Chapter 11

Dr Cruces watched silently as Alistair and the Doctor leave the office room. The door closed with a loud click and the silence that followed was deafening. Even the normal engine sounds of the ship could not be heard. He was alone with just his thoughts now.

Dr Cruces had held his breathe throughout that entire encounter between the two men. He let out a deep breathe, and sagged onto the chair in front of Alistair's security computer which still held the image of the Angel.

He hated confrontation in general, but this confrontation would end badly for all. In his mind, he was unsure who was the more dangerous out of Alistair and the Doctor. Alistair had lots of money, and was not afraid to do anything to get his own way, even if it meant to get rid of people from under his feet. The Doctor, though he barely knew the man, came across as dangerous. His knowledge of the Angels was enough for Dr Horatio Cruces to realise this was not a mere Doctor.

I could do with a drink, Dr Cruces thought to himself- and he saw the bottle of whisky left by the cabinet. I'm already in trouble so why not, Dr Cruces pondered and got up and started to pour a strong drink.

As the whisky hit the back of his throat, Dr Cruces remembered meeting Alistair for the first time. He had just graduated from University with a doctorate, and during the graduation ceremony a young business named Alistair came to greet him and shake his hand. Horatio was, at that time, young and impressionable and when Alistair offered to take him on as a researcher, Horatio was over the moon. University had left him with severe debt and the job seemed too good to be true.

"You'll be travelling a lot, barely any time to see friends at family." Alistair had told him, but this was of no concern to Dr Cruces. He was an only child and his mother had died when he was little. His father became a loner after this and would spent a lot of his time just staring out the window of their house, sometimes holding some item of his mothers. He was not supportive of Horatio, and they had not spoken for several years. The death of his mother had caused a strain between Horatio and his father, to the point where they would only communicate when they had to. Horatio turned to books and study to get away from his problems as a child, which started his road to meeting Alistair.

"It's not a problem for me." Horatio told Alistair and they shook hands on the deal.

The job did in fact turn out too good to be true, as Alistair was getting impatient with his finds and research and it was clear he was only after a quick money fix. Horatio had tried to leave on a number of occasions, but after a few threats from Alistair and one "discussion" that end up with Horatio having his wrist broken, Horatio felt it was best to stay and try to appease this monster.

Horatio finished off the glass and poured himself another drink. I'm essentially a slave doing my masters bidding, Horatio told himself. He wanted out and quick.

Click.

The sudden noise made Horatio jump. Lights were beginning to flicker around the room. Horatio walked slowly to the light switch and flicked it on and off. This did nothing to the general effect of the flickering as it was still on going. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see a flickering figure by the computer.

Horatio turned instantly and saw an Angel standing right by the computer. Only this Angel was different to the one running riot on the ship. It was flickering, and not a clear image, as if it had come from a screenshot.

Horatio racked his brains and remembered a quote he read once: An image of an Angel will itself become an Angel.

Horatio, not taking his eyes off the figure in front of him, walked backwards towards the door. Already knowing the answer, he still tried the door handle. Locked. This explained the click he heard a moment ago.

Before he had time to think, all the lights went out. Horatio thought back on his life, wishing he had taken a different path. He closed his eyes, and waited for the Angel.