As a soft melody played in the spacious enclosure of the elevator, Moretti began to shift about uncomfortably; both out of boredom and intense anxiousness. "Man, I am so screwed," thought Moretti to himself as he continued to ride the elevator to the very top of the building. "'The Boss' is gonna have my head for this. I just know it!"
As the counter tallied up the number of floors, Moretti felt the extravagantly made elevator, lined with gold and fine velvet carpeting, was becoming more and more like a coffin with every passing moment. This was because he was on his way to see "The Boss"; a man that wasn't only his superior, but everyone's superior. "The Boss" ran Hyperion City's criminal underground in all of its entirety; and despite what everyone thought, he was in control. Not the mayor, not the city council, not even the police; it was "The Boss" that ran things and the fact that he wanted to see Moretti, especially after just getting his butt handed to him by some tight-wearing psycho only an hour before, meant something. Something bad. Something that usually involved concrete shoes and a refreshing dip into Hyperion Harbor.
Moretti tried not to fidget so much, both as an attempt to calm himself down and to not injure himself any further. His arm was killing him, what with it having been dislocated from his shoulder after literally being pile-drived into a trashcan. A sling provided by the hospital helped keep it in place, but it did little to ease the pain. The various cuts and bruises that lined his body also didn't help matters much either; but in the grand scheme of things, he was probably the luckiest one there. His two brothers on the other hand, Frank and Henry, weren't as lucky. They were both still alive and in the hospital recovering, but Henry was still unconscious from the fire hydrant he got to the back of his head and Frank was still having broken shards of glass being picked out of his sorry hide. So even though he had the indignity of being dumped into a dustbin like a sack of rotten potatoes, at least Moretti got away relatively unscathed. That feeling quickly changed however, once the elevator finally reached it's destination.
After releasing a very soft "ding", the metal doors of the elevator opened up to reveal a massive foyer, filled to the brim with various pieces of artwork and marble sculpture. A good portion of which appearing to be from the classical period of Ancient Greece. A lone desk sat close to a colossal set of elaborately carved double doors, and behind that desk sat a very large woman. A woman that seemed to be far more interested in typing on her desktop computer, than actually acting as the floor's receptionist; even though that was technically her job. After stepping out of the elevator, Moretti swallowed his courage and moved towards the receptionist. As he got closer, he quickly realized just how huge she really was.
Her sheer height was staggering. Even while sitting down, the receptionist easily loomed over him. Her height must have been anywhere from 8'6" to 9'4"; a height that easily caused her to seem much too big for her relatively tiny workstation. Her incredible muscle mass was also quite mind-boggling. Her immense shoulders, monstrous biceps, and powerful thighs seemed to go on forever. With a physique like hers, one got the impression that she lifted train engines on a daily basis, as a part of her morning workout routine.
However, despite her Herculean stature, the muscle-bound receptionist seemed to exude an air of professionalism about her. Her attire was very business-like (although it did little to hide her rippling sinew and prodigious bustline). Her hair and facial features were also very well-groomed, again implying a great sense of professionalism; but her luxurious hair and modestly-applied make-up also provided femininity to her visage. Implying that even though she treated her job very seriously, she still worked and acted with the grace and temperament of a very dignified young woman.
In any case, after walking up to the reception desk, Moretti patiently waited for her to acknowledge him; which she didn't do until Moretti gave a slight cough to indicate his presence. Nevertheless, even then, she refused to recognize his very existence, choosing instead to continue typing on her keyboard until he finally decided to speak to her directly.
"Uh...excuse me," stated Moretti politely, hoping that his interruption wouldn't anger the hulking wolfess sitting right in front of him.
It was then that she gave Moretti a response; in a manner that was both irritable and very apathetic.
"Yes? Can I help you?"
"Um...I-I'm here to see 'The Boss'," he replied quietly, almost to the point of being completely inaudible.
"I see," she replied succinctly, completely unimpressed by the man that stood tremulously before her. "And you are?"
"Uh...Moretti," he declared swiftly. "Jimmy Moretti. 'The Boss' wanted to see me?"
"One moment please," replied the receptionist seriously, her hand reaching out to touch an intercom device on her desk.
"Mr. Delos, sir?" she queried respectfully as she spoke into her intercom. "A Mr. James Moretti is here to see you, sir."
There was a brief pause as both she and Moretti waited for an answer.
"Very good," responded the intercom. "Send him in, Ms. Ambrose."
"Understood sir," replied Ms. Ambrose.
She then rose from her seat, dwarfing Moretti even more than he ever thought possible, and began to open the two huge doors behind her. Once rendered fully ajar, she gently escorted Moretti through the doorway and into the very spacious, yet very Spartan looking, workplace. He was then positioned into the very front of Mr. Delos' desk. At which point, Ms. Ambrose took her place slightly behind Delos' chair; standing at attention, with her hands behind her back and her legs adjusted close together.
As mentioned before, Mr. Delos' office was very basic in nature, despite it being rather roomy. Other than the simple, yet heavy desk sitting at the end of the room and some more Classical Greek sculpture lining the walls, there was actually very little to see of his decor. A huge wall of glass windows offered an impressive view of the city skyline; which was especially the case at night, when literally hundreds of thousands of lights would dispel the darkness and reveal a whole new side of the city's countenance. As for Mr. Delos himself, he was a man of average proportions, with dark hair and sky blue eyes. And as befitting of a man in power, he was dressed in a white suit and red tie; both of which were finely-tailored to custom fit his own stylish build. He stared at Moretti in a manner that was much like Ms. Ambrose's; cold and rather indifferent to his guest's attendance.
Moretti just stood there as Mr. Delos continued to glare at him; his eyes seeming to pierce into his very soul. He began to speak, just to help break the awkward silence.
"Uh...hello Mr. Delos, sir," declared Moretti with a forced smile but a very frightened expression. "I must say, it really is good to see..."
"Mr. Moretti," interrupted Delos indignantly, not in the least bit interested in the kind of prattling that Moretti had to offer. "Do you know why you're here? In my office? At 3:35 AM in the morning?"
"Um...n-no sir," forced Moretti nervously but obediently. "Not really."
Mr. Delos provided an answer.
"It's because at 2:17 AM, you and your...associates were taken into police custody. An event which occurred because apparently you were attacked by someone. Someone that obviously wanted to interfere with my business and make me waste my time and money bailing you and your incompetent siblings out of trouble."
"Now," continued Mr. Delos gravely, with a hint of annoyance. "Who attacked you Moretti?"
Moretti knew the answer to such a query, but he was hesitant to say it. Mainly because he knew his response would raise some eyebrows.
"Uh...it was a woman," he replied finally, realizing it was a bad idea to keep someone like Mr. Delos waiting. "...dressed in green spandex."
There was an awkward pause as Ambrose and Mr. Delos just stared at him perplexedly; as expected, eyebrows were indeed raised.
"Green...spandex?" asked Mr. Delos, somewhat confused by the very line he just said. He continued to preserve his steely facade however.
"Uh...yes sir," said Moretti in agreement, knowing full well just how stupid his answer truly sounded. "She um...also claimed to be the greatest superhero ever."
For a brief instant, Mr. Delos' expression changed from chilly and apathetic to shocked and surprised. But this instance quickly passed.
"I see," coughed Mr. Delos thoughtfully. "Alright then, you can go now."
"...r-really?" asked Moretti, genuinely surprised and somewhat relieved by his boss' statement.
"Yes," retorted Delos irritably. "Now get out of my office."
"Uh, yes sir! Of course!" replied Moretti hastily.
He just spoke to "The Boss" about his failure and didn't get killed for it. To him, that was a freaking miracle from the Lord Almighty himself; but as far as he was concerned, he wasn't going to push his luck. After being dismissed, he quickly left Delos' office; with as much swiftness as his beaten and bloodied body could possibly muster.
Upon Moretti's exit, Ambrose walked over to the massive double doors and closed them; effectively sealing the room. She then began to speak to Mr. Delos in private.
"What do you think, sir?" asked Ambrose inquisitively, yet respectably. "Do you think he could be lying to you?"
"I doubt it," replied Delos as he rose from his chair and moved to the window; looking out towards the vast cityscape that was Hyperion. "Men like Moretti are very good at hurting people, but not at being very creative."
Ambrose then glided her colossal frame close to his and looked out towards the city along with him.
"Do you think this 'hero' will be a problem, sir?" she asked with a hint of genuine concern in her voice, yet still maintaining her professionalized conduct.
"Again, I doubt it," was his response.
"In fact," continued Delos with a soft smile and a relaxed expression. "This could actually work in our favor."
"How so, sir?" inquired Ambrose as she watched him rub his chin and smile even more.
"You'll see soon enough," countered Delos suavely.
"In the meantime though, let's keep an eye out for this so called 'hero' of ours," chuckled Delos with a gentlemanly laugh. "She just might be the kind of person we've been looking for."
The two continued to look out into the sprawling urban landscape. A new "hero" was in town, and they wanted to see what she could do.
