The elevator came to a stop with a ding. Gurk stepped out first and took a left. After a short distance they stopped in front of one of the numerous dark blue doors of the hallway before Gurk let go of the kid. Once Ven was back on the ground, he kept his head down low, staring at the floor. The other three looked at him, with Itzel looking particularly impatient as she tapped her foot.
"Unlock your door, kid," Itzel commanded. Ven brought up his UIC which activated the mechanism that kept his front door locked. "Now get back inside until your parents come back from work!" she said sternly as she pointed inside the apartment's main room. With his head still tilted downwards, he obeyed and entered, letting the door close behind him. "That kid, I swear," she said to no one in particular after hearing the locking mechanism finally activate.
"You know him I assume?" Janus asked.
"Yeah. He's a neighbor. I've known his parents my entire life. And you've met his aunt. Err... aunts."
Janus paused for a moment. "Enforcer Jallen?"
"Yeah, Bri is his aunt. You think she'd cut us some more slack with how much we have to look after that kid."
"Handful," Gurk mumbled as he took a few steps towards the opposite side of the hallway.
"Yeah. But for you it’s literal. Ever since he watched Gurk in a Ranked Challenge, he's been obsessed with becoming just like him. He's been doing wrestling moves and flying kicks for months now," Itzel brought up her UIC and the door opened up. Itzel stepped inside followed by Gurk. Janus stood within the doorway and made a quick scan of the room. The walls were cramped. From one side to the other couldn't have been more than the length of three and carriers and the width of one and half, all placed bumper to bumper. There wasn't too much inside in regard to furniture either; a lone sofa and a metal folding chair took up a good portion of the living space and a single low wooden table between them. Placed on one of the walls was a long panel that Gurk sat in front of. With a wave of his hand, a floating screen appeared in front of him. The crocodile stared at it as he shifted through some menus. Janus looked to the other side of the apartment. Itzel had just finished unfastening her boots before stretching her arms high above her head. In her socks, she treaded across the beige carpet towards Janus.
"Come on. Let me show you around," she said with a wave of her hand. "It's a small place as you can clearly see." She walked further into the home, showing off a small section towards the side that could be entered through a narrowing opening. The carpet floor gave way to white tile. "That's the kitchen. Don't bothering opening the fridge. There's nothing in there." Janus poked his head through. The presence of an oven, refrigerator, counters and cabinets made it evident that it was indeed a kitchen. He stepped out and watched Itzel move further along.
"And here's the bathroom," she said as she tapped on the door. "My suggestion to you; try to go before Gurk in the morning," Itzel whispered. From the down the hall, Janus could see Gurk turn his head to glance back at Itzel and give her a low growl before watching his screen again. "What?" she shouted towards the crocodile. "Am I wrong?"
Janus couldn't stop his chuckle from escaping.
"It's funny now. But wait until you're the one that has to clean up after it." Itzel continued down the slim hallway. She pointed towards the room on her right. "That's where I stay. Don't go in there." She turned to Janus giving him a stern stare and pointing a finger in his face. "That's the number one rule if you're going to stay here."
"Understood," Janus said with a nod of his head. "I'll make sure not to go in there." He looked over towards the only remaining room that he hadn't been shown. "And I assume that's Gurk's?"
Itzel shook her head from side to side. "No. Gurk sleeps out in the living area on the floor. That's my father's room. Since you'll be staying here for a bit, I think it'd be best for you to meet him. What do you say to that?"
"I'd be delighted," Janus said with a small nod.
Itzel knocked on the door twice. "Hey dad, there's someone I want you to meet!" she shouted through the closed door.
"Who is it?" a raspy voice faintly replied. Itzel pushed the door open a crack and poked her head inside.
"It's someone me and Gurk met down by the Refinery Sector earlier this evening." The volume of her voice lowered as she put half of her body through the doorway to talk to the man. A sliver of light pierced through and lit up a small section of the dim hallway.
"Who is it?" the same raspy voice said again.
"His name is Janus. He's... not from here. But he's going to help us earn some Tokens."
"What? Why do you need help earning Tokens?" the man asked annoyed.
"It's a long story dad, alright? But everything's going to be fine, trust me. Me and Gurk and Janus will have everything sorted out. No need for you to be worried.
"Whenever you say that is when I'm the most worried." The old man struggled to get the sentence out without taking in a deep breath.
"I mean it this time. Do you want to meet this guy or not?"
"Send him in here!"
Itzel held the door open, nudging her head towards the inside of the room. Janus acknowledged the cue and made his way to the door. He jutted his head just past the frame. The room was cramped; there was just enough space for a bed that was placed along the wall, a closet on the opposite side and a short, narrow row of carpet that allowed just enough space to walk between the two. To his right was a bed-ridden man buried beneath a mound of black blankets. He looked at Janus with small and tired brown eyes. His graying hair spilled across his pillow as he continued to make eye contact. His skin was pallor and his face covered in wrinkles.
"Hello," Janus said, giving the old man a wave.
"Hey there," he said back. He let out a cough as he slid some of his blanket off from his upper body, revealing the loose beige t-shirt that he was wearing. The old man managed to prop his body upwards and sit up straight. Looking down towards the lower half of his body, Janus could see the shape of only one leg underneath the sheet. "The name's Galo." He pointed to his chest with his thumb as he let out a weak chuckle.
