The North PacificBoard

"20th of Hekatinth, 18:23. Agent Neminis replying." came the voice that Syminion had grown so used to hearing. "We have just received word that Turbot and Red Snapper have moved to deeper waters, although they along with all the other fish, are blind as far as we can tell. Turbot has relocated to Folgravni and Red Snapper to Marnis Island. We believe the relocation is for relaxation only, not business."

Syminion took a breath. This wasn't good for the operation. "The Mermaid may be delayed then." he said, voice heavy with disappointment. "We will work faster on getting to the other fish and not letting them out of our sight. Fishermen will be deployed to Folgravni and Marnis Island, but the operation will of course be set back."

"We understand," came the response. "We have full confidence in the fishermen." There was a pause and Syminion wiped his brow. "As for Boasting Fisherman, he continues to lead us to fertile grounds, although the pace is slowing down."

"How bad is it?" Syminion asked, voice not betraying his anxiety.

"It's bad, but we are restricting their access in subtle enough ways. They all appear blind. That is all."

"Very well." Syminion said "That is all." he repeated, staying in the stool for a moment longer. He heard the click of a recorder, but not his own. He looked at the mirror bleakly before getting up and heading out of the booth. He needed to make some calls.

One week later, somewhere in Thoonia
The Mzeusian moved across the beach with ease, staying just far enough up it to avoid the waves that stroked the sand. In his suit, he was decidedly out of place and he was eyeing a large walled compound set far back from the beach. The compound itself was the home of a man known by many different names, one of which, Oyster, reflected his life style. To the Mzeusian however, he had one name, Sea Bass.

Although Sea Bass was known to be a solitary man when not at work, when he was on the job, he could be anything that was required. Thankfully, he was not currently working and during this time he would spend most of his time in the mansion doing whatever he wished. He was rarely actually seen on the beach, and when he was, he was always flanked by a couple of bodyguards. Fortunately, this kind of lifestyle made the Mzeusian's job much easier. He moved up the beach like ferocious tiger stalking the unknowing prey through the jungle.

Taking a shallowly cut set of steps up to the pavement, he crossed the road and walked up to a block of flats. The place was as fancy as you would expect in this kind of place, and the man took the elevator up to his room, on one of the highest floors. Opening the door, he slung his suit jacket onto a plush armchair and moved to the window. Looking out, he could see the back of the mansion below. Sea Bass was currently leaning over the balcony, staring at the street below. A woman came out to join him, placing an arm around his shoulders. He turned his head to her and stroked her cheek.

From the photos in the file, this woman was Sea Bass's girlfriend. They chatted for a while before she led him inside. He seemed reluctant to go, but he followed after her none the less. As soon as they had disappeared from sight, the Mzeusian moved away from the window. He took a seat on a chair and opened the lid of a laptop.

Meanwhile, somewhere else in Thoonia.

The bar was noisy but the two men seated next to each other on a table in the corner could hear their own conversation well enough. In the middle of the floor, dancers flailed about, limbs shooting off in all directions, fuelled alcohol and other drugs that had been supplied. The dance floor had been ringed with table where patrons sat clapped and cheering them on. One dancer lunged for a seated man, pulling him into the fray.

The corners of the bar were the quieter areas, although not by much. The Thoonians talked in hush voice of glasses of beer. It had been a long time since that had last seen one another, and although they had the same job, that didn't necessarily mean they go to work together. When this chance to meet up had shown itself, they had no choice but to meet up. They had been here since the bar opened.

On the other side, seated on separate tables, two Mzeusians watched them, one of them a man and one a woman. Unlike the Thoonians, they hadn't planned to meet, but circumstances had brought them together. The woman leaned towards the man. "Who could have guessed they would be meeting eh?"

The man shrugged. "Me."

The two of them shared a smile as the music blared. A small fight broke out on the dance floor, and a group of men swarmed the dancers, shoving them aside to break up the fight. In the chaos, the Mzeusians lost the Thoonians for a moment, bu they re-positioned themselves and kept them in line of sight.

The night continued, long and determined. Most of the revellers stayed, some left, but the two men sat at their chair all the while. Eventually it came time to close the bar, and the two men stood, shook hands and parted ways. As they did so, the man and woman also got up. They looked at each other for a moment before stepping out of the bar into the cool air where they also split up, following their respective person.

As the results of the Lahos Federation election were being brought to Emperor Maximus, during a meeting he had called with several of the ministries aswell as the armed forces to discuss how Brittania will interact with the new government of the Federation to ensure it’s intrests in the region are secured. Sipping from her cup of tea before she began to speak was a representative from the ministry of international affairs who had been tasked with following this election “We have no reason to be concerned, the moderates will be more willing to work with us than to be hostile towards us. We should carry on as we have done with the previous governments to ensure that it is mutually beneficial for both of us.” All around the room were voices of agreement before an aid entered, moving quickly through the room before wispering to the minister of foreign relations. Sipping his tea slowly before he reported on what he had just been told “It seems we have a situation on our hands, the Nationalists have couped the government and started a civil war. How shall we proceed?” “We must make war!” Shouted the Minister of defence “this is a golden opportunity to secure out intrests in the region once and for all!”. Emperor Maximus had been sitting quietly whilst he listened and contemplated what action Brittania should take or not to take. THUD THUD THUD. Maximus slammed his fist on the table before him three times to bring order to the room and have everyone focus on him. Standing from his seat and in a confident tone he began “We shall take no action in this matter. We already have a civil war on the doorstep of our eastern colony and I have little to believe that this new civil war will pose a threat to ourselves based on our history with the Lahos.”