HQ Havoc [ open to knights ]

[APHRODITE BELL]

Aphrodite was fuming. She had been nothing but patient for months on end but having heard the latest report from the underlings, the second-in-command of the Knights was beginning to feel a lot like people were slacking off. They had announced a major plan and had spoken out publicly about the future of the world - something people had listened to - and yet the underlings and grunts were stuck here there and everywhere taking it easy as if it were a time to spend just relaxing. It was their peak time, they had to be active and in the public eye but at that point in time all anyone was doing was muttering and counting cards in gaming rooms.

Something would have to be done, that was the only thing for it. She sat at her desk, typing aggressively into her keyboard as she examined the most active and most aggressive members of the knights for possible candidates. Her door left open, she hoped she would have someone come in and volunteer to kick people into shape but she highly doubted it. At least someone might bring her a coffee or some kind of distraction. She highlighted a few as she flicked amber eyes up at the door as if hearing footsteps.

With a flick of her milk-chocolate locks, she let her gaze slowly return to the screen. She must have been imagining it, she supposed, but at least she could wait patiently.

[REI XANDER]

No, the female Knights leader didn't imagine those footsteps at all. It's just that, when she turned her eyes away, that's when this sneaky guy made his move, silent as a cat as he entered the room. He blended into the shadows of the slightly-dark room, only lit by a small lamp and the light from the computer screen. For a while, he just studied Aphrodite, wondering if she'll notice him, but apparently, she was much too focused on what she was typing loudly for (which helped masked the sounds of his footsteps and his breathing) or maybe she had a lot on her mind. She did look frazzled, which disappointingly marred her pretty face with anger lines.

Unable to resist a bit of teasing, he spoke up, "So, Aphrodite Bell, the famed sword-wielding Knight leader, has now switched to a desk job?" He snickered, flashing a Cheshire Cat smile from where he was leaning against the wall in the room, all cool and casual.

[APHRODITE BELL]

As quickly as she'd focused on her aggressive typing, Aphrodite had pulled her sword and held it out in the direction of the silent newcomer as he spoke. As quickly as the metallic sound had sliced through the air, it had been resheathed as she reclined in her comfortable desk chair and her heels clicked as she tucked them beneath herself, lowering her scowl to a somewhat cheekier, more publicly acceptable appearance. She was good at manipulating her own face. "Switched? No, I'm merely doing the work our famed leader finds too tedious. I was once the secretary to the leader himself, you know, before Nazo took over. I was good at it, but I do prefer to be in action."

She shrugged once as she glanced towards the door, "You know you could have lost an eye, sneaking up on me like that. I may be comfortable here in my little desk niche, but I go nowhere without my sword, and I can be rather aggressive with it, when provoked." Her voice was dripping with tones that were light and jovial, but her eyes bespoke her true nature. Wicked, finding mirth in the very possibility of harm. "How may I be of assistance, my little sneaky spy?"

[REI XANDER]

If Rei didn't have the nerves of steel that spies needed to possess, he would have buckled under the threat of that sword. As it was though, he managed to just stare at it as it was whipped out and then sheathed back just as quickly. But if she'd really been going for the kill, he wouldn't have managed to dodge it. She was just that good at fast with it. And he was not built like a fighter either.

He observed her change her face to keep up with appearances, something he inwardly found funny, given who he was. He was a spy, he was used to seeing everyone in their worst and most ridiculous moments. Not to mention there were only them at the room at the moment, who was she keeping it up for?

But then that was being a Leader was about, isn't it? Keeping up a fake face at all times if you wanted respect. It's why he preferred spy work, being all alone and free to do what he wanted, mostly.

Though, if he had to think about it, that's what he did too: Keep up a facade to not get caught.

How ironic.

But, derail that train of thoughts for now, as he focused back on the conversation. And possibly what he came here for in the first place.

He shrugged his shoulders, uncaring that what she said was true. "Maybe I was just testing your reaction time, because if you'd taken up the Office Lady position for long, you might have gotten dull. I guess this proves you haven't lost your touch."

Rei crossed his arms, frowning at that 'little sneaky spy' comment. "Aren't you supposed to be asking how I may be of assistance as your 'little' subject?" From out of his vest pocket, he took out a memory disk, waving it slightly so she could see. "Like this?"

[APHRODITE BELL]

"That looks somewhat delicious in the way of information my dear, I do like some very interesting little tidbits." Thankfully Rei was not like some of her underlings and didn't throw himself to the ground as soon as she pulled out her sword, and Dite climbed to her feet to get a closer look at the little tidbit of information her little spy had provided for her.

Auburn hair floated out behind her in a sheet of moving strands and Dite moved up into the airspace around Rei. Her hand brushed his shoulder and she leant in close to his ear. "I would love to be asking that question indeed, knowing that you're not just here to have a little but of a chat, my dear. Now, might I ask, what exactly have you brought me?"

The way she moved was like a cat, it was feline and calculated with every step. "Especially since you know my reaction time is just as good as it was to begin with, I'm just as quick and just as good with a sword. Do give me some delicious pieces of information. Are the dex holders going to riot? Did the professors decide to run away? Tell me, what do you know from being out there in the outside world?"

[REI XANDER]

Rolling his eyes, Rei calmly made some space between him and the sly lady. He was not one of her idiotic legion of male supporters, who wagged their tails at her presence and did everything she commanded them to do, no matter how impossible (or stupid).

He twirled the disk in his fingers before a sleight of hand made it disappear like a magic trick. "Do you seriously expect me to answer you just because you're asking? I wouldn't be doing my occupation an honor by doing that." Not like there was any honor in being a spy, anyway.

"But I can tell you something I learned while I was in the outside world and you were in here burying in paperwork." His smile turned a little mischievous. "You don't get anything for free. The world works via equivalent exchange."

With a smug smile, he then asked, "So... What will you give me in return for the information I can offer?"

[APHRODITE BELL]

Much to both her annoyance and her pleasure, Rei was not one of her legion. It meant that Aphrodite didn't feel like she had to keep up too many pretenses and she could merely be the leader of her society around him and lead the way she was supposed to. Or at least work as the second in command (she would lead in time, definitely, lead in time) and she smirked as he danced away from her teasings. Folding her arms, the co-leader of the Knights fell into an easy lean against her wall, arching her back and keeping her eye fixed on the door.

"I don't expect you to tell me because I asked, I expect you to tell me because as the second in command since our mighty leader's untimely despise, I outrank you and I do require you to report-- or die prematurely. I'd rather not lose a decent spy, so I'd really rather not have to kill you because you wouldn't cough up the information I require." Aphrodite's voice was dry and ill-amused by the mischeivous smile. The last thing she needed was for her underlings to start undermining her authority.

Maybe doing less desk work would be better, that way she could at least keep an eye on people who were sarcastic towards her. "I'll give you your life and won't expose you to the rangers you disappear within." She replied sarcastically, before flicking her hair over her shoulder. "You know there's a heavy paycheck waiting for you, and a worthwhile bonus if it's something I can use. There's little more I can offer you until I know what this tasty morsel of information may actually be."

[REI XANDER]

Rei shrugged in the face of the threat. As a spy, death was imminent any time. He may be scared of it deep inside, but at the very least he knows it's going to happen. "I'm a wildcard, and I'm not under you, so you don't outrank me. Technically." He gave her a very pleasant, innocent smile, so convincing if Aphrodite otherwise didn't know Rei's true nature.

When she gave her threat, his non-plussed reply was "If you expose me, I'm practically dead anyway, whether from the Rangers or from the KOA. Besides, if you'd rather not have me or my information, it's your loss." He said it as if the weight or implications of his words didn't mean a lot when it actually did.

"But that paycheck is sounding good to me. Luxury is a rarity in my lowly Ranger Mechanic job, I'm afraid, and I feel like indulging myself in something expensive and good once in a while." He adjusted his sleeves and when he was done, the disk was back in his hand. He handed it over to her.

"Since you've been kind and generous enough, I'll do the same." He said, stuffing his hands back into his pockets. "The disk I just gave you, which contains information on the Pokemon teams of prominent Rangers and Leaders... is actually only half of what I have to offer for this round of spying. I might or might not be inclined to share it depending on what that 'little more you can offer' that you were talking about would be."

It looks like this was going to be a game of outsmarting one another, and Rei's not about to go down easily.

[APHRODITE BELL]

As much as Dite hated to admit it, she could really hardly blame Rei for shrugging off her threads. "Technically I'm the second in command of this entire bunch of misfits, so when the world falls I'll be the one calling the shots." She replied smoothly - the smile she returned equally as void of malice. But alas, they both knew the other's true nature and the fact remained that they were both part of the same organisation, they both worked toward the same goal - the changing of the world with the Knights as the new League, the new power in command.

"Fine fine, I don't want you dead, as much as I like to inflict pain on my underlings." She waved her hand irritatedly as she reached for the disk, pulling out a fat envelope as she did so. It was easy to exchange money for knowledge for power, really, and she would happily continue to do so from her vantage point in the upper levels. "It's wonderful to have the power to trade, isn't it?" She mumbled, somewhat annoyedly as she moved back over to her desk, leaning back against it and reaching over into her drawer to pull out a pin.

"If, and I might mention it is a very big if, I like the information that you've given to me, then this little golden pin here will belong to you." She put the disk into the drawer and closed it, leaning back over the table so that she could watch Rei's eyes from her position. "You're not one of the regular grunts we issue, Rei, and I'm not stupid to that. If the information is beneficial, as I'm certain the data on Pokemon of the Rangers and Leaders will be, then you will be one of our commanding officers in the new age. For now I need you to remain in your position of strength, hidden from view, but this pin is a guarantee that you will have command over either a region or a collective, enough that you will be able to call yourself a true Knight of Arceus."

She smirked to herself. If he liked the trade off that he would get - and she still got to choose whether or not the data was up to par - then she would have both another commanding officer and someone else within her line of confidence in a spot of power. Those hidden within the rangers were very helpful at times like these. Very helpful indeed.

[REI XANDER]

Rei took the envelope of money, flicking it open and seemingly satisfied to see the neat thick stack inside. He'd be tempted to count it out in front of Aphrodite for the smug factor but there were other matters at hand. Well, if it turned out less than he expected it to be, he could always take revenge in a different way. Reverse information leaks, for example...

He moved closer and stood in front of her desk to examine the pin and hear what she has to say about. He picked up the pin and noted its shiny shape and turning it over in his fingers. Once she was done, he was silent as he thought it over. VERY TEMPTING, and if he were really greedy, he would have certainly taken it. But...

"I'll pass on that." He put the pin down back on the table. "I'm not interested in commanding a bunch of grunts. And I'm not too keen on formalizing my being in a position underneath someone." His hands were back in the warmth of his pockets. "I'm content in my free position as it is."

Rei stepped back. "Is that your best offer? Then, looks like I'll have to take my leave now." He gave a mischievous smile.

[APHRODITE BELL]

"You're joking? You don't want a legion of troops obeying your every will?" Aphrodite rapped her fingers on her desktop in a more irate manner, and as Rei moved to leave her sword was unsheathed and she behind him, slowly moving the weapon up towards his neck. "Tsk tsk tsk, Rei, now don't go leaving just yet. I haven't finished talking to you. You might like your free position but the fact of the matter is you will always be beneath at least one as you will never be the leader of our little band of misfits." A slight underexaggeration, but Aphrodite was not keen to let her spy get away with whatever information he had.

"You don't want your own legion, that's fine. I'd offer you favours but you've already proved time and time again that you're not one of my fans, so I suppose those particular offers are wasted on you." Her voice dropped as she lowered her sword but moved swiftly towards the door, pressing the lock with her thumb to keep others out and her little visitor in.

"You want to negotiate, we'll negotiate. We have been accumulating a large number of valuable and rare Pokemon recently. I wouldn't object to offering you a first pick into our collection for your own. We do have plenty of good pickings, and not just the much-too-common Zubat, either. We have Pokemon you cannot find elsewhere, and some rare stones that may or may not be.. interesting to a trainer." Though they had only managed to accumulate a few of the stones that the trainers had dubbed the mega-stones, the Knights were often in possession of things that regular trainers wanted. She herself was interested in Mega-Evolution, so perhaps Rei might be too.

[REI XANDER]

Rei stilled when he felt that cool blade hover millimeters above his neck. He frowned, only a drop of sweat indicating that his body feared the sword's direct threat to his general living. He answered, "I think it's obvious that I prefer working by myself. I certainly don't want to be a commander of a bunch of incompetent grunts because they're only a liability." He's not exactly sure where he gets the nerves to be cocky even when his life is in danger, it's probably really just a spy thing. "So unlike you, I don't have ambitions of being the 'leader of the little band of misfits' that is the Knights of Arceus, as you called it." It was an empty scare for him. The sword was way scarier.

His body finally had the opportunity to relax when Aphrodite let him go in favour of locking the door. His frown turned deeper at that but he didn't make any sudden movements in case the sword would be raised back. "Anyway, that goes both ways. I don't like being underneath anyone either. " Blue eyes flicked to the side quickly before looking back at the lady Admin. "The only reason you can call me a Knight of Arceus is because it's the group currently benefiting from what I do. I'm not a part of this organization's hierarchy." Rei gave a slight smug smile, his eyes half-lidded. "I am not underneath you, nor Mr. Nazo Fumetsu or any of the other Admins." He adjusted the collar of his vest. "I guess you could call me the Knight of Arceus' business partner." And like a good, thinking businessman, Rei was on the side of the one that allowed him to reap better profit. The KOA was fortunate that it was the side that had the bigger tip, because it was obvious that Rei was the type of person who'd just as willingly work for the other side if it benefited and suited him.

When she mentioned the negotiation, his face lit up considerably. "I'm glad you're finally seeing it my way. Just a simple business negotiation, is it?" Rei chuckled and looked down to the side. One of his hands began rummaging around his pocket as he listened to her rattle off, but he stilled at the tail end of her statement. "Rare stones? Do you mean the Mega Stones?" He didn't care to look if she was shocked that he knew, because if she knew him as a spy then she should expect that he would know things he wasn't supposed to know. "The research department of the Rangers have begun looking into it, and from the things I've seen so far, it's looking interesting. There's only a few Pokemon known to be able to use those stones so far... And I wouldn't mind if I could make my Ezel power up with it."

"So, here's the deal: All the things I need so that my Pokemon can Mega-evolve, in exchange for a special list." He took out a small memory stick from his pocket. Will she bite?

[APHRODITE BELL]

Aphrodite was waiting for his response with a slightly annoyed tick of her fingers. She tapped them aimlessly, and was slightly shocked when he knew exactly which stones she was offering. But that being said, apparently he was well and truly aware of the mega stones they had been discovering in the Kalos region. She herself wanted a stone to power up her Absol, but that could wait for now. There was business to attend to.

Thinking back over his profile, his Ezel was an Absol like her Apoco, and she would be happy if she could find multiple issues of the Absolite. She was sure that with their resources it was hardly an unattainable task and so she folded her ankles together and looked him over. "My condition is that if I do not believe this list is appropriately valuable, you will have to earn the items otherwise. They are very valuable to us and the Absolite is not easy to come by. I will however, gladly offer you the rights to one if this list is as valuable as you say. I am not an unfair woman, and I will not go back on my word. You just have to allow me to see it so that I may set the process in motion for you to obtain a true method of mega-evolution."

A smirk tugged up on her lips as she held out her hand to him in an offer of shake. "Those are my conditions, and I will meet yours. You will have all you need to mega-evolve your Ezel, so long as this list is valuable. For all I know it could be your shopping list and that would have very little use to me." She was not about to trade one of their greatest acquisitions for a promise. Nosiree, but she would stay true to her word.

At least he was offering good details for the most part.

[REI XANDER]

Rei accepted her hand and shook it briefly before letting go. "Fine. I will show you the list and let you decide if it's information worthy enough for you I'd honestly be surprised if you will not think so, though."

He walked towards her desk and turned the computer screen to face him. He booted it up before he inserted the supposedly valuable memory stick. As he waited for the laptop to scan it, the blue-haired spy began talking casually.

"Do the requirements and profiles of new recruits for the Knights of Arceus not pass through you or any of the other Admins at all?" His fingertips flew over the keyboard at a masterful rate even as his eyes were affixed to the screen as the document was copied. "Well, I just want to say that whoever is handling recruitment for this organization is either starting to slack on the job, or isn't being careful enough. Because..." He took out the memory stick before he turned the laptop so that Aphrodite could look at what he had to share. "... Take a look."

When she asked, he said with a smirk, "This happens to be a list of people who have the same job as me."

Reveling in her shocked look, he continued, "That's right. There are Ranger spies in the ranks of the Knights of Arceus, and this is a list of them. Surprised to find that there are many of them?" The spy chuckled before turning the screen back to him and he made quick work of permanently deleting the file. "I'm not. Because it shows in the current state of this organization. It's done nothing big or noteworthy. The grunts are acting like they're in a gaming club. News about the knights' deeds don't make the headlines anymore. And many more things that indicate the current SORRY state of the Knights of Arceus that I'd rather not waste the energy to facepalm on."

When he was done, he pushed the laptop away and tucked the memory stick back into his pocket, along with his hands. "So, now that you've seen what I have..." He repeated what he said earlier. "... Do we have a deal?"

[APHRODITE BELL]

"In my position that's all I can ask. And, like you said, if you can't forsee my being disproving, you have nothing to worry about."

Aphrodite watched, perched beside her computer at her desk while he worked. Her eyes were locked on his movements to make certain there was nothing doctored on the memory stick as he went, but for the most part she was completely bemused by the list of names and the information that was spreading before her eyes. Spies within their ranks? Now this was a new one. And not one she was pleased with. For a long while she was very much involved in profiling recruits and had been the forefront of weeding out the bad options, but since Cashel's untimely demise (and a little before that, when their greatest headlines had been at their greatest and she had been in charge of the worst of the attacks) she had left it up to other admins and other personnel to bring in new recruits. And apparently, she was now being told, this was a big problem.

With a frown her own fingers began to flick through the information presented to her, and she leant towards the screen with an annoyed hiss. "I can't believe the gall of those Arceus-damned rangers. They will pay for this." She grumbled, then turned back to Rei with a short, sombre nod. "You are correct in saying this information is vital to the needs of the Knights. I will work on having some of these people.. deleted." The word was like a snakebite, hissed and venomous. She let out a breath of air in slight annoyance, turning her head to glance back at the screen for a few moments. "I'm incredibly surprised, and from now on the recruits will be going through me. I'm not going to have any more of this idiocy happening in our Knights. Our cause is too important to be brought down by someone not checking the people we appoint. Staffing will be a little more policed."

Dite watched him pocket the memory stick and nodded again. "We are at an agreement, Mr Xander. Your information was, as you said, definitely worthy of your request. I will see to it myself personally that you are gifted with the tools and knowledge required for mega-evolution. We will also be lifting the game in our organisation. Things that need important attention will be dealt with quickly. Thank you for your hard work. You are a true attribute to the Knights." The co-leader smirked. "So long as I don't catch you selling the information back to those pesky, do-gooder Rangers."

[REI XANDER]

Rei leaned sideways into her desk, looking smug and very pleased with himself. "You're welcome, My Lady," he said in a false polite tone. "I am glad we have reached an agreement on this deal." He looked amused the whole time Aphrodite was showing her rage and muttering at the information he presented. If only her fanboys could see...

Nudging those idling thoughts away, he straightened himself to face her. "All right. But like an intelligent businessman, I will only give you what I have at the same time that you will give me what I bartered it for." No way would he give the memory stick to her with only her word as assurance. He didn't make it where he was by being careless and trusting on mere empty promises.

He was just about to turn away after, but when she gave her final statement, he couldn't help chuckling. Amused blue eyes turned back to Aphrodite. "Like I said, the Knights are lucky for giving the bigger paycheck. As long as that holds true, my 'loyalty' will remain with the Knights. If and when it stops, though... Well..." He let the sentence hang in the air but it was not hard to figure out what he implied with his smirk. He was a spy with a business philosophy, it was obvious what the rest of that sentence was.

With one last chuckle, he turned and began making his way to the door and leave Aphrodite's office for the second time.

[APHRODITE BELL]

Despite the sarcasm that Aphrodite sensed from her employee, she was pleased that even in some form he had used a respectful term for her. As much as Dite liked to weasel her way out of things, the fact remained that Rei had given her information that was incredibly vital to the organisation's survival. She was not about to back out of her deal with him for that reason alone. "I understand, don't worry. I'm not going to skimp out on our deal. Considering our goals it would be pretty poor of me to not even be able to hold up the most basic of deals when it's something I need. And like I said, I consider that info something I need." She smirked to herself, shaking off her annoyance in order to restore some semblance of her poise.

"As long as I can I will make sure your paycheck is much more padded with us. In fact, I might add a little more padding to your cheques from now on, just to make certain we're clear on my list of people I want on my side." She nodded, glancing at the door. "Expect a summons pretty soon, Rei. You'll have your reward. Make sure when you do, you can bring that little flash drive with you. I'll be wanting it. Also, if you find any other interesting tidbits, I'd love to have them."

[REI XANDER]

Just before he was completely out of the door, Rei looked back over his shoulder with an enigmatic smile. "I always have interesting and sensitive information with me. You just need to have proper compensation ready. Oh, and---" His smile widens. "---if I feel like sharing it, of course."


And the door closes.




[ooc: End here?]