HALO 184: Red and Grey All The Way

[Gullara]

[Fourth Tower Reception]

Reinholdt carefully eyes the rug, cautious to not step on it in any way before his gaze slides up to meet the vanara's. There's an awkward moment of silence between the two as Rein watches Bili stare at Rein's case.

"Iiii'm not going to be rattled by your spooky monke prophecy powers. I'm here to see Vax," Reinholdt declares. This case is for upper management only!

[Fourth Tower Reception]

Rein's been reassured that the rug is purely decorative, but perhaps it's best to be safe. Bili stands and stalks over to Rein. They meets his eyes for the first time. Looking into them is like peering into a pool with uncertain depth. Disorienting in a way. When they come up to him it's really quite noticeable how tall they are. Even with posture as poor as theirs, they measure up to Rein. It's something about their limbs. Too long.

"What is it?" They ask, jagged teeth shining. Though being around Vax and Zhareen, sharp teeth seem almost unremarkable at this point.

[Purple Eagle]

[Slavic Engineers]

"Ah, I see. The AI control problem." Svetlana nods in understanding, pausing to think on what she's just heard. "So, a robot uprising of sorts occurred, I take it." After a short pause, she claps her hands once. "Very well. You have nothing to fear from my programs - I may treat them like my children, but they are neither sentient nor sapient - but I understand what you are saying, nonetheless."

The smile returns to her face. "We could still build something together, in order to ascertain how well we work together. No AI needed. Oo, perhaps a weapon of some sort... preferably projectile-based."

[Ironsmith]

[Slavic Engineers]

Vlad waves his hand dismissively. "You can only reinvent the wheel so many times, I'd say. To be frank, we have more than enough firearms for all sorts of purposes. I would prefer to make something a little more laid-back. Something like... hm." He scratches at his beard as he thinks about this. "...Well, engineering is all about solving practical problems, so here's one for you. I have a friend who has made her own house, overbuilt and underdesigned. The windows are just holes in the wall, the interior flooring is uneven, there's no plumbing or electricity, and it leaks something horrible whenever it rains. At the same time, the materials used are quite durable, which makes installing new systems much more complicated than it would otherwise be. How can we improve her standard of housing without making her move?"

[Reinholdt]

[Library]

"And Bili is? Who is Nazaaan? If the books are unavailable to the public, what allowed you special access to them? Did you test the suspiciously cheap glasses before utilizing them? How long ago was Neshiyahel summoned? What's to prevent normal people from falling under Neshiyahel's sway now that they're free to traverse in the world among people who don't possess protective eyewear? How does one get in contact with Eliot?" Maria continues to bombard Zhareen in an interrogation.

[Reinholdt's Office]

Reinholdt gives Magtok a sympathetic frown. He can't pretend that he didn't rub his head just as much, if not more so. But there was also nothing more to be done about it so moving on was probably the best call.

"I did a good amount of research beforehand. Look, I'm not going to pretend that this isn't chancy in its own right, but that's always going to be true. I've done what I can to mitigate the risk. The fourth tower specializes in handling, containing, and purifying magic. They do know the history, they'd have to in order to properly do the job. The last thing you want is underprepared mages botching a ritual cause they didn't have the information they need." That's when things get messy and/or haunted. "Seeing as how they're now direct affiliates of HALO you can visit them any time you wish. If you would like, you and I can sneak into the leader's bedroom and make sure there's no secret tarantula cult shrine under the floorboards."

Magtok can seduce Vax and keep her preoccupied while Rein pokes around in all of the known and unknown hiding spots only a cat rogue can find.

[Vigil Meeting]

Well the less people around, the less to brainstorm solid plans with, even if they weren't participating. All the same, Rein couldn't justify keeping people here who wanted to leave, so he gives Dorota a nod and Khafir an eyebrow raise, his hand going to his leather jacket and tugging at it.

"Oh, uh, I'd check out A Loom of Scars or The Worldcarver. Both have an exquisite touch at balancing lightweight, durable, and fashionable for the modern adventurer. They're where I get my best jackets from anyways. No complaints in the field." Or at work. Or casually. They seem to have caught the attention of the good doctor at any rate. "If you'd like, I can show you where they are personally after I'm done here," Reinholdt says, flashing Khafir a smile before turning back to Cessie and Ambrosia.

"I don't know about dedication. That's just the effort you have to put in to sell a story." Reinholdt's sold a lot of stories. "Finding a target beforehand wouldn't be a bad plan, though it does introduce another layer, which is always dangerous in its own right. Namely if someone get spotted spying on them." Probably would be best then for Ambrosia to do that part so there's a level of separation.

[Fourth Tower Reception]

Unfortunately for Bili, Reinholdt is quite used to tall people with unnaturally large limbs. He calls them humans. Height just doesn't intimidate him.

Though there's certainly other reasons to be unsettled. Like eye contact! Oh gosh, is there anything worse in the world than direct eye contact? Rein glances away almost immediately. "It's a gift for Zhareen that Vax asked me to procure," Reinholdt explains. Sure, Rein stole it from Zhareen in the first place, but that's how they all became the best of friends!

[Shadowcaller]

[Library]

"Thank you for all your help, doctor. I will see you back at VIGIL then." She had hoped to go back there with Khafir but the doctor probably had some important business to take care of. "And to you as well, Dorota. You should come over to the Keep again for a visit some time."

Ambrosia gives Dorota a nod of acknowledgement but seems to have one final question to Khafir before she leaves. "Actually, hold on, Khafir. There was something I wanted to ask before you leave. There are people I sometimes bring along for my research. Extra pairs of eyes and hands. How advisable would it be for me to bring them to SIN while I'm 'researching' them? Given their nature I hope it wouldn't be dangerous at least." Though the part where she would attempt to grab Klaus certainly would be.

Of course, Ambrosia researched dragons so there was always a certain element of danger.

She also gives Rein a glance as she'd want his opinion on that question as well.

[Library]

Zhareen looks a bit overwhelmed by so many questions at once. Did Maria ever pause?!

"Erm... Bili is a student within the fourth tower and Nazaan is one of the other teachers. You have to ask him about the books. I got the impression there was money involved though." Vax probably had to bug him about that at some point. Budget restrains and all that.

"And, uh, we confirmed their efficiency yes. That's why I said it was suspicious. If they hadn't worked it wouldn't have been suspicious at all. As for Neshiyahel's summoning-" She looks around for a watch. "-well, I'd say about three hours ago now? She did assume a humanoid form though and one of our other students, Onyeka, is with her. So it's fine."

And here we have a cut-away to Inside where Nashiyahel is currently preoccupied with making people they come across forgetting all their bad memories.

"Should be fine, yes." Zhareen repeats as if to reassure herself.

[Lord Magtok]

[Reinholdt's Office]

Reinholdt gives Magtok a sympathetic frown. He can't pretend that he didn't rub his head just as much, if not more so. But there was also nothing more to be done about it so moving on was probably the best call.

"I did a good amount of research beforehand. Look, I'm not going to pretend that this isn't chancy in its own right, but that's always going to be true. I've done what I can to mitigate the risk. The fourth tower specializes in handling, containing, and purifying magic. They do know the history, they'd have to in order to properly do the job. The last thing you want is underprepared mages botching a ritual cause they didn't have the information they need." That's when things get messy and/or haunted. "Seeing as how they're now direct affiliates of HALO you can visit them any time you wish. If you would like, you and I can sneak into the leader's bedroom and make sure there's no secret tarantula cult shrine under the floorboards."

Magtok can seduce Vax and keep her preoccupied while Rein pokes around in all of the known and unknown hiding spots only a cat rogue can find.

"Exciting as that sounds, I'm almost certain I'd get caught if I was involved in this, and the resulting misunderstanding would escalate to the point that I'd wish all that happened was evidence of tarantula cults. No, this has long-standing vendetta written all over it, and I have enough enemies-for-life as is. If you say you did your homework, then I'll pretend to believe you," the tin man answers, not even bothering to pretend he won't still have doubts. If the cat says he's done his homework, well...he's a better infiltrator than we are, right? If there really is an apocalyptic splinter faction lurking in the darkness that hasn't been discovered, it's not going to be found by a bumbling MagClone. We just have to accept there's a small handful of things the cat is better than us at doing, and investigating weird mages is one of those things. If the cat hasn't found it yet, it's not going to be found.

"At least until the sky is on fire and it's more convenient for me to say I never trusted you or those Fifth Tower spies that sabotaged the entire ritual and plunged us into a century of darkness. Then I'm going to insist I had my suspicions all along, not that it'll matter anyway since anyone who'd listen will be too busy dying. Anyway, if they're good enough to be HALO affiliates I guess it'll probably be fine, but I'd try to at least get the names and employment history of everyone involved in the ritual. Especially the seemingly inconsequential ones, like the chalk circle artist and the tallow candle arranger. You get so much as one dribble of wax or pentagram even a little off and demons are doing jumpscares out of your mirrors for weeks," Mag gripes, sounding like he's speaking from experience.

[Morty]

[Vigil Meeting]

Dorota nods.

"Yes, I should visit more often. For now, goodbye everyone. I'll keep you updated about my progress on the paralytic." With that, Dorota departs.

[Ironsmith]

[Vigil Meeting]

Well the less people around, the less to brainstorm solid plans with, even if they weren't participating. All the same, Rein couldn't justify keeping people here who wanted to leave, so he gives Dorota a nod and Khafir an eyebrow raise, his hand going to his leather jacket and tugging at it.

"Oh, uh, I'd check out A Loom of Scars or The Worldcarver. Both have an exquisite touch at balancing lightweight, durable, and fashionable for the modern adventurer. They're where I get my best jackets from anyways. No complaints in the field." Or at work. Or casually. They seem to have caught the attention of the good doctor at any rate. "If you'd like, I can show you where they are personally after I'm done here," Reinholdt says, flashing Khafir a smile before turning back to Cessie and Ambrosia.

"I don't know about dedication. That's just the effort you have to put in to sell a story." Reinholdt's sold a lot of stories. "Finding a target beforehand wouldn't be a bad plan, though it does introduce another layer, which is always dangerous in its own right. Namely if someone get spotted spying on them." Probably would be best then for Ambrosia to do that part so there's a level of separation.

[Library]

"Thank you for all your help, doctor. I will see you back at VIGIL then." She had hoped to go back there with Khafir but the doctor probably had some important business to take care of. "And to you as well, Dorota. You should come over to the Keep again for a visit some time."

Ambrosia gives Dorota a nod of acknowledgement but seems to have one final question to Khafir before she leaves. "Actually, hold on, Khafir. There was something I wanted to ask before you leave. There are people I sometimes bring along for my research. Extra pairs of eyes and hands. How advisable would it be for me to bring them to SIN while I'm 'researching' them? Given their nature I hope it wouldn't be dangerous at least." Though the part where she would attempt to grab Klaus certainly would be.

Of course, Ambrosia researched dragons so there was always a certain element of danger.

She also gives Rein a glance as she'd want his opinion on that question as well.

[Vigil Meeting]

Dorota nods.

"Yes, I should visit more often. For now, goodbye everyone. I'll keep you updated about my progress on the paralytic." With that, Dorota departs.

[Vigil Meeting]

"Consider it a date." Khafir nods, not seeming to care too much about the interpersonal implications of her diction. As she moves to join Dorota in leaving the room, she stops when Ambrosia asks and straightens up to give an answer. "The choice to bring them or not is, of course, a matter of your discretion. I can see no reason why this mission would present an unusual risk to them, if that is your meaning. However, were I in your position, I would balance their usefulness as assets against their liability as potential leaks before making any hard decisions." Khafir gives a curt nod and pulls her communicator from her pocket. "If you will excuse me, there is a containment breach of cognimorphs brewing back on base and I'm expecting to recieve a call at any moment."

And with that, she's out.

[Purple Eagle]

[Slavic Engineers]

Vlad waves his hand dismissively. "You can only reinvent the wheel so many times, I'd say. To be frank, we have more than enough firearms for all sorts of purposes. I would prefer to make something a little more laid-back. Something like... hm." He scratches at his beard as he thinks about this. "...Well, engineering is all about solving practical problems, so here's one for you. I have a friend who has made her own house, overbuilt and underdesigned. The windows are just holes in the wall, the interior flooring is uneven, there's no plumbing or electricity, and it leaks something horrible whenever it rains. At the same time, the materials used are quite durable, which makes installing new systems much more complicated than it would otherwise be. How can we improve her standard of housing without making her move?"

[Slavic Engineers]

"More than enough firearms? There is no such thing." Svetlana says with a scoff, then catches herself. "Err, what I meant to say is..." She adds quickly, after realizing why she said what she did.

Going all 'punisher' on criminals for revenge will leave a sort of behavioural scar, even after eventually deciding to focus one's whole efforts on science, at least in her case. "Sometimes, one just requires 'more dakka', as they say. Nonetheless, I see your point."

She listens to his proposed problem, and immediately replies as soon as he's done talking. "Simple: we move her. Next question?" After a short pause, she breaks out into a fit of laughter. "Ooohohohohooo! Do not mind me, I kid." She sighs, then forces herself to be more professional.

"On a more serious note, whilst that is neither my expertise nor my area of interest, I did offer to help, after all." She taps her lower lip with her ring finger in thought. "Hmm... the obvious answer is to renovate and repair her domicile. I can handle electricity supply, for instance."

[5a Violista]

[Hallway]

Svetlana keeps walking straight ahead until her heterochromic eyes land on the toddler, currently toddling towards her.

"Awwwww!" She squeals, smiling widely as she closes the distance between them and bending down in order to get to her level. "What a cute little girl! What are you doing here, all by yourself?" She attempts to pet the little girl's head, whilst looking around to ascertain whether or not she's truly unattended. She's not using any special ocular functions, so it depends on how visible her mother is.

Her tail is swishing behind her happily, her ears perked up and alert.

[Hallway]

Yes! the baby thinks. Awwww and praise her more. Call her cute more!
The baby Manja's head gets patted.
She reaches out to grab at Svetlana's leg and at her tail, in order to force Svetlana to call her cute and stick around some more. Also, because the tail is moving so much which makes it a very acceptable target.


The mother, meanwhile, isn't actually that hard to see. She's just down the hallway. When she notices that the baby has found someone and is going to bother them, Harley picks up her pace to catch up, speeding up to a light jog. "Oh, sorry about her," Harley says, "she likes grabbing on to people she doesn't know."

[Ironsmith]

[Slavic Engineers]

"More than enough firearms? There is no such thing." Svetlana says with a scoff, then catches herself. "Err, what I meant to say is..." She adds quickly, after realizing why she said what she did.

Going all 'punisher' on criminals for revenge will leave a sort of behavioural scar, even after eventually deciding to focus one's whole efforts on science, at least in her case. "Sometimes, one just requires 'more dakka', as they say. Nonetheless, I see your point."

She listens to his proposed problem, and immediately replies as soon as he's done talking. "Simple: we move her. Next question?" After a short pause, she breaks out into a fit of laughter. "Ooohohohohooo! Do not mind me, I kid." She sighs, then forces herself to be more professional.

"On a more serious note, whilst that is neither my expertise nor my area of interest, I did offer to help, after all." She taps her lower lip with her ring finger in thought. "Hmm... the obvious answer is to renovate and repair her domicile. I can handle electricity supply, for instance."

[Slavic Engineers]

"Well, that's just it. Like I said, her house is made from a rather tough material." Vlad points out. "That means we can't, say, drill into it to lay wiring or piping. Or reshape it to make a more amiable layout for her house. What she already has there, we can't take away. We'd have to throw something else on top and still make the place livable." He gives a little shrug, letting that sink in for a moment. "...You see the trouble?"

[Reinholdt]

[Library]

"Is Bili and Nazaan also large seafaring land creatures like you or do they belong to other species? What species are you exactly? Does your species' culture encourage outside contact, or are you considered a rebel or an exile?" Zhareen should probably just skip to the part where she shares her entire life story now.

Things sound very much not fine, but also out of Maria's hands to confirm or deny how fine things are. By all accounts this may have been a huge error on the Fourth Tower's part though! You can't just unleash Empyreans on NPCs like that! Well, ok maybe the Fourth Tower can, but it doesn't mean they should. Maria's more concerned about his questions though. "Can all Empyreans take on humanoid forms and traverse unseen amongst the populace? Are they capable of fully shifting forms at will? Did Neshiyahel give any indication as to how they were going to attempt to damage the King in Rags?'"

[Reinholdt's Office]

"Your life or theirs?" Reinholdt suspects most enemies Magtok thinks he has are self-fabricated, a product of his own ego demanding that everyone love or hate him with no room for ambivalence. People can't just go 'eh, who?' at the great Lord Magtok. Or so Lord Magtok would have the world believe. He's not fooling the cat. Most of Magtok's enemies are in the same place as Rein's. Deadtime. The greatest enemy left is his own ennui and the person across the desk from him.

"Well as a cat, I'll do everything I can to make sure all the lines and candles are perfectly in place," Reinholdt says specifically to dig at Magtok's anxiety. What cat doesn't knock over candles when given the chance? A better behaved one than Rein, surely.

"Anyways, that's all I called you here for. Unless you happen to know a Juleka and are willing to bail her out of the brig. We caught her sniffing around. Took some time, but eventually she confessed to being hired by you to find blackmail material. I obviously wouldn't believe that you would stoop to such a thing so, don't worry about it. She's just trying to play us off each other. We'll keep her in the brig until she wants to be truthful or goes crazy watching those old Legion of AMEN reruns." The really bad first thread ones they released in the seventies.

[Vigil Meeting]

"Wai-wha-" The doctor's gone! Oh no. Rein didn't get the chance to clarify that it was not a date, he's already seeing someone and it's pretty serious and... well this is going to be awkward.

The flustered Rein will panic about that later. For now, he tables the issue to try and answer Ambrosia's. "Any mission like this is going to be dangerous considering the location. If you're confident they can handle themselves or that you can protect them either directly or through omission of facts, and the benefits are worth the risk, then I will defer to your judgement." He doesn't know Ambrosia's assistants so can't make a call on the issue. "But I have sincere doubts that a rebel organization would accept people interested in 'researching' them to begin with." Reinholdt had believed they had moved past that as an option. It was different when they were talking about a religious organization.

[Lord Magtok]

Reinholdt’s Office

“Juleka, Juleka, Juleka…” Magtok repeats, running a search on the name. I think we knew a Julia or Julie once, and possibly a Jude. There might’ve been a Jacob at one time. I’m not seeing any memory files pertaining to a Juleka, though. Maybe they got misfiled as Yuleka, or user error corrupted the search tags?

“Doesn’t ring any bells. I don’t know what I’d even do with blackmail material at this point anyway. Felandria’s not going to change her stance on you for anything less than walking in on you strangling babies, and being down here next to the windows sets off my thalassophobia, so running you out and stealing your job would be more trouble than it’s worth,” the tin man admits, glancing idly at a wall, wondering if Reinholdt is petty enough to have one installed in his office just to make Mag uncomfortable watching the deep sea creatures float by. It’d be pretty funny if he did, and gradually developed his own daily and constant unease looking at the sea, just on the off-chance he might bring Mag back here some day. The thought alone is enough to inspire a faint smile, before our cyborg remembers where he is and why he’s still here.

”But hey, if you think it’d be funny I can bail her out and congratulate her on a job well done and-no wait, she might be a nutjob who actually believes what she told you, and go completely unhinged if I offer validation to her delusions. Hm.” With Prime still mustering forces from the shadows, his own home actively resisting his efforts to civilize and resettle the lower floors, the Hegemony’s increasingly irritated emails inquiring on the progress he’s made, and all the ever-present dangers associated just with living in the Nexus, knowingly taking a gamble on a stranger just because they don’t like Reinholdt feels like an incredibly moronic and dangerous idea. Magtok shakes his head as he stands up. Nah, better to leave her here with the cat, on the off-chance she breaks out of her cell and causes trouble for him again.

[Shadowcaller]

[Library]

"Uh... well... they're not merfolk, as my people are called. I'm the only one in the compound but that doesn't make me an exile or anything. I still visit my home village on occasion." Hardly her life story but Zhareen is surprisingly more eager to talk about Neshiyahel than herself. "But regarding Neshiyahel, I believe most of the empyreans can assume humanoid forms though I can't be absolutely certain yet. Don't think in most cases their shapeshifting extend further than that though, but each Empyrean is different so its hard to say. What I'm certain of is that that Neshiyahel's goal is to find out more about the King in Rags and report back to Eliot. That was her instructions so I'm certain that-" Zhareen suddenly stops and rubs her chin. "Oh yeah, they're not Law bound like spirits. I guess that means she might just be doing anyt-h-i-g..." She raises a finger.
"Do you mind if I make a quick call? Just need to check in on something really quick." She let's out a nervous chuckle.

[Vigil Meeting]

"Well, you sound like something like an infiltration expert so do you have any ideas regarding that? I rather not get into any disguises though if it can be helped. Perhaps I can act as a potential donor to their cause? Since I imagine there are ideological forces that support them even in Skyside." Ambrosia proposes.

That seems to give Cessie an idea. "You might not even have to lie about that as supporting their cause would be something VIGIL could do. Probably a lot more effective than wasting resources trying to fight them on their home turf."

[Reinholdt]

[Reinholdt's Office]

"Well Juleka, Julie, Jules, Julia, Julius. She actually couldn't much make up her mind on her own name weirdly. Shapeshifters, what can you do?" Reinholdt shrugs.

Reinholdt used to be in an office with a window view, but it proved ultimately too distracting. Rein wasn't growing a phobia, he was growing hungry. Watching those fish go by! It was salivating. He probably even gained a pound or two just eating to get by. No, no that window had to go. So Rein changed rooms altogether like a sensible person. Though now that he knows about Magtok's phobia, Rein's going to do the nice thing and give Magtok that empty room with the window for his own so that Magtok may never visit of his own accord.

"Yeah, better not feed into anything with her. Don't worry, we'll handle it. You're free to go. If the world catches on fire, you'll be the first to know what happened." Of course, Julia had been released a long time ago, but Rein still suspects a connection between her and Magtok. So if Magtok just happens to leave the office and swing by the brig for some reason, Rein will almost certainly take this as undisputable evidence of Magtok's foul play! The kind of evidence he wouldn't actually be able to show Felandria cause she wouldn't understand, even though it's so obviously proof, what more proof could you need? Not that any proof was needed now, it was clearly Magtok anyways. But maybe this will finally show those doubters.

[Library]

Maria has a thousand more questions on the tip of her tongue and she's clearly straining holding them back. Fiiiiine. She's gotta write down all this and process it into neat charts.

"Yeah, uh, go ahead." Zhareen is free to make a call or two!

[VIGIL Meeting]

Rein laughs a little. "Disguises are a whole separate bag. But if you're set on getting into SIN... yeah, honestly that would be a very good approach. However, it likely cannot be VIGIL providing the donations cause that is what our target is on the lookout for. So you'll need another rich yet meddlesome do-gooder interested in donating to the anti-slave movement." There's probably a few options to choose from. "Honestly with groups like that, you're better off with lower end donations anyways. They have a hard time moving money but are always in need of supplies. Weapons, vehicles slash gas, food, clothes. Like all the basic stuff they're going to need. I presume they're self-sufficient at this point but donations like that will free them from having to steal necessities and focus on their mission more."

[Shadowcaller]

[[Library]

"Thank you, this will- um, just take a minute!"

Zhareen is going to slither out of the library and take up her phone and written note on how to use it. Carefully looking through the written instructions she types in the code and then selects that green button with the weird symbol on it to call Onyeka.

[VIGIL Meeting]

"Well, obviously given the fact we're even here in the first place is to give the idea that VIGIL isn't involved in any way." Cessie remarks. "Indeed, from what I can tell KABAL and been busy spreading misinformation about VIGIL so openly supporting SIN would probably give them a bad reputation in Skyside. Hence, we would support them under a different name so they can have plausible deniability."

"...and you want me to affiliate that?" Ambrosia inquires with a look at the commander.

"Yes, or at least try to. The idea that a wealthy scholar would want to privately support them isn't too far-fetched I think. You could probably get away with doing it secretly too." She meets Ambrosia's gaze. "Unless it's too much trouble...?"

The scholar shrugs. "It's fine. I'm just not a fan of getting involved in these political ploys." She was taking a long break from those.

[Lord Magtok]

Reinholdt’s Office

Magtok stops abruptly before he can finish taking his first step out the door.

“Shapeshifter? Someone from Harley’s clan, maybe? A sister or cousin or something? Your own daughter from the future out to get you, maybe?” Actually hold on, didn’t we speak to a runaway prisoner here in HALO once? Someone who was infected with that meme plague or something? Could that have been Juleka? I suppose it’s possible, but that trip to HALO and that meme virus was a long time ago. She would have to have spent a really long time ensnared in deadtime to be that same person. I think the ReinDaughter out for revenge theory is more likely, honestly. It’d explain why she knew to mention Magtok, even though their adversarial relationship hasn’t resulted in any new deaths or explosions for years.

"Well whatever, good luck with all that. Just make sure to keep her away from the ritual. She has a metacausal link to the scene now that we’ve mentioned both in the same conversation, and even more so if Shepherd really is her stepbrother or something. Anyway later bye," Magtok waves, dumping one more thing to worry about in the cat’s lap before he hurries away and takes the first available shuttle off this godsforsaken submarine.

[Gullara]

[Fourth Tower Reception]

Unfortunately for Bili, Reinholdt is quite used to tall people with unnaturally large limbs. He calls them humans. Height just doesn't intimidate him.

Though there's certainly other reasons to be unsettled. Like eye contact! Oh gosh, is there anything worse in the world than direct eye contact? Rein glances away almost immediately. "It's a gift for Zhareen that Vax asked me to procure," Reinholdt explains. Sure, Rein stole it from Zhareen in the first place, but that's how they all became the best of friends!

[Fourth Tower Reception]

Bili? Intimidating? Even suggesting such must be Rein projecting some insecurities. Why Bili is downright... well, surely not intimidating.

The vanara looks contemplative at that, then declares. "Liar." They grin. Hm.

[[Library]

"Thank you, this will- um, just take a minute!"

Zhareen is going to slither out of the library and take up her phone and written note on how to use it. Carefully looking through the written instructions she types in the code and then selects that green button with the weird symbol on it to call Onyeka.

[Library]

It take a few rings, but Onyeka replies. "Hi Zhareen. What do you need?"

[Shadowcaller]

[Library]

"Onyeka! Are you alright?! I-" Zhareen audibly pauses here and once she continues it no longer sounds like she just saw Onyeka climb out of a lion's den. "-was just going to check up on you. How are, uh, things going?"

[Gullara]

[Library]

"Onyeka! Are you alright?! I-" Zhareen audibly pauses here and once she continues it no longer sounds like she just saw Onyeka climb out of a lion's den. "-was just going to check up on you. How are, uh, things going?"

[Library]

"It's... fine. Fine enough. We're on the tail of whatever it is she's looking for. Do you have a reason to check in?" Onkeya replies. Zhareen might pick up the faintest sign of irritation, but Onyeka is good at keeping a grip on her emotions.

[Reinholdt]

[Reinholdt's Office]

Reinholdt rolls his eyes at Magtok's speculation. If she was Rein's future daughter, she wouldn't have needed to snoop around for blackmail, she'd have plenty of it already. And she certainly wouldn't have taken the approach she did. Time traveling daughters are a myth. Rein's always taught his kids to forget the past and build a better future! They'd clearly go forward in time, not backwards.

Since Julia would have no way of even knowing about the ritual, Reinholdt doesn't fall into some anxiety trap. Then again, most things that seem to really bother other people he just doesn't understand on a personal level. Now that Magtok's gone though, Rein can resume something he does understand. Drinking until there are no more concerns in life.

[Fourth Tower Reception]

"Well yes, on a general principal. That's just a thing I do." It's like calling him handsome or cat. "This, however, is exactly as I stated. Something Vax wanted for Zhareen," Reinholdt reaffirms to Bili.

"If you're not going to tell me where she is, then I suppose I will just start walking into random rooms until I stumble upon her." Reinholdt starts to step around Bili as if he was going to follow through and poke his nose anywhere and everywhere, despite any interruptions it might cause.

[VIGIL Meeting]

Ah Ambrosia was intended to be the wealthy donor.

"Well if you'd rather not, you don't have to. You could just wait nearby for me to signal you for pickup when I've completed the subduing part of the mission." Less involvement, but also less politics.

[Purple Eagle]

[Hallway]

Yes! the baby thinks. Awwww and praise her more. Call her cute more!
The baby Manja's head gets patted.
She reaches out to grab at Svetlana's leg and at her tail, in order to force Svetlana to call her cute and stick around some more. Also, because the tail is moving so much which makes it a very acceptable target.

The mother, meanwhile, isn't actually that hard to see. She's just down the hallway. When she notices that the baby has found someone and is going to bother them, Harley picks up her pace to catch up, speeding up to a light jog. "Oh, sorry about her," Harley says, "she likes grabbing on to people she doesn't know."

[Hallway]

Whaddya know Manja, it works! The cyber-scientist's leg is grabbed easily, and even though her tail proves to be a more challenging target, it eventually gets close enough to be grabbed too. "H-Hey! Aww, such a cute little infant!"

Svetlana's smile widens when the baby's mother shows herself. "It is alright, babies tend to like grabbing everything they see. Such a friendly and cute child! What is her name, and may I carry her?" She asks, turning back to Manja and booping her nose.

[Slavic Engineers]

"Well, that's just it. Like I said, her house is made from a rather tough material." Vlad points out. "That means we can't, say, drill into it to lay wiring or piping. Or reshape it to make a more amiable layout for her house. What she already has there, we can't take away. We'd have to throw something else on top and still make the place livable." He gives a little shrug, letting that sink in for a moment. "...You see the trouble?"

[Slavic Engineers]

"Oh? That is a challenge, then. I enjoy challenges." Svetlana puts her thumb to her top lip, deep in thought. "Do you happen to have a picture of the place? I want to see it for myself."

She turns to him, pointing at his chest with a serious look, though there's also a glint in her eyes. A challenge! She can make this work somehow. "You have been there, have you not? Do you have any ideas? Run them by me."

[Zefir]

[Another Hallway]

The sound of a released metal spring can be headed in the hallway recently as well as the sound of something light flying through the air with a good amount of speed. A moment after that a little cracking and preparing of a spring can be heared. It sounds like someone is using catapults in here. On invastigation someone will find Mr. C using two minature catapults to fling himself around the hallwway. This is his way to walk around and think about the results of his fairy research.

Anyone can just get in his way. He doesn't even have the force to push someone out of balance. Imagine him like a table tennis ball, just softer.

[Lord Magtok]

Reinholdt's Office

Less than five sips later, the phone/communicator/however Reinholdt got in touch with Magtok in the first place buzzes! That's strange, did Magtok forget to get the last word in about something? Some pithy comeback he only thought up after he'd already gotten on the shuttle back home? A confession of love to his long-standing adversary, or maybe a desperate last-second plea to be there for the ritual when Shepherd and Cynthia are put to rest?

Hey cat, it's me. Okay, alright, wall of text incoming. The memory database technicians found something that might be relevant that I completely failed to mention. So three years ago, a Julie K. Oliveira knocked on my door and introduced herself as my new neighbor, and asked about a homeowner's association that doesn't exist, the Magtok And Groupies Concerned About Vile Evil organization. Which again, does not exist and never has. This was during the height of the John Carpenter's The Thing shapeshifting flesh monster scare, after one of them showed up at the Halloween party as my dead ex, so I played along, asked some questions, subjected a strand of her hair to the flame test, you know, standard procedure when an insane stranger lies to your face about something you both know isn't real and hands you fifty dollars.

So as an initiation test, and to get her to leave me alone, I told her to go prank you, and suggested harmless stuff like dying your fur pink or casting an illusion to make your paw look like it's on fire. I'm being honest for once; I have audio files I can dig out of the archives for you, it was just stuff like that. Nothing even close to what you actually deserved at the time. So anyway, she says that Agent June is on the job and rides off on her motorcycle and I never see her again.

Yeah, long story short, if Agent June/Julie/Juleka are all the same person (I'd send a photo but, y'know, shapeshifter), it looks like this one is actually my bad. I don't know how 'prank' became 'blackmail,' but it's been three years and she's clearly battier than orphaned billionaire who goes out at night in a fursuit to punch clowns, disfigured lawyers, Tony Soprano if he was really into flightless birds, and the guy who invented Wordle, so I can see how things got jumbled up in her head. Still, this is on me and I should've vetted her properly. I promise the next time I send someone to menace and torment you they'll be timely and professional. No ambiguities, no identity crisis, no questions of who is ultimately responsible, just good clean fun at your expense.

[Shadowcaller]

[VIGIL Meeting]

Ambrosia waves away Rein's concerns. "As I said, it's fine. We'll go through with this charade as I think it will help people in the long run. Though speaking of the pickup, I'm simply supposed to... grab him? That's it?" Hardly seemed like a dragon-worthy task.

- - - Updated - - -

[Library]

"It's... fine. Fine enough. We're on the tail of whatever it is she's looking for. Do you have a reason to check in?" Onkeya replies. Zhareen might pick up the faintest sign of irritation, but Onyeka is good at keeping a grip on her emotions.

[Library]

"Uh... yeah, since I just recalled that Neshiyahel isn't bound by the same laws as the spirits we usually summon so I got concerned. Is she doing anything dangerous? Since she could, ah, technically make you forget what the recall amulet I gave you even does." Zhareen points out, not bothering hiding the concern in her voice now.

[Ironsmith]

[Slavic Engineers]

"Oh? That is a challenge, then. I enjoy challenges." Svetlana puts her thumb to her top lip, deep in thought. "Do you happen to have a picture of the place? I want to see it for myself."

She turns to him, pointing at his chest with a serious look, though there's also a glint in her eyes. A challenge! She can make this work somehow. "You have been there, have you not? Do you have any ideas? Run them by me."

[Slavic Engineers]

"Well, for electricity, some form of insulated membrane might be enough." Vlad proposes. "A series of microfilaments carry current between a power supply and various appliances, embedded into the house as something like wallpaper." He pulls put his phone and starts flicking through the gallery to start showing Svetlana some interior pictures. "That's not exactly practical for water, though."

[Earl of Purple]

Slavic Engineers

The images show a distorted construction. Most of the two-storey building is made of solid bubbles of something black with an oily sheen. The bubbles are small, but pressed together into uneven, bulbous walls, floor, and ceiling. There's windows and doors (though neither doors nor windows are actually fitted to the structure), and most of the floors are made of wooden planking or sheet metal that have been scavenged and put down to make a smoother surface. It's not in one of the cities, but Outside, quite close to Inside but not part of a larger community with amenities that can be extended. It also has a pitched roof, though mostly because Mishnehel tried to make it look more 'house-like', and failed. The basement is equally odd, though in a different way; cubes of dirt have simply been removed, leaving bare earth walls that are smooth, but crumbly, and that goes for the floor as well. There's no sign of foundations, but the 'house' isn't sinking into the earth, either. Everything made of the oily bubbles is pinned in space, unable to be moved by mortal forces or science- including gravity.

[Gullara]

[Fourth Tower Reception]

"Well yes, on a general principal. That's just a thing I do." It's like calling him handsome or cat. "This, however, is exactly as I stated. Something Vax wanted for Zhareen," Reinholdt reaffirms to Bili.

"If you're not going to tell me where she is, then I suppose I will just start walking into random rooms until I stumble upon her." Reinholdt starts to step around Bili as if he was going to follow through and poke his nose anywhere and everywhere, despite any interruptions it might cause.

[Fourth Tower Reception]

Bili just turns as Rein steps around them, unconcerned. Wow, not very helpful.

[Library]

"Uh... yeah, since I just recalled that Neshiyahel isn't bound by the same laws as the spirits we usually summon so I got concerned. Is she doing anything dangerous? Since she could, ah, technically make you forget what the recall amulet I gave you even does." Zhareen points out, not bothering hiding the concern in her voice now.

[Library]

"I'm aware." She doesn't add the 'now'. "But she says she won't touch my mind, and lying and deception do not come naturally to her kind." Onyeka presents firmly.

[Reinholdt]

[Reinholdt's Office]

Rein's half-way through a glass of rum when the sonic the hedgehog death jingle blurts out of his phone. Ugh, really? What did Magtok want? He forces himself to put the glass down and actually pull the phone out of his pocket to read through the text.

Hah! He knew it was Magtok, no matter how much Agent June denied it. It's always Magtok. They called Rein crazy, but who's the crazy one NOW?! Reinholdt will text Magtok back.

Alright, I'll let Julie out and inform her that Magtok And Groupies Concerned About Vile Evil is finally recruiting again. I've included a picture of her most recent form so you can recognize her in case she happens to swing by your place for some reason.

Included in the text is a very detailed female Magtok locking lips with a rougish and devilishly handsome Reinholdt. Nothing about the picture has been photoshopped or altered in any way, so that must clearly be Magtok in the picture. If Magtok's chest were rounder and more prominent, his facial features softer, and his hips wider.

Guess Juleka pranked Rein after all.

[VIGIL Meeting]

"Once I've delivered the paralytic I'll need someone strong enough to carry him out of the city, durable enough to withstand any attacks in the event we're spotted, and graceful enough to not damage the target's sensitive equipment. I personally couldn't think of anyone better, but I'm sure I could hire some... I dunno, a troll I guess, to do the job. The chances of failure go up substantially, but if you're that opposed to it..." Reinholdt softly shrugs.

[Fourth Tower Reception]

Reinholdt lightly huffs at Bili's existence before walking to the second door from the right and opening it.

[Shadowcaller]

[VIGIL Meeting]

"I'm not opposed to it." Well, maybe a little bit but she would make do. "It... sounds like a plan then. All we need to do is agree on a signal for when you need an extraction. Something's that's faster than a phone call." Perhaps since she didn't have a phone for reasons that she won't get into.

"Phone calls are pretty fast and convenient." Cessie points out despite not really using them herself.

"But they can easily get tracked as cellphones within Skyside would have to operate on their infrastructure which I no doubt is rigged to serve whoever provides it. Better to use more secure communication devices in that case."

The commander's eyebrow raise as she knew that Ambrosia didn't use cellphones and for someone who didn't use them she knew more about them than her at least.

[Library]

"Of course, of course." Zhareen remarks, sounding somewhat embarrassed now. "I just figured that we should, ah, put a system into place just to make sure. Safety foremost and all that. So why don't you call me back in say... an hour? Three? Not sure how long you expect this to take."