Yes, this time Castle was determined to assassinate Senator Pratt using an unlikely assassin: an animal.
The intelligence Jarvis had gathered on Senator Pratt revealed that the senator was quite concerned about his health, even in his old age. Despite his busy schedule, he still made time to swim every day and regularly visited the beach near his private estate to swim in the ocean for about half an hour.
When this detail popped up in Jarvis' reports the night before, it sparked a bizarre idea in Castle's mind. To confirm the feasibility of his plan, he had Jarvis scour the internet for more information and found there was at least an 80% chance he could communicate with one of the deadliest creatures in the ocean: the blue-ringed octopus. And so, he settled on a plan to use this tiny but highly venomous octopus to assassinate the senator during one of his daily swims.
However, there was no way Castle could explain this plan to Neal and Mozzie directly. First, they wouldn't believe it. Second, how could he possibly explain his ability to control a blue-ringed octopus and command it to bite Senator Pratt?
To cover his bases, Castle also planned to find a venomous sea snake as a backup assassin, just in case the blue-ringed octopus failed to do the job. But how could he tell Neal that Pratt might end up being bitten by both an octopus and a snake while swimming? No one would believe it!
After Neal left Castle's estate and Mozzie dove into the AI research lab with Ramsey and the others, Castle wasted no time. He used his smart wristband to instruct Jarvis to take control of the two upgraded drones that the pudgy Ramsey had abandoned after losing interest.
Since Castle had established strong ties with the Northrop Grumman company, they had upgraded the drones with the latest reconnaissance systems. After all, the military had placed a large order for the drones Castle designed. Now, these two drones were tasked with much more than just personal scouting—they were equipped with military-grade reconnaissance technology that Castle had managed to get his hands on under the guise of military necessity.
These drones, now outfitted with advanced identification systems, could legally fly in broad daylight. Since neither Mozzie nor Ramsey were using them, it was the perfect opportunity for Jarvis to take full control. After all, both the drones and Jarvis hailed from the same world—the Marvel universe—so managing them was well within Jarvis' capabilities.
Once the drones were airborne, Castle ordered Jarvis to track Senator Pratt's every move. Meanwhile, Castle retreated to his mechanical lab to design a miniature, high-speed underwater device capable of swiftly delivering a blue-ringed octopus and a venomous sea snake to the senator while he swam.
After spending the entire day working in his lab, using his "Mechanical Mastery" skill from the system—awarded to him based on Tony Stark's expertise—Castle created a small, torpedo-shaped device. It was 1.5 meters long, with a diameter of just 40 centimeters, and could travel through water at speeds of up to 182 kilometers per hour. The front of the device was equipped with a camera to help Jarvis navigate it toward its target, and behind the camera were two compartments—one for the blue-ringed octopus and one for the sea snake. The rear half of the device housed the batteries and propulsion system, which allowed it to travel at top speed for about 30 minutes underwater at a depth of two meters.
Once the device was ready, Castle asked Jarvis to locate where he could acquire a blue-ringed octopus and a venomous sea snake in New York. Avoiding pet markets or black-market dealers, Castle instead decided to steal the creatures from a research lab, ensuring that if Pratt's death led to an investigation, it wouldn't be traced back to him.
Thanks to the system's enhancements and several prior rewards, Castle's physical abilities were impressive. With Jarvis providing real-time updates on the lab's security, and having discreetly replaced the surveillance footage with looping videos, Castle managed to break into the lab undetected. Within no time, he had successfully stolen a blue-ringed octopus and a sea snake from a hidden biology lab without a hitch.
On his way back to the estate, Castle tested whether he could communicate with the two creatures. The results were better than he expected—the blue-ringed octopus even had a higher level of intelligence than the sea snake and quickly understood his instructions. After promising the octopus a happy life if it helped him out, the tiny creature agreed to bite Pratt on command. The sea snake, on the other hand, took a bit more training, but eventually, it too understood what was required.
With everything in place, Castle now only had to wait for Senator Pratt to go for what would be his final swim.
It was almost as if fate had aligned against the senator. His favorite swimming spot was located along Long Island's northern shore, near Castle's own estate. The scenic and pleasant area was a favorite of New York's wealthy elite, and Senator Pratt, a member of the powerful Pratt family, owned an estate there as well—just five kilometers from Castle's home. This meant that Castle's drones, armed with their new reconnaissance equipment, didn't even need to fly over Pratt's estate. They could simply take off from Castle's property and still monitor the senator's every move with ease.
The miniature underwater delivery system Castle had designed was shaped like a spindle, narrow in the front and wider at the back. Although its range was limited to depths of two meters due to poor satellite signal reception underwater, it was more than enough for the mission. The front of the device housed a camera for Jarvis to guide it, while the two compartments for the octopus and sea snake were located just behind it. The rest of the space was filled with high-capacity batteries and the propulsion system, capable of reaching speeds of 180 kilometers per hour. This was the best Castle could create with the civilian materials available to him.
Now, all Castle had to do was wait for Senator Pratt to decide that the weather was perfect for a swim.
It wasn't long before Jarvis detected a shift in the Pratt family's attitude. Perhaps it was due to Neal abruptly terminating his cooperation with the FBI and leaving the country so quickly, but Pratt's family seemed to reconsider their plan to kill him. Realizing that Neal had backed off from pursuing the investigation, the family's resolve to eliminate him wavered. They now focused on dealing with the FBI and making sure that the evidence of Pratt's past crimes was buried through pressure from high-level officials. If they succeeded, it would be as if Pratt's dirty deeds had never happened. Ironically, they even considered thanking Neal Caffrey for dropping the case.
For Neal and Castle, this was good news.
But for Castle, Senator Pratt still had to die.
No matter the senator's change of plans or attempts at damage control, Castle had already committed. The senator's death was inevitable.
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Fairy Tail: Igneel's Eldest Son (Chapter 256)
I Am Thalos, Odin's Older Brother (Chapter 336)
Reborn in America's Anti-Terror Unit (Chapter 542)
Solomon in Marvel (Chapter 924)
Becoming the Wealthiest Tycoon on the Planet (Chapter 1284)
Surgical Fruit in the American Comics Universe (Chapter 1289)
American Detective: From TV Rookie to Seasoned Cop (Chapter 1316)
American TV Writer (Chapter 1402)
I Am Hades, The Supreme GOD of the Underworld! (Chapter 570)
Reborn as Humanity's Emperor Across the Multiverse (Chapter 660)
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