It had finally come to this---the final hour. The moment of truth. He would, after years of being the downtrodden, scorned scapegoat, prove his mettle. His pulse quickened with every carefully placed footfall, as he leapt from rooftop to rooftop. If need be, his blood would spill on the streets below before it was all over, so long as the precious lives of the innocent were preserved.
But preferably not, as red was really not his color.
"Curses!" Pan Lione groaned as he sprinted and jumped another roof. Not only was his quarry escaping his amazingly valiant pursuit, but he didn't even have enough time to risk pausing for a slow motion run to show off his oozing sex appeal. Whoever this guy was that he was chasing, he certainly had had some kind of professional training.
"This is almost like being a secret agent, only way more hard and less fun!" the young man pouted. Not that he knew any secret agents, personally anyway.
How on earth had he gotten himself into such a pickle?
******
EARLIER THAT DAY...
Sashaying through the vast, rolling hills, the robust young man inhaled the sweet, fresh air, crested the grassy knoll and spun forth into the gentle breeze, bursting into rapturous melody.
He was promptly kicked in the shins, and fell over.
"That's quite enough of that. Two songs is plenty, three is annoying, four is pushing it, and five gets you a ninja-shin-kick." Aybabtu said gruffly, scowling at the person he had just attacked.
"But the joy of song flows deep in my soul!" Pan whimpered, rubbing his shins.
"Then I guess your soul will just have to rot in---" Aybabtu thundered.
"Easy there." Abraham interrupted, indicating his niece. "Remember that there are children present." Della, however, didn't seem to notice, and was skipping merrily ahead of them clutching Mr. Twinkles, her pet rabbit, without a care or caution in the world, as all recently kidnapped children should.
"I don't even believe there IS such a thing as a 'ninja-shin-kick'." Phanny scoffed just loud enough for the old ninja to hear.
"I'll have you know that there are a lot of things you don't...er...know! About ninjas! Grr!" Aybabtu retorted.
"I bet." Phanny chuckled. The ninja was just about to lunge at the old woman with the intent of causing her great bodily harm when Fitcher stepped in.
"Could we take it down a bit, please? All your fighting is giving me a major headache." he complained. He had been in a fairly good mood, and his mood still was decent, but if the bickering kept up much longer, he would have to take drastic action--drastic action that may or may not have included ninja or non-ninja shin-kicking.
Fitcher was glad to see the gates of South Window appear on the horizon. Once there, he could take a load off his shoulders for a while---eat some hot food, have a hot bath, relax... The past few days had been entirely too stressful, what with Badnooz, Pearl and Clinker. Clinker, especially. He fervently hoped that his friend was all right.
"We understand, Fitcher. We all have a lot on our minds." Nora said softly, putting her arm on his shoulder. That just made him feel worse. She was just better at hiding her feelings than he was at the moment---there was no doubt in his mind that she was far more stressed than he. He should have been lending his support to her.
The group continued walking towards the city, still talking amongst themselves, although less loudly. Pan was humming a familiar old ballad to himself.
"Once we get in the city," Abraham said, "Phanny and I can take Della back home, and perhaps afterwards we could all meet somewhere for lunch?"
"That would be nice. You can visit your sister while we visit Clinker." Nora said.
"If he's still there." Aybabtu pointed out. "They could have taken him to a better medical facility in the capital."
"By now? I don't think Helga would've taken the chance of moving him so soon. They'd have barely reached South Window, anyway." Abe disputed. The old ninja shrugged in agreement.
As they passed under the huge city gate, Fitcher felt a stinging sensation in his neck, as if a bug had bitten him sharply.
"Ow!" he cried. Almost immediately, he began to stumble. His hands were sweaty.
"Fitcher...? Are you all right?" Phanny asked. His eyes rolled back into his head. Nora let out a scream.
He hit the pavement, and knew no more.
******
Nok-Nok nearly tore his hair out in frustration. He was not suited to this kind of excitement. He was a weapons expert, not an expert on emotional distress. How could he handle her when he wasn't even sure what to do with himself? So much had happened all at once.
The three agents--himself, T, and Orange, had come to South Window at a moment's notice after hearing about what had happened to Clinker. Then, before they had scarcely been there a day, he had found Nora in a hysterical screaming fit in the street, fallen to pieces---and Fitcher! The poor chap was as good as dead, to be sure. According to what that old coot of a ninja had told them, the dart in ol' Flaming Duckie's neck had contained quite a potent dose of venom. Nok-Nok wiped the sweat from his brow. Saxanne, Clinker, Fitcher...MSSA was melting away around him, and it terrified him to the core. So what was he supposed to say to Nora, poor Nora? He had already hurt her enough, he wasn't going to risk any more. So he had handed her off to Orange, and now sat vigilant in the breezy, sunny room of the inn where Fitcher and Clinker lay dying side by side.
That fat nurse, Helga, scurried around like someone had lit a fire beneath her, with a fire in her eyes like nothing he had seen. Agent T, of course, showed no open signs of distress as he sat beside their beds, watching calmly. He never did.
"I've held off th' lethal effects of that there poison with some standard Antitoxin, but it won't hold ferever, y'know." Helga said regretfully. "This poison can be reversed if it's treated early 'nuff, but it still ain't common 'round here, so I'm not sure if th' remedy will be in great supply."
Nok-Nok didn't want to look at Fitcher, but couldn't help it. His face had turned a sickly color, and he appeared to be sitting on death's doorstep. It was unnatural, and repulsed him. Clinker was asleep next to him, doing a bit better, but still in an awful state.
"Nok-Nok, would you mind accompanying Helga to look for that remedy?" Agent T said calmly. The stout man slowly came out of his reverie and nodded, standing and following the plump nurse out of the room.
******
Pan held his breath as he finally caught up to the culprit---a slim man of about thirty, dressed in simple black, with a tan complexion, dark blue--almost a violet--eyes, and dark brown hair. There was certainly nothing cheerful about him. He paused for a moment, as if to see what Pan wanted from him. DUH! Only utmost retribution! The innocents would be avenged!
"Stop! In the naaaame of looove!" Pan crooned, holding out his hand as if its mere presence would halt any foe. The man in black scoffed at him.
"Who are you? The MSSA's pet hamster? Don't tell me you're working for them as well." the man said, finally speaking. He had a voice that seemed to be coated in sarcasm at all times.
"...MSSA? Why, I'm their top performer!" Pan said, wondering what that had to do with anything. What would an assassin need to know about Male Singing Sensations of Antei? Unless he had a good voice, Pan couldn't really fathom anything. He decided to let it slide.
"You can't be serious. Look at you. You're out of breath just chasing me, and I'm not even trying. No wonder that stupid organization is going down the tubes." the man said in a superior tone. Pan made up his mind to put his foot down.
"Cut the crap, bozo!" he snapped. Ooh, that was a good one. he commended himself. "Listen up. You better tell me who you are and why you tried to kill my friend, or I'll..." Hmm. Maybe a bluff is in order. Yes! A bluff! The bluff to end all bluffs! "...I'll signal my hidden legions to strike you down! Pahahaha!"
"You're...really not joking, are you?" the man said, somewhat taken aback. He shrugged. "If I'm right, you aren't going to give up chasing me, no matter how futile it is, are you?"
Pan shook his head vehemently.
"Ah. So I shall have to kill you, then. In that case I suppose a short introduction couldn't hurt anything." the man said, eyes glinting. "My name is Resar, and I'm here on a matter of vengeance. That's all you need to know, pipsqueak."
"How dare you!" Pan said, striking a pose that, in retrospect, ended up looking more like a poodle in heat than threatening. "I have to stop you! For great justice!!!"
But by the time he was done posing, Resar was already gone.
******
Utter stealth. There was no other way to describe his incredible skill by which he was keeping himself completely unseen. The hunt was on. Surely, his quarry would wander this way, and once he did, BAM! It was all over. Because no one got away from an Utterly Stealth Middle-aged Ninja.
"Villain! I'll break your neck!" Aybabtu bellowed, leaping from the shadows at the first sign of movement nearby in the streets of South Window.
"Aaaahhhh!" a little girl screamed. "Mommy, there's a scary pervert in the alley!!"
"Run, Mandy! Mommy will rip off his--" a large, buck-toothed woman with a shopping bag cried.
"Wait, wait, madam! I can explain----!" Aybabtu shrieked, holding up his hands to avoid losing valuable elements of his anatomy.
WHAM!
"You perverted beast! Don't you touch my daughter!!!" the large woman shouted, beating the misunderstood old ninja into submission.
How the hell am I supposed to find that blasted man in black if I'm being killed by freshly-bought groceries? Oh, the dark ninja life that I lead... Aybabtu sighed to himself.
"Hold up! What's going on here??" came a voice. Two young State soldiers dashed down the street to the scene, hands on their weapons. One was a roguish-looking blond man, and the other was a nervous-looking youth with black hair.
"This perverted fiend tried to kidnap my daughter, sir! Arrest him at once!" the buck-toothed woman bellowed.
"N-no!" Aybabtu protested. "Blast you, woman! I told you it was a mistake! I'm looking for somebody else!"
"...Is this true?" the blond man demanded. Aybabtu sneered at him.
"Of course it's true! Ninjas such as myself have no time to waste attacking foolish young girls when we're supposed to be finding the blasted MURDERER, lad!" Aybabtu thundered. The dark-haired guard looked confused.
"Murderer? Now, wait a minute..."
"My companion was attacked at the gates of your city by an assassin using a very potent venom. Now if you don't mind, I'd like to get back to pursuing him so I can break his neck." the old ninja said irritably. It was a perfectly reasonable demand, after all.
"Have you been smok---" the blond began incredulously.
"Let me handle this, Jace..." the other interrupted. "Do you mean to say that there's a dangerous individual on the loose?"
"Besides yourself, of course." Jace said, rolling his eyes.
"Yes. I. Do." Aybabtu said, speaking slowly. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have Important Ninja Matters to attend to. Go guard the mayor or something, and get out of my way before I have to hurt you all."
"Well!" the buck-toothed woman exclaimed, affronted. "I don't know why you two aren't just arresting this man right now! Our tax money goes to pay for such a service as---"
"Ma'am, if you and your daughter are unhurt, then I think my partner Dak and I have more important business to attend to. This sounds serious." Jace said, cutting her off.
"Thank you, lad." Aybabtu said. He started down the street without another word. Curious, the two guards, Dak and Jace, followed, leaving the large woman with her mouth hanging open in shock.
******
Agent T sat alone in his chair beside his two bedridden spies, gazing out the window. Outwardly, he exuded an appearance of pure calm and cool, as always. Inside, however, feelings of melancholy and sadness were tearing him apart.
He looked over at Fitcher and Clinker. He wasn't even sure if they would pull through, and hope was harder and harder to keep up. The old ninja and that young man who called himself Pearl's brother had gone off to pursue the assassin who had attacked Fitcher, but T and the others still had no idea who he was. Nok-Nok and the nurse were off searching for a remedy, and Agent Orange had taken Nora into seclusion for a while. T sighed.
"...What's happening to us?" he murmured to himself. "MSSA has never been in this poor shape before..." He glanced over to the window again. The sunlight was shining in, and in that shaft of light, he could almost imagine her standing there again.
"...Georgia..." he said in scarcely a whisper. "I miss you. I can't do this on my own any more." There she was, dressed in her simple leather armor, as if it was yesterday. He could envision every mark on it. Her gray eyes twinkled at him, and that neverending smile lit up the room. Her red hair was up, of course. She hated her hair when it was down. But strangely, she never cut it...perhaps because she knew he liked it as it was. He could hear her voice---he knew exactly what she'd say.
You let everything get to you too much, you know. You were always the worrywart, Trent. she chided him.
"Everything's falling apart, Georgia." T sighed.
You and I both know that's not true. Even "A" had his rough spots, Trent. she insisted.
"Did he ever lose this many agents at one time?" T muttered darkly.
Stop that. I hate it when you mope. Not everyone's lost, yet. Georgia said sharply. You're the glue that holds this organization together, T...if you can't hold on to a little faith, then THAT'S when you should start worrying. Everyone depends on you, Trent.
"It's hard to stay strong sometimes, you know. Some days I just want to..." T began, but stopped. "I just wish you were still here."
...So do I. she said sadly. When he looked up, there were tears in her eyes. Someday, we can be together again. But not now. You have to stay strong, Trent, for the sake of everyone. Especially our...little girl. You're all she has left now. Please take care of her, will you?
"I always have. I promise." T said.
There was nothing more to be said between them. He just watched her there, bathed in the glow of the sunlight, gazing into her eyes. His heart ached at her loss. But he had to stay strong.
"...T? Is this a bad time?" came Orange's voice from the door.
"N-no. Come right in, Orange." T said, reassembling his composure. The flame-haired woman entered solemnly.
"Is Nok-Nok in here? I thought I heard you talking to someone." Orange said curiously.
"No, no. It was nothing." T muttered. "Just...talking to myself."
I promise...
******
Resar swore to himself as he ducked into a dark shadow behind a house. This had gotten too far out of hand. Now that the State Army was involved, the gates had been blocked off, and he had been forced to seek out another way out of South Window. He had almost found one, but then that stupid flamboyant kid in the baggy pants had attacked. And he had nearly run into that crackpot ninja he had seen at the city gates.
But he had to overcome it. He was skilled, dammit. If he couldn't even outwit those two fools, then he didn't deserve to call himself "spy."
It had all fallen apart for him, months earlier. Dissatisfied with his position within his own government in Kanakan, Resar had sought a more illustrious position, possibly within a new agency. Of course, it had been an all-or-nothing bid. Once Resar had pledged his intent to turn on Kanakan and work for another country, his whole life had been forfeit. So he had applied for a position within Jowston, with the Muse Secret Spy Agency. Certainly, with his experience, the job would've been in the proverbial bag---had he actually had the chance to compete for it.
But no. Those fools at MSSA had dumped him for some...some no-talent rookie who happened to get a few high scores in a ridiculously simple preliminary exam. No prior experience, no special training, nothing. Resar had been thrown to the wayside like yesterday's leftovers. Rejection he could handle! But this...! He hadn't even been CONSIDERED once that buffoon stumbled through the door. And having already left the Kanakan agencies, he was screwed.
And now that stupid no-talent rookie had just screwed him up the ass AGAIN. He couldn't even be KILLED properly without causing him all this trouble. Resar shook his head. It was almost more trouble than it was worth. He had to escape!
As he slunk beneath the open window of the home he had been hiding behind, his ears perked up. They were talking about him in there!
"...Oh my!" a woman's voice exclaimed. "That's terrible, Abraham! Poisoned? Dreadful...!"
"I felt awful, leaving them there like that, but we obviously had to get Della back here, Lacey." a man's deep voice said.
"They had help, Abe. But you're right--we should go help them." another woman's voice said sharply.
"Heavens, no! I couldn't bear the thought of both of you in that kind of danger!" Lacey's voice begged.
"We're used to it." the other woman's voice insisted.
"What are you doing eavesdropping outside the window, you bad man?" a honey-sweet voice to Resar's left piped. He whirled and came face-to-face with a little girl that absolutely oozed cute. It was sickening. She even had an adorably fluffy rabbit in her arms.
"You'd better watch yourself, little girl." Resar warned.
"Mr. Twinkles doesn't like you! Die!" she said. From somewhere deep within her Pure, Pure Heart, the essence of shimmering unicorns prancing on rainbow skies emanated, shooting out of the bunny's very eyes and into Resar's soul. It not only nauseated him, but blew him several feet off the ground with incredible strength.
"What the---?!" The unholy cute-energy had caught him off-guard at first, but he wasn't about to be one-upped by a brat with a fuzzy sidekick. As soon as he landed, he grabbed the girl and tossed the rabbit aside, gripping her arms tightly.
"You're coming with me, missy. I'm going to make an example of you. You're my ticket out of here." Resar said darkly, dragging her away.
Della didn't scream, nor did she struggle. She simply looked at Mr. Twinkles with a pathetic look of pure sorrow, and that was all she needed.
Within minutes, the entire neighborhood would somehow know of her disappearance, and she had yet to speak a word.
******
Through a bizarre twist of fate, somewhere between being saved by fifteen members of the South Window All-Girl Boarding House after hurting his ankle while jumping from a rooftop and running through the streets in search of Resar, Pan had lost his vest. True, it did help him display his heavenly body in a more up-front way, but it annoyed him that now he had nowhere to pin his nifty character-portraits of himself except his pants, which just didn't have the same effect.
Cartwheeling through the marketplace, Pan stopped short when he saw the woman of his dreams--the most babely babe he had ever laid eyes upon (that week). She wore an orange dress---tight, he might add---and had hair like liquid flames. She wore a wickedly wicked sword at her side, one as curvy as herself. He nearly melted into a puddle at the sight of her.
"Dear woman! I have fallen in love with you!" he announced rather loudly and rudely amidst a large crowd of people. She didn't seem to notice his declaration, however---as if her mind was on other things. Since that notion was obvious nonsense, Pan tried again.
"My desert rose! Your bloom is like a flower! A flower that blooms...like a rose in the desert! O, mine heart!" he cried.
"...Hmm?" she asked. "Were you talking to me?"
"Of course, my sweet!" Pan said.
"I'm kind of busy trying to catch a killer. If you'll excuse me?" she said tartly. Pan grinned widely, blocking her path.
"What a coincidence, so am I! We should mosey over to that lovely outdoor cafe over there and talk over old times. Y'know, what with us both catching killers and stuff. I catch 'em all the time. They call me "Catchy" back where I'm from." Pan propositioned.
"Are you ...asking me on a date? While I'm trying to find a possible ASSASSIN? Are you nuts??" the woman snapped.
"I'm Pan Lione. What's your name?" he asked suavely.
"None of your damn business." she muttered.
"You know, it's amazing the amount of women with that same name. Would you happen to have any sisters??" Pan remarked.
"Jackass." the woman muttered, shoving him out of the way and going about her business.
"Waaaait! Stop, in the name of love!" he wailed, running after her.
******
"That miserable git's failed already, I'm certain of it." Aybabtu grumbled as he trudged along the streets. "It's all up to ME, now! Hahaha, Hanzo, you silly bastard, I'll show you who's the greatest ninja in all of Rokkaku!" He shook his fist at the empty air.
"...is he all right in the head...?" Dak whispered to his friend Jace as they followed at a safe distance.
"If he is, then it means there's a dangerous assassin on the loose. If not...well, he's pretty damn crazy himself." Jace shrugged. The crusty ninja whirled on the two soldiers, startling them.
"You two still here, eh? I guess you'll get the treat of seeing the world's greatest ninja at work, now won't you." Aybabtu chuckled.
"But...sir...aren't you a bit OLD to be---" Dak put in.
"Don't finish that sentence if you ever want to be a father, lad." the ninja said simply as he walked along.
Suddenly, as luck would have it, Aybabtu, who wasn't watching where he was going, ran smack into Resar, who was busy trying to carry Della against her will. The little girl was no fool, and though she had been passive only moments before, she knew when to milk a performance. Letting out her blood-curdling-est scream, she flailed around tearfully and helplessly under the arm of the black-garbed spy.
"Egads! Unhand that brat, villain!" Aybabtu said, pulling out several throwing stars. Dak and Jace drew their weapons.
"Gah! Hold still, you---" Resar muttered before fully noticing the threat. "Curses. Don't come any closer. I'm not afraid to kill this girl if it will get me out of this forsaken city."
"Put...the...girl...down!" Jace coaxed in his best negotiating-with-psychos voice.
"What do you take me for? I could easily kill all of you with one hand behind my back. Now, step aside." Resar said darkly. His answer was a throwing star in the arm. "Aghh! Fuckin' old man! You're dead meat!" Ripping the weapon out painfully, he lost his temper and rushed at the old ninja. If Aybabtu had been a few (okay, several) years younger, this probably would have proved fatal for the dark spy. However, the old crab's reflexes weren't at their peak, so the best he could do was ninja-shin-kick Resar as he sidestepped the angry attack.
"Help! Save me!" Della prompted, squirming.
Dak responded by tackling Resar at the knees, toppling the foreign spy onto the hard, cold street. Della scrambled from his grip and slipped into a dark side alley.
"Run, brat, runnn!" Aybabtu yelled after her. Jace and Dak advanced cautiously on the fallen assassin.
"Don't move. You're under arrest."
That was it, then. It seemed to be all under control. And even with all his bumbling, Pan's arrival on the scene seconds later could only have served to assist their cause.
Still, Hell had other ideas.
******
"It was hard to find, an' we had to pay double the price, but we got it." Helga said triumphantly upon returning to the inn with Nok-Nok. She held up a mixture she had concocted with special ingredients from the shops around South Window, and rushed to Fitcher's bedside.
"We also got something that may help speed Clinker's healing process along." Nok-Nok said modestly, handing another bottle to T. He was still sitting beside the two ill men with his usual stoic expression, and had been recently joined by a distraught Nora.
"Is it too late...?" she asked apprehensively.
"I hope not, darlin'." Helga said. She sat beside Fitcher's prone body and furrowed her brow. "Okay, everyone out. I gotta work m' magic here in peace." Nok-Nok handed over the rest of the necessary ingredients for the antidote and left silently. T stood and ushered a worried Nora from the room. Pursing her lips, Helga went to work.
In the lobby of the inn, Agent T sat with the other two patiently.
"...Where's Orange?" Nok-Nok asked conversationally.
"She left to alert the South Window police force to the potential threat." T answered.
"...I hope they're all right." Nora said absently. Of course, she was referring to Fitcher and Clinker rather than Orange, as they all understood. Nok-Nok felt sorry for her. But his wrenching guilt kept him from speaking up, so he sat in silence.
"We all do." T said simply, expressing more feeling to them with those few words than Nok-Nok could remember him doing for a long time.
After what seemed a great slice of eternity, Helga emerged.
"The antidote's away." she reported solemnly.
"Now what??" Nora asked anxiously.
"Now we wait." the nurse said.
******
The most basic of policies. You have the authorization to use Any Means Necessary to accomplish your task.
However, if you are caught, this agency WILL NOT acknowledge you. You cease to exist. Do not get caught.
Resar had known that policy for the longest time. It had always applied during his service to the Kanakan government. He had never gotten caught. And this time was nothing more than a fluke.
But what if you "ceased to exist" in the first place? What if your life had been wiped from the board like chalk dust, forgotten and thrown away?
What did he have to lose?
"You State bastards... you can't even keep your witless attention spans focused on anything for more than a moment! I should never have trusted you. I should have known my life would be wasted for this. You'll all rot in hell!" Resar cursed as he was escorted, restrained by the guard on each arm, to whatever form of justice existed in that vile state they called Jowston. He had nothing to lose. Nothing.
"Be quiet." Jace muttered, tightening his grip on the assassin's arm.
"Yeah~! Dirty villain!" Pan cried in a singsong voice. He and Aybabtu walked behind Dak, Jace, and Resar down the street, which was becoming more and more empty of people as they saw just what was happening. A beautiful woman made her way down the street opposite them, coming towards the group.
Resar knew his chance had come. More than half of his captors would be mesmerized by the feminine wiles that he himself had so long ago learned to effectively ignore. True to form, Pan and Jace both turned slightly to wink at the woman as she walked by. Suddenly, Resar moved like lightning, flipping Jace over his back and kicking the old ninja in the gut, knocking the wind out of him.
"Stop---" Dak cried as he lost his grip and was tossed aside.
"Let My People Go!" Pan cried, making a motion with his hands as if he was somehow parting a vast body of water. Like a well-oiled machine, Resar wasted no time in kicking him in the jaw and stomach. He was off like a shot, and the gates were in sight.
Agent Orange barred the way forward, appearing with a multitude of State soldiers. Daggers appeared as if by magic in Resar's hands, and he slashed the throat of one of the advancing troops. Dak jumped to his feet and pursued the spy, ready to tackle him to the ground again. Orange's hand was a blur as she gave Resar a deep cut on his shoulder. But the Kanakan agent was too fast. Turning swiftly, he snapped Dak's neck in a single stroke and stabbed another soldier in the gut before escaping through the gates.
"Jowston dogs!" he cried, barreling past all opposition to freedom.
State soldiers pursued him with a vengeance, but Orange shook her head. At that point, there was no way they could catch up to the agile man. Resar was gone.
Jace stood in a shocked state for a moment.
"Dak...!" he murmured. "Hey, get up, buddy. C'mon!" There was no response. Orange felt for a pulse, but had an awful feeling it was too late for the young soldier. She was right.
"D-Dak! Henry! Kal...! Wake up, please wake up..." Jace said, panicking. Aybabtu put a comforting hand on the young man's shoulder.
"...he's gone, lad. They're...gone." he said gently.
"NO!!!" the blond man screamed, lunging for the bodies of his friends. A few of the other soldiers held him back.
"I can't believe we were so unprepared..." Orange muttered to herself, sadly. "We should have been able to handle that...that bastard."
The sobs of many echoed through the streets as the soldiers spirited away the forms of their fallen comrades.
******
Fitcher woke up feeling like a million sacks of vomit---and speaking of vomit, proceeded to do so. He looked around groggily, moaning.
"Hnnngh?" he expressed candidly. To his surprise, the wide smile that greeted him was none other than Helga's. He still felt dizzy.
"Thank the gods, yer awake!" she said happily. "I was almost afraid we'd be too late ta counteract that poison there."
Say what? Though...now that she mentioned it, "poison" seemed to effectively describe exactly how he had been feeling. At least he didn't feel like he was choking any longer---at least not until Nora threw her arms around his neck and squeezed.
"Gggck!" he choked.
"Don't kill him, Nora." Nok-Nok said, with a look of relief on his face. "Who would I tease without him around?" Fitcher's mood brightened considerably, seeing his friends present. He was, however, still very curious about what the hell had happened to him. Why was everyone looking at him, and why was he in bed?
"What...ack...happened?" he choked out. Agent T came into view, looking grim.
"A rogue agent from Kanakan, one Resar by name, shot you with a venomous dart, as we understand it." Agent T explained. "According to this Pan fellow, he was seeking some kind of revenge."
"That's right! I saw it all with my own eyes!" Pan marveled, looking around. "You were there, and you were there, and you were there, too!"
Fitcher, with some help from Helga, propped himself upright so he could see just how many people had showed up to witness him waking up. To his surprise, not only were T, Nok-Nok, Nora, Helga, and Pan present, but also Aybabtu, Phanny, Abe, Agent Orange, and Clinker, in the bed beside him.
"What would some agent want with me...?" Fitcher wondered aloud. But suddenly, it came to him, in juicy flashback form.
"You must be Resar. Here for the entrance exam?" the guard on the right inquired.
"Uh, yes, that's right." Fitcher agreed. "I'm Resar, here for the entrance exam...."
He nearly had a heart attack. Resar? That was the name of the agent whom the MSSA was going to interview before they had recruited Fitcher himself, instead!
"Yeah, I couldn't possibly figure it out, either~!" Pan said innocently. "He said something about MSSA, but like I told him, espionage and singing don't mix well..."
Fitcher remembered suddenly that at least a few people in the room were not aware of his status as an agent of Muse Secret Spy Agency.
"Ah...r-right, Pan." he said. He looked desperately at T.
"If the rest of you wouldn't mind, there are a few business matters I need to discuss with Mr. Fitcher, so when he's recovered his strength a bit more, you can visit again." Agent T said. "Nora, Nok-Nok, Orange, if you would please remain...? This concerns you too. Thanks."
"Get well soon, Fitcher. Your friend, too." Phanny wished, as she and her husband left.
"When you get better, be sure to have me teach you my special poison-repelling-ninja secret technique, would you? We can't have you dying like that all the time." Aybabtu said, departing. Pan, after whispering something in Orange's ear that got him slapped in the face, left with Helga.
"I'll be back ta check on ya, honey!" Helga promised.
"Fitcher, I want you to understand that Resar's actions were in no way your fault, but rather, his own. I'm sure you've realized by now who he is, or need I explain?" T said formally.
"No, I know...he's the one you rejected after I joined." Fitcher said glumly.
"He was never 'rejected'...but that's beside the point. The point is, Resar apparently became quite agitated when he found out that he was no longer eligible for an MSSA position at the current time. He took it upon himself to come after you, as you can see."
"Why was he so pissed? Couldn't he have just kept working with Kanakan or whatever?"
"I'm afraid not... he had made public his intentions to renounce Kanakan, something we didn't take into account. In retrospect, it was foolish of me to leave him hanging like that. I blame myself for this incident." T said regretfully.
"You said yourself that it was HIS fault. Don't go piling it on yourself again, T." Orange scolded.
"In any case, Orange here, along with your friends Aybabtu and Pan Lione, pursued this Resar through the city, but upon taking him into custody, he became quite violent and killed several city guards before escaping. The State Army is in pursuit, but I wouldn't get your hopes up." T said gravely.
"Guards?" Fitcher asked anxiously. "Who??" Orange held out a list.
"The casualties were reported as Henry Brigeau, Kalger Blase, and Dak Triggen." she said.
"How awful...!" Nora said, looking at the ages written on the list. "They were so young..." Fitcher's heart sank.
"Oh, no...I knew Dak Triggen. He was a...great person..." Fitcher said sadly. "I met him and his friend when I came through here with...Phanny and Pearl..."
"How is this going to look in the newspapers, T? Random assassins don't just pop up and murder city police." Nok-Nok said.
"The official public report will be that it was an assassination attempt on Mayor Granmeyer. There's no other way to treat it." Agent T said simply.
"Isn't that a bit of a lie? Granmeyer wasn't involved at all." Fitcher protested. Certainly, the public couldn't know that there a warring faction of spies involved, but covering up their deaths like that just seemed...dirty.
"That's the way it has always been done at MSSA. In fact, with all such agencies." T said. "Occasionally something will slip out about us, but we do our best to keep all operations secret." Fitcher sighed.
"The subject of Resar just reminds me of how little I really know about this stuff, even now. A great deal of MSSA is in the dark to me." he said.
"I felt the same way as you, one time..." T assured him with a tiny smile.
"You? The big boss, the head honcho? What could there be that you didn't know? Seems like you were born for this job." Fitcher said sarcastically.
"Well, I can assure you I wasn't." T said. He paused thoughtfully. "Perhaps it's time for a little history lesson. Would you care to hear it?"
"Of course." Fitcher said. He certainly wasn't going anywhere in his current state, and he needed something to keep his mind off of how much he was going to strangle Resar for killing Dak. T sat back in his chair, with something like a half-embarrassed smile on his face.
"Very well, then. This will make me out like a complete fool, but oh well." T said.
"We don't mind." Nok-Nok said. "Everything else has happened in this world." He winked.
With that, Agent T began his story...
