Obsidian, Alexandre, Killian, Able
Best Plans of Mon
The house they appeared in was located somewhere in the southern section of Daggen. A brief flash of light occurred before Alexandre, Obsidian, and Kilian appeared in the middle of an almost-bare room. There was a couch pushed against one wall and a coat-hook in the corner. Alex loosened his cloak and tossed it lightly, psychically moving it to hang itself, before sitting on the couch.
"Wait." Kilian seemed almost frozen as his head turned between Alex and Obsidian several times. "Wait, you're actually... Are you sure, Alex??"
"Yes, I'm sure!" Alex insisted, resting both hands on his cane before him as he looked at Obsidian. "Where to start, though?"
Obsidian frowned at him, "So... this is a house that Guardia probably used while she was here then?" He asked the two as he looked about, "Looks unassuming enough. A good place for people to meet with her, I imagine. So, where are these friends? Are they natural Karnians or such?"
Alex shook his head. "Guardia doesn't know about this place." He paused, his smile slipping. "Didn't. Sorry, I forgot that Lyn...died..." Clearing his throat, he continued. "This is just one room. We'd find a few of them through that door over there." Alex nodded at a door in the wall opposite of him. "And not all of them are native-born. Generally, I had them move on into Karn for their positions."
"... You had them move?" Obsidian tilted his head, "So, is this some sort of plan you and Guardia had going? Or probably Hanso." He nodded, "Okay... so Guardia scouted out Karn and had some Gold Tribe move here. Not too bad of a plan, to be honest."
By this time, Kilian's hands were fidgeting as he backed away a couple steps. Alex's smile continued slipping away as they spoke. "It began with my father, but we didn't include Guardia, Obi. And I couldn't ask anyone of the Gold Tribe to do that. They have their lives, their duties to perform. No, there are 'mon here who came with the purpose of watching Karn. Theoretically, it's great and it's long-term. In practice..." Alex shrugged one shoulder a bit. "Could use some improvement."
Obsidian was silent for a moment, ".... Didn't... include Guardia? But, how could you get people here then? If not Gold Tribe... wait, how long has this been going on? Was this some sort of new plan just this year? I mean, we didn't keep it quiet that we were heading to Karn eventually."
Alex was silent as he counted something in his head. After a few seconds, he answered, "Hm, I'd say the first 'mon moved here around fifteen years ago. The next few years after that saw several more coming, individually, of course. It had to look like it was simply someone moving away from Valkaria and coming to Karn, little more than a change in residence and lifestyle. Like I said, long-term. Besides, Karn is volatile."
Obsidian wasn't ready to respond. He opened his mouth to say something, then closed it. He crossed his arms, thinking, "... Fifteen years?" He finally asked as he looked down at the ground, "Right?"
"Right." Alex took off his fedora hat and flicked it toward the coat-rack as well. "That was before I was really involved, but Obi, I've wanted to tell you all along. All along. My mother and father needed eyes and ears in Karn..." He hesitated, battling with a sense that he shouldn't be telling this. "...and in Valkaria. And in every nation that Valkaria has been in contact with these past thirty years."
As Alex talked Obsidian turned about to the door, opened it, and walked right on out. Kilian could be heard muttering, "Now you've done it." Obsidian closed the door as he kept on walking. To where, he didn't care. Now this had to be some sort of bad dream. Maybe he had misheard Alex? Maybe Alex had said fifteen months. Not that bad when he thought on it, and maybe it was his lack of sleep that caused his ears to not function correctly. He had heard that some nights without sleep could cause hallucinations. All he had to do was get some fresh air and make sure his ears weren't clogged. That was all.
"What's the big idea?!" Kilian snapped as the door closed behind Obsidian. He shoved his pen and notepad back into his pocket, staring at Alex like he had lost his mind. "How is this gonna help us against Alai?!"
"Greg's warnings," Alex replied, standing up and heading for the door as well. "If it's a choice between me telling him and someone else telling him, I'd rather it be me. And I'm glad I'm finally
telling him."
The next room Obsidian had found was a hallway that went on in both directions; faint morning light could be seen streaming in through a doorway at the left end of the hall. As Obsidian walked through that doorway, a Metagross glanced up from where he sat at a desk in one corner. A front door was in the wall leading away from the hallway. The Metagross shifted and turned about. "Who are you?" he asked in a steely voice.
Obsidian glanced over at him, "Oh just someone who's probably hallucinating a bit at the moment." He replied back, "You mind if I step out for a bit?"
The Metagross frowned with his eyes. "I wouldn't mind if you step out for good. How did you get in here?"
"Hold on," Alex said, appearing from the hallway. He saw the Metagross and sighed. "Morning, Haris."
Haris's disapproving look deepened. "Alex. Is this someone new for my branch?" he asked, waving a leg at the Weavile.
"No. Obi, wait, please." Alex turned back to look at Obsidian.
Obsidian didn't listen to him as he stepped outside, closing the door behind him and taking a deep breath of fresh air. He just had to clear his head. He just misheard Alex, that was all. Just a simple misunderstanding.
"No? Then I fail to understand the meaning of this," Haris grumbled, tapping a claw on the floor. "If he's not a member, and he's not here to see me, then he shouldn't be here."
Alexandre swiveled his cane toward the Metagross, his voice stern. "Mister Argyris. It's my decision to bring Obsidian here. If it wasn't for the fact that Alai is here in town, and that ultimately the time to fight Darkrai came weeks ago, I decided it's time for Obsidian to know." Letting Haris digest the new bit of information, Alex stepped to the front door and opened it slowly, simply watching Obsidian for the moment.
Obsidian walked about a bit outside, mostly to stretch and make sure that he was fully aware of everything around him. He looked back over at Alex, ".. Five months, right?" He asked.
Alex couldn't help but sigh, his earlier relief masked by something akin to weariness. "More than that. Please, come inside." He stepped aside to make room for his friend.
Obsidian stared at him, then made his way back inside, pushing his way past the Gardevoir, "Of course it was." He muttered angrily. "Of course. That's just the way things are done these days, right?"
Kilian had made his way out to the front room, where he stood talking quietly with Haris. "Obi," Alex started, closing the door, "if it weren't for the fact that Penance was raising you, I would have told you years ago.
Only because of how close an eye he kept on you."
"Of course." He bitterly replied, glaring at the Gardevoir, "It's always about him, isn't it? Even when he's dead it'll only be about him. Penance this, Penance that. Great to know that I can't ever keep a secret. Thanks for such a stunning revelation."
"No, that's not the point." Alex spread his hands helplessly. "
No one else was supposed to know, especially anyone who would tell the secret to kingdom come. Obi..." He stopped, searching for something better to say.
"Oh, so I would tell?" The Weavile sneered, "You know what? Forget it." He brushed a hand through the air, "I've already been through this cycle like, what? A hundred times already? You're just like the others. And you know what? That's fine. Splendid even. Let's just get this stupid job done? Got it? So get all of your 'friends' together and let's tackle this now."
"Obsidian!" Alex snapped, frustrated. "I wasn't worried about
you telling. Heck, I thought it was gonna be a big relief to finally tell you." He ran a hand over his hair, blowing out a breath. "Come on, then. A few of them are already in the other room. I want you to meet them. Haris?"
The Metagross' eyes turned to him. "Alex?"
"Please call in anyone who isn't occupied." Alex then walked back into the hallway, heading for the room they'd vacated moments before.
Obsidian followed wordlessly, not in the mood for conversation at the moment.
Inside the room, Alex stopped by his cloak and tapped it. "Albin, Milu, Kaiden, Sam. Come on out, please."
Nothing happened except for a voice to ask in Alex's mind,
<Are you sure about this?>
The Gardevoir frowned. "Yes, I'm sure."
Still nothing for two seconds. Then the cloak rustled, shapes taking form inside it, before they spilled out through the bottom. The four 'mon quickly picked themselves up and floated to Alex's side, eyes blinking at Obsidian. There was an 'A', 'B', 'X', and 'N'. All four were Unown.
Obsidian leaned against a wall and let out a huff, "So, anyone have any plans? Cause I'm not doing all the work."
Alex raised an eyebrow at Obsidian. "You said for me to get all my 'friends' together." He paused as Kilian walked in, followed by Haris. The Metagross still disapproved of Obsidian, but he remained silent as he settled against another wall. Alex continued, "Alai uses berries, correct? I figure that we can disable that temporarily if we bring someone who knows Magic Room, but it would be better for someone to take them away permanently."
Kilian raised a hand hesitantly, notepad and pen back in hand. "Eh, who's leading the planning? I mean, Obsidian did say he has one."
"We all contribute," Haris stated, looking around at the others. Resting his eyes on the Weavile, he added, "If the two of you are done talking, that is."
The Weavile took in a deep breath, "First off, we need to know the area that Alai is in. I'm sure that you all know how Karn is structured. What with fifteen years and all. I'm sure the place has windows too. What I need is a nearby area I can hide in. The idea is simple. Wait for Alai to pop around a window while being distracted and I throw a poisoned icicle his way. He dies once he gets hit."
"And I assume you know something about where Alai is," Haris said, looking expectantly at everyone else.
"Galleon's Gamble," Kilian rattled off, making notes in his notepad. His hands were fidgeting again. "According to Mr. Greg, anyway. And he handed us, er, Obsidian, a map of the places where the Simisage has caused trouble. Hum... But, wouldn't we want to try and get some more information out of Alai first? I don't mean listening to his drivel, but other info."
Haris scraped a claw on the floor. "He's more trouble alive than he is dead."
Alex was still looking at Obsidian, having sat on the edge of the couch. "Unless anyone happens to know where the last piece of Cresselia is," he said. "And if someone we know knows, then why leave Alai alive? Therefore, poisoned icicle." And if anyone did, then it would be Obsidian or anyone else who had been in Karn for the past two or three weeks.
"Yeah, we know where it is. The only things he would know are where Darkrai's guys are, that's it. So if you want that, we could just capture him and then make him squeal with some torture. The only problem is he's strong, and he could probably break free if we do that. So really, that's taking too big of a chance." The Weavile sighed, "So basically I can go through with two plans. The first is to try and kill him from a far. He gets so busy fighting you all or talking to you all that I strike him through the head with an icicle that is poisoned. Other than that, I can get in close instead and while he's fighting I slice his berry container off of him. He wears some sort of container on his body, from what the others said. So I slice it off and squash his berries there. Whichever way you all want to go."
<Information,> the 'A' Unown said, twirling around Alex's head.
<We could get information from Alai.>
Alex shook his head. He wasn't up to being a perky magician at the moment. "No, Albin. Alai already knows too much. It would be better off to strike him down. It sounds like your poison will be the finisher, Obi, so to distract Alai..."
"We go knocking on his door," Kilian muttered. He was a bit miffed that his idea of keeping Alai alive for information was shot down. "The one at Galleon's Gamble, anyway. Hm, but an inn-room is kinda tight quarters..."
"We still need to confirm he's there first," Haris pointed out.
"Hugo is working on that," Alex replied. "And besides, if nothing else works, we can watch and wait for him to return. Also, inn-rooms have windows. Alai can be pushed toward that as part of the distraction, so Obsidian can get a clear shot. Sacha, unless we get someone here who's better at one-on-one fighting, you'll take point in doing that. Hum, Haris? Is Fintan available?"
Haris hummed a bit, closing his eyes. "Yes, Mr. Carter is available. He's on his way here."
Alex nodded. "Okay, so we have someone coming with Magic Room, then."
"Good. Just keep him busy and I'll take him out. I have enough training with that. Distance is my main game." Obsidian kept his eyes glued to the floor, "Then we can be done with this."
"So... we find Alai at his room, I distract him, the Klefki can disable the berries thing, and we get Alai to where Obsidian can shoot him down." Kilian looked around, waiting only a moment for anyone to add to what he said. "Okay, then. So before we go fighting on an empty stomach, I think I'll, um, go fix us a quick breakfast."
The Metagross just looked at Kilian before shaking his head a bit. "I'll show you what we have," Haris hummed, claws clanking as he walked out the door.
Once Kilian followed him out with a last glance at the Gardevoir, that left Alex, Obsidian, and the four Unown in the room. Alexandre kept his own eyes on the Weavile, hands clasped in his lap. "Obi...please forgive me..."
Obsidian let out a weak sigh, "... I trusted you so much. And I dunno... I just have this feeling that Penance has ruined much of my life. And you just.... you just set that in stone for me. I thought that it was my own paranoid thinking... but it wasn't. And I don't know how to think about that. What else has been kept from me by others? Am I just a weak link now?" He let loose another sigh, "I know I shouldn't think like that. I know I should be more positive... but I can't be. So much has changed ever since Penance went away. I guess... he was a buffer. But now he isn't. I'm not sure how to feel about that."
Alex looked down at the floor, tapping one of his fingers against the others. "I think...he held you back too much. But he's gone now." He looked up at Obsidian. "It's not about him anymore. It's about you. I don't think you're a weak link. You've held yourself together so far, including the...hundred cycles of secrets." Looking down for a moment, Alex glanced back up again. "Tell you what. If you feel ready, then anytime after we take down Alai, I can tell you anything you ask about my secret life. I won't hold anything back."
<Alex...> Albin began in a warning tone.
Alex held up a hand to stop the Unown. "I'm tired of keeping secrets from my best friend."
Obsidian was silent for a moment, ".... Now you'll be honest? So... what don't I know? Is your name even Alexandre? Are you even a Gardevoir? I just...." Obsidian sighed and rubbed at his forehead, "I don't know what to think anymore. I don't know what I can even trust even more."
"Yes, I'm Alexandre, and yes, I'm a Gardevoir." He shrugged. "I'm not sure, either. I'm not used to breaking this to my friends... Of course, I wouldn't blame you if we stopped being friends after this." Alex was trying to be sincere; he just wasn't sure where this conversation would end up. "Hum... Well, one other thing you don't know is that these four aren't the only Unown I work with. There are more, including Hugo and his team. It gets a bit tricky in directing them, sometimes..."
Obsidian sighed, "I thought.... I dunno what I thought. I guess I assumed that since we were all together in on this that we were finally trusting each other. You know? That we finally were respecting each other in some grand way. Heh, what an idiot I was." He shook his head, "Penance always said that no matter what, a mon only cares for himself and no one else. I've seen that in pretty much everyone I've met. Snype with him deciding that only him knowing a legendary was in his forest was the only thing that mattered, with Abel and how he decided that to feel better about his sister's death that he had to stop communicating with yet another selfish action, with Callimer and how he wants to take down James alone even though it might be better with help. All selfish decisions. And you're just like them. And I guess deep down... I am like them too. We're all selfish... and we're all going to die because of it." He sighed, "I don't care if we're friends or not after this, Alex. Because we're all sacks of s**t in the end. And in the end... that's our downfall. Even mine with wanting revenge. I just didn't realize it yet."
Alex's hands tightened a little at Obsidian's words. Before he could reply, however, Kilian stuck his head back in through the door. There was a small egg smear above one eye. "We never came up with a backup plan, did we?" the Greninja asked, looking at both of them. "I mean, let's say the first icicle misses. Do I keep distracting him and hope he's too busy to watch out for a second icicle? I also thought about just showing up at his door and knocking, and when he opens up, I just try to stick him right then and there. If nothing else, that would lead into the distraction."
Obsidian smirked, "I know of something.... after I finish speaking to Alex." He looked back at the Gardevoir, "... Would it be selfish of me to try to keep you as a friend? I would like to, honestly I would. But... I've just been so selfish. All my life... I've wanted to take revenge. You know that. I think I've been selfish with honesty too. I always wanted to know everything, hell, Penance told me every day that knowledge was power. I guess... I just figured that if people became friends then they shared knowledge or something. I guess... am I stupid or something? Out here, out under Penance's wing it just... I guess I understood wrong. I guess everyone lies to everyone as much as they can. Maybe you didn't lie as much as you wanted, but you still did. In the end, I guess we're all selfish. I guess we all want to keep our own little secrets and ensure that no one once hears about them."
"Whoa, now." Alex pointed a finger at Obsidian. "I know you've seen bad examples already, but not everyone lies so much. I know a few 'mon who sincerely try to be honest. And..." His finger dropped slowly as he tried to think of what else to say, before shaking his head. "I guess in a perfect world, there wouldn't be any lying... Buuut, it would be kind of boring if we didn't have to work at it. Okay, in theory, honesty is best, at least according to my father, and I believe him. In practice, well..." Alex's head dropped toward the floor. "Man, we screwed up big time."
Yes, you so did, magic boy.
"Shut up, Lucien." Alex looked back up at Obsidian. "Yes, it might be selfish for either of us to stay friends, but at least we can watch each other's backs from now on. Just because a lot of 'mon might lie doesn't mean we have to anymore."
Leaning against the doorway, Kilian coughed into a fist. "Makes me wonder what we'll tell the rest of the searchers..."
Obsidian closed his eyes, "... Back there, when I decided to go after Alai... something hit me. For so long, I just had this need to after him... and then I decided not to." He frowned, "When we came into Karn, I just wanted to find him and rip his throat out... but I've been thinking about it more and more now. My father, I barely knew him. I mean, there's not much you can know when you were but a baby when one is sent out to die. Ever since I learned about revenge when I was little, I wanted to do that. And, after a while, that's the only thing I felt. But is it right to take revenge for someone you don't know? And then I heard Alai's name... and I remembered Penance. I'm not sure if Alai killed him... but that same feeling I felt for killing the Tropius came back, but it felt... real?" His face scrunched up, "That's the best way to describe. It felt more... personal. And without even thinking, I just went for it. I've known Penance my entire life basically." He sighed, "I'm not sure if Alai killed him... but it might be a start there. Even when I try to not be selfish, I still am." He let out a shaky laugh, "Before you said about a perfect world. Funny thing there is that Penance told me the same things when I grew up. That if everyone was perfect then there would be no fun. It just... reminded me of that. I'm sorry man. We can be friends. It does remind me of other things too. Like... with all this selfish talk Penance told me once that the most selfish mon lives to the end. So... maybe I need to stop with all of this? Here I am, in my twenties, and still questioning how the world works even though I know well enough. Maybe... this time we can be a bit selfish?"
Alex smiled a bit. "Hey, I did call him 'uncle' occasionally. Maybe we both hung around him a little much. But yeah, even though you want to know everything, it'll be a looong time before that happens. Probably won't know everything until after we die. I would say, at least try to be less negative."
Obsidian nodded, "Yeah... that can work. Alright, back up plans. If I can't hit him with the icicle, then I'll need one of you to try and cut him and get the poison in him.' He took his pack off and pulled out his container of black liquid. "Think ya'll can handle that?"
"Hm, not a whole lot in there," Kilian muttered, stepping closer to Obsidian and the black liquid. "Yeah, can do, especially since I got my knife back, and Alex has his needles. How potent is this?"
"It'll paralyze his heart muscles." Obsidian stated, "Plus the muscles it gets funneled to. Get it along his chest area or anywhere really, and those muscles will be paralyzed after a bit. It'll eventually reach the heart. So if I can't hit him and you do, or even if I do manage to hit him, you'll have to wait a bit before it hits the main target. So you'll have to basically keep your guard up until then."
Kilian looked over at Alex. "Fintan's Magic Room won't affect this, will it?"
Alex shrugged. "It affects items, which would include your knife and my needles, actually, now that I think about it. The poison, though? So odds are, simply stealing away Alai's berries would be a better idea."
"Well, go ahead and do that then." Obsidian stated, "See if anyone can try and, say, psychic his berries off of him. It should be easy enough I would think. Just have some unown go ahead and rip it off him or the like. From there, we can poison him. But I doubt he has specific berries ready to counteract my poison. Even then, if I hit him from behind, he probably won't notice the poison. Both it and the icicle are liquids, so if it drips down his back from the wound he would assume that it is water, I would think."
"Let's see...we go to his door, confront him. I try to stab him at the very first, which either works or leads into the distraction. We try to take away his berries, push him to window, you stick him with your icicle. Failing that, we try to poison him via knife and needle." Kilian blinked. "Alai comes to the door, sees Alex and me there. Could he know anything about you being around, Obi?"
"Yeah, we'll need one of the psychics to be disguised as me. So, basically an illusion bracelet. I'll take the invisibility one, just to make sure no one around is a part of Alai's spy network possibly. If anyone spies me while I hide then this would be for nothing." Obsidian stated with a nod.
"Did we remember to grab that tech?" Kilian asked, turning to Alex.
Grinning, Alex said, "Yes, we did, some days ago in Gold City. Hannah works great despite all the pressure there. There hasn't been a lot of time since Tyren's counter bracelet was recovered from Tollen, so she had only...let's see. Two illusion bracelets, three shadow stones, one memory wiper. I think. All modified to, heh, counter the counter."
"That could work... but not for long. If they have tons of SEC under their command then this might be the only chance we have to use it. In order to take out an agent, I think it's worth it. Especially a high ranking one." Obsidian thought for a moment, "So yeah, this can work. We have enough contingencies, I believe. Unless we can also convert some of the liquid to a powder.... do you know of any plant types with sleep powder or poison powder in the city? If so, we can try and coat the powder with the liquid too. Throw a bag or jar at Alai and have him breathe it in. The only problem there is that it's airborn then and anyone in the room will be in danger."
Kilian shook his head. "I think that's going a bit far. I don't want to risk being poisoned if there's no antidote. Wait, is there one? Because Alai could potentially catch anything poisoned and turn it right back at us."
Obsidian frowned, "If I had some berries.... yeah. This poison is made with a very well kept formula that Penance taught me. It's a mix of some berries and some other ingredients. If I had some specific things, then I could make an antidote for it. Problem is I doubt Karn has those things here."
"Huh." Kilian drummed his fingers on his arms, thinking. "And what are those things?"
"Berries, powder, stuff like that." Obsidian answered casually. "If everyone else has secrets they want to keep, well, I figure this can be one of my first." He said. "Besides, can't let such information be overheard. You never know if a ghost type is overhearing."
Smirking, Kilian replied jokingly, "Alrighty, then. Mysterious contact, check. Mysterious antidote recipe, check. What else is there?"
"Sacha, please, not now," Alex groaned, rubbing his forehead.
"Fine, fine. Just trying to lighten the mood after your...well, both of your talking about secrets and selfishness and whatnot." The Greninja shrugged. "Thinking, though, there is a small storage that Mister Argyris has here. You'd have to ask him about taking a look, juuust in case the right ingredients are around."
Alex was thinking back to who else might take point with Kilian. There was the Klefki, the Unown, the idea of taking a psychic with them... "Without an antidote, I suspect it wouldn't hurt to bring a healer with us, at least to delay any poisoning we might get." He shook his head and stood up, retrieving his cane with a psychic pull. "I'm going to ask Haris just who exactly is available."
"That can work. Just try not to get poisoned. Once it gets into the bloodstream... well, it's a tricky process after that. Time is of an important matter. Which does lead me to my next concern. We have to take away Alai's berries just in case he's able to prolong his poisoning and get away to someone who could cure him. That means making sure he can't cook up a recipe and also having mon laying outside and ready to slow him down if need be. Perhaps some traps too... it depends." Obsidian frowned, "He could potentially be fast."
"Don't forget, I'll be coming along," Alex replied, tapping his cane on the floor. "Depending on what Haris says, I may end up being the only psychic available, aside from the Unown." He stopped, counting something in his head. "Albin, there are currently six on Hugo's team, including himself, correct?"
<Correct,> Albin replied hesitantly. He looked at Obsidian and floated closer, beginning to circle around him as much as he could with a wall to one side.
Alex nodded. "Thank you. So the Unown and I can focus on taking away Alai's berries and slowing him down. Fintan knows generally how to keep a 'mon from fleeing for at least a few seconds at a time, so I believe we'll bring him along after all."
Obsidian nodded, "Alright, so we get the berries away from him first. I'm not sure if he would know how to counteract my poison. Getting as many tools out of his hands as possible will be key to get my poison to claim his life. To make this work we also have to make sure we have a backup plan, just in case the worst happens. If my poison doesn't take him down, then we'll need something else. A trap of some kind we can spring on him. Any of you know how to make traps?" He asked the two.
"Weeellll, I have wanted to try my own version of a trap that was set for my father once," Alex replied. "One of the things he told me about, a while back, was how he'd discovered that Paradox was born. Of course, that was inside the mind, and this would be Alai's place we're crashing, not our own..."
Kilian shrugged. "Sorry, not a lot of experience with traps. My style has usually been more chasing than waiting, at least with journaling." He rubbed his head, then frowned as he pulled his hand away with the egg smear on it. "OhsnapI'llbebackgottasavebreakfast!" The Greninja rushed out of the room, leaving Alexandre trying not to laugh out loud. The 'B' Unown followed Kilian at a slower pace, blinking.
<We can spring one of a few different traps,> Albin relayed, still circling around Obsidian and observing him. The other two Unown had begun wandering around the room, with the 'X' Unown disappearing behind the couch.
<With four of us, we can spring a barrier around Alai should he wander into our area. With up to ten, it would be stronger. Depending on how many of us are present, we could set almost any kind of trap you could think of.>
"Er... is this guy alright?" Obsidian asked Alex as he kept a wary eye on the Unown floating around him. "This is kind of personal space he's invading now."
<I'm getting a better look at you,> Albin replied, though he did back off a few feet in order to leave Obsidian's personal space.
<I would apologize, but if Master SharpEye does not intend to keep secrets from you any longer, then I need to know who it is he's letting in.>
Alexandre shrugged apologetically. "Albin and other Unown tend to do that sort of thing, Obi. I've asked them before to not get too close to whoever they're observing, but I try not to actually control them anymore than I would control you, Kilian, or any other 'mon." His eyes lit up briefly with a new thought. "Oh, one of Alai's strengths seems to be mobility. We're able to make ropes and that sort of thing out of energy, which is easier if done in advance. That would fit into a trap."
Obsidian returned his attention to Alex, giving him a quick nod, "That's true. Maybe if we can use some psychic power to keep him immobile. If we can't get his berries away from him, then how about restraining him enough so he can't even grab them? That sounds fine enough." He stated.
Alex twisted his cane in his hand, then nodded back. "Yes, that sounds fine to me, as well. So first plan, poison Alai. Second plan, pin him down with psychic energy. Or Hidden Power energy." He turned and pushed the end of his cane between two of the couch's cushions, wedging it so it would stand on its own. Alex then brought his hands up together and drew one away from the other, forming a thin rope of ice energy between them. As he continued to repeat this motion, making a coil of rope, Alex grinned and added, "Pre-action plan, eat breakfast, assuming Sacha's absentmindedness didn't ruin it."
Obsidian sat on down, "We need to come up with a few more back up plans as well. This is a dangerous target, one or two ideas won't stop him."
Kilian walked in through the door again, this time carrying a tray with two plates and cups on it. The 'B' Unown came in behind him, psychically carrying another plate and cup. "Well, in addition to scrambled eggs," Kilian started, heading for a table in one corner of the room, "Haris managed to get a small selection of fruit and berries. And obviously, there's meat. Again. This is dried, though, it was already ready to eat." He put the tray down and pulled the table out into the middle of the room. "I guess we head to Alai after eating?" Kilian asked.
"Unless we're still planning, yes," Alex answered, glancing at the food. "We'll know more once I speak with Haris for a moment." He nodded to Obsidian and Kilian before leaving the room, cane in hand.
Kilian blinked, accepting what the 'B' Unown was carrying. "Eh, he could've just telepathed Haris, I thought..." He looked back at Obsidian. "Do you think he's feeling distraught? Oh, hey, I rhymed a bit there..."
All of a sudden, the Unown in the room began flying back to Alex's cloak in the corner, disappearing inside it.
<Not a word that we're here,> Albin conveyed to Obsidian and Kilian, being the last to go. A moment later, the cloak appeared as if nothing was inside it.
~~~~~
Matilda and Able were barely exiting the inn when the Accelgor stopped and put a hand to her head. She seemed to listen to something before shaking her head and turning to the Ninjask. "Well, chances are that you aren't meeting with Mister SharpEye just yet," Matilda stated. "Something seems to have come up, which, I'm sorry to say, means I need to go as well."
"Huh? Well hey you wanna inform me or something?" Able asked her, moving in closer. "What other shenanigans are going in in this city? I can help out ya know!"
"Um..." Matilda nervously twitched a piece of membrane back into place. "It's not my place to discuss it right now..." She backed away a few feet, giving Able an apologetic look. "And, well, um...oh, forget it. Bye!" Matilda turned and began flying away at an urgent pace, swerving around two Mankeys who were fighting over something on the ground between them.
"O-oh! Uh... okay!" Able said with a confused expression... she wasn't going to be satisfied with just that. She was sick of the secrets. Was Greg truely involved with that Dealer group? Was Alai telling the truth? And what was SEC up too... Able was still a part of the Gold tribe's group! She deserved some kind of involvement! Able decided to simply follow suit... she had to make sure SEC wasn't going to mess up Snype's plan. Outside parties made their jobs extra complicated. especially SEC. Ironic considering the Ninjask Network was designed to bypass their systems completely.
Matilda's route, which only ever slowed down in order to avoid being hit by Karnians, zigzagged through several streets, alleys, and over rooftops throughout Daggen, sometimes going in circles. At a few corners, the Accelgor stopped and turned in a circle, watching her surroundings and looking out for anyone following. Eventually, Matilda stopped somewhere in the southern sector of Daggen, at a house that looked just like any other on the street. That included a few burn marks and several bashes and scrapes along the outside walls. Matilda stopped and turned in a circle again, looking for anyone else one more time before she flew straight up and over the house, into the back yard.
The Ninjask folllowed Matilda... her thief training and quick speed was enough to keep her on Matilda's tail. Perhaps she was expecting Able to follow her? Whichever the case, she was getting sick of this secrative behavior from everyone she had been bumping into. Greg, Alai, the guy from the Bar, and now Matilda? She was beginning to wonder if she was still in Karn... When Able saw Matilda fly over the house, the Ninjask slowly moved up closer to stay on her tail. This could be the meetup location if anything... the least she could do was listen in on everyone but knowing SEC? they likely had Psychics all around to make sure nobody was listening in.
Suddenly, the Accelgor doubled back and flew up above the roof again, letting out a small 'Eep!' as she stopped herself from bumping into Able. "Able, whyyy?..." Matilda shook her head and closed her eyes with a sigh.
"I'm sick of secrets Matilda." Able huffed. "You are the fourth mon to keep shit away from me in this city. You think I'd sit by idly while you do who the hell knows what? Greg, the mon with that weird pass phrase, Alai, and this whole Dealer stuff I keep hearing about. What's going on?" She asked.
Matilda twitched several pieces of her membrane into place as she spoke, looking anywhere but at Able's eyes. "I really wish I could tell you, especially because you're friends with Anna, but, well, it's not my place... Ohhh, confound it all." Matilda put a hand to the side of her head, closing her eyes once again as she became silent.
"Dammit is it really that hard to get some answers? It feels like the only mon giving me some proper answers is that bloody agent! He might be lying for all I know but hell! Maybe he isn't! I want to find out just whats really going on in this city! So if you know any pointers on that, or this Dealer guy then that'd be just dandy!"
Matilda flinched at Able's outburst, but she kept her stance. A moment later, she flinched again, which was followed by the Accelgor's face brightening a bit. She opened her eyes and dropped her hand. "They confirmed it, Able," Matilda said, visibly relieved in body and voice. "Mister Argyris is against you coming inside, of course, but Mister SharpEye wants you inside. Just follow me through the back door." She held up a hand as if to defend herself against anything Able would say. "I promise you, we're not going to stab you in the back or anything like that. It's a meeting about the Agent, actually..." Matilda turned and began flying back toward the backyard, expecting the Ninjask to follow.
"I chatted with him for a good twenty minutes. You damn well better be bringing me in there." Able huffed as she followed Matilda inside. "If they got a problem then I'll give em a firm talking too."
"And I'm sure Mister Argyris will talk right back at you," Matilda retorted, reaching inside her membrane as she stopped at the back door to the house. She began humming a tune and pulled out a key, inserting it into the door's lock. Still humming, Matilda opened the door and gestured for Able to go in first. Once they were both inside, she closed the door behind her and put her key away. "Right this way," Matilda said, floating through the kitchen and toward the front. She glanced at a few bowls and boxes that were left on the counter, some sporting dried fruit.
In the front room, Matilda came to a halt as Alexandre and a Metagross looked over. Alex smiled as he waved a hand at them. "How are you today?"
"Miss Read," the Metagross greeted with narrowed eyes. "This is Able, then?" he asked, turning his eyes to the Ninjask.
Able gave off a small wave. "Nice to meet you too." Able said with a small hint of Sarcasm, still slightly urked but at least she was here now. This wasn't exactly the place to go off being proud about her network considering these were the people she had worked so hard to bypass back in the day. "Yup! That'd be me! So whats all this here? Having some kinda secret meeting and all that? Never saw SEC as the shady types!" Able joked.
Matilda jumped a little when the Metagross let out a guffaw of laughter. "This is no SEC outpost, missy! Now I'd rather you turn 'round and forget you ever met us!"
"Do calm down, Haris," Alex interrupted with a grin, tapping one of the Metagross' legs with his cane. "Miss Able, you already know Matilda. This grump here is Haris Argyris, who lives here. He does have a point, though. These 'mon here, they're not members of the SEC." Looking up as the back door was heard opening again, Alex added, "Directly, that is."
"Oooohhhh the plot thickens." Able said with a hardened stare. "Any other hard hitters you wanna drop while we're ahead?"
Alex raised his eyebrows in mild surprise. "Well, I would have liked for you to be in a better mood, but this doesn't seem to be the day for that sort of thing."
"Sorry." Able shook her head. "From running back and forth and being lied to the past week I'm not exactly the cheery bug I usually am... as hypocritical as that sounds considering recent events."
The Gardevoir gave a shrug. He glanced past Able as a Chimecho and Klefki stopped in the doorway. "Good morning, Fintan, Soroush."
"Oh hi there!" The Chimecho greeted back, coming up to Able's side and beaming at her. "Are ya new to the sigh, then? I'm Soroush, this is Fintan, Mister SharpEye, what are you doing here, I thought you were busy outside o' Karn!" The Klefki, Fintan, merely blinked at Able.
"No, no, Able here already has her own occupation," Alex replied, waving a hand in the air. "Able, if you would like to come this way, Obi and Sacha are in another room."
Able glanced over to the Chimecho giving off a small chuckle. "Uh... nice to meet you two. But yeah I kinda wandered on in. If ya want something done you gotta do it yourself you know?" Able said as she followed Alex. Out of some crazy precaution though, the Ninjask prepared Detect. Perhaps she was getting paranoid herself now.
Alex led Able down another hallway, bringing her to a room where Obsidian and a Greninja were eating breakfast. The Greninja was staring at the cloak in one corner, a puzzled look on his face. "We have another guest here," Alex announced, stepping to one side to allow Able inside.
Obsidian glanced over at the sound of Alex's voice, soon spying Able as well, "... So we're using Snype's people for this too?" He asked Alex, "Does he know about this place as well?"
Alexandre shook his head. "No, Snype isn't in on this, either. Able here decided to follow Matilda and find some more answers. However, I decided to let her in. According to Greg, she already met Alai. And besides, she is part of the Cresselia searchers Obi."
Obsidian gave a brief nod to that, "Alright then… well, Able, we're currently figuring out how to take down Alai. He's one of those generals in Darkrai's army and he's making a mess of things here. If we can take him out then the capital will be somewhat secure from his activities. If this place falls, Karn falls. If Karn falls, then we lose a very big ally to our cause.That's what we're trying to prevent. We've already gone through some scenarios to kill him off, and hopefully we'll come up with a few more."
Able just blinked at that. "Huh… er… kill him off huh? Well that sure escalated quickly." She simply said, buzzing around the room. "And uh, nice to see you again too Obi. Straight and too the point eh? Alright…"
Obsidian held out a hand, "I prefer to be, now more than ever. I've seen you around and heard about you but it's sort of funny this is our first proper meeting. In any case… it's important that we take him out." He lowered his hand once the handshake was over and turned back to peer down at the table, "If he manages to take out this city… it won't be good for Karn. Keeping him alive is too dangerous, especially since he's already turned some of Greg's people against him."
"I almost agree with you, kid," Haris boomed, shoving his large frame through the door. Behind him, the other three 'mon filed in and joined the relative circle of 'mon around the table and couch. The Metagross added, "If Alai weren't working for Darkrai, however, I would rather let him rattle Greg's cage."
"Oh so you
are gonna join the sigh?" Soroush asked, interrupting and watching Able. "I know you have your own occupation already, but you wouldn't really be allowed in here if you weren't joining, what's going on again, who's Alai?"
"Alai is the Simisage working for Darkrai," Kilian answered, pushing his part-full plate away. "Food right there, if anyone needs to eat. Same in the kitchen." Haris narrowed his eyes at the Greninja, rubbing the floor a bit with his claw. "But yeah, Able, planning to kill Alai. I already suggested we leave him alive, but that was kinda shot down."
Able flew over to Killian. "Seriously? Shot down? L-look I know he's a dangerous mon but, really? Killing him?" Able said, sounding a tad distressed. "I know he's done alot of infiltration work but the mon hasn't hurt a fly! It just doesn't feel right. I talked to him for a good hour or so and he didn't lay a single finger on me. On top of that, Alai's only one problem to worry about in Karn which is why I'm here in the first place." Able explained before flying to the center of the room. "Weird question for all of you! What is the color of the sheets of titan? Trust me it's important."
Obsidian blinked a bit, "... I would imagine if they are part of a mountain then white? Cause snow?" He crossed his arms, "What's this about?"
"I haven't seen them," Kilian answered, cocking his head, "so I wouldn't know."
Matilda and Soroush registered confusion in their eyes, while Haris and Fintan merely watched. Alex finished chewing, looking thoughtful as he asked, "Yes, what is this about?"
"It relates to a situation I'm investigating along with Snype in Karn. I take you've heard of the dealer right?" She said before flying down a bit lower. "A very odd underground organization in Karn… it's a bit out of place all things considered. Snype first suspected Greg being mixed in with the organization and I've been looking around to see if there was any truth to that. He sent me on a task to deliver a simple letter to one of his friends. Seemed innocent enough but the guy seemed to be really upset at Greg. Something about losing several men… then he suddenly asked that very same question. The thieves are familiar with codewords and some of their tricks so I answered Red. I mean, folks who go up mount titan usually die on the way up right? I got it wrong of course but the mon shifted his tone drastically and sent me on my way immediately. Like he was trying to confirm something. I can't help but feel like there's some sort of link with all of this… heck even when I spoke with Alai, he said that something else was afoot in Karn as well. I thought he was tricking me at first, but considering what happened…" Able paused and began to think.
"What's this?" Matilda asked, peering down at the map on the table. "A map of Daggen?"
"Greg handed it to Obi when he told us about Alai being around," Alex answered absentmindedly, staring into space. "Alai has been to each of those points, in order to disrupt Greg's operations."
Frowning at the map, Haris groaned, "I recognize a few of these points… Ha! Alai against Greg? Now I want to meet him! He's gotta know something!"
"You all are forgetting one important thing. Alai is our enemy." Obsidian glanced around the table, "I have no love for Karn myself, but this is a battle for this world. From what I know, he has a way with words, very similar to Penance in that regard. He might sound nice, but he works for Darkrai. Able, I don't know what he said to you, but he is trying to make you forget about his allegiances. He works for Darkrai, he wants to kill Arceus, he wants to make sure this entire world is destroyed, or at least enslaved by Darkrai. I personally don't want that to happen. I'm pretty sure no one in this room wants Darkrai ruling over them. The plague in Beautruce will be cupcakes compared to what else he could throw at us, and in case you forgot thousands lost their lives and hundreds were enslaved to his will. Keeping one general alive is too risky. We tried that with Roxanna and James, and look at how that turned out."
Able shook her head. "I know I know. I'm not saying to let Alai do what he wants. But if there's something else going on in Karn that could entirely ruin our own plan then we gotta look into it! I don't know what the Dealer is up to or what the heck Snype found out on his end of things, but I gotta know what's going on and see if it's even a threat to begin with! That code phrase is one of the keys to finding out if there's some other threat in Karn... just before I delivered that letter, I overheard two mon on some kind of job and mentioned Alai on top of that. He was getting in their way. I need to find Alai again and get more answers and that sure can't happen while he's dead! The only big thing i heard from them was "someone" taking care of the Alai situation. Well, a "He" to be specific."
"We've been trying to figure out the Dealer ever since he showed up!" Soroush piped up quickly. "He, she, it, whatever, we've also been looking at Greg, I mean, they both could be threats, but there's no concrete connection we've come up with!"
"So there's my thought again," Kilian added eagerly. "Instead of killing him, we could try to get information out of Alai. And yes, Obsidian, he does have a way with words, I think he's genuine about his reasons for following Gabriel. But even though Gabe's end goal seems to be different, I agree that it can't be good. Hum… so how about this? We go with the planning we've already done, except instead of killing Alai, we knock him out, possibly with a different kind of toxin. Or… what was that about finding Alai again?"
"Ya know I think you're trying a little to hard there. Heheh" Able chuckled. "Seriously I know where to meet the guy. I can literally knock on the front door and say hi whenever I want. Though… Greg didn't want me to go do that… but since when do thieves follow the rules huh?" Able snickered. "Alai offered me to help join him at stopping Greg before, but it would be suspicious if none of you did what Greg had asked. As far as information goes? I think he'd be willing to tell me whatever I ask about it. And hopefully the code phrase from before…"
Obsidian was silent for a moment, thinking over everything that had been said. "Able." he finally said as he looked at her, "... You do have experience in this. I'll let you try this. I'll let you ask Alai questions and see if he's with us in some manners. But." He held up a claw, "If he's not. If he's someone who will be against us now and forever as long as Darkrai lives… then we will kill him. I'm giving you this chance, but I can't allow another James or another Roxanna to happen. Understood?"
"Believe me. I understand more than anyone…" Able said, recalling back to what happened in the forest. "Besides, if he was lying to me, then I won't exactly have alot of reservations on it to begin with you know? I'm sure he's at least with us in terms of the whole Greg and dealer buisness. I just need proof of some means toward the Dealer or hell if Greg is even connected in the first place. Could be coincidence! I just have to make absolutely sure." She explained. "Heh, sides, last I heard, Alai's one of Darkrai's top agents. I don't think killing or knocking him out would be the easiest thing! Heck he could be stronger than Bastille… I'd say this is our safest option for now!"
Obsidian frowned, "Anything is possible. Know that. But for now… just do what you need to do. I have a feeling he'll probably try to get information out of you. You two weren't followed, were you?"
"Not that I'm aware of," Matilda answered quietly, twitching a piece of membrane back into place. "Well, besides Able, I'm surprised she was able to keep up with me...then again, it's probably not that surprising...ohhh…"
"Hey," Kilian lifted a finger, "might be a good chance to really test out one of the modified shadow stones. We're sure it wouldn't malfunction if Alai had a counter bracelet, anyway. That way, if things turn more sour, I'd be there to help, and Alex could see into my mind to see where we are and 'port in, along with anyone else needed."
"Perfect! Having some backup just incase would be nice!" She said with a grin, looking around cautiously. She was wondering if she had been followed. It seemed like the sort of thing Alai would do that's for sure… she decided not to say anything. Even if Alai was listening in, it didn't really change her plan. "Guess you and I will be tag teaming this little mission eh?" She said, giving off a playful nudge toward Killian.
"If Able managed to follow you, then I'm sure there are some eyes out there that followed you two as well." Obsidian sighed, "Be careful heading out. We may have unexpected company, in any case."
"Tsk, well if they wanna come out then that's only going to make proving my case easier!" Able laughed.
Obsidian lowered his head, "Let's get this done quick. The sooner we clear up if the city is going to fall, the better."
"Good, because the suspense is killing me," Soroush sighed. "Are Greg and the Dealer connected, or are they not? Maybe we wouldn't know at all if this Alai didn't show up, really, judging by this map, he's been
busy. Who wants breakfast?"
"Well, then let's head out," Kilian muttered, standing up. He paused and asked, "Erm, unless you need to eat, Able?..."
"Oh! Uh…" Able felt her own stomach somewhat vibrate, causing the bug to give off a faint blush. "Eheh… well I guess I was kinda in a rush this morning. Food sounds good!"
"Okay, food, then talking to Alai. Sounds like a plan!"