He who aligned the stars

VIII

Rubbing his throat, he hummed to himself several times as he got fully used to the effects of the spell. Altering the vibrations of his throat to change the pitch of his voice to ensure it sounded more feminine was a given when completing the disguise. "How does that…oh my, I can already notice the effects. I would say they are rather convincing thus far."

It was a noticeable change from his usual tone of voice, decidedly more feminine which - given what the whole purpose of the disguise was - was effectively pointing out the obvious but sometimes these things needed to be witnessed before they could be fully understood. That and pointing out the obvious was sometimes something that needed doing, that was the justification he would use at least. His eyes glanced towards Daybit, noticing that he was regarding him with a blank stare. "Do you suppose I should try and alter the way I speak as well?"

"That would depend upon the persona you are attempting to adopt." Daybit replied after a moment of silence, his lips thin. "I would assume such a thing would be a waste of time but it is ultimately your own choice. These disguises will suit us for a short period of time, unless you decide you wish to walk the cities of Mexico as a woman as well."

Wodime opened his mouth before he closed it again "I will need to apply the disguise on the return trip as well, provided we are not escorted by the deities of Mesoamerica." shaking his head from side to side, he leaned forwards and cupped his chin. "For that matter, I would prefer to avoid attracting attention beyond being a tourist, at least until we can encounter our selected targets. Speaking of, I assume that you have information to use?"

Daybit nodded his head once, his hand moving to his coat pocket and withdrawing a folded up piece of paper, sliding it across the table towards him. Taking the paper in his hands, he unfolded it and raised his brows at the simple but informative bullet points that had been marked down on it. Leave it to Daybit to save time when something like this could work just as easily. Though he still found himself impressed that he had been able to put this together so quickly. "Garra de jaguar?"

He sincerely hoped he hadn't butchered the pronunciation of it, but he liked to think he got the point across, raising his eyes and looking towards Daybit questioningly for a moment. The man nodded his head, letting Wodime read onwards.

He found his brows slowly pinch together the longer he read through it, bits and pieces here and there but from what he was able to piece together, it was a cartel centred in Mexico - or suspected to be - which had links across most of South America yet it was not the strongest nor the most well known of them. Yet they did have quite a lot of reported incidents about them, though most of this appeared to be supposition from what Daybit had pieced together. Names, dates and the likes.

Lowering the paper, he rolled his jaw from side to side before he glanced towards Daybit once more. "I shall assume that this is one of the more obvious ones?"

"I have come to the conclusion that this is a faction within Mexcio that has ties to Tezcatlipoca, the Mesoamerican God and one of their Chief Divines." To anyone else, Wodime supposed that would have sounded like quite the presumptuous declaration, but Wodime wasn't anyone else. He knew Daybit would not make such a statement without complete confidence in making it. Which meant he had deduced that this was a group linked to one of the Gods.

The man opposite him was silent for several more seconds before adjusting himself "Given that one of his many authorities is tied to conflict and warriors, I deduced that the cartels would be a suitable topic to investigate further. Tezcatlipoca is represented by the symbol of the Jaguar and given the name of this particular cartel, the link warranted further examination."

Wodime nodded his head up and down, he could see the links already. Though the idea of a God running a drug empire wasn't the sort of thing that he would have come to the conclusion about but at the same time, the Mesoamerican Gods were actively flying in the face of what was traditional Godly behaviour, assuming they would behave as he expected them to would be foolish of him. He narrowed his eyes slightly as he examined the paper further, then lowered it down. "This suggests that some of their major organisations are near the border of Mexico and America."

Another nod from Daybit "Tezcatlipoca's authority was of the North, therefore I limited my search to the north of South America."

"Still…I am surprised by the availability of this information." Wodime couldn't help but muse aloud, pinching his lips together as he looked the paper up and down. To his knowledge, information regarding cartels were usually well concealed and even if one knew the name of them, getting the information about their activities was next to impossible until after they had already collapsed. A testament to the mind of Daybit once more that he had discerned all of this in less than an hour after informing him they needed to head to Mexcio.

"I suspect that Tezcatlipoca has little reason to conceal his true identity for those with the sense to look for it." Daybit suggested with a shake of his head. "The Garra de Jaguar has been involved in several confrontations with law enforcement during the past. For that matter, the organisation itself has gone through several iterations over the last one hundred years. Minor differences, yet the tactics remain much the same, as does the territory. One would assume it to be a generational family business."

Wodime allowed himself a faint smile "Unless the leader of the group was rather long lived…" he let the words hang in the air, lowering the paper back down onto the table and giving an approving nod of the head. "Though this information is impressive, it does not go without saying that finding them would be difficult enough. That being said, I suspect it would become an easier task upon arrival, would it not?"

Daybit hummed "Yes. Though that will remain my task." He adjusted himself in his seat "I would recommend that you deploy yourself to Teotihuacan to begin your search for one of the other Divines. Quetzalcoatl…information regarding them was far more difficult to come by."

That was saying something, especially if Daybit was unable to gather information upon them in the time he had been away, especially after coming back with all of this news on Tezcatlipoca. That being said. "You suggest we split up?"

"Yes, in the event of failure."

"Smart, though we will need to keep in contact."

"A phone will suffice."

"True enough." That meant he'd probably need a burner phone or something along those lines. He wondered why they were called burner phones considering they were not burnt after being used. Perhaps a figure of speech? He was fairly certain that calling them disposable phones would work just the same and it got the point across without confusion. "Teotihuacan, you say?"

Bringing his hand up, he rubbed his chin once more and pursed his lips. He would need to put further research into Mesoamerican culture and sites of importance, especially for the trip ahead. Likely give him something to do on the flight, but at the same time, he knew those sorts of sites. "It has a temple to the Feathered Serpent, you suppose that Quetzalcoatl would be present there?"

Daybit hummed. "Yes. Or at the very least, they would make repeated efforts to visit the site, given that it is one of the few temples remaining to them within Mexico. Though the expectation is not to discover them immediately, I have not witnessed a similar trail in much the same way I have done so with the likes of Tezcatlipoca." He brought up a single finger, then pointed it towards the piece of paper. "The back."

Wodime looked down, then turned the paper and found himself staring at a fresh paragraph of writing. He wasn't sure how he missed it before but that wasn't important right now. His eyes scanned the surface of the paper, drinking in the information as he did so and nodding his head up and down every few moments. This deduced that Kukulkan and Quetzalcoatl were really one in the same, then listed some of the notable facts about those who worshipped the feathered serpents. Namely the role they played in the expansion of commerce.

Yes, finding the God who led these people near a large settlement would be a sure enough move, or at least finding one of the Gods associated with Quetzalcoatl. That was if the attempt and placing an offering down at the temple did not pan out, though he wasn't sure how that would truly work in the first place. Though there was only one true way of finding out and going directly for it was likely to be the only way of getting there.

He glanced to Daybit once more, nodding his head up and down "Very well, I shall head the city you suggested." he wasn't even going to make an attempt to pronounce it, the fact that Daybit had done it so flawlessly was something he didn't even question. "A direct approach to the God Quetzalcoatl would be better suited, though I am curious as to why you have mentioned neither of the other two."

Daybit kept his expression blank as he replied "The consideration of Xīpe Tōtec and Huitzilopochtli-"

Just how was he capable of doing that without tripping over his tongue? It was a marvel.

"-were accounted for briefly. Though given the significance of Tezcatlipoca and Quetzalcoatl as two of the four creator Gods and the most prominently known, information regarding them was merely simpler to come across." Was the simple explanation he provided. "Huitzilopochtli is also the God where the practice of sacrificing human hearts was dedicated to for the most part, I decided that such a God would be problematic even if they were taking an active role in stepping back."

"Could the same not be said for the other Mesoamerican Gods and ritualistic sacrifices?"

Daybit did not answer for a moment, then his eyes moved to the side before he spoke slowly. "Perhaps. Yet the sacrifices towards Quetzalcoatl were far less costly for humans, in the form of butterflies and hummingbirds."

Woe unto the hummingbirds, Wodime kept his expression straight as he nodded his head up and down. That sounded more as though it was related to the symbols of the other Gods, though he noticed that Daybit had not mentioned Tezcatlipoca, which left him to assume that the God also took sacrifices from humans, or had done so in the past. Perhaps if he was running a cartel, this was how he achieved them? Either way, it was something for Daybit to be concerned about.

"Then I shall assume you will be heading directly towards Tezcatlipoca?" He raised an eyebrow at Daybit, watching as the blonde nodded his head. Wodime rose from his seated position, "Then I shall gather the necessary materials for our journey, I shall grant us a week to complete our objective. Do you have problems with that length of time?"

Daybit said nothing, shaking his head from side to side and staring up at him.

Wodime nodded once to him, then turned from the man and towards the door "I shall meet with you at the end of the day once we have made preparations and given news of our objective." he paused for a moment, then glanced down at himself before allowing a faint smile to cross his features. "Though I suspect I shall turn more than a few heads with this disguise. I would like to hope that most will not recognise me and merely assume me to be a new arrival."

He turned to Daybit, the smile widened "I am pleased to say that Kadoc was rather surprised by the skill of my disguise. I daresay that if it had not been my room, he would not have been able to recognise me." to say nothing of Kadoc's observational abilities, it was more of a praise towards the abilities of Peperoncino. Though he had never seen them so motivated about something before.

He had expected the news to be received slightly worse than this, given that he had just arrived and Cao Cao was always rather dubious when it came to alliances with non-human factions, or at least he was less willing to meet them as equals. Namely seeing them as potential enemies.

Though this was something that Wodime took charge of personally, so while Cao Cao might have had complaints, it was hardly as though he was truly going to take them into the final say when he had already decided on this course of action. That being said, he noticed that Cao Cao didn't seem as though he was truly aware of the conversation, the bemused expression on his face told it all as his eyes kept roaming up and down as though he was having a hard time believing what he was seeing.

"A week, you say?" Cao Cao eventually replied once he had finished, rolling his jaw and raising an eyebrow as he leaned back into his chair, placing his arms on the side and dropping his hands onto his lap. "With yourself and Daybit?"

He confirmed it "That is the length of time I have given myself to make contact, though I cannot only grant that as a rough estimate of the length of time we shall be away." he added on. "We may take more or less time, though I am aware there are other topics that require our attention. Therefore a week is the length of time I shall allow for this first venture."

"Implying there would be more than one?"

"Perhaps not to meet with the Gods of the region, this is still the closest I shall come to observing a texture where the authority of the Divine has been weakened considerably." He explained "I suspect that Georg would hold a greater understanding of it, no offence intended, but the limiting of the mystic influence of the world is worth further study even without the possibility of alliances with those behind it."

Pausing for a moment, he rolled his jaw and glanced looked the man dead in the eye. "Further than that, I would prefer to meet with the Gods directly and ask why they would lower their own abilities in such a way while they prevent other factions from directly influencing the humans of South America. I can make suppositions but I would prefer a direct answer from them."

Cao Cao regarded him silently before clearing his throat and adjusting his seated position, pulling himself up. "And the…dress?"

"Myself and Daybit shall enter the country via mundane means." He explained, gesturing to himself "Peperoncino provided the aid along with Le Fay. I deduced that this would serve as a suitable test for a potential method of infiltrating the Scandinavian regions, depending upon Ophealia's success in regards to gaining the aid of Loki."

Humming to himself, the dark haired man pushed himself up from his chair, rolling his shoulders with a thoughtful look crossing his features. "Well, it's convincing, I shall grant you that…" he muttered, one final glance towards him before shaking his head. "At any rate, your group seems to become active, given that Jedidiah approached me not long ago and informed me that he would soon be depositing Zemlupus into the familiar forests of the underworld to hone his abilities. A courtesy rather than a request, I shall correct."

That sounded like Jedidiah, it also explained why Kadoc had looked rather out of sorts when he approached them earlier. Wodime had believed it might have been a surprise of his recent activity with Le Fay and Peperoncino, but if it related to this piece of news, then it must have been him deducing the best way of dealing with the task ahead. Practice made perfect and all of that. Still, the familiar forests of the underworld…he was sure that Kadoc would be fine.

"I would say that this recent revelation has proven to be a catalyst for rapid developments, along with news of the Red Dragon Emperors possible awakening."

"Yes, yes…" Cao Cao pinched the bridge of his nose as he stalked away, letting out a sigh under his breath as he did so. "I've been told about that as well…Jedidiah informs me he has the situation under control and I'm not so foolish as to try and push the matter of losing the Red Dragon Emperor to the Devils…the Old Satan Faction can at least use some of their influence to keep an eye on news coming in and out of Kuoh."

Wodime inclined an eyebrow "I was unaware they would be willing to share that much."

"They are when it relates to a sister of the Gremory." The man waved his hand, turning and facing Wodime with an exasperated expression. "Their hatred of the new Satans is useful to an extent but they are far too focused…well, it's their choice whether they attempt something foolish before the right time."

Wodime neglected to point out that Cao Cao was fully willing to charge into Kyoto up until the point he reminded the man that Amaterasu existed. He kept his silence and watched as his ally paced back the other length of the room, bringing his arms behind his back and humming to himself. "But I can confess my own intrigue as to why Gods would all but abandon their existence as Gods…it does seem rather bewildering to me. So I have no complaints about this. As long as you keep everyone informed about what goes on and keep everything close to your chest, then that is fine."

He paused for a moment, then turned and faced him with his brows pinched together. "That being said, I shall make it clear that if you find the Gods of Mesoamerica willing to lend their aid to our cause, you do not immediately return to this location. Find another of the safe houses and head there." his lips curled into a smooth smile "Just to minimise the amount of individuals who are aware of this location."

"You do not need to hide behind pretence, I am aware you would not trust them."

"I like to think that would be the sensible response to allying oneself with a God they have known for so short an amount of time." Cao Cao flattened his features, shaking his head from side to side. "For that matter, even if these Gods have rescinded their powers for the benefit of the humans, it could just as easily mean that they have grown bored in mingling with the mortal world, not that they have suddenly developed an affection for humanity, recall that the Olympians are far from their days of walking among the mortals so openly but they have not totally abandoned their habit of interacting with them."

Mentioning that Daybit suspected Tezcatlipoca was running a drug empire might be an unwise thing to do at the moment. Therefore he nodded his head once more and turned. "I came to inform you of our departure. I have already prepared my bags and Daybit has done much the same. We shall teleport to England and then take transport to Mexico from there. We shall send a message when we land."

Cao Cao waved his hand dismissively "...I feel as though I should ask you to take pictures." he joked with a shake of his head after a second.

Wodime, meanwhile, hummed as he approached the door to the room and opened it, stepping into the hallways and rolling his jaw from side to side. He was going to be spending around a week in Mexico and it was hardly as though he was going to be spending every waking moment of his time there searching for Quetzalcoatl. There would likely be a great deal of sights to be seen as well as cultural festivals to immerse himself in.

Just because he was going there for business did not mean he was forbidden to indulge himself in some small pleasures here and there. Perhaps he should find himself a travelogue when he arrived at the airport to see what there was to do in Mexico for tourists. He had been planning to visit one of the temples in the first place, so getting a few photos of the trip wouldn't be a terrible idea.

Perhaps he and Daybit could get a few photographs together before they went their separate ways, or when they met up once more. He knew that Peperoncino would appreciate those sorts of things. Getting souvenirs as well was a given for this, bringing back some small reminders for everyone else of their time in Mexico. Though he wasn't sure what he could get them.

He pinched his chin as he walked through the hallways, coming upon the elevator and opening it up. Stepping inside and barely aware of a gasp from his right as he entered, turning around and pressing the next floor down. It was only when he felt the burning stare directed towards the side of his head that he turned, surprised to find Ophelia stood there, stock still, with her single visible eye as wide as it could go, lips slightly parted and several books in her arms.

Leaning forwards, he scanned the titles of the books, noticing a theme of them all being related to Norse mythology. Humming in approval, he leaned back and allowed himself a glimmer of pride. It was heartening to see Ophelia throwing herself into research, it meant she was truly committed to the task, though her look of surprise was rather off putting. Perhaps she had seen through his disguise?

Glancing down, he gave himself a once over before frowning. He was wearing a thin grey jumper with baggy white trousers. Comfortable clothes for moving around as well as concealing most of his figure from the world to heighten the image. He had thought that with the makeup, it would have presented him as a convincing woman but perhaps he had overestimated himself. Bringing his head back up and glancing to the other occupant, tilting his head to the side and giving her an unblinking stare. "Is something the matter, miss?"

"N-no." Ophelia's voice cracked, quickly schooling her expression and shaking her head from side to side, sharply turning it and staring straight ahead towards the doors. "Forgive me for staring. You merely reminded me of someone else for a moment there."

"Ah, do not worry yourself." Waving his hand to the side, he allowed a gentle smile to grace his features as he realised that she hadn't deduced it was him just yet. That meant the disguise was working if it could trick those who spent the most time around him. Keeping her in the corner of his vision as he turned his head straight on as well. "I find I have been receiving those manners of stares recently."

He caught sight of Ophelia glancing at him once more from the corner of his eye before her gaze returned straight ahead. It looked as though for a moment she was going to say something but decided against it. That was quite a shame, he was curious to see how she would act if she was speaking with someone other than himself. Perhaps this would be a good chance for him to take the first step. It would also give them both something to do during the elevator ride. "Do you have an interest in Norse mythology?"

That spurred some movement from her, she turned to him and inclined an eyebrow for a moment, then glanced down to the books in her arms. She regarded them silently and he was worried for a moment she wouldn't actually reply to him or that he might have overstepped the boundaries. Fortunately, it seemed as though his worries were unfounded.

"This is merely research for an upcoming project of mine." She replied, he internally nodded his head at her discretion. Supplying a decent enough answer without giving away more detail than she needed to. "I merely need to familiarise myself with known myths and compare them with what information we have recorded from real encounters with the Norse faction."

"I see." Nodding his head up and down, the two fell into a silence that seemed comfortable enough. "In that case, I wish you the best of luck."

"...Thank you." Her response seemed genuinely heartfelt, which sent a pang of guilt through him as he realised he might have been playing upon her emotions ever so slightly. He would need to confess this to her when he returned from South America. "And what of yourself?"

That brought him up short, blinking twice before he opened his mouth. "Excuse me?"

Ophelia was staring at him with clear intrigue "I mean to ask…are you similarly working on a project of your own?" she paused for a moment before continuing on. "I only ask because I have not seen you before, so I find myself wondering if you are a recent addition to our ranks?"

At least it confirmed the disguise worked.

"I am…something of a temporary member, I am afraid." That seemed like a safe enough answer, offering a condoling smile as he did so. "My work will be brief but I have been assured that it will be important all the same…though I cannot speak of it openly, but I am certain you understand."

Thankfully, she did and nodded her head up and down, looking far from put off by the answer he had given her. "I understand. If your work is as important as you claim, then I will not pry further and extend the same courtesy to you that you have shown to me." Ophelia nodded her head once to him, her lip pulling into a nearly imperceptible smile. "I wish you fortune in your own endeavours as well."

"My thanks."

"...Ophelia Phamrsolone." He paused at her introduction, then watched as she seemed to realise what she had said before elaborating further. "That is my name. Ophelia Phamrsolone." She extended a hand towards him, using the other arm to wrap around the books and tuck them close to herself to prevent them from falling.

Right, he would need a name, wouldn't he?

…

…

…

"...Karen Williams." He extended his own hand to her, gently taking it and shaking them up and down before they both retracted. This was quickly spiralling out of control, he certainly hoped that when the time came, she would not feel too betrayed or upset that he might have run the risk of making a fool of her. Unless he could find a way of explaining it that was believable. He was certain he could come up with a convincing one that she would more easily be willing to accept than 'I saw the chance and I took it' because the last time he did that, she looked at him like he was an idiot.

This time around, he probably had been rather foolish.

Thankfully for him, it was at this moment that the doors opened, he turned his head towards them and without making it seem as though he was in too great a rush, he made his way towards the hallways, turning around and giving Ophelia a single nod of the head in parting. "This was a pleasant conversation. I hope we can repeat one like it again in the future."

At least that part was genuine.

Ophelia regarded him silently, then nodded her head once with an expression on her face he had never once seen her make around him before. She always looked tense or as though she was wearing a controlled mask. Yet now she looked completely relaxed at the moment, it took considerable effort to keep himself from blurting out the truth then and there. Something which might have been the smarter choice for him to do but as the old saying went, in for a penny in for a pound. Though at this point, he was certain he had invested his wealth into the entire banking system for how much he had flung himself into it.

"I agree." Ophelia, meanwhile, responded to his remark with a cordial smile upon her face. "Goodbye, Karen Williams. Once again, good luck with your project."

"To you as well, Ophelia." The doors closed, separating the two of them and Wodime allowed his shoulders to drop after that, his expression faltered and he slowly raised his hand to nurse his brows. There was no way he wasn't going to be able to explain it to Ophelia now, he needed advice on how best to break it to her though.

"-ow boarding, flight to Dhaka airport."

The intercom buzzed aloud the both of them, Wodime adjusted himself in his seat as he glanced around for a moment, then returned his attention to the blonde man sitting by his side. Daybit, disguised with a goatee, slicked back hair and black sunglasses, stared at the travelogue in his hands in silence, seemingly uncaring for the busyness of holiday goers around him.

He could admire the concentration but he could not help but feel as though his mind was still pressing upon other matters. Drumming his fingers on his lap, he closed his eyes and let out a breath before opening his mouth to speak.

"She will formulate her own conclusions and congratulate you on the disguise." Daybit commented before he even had a chance to speak the question aloud. He closed his mouth and stared at the man in silence as he continued to read the booklet of their destination, flipping through to the other side and presumably glancing down it. "She will not think less of you once you reveal the truth."

Wodime shook his head from side to side. "I sincerely envy your confidence in that remark, but I still cannot help but feel as though I have betrayed her trust in some capacity." he reached over, placing his hand on the luggage and clenching his hands around the handle as a means of comforting himself. It was a meagre gesture but he didn't have a stress ball. "You were not there to see the expression she made when she believed me to be entirely someone else. Deceiving her in such a way has left me feeling ill at ease…"

Daybit grunted in response but said nothing.

"Imagine how Peperoncino would feel if you were able to deceive him into believing you were someone else entirely?"

"Assuming that such a thing were possible in the face of his magical abilities, I suspect he would find amusement in the gesture and then indulge me in a game of disguises to copy me."

Wodime opened his mouth, then slowly closed it at the matter of fact speech that Daybit had provided him. Truth be told, he could see no flaws with the words and he could truly see that as something Peperoncino would actually end up doing. He frowned, more to himself than Daybit, it was a poor example he had given. Fact of the matter was that he was unable to think of much else while his mind drifted to the manner in which he had lied to Ophelia. It wasn't so much the how, it was more of the why.

It didn't serve a purpose and he had done it purely on a whim.

Daybit lowered the travelogue, reaching up and removing the sunglasses from the front of his face and turning his head. Purple eyes bore into his own as the blonde regarded him with an unblinking gaze. "There is nothing to prevent you from phoning her now."

"True…but if she were to become angered with me at this moment, I am certain I would end up distracted for the mission ahead and would not wish to put myself at risk in such a way." Thinning his lips, he released the handle of his luggage and rolled his jaw. "For the time being, I shall merely put the matter to one side as best I can-"

"You are already distracted. Grant yourself closure on the matter." Daybit cut him off, bringing the sunglasses back up and returning them to their spot on his head, covering up his eyes and leaning back into his chair, handing the travelogue to him and placing his hands on his lap once Wodime took the booklet from him.

"...You are quite right, I shall phone Kadoc and ask him to pass along the message to her." Daybit was right, it was better to get this over with now rather than dealing with it later. Moving his hand to his pocket, he pulled out temporary phone and flipped open the contacts page, sweeping through to Kadoc's number and hitting the dial.

"...I think that went well, all things considered."

"Hmmm."

"You were right, she did indeed praise me for it."

"Hmmm."

"Though I cannot help but wonder if I have somehow lost something important with the revelation." Wodime muttered as he brought his hand to cup his chin. Even if she had understood and even congratulated him for the act of being able to concoct such a realistic disguise and even extended that congratulations to Peperoncino, he couldn't help but picture the expression she had given him when she had been speaking with 'Karen Williams'.

What would it take for someone to look at him with that degree of comfort, everyone normally regarded him with some degree of respect or distant…not quite reverence but there was a detached formality about everything. Even Peperoncino with all his extroversion would approach him with the same sort of look in his eye that he did with others. Not like with Daybit but that might have been something else entirely.

Still, it was unusual for him that he might have actually been envious of his alter-ego for being able to tear down those barriers so easily with only a couple minute long conversation between the two of them. Still, at least he had experienced something like that with Romani so that was alright, but that came from ignorance more than anything else. He couldn't help but wonder if it was knowledge of his past that factored into it all.

…Well, it seemed obvious that it did but he didn't view himself as being too different from anyone else, perhaps a little more driven than some but that was about it.

Shaking his head from side to side, he dismissed the thoughts that threatened to emerge in his mind once more. There was little to be gained from focusing on them when he had other concerns to worry about. Adjusting himself, he slipped his hand into his pocket and slowly withdrew the notepad he had purchased at the airport along with the pencil, flipping open to the first page and then writing down at the top.

'Agenda's of interest'

That seemed a suitable title for it.

First and foremost, he would need some manner of plan for when they arrived, discovering a hotel was a given so there was little reason to write that down. But what would he actually do when he met Quetzalcoatl? Well, examination of what they were famous for revealed the multitude of authorities they held dominion over and none of them were exactly narrow. Being the creator God of life, light, wisdom, the day and the winds…those were broad topics which put them in a variety of different locations.

There was no end of things they could immerse themselves with in the modern day, Tezcatlipoca had seemingly found themselves interested in running a drug cartel which meant that he could not cross off any job as being beneath that of a God. There was little reason he could see for them to rise to being the leader of a cartel but that was for Daybit to concern himself with, he had his own problems. Problems which would take hours to narrow down to even some of the jobs.

At least their authority over the West would play a role in this and physically narrow down the locations they could be in, but that still left quite a lot of ground to cover. He could use his magecraft but he had no idea how effective it would be in a land where mystery was being negatively affected. Perhaps it could still point him in the right direction but it seemed as though the Gods had not responded well to those with magecraft so it would be best to approach them with mundane means for the most part.

Letting out a breath, he moved the pencil away from the notepad and drilled the rubber end of it into his chin. Quietly humming to himself as he did so, eyes fixated on the blank piece of paper.

Life, light and wisdom…

With those topics in mind, he returned to the paper and started to write down potential jobs that they could have found themselves within if they were looking to become a member of human society. There were quite a few jobs and it would certainly run opposite to what Tezcatlipoca was doing, the clashing personalities of the two would work, given that the research he had carried out thus far had pointed to them being extremely bitter rivals.

He would admit that he was working off mere suspicions and hypothesis as of this moment, but considering that Daybit had unearthed very little in regards to Quetzalcoatl whereas he had found much in the way of Tezcatlipoca, it meant that there wasn't much of a trail to find and yet it was still somehow simpler than finding the other two. Speaking volumes for the information available for them at present, that Daybit had stopped with just Tezcatlipoca and Quetzalcoatl.

Bringing his hand up, he rubbed his eyes and then lowered his arm back down before bringing his head up, staring at the back of the seat in front of him for a moment in thought before he nodded once, leaning back into his chair and adjusting himself to be comfortable. Glancing to the side, he was greeted with the sight of Daybit leaning back into his seat with his sunglasses still on, making it difficult for him to tell whether or not the man was actually asleep. He was certainly still as a statue, but Daybit was like that normally.

Leaning forwards, he dropped his voice into a whisper and spoke the name of the man rather quietly to ensure that no one else could hear them. "Daybit."

The response wasn't immediate, but it was swift enough that he could deduce that Daybit had not been asleep. The head of the blonde tilted slightly, then he released a short breath as he straightened himself out and turned his head towards Wodime, adjusting his sunglasses and lowering them so that his eyes crested above the lenses. His expression was blank, but Wodime liked to imagine that he noticed a faint bit of surprise in the eyes of the man but he could have been tricking himself into seeing things that weren't there.

He extended the notepad towards him "I apologise if I woke you, but I have compiled a list of potential fields that Q might have found interest in. Provided they are following the same manner of behaviour as T and immersing themselves in the culture." Daybit glanced down at the notepad, then brought the sunglasses up and rested them atop his forehead. "I am confident in my estimations, though a second opinion would be welcome and you have put greater time into this research than myself."

Without saying a word, Daybit took the notepad from him and looked over the page, his eyes roaming over the list and nodding up and down minutely as he went. It lasted for barely a few seconds before handing the notepad back to him. "These are intelligent choices and serve as a foil for T. Though my own immediate research yielded very little, an unorthodox approach might be better suited for this search."

"You suppose that Q is in a field that might not appear logical at first?"

"Perhaps, though the actions of their family are contradictory given their rejection of their natural heritage. Though T places value in upholding his role, perhaps the same cannot be said for Q." He mused aloud, then closed his eyes and leaned back. "I am certain you will find the answer regardless."

"I am thankful for your confidence." And he meant it, closing the notebook in his hand and then placing it back into his hoodie. He opted to dress lightly for this mission given the heat of Mexico and the fact that he knew he wouldn't be suited for feminine clothing. Ergo, he had to assume a more 'tomboyish' approach to the matter. Something he believed he pulled off quite well in the form of a light grey shirt, matching joggy bottoms and a white hoodie.

"...Have you given thought to Peperoncino's request?"

That earned a faint rumble from Daybit. "I doubt I shall have the time to indulge myself in his request for pictures."

That was unfortunate, still there was a workaround for it. "I shall grab some photographs in your stead, if that should be agreeable. I suspect that Peperoncino would find that rather pleasing…though I find myself moderately concerned he might be envious if I were to do so."

"Hmmm." Humming for a moment, Daybit shrugged his shoulders "Myourenji will not complain if the photographs include the both of us. He is placated with the images of comradery. I suspect a lack of photographs would earn a negative reaction from him." there was a short pause before he spoke again. "And you always had the intention of taking photographs, else you would not have packed the camera."

"...It seemed to be an opportunity to not pass up." He defended lightly with a twitch of his lips. "To visit the pyramids in Mexico and see all the ancient ruins is still something to value, even if we are here for reasons beyond holiday making."

"As you claim…I see the value in the photograph as well." Daybit admitted after a moment, for a brief second it seemed as though a smile ghosted across his features before it was gone. So quickly and so swiftly it was akin to a shooting star and just as dazzling to behold, if only because of the value of it when considering the rarity. "Was there something else you wished to discuss?"

There was. He had done so in his preliminary research of the booklet that Daybit had given him after reading through. Reaching towards his pocket, he rummaged around for a moment before withdrawing the folded up travelogue and flipping through to the right page. Then turned it to face Daybit with a perfectly blank expression upon his face, hiding his emotions.

Looking at the booklet, Daybit's eyes remained upon the text for a short moment before they gradually rose up and locked onto Wodimes. There was the silent question that wasn't spoken between the two of them, but Wodime knew what he was going to ask. Therefore, it was only right that he provide an explanation. "It is considered something of a national sport. It would only be right to at least visit a single event before we departed. I did research in the airport after reading it in the booklet. There is supposed to be a major tournament happening not far from our airport when we land in the evening."

The question remained.

"I…merely considered it something to do upon our arrival before we truly committed."

The silence persisted, then Daybit turned back and stared at the seats in front of him. "I intended to begin as soon as we arrived and found a hotel. Though if that is how you wished to spend your evening upon your first arrival, I shall not prevent you from doing so."

Wodime felt a small frown emerge on his face. "That sounds as though you will not accompany me."

"...Take a video with your phone, it would be better for me to see it the day after."

"If you say so." Wodime exhaled and turned back, it was unfortunate that Daybit was not interested enough to see the tournament with him but Wodime wasn't going to hold it against him. Daybit was far more work focused and perhaps it was simply a case of him getting too caught up in the thrill of actually going to Mexico and reading up about it. It felt as though it was worth it to just go and see a Lucha match at least once before they left.

Well…getting ahead of it would probably be a good way to spend the first evening there, he supposed.

"It's not quite as warm as I was expecting it to be." Wodime spoke aloud as he placed his suitcase at the foot of the shared bed. Staring down at it for a moment before he sighed and shook his head from side to side, glancing towards the direction of his roommate and watching as Daybit pulled out a laptop for his own satchel and moved towards the table not far from the pair of them.

The man placed it down, opening it up and immediately turning it on. A few moments later, Wodime found himself drawn towards the man and leaning over his shoulder. Then nodding his head in understanding as he noticed that Daybit was calculating the fastest way of getting to the northern areas, from the looks of things his destination was not quite as far north as he had been expecting but it was situated near enough a woodland area to at least raise an eyebrow.

Still, there was little need to disturb Daybit as he stepped back, he wasn't quite sure how he was dealing with it, but Wodime still felt as though the difference in time zones hadn't quite caught up to him yet. All the same, there was still something he had to make some notes of, moving towards the bed and sitting himself down on it, he withdrew his notebook and started to make notes down further along.

Differences in the quality of the mana in the air was already something he had picked up on instantly, there was a noticeable difference the moment they had entered the texture of the land. So much so that he had very nearly wanted to break out and start running experiments in the airport, fortunately enough he could contain himself that much. It would also give the pair of them something to discuss that was prudent, he was certain Daybit was capable of multitasking.

In terms of both quantity and quality, the mana was different to the rest of the world even in places where the Gods had not been entirely active, it wasn't nearly this different. He would not say bad, but he had expected the quality of mana to be different. The lowering amount of ether should have been a given that the land would be less hospitable for mystics but he wasn't entirely sure how else it could affect them. For example, how would an ordinary devil be affected within this different texture?

According to Hades, the likes of a Demiurge had been reduced to the equivalent of an Archangel and that was a marked step down. It was entirely possible that it translated further down the spectrum to the point where a devil would be reduced to a state equal to or perhaps even inferior to that of an ordinary human. It would certainly make influence in locations such as these a trial to be sure.

"Do you suppose there is a method of replicating the effects of this in a small-scale environment?" He muttered aloud, knowing that Daybit would hear him. Sure enough, the gentle tapping of fingers on keys stopped for barely a second before he received a reply from his partner.

"Within an environment with high amounts of ether? It would be difficult. One would need to find a way of separating the ether from the air." Daybit was silent for a moment, only a moment, before he spoke again. "It is possible, but the effectiveness would vary depending upon the nature of the being you were attempting to limit. Most high class devils will produce magical energy through their mere existence, any bounded field or negating ability would need to drain the magical energy from the being at a faster rate than it can be replenished."

Wodime hummed to himself, narrowing his eyes as a stray thought came to mind. "That sounds eerily similar in design to the Divine Dividing."

"The principle of draining power remains the same. Though even Vali himself has noted that there are existences he would not be capable of defeating, even if he has not said the words aloud." Daybit explained, Wodime turned to see the blonde still staring at his keyboard. "Examining the effects of the Sacred Gear in person would further research into this…though there is another matter that I have to report."

Wodime blinked, then inclined an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"I entered Kuoh shortly after you did. I deduced why the Grigori had gone rogue and travelled to the abandoned Church after the Devils had departed to confirm my findings."

He frowned for a moment, then nodded his head. "What did you discover?"

"One of the old creations of Azazel. A device designed to separate Sacred Gears from the soul of their current holder." Wodime felt his brows rise up his forehead, such a device seemed to be rather revolutionary and the fact it was in the hands of rogue elements rather than in the personal possession of the governor general himself told quite the tale of the effectiveness of the device. Which meant there was a flaw in its design. "The strain it places upon the wielder and the magical energy of directly affecting the soul makes it an inefficient process. Forcefully implanting it into another host that could truly accept it is another flaw in its design."

"Even still, to hear about such a device being abandoned." He hummed to himself, then brought his hand up to cup his chin. If those flaws could be ironed out, then there was quite a bit of work that could be done to make such a device beneficial. Removing Sacred Gears from Devils and then repurposing them into allied forces would be a major step in the right direction, yet he couldn't help but wonder if this was all Daybit had in mind. Affecting the Soul itself was still an incredibly complicated feat of magical ability.

The blonde nodded his head up and down. "I examined the device and recorded notes on its design. Though the initial plan remains in the works, I am confident in its success." he paused for a moment, then turned away from the computer and faced him. "I am telling you this in the event that my encounter with Tezcatlipoca does not proceed as planned."

Closing his eyes, he nodded his head up and down. "I understand, while I would prefer to avoid thinking of such an inevitability, I will take that into account. I assume the notes and materials are in your room?" at the nod of the head, he released a hum. "In that case, I shall either carry on your work or await the time in which you present the finished product to us. I would much prefer to consider the latter."

Daybit did not reply for a brief moment, then a faint smile ghosted over his lips as he returned his attention to the computer. "As would I." Briefly pausing, the blonde glanced towards his right hand and examined the watch on his wrist before he spoke again in an almost dispassionate tone of voice. "Your preliminary match will begin in one hour and is a fifteen minute walk from here."

Wodime blinked, but did not have enough time to speak before Daybit continued onwards, rising up from his seated position and moving towards him, gently taking the notepad from his hands and pausing for a moment. "May I?"

Once his assent was given, Daybit gently took the pencil from him and started to write something down before he finished and handed the notepad back to him, without another word he turned back and walked towards his computer, resuming his examination of the maps and acting as though nothing had happened.

His eyes flickered towards the freshly returned notepad, his attention roamed over it for a moment before he felt his lips twitch upwards. Written inside it were a set of directions for what he presumed was the fastest way there along with what appeared to be a seating suggestion as well for the angle of most efficient view. With a wry chuckle, he shook his head from side to side as he stood up from the bed, walking towards the door and pausing for a moment. "I shall see you later then."

"Hmmm." With that parting hum from Daybit as a farewell, Wodime shook his head and stepped into the hallway. Patting himself down to ensure he had his phone and then nodding one more time. He could always pick up a cheap camera on his way there. He would have to give credit where credit was due for Peperoncino, these skills of his made him feel as though he was acting out a James Bond film.

All that aside, he felt as though this would be a decent enough way to start off his brief trip to Mexico.

There would also need to be another small list of things to do, but it was tame enough that there shouldn't have been any problems.

AN: I think we all know where this is going, don't we?

You'll also be happy to know that we're approaching the end of this arc.

Learned from last time, mixed the plot with Character development.

So I see it being perhaps 3 chapters left? Certainly not the 20 of last Arc.

Then after this, we'll get a sort of Interlude Arc detailing Kadoc's fun times in the Familiar Forest which cap off with them all sitting around for the Rating Game...Yes.

Wodime gets the team together to watch the Rating Game where Issei unveils dress break.

And then we'll be back with the DxD gang for my own little Original Arc before the Excalibur Arc.

Fun times all around, huh?