Heatâs secretary met informed him that someone mailed an invitation card to a party: fanciful design complete with an elegant envelope.
It wasnât any old âpartyâ that involved lots of fun and music. The card was a ticket to a formal function: filled with important people associated with the field.
Judges.
Lawyers.
Politicians.
Heroes.
âWe formally invite Pyro Knight to the Ball.â
He should be happy: getting invited to such functions was the proof of recognition for his good deeds.
But he was anything but glad.
His 10-year-old AI didnât know how to handle this.
Then, here came Snake. He used the air vents as usual: a habit he never quite done away with.
âYo,â Snake waved.
âYo...â Heat answered, filled with sadness.
The reptile bot inched behind Heatâs chair and peeked over his shoulder. âOh, one oâ them fancy ballroom invitess?â
âYeah...â Heat placed the card down on the table. âBig Sis should be the one getting this. I became Pyro Knight so I can help her hero work. The credit is hers.â
Snake flicked his tongue a bit, unsure of how to answer. âAinât quite right Heatbro. Ya worked hard on ya own merit too. If ya didnât get credit, Sis would be furious.â
âTrue... but I donât feel right.â
âYa still thinkinâ aboot that day that Timekid shut her down?â
The boy nodded. âI heard it from Shadowbro. I want to protect Splash, but after that? Iâm not sure if Iâd even be welcomed.
âAlso...thatâs when I realised... nobody ever thanked Sis for her hard work.â
âErr, ainât true,â Snake said. âI thank Sis fer givinâ me Matilda. And Iâm sure there are people out there who thank her for other thingsss too.â
âBut are they there when she really, really needs it? When was the last time we heard anything about her friends? Like, does she even have friends anymore?â
Sometimes, the simple questions are the most poignant. Snake stayed silent to listen.
âI...â Heat continued. âI feel like Sis is fading away from us. Sure, whenever I talk to her she brightens up. But what about the times when weâre not looking? Why is she sleeping later and later? Why is she getting sicker?â
âAinât her jobs like, deep late in night shift?â
âThatâs the problem! I tried to ask the organization, but they said âSestina Noxâ didnât check in for weeks! If not months!â
A host of red flags popped up in Snakeâs mind. âYa serious?â
Heat rapidly nodded his head. He lowered his voice to a whisper, glancing around to make sure that there were no other eavesdroppers. âSnakebro, we know she didnât quit. That means theyâve been giving her off-grid assignments. You know. The âdirty workâ.â
âOy vey,â Snake replied. âThat be a huge possibility.â
âSnakebro. I wanna find out the truth. Can you help me?â
Can Snake say no such a request? Never. If innocent lilâ Jimmy noticed somethingâs off, somethingâs truly off.
âOf courssssse Iâll help ya out. Tell ya what: Iâll send ya the address oâ the last three relevant peeps she talked in recent weeks. The highest probability. Sis got a habit oâ showing different sides tâ different folks.â
For the first time in a long while, the intel-master put on his detective cap. While Crash slept through the afternoon, he interviewed her ever-loyal bird for clues. She knows everything.
Stanza refused to expose her master outright. But, she did give him three names.
Twinnie, Rockwell, The Third Zero. Long story why there were so many Zeroes.
And thatâs where the tiny knight will begin his quest.
@titaniumthamnophid, @a-fading-light, @patient--zxro