“Oh, I wouldn’t say it’s all sunshine and seaweed for them,” he says idly. “There are predators even in the deepest pits of the planes. Some of them may even look harmless at first glance,”
"I can't imagine you spend much time talking to fish and rabbits, Agent," he says, folding his wizened hands behind his back. "But regardless, I'm not here to cause you any trouble. In fact, I think we could both benefit from a friendly conversation."
"The first one, then," he says, unruffled. "This isn't the first time I've dealt with SECO. They have a habit of employing... unusual people. And who is he?" This with a flick of the eyes at Hopford.
The man's eyebrow goes up. "Impressive." He leans back against the tank and shoves his hands into his pockets. "All right, then. Let's fill in some blanks. You're quite aware that you're special, aren't you?" This at Seline.
"And SECO employs this one -" gesturing between you and Adrian - "to... what did they tell you? To keep you safe? You don't need anyone to keep you safe, something tells me you can manage that perfectly well on your own. So, why do you think they would want to employ someone with the express purpose of keeping tabs on a powerful being such as you, and tracking your every move?" He shrugs. "Altruism?"
"I'm suggesting nothing. Merely making an observation." He looks at Hopford. "For that matter, I could make several observations, such as the fact that you have a very nice sword there. Where did you get it?"
"I recognize valuable merchandise, that's all." He gestures to the bag hiding Foley. "Including what's in there, and what's around your neck. But that's just an observation. I've been told I'm very observant."
"I have no problem with you knowing about my abilities. As I said, I didn't come to cause trouble." He sizes you up in return. "My connection to SECO is that I have a very long history with SECO trying to, what's the term, protect magical things. And magical people. And SECO's form of protection tends to be throwing them into a black paneled van and locking it in an antimagic room for a hundred years, if you haven't noticed. I wonder what your fate will be?"
He motions to Seline. "When they decide she's too dangerous to stay out here?"
"The biggest threatening things about her are pop culture references and her desk cleaning abilities. Besides, the higher ups would have to go through me if they wanted to lock her up."
"For her sake I hope you're right." He looks back at the fish. "I've always been of the opinion that power is meant to be used, not bound up in an extradimensional security vault to rot forever. That's really what brings me here, Agents, if I'm honest. I'm wondering what your stake in all of this is. What drives you to throw yourself in front of the thundering train of cosmic inevitability."
"Ah, so you suffer from the same great hubris as me," he says. "You truly believe that by putting locks all over your house, you can stop a burglar from breaking your window."
He gestures to the fishtank. "You believe if we are very careful and leave this fishtank alone and put a thirty-foot radius around it, it will never inevitably succumb to entropy and shatter."
"I admire your courage." He puts his hands back in his pockets. "I mean that. But trying to stop the inevitable is a fool's errand. What is in motion has already begun. You are trying to catch the ocean in a sieve, Agent, and I'm here to implore you that you will not succeed. I'm here to warn you of what's coming, and to offer you an alternative to destruction."
"Since I shouldn't bother pretending that I'm not well aware of the objective you're pursuing, I'll speak plainly. You seek to return the books to SECO's custody." He tilts his head. "Is that right?"
He spreads his hands in a gesture of good faith. "Are you aware that part of the reason two of those books are out in the world now is because SECO themselves, the organization that is meant to contain the things that go bump in the night, to protect the world from apocalypse, failed to contain them?"
"And yet you believe it will be different the next time?" he questions. "When you bring them back to them in triumph? That this time - this time - they will surely manage to contain them successfully forever?"
"Your other option, the one that I'm proposing, is simple. The permanent solution, the one that SECO should pursue instead of hoarding them for the personal gain of shadowy entities you have no knowledge of." He brings his fist down on his palm with a smack. "Destroy them."
"SECO will resist you." He leans back against the fishtank. "They will give you some excuse about why preserving them is important. They want the books just like everyone else does. The desire for power corrupts almost as absolutely as the power itself. You said yourself that we can't be trusted with their power. So why not destroy them?"
He shrugs. "I'm offering an alternative to destruction, as promised. Just because I believe power is meant to be used doesn't mean I can't propose a reasonable course of action. And as for whether destroying them has any consequences, it's difficult to imagine something worse than the books themselves, isn't it?"
He raises an intrigued eyebrow. "You strike me as being familiar with magic. Tell me, are you aware of any magic that could annihilate something so completely that nothing could possibly be left?"
"Then I'm sure, given time, you will find a way." He looks between you. "So. That is my proposal. You keep the books out of SECO's clutches, you solve the problems they have created for everyone and the world at large, and you ensure no evil hands will ever touch them again. Does that sound like a reasonable proposal?"
"You make a good point, but in case you didn't notice, we don't have the books yet. Even if we agreed with you now, I'm sure you know there's no guarantee what we'll do when we do."
"Oh, certainly. My hope is that you'll consider what I've said. I'm an interested party in how this all turns out." He looks back at the fish. "If I were a cynical man, I would say I should simply hope you don't attempt what so many others have attempted, and try to control the books yourself or take their power for yourself. Few who do so survive."
