The trio unfurled the purple ribbon around the note and gingerly unrolled the note. They were dumbfounded at its contents.

“This note is empty!” Foxtail shouted, pointing at the now rigid sheet of paper, the creases from being rolled up disappearing upon being fully exposed. Foreigner gave it a closer look and could see faint grooves on the sheet of paper like engravings or etchings but otherwise it was just an empty sheet of paper.

“Peculiar,” Jin yanked the note from Foreigner’s hand, “This is workshop tech.” They pointed to an empty spot on the page. Foreigner and Foxtail looked at one another before having their eyes commit to intense scrutiny, to no avail. Jin frowned before walking over to their overflowing workbench and rummaged through the pile. “This should help.” They handed a shard of blue glass, lightning caught inside of it like one would catch in bottles, and traced over the spot Jin had pointed out. Sure enough there was an insignia emblazoned in the corner with the image of an origami rabbit.

“Have any idea which workshop uses this symbol?” Foxtail turned to Jin. They merely shook their head in the negative.

“Regardless, this paper is luminous with technological activity.” Beyond the perspective of the glass shard now there were shimmering lines travelling all across the page before focusing on a singular point. A sentence began to write itself on the sheet.

“So, you have found the note.” The words were written with a brilliant blue light, a mild chirping sound occurring with each brush stroke. Way below at the end of the page appeared an arrow that began blinking in all cardinal and ordinal directions like a ticking clock. The trio stood in silence as the sentence continued. “It seems you’re somewhere I can’t find you but I know you’ve opened the note.” Jin looked at the rest of them with a befuddled look and walked off. “Here is my ultimatum, Arenas. You’ve got by tomorrow’s Evening Bell to arrive at my location, alone. The sheet will act as your guide. Should you not be around before tomorrow’s Evening Bell, you will force my hand and I will slay the Meister and this young boy.” The paragraph lingered on the page before turning into a small square and moving to the top corner of the sheet. “Struggle. Do whatever it takes to defy your fate so I can have the satisfaction of accomplishing my task of killing you physically and spiritually.” The second paragraph entered into its square and became pressed up against the previous paragraph. Foreigner attempted to fold the sheet of paper but the material was defiant and tough as steel. It would not bend or budge with his attempts. He stopped paying attention to the strange device and began to focus on Foxtail who was rummaging through Jin’s pile of stuff in a panic.

“Woah, woah, I think you shouldn’t go through Jins stuff like that.” Foreigner reached over to grab Foxtail away but she slapped his hand away with a surprising amount of force.

“You heard her? We need to get prepared and save Peepers as soon as possible! There should be,” She grabbed at a strange looking device before chucking it in with another pile in another section of the room, “There should be some stuff worth using here that can help.” Jin walked back in the room and bolted for Foxtail, lifting her up despite their thin frame. She shuffled in their grip but they did not relent, the exasperation creeping on her face.

“The small one makes it seem like you are pressed for time.” Jin turned over to Foreigner and waited for a response.

“She’s just worried about our mutual friend. We only have until the end of the next Evening Bell for me to meet with her alone and come up with a plan to save the Meister and Peepers.” Foreigner replied.

“Those two mean a lot to me.” Jin stated in a monotone while they gently lowered Foxtail. “What is your plan of action going to be to save them.” They turned to watch Foxtail begin her search through the pile once more.

“We’re gonna get all the stuff we can use here and raid that devils hideout! If she’s hurt that boy, I swear I’m gonna make her wish she hadn’t.” Forcefully now, Foreigner grabbed Foxtails wrist and refused to let go.

“That’s just being reckless, partner, and you know this.” He allowed the sentence to register into her mind even while she wriggled. “Listen, before a plan can come together, we need information on this Banshee and maybe some allies. I have a couple of plans but I don’t want to commit to anything until we know what we’re up against. What’s the point of rummaging through this pile of junk for options if we don’t know what is or isn’t effective against this person?” Foreigner stared Foxtail down. He knew her exasperation quite well and he was glad that the partitioning of his mind did not remove his calm and calculated demeanor. Nothing is worse to succeeding on a plan than making reckless actions under a panicked mindset. Her eyes were wily but she’d settled down for the moment. “We start with the Turned Stone Office. I’m sure we can get some information from Mal-Chin Ma about where to go next and potentially recruit him as an ally. If we’ve been making moves around the Backstreets, the Banshee must have as well. We can work our way from there.” Foreigner turned to Jin.

“I need you to see how this device works. If you can figure out why that arrow is going haywire, that would help.” Foreigner stated.

“I had come back into the room to divulge this information. The technology I’ve used to mask the insides of this room is messing with geographical connection of the device.” Jin replied matter-of-factly. They grabbed the paper and clear a section of their table, beginning to pick out tools from section of room to section of room. “I’m sure the moment this device is removed from these premises, the two pages will become locked and this Fixer will become much more proactive in taking us down.” Foreigner frowned.

“Is there anything you can do about that?” Foreigner asked. Jin merely shrugged before turning their attention to the device.

“I will look at the device. I will see what makes it tick and how I can alter its functions. It will take time and silence, so please leave.” Jin waved their hand in a sweeping motion without turning around. Foreigner nods and takes his leave through the curtains. Before Foxtail could follow, Jin grabs at a slender black stick from within the tabled pile and gives her a side glance before raising the item. “Do you plan to reveal what you are to your partner?”

“He doesn’t need to know what I am.” Foxtail yanks the device from Jin’s hand and begins to test it, small electrical sparks appearing at the end of the stick.

“Good luck then, little fox.” Foxtail leaves without another word, joining Foreigner outside of the Wired Oceans Workshop building.

The two set their path to the Turned Stone Office, treading familiar ground.