NOVEL NEXT Las Vegas
The coms went off, and the voice of the captain pulled Charlotte from her trance.
"This is your captain, Rick Asthley, speaking, we are about to land. Please brace yourself, as even a great pilot like myself cannot master the art of landing."
Charlotte heard the engine go quieter, she adjusted her position and looked down upon her clothes.
Maybe I should change?
She knew she was going to a high-end casino, which also is a hotel. Her clothes were too casual. Looking over at the two women, Silla wore just a red sweater and her white researcher coat, and Athen was in her security business suit. Two end of the spectrum, Charlotte was leaning towards Silla more which reaffirmed her decision to change.
The jet hits the ground and bounces up and down for a few moments as it decelerates. Charlotte finds this kinda fun, like a thrill ride she never experienced.
Technically~ you experienced every thrill possible through me and the Akashic Records!
Charlotte ignored Reverie. Waiting for the aircraft to stop in a few seconds.
"This is your captain, Rick Asthley, we have landed on Babel Organization Base 11. Thank you for riding with me, and have a safe trip to Las Vegas."
A few seconds later, the door opened, and Charlotte unbuckled her seat belt. She looked over to Athen, who was apparently nauseous after the long trip, she had not even finished her drink, there was a bit left. Silla is... Silla, nothing wrong with her, still the ever grin on her face.
"Athen, we are here.", Charlotte nudged her.
"I heard... leave me alone for a bit, okay?", Athen looked over at Silla, who was stretching after the long flight, "And please don't mess with Charlotte... she will stab you..."
"I will.", Charlotte nodded.
Silla shrugged, "I can turn my pain receptors off, you know? And I won't die from some lethal wounds, I am the toughest bitch in this entire world!"
"What will kill you then?", Charlotte genuinely asked.
"I don't know if I should be happy or sad about your first genuine question to me is my death. Eh, I'll give it to you as your reward. I have a phylactery and you need to destroy it!"
Charlotte sensed Silla was lying, "You are lying."
"Of course I am!", she threw her arms up, "I'm not that egotistical to say how to doom myself like a Saturday villain!!"
With a disappointed look, Charlotte walked down to the ground with Silla behind her.
The people greeting Charlotte can only be described as wealthy gangsters, wearing black suits with golden stripes. There are five of them, each is burly in some aspect. All wearing shades that covered their eyes.
"Hello gang! How's it going?", Silla asked excitedly.
All of them nodded, and the black man of the group stepped up, "Hello, big sis, we are extremely fine! Some run-ins with another local gang, but besides that, business is still good!"
"Jerald's or Maverick?", Silla asked.
"Ya know, new kids on the block, wanting to take over our territory! Just because their leader is a Gem Holder they act all big and tough!", the gangster shrugged, seeming tired at this whole situation.
"What's his name?", Silla's grin widens.
The black man grinned back, "A kid named Adam Mauvern, some spoiled kid that got kicked out of his home."
A ritual circle appeared on her hand, "Well then. Satanic Authority - Death Watch: Adam Mauvern."
The circle glowed brightly for a moment, then it vanished.
"Damn, sister! What are you gonna do?", a white man asked.
"Just some satanic magic, because, you know, I'm the fucking Pandemonium Princess!", Silla smugged. Then she remembered, "Oh! And here is Char— where did she go?"
Charlotte was gone from sight. Silla frantically looks around, trying to find the girl.
"Where did she go?!", Silla shouted.
One of the men raised his hand up, the less buffed of the gangsters, "You mean the white hair girl? She went to the back of the plane already, she said she needed to change clothes."
Charlotte was at the back, listening to the whole conversation. She took out her suitcases by herself. The tendrils made of Reverie formed, thin but the number made up for their lack of strength, they took ahold of her handles and pulled them along the way.
"Where can I change my clothes?", Charlotte asked.
"Dave, show her to the car.", the black man looked over to the man covered with a scar.
"Alright, miss.", Dave nodded and left the group. Charlotte followed behind.
"That over there is Charlotte, she's a Gem Holder like me. Though hers is a tiny bit more special than Luci.", she leaned on closer to the black man, muttering, "It's the Akashic Records..."
Charlotte filtered the rest of the conversation, it would not be polite to listen in private conversations, even if that conversation is about her 'big secret'.
Arriving at the car, or cars, Dave opened the door for the one in the middle. Charlotte went in with her yellow suitcase.
In there, she has several fancy clothes, no dresses though, she does not fancy dresses. She just took out another plain white shirt that have a convenient hole to expose the gem in her chest, the long sleeves have cutouts exposing her eight-pointed star patterns on both sides of her shoulders. And a simple, knee-height blue skirt.
She has some footwear, but they are not great for walking around, so she decided to keep on her sports shoes.
She stayed in the car, looking out to the shaded window, at Dave. She lowered the rear window, and Dave noticed and lowered himself.
"Is there anything you need, young miss?", he asked politely.
"No, I'll be staying in this car... if possible?"
"It's alright, a friend of big sis is a friend of ours!"
I'm not friends with Silla...
She only nodded and closed up the window. And again, she was alone. She took out her phone, even in the middle of nowhere there was still a signal.
Charlotte opened the map, looking for where she was. The location shown on the map was just a desert in the middle of nowhere. Looking up she saw buildings, facilities, everything that would normally show up on the map.
Las Vegas was roughly 90 kilometers away from her location, it would take two to three hours more to reach the city itself, and maybe another hour to get to the hotel and settle in.
With nothing more to do, Charlotte lay on the side of the car, closed her eyes, and fell into sleep. Even if Charlotte had her hat that grants infinite stamina, that is only true for her body, her mind still needs rest. Over nine hours of flight made her stressed out a bit, though not to the point like being in Hell.
=0=0=
"Charlotte, wake up. We are here."
The familiar voice called out to Charlotte, the power of Survive washed away the sleepiness in an instant. She turned her eyes to look at the woman calling out to her.
"Athen.", she muttered the woman's name.
"Yes, it's me.", her azure eyes staring right at Charlotte.
"I see.", Charlotte stretched a bit before following Athen out of the car.
Instantly, she was hit with loud sounds everywhere, from the sounds of vehicles, and people chatting, to even the crawling of rats. This place was chaotic from the sounds alone.
Looking around, she was in an underground parking lot, holding many cars beside the three that she saw. Charlotte saw Silla standing at the entrance, with a lot more gangsters in suits around her, she was having a pleasant chat with them.
"Our luggage was already moved to our rooms while you are sleeping.", Athen glanced at a man, "James, can you show Charlotte to her room?"
The gangster walked towards them, "Of course, if you would follow me."
Charlotte nodded, following the man. They went behind the main entrance, where the elevators were. James pressed a button, calling the elevator down to this floor.
She watched as it went down. Three. Two. One. G. B1. B2. B3.
The elevator chimed, signifying it was here. The doors opened, revealing a velvet red elevator car, and a red carpet with a satanic symbol of the upside-down star.
Subtle...
Then she looked at the white carving of an illuminating star at the back. Illumination... I see...
Charlotte walked into the elevator, and James followed behind. He pressed the button with the number '66' on it. That was her floor. Next, he pulled out a card and pressed it against the bottom of the panel. What is he doing?
Noticing her curiosity, James spoke up, "It's for security reasons, making it so nobody can interrupt this elevator. Big sis said you're an important guest, so we can't have risks of any kind with our VIP."
Charlotte felt like she should feel special, but to this day she was treated as special so she did not get the right feelings from her. Waving the uncomfortable feeling away, she looked at the numbers.
Three. Four. Five. Six. Seven... Sixty Six
And the ding sound came after a long while. The elevator door opened to a penthouse, overlooking the city below.
"This is the penthouse we reserve for our most esteemed guests. You will be staying here for this week. For today, you should stay here and rest!"
As James said that, the sun is going down, looming over the city, but even then, the lights never dim. Charlotte stepped out to the balcony, looking down at the city.
Neon signs lit up everywhere, music from every possible place blaring together into a chaotic mess. Everywhere Charlotte looks, there is light, no exception.
However, something else caught her eye. Flying from buildings to building is the shadow of a person, being chased by what looks like to be a living tornado.
James stood beside her, "Those are local vigilantes, the flying man calls himself Autumn, and the tornado is Storm. They patrol the street together and honestly, do a better job than the pigs."
"Pigs?", Charlotte asked innocently.
James rolled his eyes, "That's what we call the police here, some bribes, and their head will turn the other way. So the only people actually enforcing the laws are the people themselves."
He stepped away, "Well, this will be where I go. Big sis is home so Boss will have a family meeting. So do whatever you want, go wherever the wind leads you."
Charlotte returned her attention to the two vigilantes patrolling the rooftops. Staring intensely at them, watching where they are going, what they are looking at.
Some alleyways, some drug deals, a highspeed chase. Things Charlotte saw and read about when researching Las Vegas. Night and day have no difference, the city still moves forward. Everyone does everything they want with freedom, even if it is illegal.
"Las Vegas... the City of Sin"