The Final Heist

Chapter Seven: Aaron Culver

January, 6637

Saturday, 1100 Hours

I slowly navigated my ship through the bustling metropolis, eventually finding a spacecraft dock, Labeled with various ads all flashing bright signs that said: "Thesulia's PRIME Parking". I parked my ship in the very back of the lot and paid a small fee to a robot out front. I then exited the lot and put on my hood, hiding my face once again.

I looked around at the city. I was on the very corner of the floating chunk of land, with the colossal tower appearing even larger, exerting its majesty upon anyone who wanted to look to the sky.

At this point, I realized that I was Hal West. At least, I might as well set myself into the mindset that I was Hal West. If I was curious about the party on top of the tower, shining lights into the abysmal black sky, I could go up there and find out what it was. I was certain any security standing in my way would submit to Hal West and his "ring of identification". With this in mind, I continued toward the base of the tower.

As the tower was a long ways away, I saw plenty of shops of all sorts. I saw weapons hanging from racks and strange foods being grilled, the repugnant smell wafting to my nostrils. There was even a large poker table that seated six with a cross between some tentacle monster and a chicken dancing on top of it. All creatures sitting around it, one being a pig-human, were clapping and cheering. I shuddered and quickened my pace.

I had eventually reached the massive tower, only to find out that there was a large crowd surrounding the base. I pressed on and squeezed my way through the tightly packed crowd, often times feeling uncomfortable sensations from brushing against the alien creatures I was not familiar with. I eventually got near the front, where I could see someone who looked like a bouncer to the right of me. He was wide enough to span the entire walkway to the entrance. I made my way over to him, pulling my hood farther down over my face.

When I had finally reached him, I was blunt. "Name's Hal West. Let me in." I took on the frustrated tone of one who had had everything stripped from him and been imprisoned for the past four months.

"Nice one, kid. Hal's been-" I cut him off by holding up my hand with the ring on it.

"Don't make me repeat myself," I added. While my tone was confident, I was near a meltdown on the inside.

Surprisingly, the bouncer moved out of the way without another word. I even heard the nearby crowd grow quieter and gasp. I was a little confused on how everyone recognized such a small detail of Hal, but maybe since he was always hiding his face, it was a way for them to identify him.

I stepped foot inside the large brass-colored tower, finding myself on a very fancy ground floor. The room was square, with a small bar in one corner, sporting a polished counter and set of stools along with every kind of liquor you could ever hope to find in the galaxy. Another corner had a sitting area containing multiple huge sofas and lounge chairs with shiny gold trim and bright red cushions. Multiple strange figures, most with more than or less than two arms, sat at these chatting drunkenly with colorful drinks in hand.

However, the main focus of the room was obviously the elevator in the center, surrounded by bright crystal chandeliers from the high ceilings. Colorful indoor plants surrounded the elevator doors, lighting up the room. Everything was over the top, wild, and most of all, bright. I slowly walked to the elevator doors admiring the scenery.

"Hey there, darlin'. What's a cutie like you doin' so far from home?" A thick female southern accent caught my attention, along with a stroke from a single finger on my chin that made me shiver. "Why don't you take off that lil' hood of yours?"

At the mention of removing my hood, I pivoted my entire body towards her and grabbed her hand with a tough grip. Her skin was red and scaly, with tattoos plastered over every square inch of skin. Her pupils were orange and the whites of her eyes were a greenish-yellow. She wore a sparkly red dress that let everyone know what she was there for. I quickly fled from the scene, walking into the elevator and selecting the top floor for my destination. If the first floor was throwing me for this much of a loop, I wondered what the top floor would be full of. Unfortunately, I still had no idea what I was doing here.

As I got closer to the top of the tower, the sound of thumping music became louder and louder, echoing off of the walls of the elevator shaft. The doors opened with a lighting dinging noise and I saw the real party.

The top floor was positioned under the needle that pierced the sky, having a small roofed area before opening up to the full balcony. The circular track that I had observed earlier was an observation deck, where people were stumbling, running into each other, and giggling. Waiters and waitresses of every race imaginable barged past, holding massive trays of champagne glasses in one hand.

In the central part of the top floor- the part that excluded the balcony- was a long staircase that led up to the tallest area a person could be standing in the entire building. A DJ had been set up there with a high-quality stereo system. The DJ himself looked to be mostly a rhino, which left me wondering how he spun records without scratching the discs. I slowly walked up the staircase, admiring the view only accented by the mass of colorful searchlights strobing through the air.

"Wow..." I said to myself.

"Wow indeed, am I right?" I turned to my left to find a man standing by me. I hadn't even seen him walk up. He had jet black hair that was swept to the left using gel. He also had a black goatee and a pair of black-rimmed sunglasses. I took him to be a very upper-class person, considering the deluxe three-piece black suit he was wearing, accented with a dark blue tie.

"You've got lights, drinks, a beautiful place; the whole nine yards. How'd you wrap a gig together with..." I squinted at the DJ's stand. "Bustin Tuskin?"

"I know people, I know people. And this isn't just a place. It's a home." He smirked as I pretended not to care. "I'm Aaron Culver. Grandson to the founder of Thesulia Prime. And you are?" I smiled at the question. If this guy was the leader of Thesulia Prime, that not only meant he was important, but he was most likely the guy Hal was working for.

Now, this, of course, does imply multiple degrees of selfishness. Yes, I am planning on finding the deal that got Hal locked up in the first place and taking it. And yes, this is probably the most not only stupid but simply rude thing I could do to Hal, who had sacrificed himself to save my life. However, I couldn't see Hal not wanting me to do this. He would've wanted me to get rich off of a smuggling deal that may or may not have been his.

"You don't recognize me?" I asked. "I suppose I have been imprisoned with the ICIR for quite some time." I left the sentence hanging, hoping he knew Hal personally.

He squinted his eyes. "Hal?" He asked, incredulously. My heart soared. "We- I thought you were dead! When I heard you had been captured by the ICIR, I thought I was- you were done for! I was worried you would've leaked the deal to em', eh?" He nudged me awkwardly on the shoulder. He didn't seem as sympathetic as his words were. I was worried I had made a grave mistake telling him my false persona.

"Oh, Aaron." I chuckled, spinning the center of my ring around. "It's been so long since I left. Even if I wanted to tell them, I can't even remember what the deal was."

"I guess it has been... what? Six, seven months since you left?" Aaron answered.

"Yeah, it was seven. Four of it I spent locked up in an ICIR dreadnaught. You would not believe the means I had to go through to get off of that ship." I explained.

"Oh, my god. Where are my manners? This is no way to treat an old friend! Come with me, we can have a drink over the brave tales of my greatest friend, Hal, returned after a long departure." Aaron put his arm around me, his expressions and actions remaining happy, but the emotions in his eyes were not.

He walked me over to the elevator and pulled out a keycard, swiping it on a magnet strip. A small elevator button shifted out of the walls, backed by a green light instead of a yellow one. Aaron pressed it and the elevator ascended past what the highest floor appeared to be.

"Is this a new addition to your tower?" I guessed. I figured if I made small talk with Aaron my lies would be even more believable. The mysterious expression behind his eyes might also fade.

"Yes, it is! Thank you for noticing." Aaron smiled. "Up here is my private office. Only three people have access to it, making it technically the most prestigious party room on Thesulia Prime." He smirked, but I didn't think it was because his office was prestigious.

I gave him a sideways glance and he only laughed, which made me more nervous. If we needed to go to such a private room to talk, what had Hal gotten himself into? And more importantly, what had I gotten myself into?