BGM: Shion's Theme still playing

Eliza nods at Shion's shift in mood before she said her next words, "Investigator Dias, Shion really is serious about... Not being serious. He's allowed to be unorthodox. Either way, give us the orders and we can move out to apprehend the Agents - Assuming that the CIA don't have a person here keeping tabs on us." She then looked at Shion and Pablo and said, "It is very much possible that this could be a diversion from the actual CIA activities in Operation Symbiosis as they are not blind to Pablo's power and its potential."

What the hell? So my superior can act as freely as he want...? André thought. For him, that was one of the worst ideas someone in the military could ever let happen. Shion could only giggle at him. "W-Why the hell are you giggling about? What are you, an innocent maiden?" André questioned, somewhat angry. "Oh, it's just that it's funny teasing you, André-kun. And if you're that worried about me being that unortodox, I'll give you permission to be as yourself around me and snap for as long as you want to." Shion answered. "I still can't believe that of all people in this ship, they chose you to watch over Ein... not only that, you're my superior." André complained. "Bothered that someone like me is ranks above someone like you?" Shion asked and smirked. "Watch your tongue, buddy. If you're able to know much about me, I'm very competitive too and I'm not willing to lose to someone like you." He answered and twitched his eyes. A rivalry between these two is setting from now on.

Pablo smiles at Shion dropping his mask, then says, "This transport ship has a surprising number of rooms, but an earlier use of my power has given me the location of the Agents and the Torture Equipment - It's in a hidden chamber beside the kitchens. That said... I don't think they're torturing anyone now, yet, so I think that the best plan would be to take photos of the equipment, then destroy said equipment, and then get the CIA Agents expelled from the expedition and ship so that we don't cause an incident by 'terminating' them."

BGM: Voile, the Magic Library (CtC Ver.)

After their bicker, the attention returned to the mission at hand. Thanks to Pablo's power, the location of the equipment was easily found. "Good idea, little Pablo. With the pictures, we'll have proof that they were with the exquipment and then we'll be able to-" André thought about the idea, but someone interrupted him. "The equipment was hidden because Operation: Symbiote asked us to! It isn't ours, we were accomplices to their plan! They talk about bringing "peace" but this is their way to do it!" Shion spoke words and André soon picked them up. "I'm not saying Pablo-chan's plan is bad, per se. Don't forget this is our ship and they're our "guests", though. As the party hosts, the blame immediately shifts on us if we simply show photos of it." He explained. "Yeah, you're... right. And an international, powerful organization such as the CIA has more credit than an operation like ours. Unless concrete proof is made, we're in risk of being blamed." André said.

Shion walked towards Ein. He squatted down and looked at the frightened boy. "Ein-chan, do you have any ideas? Anything that could help us will be great!" Shion smiled. Ein stepped away and didn't even look at him. "Hey, don't get too close to Ein! He doesn't like it and gets easily scared of people like you!" André spoke. However, Ein mumbled a little. "... prints." He said. "Prints?" Shion asked once more. "H-Handprints... in the... e-equipment." He spoke a little louder, but not too much and still didn't look at them. "Handprints! We can get the samples in the equipment before we destroy it and then we get samples from the agents!" André spoke. "Not just that, if we can get particles of blood and prove they were used in a prisoner, we can even have more proof they were tortured." Shion complemented the idea, much to André's dismay.

"That was a nice idea, Ein-chan! Here, hi-five!" Shion extended his hand. However, Ein didn't respond at all. He happily shrugged it off and got back up.

She looked at everyone, certain that Shion was still putting up a 'Cone of Silence', and said, "I watched Pablo use his power on the waters around the entire expedition earlier, just before we met with Ein and Andre. The objective was to see the Operation's possible futures, as well as any secrets that can potentially disable them. However, despite this gain in information, there's only so much that one person can do, which is why we need your help - If I were the CIA, I'd toss literal hundreds of distractions at Pablo Legazpi so that he won't be able to stop their real agenda. That or just kill him and damn the consequences."

"Which is why I'm prohibiting Pablo-chan to stay with us during the questioning." Shion issued an order. "Wait, what?! Why?! With Pablo's power, we might be able to draw an answer out of them!" André questioned. "It's a backfiring method, at best. They know Pablo has the power to see the truth, since this is primordially why he's a prime aspect in the first case. Questioning thme with the truth fully active will only endanger us, especially when the higher-ups aren't watching us to understand." Shion spoke. That still didn't make sense to André, but Ein managed to understand his logic. "... cording." Ein mumbled once more. They looked at him, which startled him for a bit. "Do you have another idea, Ein?" André asked. "Recording... t-the torture. Wrong... but it w-works." He spoke.

Ishaq listened as the commanding officer explained what forces the enemy was expected to have, and shared Robert's cynicism. There would likely be casualties. But then again, tactics was not his strong point. Looking around the room, it seemed that Callie also functioned more as support and transport, making Robert the most likely target of Ishaq's Noble Arm. "I've always just followed orders, and let others use my ability as they saw fit," Ishaq said with some resignation, "so I should explain fully how I can help. I can support a high-priority target. If the target dies, they return to my side, alive and well. This has two main uses. It allows the target to engage in a suicide mission, without the permanent loss of the target. It also allows the target to complete one objective and immediately begin on another objective in a separate location. That is, if upon completing their objective, the target terminates himself, and I am at the site of the second objective. Essentially, teleportation, the only cost for the target is experiencing the pain of death, but I doubt something like that will bother someone like you, will it?" Ishaq looked at the other man, implying that Robert would likely be his target. "We seem...understaffed for an operation like this, so we'll need to capitalize on making the most of what we have."

Robert raised an eyebrow as Ishaq informed them of his ability to bring people back from death, and then suggested it's possible employment as a means of transportation.

"You're certain this ability has no negative consequences?" He inquired. "And is effective anywhere?"

Though skeptical, Robert couldn't help but realize the great possibilities of Ishaq's power. This was particularly relevant in relation to his own magical arm, who's nature typically made it impractical in close quarters fighting.

It allows the target to engage in a suicide mission - Ishaq had said.

Great possibilities indeed...

The Ship

Pablo blinked at Ein and said, "Wow, you're more devious than I expected - I like it! Well, I like the intelliigence, not so much the 'watch the torture' bit. But I'm pragmatic enough to see the necessity of it."

Eliza then added, "If Pablo's staying back, then I'll be with him as well - I can't afford to abandon him even if it means one less person to defend you three." A smile, "And I'm glad you three are considerate of Pablo's security, even when Pablo himself isn't thinking of it."

She darted a glance at her charge, who was clearly distracted with Ein's good looks. "That said... What if they are not torturing someone right now? I mean, we are still in transit. Once we have an answer to this question, though, let's go - We're wasting time."

Pablo would then reveal the location of the CIA Agents' chambers - It was in a large room located just above the ship's boiler. This room was not marked by any label, but can still be seen on the ship map and blueprints. And of course, it was clearly large enough to hold torture equipment. However, this begged the question, how will Shion, Andre, and Ein manage to sneak inside said room and foil the CIA Agents' plans? After all, his power to reveal the truth did not mean that he can magically find a plan of action...

---

"Good, your wide array of skills will prove to be a boon to this Operation if you are as skilled as you appear," said the commanding officer to Callie as the latter said her piece. "Just remember, again, to keep collateral damage to a minimum."

She was smiling faintly now as she waited for Robert to add what he knew, but would pass him by if he was silent. As it turned out, Robert was more interested in Ishaq's power than he was in continuing the briefing. That was all right, she guessed. It was time for her to announce the timeline of the Operation. "We'll make anchor in three or three hours. The actual landing will begin in another three."

A pause, and she continued, "The Marines and the SAS squad are all waiting on the top deck, expecting your arrival. As of now, it is time to move out. Briefing over."

Kagami's Location

N/A

@Smike@MagusDream@Argonaut@rawkhawk64@Bob the Grunt@Nimbus@Chi@o0V0o

@Bob the Grunt @Letter Bee @Nimbus

Ishaq was surprised to hear the sheer versatility of Callie's Noble Arm. "Well personally, I would like to stay out of trouble and focus on reviving, but I'm just saying that having two transporters may allow us to pull off this operation less like a strike and more like a heist, which is preferable when it comes to minimizing casualties," Ishaq said agreeably, then turned to Robert. "The targets will suffer no side-effects," he reassured, leaving out the detriment to himself, "And I have yet to find a range limit for the ability. But one limit I do know of is that I can only revive twice. Three times, if I really push myself." Ishaq glanced away momentarily. He was not telling the full truth.

He had long ago figured out that each revive cost ten percent of the total volume of blood in his body, so he knew his theoretical maximum was ten revives. But he had learned, through experience, that twenty percent blood loss was almost unbearable, and that the body began to stop functioning at around thirty percent blood loss. His superiors had forced him to go beyond this in the past, by strapping him to a seat with his face positioned above the urn, unable to break the cycle and end the ability. Still, it had been worth it. He had been instrumental in saving the Holy Land. But he was not prepared to go that far again, not for this vain dream.

Ishaq continued, "So I could have one target, and give him or her two-to-three revives; or two targets, but the number of charges remains the same, so they would be sharing. Once the charges are used up, there will be no protection from death. So while maximizing coverage might be preferred, we shouldn't waste charges. So at risk of sounding like an Arms supremacist, I will be reserving this ability for you two. It's not bias, it's pragmatism." Ishaq had learned long ago that despite having a power that could save people from death, the desire to save everyone was naive. As much as people preached the ideal that everyone was equal and that all lives had worth, the fact of the matter remained, human lives will continue to be sacrificed, and some lives will be prioritized over others. Shakily, Ishaq rose from his seat and followed the commanding officer above deck.

Callie nods in agreement at Ishaq’s words, a minor smile crossing her face at the first and a firm, solemn expression appearing at the last ones. Following on, she looks to the officer. “If you have the minehunting drones fan out in front of the ship, Ma’am, I’ll report to the Operations Room after this meeting and clear them as we find them.” She grins at the other two. “Don’t worry; somehow, I think I’ll be in position before the landing.”