Paul's voice cut through the ambient sounds of the Drop Zone, calling me over with an urgency that piqued my curiosity. Making my way to where he stood, the eager glint in his eyes sent a nervous shudder running across my shoulders. That look in his eyes, a blend of determination and barely contained excitement, was a clear signal. He wants something, I instinctively knew it, and whatever it was, it promised to be significant.
"Luke," Paul said, pulling me into a hushed conversation near some stacked boxes overlaid with heaping piles of clothes, a makeshift privacy in the midst of our communal space. "Beatrix and I have come up with a plan, something that could really help us." His tone, low and conspiratorial, immediately drew me in, the promise of a plan sparking a mixture of intrigue and apprehension within me.
Intrigued by the gravity of his introduction, I nodded, my interest clearly piqued, urging him to share the details.
"Tonight, we're hitting a Big W store in Elizabeth," Paul revealed, his voice charged with a conspiratorial excitement that was both infectious and nerve-wracking. "Beatrix registered a Portal location in one of the change room stalls.” The very notion, bold and fraught with risk, sent a thrill of adrenaline coursing through me.
“So, Beatrix made it to Adelaide safely, then?” I couldn't help but interrupt, the concern for her safety momentarily overshadowing the audacity of their plan.
“Yeah, she’s fine,” Paul said, his nonchalance brushing aside my concern with a casual wave of his hand, as if the danger she faced was just another day's work for us.
My eyes narrowed as the reality of Paul’s revelation sank in. The plan was audacious, bordering on reckless. Paul would rally the settlers at the Portal, and Beatrix and I were to navigate the Clivilius gateway, embarking on a covert operation to pilfer supplies from the store. The depth of the situation, the sheer boldness of our endeavour, was enough to make my heart race.
"How do we know we won’t get caught?" The question sprang from my lips almost involuntarily, the logistics of the operation suddenly pressing heavily on my mind.
“I didn’t realise that was a matter you thought much about these days,” Paul replied, his smirk cutting through the tension.
My eyes rolled at his jest. “That was such a typical older brother thing to say.”
Paul chuckled loudly, his amusement filling the space between us. “That’s why you love me so much,” he jested, the playfulness in his voice a stark contrast to the seriousness of his plan.
A mix of excitement and apprehension settled over me. "When's the rendezvous?" I found myself asking, my reluctance warring with a readiness to embrace the challenge ahead.
"As soon as night falls," Paul's reply was swift, decisive. "Beatrix will coordinate the Portal activation. We'll be here, waiting.” His confidence was reassuring, a beacon in the murky waters of the plan.
“Nightfall?” I couldn't help but challenge. “Isn’t this shop open until really late?” The practicalities of our operation, the timing, and the risk involved, suddenly seemed all too real.
Paul paused, the practicalities momentarily catching him off guard. My hands gestured, urging him to think through the details more thoroughly, to consider every angle.
The pressure had its desired effect. “I think they close at ten. We’ll gather at the Portal at nightfall, and then when the coast is clear, you and Beatrix strike at midnight,” he explained, his strategy now more defined, his confidence restored.
“Midnight!?” The exclamation burst from me, a mix of disbelief and dawning realisation of the scale of our undertaking.
“Yeah,” Paul replied, his optimism dimming slightly under the weight of practical concerns. “We can’t be too careful, you know.”
“Fine,” I replied reluctantly, my agreement accompanied by another involuntary eye roll. The simplicity of the word belied the complexity of my emotions — excitement, fear, anticipation.
“Great!” Exclaimed Paul, his enthusiasm undiminished as he slapped my shoulder a little too enthusiastically.
Rubbing my shoulder as I retreated from the Drop Zone, the reality of his plan weighing heavily on me, I couldn’t help but mutter under my breath, “This is going to be a very long night.”
