Chapter 7: Usual Manoeuvre
CHAPTER 7
Soleil POV
It was eight in the morning. The training room was filled up with almost all of the bodyguards. They gathered there for their training. Evan, Shawn, Ryan and Airyn have just finished training because they started early.
"Evan, what's today's mission?" Shawn glanced over his shoulder.
"We're protecting Madam Roselle and her husband. In the meantime, we'll find the person who sends those threats to her," Evan gave him the details of their mission.
"Oh and they are going to an event this morning so we'll have to follow them," he added.
Ryan walked next to Airyn and put his hand on Airyn's shoulder.
"Hey, do you think she has a daughter?" he asked with a cocky smile.
"Heh, you're that desperate bro?" Airyn mocked him.
Evan gently shook his head while watching the two.
"Is it a formal event?" Shawn asked him again. Evan nodded.
"So we have to wear suits? Ugh, that sucks," Ryan let out a loud grunt.
"Do you want the money or not?" Airyn folded his arms and mumbled to himself, " seems like my only job here is to babysit Ryan...".
"Hey, I heard that!" Ryan quickly caught what that man said. Airyn snickered at his reaction.
Each of the men got their distinct personality but they seemed to get along quite easily.
Evan, the quiet and mysterious guy.
Shawn, the most mature and most responsible amongst the men.
Airyn, a very quick-witted and sharp lad.
And then there's Ryan. Love to cause troubles and seek attention from the ladies. Favourite hobby? Annoyed Airyn and got into a fight with him.
Every woman who worked there looked up to the four of them. Maybe because they were the complete set?
"Mr. Altair has prepared the suits for us. I'll give it to you guys later," said Evan. "The ceremony starts at ten. Start preparing now," he instructed them.
Benjamin Altair was the head of Soleil. He was the person who assigned all of the missions to his co-workers. The guys nodded at Evan's order and went to their dormitory area.
Exactly at 9 a.m., they all met up again at the lobby. All of them wore black suits with white dress shirts underneath. They completed the look with a tie, which happened to be their favourite colour.
Evan adjusted his sleeves. He chose a blue tie to match his look. His hair was slicked back.
Shawn picked a delicate purple tie. He combed his hair up.
Ryan went for a blazing red tie. An unkempt hair—possibly not brushed. It looked messy but somehow still stylish.
Airyn fixed his emerald green tie, making sure it was symmetrical. His hair looked rather neat and tidy.
They were the best bodyguards at Soleil. It was no surprise that they have a lot of fans—the ladies specifically.
"Ryan, could you at least do something with that horrible hair? You look like a mess. Comb it or something," Shawn criticised.
"Have you ever heard of the word 'style'? Well guess what, this is my style and I'm keeping it. Besides, this is what you call macho, my friend," Ryan tried to back himself up.
"It's a formal event. If you're looking for a 'style' at least do it right like them," Airyn pointed his finger at Shawn and Evan.
Ryan ignored both of them and got distracted by a group of girls passing by. He smiled and winked at them. The girls giggled and covered their faces playfully.
Ryan turned back to face his friends.
"See? Told you guys. I'm hot!" Ryan said proudly.
Shawn looked at Airyn, giving him some kind of signal. Airyn knew what he was trying to tell him straightway. He took a comb out of his pocket and handed it to Shawn. He snatched Ryan by his collar.
"Noooooo! My hair!" Ryan shouted while trying to flee. Airyn captured him before he could escape. Shawn grabbed Ryan's neck and brushed his hair.
"Two against one? This isn't fair!" he yelled even louder. His hair was brushed violently by Shawn. Ryan ruffled his hair back every time Shawn tried to 'fix' it.
"Stay still! For God sake–stop moving!" Shawn started to lose his cool.
Each stroke became more aggressive than before.
"You son of a bi– You're going to turn me bald! Evan, come here and help me!" Ryan called out to Evan for help. Evan shrugged and let out a small chuckle.
From a distance, they looked like a bunch of ten-year-olds.
Shawn took off his hands from Ryan's head. Both Shawn and Airyn smiled contentedly.
"Finally..." Airyn was out of breath.
"It's like seeing a mother and her son," Evan said jokingly. Shah elbowed Evan. Evan just smirked at him.
"You're just jealous that my hair is better than yours" Ryan hollered.
"Touch your hair and it'll be the last day of your life," Shawn gave him a warning.
"Tch, stupid asshole, think I'm scared of him" Ryan cussed under his breath.
"Do you think I don't hear that?"
"Haha, umm... well, would you take a look at the time," he pretended to look at his watch.
"We're late! Better get going" Ryan ran away. Evan burst out laughing. Airyn's and Shawn's faces turned red. They stormed off and got into Evan's Porsche.
***
After an hour or so they arrived at the venue. Evan parked his car behind the building. The guys walked to the drop-off site where they would wait for Madam Roselle and her family. All of them got black sunglasses on.
"Madam Roselle isn't here yet?" Airyn looked around the area.
Ryan—who was behind Airyn— secretly ran his hand through his hair. He managed to rummage it without Shawn's and Airyn's knowledge.
"She told me that she'll arrive in five minutes," Evan looked at the watch on his wrist. The others did a little nod.
"I'm hungry. Can we eat?" Ryan complained. He patted his growling stomach.
"Stop whining, Flame," Airyn addressed Ryan using his codename. Ryan pouted and his face turned sour.
"That depends on whether she'll allow it or not," Shawn answered Ryan's question.
"If she said no you'll have to accept your fate," he tilted his head. A glint of hope appeared in Ryan's eyes.
A white Audi r8 Spyder suddenly stopped in front of them. A middle aged woman got out of the car with her husband. She was wearing an elegant ruby dress, very eye catching. The four men stood upright.
"Madam Roselle" Evan bowed his head. She observed the man. Her blood-red lips formed a cynical grin.
"I presumed you'll be late but I'm quite surprised to see you here," Madam Roselle said with a sarcastic tone.
"I hope I didn't waste my money hiring you gentlemen," she added. The four bodyguards were slightly annoyed from the way the woman treated them.
"You hired the right people, Ma'am," Shawn forced himself to smile. His jaw felt tense. The woman handed over the car's key to Airyn.
"Go park my car," she gave the order and left.
"Y-Yes, Ma'am" Airyn faked a smile while trying to grab the key that almost slipped out of his hands.
On second thought, letting the attacker carry out their plan didn't sound that bad. Mr. Aubert approached the four of them. He got a feeble yet genuine smile.
"Forgive me for being late," he apologized with his gentle voice.
"It's okay, sir. You didn't keep us waiting that long," Ryan smiled broadly.
"Are your other family members not coming, sir?" Shawn asked.
"They will arrive here soon," he said. His eyes wrinkled every time he smiled. Mr. Aubert was completely a polar opposite of Madam Roselle. They wondered how he could keep up with her attitude.
"If you'll excuse me, I'll be going in now," Mr. Aubert said politely.
"After you, sir," they replied to him all at once. He smiled at them one more time before entering the hall.
"I'll go park the car first," Airyn opened the car's door. "I'll be right back".
The other three went into the hall first.
"Woah, that's a lot of people," Ryan said as he walked into the expensively decorated hall. The fancy hall was huge and it could fit quite a number of people.
The guests consisted of nobles and aristocrats. Apparently, the ceremony was actually a wedding reception for Mr. Santiago's son, the owner of the largest company in the city.
Such a big event could easily draw attention from a shady company like Eclipse.
"Keep your eyes on Mr and Mrs Aubert. Look out for any suspicious person," Evan's gave his command.
They all nodded. Airyn just showed up a few minutes ago.
Ryan and Evan went to the back of the hall, guarding each corner. Both Airyn and Shawn stood at the entrance and waited for the other family members.
Shortly afterwards, Madam Roselle's family arrived. They got escorted through the entrance and into the hall. All of the men kept a close eye on the family.
***
"Evan" Ryan whispered with an annoying tone. It had been an hour but nothing happened yet.
"Evaaaaan," his voice became louder and whinier.
"Shut it, don't be such a baby," Evan couldn't take it any longer. "I get it that you're hungry but we're in the middle of a mission right now. Also, don't use my name to call me," he blurted.
"Ugh, we've waited for an hour. I'm hungry..." Ryan mumbled with frustration. He slumped his shoulders.
Ryan's childish act ticked Evan off and made him extremely irritated. Just in time, he saw Mr. Aubert walked towards them with a plate of food; an absolute godsent.
"Here, you must be hungry but don't tell my wife I gave it to you" Mr. Aubert handed the plate to Ryan. Ryan's eyes sparkled with joy.
"Thank you so much, sir!" Ryan thanked him in excitement. Mr. Aubert smiled kindly. Evan who saw the whole thing just shook his head.
Ryan instantly stuffed some food inside his mouth. Evan was still observing his surrounding; waiting for anything to unfold.
He caught a glimpse of Shawn. Shawn was staring at something—possibly someone. He shifted his eyes back and forth from the target to Evan. Evan noticed it and turned his head towards the direction that Shawn was pointing at. A male waiter. He was holding a tray with drinks on it.
Evan did not even notice the presence of the waiter earlier.
The man put something into all of the drinks. He brought the tray to the table where Madam Roselle and her family were sitting. Shawn's and Airyn's eyes widened. Ryan was clueless about the situation and continued to chew his food.
Evan initially planned to just dash there but the distance between him and the waiter was too far. He won't make it in time. Evan looked at Ryan. An idea came into his mind. He snatched the plate from Ryan. Fortunately, Ryan had just finished eating so the plate was empty.
"Hey, what are you doing?" Ryan asked, confused.
Evan pointed the plate at the waiter. Ryan had a hunch that the waiter had done something. He did not stop Evan from doing whatever he wanted to.
Evan aimed and threw the plate. It hit right at the waiter's hand. He dropped the tray, causing everything on it to break. The glasses shattered into pieces. Evan silently cussed because he had caused a scene, but he didn't have any choice.
Shawn and Airyn sprinted towards Madam Roselle's table. Everyone in the hall went silent. Evan and Ryan also tagged along shortly after that.
"W-What are you trying to do?" the woman shrieked. Her voice echoed through the hall. Mr. Aubert tried to calm his wife down. Shawn pulled the waiter's collar.
"Please forgive us. This waiter put something in your drink. We're just doing our job," Shawn explained the situation to her.
"You're going to ruin my reputation, didn't you think of that?" she barked and slammed her hand on the table. Shawn gritted his teeth. This witch literally chose her reputation over her life.
"If you will excuse us," Shah said to the guests at the table as he dragged the waiter to the storeroom.
Evan told Airyn and Ryan to stay inside the hall. He then followed Shawn to the storeroom. They shoved the waiter inside. The small dusty room was full of tables and stage decorations.
"Who are you working with?" Shawn questioned him harshly. The waiter stood in complete silence. He lowered down his head and stared at the floor.
"Answer me!" Shawn jolted him.
"S-Someone told me to do it. He said he would kill me if I don't put the poison inside their drinks. I swear I don't have any intention to kill them. I'm innocent!" the waiter stammered.
"Who told you to do it?"
"I-I don't know. He's wearing a mask," he replied.
Shah let go of the waiter's collar. The real culprit could still be out there. Suddenly, they heard a faint commotion coming from the hall. The sound of people panicking intensified.
Shawn and Evan looked at each other. They immediately rushed to the hall.
A group of masked men armed with guns gathered in the middle of the hall. Mr. Aubert was held at gunpoint by someone who they assumed to be the leader.
His henchmen threatened the man's family. The petrified guests were crouching by their tables. Airyn and Ryan tried to keep the situation under control.
"Let them go if you want to live!" Ryan yelled.
"Oh no, I'm scared," their leader laughed maniacally. Eclipse's emblem revealed on his jacket.
Shawn, Evan, Airyn and Ryan communicated using eye signals. Shawn was the farthest from them; he was still standing near the storeroom.
The attackers have not yet noticed Shawn's existence. After discussing their plans—by exchanging eye contacts and few hand signs—the four bodyguards smirked mischievously.
Shawn sneaked up from their back. He was lucky that the group was facing his friends.
He reached out for his gun from inside of his jacket. He pointed it at them and fired some shots. The sound of the gunfire caught the group off guard.
They turned around and all together charged towards Shawn. Airyn quickly jumped in to help him. While the two held off the gang from attacking, Evan and Ryan guided the guests to safety by instructing them to leave the hall. After making sure everyone had left they joined the others.
"Fucking bodyguards always stand in our way".
Evan and Ryan pulled out their guns.
"Twenty against four? That's not fair," Ryan said sarcastically. He raised his gun and opened fire. The gang split up and rushed to the two bodyguards.
The hardest thing as a bodyguard was you're not allowed to kill. It would be difficult to try attacking without causing death. Evan exhaled slowly.
He seized his opponent's hand and twisted it. Evan took the chance to knock him out by elbowing his neck. He screamed in pain before collapsing to the floor.
Shawn kicked the table with full force towards the Eclipse members. The heavy table caused them to fling backwards.
Airyn let off multiple shots from his gun. He used his other hand to pick up the chairs and threw them at the enemies.
Ryan hid behind a curtain. Four guys were chasing him. He sprang out and shot one in the leg and the other at his chest. Two more left. Ryan snatched the curtains and strangled them. They passed out from the lack of air.
"Oops, sorry not sorry" he muttered while running to Evan.
Shawn and Airyn were on the stage now. They were caught in a gunfight with some of the members. Everything was destroyed in seconds. Two of the enemies were already injured and trapped under a large ice sculpture.
A duo approached both Evan and Ryan while frantically attacking. Ryan pulled the velvet curtain and whipped his opponent's back with it.
"Naughty boy, mama never taught you to kill people," he said as he wrapped the curtain around his hand.
Ryan leapt towards the man and entangled the curtain around his neck. He kneeled on the floor and put one of his feet on the guy's chest.
"It still isn't too late to change, young man".
His opponent made a choking sound before went completely silent.
Meanwhile, Evan was trying to put his opponent down. He kicked the man's leg, causing him to lose balance. The guy stumbled and hit head first on the table.
The impact was so strong that it made him faint.
Ryan stood up and faced Evan.
"Oh yeah! Team red-blue!" Ryan held out his hand for a high-five. Evan didn't give him a high-five instead he made a deadpan face to him.
"I'm wearing a red tie? You're wearing a blue tie? So, High five!" Ryan tried doing it again.
Evan left Ryan hanging and ran towards the remaining Eclipse members. The leader and his last men.
"What? Aren't we friends?" Ryan cried out, feeling offended.
Evan and Shawn were fighting side by side. Shawn grabbed his final henchmen and threw him on the stage. He fell and tipped all of the decoration lamps over. One of them smashed onto his head and knocked him out.
"Y-You..." the leader's lips quivered.
"My plan would've fucking worked if it wasn't because of you!" he snapped.
"You're nothing without your team. Just give up already," Airyn crossed his arms. Ryan took a rope and tied him up.
"I was so close to killing them but you bastards came in and messed up my plan!" he shouted at the top of his lungs. Veins popped up on his neck.
The hall was in an uproar with all of his shouting and cursing. He couldn't accept that he had lost.
Evan's ear couldn't bear all of the noises anymore. He swung his fist and punched the man right in his face. The blow dealt quite a damage. Bloody nose, a few broken teeth and a bruised eye.
He was out cold.
"Good job Knight!" Airyn patted Evan on the shoulder.
"Finally, our work here is done," Ryan put his hand on his waist. "Have you called the police?" he asked.
"The police are already outside. Tell them to come in and arrest these people" said Shawn.
"Good job my comrades. You all did great but not as great as me," Ryan smiled arrogantly.
"Do you have a thing for curtains? This is a mission, not a Bollywood filming," Airyn scorned.
"Really, Ryan? How would you like to feel Evan's punches?" Shawn taunted him.
"Hmph! I'm just trying to show some confidence," Ryan's mouth formed a pout.
"Pft—Confidence, my ass!" Airyn snorted.
"Haha, you know what? Let's go grab some food. Without Ryan, of course," said Shawn.
"Knight!! Please back me up!" Ryan pleaded to Evan.
"Mission's over. I'm not Knight"
"Evan, I'm hungry but they won't let me come along!" Ryan babbled. He inched closer to Evan.
"Sorry, I don't know you," Evan avoided him quickly get out of the hall. Shawn and Airyn followed him.
"Hey, how dare you!" he said as he chased them from behind.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone