"Matsuko. Find those people, and listen to what they say. If you can determine whether they're PXS or Uprising, come stright back to this room, okay?"
Matsuko nodded, then realized Ikiji couldn't see her. She backed up through the vents and to a junction, where she stood and stretched. She went prone again, and squeezed into another duct. It was a tight fit, but she managed to get through.
She worked her way along for a time ,but then the smell of food caught her. Sniffing, she followed the scent to a particular vent. Looking through, she saw a kitchen, filled with delicious-smelling food. A platter on one table looked particularly good, and her mouth started to water. She looked at the people in the room. They were absorbed in conversation. She could sneak over and swipe a bit...it would be easy...
She shook her head. No, get it together, Matsuko. You have a job to do.
Suddenly, a woman entered the room, and walked over to another woman, whom Matsuko recognized as the one from the room earlier, the one with the knife injury. The newcomer spoke.
"Excuse me? My name's Tabby, and this is my vulpix, Kyndle. I want to join the Uprising."
Uprising! Matsuko's ears perked up. She concentrated on the two, and focused intently on the woman's response.
"If you know what you're getting into, I'd be happy to have you join our cause."
Matsuko had to fight a victorious smile. Now she knew for a fact that this was the Uprising headquarters. Not only that, but joining was as simple as walking up to the leader and asking! She hurried back to the room as fast as she could.
Ikiji was asleep. Just her luck. She managed to get the vent open, and ran over to him. She shook him, but he didn't stir. She called loudly, but he still didn't respond. Frustrated, she built up a powerful charge, placed a paw on his leg, and released it. Ikiji let out a choked cry, then promptly fell out of the bed. Once he recovered, he rounded on her.
"Can't you think of a less painful way to wake someone up?!"
Ignoring him, she delivered her message. Ikiji was startled, but not unpleasantly. "It's...really that easy? Huh...go figure..."
He headed for the door, and got ready to go to the kitchen, where the leader supposedly was. Suddenly, he heard a vague noise, and looked for the source. He heard it again, and realized it was his radio. He removed it, and realized with a start that it was still set on "intercept."
And it was getting a signal.
He fiddled with the frequency, and made out part of the message.
"....secon....rosty Gor....Upris..........PXS.....ssin captu........ssault...."
He almost dropped the radio. He opened the door and dashed for the kitchen. This was bad.
The PXS knew where they were. And they were on their way.