Chapter 26: Tomorrow's Dream
Over at Eddy's residence, since the Kankers had decided to depart to inform their mother of the situation, and Hilde deciding herself that she'd want to head home to begin working on things she believes will assist the crew, should problems truly start getting out of control. Since this was the case, the Eds had essentially been hanging out with Kenji and doing other things unrelated to their investigation; playing games, and just now, watching a movie together.
Ed, Edd, and Eddy sat on the couch left to right respectively, while Kenji decided to sit on a different chair to watch the movie.
While watching, Eddy asks out loud, "Man, are you sure Chris is coming back? Surely hope he didn't phone in the solution to whatever he was doing."
"He'll show. He directly confirmed to me regarding his arrival back here." responded Kenji.
"Patience Eddy, we must respect the circumstances that Chris might be encountering, and is surely ensuring that everything is in order!" stated Double D.
"What are we going to do once he arrives guys?" asked Ed.
"I shall brief him regarding the events of today, and then we shall proceed from there." explained Kenji.
Eddy, out of curiosity, asks, "Kenji, how come you and Chris aren't going to that dojo you guys went to anymore?"
Kenji explains, "It's more of an issue regarding the sensei unfortunately, as the final time we went to the dojo together, we both learned that the sensei had to suspend class due to family related issues. However, I must acknowledge that it would've been difficult to continue going there, as my circumstances, along with Chris's, have dramatically changed in these recent times. This is a conversation I shall have to discuss with Chris another time, as we do not wish to lose the privilege of training with the sensei."
"Hope so, as something tells me you two will help us a lot." stated Eddy.
"Not just the two of us. Everyone will contribute in one way or another, be it small, or of major significance." responds Kenji, "Such as Hilde for example, her creativity regarding theoretical weaponry we could possibly utilize in this circumstance. Or, Double D, his vast intellect could very well mean the difference between triumph and defeat."
"Seems like you've really kept our specialties in mind haven't you?" asked Eddy.
"Indeed I have my friend. Think of our combined abilities as the various ingredients for the recipe of any food." responded Kenji.
Eddy raised an eyebrow at that statement, which results in Double D telling him, "Eddy, I believe what Kenji is trying to inform us about is, if we amalgamate our copious amount of expertises, it logically should be more advantageous in the long run."
Once Double D says that, the boys all hear knocking at the door, and Double D gets up to answer the door.
As soon as he opened the door, he witnessed Chris at the door, wearing his usual attire; a black shirt with a white logo of Motörhead on it, grey shorts, white socks and black tied-up shoes.
"What's up Double D?" asked Chris.
"Greetings Chris, glad to see you're in good health!" responded Double D, as Chris enters the house, and heads to the living room, where everyone greets him.
"Chris! Welcome back! You aren't going to believe what just happened with us, the Kankers, and Hilde!" yelled out Ed.
"Can't wait to hear it, haha." said Chris, as he takes a seat on a chair next to Kenji.
"So what the heck were you while we were out doing business and everything?" asked Eddy.
While he eventually plans to inform his friends (minus Kenji, who already knows) about his time with Skylar, he figures is right now isn't the best of times to talk about it.
"I'll tell you another day, okay? It's unimportant, especially in comparison to what you guys have learned I imagine?" stated Chris.
"Your assumption is an understatement unfortunately. Allow us to explain why." said Kenji.
The Eds plus Kenji spent the next 5 minutes explaining to Chris what they learned during their investigation, and to say that he had missed out on a lot of important events would be under-emphasizing the situation greatly. Chris, quite frankly, was extremely surprised at the fact that Cassie didn't turn out to be nearly as problematic as he expected her to be.
"Cassie actually wanted to work with us? Well, based on what I've just heard, it's not hard to see why. I mean, golly, how does someone think to themselves that going overkill with your means of getting back someone you love is going to end well?" stated Chris, flabbergasted.
"That's what Marie said too, funny enough. But forget that, I'm more concerned about what the hell this dad is going to use those weapons he is making." said Eddy.
"Hang on just a moment..." stated Kenji, as he goes through his phone and creates a group message containing everyone that was involved in the investigation. He then proceeded to send a message to everyone, which read, "This will be where we communicate with one another regarding the plan. Should any of you require a conversation with someone here privately, discuss it separately from here, we only want to keep the important information here."
As expected, everyone's phone present in the room buzzed once Kenji sent the message, and Chris is the first to comment, saying, "Ah. So this is how we're going to be communicating?"
"Precisely. I was unsure whether or not to add... nevermind that, wrong train of thought, but as I was going to originally say, you are correct Chris." responded Kenji.
Once he says that, a message from both Marie and Hilde is sent, which for both is an emote of the ok hand symbol.
"Gotcha. Certainly hope Cassie can do her part effectively..." said Chris, slightly unsure.
"We can only have confidence in Cassie's abilities now fellows, as she shall be the one doing the majority of spy work, as one could put it." stated Double D.
"Can't we go to Cassie's house and do some spying ourselves guys?" suggested Ed.
Double D tells Ed, "While that might be a more efficient solution in regards to acquiring information, I must mention that we run the risk of being detected, should we fail to be stealthy throughout the building."
"If I might add on, according to Cassie, it's not just her father and herself residing within their residence, there are also two other individuals throughout it, making it much more difficult to sneak through." said Kenji.
"We won't know unless we try, right?" suggested Chris.
"Forget that! If we go in there and get busted, we're as good as dead. Just leave to Cassie, she's literally the most capable of us to do this." said Eddy.
After Eddy said that, Kenji then put his phone back into his pocket. He then proceeded to open up the notepad, announcing his thoughts as he did so.
"I believe we've acquired everyone's strengths down," said Kenji, "But I can't help but think that there's something more we can do..."
"Can we see what you've written down exactly?" asked Chris, as Kenji then passes the notepad to his friend, his eyes honing in on the inscribed words:
"Regarding our friend's strengths, here is everyone:
Ed - strength
Double D - intellect
Eddy - planning
All Kanker sisters - a mix of strength and intellect
Hilde - archery,creativity, and intellect.
Myself and Chris - martial arts
Cassie - investigative skills
Should anyone else participate in our plan, I shall add them onto the list. But I severely doubt anyone else shall join us... I hope I'm proven incorrect in my assessment."
After the Eds and Chris take a look at the notepad, Eddy asks, "Who else could even join us? No one else here can really provide anything important."
"Precisely why I wrote that I hope I'm proven incorrect. The more people we have working among us, the better." responded Kenji.
"I will say though, Eddy, your statement about no one being able to provide anything might not be entirely true." said Chris, with a small smile.
"Whoever do you have in mind Chris?" asked Double D.
"Rolf. He assisted me in recusing you three from the Kankers that one night, remember?" responded Chris.
The Eds gave a quick glance at one another, with Eddy saying, "Yes! Perfect! Maybe he can use some animals or something to help us!"
"Eddy, call me crazy, but I am in severe doubt that cows, pigs, a goat, and chickens will be of any assistance in this plan." responds Double D, before then continuing with, "I believe Chris was referring to Rolf's unique set of skills, regarding events such as these."
"There we go! Thank you Double D. But I will say, it'd be hilarious to are an army of chickens or something to attack the place. Regardless of that, yeah. If I can talk to him soon, I might be able to score some extra assistance." stated Chris.
"Attempt that in the upcoming days when you can my friend, as time is severely limited in my view." said Kenji.
"Why do you say that?" asked Chris.
Kenji takes a deep breath before saying, "I get the intuition that it won't be much time until an assault is performed by this father, who is clearly seeking revenge above all else, and shall not care about anything else."
"The main individual we must keep in mind is Jane Kanker, as that is who this person is on the hunt for. Along with one of the three Kanker sisters, but we have no documentation regarding which of the three sisters that this man is searching for."
"Speaking of which, where are the Kankers at right now? I can imagine Hilde is off doing some preparations in regards to something she has in mind, but what's their side of things looking like?" asked Chris.
"Marie had informed me that they plan to notify their mother regarding the information we've learned today, so they shall be busy for a good portion of time unfortunately." explained Double D.
"Ah damn. Well, we'll just talk to them later then." responded Chris.
Eddy then tells the boys, "Anyone want some snacks or something? I still got some in the kitchen cabinets."
Everyone agrees on that suggestion, and Eddy then made his way towards the kitchen to get an assortment of snacks; soda, water, chips, and a small bit of candy. After he had gotten the snacks, the boys took a small 10 minute break from planning, and, per Ed's suggestion, watched a low-budget monster movie that told the story of a very large dinosaur who causes rampage throughout a city, and a trio of sisters have to save the city from said dinosaur. Needless to say, it doesn't exactly shine through in terms of production value.
"Gee Ed, does this stuff always manage to appear like real life to you?" asked Eddy, taking a sip of his soda afterwards.
"You betcha Eddy!" responded Ed, watching the movie with a smile across his face.
"While the values in regards to production are quite lacking, I must say that the actors are putting a notable amount of effort into it." commented Double D.
"I mean, hey, it seems like they're enjoying it in an ironic way, so more power to them!" says Chris, "But something I'm wondering is, changing topic for a second, why did Cassie want to help us anyways? Did our encounter change her mind in some way?"
"I believe it's a matter of advancements. I tend not to believe matters such as this, but I noticed that she had confided in me to converse, and keep her safe from anyone having the intent to maltreat her. It must have something to do in regards to the events of before." explained Kenji.
"I guess showing mercy before helped us out long term eh?" asked Eddy.
"Precisely why I exercise restraint once no further ferocity is required. If you show compassion once in a while to an opponent, you'll gain a better feeling than one of recklessness. A lesson taught by our sensei." responded Kenji.
Eddy tells him, "Wow, you two must've learned more than just martial arts, as it seems you two have answers for everything, unless I'm wrong there?"
"I mean, I get what you mean by that, but neither of us are perfect. Sure, we might know more, but it only means so much. Heck, who's to say you won't learn more things throughout life?" responds Chris, "But enough of that, I think the more important thing is takeaway from this is that, showing mercy helped out, as Cassie felt way more open to talking to us."
"Imagine if you had been more angry with her Eddy, I think she would've run away!" stated Ed.
"No duh, eh lumpy?" said Eddy, giving Ed a glance of annoyance, while the latter maintains a goofy smile.
"Let's just be glad that she came around to help us, otherwise I bet we would've been more lost than we currently are." stated Chris.
Kenji then throws his 25 cents into the mix, saying, "I currently wonder as to the status of the Kankers."
Double D responded with, "Not to worry, Kenji, I am positive that they shall enlighten us of their ramifications regarding their standing any minute now."
Once Double D said that, Kenji felt a buzzing feeling in his left pocket, which indicated that someone is calling. He checked his phone and found that it is Cassie. He got up and went to the backyard to converse with her privately.
"Greetings Cassie, is there something you require?" asked Kenji.
"Hi Kenji, I'm calling for a specific question I have, but before I do... umm..." responded Cassie.
"Yes?" asked Kenji, curious.
"It's just... well, I wanted to thank you." responded Cassie.
Kenji, curious, asks, "Whatever do you mean?"
"For listening to me when the other were more than likely going to get aggressive. Again, I'm sorry for what happened before, but trust me, I'll make up to you all. We can't allow this crap that my father has planned to succeed." explained Cassie.
Kenji's eyes widened a bit in surprise at the first statement, but nevertheless, he responded with, "Never you worry Cassie, I shall always be here to lend an ear to those who have something to delineate."
"Thank you, really, you're a wonderful guy." said Cassie, whose words seemed to struck an emotion within Kenji, though he would most likely attribute it to appreciation.
Cassie continued with, "But back on topic, in regards to why I actually called you, it's because we should start making a plan regarding how we're going to plan a counterattack to my father's plans, seeing as it seems he's planning to do something to you guys, but I don't know what yet."
"Remember, once you've acquired knowledge regarding what you're father is assembling, inform us as soon as humanly possible." said Kenji.
"Course. But one question, should it turn out that Nolan, the tech guy, is successful with his projects, what's the plan then?" asked Cassie.
Kenji began to walk around the backyard, pondering his thoughts and ideas as to how the crew could create a response to that. After a minute of pondering, with Cassie remaining mostly silent, as she could understand that Kenji was thinking of ideas.
"The only solution I can think of is finding a flaw within the creation. Everything has a weakness, no matter what it is." said Kenji.
"Hmm... good idea. Actually, maybe if Nolan doesn't catch on, I can ask him about all the strengths and weaknesses regarding his projects." stated Cassie.
Kenji then asks her, "How do you intend to proceed with this without arousing suspicion? That's what I'm most concerned about."
"Believe me, Nolan will be more excited than anything tot talk about his inventions with anyone. I've seen it firsthand, haha." responded Cassie, sharing a small laugh with Kenji.
"That's good to be acquainted with, but I'd still advise being cautious, should anything go in an unbecoming direction." said Kenji.
"Don't worry buddy, I may have lost to you and your other friend, but if anything, Nolan will mostly be relying on his little projects to save him. If not, he'll just annoy me to death with his constant cocky attitude. It's insufferable, let me tell ya." stated Cassie.
"Well, it's shan't be as distressing in comparison to if he took a much more aggressive approach." said Kenji.
"True, true." responds Cassie, chuckling a bit. "I think I'm going to proceed with my plan right now, talk to you later Kenji!"
"Of course. Take care." said Kenji, as the two of them hang up.
Kenji couldn't help but stare off into the distance in deep thought regarding Cassie's circumstances. Is it possible that she could get into more trouble without realizing it? Then again, Kenji does keep in mind that Cassie has some notable reflexes, and Nolan appears to rely mostly on his technology rather than himself. Ultimately, Kenji reaches the conclusion that Cassie should be able to take care of herself without any need for worry.
Kenji is then broken out of his thoughts by Ed, who poked him on the shoulder whilst saying, "Hi Kenji, are you able to comeback with us?"
"Yes, I've resolved the phone call with ease, I shall join you and the rest of our friends now." responded Kenji, after which he and Ed made their way towards the living room.