All of Queen's Requiem, as well as Green, Lawrence, Amelia, and Molly, were gathered in the briefing room when Jones informed them that the argent crystal had been stolen by an unknown person or thing, and well... They didn't take the news nicely.
"How the hell did it get stolen?!" Rodeo was the first to shout.
"Emma told me that whoever or whatever it was may have used anomalous means to disable all of site-19's security systems and easily get away with the argent crystal." Jones explained, "Moreover, they found the one handling the security cameras knocked out, and the guards didn't spot them at all after one of their researchers went into the crystal's containment chamber and found it missing."
"Congratulations. You stink at your job." Spy said in disappointment.
"..."
Rodeo sighed deeply and rubbed his forehead, attempting to maintain his worry, anger, and frustration at bay.
"Ok... Ok. Ok." He takes a deep breath, trying his best not to snap, before asking, "Any leads on who it might be?"
Jones then brings out a laptop and shows him footage from the cameras of Site-19. It shows footage of the containment chamber where the crystal was and the hallways and corridors of Site-19. Until then, the team soon spotted in one of the halls, a humanoid wearing a business suit and orange tie broke apart into a swarm of pixel cubes and all the footage went dark, indicating that the cameras were disabled at the moment it transformed itself.
"You're seeing this, aren't you?" Evan asked with a serious look.
"Yes. The cameras were-"
"No, not that." Jeff interrupts and points to the laptop, "The humanoid in the suit."
Jones rewinds the footage again.
"Stop the footage there."
Jones paused the video.
"Look. In that hallway footage." Evan pointed out.
Jones examines the footage, but he is perplexed, "I don't see the suit-wearing humanoid. All I see is an empty hallway."
"...You can't see it?" Rodeo asked.
"No."
"But we can see it-… wait a minute." Rodeo turned at Amelia , Molly , Lawrence & Green's direction and asked, "Can you see it?"
They all nodded. Their answers had led to Rodeo's conclusion on who this humanoid might be.
"It's a fucking Stand."
Everyone's eyes widened at this revelation, Jones then asked him, "But what would a Stand user gain from the crystal?"
"Argent energy can be used for various purposes, such as powering entire civilizations, forging-argent based weaponry with the perfect examples being the plasma rifle and BFG-9000, especially opening a portal to the hell dimension if they have the necessary technology, so basically for both good and bad purposes."
Jones sighed, "The O5 are gonna be really mad about this."
Thinking for a brief moment, Rodeo then asked, "Do you have any footage from speed cameras on roads far from site-19 during the time the crystal was stolen?"
"How will that help?"
"Just do it."
"Fine. Give me a minute."
——————————————————————
After a minute has passed, Jones finally found footage of the roads that lead far from Site-19, and luckily they found footage from only one camera surprisingly, which showed a humvee with the Chaos Insurgency logo heading down a road and judging that this road was few kilometers away from Site-19 and was the only vehicle active during at the time. They had no doubt they were the culprits behind it because everything, including the timing and evidence in front of them stands out.
"The Chaos Insurgency." Jones frowned deeply, "To think they have a Stand user on their side… is a nightmare that no one wants to come true, which means…"
"They have a Stand arrow in their possession as well as the argent crystal." Amelia concluded, "And we may soon see argent-based weaponry and an army of Stand users soon."
"Damn it." Evan cursed profoundly. He casted a glance at Jones and asked, "Do you have any more footage or leads on where they might be?"
"Unfortunately no, this is all we have in terms of evidence, and the Chaos Insurgency like to keep things hidden, especially their project Jaeger, which will only have theories on what it might be. However, if you all have any useful ideas, I'm ready to hear them."
Everyone began to think deeply. Thinking of any ideas to have a plan to forward but so far, no one said anything yet, till Rodeo has something in mind.
"...Gustav."
"What?" Everyone except for Carlos uttered simultaneously.
"Gustav might be our only best option in finding the Insurgency. He worked for them, so he might have some idea where they might keep anomalous items for the purpose of hiding or weaponizing them. A base perhaps."
"I highly doubt he'll give us more information on the Chaos Insurgency." Jones continued, "He gave the name of the one who ordered him to destroy Site-17, Tartarus, and the secret project they're working on named Project Jaeger."
"That's the thing. He's only giving us names. Not the whole information behind those names. Which means he knows more but won't talk more about it due to his loyalty to the Chaos Insurgency and despising the foundation." Rodeo concluded." He's our best option at this point because if we tried to raid Chaos Insurgency bases and extract information from there, they would find out our motives and move the crystal to another location where we can't find it."
"Alright fine, we'll interrogate him… again, but how do you plan on doing it?"
"Let me do it."
"Are you sure about this?"
"I'm very sure."
——————————————————————
In the interrogation room, Rodeo was seated in a chair in front of a table, and on the other side of the table with his hands cuffed to the table was Gustav.
"So... how have you been?" Rodeo asked, grinning at the man in handcuffs.
"...Oh, I'm not sure because someone thought it was a good idea to use dancing as a way of interrogating someone that took place some time back on the roof of this very site." Gustav replied. To Rodeo's surprise, he spoke completely differently, unlike the nerdy vibe from the way he talks, but he'll disregard it as it's not relevant for now.
"Ok, that was Jacob's idea, and we apologize for that." Rodeo sighed and began to stare at him sternly, "Look Gustav, let's not focus on the past, but rather on the present. We need info."
"I've already given you some names." Gustav shook his head, "I'm not giving you anything else."
"Give us a base."
"A base?"
"Do you know any base that the Chaos Insurgency can use to store anomalous items that they have taken and then keep them very well hidden before perhaps planning transferring them to a more unknown location?"
"And why should I give you an answer?"
"Look, Gustav. Don't answer a question with another question. Just give a straight answer to said question."
In a brief moment of silence, Gustav continued to stare at Rodeo in the eyes before opening his mouth, saying, "...How's Dr. Buck and the rest doing these days?"
"Oh, they're happy."
"I highly doubt they're happy in this place filled with demented people, and you are working for the wrong side."
"And you work for a group who care about weaponizing the supernatural and watching the world burn."
"Oh Rodeo." Gustav leaned forward with a smug look, "They really are making sure you pledge loyalty to them by providing you with everything."
"I'm just helping them so that this messed up world can become better and safer." Rodeo replied, "I could have run away from the foundation, but I chose to stay because of the people here, especially those who lost something in their past." He added, "But enough fooling around. I'm gonna ask you again. Do you know of any hidden bases related to the CI?"
Much to Rodeo's disappointment, Gustav remained silent.
"Alright, the quiet game it is then." Rodeo sighed, tapping his finger against the table.
When Rodeo was about to do another method, Gustav began to speak, "You know… I feel bad that you didn't get captured by the Chaos Insurgency right away, and Dr. Buck somehow did not die when the Global Occult Coalition shot down your helicopter."
Rodeo then stopped tapping the table, he froze in his seat as he glared at him.
"What?"
"Oh, you don't know? Well, after all sites were notified about your first surprise appearance in Site-17, me and the Chaos Insurgency took the opportunity to try and capture you… by notifying the Global Occult Coalition that I was one of their informants and that I knew your transfer to Site-19." Gustav explained. This revelation caused Rodeo to clench his fist, and even though his face remained stern, his eyes were different.
He continued, "The plan was that when the Global Occult Coalition shot your transport down over a forest, the Chaos Insurgency would take them out and then immediately capture you, but unfortunately the team meant to capture you got distracted after one of their anomalous weapons went crazy and out of control due to which they never made it to the crash site. You and Dr. Buck are quite lucky to survive and find a powerful time warping Stand like The World."
"You... did this?" Rodeo questioned as one of his hands trembled violently as the flashes he thought were long gone reappeared in his vision. "You did this… without giving a damn about the ones who died in that crash?!"
"...Yes."
——————————————————————
Outside the interrogation room, Amelia, Jones and Robert were observing the conversation through a one-way rectangular window, and after hearing the truth that Gustav revealed, Amelia was worried about what Rodeo might do.
"Site director?" Amelia asks with a hint of worry in her tone.
"Wait." Jones extended his hand to stop her as he, Amelia, and Robert noticed Rodeo's trembling hands ceased as he rose up from his chair.
——————————————————————
"One. Last. Time… where can we find a CI base where the stolen anomalous items might be hidden?"
In response to his threatening tone, Gustav grinned mockingly, "You'll never win against the Chaos Insurgency, Rodeo. And your goals... aren't gonna be achieved."
Gazing at him in silence, Rodeo glanced down and sighed, before he approached and stood in front of him. Before Gustav could respond, Rodeo instantly karate chopped both his arms off and he collapsed on the floor in agony.
"AHHHHH! YOU CRAZY SON OF A-"
BAM!
Rodeo shut him off by stomping his face with his foot and started crushing his head slowly.
"WHERE ARE THEY?!"
"I-...argh! Don't... know!"
In absolute anger, Rodeo then began to compress his head more and more as Gustav's head started bleeding a little as time passed.
"WHERE ARE THEEEEYYY?!"
Struggling for all his life, Gustav felt like his head was about to explode underneath the crushing force of Rodeo's foot. If he wants to, he may easily crush Gustav's head like it was made out of dirt. However, he withheld his strength and kept it in check for obvious reasons.
"YOU BETTER TELL ME OR I'LL CRUSH YOUR HEAD LIKE A DAMN WATERMELON BEING EATEN BY FUCKING HIPPO!"
"AHHHHHHHHHH! MOUNT FORAKER! ALASKA! THEY HAVE A BASE THERE HIDDEN UP THE MOUNTAIN!"
With all his mental strength, Rodeo immediately calms himself down and removes his foot from his head.
"Thank you for your cooperation." Rodeo said softly before proceeding to punch his head into the floor, knocking him out.
The doors open and Amelia, Jones and Robert enter the room. Robert quickly patches up Gustav and reattaches his severed arms that got de-armed by Rodeo.
"We're heading for Mount Foraker at 9:20 AM, Amelia." Rodeo said to Amelia before glancing at Jones, which he slightly flinched by the stare, "Get my permission from the higher ups on the mission's green light, Jones."
"I… will."
Patting his shoulder, Rodeo walks past Jones and Amelia and exits the room. While Jones was slightly taken back by his actions, Amelia was more worried by his outburst he just did right now. She fears the worst for him.
——————————————————————
"THE CRYSTAL WAS STOLEN FROM THE SITE WE WERE SUPPOSED TO ATTACK?!"
In the underground caverns of a forest of West Virginia, the Marauder fiercely questioned the Immoran trooper who had lately reported the update they had learned from their intel.
"Yeah... that too without us noticing since we were so preoccupied with the Mech and the Beast that we kinda awakened under Revenant's orders."
BAM!
In a fit of rage, the Marauder lifts up a nearby boulder twice his size and smashes it to the ground with the majority of his strength, reducing it into dust by the result of its collision.
"RRRRARRRRRRGGGGHH! GET THE MECH, SHIPS AND ANYONE HERE READY! WE ARE TAKiNg iT bAcK!"
"Y-Yes sir."
"Can you track it down?!""
"U-Um... with the argent energy still active, yes, we can track it, but don't you think bringing a large army to get one object is a bit… overkill?"
"Of course it's overkill, hence we are taking it." The Marauder murmured coldly to the Immoran, his face pressed against his with vicious intensity that threatened to devour his soul.
"NOW MOVE IT!"
The trooper nods his head rapidly and hurriedly starts tracking the crystal while the others get ready.
"Grrrrrrr…"
Behind the Marauder, the 20 foot tall Beast called out to him with an animalistic growl.
"Oh, don't worry. You'll get to freshen yourself up from your long slumber with what we're about to do." Marauder muttered evilly as a crimson aura filled with bloodlust and rage erupted from his body, as if he was going to commit a heinous crime.
Just then, his bloodlust aura instantly fades when Revenant appears on the Beast's shoulder and lays on it.
"Soooo do I get to ride shotgun on that mech?"
"NO!"
"😢 *sniffs*"
"Are you serious?" Marauder snarls angrily at his obnoxious leader, "Fine! But do not use anything on the Mech while I'm piloting it… or I will RIP and TEAR your body until you are dead."
"Yes!"
Watching Revenant sprinting back with an enthusiastic behavior, Marauder sighed tiredly.
"This is gonna be a long day."
——————————————————————
At the briefing room, Jones and Queen's Requiem were once again present there. Once they were all settled, the Site Director began to announce.
"Alright Queen's Requiem, you have full green light on your mission, which has been called 'Operation Snowbreaker'."
"Right, because the mountain is cold and will likely have snow." Evan remarked.
"Yes." Jones replied deadpanly to Evan with the obvious remark, before turning to Rodeo and said, "And Rodeo, you have full permission to approach the base in Mount Foraker anyway you want, but you can't take all of your team members since we need most of them here for protection against breaches and possible raids. I'll be back in five minutes while you discuss what to do."
"Alright sir." Rodeo nodded.
Once his job was finished, Jones exited the room as Rodeo began on discussing the plan with his team, although Amelia and Molly were discussing something else with each other away from them.
"Wait! You're saying we should back them up when exactly with our Stands?" Amelia asked, looking at Molly with a concerned look.
"Only when the helicopter arrives to pick them up after they've obtained the argent crystal, just in case things go wrong."
"Molly, I know you're more worried after what D4C did a week back, and... yes, we have Stands, so we're not powerless and defenseless, but what you're suggesting is dangerous."Amelia said, "Even if nothing goes wrong we can't guarantee ourselves that this mission will go smoothly, unless fate has other plans and that we won't come out unscathed and that we might be a burden to them."
"Look, I still haven't manifested my Stand's abilities perfectly, but they're working." Molly said, looking at Amelia with determination, "Buck, they need all the help they can get, and who knows that someone else might go after the crystal. Our Stands can back them up and we can be really helpful to them, but only when things go south when we need to pick them up from the extraction point."
"And I'm not gonna stop you two."
A new voice interjects their conversation. The two turned around and noticed it was Rodeo.
"But... please, use your Stands wisely, in case our mission goes wrong when reaching the extraction point."
"What about Green and Lawrence?"
"I'm pretty sure they will agree with it."