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[OOM] Day Fifty: Operation Goldilocks
“Hey, guys, do you think we might be too conspicuous in these?”
Four felt bear heads turn to peer at him.
Eden adjusts his own, then tugs it off entirely. It was a small miracle they’d even found their way to the waterway entrance: The town is well-lit at night, but it had been difficult to see anything through the meshed-over eyeholes of the bear masks.
“What do you mean? People will just be like ‘oh, man, look at that Ursus spirit,’” Luso says. “It’s the perfect disguise.”
“Will they, though,” Eden replies. “We don’t go around wearing leopard masks, after all.”
“Mog doesn’t sell leopard masks,” Adelle points out. “Else I’d wear one all the time. C’mon, let’s go.”
Eden tugs his bear head back on, jogging down the steps to the waterway.
---
The waterway is even better lit than the streets, enough that they can see their way even with the heavy felt masks, and it occurs to Eden that there really is nowhere in Daybreak Town that isn’t lit up.
They’ve been walking for ten minutes when all five of their Chirithies materialise on their shoulders, standing straight and alert.
“Heartless,” they say, in unison.
It only takes a moment for Eden to realise where the Heartless are. A quick glance towards the water, and he sees that they’re teeming beneath it: Translucent, tentacled shapes, with yellow-eyed shadows bundled deep beneath their mushroom-like tops. They’re clustered so thickly within the water that they’re practically tangled up on each other.
“How’d so many of them get here without anyone noticing?” Luso asks.
“They must have been gathering down here for some time now,” Luso’s Chirithy says. “But there are too many of them to fight, so don’t -- …”
Adelle and Freyra are already sweeping their keyblades across a row of cards before he can finish, and both drive the tips of their keyblades down onto the walkway, releasing a wave of cold air that nearly knocks Eden off his feet.
With a sharp, cracking noise, the water freezes over. Adelle and Freyra straighten up, and Freyra holds her hand out for a high-five.
“Are they dead?” Alvis asks.
“... Probably not,” Freyra admits. “But that ice should hold them until we’re done, and then we can tell someone we discovered them. Everyone wins, right?”
“I do rather advise you turn back,” Alvis’ Chirithy said. “There is a chance that the ice may have weakened by the time you make your return trip.”
“To hell with that,” Alvis said. “How far until the exit?”
“‘Nother ten minutes or so,” Eden said. “Let’s keep going.”
---
They split up once they arrive: Freyra and Luso go to grab pieces of keyblade armour, Alvis leaves to cause the distraction, and Eden and Adelle head up, towards where they think the server room is.
“Hey, is there some kind of festival we don’t know about?”
The question comes from two burly Ursus boys, peering at their identical bear masks. The first one looks more confused than anything, while the second seems irritated at having to stop so that his companion can ask questions of passers-by.
“Every day is a festival in Ursus,” Eden says, as gravely as possible.
“... Is it, though?” The first boy asks. “I feel like Ursus is a pretty miserable place, y’know? Er, no offense.”
“None taken,” Eden says.
“So, the … bear heads …” the first boy starts.
“Could be worse,” the second boy says. “Have you seen the guy in the Second Dormitory who wears clown make-up every day? People here are so weird. I wish I was in Vulpes.”
“Eden,” Adelle calls. “We need to get moving.”
“Right. Hey, I’ll see you two around town sometime. Maybe. Or, I mean, here. Probably. At this Union. Where we both live.”
“... Okay, then.”
---
Eden sets his back flat against the wall, peering around it at the two security Moogles, resplendent in shiny armour, with tiny lances in hand.
“Alvis should have caused a distraction by now,” he murmurs to Adelle.
“Think he got caught?”
“I dunno. Alvis is pretty fighty. I think the building would’ve come down by now if he had.”
As if on cue, a siren blares, high-pitched and warbling, forcing Eden to cover his ears. Either that was an intruder alarm, or Alvis had found a distraction. Or, Eden supposes, both.
Either way, the security Moogles are leaving. Eden darts around the corner, tapping his keyblade against the lock and opening the door, holding it open for Adelle.
The room isn’t a large one, and most of it is taken up by the structure in the centre -- a tree-like shape of glowing crystalline filaments, the branches vanishing into the walls and ceiling, the trunk terminating in a heavy, blocky computer terminal.
“How long is it going to take you to transfer the data?” Adelle asks, watching the door.
“This is a totally unfamiliar system, with unfamiliar security protocols,” Eden says, sitting at the terminal and starting to type. “Give me maybe ten minutes.”
---
They meet back up in the waterway.
“What the hell was that distraction?” Luso asks, as soon as Alvis arrives.
“Huh? Oh, fire alarm. I couldn’t set it off without starting a fire, though, that’s why it took so long,” Alvis says, shrugging. “I would’ve been quicker, except you all told me not to go starting any fights.”
“We’re so good at this. We should steal more things,” Eden chirps. “But let’s hurry. That ice is looking like it’s starting to melt.”
He beckons them along, setting off a jog down the raised path through the waterway, keeping an eye on the ice, and the now twitching, moving shapes within it.
“Someone’s ahead,” Chirithy murmurs, appearing in his hair.
Eden digs his heels in, grinding to a stop, as they turn a corner. A tall man, dressed in brown Foreteller robes, with the mask of a bear on his face, stands in the centre of the walkway, his jagged, rocky keyblade resting against the floor.
Luso, Adelle, Alvis, and Freyra nearly tumble over in their hurry to stop. Luso grabs Eden’s shoulder with one hand to steady himself.
“Lord Aced,” Chirithy says.
Foreteller Aced makes an affirmative noise. “You have something that belongs to me.”
Four felt bear heads turn to peer at him.
Eden adjusts his own, then tugs it off entirely. It was a small miracle they’d even found their way to the waterway entrance: The town is well-lit at night, but it had been difficult to see anything through the meshed-over eyeholes of the bear masks.
“What do you mean? People will just be like ‘oh, man, look at that Ursus spirit,’” Luso says. “It’s the perfect disguise.”
“Will they, though,” Eden replies. “We don’t go around wearing leopard masks, after all.”
“Mog doesn’t sell leopard masks,” Adelle points out. “Else I’d wear one all the time. C’mon, let’s go.”
Eden tugs his bear head back on, jogging down the steps to the waterway.
The waterway is even better lit than the streets, enough that they can see their way even with the heavy felt masks, and it occurs to Eden that there really is nowhere in Daybreak Town that isn’t lit up.
They’ve been walking for ten minutes when all five of their Chirithies materialise on their shoulders, standing straight and alert.
“Heartless,” they say, in unison.
It only takes a moment for Eden to realise where the Heartless are. A quick glance towards the water, and he sees that they’re teeming beneath it: Translucent, tentacled shapes, with yellow-eyed shadows bundled deep beneath their mushroom-like tops. They’re clustered so thickly within the water that they’re practically tangled up on each other.
“How’d so many of them get here without anyone noticing?” Luso asks.
“They must have been gathering down here for some time now,” Luso’s Chirithy says. “But there are too many of them to fight, so don’t -- …”
Adelle and Freyra are already sweeping their keyblades across a row of cards before he can finish, and both drive the tips of their keyblades down onto the walkway, releasing a wave of cold air that nearly knocks Eden off his feet.
With a sharp, cracking noise, the water freezes over. Adelle and Freyra straighten up, and Freyra holds her hand out for a high-five.
“Are they dead?” Alvis asks.
“... Probably not,” Freyra admits. “But that ice should hold them until we’re done, and then we can tell someone we discovered them. Everyone wins, right?”
“I do rather advise you turn back,” Alvis’ Chirithy said. “There is a chance that the ice may have weakened by the time you make your return trip.”
“To hell with that,” Alvis said. “How far until the exit?”
“‘Nother ten minutes or so,” Eden said. “Let’s keep going.”
They split up once they arrive: Freyra and Luso go to grab pieces of keyblade armour, Alvis leaves to cause the distraction, and Eden and Adelle head up, towards where they think the server room is.
“Hey, is there some kind of festival we don’t know about?”
The question comes from two burly Ursus boys, peering at their identical bear masks. The first one looks more confused than anything, while the second seems irritated at having to stop so that his companion can ask questions of passers-by.
“Every day is a festival in Ursus,” Eden says, as gravely as possible.
“... Is it, though?” The first boy asks. “I feel like Ursus is a pretty miserable place, y’know? Er, no offense.”
“None taken,” Eden says.
“So, the … bear heads …” the first boy starts.
“Could be worse,” the second boy says. “Have you seen the guy in the Second Dormitory who wears clown make-up every day? People here are so weird. I wish I was in Vulpes.”
“Eden,” Adelle calls. “We need to get moving.”
“Right. Hey, I’ll see you two around town sometime. Maybe. Or, I mean, here. Probably. At this Union. Where we both live.”
“... Okay, then.”
Eden sets his back flat against the wall, peering around it at the two security Moogles, resplendent in shiny armour, with tiny lances in hand.
“Alvis should have caused a distraction by now,” he murmurs to Adelle.
“Think he got caught?”
“I dunno. Alvis is pretty fighty. I think the building would’ve come down by now if he had.”
As if on cue, a siren blares, high-pitched and warbling, forcing Eden to cover his ears. Either that was an intruder alarm, or Alvis had found a distraction. Or, Eden supposes, both.
Either way, the security Moogles are leaving. Eden darts around the corner, tapping his keyblade against the lock and opening the door, holding it open for Adelle.
The room isn’t a large one, and most of it is taken up by the structure in the centre -- a tree-like shape of glowing crystalline filaments, the branches vanishing into the walls and ceiling, the trunk terminating in a heavy, blocky computer terminal.
“How long is it going to take you to transfer the data?” Adelle asks, watching the door.
“This is a totally unfamiliar system, with unfamiliar security protocols,” Eden says, sitting at the terminal and starting to type. “Give me maybe ten minutes.”
They meet back up in the waterway.
“What the hell was that distraction?” Luso asks, as soon as Alvis arrives.
“Huh? Oh, fire alarm. I couldn’t set it off without starting a fire, though, that’s why it took so long,” Alvis says, shrugging. “I would’ve been quicker, except you all told me not to go starting any fights.”
“We’re so good at this. We should steal more things,” Eden chirps. “But let’s hurry. That ice is looking like it’s starting to melt.”
He beckons them along, setting off a jog down the raised path through the waterway, keeping an eye on the ice, and the now twitching, moving shapes within it.
“Someone’s ahead,” Chirithy murmurs, appearing in his hair.
Eden digs his heels in, grinding to a stop, as they turn a corner. A tall man, dressed in brown Foreteller robes, with the mask of a bear on his face, stands in the centre of the walkway, his jagged, rocky keyblade resting against the floor.
Luso, Adelle, Alvis, and Freyra nearly tumble over in their hurry to stop. Luso grabs Eden’s shoulder with one hand to steady himself.
“Lord Aced,” Chirithy says.
Foreteller Aced makes an affirmative noise. “You have something that belongs to me.”