Grimmling (RWBY)

Chapter 13 - Argus - The Lone Huntsmen

Garek slid into the seat at the public terminal café and logged in. Then typed in a familiar messaging address.

G: Just checking in. Any news?

He waited, watching the blinking cursor. After fifteen minutes, a reply came.

P: Good to hear from you. And funny you should mention that. We've been talking, and were wondering if you'd like to meet.

Garek wasn't surprised. They'd been dropping hints last conversation. Depends on how far we have to travel.

P: Oh, not far at all. That made him nervous. We aren't going to discuss details over net, but we're going to leave a note where you can find it. How does tonight sound?

G: That's not a lot of time to prepare.

P: That's by design, boss. We're careful. We've *been* careful. You're a risk to us, and we don't want to end up on the wrong end of a problem. Hope you understand.

Garek stared at the screen. Did he understand? He was hit with flashbacks of a farmhouse. An appreciative faunus serving him and Toller an amazing home cooked meal. A drugged meal. Betrayal. Toller bleeding out in front of him.

He started to shake.

P: You there, boss?

G: I think I need time to think. That's too soon.

There was another long pause.

P: Look boss, I realize this is scary. I'm going to put my cards on the table for you. You found something and you ended up connecting with us because we know about it, too. If we were working with *them*, we'd have told them while you were out in the middle of nowhere and easily handled. Instead, we've had your back. My partner has been scrubbing records of your searches and movements for you. He wiped that terminal, remember? We're helping you cover your tracks, and we've got some items and info that can help you some more.

That was... that was better.

G: Can you prove that's true?

Another pause.

P: I doubt you have the tech background to verify what I'm saying, hell I don't either. Sorry. But we're satisfied that you're legitimate, and you *are* careful. We're helping you to be *more* careful. We're suggesting a meeting in an open location, just to have a quick chat. Improve communications.

Open location. He wouldn't be led anywhere remote. Wouldn't accept it. No food or drinks either.

He took a deep breath and typed out Okay.

P: Great. There's a certain spot where you saw a couple take a break from the hustle and bustle last night. Nice looking folks, too. Bet the guy works out. Anyway, if you swing by there around 8:00 tonight, there will be a note taped to the bottom of the seat on the right side, facing it. That'll tell you where to go next.

Garek felt his blood freeze.

They knew exactly where he was last night.

They knew what he looked like, and Selene.

They had been... of course they had been watching him. They said as much. They were tracking him. He'd as much as told them he'd be in Argus. And they knew... he'd bet they knew everything about him. And if he believed them, they were scrubbing his movement history.

If they were going to kill him, or something, what would be the point of cloak and dagger, if they could track him like that? They could just have him mugged on the street. Hell, they could nail him right here.