Every spy fears ending up in a situation where they're outgunned and outnumbered. Loid is no exception.
To his resigned dismay, he can already feel the beginnings of an ulcer bubbling up in his gut, and though his expression remains icily calm, on the inside he's already composing prayers to several assorted deities all from different religions, just to cover his bases.
Despite his argument with his Handler (ex-Handler, his traitorous brain whispers), he knows that she's right. Only someone with a death wish would walk into the Garden's headquarters like this.
They have no backup, they're outnumbered seven-to-one, and they're severely lacking in firepower. To his surprise, Loid doesn't even recognize the models of the automatic rifles slung over the shoulders of the guards. That at first may not seem like a big deal until one realizes that he has memorized every known weapon on the international arms market, and even a few classified prototypes that are not. He once needed to steal the information to impersonate an arms dealer during a mission.
Fortunately, Loid is able to adequately assess the capabilities of a weapon with just an errant glance, and he takes a moment to focus on the rifle, taking in the length of the barrel, approximate diameter of the muzzle opening, and the size of ammunition clips.
Fully automatic, with a preference for burst fire. 5.56mm caliber. Thirty-two rounds per magazine. Laser sights.
He purses his lips. This doesn't bode well for him.
Loid is just glad that he managed to convince Yor to not just go onto a rampage. He's good and she's better, but even they cannot take on the entirety of the Garden in a direct fight.
He initially considered pretending to have been captured by Yor, then taking down the Garden from within as a captive, but he quickly dismissed that plan. The Garden would've been too suspicious of Yor after she disappeared for a whole day, and once Loid ended up behind locked bars, there was too high of a chance of him never finding the opportunity to escape.
No, better to just approach the Garden upfront. While spies typically rely on stealth and subtlety to conceal their true motives, using sheer flashiness as a smokescreen can be even more effective at times, as nobody would expect a spy to use such an insane, audacious plan. And flamboyantly showing up in front of Garden's headquarters with a gun pointed to the back of the Thorn Princess's head? Odds are, that'll heavily destabilize the brass and send the analysts scrambling. From there, he can enact the next phase of his plan.
Currently, the higher-ups at the Garden think that Yor betrayed them. Assassination organizations already tend to be a paranoid lot, and nothing sends more alarm bells ringing than an agent going dark on a mission. As for why Yor would betray them, Loid isn't sure what motive the Garden analysts came up with, but professional assassins are rather notorious for being a mercurial bunch, and it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to assume that the Thorn Princess assisted the legendary spy Twilight in exchange for guaranteed citizenship and a comfortable retirement package in Westalis.
The treaty is soon to be signed after all, and as is assured with any major political shift, organizations like the Garden and the SSS would both undergo their own changes. The only difference is that while the SSS gives their agents a generous severance package when they shut down offices, secret assassination organizations tend to downsize in a more... literal sense.
The Garden likely thinks that Yor was just betraying them before they got the chance to betray her — and it is this misunderstanding that Loid will capitalize fully on.
See, the reason why the Garden kidnapped Anya was for leverage on the Thorn Princess. They would've known from their extensive psychological profile on her that despite Yor having only married out of convenience, she has formed a deep attachment to Anya and come to love her like her own daughter.
However, if Twilight shows up on the Garden's doorsteps with a "captured" Thorn Princess, it will make it clear to the Garden's brass that Yor was loyal all along, and had merely fallen prey to him. Then, all he needs to do is to sell the Garden some information – which was their objective in the first place (Yor was sent to capture him alive, which meant they wanted intelligence from him.) WISE having burnt him only completes the illusion, since the Garden will know for certain that Twilight has betrayed Westalis.
Not that he's actually going to betray Westalis; he'll make sure the information he gives will be harmless at best and obsolete at worst with some misinformation thrown in as a bonus – it's not like the Garden can tell the difference, and Twilight plans on being long gone by the time they can.
Yor will then be "released" by him, the Garden will give Anya back to her with an apology for doubting her loyalty, and Loid Forger will make an appearance as a frantic husband searching for his wife and child at a local police office. All while Twilight fades away into obscurity.
It is a simple yet ingenious plan, involving absolutely no bloodshed whatsoever.
Of course, the one downside of this plan is that it's a hell of a lot riskier than simply sneaking in, as it will require some truly legendary levels of bluffing to fool the Garden.
Thankfully, Twilight just happens to be the producer of the finest bullshit in the West.
「」
The two guards lead them through the imposing halls of the Garden with nary a word. The interior is immaculate in both design and appearance. The mahogany walls are bare, bereft of any artwork or decoration, and Loid cannot detect a single speck of dust out of place. All his senses are on high alert as he remains vigilant for an ambush.
He doesn't think the Garden will try anything when he has a gun to Yor's head, since in hostage situations it's almost always better to negotiate first, but he also knows better than to assume anything. Assassination organizations aren't exactly known for their diplomacy, after all.
At the end of the hall waits a tall, elderly man. He wears a well-fitted suit, a sartorial and no doubt very expensive, though Loid cannot pinpoint any hallmark details. Likely intentionally stripped to remove any identifying brand features. The man smiles upon seeing them approach, and Loid tenses up when he sees that the smile reaches the man's eyes.
It is one thing to fake a smile when meeting an adversary; it is quite another thing for it to be genuine. Immediately, Loid is certain that despite his advanced age, this man is dangerous.
"Good evening, Twilight," the man says. "I would offer a handshake, but I doubt you would take it."
"You assume correctly," Loid says, his voice cold and domineering as he effortlessly slips into the persona. "You are the head of the Garden, then?"
"Not quite," the man says apologetically. "You can call me the Manager. You'll forgive me if I don't share my real name – though considering your reputation, you already know, don't you?"
Loid tilts his head. It takes him but a second to recall the information. Having memorized the names and faces of everyone working at the Berlint City Hall, it takes little effort to identify this man as Matthew McMahon, the Director of Policy and Yor's boss.
"Two for two, Mr McMahon."
The Manager smiles, not looking perturbed in the least. "I'll be the one guiding you to the Shopkeeper." He turns and gestures to a set of double doors behind him. "Shall we?"
Loid nods, shoving Yor roughly with his pistol, making a mental note to apologize after. She gives a convincing stumble, though she doesn't make any noise. While she is frighteningly attuned to her body positioning and can adjust her body language at will, a good liar she is not, so the plan is for her to keep silent and pretend to be drugged while he does all the talking.
The Manager opens the doors and steps through, Loid and Yor following close behind, the two guards bringing up the rear.
It quickly becomes clear that the mansion is an utter labyrinth. They take a serpentine route consisting of countless twists and turns. Every so often they will double back, and if Loid isn't mistaken, there are more secret passageways and hidden entrances in this mansion than the lair of a Bondsman villain. Any intruder who manages to break in will find themselves expeditiously lost amidst the confusing layout; not even the WISE headquarters is this convoluted.
Loid's had to face tougher puzzles before, though, and his mind goes into overdrive as he memorizes the route they take and cross-references that with the blueprint of the mansion he'd stolen from the city hall. Factoring in the approximate length of his strides and the amount of steps he takes, he's able to construct a rudimentary map of the mansion's layout within his mind.
He's startled out from his mental calculations when the Manager looks back at him and speaks.
"I'd like to apologize for the attack on you at the Desmond manor. For what it's worth, we weren't looking to kill you; it was only a capture mission. Though I admit, I'm rather amazed that you managed to not only foil our assault, but to turn it back on us altogether. I hope you didn't hurt the Thorn Princess too excessively."
Loid inclines his head. "She's fine. I had to give her some drugs to keep her compliant, but beyond a few scratches and bruises, she's unharmed. I don't make it a habit to torture my enemies."
"Good," the Manager smiles. His glasses flash under the dim lighting. "I care for her, you see, and it would be unfavorable for your health if you were to have hurt her unduly. You can put your gun away, by the way – we won't attack you."
"I hope you don't mind if I don't take your words at face value," Loid says, not lowering his handgun from Yor's head.
The Manager shrugs. "Suit yourself. Your safety's off, though, and no matter how good your trigger discipline is, I wouldn't want to risk accidentally discharging a round into the back of her head. No matter how thick her skull may be" – he chuckles – "not even she will survive a point-blank nine-millimeter to her head. Neither will you, for that matter."
Loid inclines his head. "Duly noted."
They fall into a silence, turning left then right then left again.
"So what are you planning to discuss with the Shopkeeper?" the Manager inquires conversationally.
"I wish to sell information on WISE and Westalis."
"Oh? Interesting. What information are you looking to sell?"
"What information are you looking to buy?" Loid returns smoothly. "There are very few things that I don't know about WISE. Their offensive capabilities, their defenses, their infrastructure, their chain of command, their dirty secrets and corrupt deals... It's all up for sale. For the right price."
"Why?"
"Why what?"
"You are WISE's top agent. Why would you betray them?"
Loid chuckles. "Please, you know as well as I do that spies are fickle creatures. We defect all the time for a better deal. In my case, WISE and I just had a slight... disagreement. So they burned me. And I took it personally."
"I see. But why us? Why not go to the SSS?"
"Well, for one, I'm fairly certain they'd shoot me on sight."
"True enough," the Manager laughs.
"And... I don't wish to be the Garden's enemy. Consider this an olive branch."
"You're scared of us?"
"I prefer to call it having a healthy sense of self-preservation."
The Manager smiles. "I'll take that as a compliment. What if we don't want your information, though? What then?"
Loid raises an eyebrow. "With the SSS as inept as they are, I don't think Ostania can afford to turn away any intelligence."
"I see."
They enter a large dining hall. A table seating twelve sits in the center, and a crystal chandelier hands overhead.
"Then, what's stopping us from taking the intelligence from you by force?"
Loid narrows his eyes, slowing down slightly. "Then you'll have to find another ace operative." He gestures at Yor in front of him with his handgun.
The Manager hums. Then he stops. "You know what? I don't think you'll shoot her."
Loid reacts immediately, yanking Yor back and looping his elbow around her neck in a headlock. She flops limply in his arms, but he can feel the subtle tensing of the muscles in her back as she prepares to act.
He has to salvage this situation fast.
"Excuse me?" he says, his voice low and dangerous.
The Manager turns around fully. "I don't think you'll shoot her," he repeats. He takes off his glasses and begins wiping it with a handkerchief. "You are a good liar, and even I was fooled for a bit, but from our conversation, I believe I've gained an understanding of your character." He puts his glasses back on and pushes it into position, his grey eyes piercing into Loid's own. "You're bluffing."
"I assure you, I'm not."
As he speaks, Loid angles his body to keep both the two guards behind him and the Manager in his line of sight.
"Now, now," the Manager says. "It's becoming rather unsightly, watching you keep that gun to Yor's head. Let's stop this farce, shall we? I'd hate for you to embarrass yourself in front of the Shopkeeper like this. Wouldn't you agree, Twilight? Or, if you'd prefer... Loid Forger?"
For a tenth of a second, Loid's mind goes blank. He freezes, unsure of if he heard correctly.
Then, his blood turns to ice. There's a loud ringing sound in his ears.
They know.
Somehow, they know his identity. Was it the traitor in WISE? It must've been. God, how was he so stupid? He should've expected it. And if they know who he is, then that means they didn't kidnap Anya for leverage on Yor – they kidnapped Anya for leverage on him.
Which means...
He messed up.
"Yor," he whispers into her ear. "Plan B."
In a fluid motion, he whips a concealed knife out from beneath his suit cuffs and cuts through the bonds restraining her hands behind her back, before yanking the blindfold off her head to reveal narrowed red eyes.
For a moment, everything is still.
Then, Yor moves.
And all hell breaks loose.
It's been a few months since I've last written anything, so this chapter may be a bit rustier than usual haha. As usual, a huge thanks to Shishou for betaing this chapter and generally improving the quality heavily.
Thanks for reading!