Disclaimer: I do not own Kingsman, or any of the associated characters. I don't have the money to make suing me anything like worthwhile
Summary: See previous chapters
Part 2
Merlin's tech department was happily distracted either taking Charlie's mechanical arm apart, or dredging through the data Merlin had hacked from it. One of his minions had brought reports of bombings that had targeted random warehouses, within a very short timeframe, meaning that the mastermind had tried to exterminate Kingsman, and failed. Roxy had prepared a preliminary report on Charlie and his backup thugs, and Eggsy was back from Sweden, having successfully semi-impressed the King and Queen. Roxy was still teasing him about needing her help with that, somewhat ruined by Eggsy's cheerful agreement.
Looking at them, Merlin firmly reminded himself not to feel nostalgic at the memory of himself and Harry, back in the day. "Lancelot, Galahad. I have the briefing for a joint mission that the two of you should look at."
The two agents in question immediately sat down again, slipping their glasses back on, and Merlin brought up the necessary information on his screen. "This is Statesmen. On the outside, it's a nationwide alcohol company, with their headquarters in a whiskey distillery in Kentucky."
Merlin wrinkled his nose slightly, as if personally offended by the American version that dared to compare itself to a decent single-malt scotch. "We don't know exactly what it's hiding, but an 'Agent Whiskey' associated with it came up too many times in the arm's data for it to be entirely genuine."
Roxy flipped through the folder he handed them, glancing at Eggsy. "Ideas for our cover? If one of them is connected to whatever Charlie is involved in, then we need to assume that they have an idea about Kingsman, too."
Eggsy grinned proudly, pulling out his phone to send a text. "Tilde's going on a state visit to the USA in a few days. Her parents are worried about the President's stance on… well, everything, really. They want Tilde's impression of him. He's also got a hotel in Kentucky, and will jump at the chance to show it off if she expresses an interest in touring the area."
His phone pinged with a reply, and he nodded. "Statesman distillery is being added to the royal itinerary as we speak." Another ping. "Tilde says she'll probably in the mood for something stronger than wine after dealing with the President."
Roxy cackled, smirking at him. "You'll be sticking by her side, then? Be careful her parents don't start hearing wedding bells."
Eggsy's attempt to loftily ignore her was ruined by the faint blush on his cheeks. "They've accepted that Tilde and I are dating, but there's a big difference between that and accepting me into the family, and Tilde can't marry anyone without her parent's permission."
Left unsaid was how much Eggsy's dedication to Kingsman would clash with the responsibilities of a Prince. Merlin would need to make time to look into that. Meanwhile, he raised an eyebrow at the two, who subsided a touch guiltily, and waved them away.
Merlin had gone through Kingsman training, having the dubious fortune of discovering the agency a few days before the cohort for the newly-opened Galahad position had started their training. He had made it to the final six, but had never been intended for the table. He had been Emrys, the future Merlin, undertaking the training primarily to see how it could be improved, and the kind of equipment future agents would need.
Most knights would have stared in confusion if Merlin told them that he preferred it that way. The life of a field agent was not one that called to him. Anyone could shoot a gun, blow something up or pick a lock. Orchestrating the missions, start to finish, guiding an agent who placed his life in your hands, again and again… that was incomparable.
Princess Tilde's state visit was going well, although it left Merlin wondering how the buffoon had ever managed to get elected. Eggsy was also performing remarkably well diplomatically, as was Roxy in her cover as Tilde's bodyguard. Merlin knew that Tilde didn't know much about Kingsman beyond that Eggsy was a spy posing as a tailor, but watching her smooth the way for Lancelot and Galahad to operate, without anyone even noticing… perhaps it was time to consider bringing her into the fold a little more.
It was easy enough for the two agents to slip away and start searching for whatever Kingsman was hiding when Tilde magnanimously gave her staff the day off, subjecting herself to the protection of the USA Secret Service, even if it meant putting up with the President who came with them. Merlin didn't think that Tilde would need to use the suspiciously-familiar signet ring - surely even the 45th President was aware of how much of a diplomatic disaster getting overly familiar with a foreign princess would be - but resolved to have a word with Eggsy about appropriate uses of Kingsman resources anyway.
Meanwhile, he hacked into the security cameras, as easily as breathing. "Agents, the warehouse to your left has security rather excessive for a mere temperature-controlled storage area. It's biometric, but Lancelot's new watch can hack into anything with a mainframe."
Roxy beamed, lifting her watch as though she were adjusting the time, "Perfect opportunity for a test-run, isn't it then."
As expected, the watch worked like a charm, and Merlin made a note to let his staff play with enemy technology more often. It was clearly an excellent incentive. Getting inside was easy, but they were discovered quickly by a man about the agent's age, dressed like a rodeo cowboy, who hadn't shown up on the door cameras. It certainly reinforced the opinion that Statesman was not what it pretended to be. Eggsy, matching the young man in muscle, if not quite in height, merely folded his arms and glared back, while Roxy drew on the aristocratic haughtiness that she usually disdained. "We are part of Princess Tilde of Sweden's security detail. Suspicious activity was reported in this area."
The cowboy didn't believe them, and attacked. Perhaps it would have worked if either of the agents had been alone, or working with anyone but each other. Roxy and Eggsy had trained together, though, and moved in perfect sync. It was a genuine pleasure to watch. The stranger was clearly well-trained, and it took longer than expected, but they had the would-be cowboy pinned in a matter of minutes.
Roxy pulled out a hair tie that restrained people better than any handcuffs, while Eggsy pinned the agent down. "Now, you're going to tell us what Statesmen has to do with the people who tried to blow us up."
The cowboy twisted his head and spat at her. "I ain't telling you jack, lady."
Eggsy promptly started frisking him, with a former pick-pocket's eye to anything even slightly out of the ordinary. Roxy used the pendant on her necklace to scan anything Eggsy pulled out, both of them ignoring the young man's curses and foul language. It didn't take long to find a belt-flask that worked as a security tag. Merlin hacked that, too, and a large barrel at the end of the room opened to reveal an elevator. Eggsy stunned the cowboy and hauled him over his shoulder in a fireman's carry. "Don't want him raising an alarm behind our backs."
From there, things moved quickly.
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A/N: I have a theory on how Eggsy and Merlin were taken down so easily in Golden Circle.
Eggsy and Merlin are both excellent fighters, but with the exception of V-Day, they've never fought together, so they don't know each other's styles or how to cover each other's weaknesses. They go to Statesman knowing that it's their Doomsday Protocol, and in the interest of not cutting their last asset, don't want to hurt Tequila too badly.
In this, Roxy and Eggsy were trained together, and probably continued to do so. They're best friends, and know how to fight together. Kingsman know nothing about Statesman, other than that it's a front for something, and somehow associated with the people who tried to blow them up. They go in prepared for the worst, and in no way hesitant about taking down anyone who tries to stop them.
I'm still deciding how it goes from here.