There was no exterior doorknob so Daniel knocked. No answer. He pounded on the door with his fist but again: no answer.

Why would anybody go to all this trouble and then not answer the door? he thought. He stood there staring at the arrow, pondering his next move. “Oh… I wonder…”, he said out loud as he looked straight up. He coughed out a laugh at what he saw.

Dangling directly above his head was a piece of twine. It was swaying a little in the still air of the alleyway. The last inch or so was painted bright blue. He followed the twine upwards with his eyes. About three stories up, he could see that it went into an open window.

“I can hardly climb up a piece of string”, he said as he reached up and gave it a bit of a tug.

The string went slack and something fell from the window. He stepped back reflexively and held up an arm to protect his head. There was a crack as something hit the wall.

Waiting before him was a rope ladder. The first rung was blue, and held a message.

DANIEL GATE , ELEVATE