Henry makes his way through the Hostel, headed for the same rooms where he had met Captain all those months ago. Exceptionally, he had made only minor cosmetic changes to his appearance. Enough that people who saw him for the first time weren't likely to recognize him later, while keeping the shape of his face the same. When people expect you to change everything, change only a little. If you change nothing, you're just being contrary.
Rosh's Spade's message had been rather vague. The Epopt wasn't sure what would transpire today. Which was probably a good thing. It meant the Councilman was learning turns of phrases. Let's see if he's learned not to point guns at his guests now, he thought to himself with a hint of a smile as he took the final steps towards the door, and knocked.
Rosh spots Henry turn the corner for the elevator and hurries after him. Catching the elevator door just as it closes.
With a grunt he bolts for the stairs. Stepping out ont he second floor as Henry is leaving the elevator, Rosh catching his breath.
Apparently the old man does not see him. Maybe it's the change in hair color. Rosh fishes out the building's master key. "Hello. Long time no see."Rosh unlocks the door to 200. "After you sir. I'll explain inside."
Inside. the room structure is much as Captain left it. Whether the subsequent Libertine 'heads' had left it be, or if Spade had restored it, is unknown. The Captain's personal belongings are gone, the model ships and Military decor. Nothing had replaced them, the Office is all but bare. Spade closes the door behind thembefore taking a seat in the office. Specifically, one of the two not behind the desk.
"It seems dumb to ask how you know about this room. So I won't. I will ask when you are going to learn to hide your shit. I't embarasing to walk around with your john hanging loose for all to see. It tips people off." Rosh allows his gaze to linger on the lovely spell work flitting about Henry's pattern.
A libertine telling a Gurdien to be more careful? Rosh refocuses on Henry's face, noting the differnece in features the difference in clothing, but ultimatly the same man. Rosh reaches to ruffle his hair, but turns truns the gesture toward rubbing his nose. How much did Henry know already? It was a fools game to play around. So Spade decides to drop his hand and see how Henry reacted.
"Jordan uncovered information on seven sites around the city. Bell and Tower bridge, Kruegans included. the fourth is the Church of Final Atonement. I'm requesting that we, Myself and who ever shows up, be allowed to search for any clues as to the former owner." a solem sigh. "The owner before Niles. We think a Soul Stone was left there." that was pretty much everything. "Oh, and I think we have a wolf among us. Maybe A wolf who is not aware for his wolf-ish nature. For the good of the flock, we need to find him. Or Her. But you know that already." Confident eye pin Henry. Rosh knew Henry would have leaped to this faster then anyone.
Henry follows wordlessly into the room, content to answer Rosh's greeting with a short, wordless grunt. Once inside, he spares barely a moment to take in the shape of the place, the changes (or lack thereof in some aspects), before listening to what the other man has to say. He doesn't answer, doesn't react to the 'knowing about the room' comment. Let the Free Council wonder. Let them ask how he knew. Let them wonder.
The other comment, however, the one about how embarrassing he is to hang around, gets a short response of "Better that 'shit' being visible than the alternative." Which could almost be ominous, if it wasn't for the way he pronounces 'shit', with an almost perfect imitation of Rosh's tone. "I hide my way, and that's enough." Well, for now anyway.
Then the rest of Rosh's speech comes out. It takes Henry a few moments to process what is being asked. "You want me to give you permission to rifle through a Guardian Sanctum." There is a certain level of 'oh my goodness I can't believe I just said that' in his voice. Just enough for the tone to actually be a credible imitation. "Turn it inside out, looking for a Soul Stone. And then take it." He looks Rosh straight in the eyes, and stays quiet a moment, the gears in his head spinning. "You're lucky I don't say no right here, right now." Though his reasons for not doing so might be in question. A short moment later, and he's reached a decision. With a resigned sigh, he answers, "You can go in. With me along. You can look. But if I say a place is off limits, you don't even think of setting foot there." Almost immediately, he adds, "And I get first look at anything you find. If something belongs to the Guardians, it stays with me. Got it?" The way he says it doesn't invite argument.
"As for the wolf in sheep's clothing," he adds, as though he were discussing the weather, "Keep it quiet. Makes my job so much easier than to have you running around telling everyone." Then again, he was trying to tell the Free Council to keep quiet. Which didn't usually work out too well, in his experience. Gotta start somewhere...
Rosh nods, clearly agreeing witht the term. "I doubt the stone is still there, If it is. It belongs to the Guardians. I never considered otherwise. Henry, this isn't a game to me. I only mention our mole problem because I know informing you of my knowledge will help you. Know that the only other persons aware of this information are Ruby, Aurum, and Jordan. It is possible the mole is this" Rosh pulls out his cell phone and tosses it out on the desk.
"That is my suspiscion. I'm not sure what to do about it. For once I'm not sure this technology is worth the price."
"Not just the stone. Anything you find." The way he says anything makes it sound like there might be more there. Maybe even something important. The truth was, he wasn't sure if anything was left in the church. But now way was he actually taking the risk with other Mages.
When Rosh drops the cellphone on the table, Henry looks at it, with his trademark indifferent look. A small part of him wonders if making a joke would be inappropriate right now. Something along the lines of the apprentice beginning to learn well enough. But that wouldn't mesh with what Rosh knew of him, and he couldn't have that. "Surveillance is only as good as the person behind it," he states. "Assume everything said within ten feet of one of those is heard, listened to, archived, and analyzed." He shrugs. "It's dangerous, but it can't be the only leak. Someone has to be listening in." Except Henry knows that they are listening. They always are.
"So ditch it when you don't need it, or be aware that you're listened to," he adds as he pushes the phone back towards Rosh. He doesn't mention the potential misdirection with the system, the implication of every human being wearing a wire, or the Karmack wave. Instead, he changes subjects and adds. "When are you intending to look through the church?"
Rosh takes back the phone, holds it for a moment in thought, then turns it off and takes out the battery. "As soon as possible. We need to move fast. I already assume this information has leaked. Consider that we still have three other locations. each unknown before Jordan's. Plus the missing Kruegan stone. AND the whether there are stones at the Bridge and Bell." Rosh fiddles with his phone. "All I care about is getting them out of Banisher or Seer or what ever-, we need to make a move. Or they will overpower us. We are not prepared. We hinged our survival on the Arrow, and that was stupid. We made the choice to infight and slack off, to get distracted... And that is just me. Frankly, we deserve this mess. We all do."
Rosh pockets the un-powered phone. "I do not have the answers. But I know we can not wait for them. We need to move fast Henry. We just have to move fast to get prepared."
Henry watches Spade try to neutralize his phone, and comments, absolutely seriously, "You know they put a backup battery in there, right? Just enough to power what they need without the main one." He uses the word 'they' as though is should be obvious exactly who they are. And really, it is. I mean, who else but they would be interested in phone conversations?
He listens to the rest of Rosh's explanation. "It's possible the Kruegan stone was taken when the bad guys left. They were very intent on taking something with them. In any case there wasn't anything of worth left once they were gone." So either they took the piece of soul, or there never was one in the first place. Then again, it could have been just about anything those asses took. "But in any case, let's move then. If you think things are compromised, we need to get it done before they have a chance to get to it."
A smile crosses Henry's features then, along with a small grunt, either of appreciation at the 'joke', or of annoyance. It's hard to tell. Then again, when has it ever been easy to tell? The fact that Rosh seems to the the threat 'they' pose seriously gets filed away somewhere in the Guardian's brain, for future reference.
For now, however, both of them had work to do. He motions towards the door. "Lead the way." Better to get this squared away, to show them goodwill for now, than to make them wait and suspect too much. Here's hoping they don't want to turn the entire building inside out. As the two make their way out, Henry takes one last look at the room over his shoulder, a nostalgic thought making its way across his consciousness, for a brief moment. It's quickly quashed, however, replaced by today's concerns.
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