three smoke breaks and two faked urgent calls into the ball, and maxime's run out of options to evade conversation. he can't so easily slip away considering his position, so he lingers. watches. smiles when it is appropriate, claps when everyone else does, and pretends that he is not a husk parading around without a soul attached to the body. his applause after ceo kang steps off is stilted, mind still processing what this will mean for the organization, and then darkness descends and everything stops. he waits. extends his sense of pain out, probing for any spikes in the baseline he'd measured at the start, only to find no anomalies as far as he can reach. max remains on high alert as his vision adjusts to the emergency lighting, scanning his surroundings, ensuring that everyone is uninjured within his line of sight by second nature. " this is my default, agent hera. " it isn't — not recently. his posture is fixed, shoulders back, nothing like the coward he's been. all it takes is a dash of fear to get the adrenaline running. " i am unconcerned about the message. " he lacks skills to manage a breach, physical or technical. maxime focuses on what he can control. " which combined with the mood lighting might cause panic with our junior agents. panic, which causes injuries inadvertently. forgive me if i lack faith in them. "
𝙻𝙾𝙰𝙳𝙸𝙽𝙶 … open starter ⟳ governors ball ; 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚘𝚗𝚎 .
❛ champagne , thank you . ❜ crystal chimes against the marble countertop adorning the bar, the round of applause it accompanies almost deafening. zita's own hands mimic the actions of others, the sound hollow and empty, a reflection of truer sentiments towards the collaboration – just another stakeholder to appease , the voice of cynicism muttered within. deft digits eventually curl around the tall stem of her champagne flute, the glass brought to lips and its libation savoured ; at least they hadn't scrimped on the alcohol , which was so often the case at such galas. no sooner had the glass met her lips the room descended into darkness , emergency lighting swiftly & brightly illuminating the concerned and confused expressions on the faces of the attendees ; posture rigid , hues assessing, zita mirrored the facades of others . vibrations from within her purse directed her attentions and with her phone retrieved , the message was read . posture relaxed , lips meeting the glass once more for a calming sip . ❛ don't look so ... serious , we do not wish to cause a panic . ❜ her voice was low, scarcely a whisper to the colleague beside her .