Fixer-Uppers, Monday

[endsthegame]

Ender had been awake when he'd recieved a text from Karla that was, to put it mildly, worrisome. He got to work early that morning, still frowning at his phone; it didn't invite an answering text, but it was something to think about.

Trouble.

He shouldn't be surprised.

That frown remained on his face throughout the day as he worked.

[[ open! ]]

Comments

[momslilassassin]

Ben came in, frowning as well as he held coffee and hamburgers. "I don't suppose you received a completely unhelpful text this morning," he said.

[endsthegame]

"I did," Ender agreed, looking up. "There's been rumblings in Kaeleer for a long time. Chances are, this is a part of it."

[momslilassassin]

"I suppose it's too much to hope that she took someone with her for back-up," Ben complained.

[endsthegame]

"If she didn't ask you, she probably didn't," Ender said, matter-of-factly. "She should have her fair share of backup back home, though."

[momslilassassin]

"If she tells them she's coming," Ben grumbled. "And I don't like some of them."

Because that mattered so much in Karla's decision-making processes.

[endsthegame]

"But the large majority of them like Karla," said Ender, patiently. "And I really don't think they give a rat's ass what you think about them."

[momslilassassin]

"Probably not," Ben admitted, flopping into a chair. "I wish her message had been a little longer on details. My imagination is running away with me with all of the generally bad possibilities."

[endsthegame]

"I'm half-surprised I didn't have to restrain you from running out the door the moment you got it," Ender said, with a snort, and shut his laptop.

[momslilassassin]

"Maybe I'm learning restraint," Ben said with a tiny smile.

[endsthegame]

"Not a bad feat, for a Skywalker." He took a deep breath. "I think it's better not to jump to conclusions. Anything could be happening."

[momslilassassin]

"It could be a surprise birthday party for Jaenelle or something," Ben said, not looking entirely convinced.

[endsthegame]

"I wasn't leaning that positive."

[momslilassassin]

Ben sighed. "Yeah, me either. There was a twinge of...something...in the Force last night. I have a bad feeling about this."

[endsthegame]

"Every time you say that, an angel gets its wings," Ender deadpanned. He sighed. "We might need to raise our personal alert level up a few notches."

[momslilassassin]

"Yeah," Ben agreed. "I'm thinking of sending her a few messages in reply, but I don't know if her phone works in Kaeleer."

[endsthegame]

"It's worth a shot," he said, taking his own phone out of his pocket. "'Karla - details. Do we need to be on standby?' might work."

[momslilassassin]

Ben nodded. "Force only knows how long it might take to get a portal to Kaeleer."

[endsthegame]

"How long did it take last time?" he asked, flipping through his phone.

[momslilassassin]

"Not very," Ben said, "but Karla was pulling the strings. It took us a lot longer to get to where you were without you."

[endsthegame]

Ender glanced in his direction. "That's because there were all of two portal hubs in my world, and they were both under heavy surveillance," he said. "That's a different ballgame."

[momslilassassin]

Ben shrugged. "If she left in this much of a hurry, Kaeleer might have locked itself up tight once she arrived."

[endsthegame]

"Maybe," Ender said, glancing back down at his phone, "But I doubt that portal travel there is as wrapped up in paperwork and military secrecy."

[momslilassassin]

"True," Ben said thoughtfully. "They're so wrapped up in their cultural use of magic that they might forget the portals entirely."

[endsthegame]

"I think the phrase 'they're so wrapped up in their cultural use of magic' can be used to explain a lot," Ender said, and sent Ben an amused look. He wondered if the Jedi got the ironic subtext of a statement like that.

[momslilassassin]

Ben made a face back at him. "Yeah, yeah, at least we don't use rings."

[endsthegame]

"I don't know," Ender said, thoughtfully. "Some days, that Force of yours seems two steps away from being a magical decoder ring."

[momslilassassin]

Ben reached into the Force to cuff Ender gently on the head. "Hey."

[endsthegame]

Ender endured it, as one did. "Resorting to physical violence now?" he asked. "I'm just pointing out, you're being a bit of a hypocrit."

[momslilassassin]

"Maybe," Ben conceded. "But the Force is more than a decoder ring."

[endsthegame]

"Of course it is," Ender said, lightly. "I'm oversimplifying on purpose."

[momslilassassin]

"And if Karla's guys are using their rings to decode things, I certainly don't want to be watching that happen," Ben said with a little laugh.

[endsthegame]

"Wouldn't that be a sight, though," Ender deadpanned, "If they all did it at the same time."

[momslilassassin]

Ben burst out laughing. "Now that's a mental image that's going to haunt me for a while."

[endsthegame]

"That's what I'm here for," Ender said, grinning; then he sobered. "We'll text Karla, and if she isn't back in a few days, we'll grab a portal," he said. "Otherwise, stop dwelling, Skywalker."

[momslilassassin]

Ben nodded. "In that case, provide more distractions, Wiggin."

[endsthegame]

"Just know that I'm not dancing with you again."

[momslilassassin]

"You weren't that terrible," Ben replied, sipping from his coffee.