THE MOMENT
It was a quiet morning until the door slammed open. The sudden ruckus startled the handful of patrons enjoying their breakfast in the diner, and all heads turned to the entrance. A lean, rugged man covered in a grotesque, viscous substance walked in, and immediately apologized.
"Sorry! Handle got away from me," he chuckled and held up his filthy hand to show the slick palm. His unsettling appearance and seemingly sincere apology was enough for the patrons to go back to their own business as the gentleman looked around. He spotted his client, the chubby teen with a bush of dark brown hair on his head waved him down. He pushed the door closed with his foot, then walked over to slide into the booth across from the teen.
"What are you covered in?" Aurelio asked as he pulled back. It didn't hit him until Carl sat down, but whatever the substance was came with a foul stench. If he'd known to expect it, he wouldn't have met in a restaurant.
"It's blood," Carl nodded as he placed four small glass jars on the table. Each one contained a thick, translucent green liquid with a golden pearl suspended in the center.
"Blood?" Aurelio asked. "Why is it green?" The lime-colored gel covering his skin still seemed fresh and moist, whereas blood would've been dry.
"It's slime blood," Carl smiled and nodded down at the glass jars again. "Getting Balancing Pearls requires a touch of finesse to get that close to them. Gotta pull 'em while the little blobs are alive, and even then they're rare to find."
"Alright, well thank you," Aurelio nodded and placed a glowing golden cube on the table. It was larger than a grapefruit and Carl smiled as he took the payment.
"Pleasure doing business with you," he nodded and stood up. At the same time, a third person joined them. He was a pale, lean teenager who ignored Carl and addressed Aurelio as soon as he arrived.
"I need to get the sword back to Justice as soon as possible, and to do that, I need to lend it to you first. Why are you killing time in a diner?" he asked. Carl wasn't part of that conversation and his job was done. He made his way back out of the restaurant as Aurelio stood up from the booth.
"I was waiting on some parts," Aurelio shrugged. He collected the jars and showed one of them to Oren while he stashed the rest in his pockets.
"Balancing pearls?" Oren recognized the item, then he looked back and spotted Carl out the window walking away. "Why'd you hire a freelancer? They sell those everywhere," he added.
"Sharp Development sells them everywhere," Aurelio said. "I don't know what she's doing, but I know Jenny's working deep in their systems right now. I can't risk the smallest chance she'll notice me buying these. And, even then. I don't want Sharp Development to know either. They might decide to check on the sword. And besides, I paid for extra quality. The mass-produced versions aren't delicate enough," he said. As he gave his explanation, he created a portal to his garage and stepped through it, with Oren close behind.
"So, everyone can deduce that you have the sword if they see you acquiring Balancing Pearls... what am I missing? What exactly are you doing with the sword?" Oren asked. Aurelio went to his work table to start clearing off space.
"You're missing the fact that I have this," Aurelio grinned and showed Oren a translucent purple glass card with a golden sun etched in the center.
"That's a cool node," Oren shrugged. "But, I don't know what it's supposed to be?"
"This, is the power of El Sol," Aurelio smiled. "Jenny got to it before I did, but then she had to leave. She also made me promise that I wouldn't scan it in any way."
"Wait... are you going to cut it?" Oren asked. Aurelio nodded.
"Just a tiny little sliver is all I need. Jenny will never notice, and I'll have kept my promise to not subject the card itself to any tests."
"Well, I don't care about any of that," Oren shrugged. "But, at least you'll be done with the sword soon. Want some help lining up the Balancing Pearls?"
"Eh.. not that soon," Aurelio shook his head. "I don't need any help, but I do need some time."
"How much time? Why?"
"This is currently the most level and stable spot on this earth," he said. "But, I also chose this Earth because the multiversal boundaries are kind of thin. If we wait another day or two, the fluctuations will make this the most level and stable spot within the closest dozen or so universes. Fluctuations being the keyword, it's not completely predictable. Once that window opens, I'll line up the Balancing pearls to make sure everything stays stable, and I'll take a small slice off the node, give you back the sword, and everything is perfect."
"In that case, I'll continue to hold on to the sword until you're ready. Or, until three days pass, at which point I'll return it to Justice," he said.
"No problem," Aurelio nodded. "Once things line up, it'll be quick and easy. Absolutely nothing can go wrong."