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Book II, Part II: Outbreak - Convergence
Chapter VIII: Escalation
[July 19, 2152 | Esthar, Residential District, Safehouse | 9:14 AM]
Command, Ben had quickly found, was an unusual feeling for him. He had always been used to being the one following, letting others make the major decisions and leaving him to focus on finer detail work when needed. He preferred to work alongside others as equals, not to be the one calling the shots and ordering people around. Part of him wondered if that was why Connor had seemed so standoffish with him at first - the Balamb SeeD seemed to be the type to take charge and lead with absolute authority, seizing on the moment and being firm in his decisions. It was entirely at odds with the way that Ben liked to do things, not to mention that Ben was still rather lacking in self-confidence when it came to leadership ability, and he had found himself frustrated initially by the sheer difference in their personalities. After three days of being around him, however, he'd formed an uneasy peace with the brown-haired SeeD. Connor still didn't seem enthused by Ben's style of command, but he was at least willing to accept and go along with it. Ben, meanwhile, didn't feel like Connor was going to go lone wolf and ignore orders at a critical moment.
They'd returned to the safehouse two days ago after scoping out the area and waited for Tetsuya and Naoki to return from their own work, that of meeting with the client to get information on the grounds in order to direct security. They'd been placed in charge of security for the entire property, with the manor's own security detail working alongside them in order to make sure that the upcoming auction was as safe as possible despite the high amount of visibility and number of wealthy individuals that would likely be in attendance. A gathering of the 'who's who' of Estharian nobility, businessmen, and high-ranking politicians along with any number of other such people from other nations was bound to attract a lot of attention, and not all of it the sort that they would like.
Naoki had let Tetsuya take the lead between the two of them, deferring to him as they had come up with a comprehensive security plan for the event. They came to find that they had quite a lot to work with; the security force for the estate itself was rather extensive, and numbered nearly a hundred and fifty people when all were accounted for, though not all of them were on shift at the same time normally. That had been a welcome thing of note when they realized exactly what they were in for, however.
The mansion appeared large from the outside, but the inside seemed even more spacious than the outside appearance made it seem. Upon going over the floor plan of the grounds, Tetsuya and Naoki found that they were dealing with over five hundred separate rooms spread across four floors, somewhere just shy of half a million square feet when all was accounted for - and that wasn't counting the sizable exterior. The normal security plans for the building were quite comprehensive, and both SeeD had found them remarkably robust once they examined them in detail. It had taken them a good chunk of the morning to properly read over and digest the information, learning about the many defensive measures and plans that they had available to deal with intruders, and a large portion of the afternoon was spent in discussion with the property's head of security and direct reports in order to figure out the best way to modify the plans in light of the increased attendance and traffic around the area.
Within a few hours, they had come up with workable modifications to the existing plans to afford the most critical areas the enhanced security they needed, as well as optimize response times in case of larger issues. Tetsuya had joined the head of security in running drills during the evening to make sure that everyone was aware of what their positions, routes, and check-ins would be during the event.
The second day had consisted of more of the same, with the two SeeD leading the entire security force and the noble family in what was effectively a rehearsal of the event, in order to ensure that everyone knew their roles from the previous day as well as to test their reactions to different issues. Naoki's ability to use shadow clones had come in particularly handy in that regard, and the security force had been rather amazed when they had to deal with what was all but a full-scale assault on the interior of the building courtesy of the ninjutsu specialist's one-man army. Tetsuya had been worried about damages during the whole thing, but it was quickly evident that he shouldn't have been concerned. At the end of the day, everyone was unharmed and everything was untouched, leaving the family quite secure in their assessment of the SeeD team who would be coordinating their event's security.
The more Ben considered things, the more it looked like this mission would be fairly routine up until the last moment, he thought as they all sat around the kitchen table. The outline of the plan was much the same as Ben had envisioned it - Tetsuya and Naoki would monitor the event up until the main auction, then personally escort the winner out towards whatever exit route and transportation they were using. They had been given the necessary electronics to be able to communicate with the security detail, and it had been a relatively simple matter for them to figure out how to allow their GLDs to listen in on any communications over the device's frequency. That meant that Ben and Connor would have easy access to hear where and when Tetsuya and Naoki moved the target, and from there they would be able to tail them back to wherever their destination was.
The biggest concern that Ben had was the presence of so many civilians. They would have no way of knowing who would win the auction, their place of residence, or their mode of transportation until almost the very last minute. Given that they wanted to strike with overwhelming force, using shock and awe tactics to subdue any bodyguards along with the target before confiscating the Stone, Ben was worried that they might also have to deal with a multitude of civilians in harm's way if their buyer happened to live somewhere high-profile.
That was a risk with any mission, though. He knew that he and Connor would do their best to limit collateral damage, but...accidents happened.
"Alright - everyone's clear on the plan?" Ben asked, sitting at the head of the kitchen table that was currently serving as their planning room. A chorus of nods and affirmations came in response from the other three, causing Ben to nod in satisfaction. The security forces would be convening around two o'clock to run final checks and gear up, and Tetsuya and Naoki had planned to be there well in advance to scope out everything one last time. Tetsuya's knowledge of the streets of Esthar had come in handy; knowing each of the entrances to the estate had given him the ability to help Connor figure out an ideal plan of attack on the ground no matter where they left from. Air would be a bit trickier if it came to that, but they had contingencies for that too.
"We're going to go ahead and head out," Tetsuya said, standing up and starting to head to the living room to grab his gear as Naoki did the same. "Early start and all that - more time to dig up info."
"VIPs are coming when, three?" Ben asked.
"Something like that," Tetsuya replied as he shouldered a bag. "Event starts at three-thirty with lunch, then auctions at four-thirty. They're doing a few minor auctions before the main piece, so probably gonna be around five-thirty before we see what we're after."
"We'll be listening," Connor said, watching as his two fellow SeeD did a final gear check. His head turned towards Ben to ask him a question, but his eyes caught a glimpse of something in his peripheral vision that caused his head to snap around to look more fully. He jolted out of his chair in the next instant, reaching down to snatch a sidearm from its holster and point it towards the door leading into the house.
"You're a long way from home," a voice called from just inside the front door, and Tetsuya and Naoki both turned to face the intruder that they'd neither heard nor seen enter the safehouse.
"Connor, stand down," Ben said, giving a long-suffering sigh as he stood from his chair and headed into the living room.
"But -"
"It's fine - stand down," he repeated calmly, raising a hand up to Connor as if to stop him from moving and shaking his head. "Besides, you probably couldn't shoot him anyway unless he let you," Ben added, putting a hand on his hip as he saw Tetsuya and Naoki also relax. Connor reluctantly put his pistol back in the holster, but kept his eyes trained on the brown-haired man in the doorway. "Etchel, I'm on a mission - whatever it is, can't it wait? You are killing my first command here."
"Maybe, but...it is kind of important," the Grim Angel replied, shrugging mildly as if he hadn't simply appeared inside the entryway of a SeeD safehouse. "Remember I said there was someone in Soul Society that I wanted to help train you?" he asked, causing Ben to nod slowly. "Well, I managed to convince her. Wasn't easy, mind you."
"When does she want me to start?" Ben asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Whenever you're ready," Etchel said. "Fair warning, though - she might not be as easy on you as we were."
"Oh, like you were easy on me," Ben muttered, looking decidedly annoyed at the brown-haired Malakh. "Fine - soon as we get done with this mission, I'll let Katanas know what you're up to."
"Katanas isn't at Garden anymore."
Etchel's tone turned severe in an instant, and Ben's eyes widened along with similar looks from the other SeeD officers in the room. Connor didn't know Katanas as well as the three Trabian officers did, but from the tone of voice the strange man was using, it wasn't just that Katanas was off on business somewhere.
"What do you mean, he 'isn't at Garden anymore?' Did something happen to him?"
"I don't know the details, but something just happened a few days ago at Trabia that caused a lockdown. Katanas hasn't been seen since, if what Ein told me is correct."
"So who's in charge?" Tetsuya asked, beating Ben to the punch.
"I think Ein said that Albel's handling things, but dunno if that's still the case. Also..." He hesitated for a moment, seemingly choosing his words carefully. "There's rumblings that something's going on in the Nether Plane. Don't know what, but keep an eye out. Kari and I have a bad feeling."
"Great...just great," Ben griped, sighing and rubbing his face. "Like we needed more trouble...I'll try and get this done quick, then."
"Find Kari at the barracks whenever you're free. She'll get in touch with me. Hopefully, whatever's brewing doesn't boil over too soon."
"What are you gonna do?" Ben asked, folding his arms.
"Same thing I always do," Etchel replied with a grin. "Meddle."
"Of course you are..." the SeeD officer sighed, shaking his head. "Just don't get yourself killed, old man."
"You're as bad as Kari, always worrying like that," Etchel said, turning and offering a jaunty wave to Ben before he vanished alongside the sound of rushing wind. Connor muttered something behind him that Ben couldn't hear before speaking up.
"Who was that guy?" he asked, still a little unsettled by the fact that the stranger had simply appeared in the middle of a secure SeeD safehouse without a hint of noise, then disappeared much the same way.
"That," Ben said, his face looking as if he was thinking about an annoying sibling, "was Etchel Beoulve. He's a Malakh from the Ethereal Plane...well, Soul Society now, I guess...and one of two such people that I just finished some training with."
"From everything you told me, I'm surprised they didn't kill you," Tetsuya chimed in. "You finally finished that up, huh?"
"Wasn't for lack of trying," Ben grumbled, then nodded. "Yeah - beat the crap out of Darius in training my first day back, too," he added with a smirk. "That was a long time coming."
Tetsuya chuckled - he knew full well how often Ben had been humiliated by the gun-toting SeeD that he more or less considered his rival now. He'd been around Ben long enough to tell that behind all the sniping and arguments, the two of them seemed rather close and would have each other's backs if they needed, though either one of them would die before admitting it. He and Uriko were a lot like that too, admittedly.
"Is that one of the things they've redacted from your files?" Connor asked, causing Ben to shake his head.
"Nah - I did all that in my free time, so it's not something Garden was really involved in. We tend to keep the Planeswalker stuff to ourselves unless it really can't be helped. Katanas knows about all of it, so we all make a point to keep him in the loop just in case."
"You'll have to explain a bit more about this sometime," Connor said coolly. There was a rather big admission in there that Connor wasn't sure Ben meant to let slip - or did he just not care? Knowing that there were likely more than one of these 'Planeswalkers,' as he'd called them, at Garden was a bit of info that he was going to file away for further investigation. He still wasn't sure he fully believed everything Ben had told him on the streets, but he had to admit that what he just saw lent a little more credibility to the claims.
"We'll have some time while we're staking out the mansion. I'll fill you in more while we're waiting."
[July 19, 2152 | Galbadia Garden, Third Floor, Headmaster's Office | 11:00 AM]
"This has been a mess."
Quistis Trepe sighed from behind her position at the Galbadian Headmaster's desk, brushing blond hair away from her face as she read over the latest series of reports. Across from her, Xu Xucai sat with reports of her own in hand, legs crossed as she read. The difficulties they were currently dealing with at Galbadia were much more taxing than even they had expected.
Headmaster - former Headmaster - Mathius Martine was currently sitting in a holding cell on Galbadia Garden's third floor, one reserved for temporary detainment of high-value persons, until they could figure out exactly what was to be done with him. He'd been charged with multiple crimes, but treason against Garden sat at the top of that list due to his willful involvement with handing Lindsey Geneave over to Vector Industries. With that done, Quistis and Xu had set about investigating the entirety of Galbadia's top brass in the past two days, a task only made harder by having to effectively also run the entire Garden with minimal help from said administration.
Fortunately, the initial results didn't look too damaging. There were a few demerits of note, along with some incidents that could have and potentially should have led to rank demotion, but overall the Garden leadership was effectively innocent as far as being complicit with any of Martine's alleged crimes. The question weighing far heavier on both their minds, though, was whether or not those same individuals would be willing to accept the change in leadership.
"You're telling me," the JAG officer replied, putting the latest report down onto Quistis' temporary desk. "One Garden effectively without leadership, and another being watched by their Garden Commander's second - not to mention that said Garden Commander is also nowhere to be found? It's a good thing Garden doesn't have many enemies these days, or they'd be pounding at the gates by now."
"Headmaster Kramer is working on it, I'm sure," Quistis said, more confidently than she felt. "At the very least, Trabia doesn't look like it's going to destabilize until they can sort things out. Galbadia's a bigger concern, though."
"You think the brass is going to go along with this?" Xu asked, putting her hands up in a vague approximation of a shrug. "I don't know about you, but I'd hate to see what happens if the department heads just collectively decide to stage a mutiny here."
"All we can do is hope, Xu," Quistis admitted. She had her own reservations about the situation, but she didn't even want to give voice to them for fear of turning them into reality.
The blond Instructor returned her gaze to the document in front of her, only to have both her and Xu's GLDs chime with an incoming message - and from the sound of the alert tone, it was command-level instruction. She immediately reached for the device and pulled up the message for decryption, waiting patiently as the software worked for a few seconds before unlocking and loading the message. Quistis' eyes scanned the missive, noticing first that it was from Headmaster Kramer before her eyes widened a bit as she got to the heart of the message.
"The Headmaster found a replacement, it seems," Quistis said, right before her eyebrows rose even higher over the top of the glasses she wore.
"There's no way," Xu said, having apparently seen the same thing Quistis had. "He's not crazy enough to -"
"To what, my dear Xu?"
Quistis looked up and Xu turned at the sound of a new voice in the room, one they hadn't heard enter at all, to find Liam Bayloh giving a jaunty wave in their direction with an absolutely smug grin on his face. Xu got up from her chair and marched over to Liam, reaching out to angrily jab a finger into his chest, though the smile on her face betrayed that she was kidding around.
"To become a Garden Headmaster, you big dummy."
He started to walk the office, breezing past her finger, looking the space over as if he was moving in - and in all fairness, he was. "Don't know why you're surprised, boss lady. This fits my ego perfectly, and allows me to finally get a leg up on you rank-wise. Should I put up curtains?"
Quistis chuckled. "Good luck finding curtains to fit these windows. I'm jealous, if I'm to be honest."
Xu watched Bayloh walk through the room for a minute. Internally, she was pleased. There were plenty of people that she'd have been happy to see in this position, but she truly felt that he might be able to make a difference.
That didn't mean that she didn't have questions.
"Fine. Also, the legal department still has command authority when it comes to the important things. But, why? You've always liked being a field officer; why change it up now?"
He paused, looking out the window. Even from his side profile, she could see the tension that he was barely holding back. "There's...something in the air. Everything feels too easy right now. I want to be in the right place, with the right people at my back when the shit hits the fan. I've looked over the reports that you sent Headmaster Kramer, and we were caught with our pants down. I can't let that happen again."
Liam turned to look at Xu, then Quistis. "I won't let it happen again," he stated, an air of finality in his voice.
Xu walked up to him, looking him in the eye. After a moment, she nodded. "Okay. I'll hold you to that."
Quistis pulled a data pad out of a stack and began to peruse it. "We're reasonably certain that the leadership here outside of former Headmaster Martine were not involved in the kidnapping of Lindsey Geneave. You'll need to pick a Garden Commander, and I've taken the liberty of picking a few candidates from the staff here," she said, standing up and walking over to the newly appointed Headmaster, handing him the pad. "Obviously, you are under no obligation to pick any of these candidates, but whoever you pick will need to be cleared by the Command Council… well, what's left of it, anyway."
He looked over the pad, then slid it into his pocket for the moment. "The Garden Commander role is still a fairly new position in the organization. Are there actual written regulations regarding what qualifications the individual should have?"
Xu shook her head. "We've routinely left that up to the Headmaster of the Garden's discretion. As you know, Headmaster Kramer picked Commander Leonhart for the position after Galbadia's attack on Balamb and Trabia Gardens. Former Headmaster DeValle picked his eldest son based on his command acumen, his field performance, and recommendations of a number of his peers and commanders-in-the-field."
Liam sat down on a couch, leaning forward and templing his hands in front of him. "I have an idea…and I promise you're not going to like it. Because there's only one person I can see in this position, and it's going to create a lot of paperwork."
Xu chuckled. "No matter who you pick, there's gonna be a lot of paperwork. The only way you could create more paperwork is if it's someone out…side..." She stopped abruptly, stomping over to him for the second time in as many minutes. "No way. Absolutely not."
Quistis' eyes narrowed as she followed the conversation. "Who do you have in mind, Headmaster Bayloh? It would be unorthodox to pick someone outside of the organization, but not unheard of," she stated. ' Who could Bayloh have in mind?' she wondered silently. ' Who could he have in mind outside of the organization that Xu would be so adamantly against?'
Liam met Xu's eyes evenly. "There's no one better suited. He knows this Garden inside and out and he's commanded it before…more or less."
Quistis' eyes widened. "You can't possibly mean…!"
"Hear me out," he continued. "I understand why you both would disagree, and don't forget, I was at Balamb too. But you both know that Garden has been keeping an eye on him since the day he was released. He deserves this chance, and I'm going to give it to him," Liam said.
He smirked at Xu. "Since my first option won't leave her damn JAG position."
Her glare didn't soften. "Damn right I won't. But, Seifer? Seifer Almasy?"
Liam nodded. "He'll do well in the position, and…" He paused for a second. "...Who better to root out potential corruption in Garden than someone who was the most notable example of it?"
Xu's brow scrunched up as she reluctantly considered the idea. There was no love lost between herself and Seifer due to his numerous shortcomings in command positions and general disrespect for authority figures, but she tried to force herself to look at things objectively. On the one hand, you had all of the issues she already knew about Seifer and his personality, but on the other...he was already familiar with Garden protocols, eliminating the need for any extensive training beyond those specific to the role. He was certainly capable of command; Xu didn't remember the specifics, but he hadn't done terribly pitting his forces against those of Balamb Garden in their clash. And loathe though she was to admit it, Seifer was a formidable combatant, something that would only help cement his authority were anyone to challenge it.
"Are you sure about this?" she finally said with a sigh, relenting on the argument for the time being. "Did you talk to Headmaster Kramer already?"
Liam gave a curt nod. "I did - he's on board with the idea, at least provisionally. If anything were to happen, it wouldn't be hard to fall back to the list Quistis so generously provided me," he said, flashing the Instructor a smile.
Xu shook her head, still not enthused by the idea but realizing that she wasn't going to sway the new Headmaster from his course. "Fine - but warning you now, if you're wrong? I get to punch you, then say I told you so."
"I'll agree to those terms," Liam said with a smirk.
[July 19, 2152 | Esthar, Tsurimi Estate, First Floor, Ballroom | 5:48 PM]
"Alpha team - sound off."
Tetsuya listened as he heard the reports from the various teams scattered both around the ballroom and the manor at large begin to come over the radios, everyone in the security detail relaying their status in an orderly fashion in a final communications check as they all prepared to see the main auction's beginning. Tetsuya was stationed near the front of the ballroom itself, almost hidden away up on the makeshift stage serving as the auction platform and host area. Naoki was at the rear, watching the main entrances to the room along with several of the more senior security personnel. So far, everything had gone perfectly to plan, something which Tetsuya was both silently thankful and immensely anxious about.
In SeeD's line of work, things going smoothly either meant a lot of pent-up worry over nothing, or a lot of impending panic as everything went sideways in a very rapid and chaotic manner.
"Package inbound," he heard over the comms again, and he reached up to the earpiece he was wearing.
"Copy - I have eyes on," he said, watching as a woman headed towards the room from one of the side hallways nearby him, flanked by no less than four security officers and another man that Tetsuya recognized as her husband. The lord and lady of the estate walked with care and purpose, striding into the room with all the aplomb that royalty was known for as camera flashes immediately began going off all around the ballroom floor.
He tuned out the well-rehearsed introduction to the piece as Yuji Tsurimi began to speak, keeping his eyes dancing between the case showcasing the deceptively-dangerous necklace and the entrances to the room, looking for any sign of trouble just as he knew Naoki was doing from his own vantage point. Three of the armed guards had dispersed to points around the stage as well, with one keeping watch from directly beside the case - Tetsuya himself was at the fourth corner in the formation.
'So far, so good...' he thought to himself, listening to the polite clapping as the Tsurimi elder finished speaking and turned things over again to the auctioneer. Tetsuya had never been to an auction before now, despite his time spent mingling with business society alongside his father, but he had to admit that he found the whole thing interesting to a degree.
Well, not to mention a little shocking at just how much money was being carelessly thrown around. Millions of Gil had already been spent on other things, like paintings, furniture, and jewelry, enough to make his modest SeeD salary seem like pocket change in comparison. It seemed as if the Tsurimi family's debts would likely be a thing of the past before the night was out...and that didn't even factor in what was happening now. Minutes passed as the bid for the necklace slowly crept up - one million, two million, five million Gil. Every passing bid escalated the price, even as the number of prospective buyers began to dwindle in the face of ever-increasing and staggering amounts of money.
"Twenty-seven million - do I hear twenty-seven five?"
There was a brief pause as the audience seemed to weigh their options, a few murmurs passing the crowd as the current high bidder listened in anticipation.
"Going once..."
A woman in a long red gown and silky black gloves near the front of the room raised the small sign in her hands at that, and if Tetsuya hadn't been watching her already due to the motion he'd followed hundreds of times this evening, the next words out of her mouth would've surely drawn his attention.
"One hundred million."
The murmurs instantly rose in intensity, growing into a cacophony of frantic whispers and hushed exclamations around the room even as the woman leaned back in her chair with a satisfied smirk at the momentary chaos she'd caused around her. Even Yuji and Aika looked shocked - the amount was outrageous, yet the woman spoke it with a casual air as if she was simply discussing the weather.
"O-One hundred million - do I hear one hundred and one?"
The discussions from the crowd trailed off after a few seconds as the auctioneer continued, but not one person seemed willing or able to raise their own sign in the face of such a bid. Long seconds passed with no response before the auctioneer spoke again.
"Going once...going twice..."
He waited a few more tense seconds before rapping his tiny gavel on the podium he stood at, the noise of the wood echoing loudly in what had come to be a nearly-silent ballroom.
"Sold!"
Tetsuya let out the breath he didn't realize he was holding as another round of gentle applause began to filter around the audience. "Damn, lady...some deep pockets you've got..." he muttered to no one in particular as Yuji stepped over to retake the podium from the auctioneer. He could see another pair of security moving down the center aisle of the ballroom on approach to the woman now, preparing to escort her to the stage as the manor's host began to graciously thank all of the guests for attending. She looked up as they reached her before slowly standing and smoothing her dress, then shouldering a small handbag from beside her chair before the trio began to approach the stage. The three guards and Tetsuya immediately started to converge as well, keeping an eye out around themselves for anything as they readied for the escort out.
Something came to Tetsuya's mind as he moved, eyes darting around the room from door to door, person to person. Eyes wandered over to the woman who'd won the auction, and he frowned just faintly as he took in her features. Long dark hair pulled back into a braided ponytail, bright red lipstick, and her eyes...
She caught his eyes then, and the smirk that crossed her face almost caused him to recoil as if he'd been physically struck.
He knew her...and she knew him.
'Holy...what in the Hyne-damned hells is going on here?'
Kirce Valtroux's eyes wandered down to the Philosopher's Stone in its case, and Tetsuya felt a spike of fear stab through his chest as he watched the Dragon's Breath Alchemist examine her prize like the Coeurl that caught the chocobo.