requiem experience, Ricardo proceeded to hunt for clues left behind by their missing partner in crime. However, to no avail, they found nothing useful, as if Fitch was trying to be as discrete as possible.

As the two friend searched the office, the guard grew suspicious as time flew. Just when he was about to give them an earful, a loud EUREKA was heard in the voice of Ricardo. He knew he wasn't able to stop them in their endeavors since they have the rights to scavenge the place of their own accordance. In addition to that, Ricardo made the night guard fear meeting curious people in the future.

After around half an hour or so, Ricardo and Carl left the room with a note in hand and asked the night guard to bring them to their next destination : The Office of William Whiskey.

"Now, why would the reserved professor who had been keeping to himself lately, invite two random buggers AND a news writer no less? Listen here, I don't know if you both have been living under a rock or haven't been keeping up with the news, but the professor doesn't want ANY visitors in his workspace as he *verbally* displayed when offered the chance to unveil his prototype works in light of gaining further recognition beyond what he already has....", the guard finished as he held a terrifying expression of suspicion.

"You see, Whiskey and us go wae bacc, I mean we go WAY, WAYYY, WAYYYYYY bacc. We were good friends you see, and he wanted to reveal his finished project to us first, for old times sake.", Ricardo tried his best to sound as smooth as possible when mentioning the name 'Whiskey'.

As popular as he is, William Whiskey was a very quiet man that when approached for interviews or just casual conversation, would display gestures of disgust as if he were a superior being. To the untrained eye, he seemed dead and cold while expressing no emotions, like a man who had lost everything from war. However, to those who knew how to read others, William was like a novel unlike any other. Mysterious and introverted he may be, those who truly knew him closely, see him in a different light, just like how our main protagonist duo are about to discover.

"Sir, if you are attempting to deceive me by staining the reputation of the great man that the professor IS! I won't be easily swayed into forgiving you lot and I believe his colleagues won't be pleased with me either if I let two potentially harmful criminals into his office.", the guard said furiously with a semi-calm face.

While Carl was instantly reminded of their position, Ricardo on the other hand sensed a disturbance in the guard's way of words as if he was trying his best to trick the two. Ricardo was very well versed when it came to mind games whether intentionally or not. He then suggested letting the guard join them in exploring William's office.

"Just come along if you're that scared of some short, mustached mushroom, trust me, I KNOW him very well.", Ricardo.

Ricardo might've popped a nerve inside the guard, angering both Carl and their overseer. What Carl didn't realize is that Ricardo was on to something and this confirmed his answer.