Ash ==> Autopilot
Wade ==> Talk: Periwinkle
"...I thought you were following us first," Wade suggested.
"You were anomalies, wandering around Octoling territory, but we get yer type once in a while--we leave you be..." the figure began.
"...no, the fact that you followed me to Area 1, then managed to pursue me through the hidden passage, tha's wha's got me concerned."
That line of reasoning was clear; straightforward. It possibly justified stalking. On the other hand...
"Yeeeah," Wade replied. "That sounds ...pretty concerning."
He hesitated with his words. "We weren't... personally looking for you," he tried to explain. Wade paused. Where was he going with this.
"Just... trying to be cautious about who saw us," he said.
"Then it is only by some astounding stroke of luck," Periwinkle went on, "that you managed ta not only follow me here, to this facility?"
He paused.
"Why were you in Octo Valley in the first place? What would make you so cautious as to follow me to determine my intent?"
Huh, Periwinkle had smart questions.
"Searching for someone," Wade retorted with a little more confidence, "and trying not to disappear in the process."
And why would anyone worry about that? Wade got the feeling Periwinkle would know.
"...You saw the people in the main kettle hub earlier," he pointed out.
"Oy did," he said, simply.
After a few moments of silence, it became clear he didn't want to slip anything else in. The threat of a tentacled explosion hung in the air, unspoken, but very real.
Wade gave a small frustrated sigh, tensely gripping his charger. The silence wasn't helping him.
This time, he asked the questions. "What did you mean 'Are ya with 'em?' And who's 'them?'"
The organization that is collaborating with certain sects of the Octarians," Periwinkle stated, guarding his words. "Their goals are primarily out of accords with our own."
"Oy only ask this question because you appeared to be watching them, not watching for them. Do you know who they are?"
Jax turned to Wade, the frown still plastered on his face.
Wade returned the glance in Jax's direction. He made a small motion with his head, a subtle nod towards Periwinkle. See if Jax wanted to speak up and be more eloquent than him.
Wade turned back to Periwinkle. "...Somewhat," he answered, "but they're good at being sort of secretive."
"They go by the name of Deepview," Jax responded. "We have reason to believe they have been making certain political and popular figures disappear, including but not limited to: Annie, a popular shopkeeper, the Squid Sisters, two famous pop stars, Armonious Alex, the President of Squidforce, and a number of others."
"Basically," he went on, "we're very devoted conspiracy theorists."
> Base Roll 6, -2 Suspicious, Dice Pool 4
> 3 Successes on Diplomacy Roll
After Jax spoke, the tunnel was silent. The words hung in the air, thick as molasses, until finally, everyone's nerves were assauged.
"...then Oy suppose that puts us on the same side," Periwinkle said, finally breaking the silence. "Assuming you're telling the truth, of course."
"Well... I've been told I'm bad at lying." Wade weakly joked. "And I think we've got incentive.”
But after a moment Wade spoke up again.
"Hey, speaking of which, if we're on the same side, can we... uh," Wade uneasily cracked a smile smiled. "Can we not be blown up, or drilled, or subjected to the 'tentacle wall'? ...Can I stand awkwardly somewhere else?"
"Or, ha, whatever you want to do" Wade suggested. "Whatever works."
"Oy don' like to be powerless, so no," Periwinkle replied, in a matter-of-fact tone. "And even if we are on the same side, Oy don' think that Oy 'ave the authority to invite someone into our base of operations."
"...Oy will, however, permit you to leave, after Oy give you this." He tossed a card out to the group. It fell a little short, but it wasn't more than a few feet away. On the card was a number... and that was all.
"My name is Cato. Now go."
Wade almost looked disappointed. However, “whatever” counted as an olive branch and that was better than nothing.
He kept his eyes trained on Cato, and stepped forward, snatching the card off the ground. With a frown, Wade quickly backed away.
He turned back to Jax and Ash. "I guess we leave with our limbs intact?"
"Wait," Ash piped up. "Wait wait wait, but why would we contact you!?"
...it was a good point. He'd said they were on the same side but... about what exactly?
Wade flipped over the card for a thoughtful moment, inclined to agree with Ash.
"...You said you didn't agree with Deepview. So then who up there just did?" He asked. "I mean... would you know more about this?"
"Oy am not at liberty to reveal that," Cato entoned. "...besides, we don' wanna go throwing blame around when we're not entirely sure, ourselves."
"But my meaning in giving you our number is to attempt to collect information. If you call that number, we'll record yours--then call you in for an interview in time."
Cato seemed to sigh and it was noticeable even from a distance. "Is that all?"
Wade frowned again. This was starting to sound like some screwed up internal-system cuttlecrap. He honestly felt kind of bad.
"No, I guess not," Wade said, "but you... definitely weren't the contact. Not even close. Was there anyone else you've seen in Area 1?"
"People are always coming and going," Cato responded. "If you would like, we can keep an oye open for any suspicious happenings in Area 1. Anything that might lead us toward solving this tangled mess."
"But more immediately," he went on, "no, nothing comes ta mind. Though that's not my area ta patrol."
Wade looked up for a moment, processing these new puzzle pieces. He simply nodded, then started to turn back the way they came.
Pausing to reply over his shoulder, Wade responded, "That'd be cool."
"... And I'll see if I can call you back later. Name's Wade."
