Rocket Interview Series: Staci Alexa [Zandrophin, Staci]

Visah knew her target, but was irritated to be put on sentry duty. A clever girl with great infiltration skills, Visah was not usually the one to stand in plain view of many people, even if the majority of the people around her were already on the company's payroll. She sat on one of the benches near the Luxroar, wearing a simple black dress and her hair tied in an intricate braid.

I've always hated waiting...and this one's running behind schedule....

To be fair, her target was only about a minute late, but every second counts in this business, and Visah loathed idling. As she gave the crowd one more glance over, she caught sight of the purple-haired figure she'd been assigned to approach, but not engage.

Just lead her to him...that's what you're supposed to do. Nothing more.

Visah watched with some amusement at the swift hands of her target as she approached her. When she was close enough, she whispered in the girl's ear,

"So...you're the sneak-thief, eh? Your form is good...but stealing in a crowd is easy. Besides...these people aren't worth the effort."

She stepped to the side of the woman and looked her over. A slight frown crossed her face, but she shrugged off her reservations and continued in a normal speaking tone,

"He's ready for you. If you would, follow me please."

Visah rolled her eyes at the woman's obvious joke. Her dress had no pockets, nor was she foolish enough to bring any items on a job. Despite these facts, she remained silent as she led the woman through the casino.

Whereas many of the casinos in the Underground were not terribly flashy, the Luxroar boasted an air of elegance and class unmatched by any establishment on the continent and, most likely, the rest of the world. As an homage to its namesake, the building was themed around the colours of black, gold, and blue. Visah led her target up the stairs to the top floor and to one of the rooms overlooking the entire casino. Visah pressed the intercom button. A smooth, yet pointed voice answered.

"Yes?"

"I've brought her, as requested."

"Any trouble?"

"None, Sir."

"Send her in."

Visah opened the door to reveal a dark room with a table and two chairs illuminated by dark blue lighting. Zandrophin stood at the window overlooking the casino floor, hands behind his back. He spoke again.

"Welcome, madame. Please, sit."

He gestured with one of his hands towards the chair nearest the door and waited for the woman to be seated.

Mentus began to flick his tail around as the Shuppet parused the room. Zandrophin raised a hand and stroked his head. Then, Zandrophin turned slightly and slid the dossier folder across the table. He then proceeded to pace back and forth, speaking as he did so,

"Alexa, Staci. Age, late 20s. Home region, Kanto. Occupation, sneak thief."

He paused and shook his head before continuing.

"Born on the streets, but you've made quite a name for yourself since then, and even garnered the attention of the Kanto branch of Team Rocket. I must say, I was curious to see why a member of that organization would come here...but then I saw an opportunity, and requested that you be brought here. My network is good, but they can only gather so much information through observation alone. I brought you here to discuss a business proposition, but I would like to know what brought you here, before we begin."

Zandrophin gave a small chuckle and shook his head.

"Well, therein lies the problem, Miss Alexa."

Zandrophin stopped pacing, and put his hand on the table, still only giving the woman his profile, before continuing.

"I already have everything that I need that can be stolen and, anything that I don't...can be legally acquired. I need you less for your light fingers and more for your light step: I need an infiltrator, not a defalcator. I've branched out to other "powerful" people on this island...but I don't yet trust them. Steal from them, if you wish, I don't much care...I just need tabs kept on them."

He paused again and finally turned to face her,

"If this opportunity interests you, we may continue this discussion. If it does not, the door is behind you."

Zandrophin nodded in response and said,

"Excellent. I do have a place for you to go."

He glanced over at Mentus and nodded. The Abra teleported away, and returned with another file. Zandrophin took the file and slid it across the table. The folder had only the words "SUBJECT E" on it. He resumed pacing as he spoke.

"Lady Eira is the VIP. She operates out of the northern region of Eirlys. She's a traditionalist with a quaint, tribal mindset. My main issue with her is that she sits upon a region filled with vast amounts of natural resources, and refuses to allow small-scale access. However, a more pressing matter has me concerned."

He paused, stretching out an arm to allow Mentus to curl his tail around as he moved to his trainer's shoulders. Once this was done, he continued, gesturing for Staci to continue going through the file,

"A few days ago, we got wind of something sinister heading towards Enya, the capital of Eirlys. Despite our best efforts, we were unable to extract the agent that got us that information. In this line of work, we can't afford to be in the dark...and that's why I'm sending you. Keep tabs on that capital, remain unseen unless necessary, and send back regular reports. Questions?"

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[NOTE: I'm trying to utilize this as a way to set up some stuff happening in the Revival thread plot line. Since the attack on Enya is mentioned, I wanted to have a reason for knowing everything about what happened there and having an agent stationed there was the easiest way to do that.]

"I pride myself on allowing my operatives to fully exercise their own creativity while on the job. I am just the one who assigns the tasks. If you would prefer to have us take care of transportation, Mentus can drop you near the capital. If you want my suggestion as far as an alibi, you can claim to be someone trying to escape the fast-paced lifestyle associated with the city and would like to find somewhere calm and quiet."

He paused before continuing,

"If you would prefer to handle all points of this job yourself, that is also acceptable. We haven't worked together long enough for me to demand that you do things my way, so I'll leave the option open to you. Keep the file, if you need it, and good luck."

Zandrophin gestured towards the back of the room, and the door opened. Shortly afterwards, Mentus stirred.

Sir...there appears to be some form of altercation downstairs.

He turned towards the desk in the room and retrieved his cane.

"If you will excuse me, Miss Alexa...there is an unhappy patron I must attend to. Good day and mind your step on the way out."