TM Topic 164 - What are you waiting for?
On a warm afternoon he boarded like any other tourist, passport in hand and cruise ship brochures slipped neatly into his carry-on. He fit the middle age stereotype perfectly with shorts, printed shirt, sunglasses, hat and sneakers. He'd carefully hidden the scar; modern technology in plastic surgery had allowed this, even if temporary. Hiding it was as necessary as were the forged identification documents. But looking the part was the only thing he had in common with the thirteen hundred passengers and crew.
A day passed and they were far out at sea. He'd occupied himself with the final preparations. Everything was in place. Every last detail was perfect as he made his way to dinner.
The main dining room was crowded with guests, it was the Captain's formal dinner and everyone dressed like there was no tomorrow. And for all of them that was exactly the case. He unobtrusively took his assigned seat. A wine steward came to his table to get his drink order. He purposefully dropped his dinner napkin and the waiter reached to pick it up. Kronos had also moved to get it and their hands touched for a single second. They smiled at each other. "I'll bring you a fresh one with your drink," the steward said with a cheery smile before heading back towards the staff serving area.
Twenty minutes later panic gripped the entire ship as dozens of people became ill. The Captain had ordered everyone to their rooms until the crew could assist with those stricken. For now they exhibited symptoms similar to food poisoning but that would soon change as their blood cells were eaten alive from the inside out. Once the blood was gone, the portent of death would also die instantly, leaving no trace of the cause. It was nothing but brilliant; a lethal weapon with no clues. For this experiment that really didn't matter, but he liked the tidy duplicity of it anyway.
Kronos made his way to his cabin as all well-behaved passengers did. There he would wait. It wouldn't be more than an hour before he'd have the entire ship to himself.
~~~
He removed a small remote mechanism from a concealed electrical panel in the wall. It had been planted there several weeks ago when he'd assumed the identity of one of the maintenance workers. He slipped it into his pocket and entered the hallway. The security cameras were down, as was his plan. He canvassed the ship, viewing his work with indifference. But when he came to the main lobby and saw how effective it had been, he couldn't help a proud smile as he took tissue samples for further analysis.
By the time he got to the loading deck everything was in order and the last part of the plan fell into place as the sub broke the surface right where it was suppose to be.
~~~
The captain informed him that they had reached the safty zone. Then he lowered the scope for Kronos to look at the ship. Time to go. What are you waiting for, he thought while caressing the remote. Then he hit the button and a series of enormous explosions rocked the cruise ship. "Nothing... anymore," he murmured to himself while watching the last bits of the ship slip under the waves.
Kronos
Highlander
Words: 554
A day passed and they were far out at sea. He'd occupied himself with the final preparations. Everything was in place. Every last detail was perfect as he made his way to dinner.
The main dining room was crowded with guests, it was the Captain's formal dinner and everyone dressed like there was no tomorrow. And for all of them that was exactly the case. He unobtrusively took his assigned seat. A wine steward came to his table to get his drink order. He purposefully dropped his dinner napkin and the waiter reached to pick it up. Kronos had also moved to get it and their hands touched for a single second. They smiled at each other. "I'll bring you a fresh one with your drink," the steward said with a cheery smile before heading back towards the staff serving area.
Twenty minutes later panic gripped the entire ship as dozens of people became ill. The Captain had ordered everyone to their rooms until the crew could assist with those stricken. For now they exhibited symptoms similar to food poisoning but that would soon change as their blood cells were eaten alive from the inside out. Once the blood was gone, the portent of death would also die instantly, leaving no trace of the cause. It was nothing but brilliant; a lethal weapon with no clues. For this experiment that really didn't matter, but he liked the tidy duplicity of it anyway.
Kronos made his way to his cabin as all well-behaved passengers did. There he would wait. It wouldn't be more than an hour before he'd have the entire ship to himself.
~~~
He removed a small remote mechanism from a concealed electrical panel in the wall. It had been planted there several weeks ago when he'd assumed the identity of one of the maintenance workers. He slipped it into his pocket and entered the hallway. The security cameras were down, as was his plan. He canvassed the ship, viewing his work with indifference. But when he came to the main lobby and saw how effective it had been, he couldn't help a proud smile as he took tissue samples for further analysis.
By the time he got to the loading deck everything was in order and the last part of the plan fell into place as the sub broke the surface right where it was suppose to be.
~~~
The captain informed him that they had reached the safty zone. Then he lowered the scope for Kronos to look at the ship. Time to go. What are you waiting for, he thought while caressing the remote. Then he hit the button and a series of enormous explosions rocked the cruise ship. "Nothing... anymore," he murmured to himself while watching the last bits of the ship slip under the waves.
Kronos
Highlander
Words: 554