Early in the afternoon, Edgar had retired to his study after another long morning of holding court and various meetings afterwards. As necessary as that schedule was, it seemed rather monotonous at times. Though he flourished in the presence of company, it was a relief to find a few moments for solitude...even if paperwork had to be finished. At least such work was relatively mindless this time, little more than affixing his signature to contracts already hammered out in the weeks before.
Hoping to wrap up his work relatively soon and make good on his promise to whisk Terra away from the castle for a while, he was about to do just what when he noted an unfamiliar paperback at his desk. Arching an eyebrow, he lifted it for inspection and instantly recognized it as one of Relm's mind-rotting romance novels. She had visited him earlier in the day and must have left it behind. The king winced, remembering those awful passages she quoted from it. I should just burn the thing, to spare the both of us... Having glanced at the cover, he was vaguely unsettled to realize that Relm had been right. The man on the cover did bear an uncanny resemblance to the king...if said king were known to be walking around shirtless. Shuddering, Edgar nonetheless couldn't help but page through it, out of some masochistic need to scar his mind further.
Shadow didn't have any desire or need to remain much longer in Figaro... That was, as soon as he'd informed Edgar of what he could. He'd actually had thoughts of not reporting at all, he could just send the king a message with further detail. Perhaps he could then take off, spend some time on his own, work out what needed to be worked out. However, he wasn't even sure what that would mean, and he knew that wherever he went, he would be taking Relm.
Making his way stealthily into the study, Shadow was pleased to find that the king was actually present this time. Good. Edgar was completely focused on reading something, a book with a half- dressed man on the cover. The mercenary could have sworn he'd seen said book in Relm's hands before. Shadow crossed his arms, a bored look coming into his eyes. "I'm interrupting something important," he finally said in an even tone.
Engrossed in the novel despite his better judgement, the mercenary's sudden appearance took Edgar completely by surprise. Not that such was difficult, given Shadow's talent for stealthy entrances. At hearing Shadow's voice, he was jolted back into reality and automatically tossed aside the offending item so quickly it seemed to have jumped out of his hands. He didn't even spare a furtive glance to see where it landed, preferring to ignore its existance. "Knock next time, will you?" His tone was more defensive than he meant for it to sound, though what a moment to walk in on...
It was one of those immensely rare occasions when Shadow came dangerously close to smirking. Not that it would have been noticed under the mask, but the thought was there. Instead, he stood as he was, in silence, his eyes slowly darting from the book, to the king, back to the book... and then at last to rest on Edgar. There was some instinct that Shadow had honed throughout the years, which made it impossible for him to resist an opportunity to make someone uncomfortable. "The door was unlocked," he replied simply. Hm, Edgar had really better hope he didn't ever get any attempts on his life. He could very well find himself murdered in cold blood, one day, slumped over a well-thumbed romance novel. Shadow shook his head, trying to clear his head of the moment of absurdity. "And I came to report." Simple as that, really.
"Of course." Edgar was perfectly willing to move on to a safer subject and pretend Shadow had never found him in such a situation. Because he hadn't. Really. Settling back in his chair, he gestured for Shadow to take a seat though he didn't expect the mercenary to do anything but pace. It was polite to at least offer. "Begin wherever you see fit. I'm most interested in hearing about this matter in more depth than it had been provided to me." He tried not to think about how Relm stopped by earlier, giving him little in the way of answers as she preferred to quote...no, mustn't think about that. Ever.
Shadow indeed stayed where he was for the moment, not bothering to sit. If anything could make him uncomfortable, it was actually acting like a normal person giving a normal report. He turned his eyes toward Edgar, though he did find his gaze drifting to the fallen book yet again. It was just for an instant, of course, but it was an instant too much. Edgar's resemblance to the man on the cover... it was uncanny. How had he missed that before? And how disturbing was this kind of thought? "It was luck. It was a place that hadn't been searched, and we happened across it. Right place, right time. They'd sent out the scouting party to get their bearings. They all remember nothing. They don't remember disappearing, or the time passing. Nothing."
Edgar, for his part, completely ignored the book the moment it hit the floor. It wasn't (just) to avoid the awkward situation, he had genuine interest in what Shadow had to say about his people and their unexpected recovery. Furrowing his brow, he reluctantly nodded in agreement with the mercenary's report. "I suppose that's fortunate for them, as I would not want them to remember such an incident. However, that doesn't give me very much to work with, other than what Terra had felt in the city when it was abandoned. As much as I would like to shove this into the past and forget about it, I can't afford that to happen again. Has there been any recent activity due to Sephiroth?" Now that the villain was offworld, Edgar could breathe easier...but only a little. He didn't relish the thought of any of his allies being subjected to his whims.
With a nod, Shadow continued: "Agreed, there really isn't much to go on. That's the problem. All we know is they had to be contained and concealed there. Though I can't imagine why the spell faded when it did." There was no doubt that Sephiroth was powerful, however. After their latest unsuccessful attempts against Kefka, the mercenary was reluctant to meet this one. Not that he wouldn't do it, given the right motivation.
Now beginning to pace slowly back and forth, Shadow considered this new threat. "I haven't had time to gather much on him. Though I heard of something happening, not long ago. In Spira. He made an attack in their portal city. And it looks like Kefka's now moving to that world, too." It was strange that the villains seemed to be throwing all of their focus on certain worlds all at once. But, even more than that, it was frustrating now having more than one of these all powerful sorts to keep an eye on. Someone really had to do one of them in, someday.
"Considering I have abysmal magical sensitivity, I have no idea. I doubt even Terra knows for certain, though she might have a better guess than any of us. I'll ask her." Edgar's formal expression softened at mention of Terra, that impatience to spirit her away from the castle growing with every minute. But first things first. "Are they actually coordinating, or is this coincidence? It's difficult to imagine Kefka cooperating with anyone, especially someone who could be seen as a rival. Of course, they could be...but that doesn't explain their choices in targets." Then again, it was a bad idea to credit Kefka with logic as it is. Sephiroth was far more of a wild card at the moment. "I want information on both their whereabouts, if possible. Assuming that they're in the same area, that shouldn't be too difficult. As long as they're continuing to be a threat, they need to be monitored. The crew from the Planet should be informed as well, they have as much invested in this. And yes, I know it will cost extra."
It was just as Shadow thought- they would probably never know exactly what Sephiroth had done to the Figaro people, but it was done and over, for now. Pausing in his pacing, Shadow again folded his arms. "You're right about the cost." But he'd do it- anything that served as an excuse to leave was fine by him. He then shook his head. "Whatever's happening, they're not in on it together. That's not how these types think. They always work alone. Though it's a damned big coincidence. Spira's not big on technology the way the Planet is. It is magically rich." Which meant trouble, as far as that world was concerned, though Shadow was willing to bet it wouldn't be long before they returned to this one.
Edgar nodded, dismissing any idea of the two villains cooperating, and he fought not to smirk as Shadow proved him right about the cost, though worrying about such was beneath him. The king certainly had the funds -and dedication- to support this monitoring to any extent. The mercenary's points about Spira provoked a frown as Edgar's concern shifted to the world that he'd had the pleasure of visiting before chaos erupted. "Spira needs to be advised on what they're dealing with, then. I'll try to get in touch with the Spirans I'm familiar with, offer what aid I can."
"Do that," Shadow replied in agreement, not bothering to add that he wasn't sure how much good it would do them. No sense in stating the obvious. Perhaps the Spirans would have some effective means of defending themselves. Shadow wondered if there was no world left that hadn't been at the mercy of some powerful villain. Ah, well. His focus was now this new task ahead of him. It was always good when he didn't even need to make payment negotiations, though even that wasn't his primary concern. "There's not much else that can be said, in that case. Talking won't do much good."
Edgar sincerely hoped that the Spiran would fair better than their otherworld counterparts, though he had severe doubts. The villains seemed as powerful anywhere they went, there was no information to contradict that assumption so far. Nodding to Shadow, he began to stand before remembering he had that last bit of paperwork and sat down with a trace of petulance. "No, I supppose not. Provide me with whatever information you gather and I'll do my best to pass it on in the hopes of forming some plan of action. Oh, and I think Relm went to the gardens...or at least that's where she said she'd be." He managed the briefest of glances to the novel, grudgingly acknowledging its existence again. "That's hers."
"You'll have your information. One way or another." It probably would be best to go find Relm, now, anyway. Shadow focused a glare onto the novel. Disturbing. Although it really should not have been a surprise that this was Edgar's taste in entertainment. At least he didn't have to worry about Shadow informing any others of this. The mercenary had no intention of doing so, anytime soon. "She'll want that back. At your... convenience." He looked to Edgar with a very serious expression in his eyes, before turning to leave.
"No, I don't want that here..." Damn. Edgar trailed off with a sigh as Shadow slipped away before he could toss the novel at him, glaring at the offending item. Relm had better return for it, he wasn't about walk through the halls of his castle with that in hand. Moving to stand, he shoved that under the nearby couch with his foot, as though afraid it would contaminate him again. Trying to ignore its lure, he returned to his desk to finish the last of his work before any kidnapping occured.