I slowly wake up and feel a dragging feeling forcing me to move along. I don't feel any strength in me to resist, so I give in to the force, which pushes and pulls me along, hitting a few nasty bumps along the way. Soon, the extra weight on my shoulders lifts itself off, and a blinding set of lights flicker on, revealing three other people in the room with me. I spot Justin and Tim right off the bat, with Tim's grizzled hair and Justin's now broken glasses, but the last one keeps their head concealed with a brown cultist-like robe. "Heh, still works out in the end, huh guys?" Justin laughs, trying to pluck out the small shards from his body. "Glad that my agent is here?" He asks, rubbing his eyes. Tim stays asleep, making me the only candidate to answer. "I-I guess?" I shakily say, still trying to comprehend our location. The room almost looks like a room for solitary confinement, seeing how the interior is a padded white, with only one door leading in, or out. The stranger makes a slow walk to the door, taking extra caution to see if the door is locked, as it should be. "Good, that." Justin remarks. "This is all going to backup plan..."
"W-what..." I say in a hushed tone, disbelief over Justin's next attempt at another plan. He closes his eyes and crosses his arms, a small smirk growing on his face. "I'm not lying to ya. This is the backup plan, so better get used to it." He stares over to the still hooded stranger before us, who is watching over Tim like a hawk, waiting for him to wake up. The stranger then turns to us and nods,
presumably making sure that Tim is asleep for this speech. "J-Justin..." I ring out, my head still hurting from the night before. "A-are you s-sure? I mean... who is... this?"I say, weakly pointing to our new friend. They make no motion at all the acknowledge me, standing tall like they've been doing. "Oh, my agent?" He continues smiling in delight over his plan going well so far. "Yeah. Anyways, this'll keep us supplies for the next few weeks, maybe a month at most." He then sighs and lowers his emotions of excitement. "This took a lot more effort that I wanted it to... Plus, well, I'm not complaining here, but you did come a bit late." The shady figure turns towards him slightly, probably a bit annoyed at his remark. But I really can't tell who it is under there, as that robe masks all physical tells that I could try to perceive.
presumably making sure that Tim is asleep for this speech. "J-Justin..." I ring out, my head still hurting from the night before. "A-are you s-sure? I mean... who is... this?"I say, weakly pointing to our new friend. They make no motion at all the acknowledge me, standing tall like they've been doing. "Oh, my agent?" He continues smiling in delight over his plan going well so far. "Yeah. Anyways, this'll keep us supplies for the next few weeks, maybe a month at most." He then sighs and lowers his emotions of excitement. "This took a lot more effort that I wanted it to... Plus, well, I'm not complaining here, but you did come a bit late." The shady figure turns towards him slightly, probably a bit annoyed at his remark. But I really can't tell who it is under there, as that robe masks all physical tells that I could try to perceive.
Nobody else that I know, and probably in the world, is shadier than somebody that The Travel Log knows personally. Meet Casey Temple. He was one of the original cast members back in the first two seasons, along with James. Back then, it was just me, Anna, TG, Justin, and those two. No Tim or Charlie to be found. Announcer was there though. Only problem with Casey was that he was NOTORIOUSLY known as one of the biggest in the business for drugs. He sold it all, but I'm not too sure if he actually did any. The way he acted was very shady, and he kept to himself, usually not talking at all to any of the other cast members. It didn't matter much when he officially left the cast along with James after season 2. On the contrary though, he came back each season to deal in black market business, unsurprisingly. He would soon get arrested for his work, ever single season, but each time, he escaped from jail to come back, every single season. Only up until season 10 was he finally put into maximum security, and left for dead by the rest of the crew, no one crazy enough to bail him out this time. He's been of the grid for now, and nobody knows if he truly escaped again, or if he's still in the confines of prison. It HAS been five years without any real news of him... so Justin may have gotten hold of him somehow. What supplies would Casey have, though? I never dealt with him myself, so this could all really be a surprise...
Tim
"AHA!"
"Gyack?!" Justin reels back in surprise, probably not expecting me to feign unconsciousness.
"Heh, all part of your plan now, sucker?" I confidently ask.
"Shhhhh!" Comes from the nearby figure. The same who also dragged me back out to this room. Casey would easily drop out of a compromised deal though, so I haven't messed things up completely. Not yet, at least.
"Keep it down, bonehead!" Just whispers, making the same finger motion towards his lips like MaybeCasey. "We can't let others know that we're here! You almost got us caught by the whole town!"
"Sucks that I don't know yet..." I say, tilting my head down. Esther looks at me with a scared face. "D-don't know...what?" Justin looks at me confused. "You are special, I'll tell you that. Now what are you trying to find out?" I just smirk back at him. "So you don't want to tell me. I guess that I'm doing it myself!" I then make a mad dash for the hooded figure, who takes their hands out and waves them in panic defense, hoping to deter me from my course. I decide to still go through with my plan, and tackle the hooded one before us. "You're not killing me again, Casey! Especially not after season six with your stupid girlfriend, and your stupid poisonous biscuits that you forcefully fed me, you prick!" Fury burning in my eyes, I grip the top of the hood with one hand, and pull it straight off their face, revealing the man inside.
"Ehm... Mr. Traveler?"
I was completely wrong.
"E-emily?!" My face turns completely red as I realize how awkward the situation is for the both of us.
"Wow Tim. Didn't take you for that kind of man. Well, guy. I mean, TG already is a hassle enough..." Justin comments to himself. I immediately scramble to my feet, and stare him straight into his eyes. "I am NOT TG, you stupid piece of S**t! I may be friends with him, but he's a big enough hassle to deal with by himself!" Esther then shakes in fear, with Emily and Justin looking at me in disbelief. "What do you not understand?! If we're caught, you're going down with us!" He softly shouts back at me. Emily then turns to Esther in the background, whispering to her in her own conversation. "Is Mr. Guy really that bad? He didn't seem that bad when I was with him earlier." "Eh?" I hear a confused tone in Esther's voice, and Emily starts to get up, even without an answer. "Well, that secret is out." She says, dusting herself off. Justin then sighs. "I was hoping for a quick and flawless exchange. Not the chance to be completely found out by everyone else in the town..." I smile devilishly back at him, who is unaware of the knowledge I possess. "You're the bonehead here, by the way." He questionably looks back at me, adjusting his glasses as a way of intimidation. "Hmmm? What for?" "You tried to do some black market business with EmilyCasey instead of going for the regular supply convoy, stupid!" Emily looks over in our direction, and Esther slumps farther back, more confused than ever. Justin the starts laughing out loud, but still at a reasonable tone to hide our presence. "Oh? You mean the monthly convoy that arrives here? I could completely resupply from it?" "Indee- wait, what?! But how did you..." My ego starts to drop and trail off like my unfinished sentence. I stand dumbfounded at the surprise of surprise of knowledge. "You knew this?!" "Indeed." "Then why didn't you say anything else, you A**hole?!"
"Well, during the planning phase for the trip-"
"HOLD IT! You actually planned for this?! You never plan for everything!"
"Oh, you must not know. These glasses are not just for show, unless you count them if they're broken. I actually plan, a LOT. It's just that with my stupid blind luck, everything spirals out of control, and then I have to come up with something new on the spot. That's why I may seem stupid and make bad decisions, but let me tell you, it's all part of the plan." I stand back, still in disbelief over his words. "Then what about this mess?!" I say, spreading my arms out and turning to face the plethora of new items and the new face in the area. "Well, maybe if you shut up and let me finish for once... Now, the first step was to Ft. Laramie, as you know. As a fallback plan, I set up an agent in case of total disaster." We all stare at Emily, who bows in courtesy. "Emily Sola Stagiz, representative of The Stagiz Station, at your service. I myself took the time to expand the business as a trading company, while taking advantage of the catering service that we supply." She says, clenching a smile at her own success. Justin then walks over to her side and continues the conversation. "I called up Emily to see what she had to offer, and as if by coincidence, she trades in this town, making my life easier. She's the biggest caravan though, so stock sells out quick." He glances back at Emily, who is still smiling, then back to the group. "I got first dibs on the stash because of reservations, but if someone else finds out, then soon, the whole town would join in, cops included." Emily continues smiling in agreement. "I didn't want to resort to darker means, but in the end, it's for the customer, and it's all business..." I stare wordlessly at the duo, still processing the strange amount of intelligence coming from the first. "You go pretty far for the business, Em." Esther comments. She seems to have recovered quicker than I have from the shock... either that, or she just didn't drink at all last night... Being a minor surely does have its perks and disadvantages... "Hey Em." Emily looks over to Esther, who is tilting her head. "What caused you to do all of this?"
"Well, The S.S. was a subshop, and still is, but like I've said before... Charlie left to pursue other interests. Leaving the family and the family business at a loss, I had to step up to the plate as the next in line. Thing is, being family owned, catering didn't come to our attention as an idea at first. So I had to go through all of the hassle with setting it up, but Justin gave me the boost that I needed. Back in the original series, I was the cause of all the take-five snacks. I was just really shy though, so Justin didn't feel the need to introduce me to you guys... but I saw how all of you performed off screen." She cheerfully says. "But what I didn't know at the time, was that Charlie was working with you. We were both oblivious to each other's presence, but when he found out that I had worked with Justin, he just shook it off like nothing else. He never really commented on my work at all, to be honest..." She then hangs her head down low in sadness. "He hated our family so much... he didn't even stop once in a while for small talk with me..." Esther then starts patting her on the shoulders. "Shhh... it'll be fine..." She says, consoling Emily to the best of her ability. "It's alright." Emily responds. "I had to make progress with or without him either way, and because of TTL, I started to branch out in the world. Then the business took off from there. Now you know the majority of my story."
"So, to make sure... you had all of this planned out?" "Yep Esther. Nothing got past me this time around!" I grit my teeth. "And Charlie?" Justin then waves it off. "I honestly have no clue what the heck happened there with the impostor and the bandits. Not my fault, but you see what I have to deal with, messing with my plans?!" I then shake my head. "Whatever. You won't best me for forever..." He just slumps his shoulders over in stress. "Seriously? Still trying to one-up me after all of this? What more could you possibly have? C'mon. Throw it at me."
"Ivory Capulet. I found her, and when I get a hold of her and tell her what you did to Charlie, then you're screwed completely! Nothing you could do about it!" I feel reasonably confident with my answer, but Justin also gives off the same look, complete with a smirk.
"What if I told you... that she worked for me?"
"YOU'VE GOTTA BE F**KING KIDDING ME!"
"Ach-psaihsdcfk, whatever. Keep your sailor mouth shut! Now we're definitely screwed!" Justin starts sweating uncontrollably, and nervously pans around the room, maybe going a little more insane than before. "Est! Do me a favor, for all of us!" She shakes herself up to her feet in a second. "Ah, y-yes?!" Justin devilishly smiles back in response. "Go out in front, and distract the masses with your cuteness!" "W-w-w-w-what?! How would I even do that?! I d-don't even know where we are!" "Look, you'll be back in the entrance of town when you leave. The general public absolutely adores small, cute little girls, on the other hand. Character Archetypes and Stereotypes! Now, now, let's move on!" He forcibly starts shoving Esther to the front, and she reluctantly does not try to resist. "Ehm... I guess I could try..." She feebly says, not pleased with the position she got stuck in. As she leaves our sight, and the noise starts to pick up, all of us sigh. "Phew... That was closer than I wanted it to be..." Justin says. I sit back down, utterly devastated by Justin's previous response. But there's no way it could be true... Ivory herself was clueless about us coming here... so he must be lying. Yeah. Must be lying to me. Nothing else can explain it. "Tim, she's a sleeper agent for me. She was sent to make sure that the convoy got here safely, and she didn't ask any questions at all. Undercover goes a long way, huh?" I look back to Justin, who has the straightest face that he can muster. I just stare silently for a moment before finally letting myself fall to the floor below, completely defeated. I don't bother trying anymore, just leaving my senses to do the rest of the work for me, as my own mental might has been exhausted beyond capacity.
"Now then, let's start by a headcount."
"Sure thing, Mr. Labilles. I already have a list of everything here, including the extras."
"Extras? I'm sorry, but I didn't order anything special... did I?"
"Oh, did I not mention it earlier? Mr. Guy came along, and ordered a bit more."
"..."
"Mr. Labilles?"
"That dastardly villain is going to pay... get me the lethal supplies."
"As you wish... but they're all in the back. You have to go outdoors to get them."
"What time are we wasting then?! Esther's a good enough distraction, so let's get going!"
I then hear footsteps trail off, leaving the dead of silence with me.
"Oh, how fun this job can be... New things every day..."
"Wow Tim. Didn't take you for that kind of man. Well, guy. I mean, TG already is a hassle enough..." Justin comments to himself. I immediately scramble to my feet, and stare him straight into his eyes. "I am NOT TG, you stupid piece of S**t! I may be friends with him, but he's a big enough hassle to deal with by himself!" Esther then shakes in fear, with Emily and Justin looking at me in disbelief. "What do you not understand?! If we're caught, you're going down with us!" He softly shouts back at me. Emily then turns to Esther in the background, whispering to her in her own conversation. "Is Mr. Guy really that bad? He didn't seem that bad when I was with him earlier." "Eh?" I hear a confused tone in Esther's voice, and Emily starts to get up, even without an answer. "Well, that secret is out." She says, dusting herself off. Justin then sighs. "I was hoping for a quick and flawless exchange. Not the chance to be completely found out by everyone else in the town..." I smile devilishly back at him, who is unaware of the knowledge I possess. "You're the bonehead here, by the way." He questionably looks back at me, adjusting his glasses as a way of intimidation. "Hmmm? What for?" "You tried to do some black market business with EmilyCasey instead of going for the regular supply convoy, stupid!" Emily looks over in our direction, and Esther slumps farther back, more confused than ever. Justin the starts laughing out loud, but still at a reasonable tone to hide our presence. "Oh? You mean the monthly convoy that arrives here? I could completely resupply from it?" "Indee- wait, what?! But how did you..." My ego starts to drop and trail off like my unfinished sentence. I stand dumbfounded at the surprise of surprise of knowledge. "You knew this?!" "Indeed." "Then why didn't you say anything else, you A**hole?!"
"Well, during the planning phase for the trip-"
"HOLD IT! You actually planned for this?! You never plan for everything!"
"Oh, you must not know. These glasses are not just for show, unless you count them if they're broken. I actually plan, a LOT. It's just that with my stupid blind luck, everything spirals out of control, and then I have to come up with something new on the spot. That's why I may seem stupid and make bad decisions, but let me tell you, it's all part of the plan." I stand back, still in disbelief over his words. "Then what about this mess?!" I say, spreading my arms out and turning to face the plethora of new items and the new face in the area. "Well, maybe if you shut up and let me finish for once... Now, the first step was to Ft. Laramie, as you know. As a fallback plan, I set up an agent in case of total disaster." We all stare at Emily, who bows in courtesy. "Emily Sola Stagiz, representative of The Stagiz Station, at your service. I myself took the time to expand the business as a trading company, while taking advantage of the catering service that we supply." She says, clenching a smile at her own success. Justin then walks over to her side and continues the conversation. "I called up Emily to see what she had to offer, and as if by coincidence, she trades in this town, making my life easier. She's the biggest caravan though, so stock sells out quick." He glances back at Emily, who is still smiling, then back to the group. "I got first dibs on the stash because of reservations, but if someone else finds out, then soon, the whole town would join in, cops included." Emily continues smiling in agreement. "I didn't want to resort to darker means, but in the end, it's for the customer, and it's all business..." I stare wordlessly at the duo, still processing the strange amount of intelligence coming from the first. "You go pretty far for the business, Em." Esther comments. She seems to have recovered quicker than I have from the shock... either that, or she just didn't drink at all last night... Being a minor surely does have its perks and disadvantages... "Hey Em." Emily looks over to Esther, who is tilting her head. "What caused you to do all of this?"
"Well, The S.S. was a subshop, and still is, but like I've said before... Charlie left to pursue other interests. Leaving the family and the family business at a loss, I had to step up to the plate as the next in line. Thing is, being family owned, catering didn't come to our attention as an idea at first. So I had to go through all of the hassle with setting it up, but Justin gave me the boost that I needed. Back in the original series, I was the cause of all the take-five snacks. I was just really shy though, so Justin didn't feel the need to introduce me to you guys... but I saw how all of you performed off screen." She cheerfully says. "But what I didn't know at the time, was that Charlie was working with you. We were both oblivious to each other's presence, but when he found out that I had worked with Justin, he just shook it off like nothing else. He never really commented on my work at all, to be honest..." She then hangs her head down low in sadness. "He hated our family so much... he didn't even stop once in a while for small talk with me..." Esther then starts patting her on the shoulders. "Shhh... it'll be fine..." She says, consoling Emily to the best of her ability. "It's alright." Emily responds. "I had to make progress with or without him either way, and because of TTL, I started to branch out in the world. Then the business took off from there. Now you know the majority of my story."
"So, to make sure... you had all of this planned out?" "Yep Esther. Nothing got past me this time around!" I grit my teeth. "And Charlie?" Justin then waves it off. "I honestly have no clue what the heck happened there with the impostor and the bandits. Not my fault, but you see what I have to deal with, messing with my plans?!" I then shake my head. "Whatever. You won't best me for forever..." He just slumps his shoulders over in stress. "Seriously? Still trying to one-up me after all of this? What more could you possibly have? C'mon. Throw it at me."
"Ivory Capulet. I found her, and when I get a hold of her and tell her what you did to Charlie, then you're screwed completely! Nothing you could do about it!" I feel reasonably confident with my answer, but Justin also gives off the same look, complete with a smirk.
"What if I told you... that she worked for me?"
"YOU'VE GOTTA BE F**KING KIDDING ME!"
"Ach-psaihsdcfk, whatever. Keep your sailor mouth shut! Now we're definitely screwed!" Justin starts sweating uncontrollably, and nervously pans around the room, maybe going a little more insane than before. "Est! Do me a favor, for all of us!" She shakes herself up to her feet in a second. "Ah, y-yes?!" Justin devilishly smiles back in response. "Go out in front, and distract the masses with your cuteness!" "W-w-w-w-what?! How would I even do that?! I d-don't even know where we are!" "Look, you'll be back in the entrance of town when you leave. The general public absolutely adores small, cute little girls, on the other hand. Character Archetypes and Stereotypes! Now, now, let's move on!" He forcibly starts shoving Esther to the front, and she reluctantly does not try to resist. "Ehm... I guess I could try..." She feebly says, not pleased with the position she got stuck in. As she leaves our sight, and the noise starts to pick up, all of us sigh. "Phew... That was closer than I wanted it to be..." Justin says. I sit back down, utterly devastated by Justin's previous response. But there's no way it could be true... Ivory herself was clueless about us coming here... so he must be lying. Yeah. Must be lying to me. Nothing else can explain it. "Tim, she's a sleeper agent for me. She was sent to make sure that the convoy got here safely, and she didn't ask any questions at all. Undercover goes a long way, huh?" I look back to Justin, who has the straightest face that he can muster. I just stare silently for a moment before finally letting myself fall to the floor below, completely defeated. I don't bother trying anymore, just leaving my senses to do the rest of the work for me, as my own mental might has been exhausted beyond capacity.
"Now then, let's start by a headcount."
"Sure thing, Mr. Labilles. I already have a list of everything here, including the extras."
"Extras? I'm sorry, but I didn't order anything special... did I?"
"Oh, did I not mention it earlier? Mr. Guy came along, and ordered a bit more."
"..."
"Mr. Labilles?"
"That dastardly villain is going to pay... get me the lethal supplies."
"As you wish... but they're all in the back. You have to go outdoors to get them."
"What time are we wasting then?! Esther's a good enough distraction, so let's get going!"
I then hear footsteps trail off, leaving the dead of silence with me.
"Oh, how fun this job can be... New things every day..."
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