25 June 2012

*I don't usually write stories because they're usually about people I know. Which would probably get me sued. But here's a piece of fiction inspired by random stuff...excuse my poor grammar.

Chapter one:

I stood on floor thirty two of the Lenstein building, my soft leather shoes making the faintest of noise as I walked to retrieve the target. The target, a laptop situated in room twenty two in the east wing of the almost empty floor.

I glanced at the room numbers on top of the doors exactly as my briefing stated they would be. Room twenty two sat opposite a small lobby about thirty feet infront of me. I disguised myself behind an enormous marble pillar and stole glances of the lobby to assess the situation. Two security guards sat in black uniforms with gold trim passively watching a camera feed. "Damn, cameras?" I thought annoyed, the other floors had no cameras, not that I noticed during recon yesterday. I had sneaked a quick peak at the Lenstein building yesterday but had'nt managed to reach the higher floors. The briefing clearly stated that this floor had no cameras. I sneaked a look at the security guards, they had'nt spotted me on the screen, I was safe for now. I weighed my options and decided I did not have many. I can't abort the mission, the chances are I've already been captured by the cameras, if they were to review it they would spot me. I had to retrieve the target and somehow retrieve the camera footage. I took a closer look at the guards, one looked to be in his early thirties, balding and quite bulky. The other was younger, early twenties at the most with a fringe that flopped just above his eyes and dimples that would not leave his face. "Tony made the football team at school, I swear those football lessons are paying off. He's better than I ever was and he's only eight" said the older guard, his mouth half full of peanuts.

"Yeah? Wow eight already? Must be pretty great having a family...You know I was thinking of proposing to Emma. We've been dating for five years and I'm not going to find anyone near as amazing as her" The other guard said a huge smile on his face.

I leaned against the pillar and listened while I waited. It was fourty seven minutes before one of the guards moved from his post and walked my way. He was tall, taller than I had estimated when he had been seated, and he was big, very big, substantially larger than I was at five feet seven. He walked quickly, one of his hands braced on his belt buckle. I assumed he would be heading for the toilets situated twelve feet to my left. I analysed his pace, eleven seconds before he turned infront of me. I could attempt to choke him which would be silent, but at this angle I would have to move from my hiding place to get behind him and risk alerting his partner. Five seconds, I glanced the reflection of his black boots in the windows as he came closer. Two seconds, I drew my right arm back and threw a stiff jab connecting with his chin. Despite common belief that it would take a huge amount of strength to knock out a larger opponent, knocking someone unconcious relies on the ability to snap back the opponents head fast enough to cause a shock to the brain. He went down but I caught him before he hit the floor and dragged his body behind the pillar, he was out cold. It was an effort to conceal this man who was twice the size of me, his shoulders slightly protruded from behind the pillar.

In the movies the bad guys stay unconcious whilst the hero takes on everyone else. This is'nt the movies, they are'nt the bad guys and I am no hero, he would be up in a matter of seconds, I needed to work fast. I walked swiftly but silenty to the remaining security guard who was still sat lucidly staring at the camera feeds. When I was within six feet his posture stiffened and he began to turn my way, he had seen me on the screen. I leapt across the security desk sliding on the smooth surface and delivered a kick to the guards head. He flew out of his seat and scrambled to get up, but before he could, I had my forearm under his chin and braced against his neck. I used my free arm to force his head down until he went out.

I jumped up and took a quick look at the camera feed, six cameras, none in room twenty two. I ran to room twenty two, slid in and locked the door behind me. "What are you doing in here?" A voice boomed before I had a chance to turn around. I stiffened and very slowly turned around. Mr Lenstein, old and grey sat in a huge leather chair with fingers rested on a laptop keyboard. "Get out of here, do you know what office you're in right now?" He demanded.

According to the briefing this was not an office, this was a room that held office supplies, resources and computer equipment. The briefing was wrong. "Are you stupid" Lenstein barked as he stood up and fixed me with a curious look. I took a step closer and looked him in the eyes. Lenstein looked around panicked, he stepped back almost tripping over his own feet and slammed his elbow against a cabinet behind him. "Not my lucky day is it" he said as panic came across his eyes. "Lucky? No it's not" I said before pulling my handgun from behind my waist and putting a bullet in his head, he fell sitting, his back resting against some boxes, his head bowed down. I grabbed the laptop and shoved it in my bag. I stood over Lensteins body and put another bullet in his chest for good measure.

Then I slid out of the room and into the lobby where both security guards were frantically shouting into their radios, I put two bullets in each of them, one in the head, one in the chest. I turned to the small steel unit that must have housed the camera feed data and kicked it a few times until it started to give way. I tore off the panel and ripped out the hardrives, placing them in my bag. I took another look at the guards still bodies by my feet. One of them had his pale hand gripped tight around what appeared to be a piece of paper. I pried his dead hand open, it held a photo of a smiling girl with dark hair and huge brown eyes. I grabbed the photo shoving it in my back pocket and made my way to the exit via the stairs gritting my teeth...I had fucked up. As I jumped the stairs a flight at a time, Lenstein's words played in my head. "Not my lucky day is it?" "Not my "lucky" day aswell" I thought. I had made a mess of the mission but at least I had retrieved the target. The laptop in my bag which held the sequence of forthcoming lottery results and the names of those who would win...Not their lucky day either...

Luck? Fortunes beyond our control.

I wonder have you ever been lucky? I'm sure you have. Maybe you've come into unexpected money, won a competition or scratchcard, caught the last train despite being late, or landed your dream job despite being underqualified.

I'm sure many of you have been unlucky. Perhaps you've lost your purse, missed a potentially life changing interview, or even fallen down a flight of stairs.

Luck. Some people make their own luck, they play a relentless game until the dealer gives them a favourable hand. Some people simply wait for luck to come knocking, usually all their lives.

And there are the control freaks who claim to leave nothing to chance, nothing to fate and nothing to luck. I'm sure all of you have experienced luck to some degree both good and bad. And the chances are that either I, or one of my colleagues has given this luck to you...or taken it away. We can make your life just as well as we can ruin it.

You may be wondering who I am. My name is 7A and I am a fixer. I don't fix sports or elections. I fix life...your lives.

unsuitableguy7A • Opuss № I