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RogueKazimeras Vice Captain
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 Posted: Sun Dec 17, 2006 6:36 am
Charles Thane approached alley 452 quickly, walking at a brisk pace, which could be easily explained by any random passerby that he was simply in a hurry to get in from the dark, cold night. His expression was drawn together in a sort of scowl, an intimidation tactic.
He drew closer to alley 452, and after a brief glance around, he activated his Cloaking biomodification, and turned invisible, not that there were any nearby that would've noticed him doing so. He then moved to the alley, nothing more than a slight shimmer against the background.
He slid precariously towards the alley, reaching into his jacket pocket and drawing his silenced .45, cloaked all the while. He drew closer, and eventually beheld the broken camera, and then overheard bits and pieces of a conversation.
"You're not going, understand? You'd be caught, and then have your memory wiped. Or worse...." Was what a woman's voice had said, her tone rather steady, and she was deliberately trying to stay quiet. Judging by other noises he had heard on his approach, there were at least three of them, and possibly more.
"Alice." He thought as a precursor to his mental message. "I believe we have resistance activity in Alley 452, some kind of meeting. They're planning something, something big, possibly. Only three individuals. Requesting permission to engage." There was probably no need for this formality, but it would be best if he could subjugate at least one of them. They seemed to be planning something. Or, of course, given that his biomodification's energy held up, he could follow them and find out what they were planning.
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Posted: Sun Dec 17, 2006 8:37 am
"What was that?" she thought... words... she just heard them. There was a name there. Alice? What lovely name. "Requesting permission to engage." Who are we engaging? Was that a Bydo? A radio tower perhaps? Maybe they were thinking that. The Resistance knew her. She wasn't familiar to everyone there, but a good portion of the resistance knew of Nel. Appearing from time to time, seeking interaction more than anything else. She was a kid after all.
"It's them. Yeah... who else could it be?" the lass considered, looking around for more signs of other people. She had watched them for a while now, hugging the corner of the building. The curiosity was killing her. "I wonder what it is... what are they staring at? Is it a picture of someone?" the thoughts kept turning over and over in her head.
"Mmmm!" she growled and stomped that little foot... which was anything but quiet as the current shell was mostly made of metal. "Ah!" a yelp. At this point... Nel's frustration of not knowing what those old looking people were looking at faded... her heart... if she had one... would've been beating loudly. With a loud series of "clunks" the symbol tried to run for a hiding place.
"Th...th...the... NOISE!" the girl had exclaimed in desperation. This was not a good day. Altering her gravitational field wasn't a subconscious thing... but, it was required to make her movements less noisy and heavy. Well... at least she looked like a normal girl... Forgive and forget? Please?
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Posted: Sun Dec 17, 2006 12:19 pm
Plugged into her communications modem once more, Alice listened to Thane's request.
It was unusual. Resistance meetings weren't usually so small. When they raided them, it would always be preplanned, and there would be upwards of ten high ranking members inside an abandoned building or in the backrooms of a business operating as a front. Instead, this was outside, with only a few people, and was found accidentally during a routine camera check. There probably weren't any high ranking members, either, judging by the circumstances.
Alice didn't know what to make of it, but it didn't matter. Regulations dictated what orders to give in this situation. "Detain them and call for--" She sifted through files on Thane in her computer. It seemed that he worked most frequently with Jurgen Diederich. While he was qualified for the circumstances, she didn't know whether this was such a good idea. Sending a squad leader to deal with three insurgents would be an overallocation of resources, but sending an operative wouldn't work either, because Thane had never worked with other operatives before.
She didn't have a choice, though. Massaging her brow, Alice continued. "Detain them immediately. Call for Diederich. You have weapons free, but do not fire unless met with resistance."
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Posted: Sun Dec 17, 2006 7:54 pm
"Is there any way to--" Kari stopped short as she heard a clunking sound in the distance. She felt a light touch on her shoulder and realized that it was Scyrix, who was glaring steadily into the entrance of the alley. "Sci? What's--?" He stepped forward, straightening his form, the bladed tendrils under his coat writhing like so many serpents.
Scyrix took several slow, deliberate strides away from the group, towards the exit to the alleyway. His eye swept the walls, searching. He was certain he'd heard something. Tentatively, he stretched out his thought.
It was pure discordance. Thousands of voices cried out, each of them a pinpoint of luminescence arranged in a boundless void fathoms deep. His mind registered hundreds of beings within the alley alone; rats and insects drowning his consciousness with their own. Scyrix blinked, pressing a hand to his brow. Something stirred in the distance, a radiant entity pulsating with excitement tinged in fear. Mesmerized, the young man reached far, but she seemed an eternity away.
Wait! Scyrix called. But it was too late, for her voice was beginning to blend with the others'. Disappointed, his mind found its way back to its resting place, but not before feeling the presence of another within the dark alleyway....
There is someone else here, he announced to Kari, a little weakly. It had been ages since he'd used his telepathic ability in this way. He wasn't quite sure what had led him to do it. He swayed on the spot, and took a step back, still struggling to seal his mind from the torrent of presences flooding his thoughts.
"Who were you calling for?" Kari whispered, a little worriedly. Scyrix never spoke to anyone save her. It was odd that he was trying to make contact with another. Obviously, he'd called out to everyone else as well, because though he was trying to make contact with one person, she'd heard him too. Which meant that he hadn't kept that little outburst screened from anyone--including the invisible "someone else" in the alley. The young man did not reply to the question, but resumed his search for the other person that had been watching from the shadows...
Kari sincerely hoped that said person hadn't overheard the first part of their conversation.
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Posted: Sun Dec 17, 2006 9:35 pm
Some one called to her... reaching out... Was it physical? Was it real? A mental image? A transmission? "What is this..." Nel moaned. She was not used to intercepting transmissions. She had trouble telling communications apart from reality. Hell, even the whole process of intercepting them was too draining. Unlike the Bydo, her mind wasn't as evolved. She was originally human after all.
"Who..." the lass gently called, turning back to see if anyone was following, this time remembering to alter her pull, making the movements lighter. Rule One of Perfect Escape: When running at high speeds, keeps your eyes in front of you.
Just then, as the girl thought of the hand reaching out, her world turned upside down... loud noise entered an already confused mind.
CRASH! Over the trashcan, tumbling and cracking the pavement.
"Mmmmm..." Nel moaned once more... laying on the trashcan, face in the road and trash all over.
Good thing she couldn't feel pain at this point.
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Posted: Sun Dec 17, 2006 9:56 pm
That noise again! Scyrix, curiosity overcoming him, rushed from the alley; his search for the hidden intruder completely forgotten. He pelted down the stretch of pavement, mind focused on finding the source of the metal-on-metal crash.
"Sci! Scyrix!" called Kari after him, but it was too late; the assassin had taken off in his usual manner--somersaulting like some deranged acrobat through the city, using those whip-tentacles of his. "Oh of all the--" Kari stared after her friend with a look of utter bewilderment on her face.
The young man hurtled as quickly as he was able through the streets. Over and under balconies and overhangs he went, before finally grasping a delapidated lightpost with a tentacle, neatly pulling himself up to the top. He perched there, scanning the various piles of litter with his undamaged eye. A small figure lay in a large pile of metal and garbage. Without hesitation, Scyrix leaped from the pole, landing catlike a few feet away. He walked nearer, gazing at the child in a confused sort of way.
Scyrix bent lower.
Are you hurt? he asked mentally.
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Posted: Mon Dec 18, 2006 10:40 am
"W-wait!" Radus called out. He had to get this over with as quickly as possible, but they'd already been interrupted, and he didn't manage to show Kari and Scyrix anything other than the communications records. It had been too long, though, and he had to leave. It would be bad if they were caught here, but it would be even worse if they were caught with documents they shouldn't have in an alleyway with a camera that shouldn't be broken.
Radus scooped up the papers with the manila envelope, tucking them under his arm. He turned towards the others but Scyrix was already gone.
"Listen, Kari. Go follow him for now. Whatever it is must be important for him to have left like that," Radus rationalized, "and we have to get out of here anyway. We've pressed our luck and the Technocracts will be here any second."
Radus looked upward. What part of the sky wasn't obscured by the figure of the Bydo starship was growing overcast. The wind was picking up too. It would probably rain soon.
"I'll contact you two again, soon. We need to finish this," added the young man, jogging towards the street exit of the alley. "Maybe I'll get one of the advi--erp..."
He had half hiccuped, half gasped in panic, as he came face to face with a man dressed in all black standing around the corner of the alley. He looked like a common thug, but with some weird sort of fashion sense. The man definitely looked less friendly than not. Radus furtively tried to hide the documents behind his back.
"Uh... hello?"
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Posted: Mon Dec 18, 2006 11:04 am
"Squad Leader Diederich. Get to Alley 452, on the double!" It was odd for an Operative to be passing out orders, but Jurgen would probably comply. A mental reply came to him, and Thane dropped out of Cloaked mode, and gazed upon the little head of the meeting, the one with pink hair coming out from under his beanie.
He pulled his .45 and aimed it, silencer and all, at the kid's head. "On the ground. Now." He said firmly, his aim not even quivering the slightest. "And place those documents on the ground in front of you." He added, having noted the folder before the fool hid it behind him.
Before a minute even passed, a black van rolled up, and Squad Leader Jurgen Diederich stepped out, holding a small crossbow with a dart in it. There were none others within the van, and it was obvious that they were prepared to detain this man. The others had abandoned him, it seemed.
Jurgen himself was a fine specimen of humankind, much like his counterpart Thane, and he carried himself with an air of confidence.
Charles Thane held his firearm steady, and narrowed his eyes a bit more. "I said on the ground. Now." He repeated. "No sudden moves. This thing's got one hell of a hair trigger, and I never miss."
(Short, sucks, but meh.)
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RogueKazimeras Vice Captain
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Posted: Mon Dec 18, 2006 2:36 pm
Preparing to run out, Kari started when she saw the Technocrat, but tried to keep a rational mindset. There was no need to panic now, not with Radus' life on the line. The Techno looked as though he'd go off any second. So this was what Scyrix had been talking about when he'd said there was someone else here. Without hesitation, Kari drew her own pistol, and aimed it squarely between the man's eyes. She'd been given orders, but this took precedence now as far as she was concerned. Worry knawed at the back of her mind. She hoped Scyrix was alright. She knew more Technos would be on the way eventually, and wondered if he'd been caught.
As if reading her thoughts, a black van rolled up. Almost immediately after it had braked, she saw the other Techno exit the vehicle, holding some sort of crossbow. This could be very bad, indeed.
"He dies, one of you dies, you Technocrat bastards," she hissed at the two men, still holding the pistol aiming at Thane's head, sounding more confident than she felt. With her left hand, she clutched her focus, the air slowly moving and condensing into a long knuckleblade, though of course no one else could see it. She considered calling for the assassin, but decided against that course of action. No need to jeopardize all three of them if this didn't work out, though at this rate, she didn't think she'd have a choice in the end. For a split second, she wondered what would become of Scyrix if she happened to die here. He'd probably do something really irrational and stupid, like try to avenge her death....
Putting these thoughts behind her, she continued in an icy voice. "How long have you been standing there, eh? I see you've called your buddy here quickly enough. Didn't think we'd be enough for you to handle?" She sincerely hoped these men's brand of magic was something they could handle if things started to get ugly. Though judging by their appearances, they were probably just as deadly as any other.
Kari was playing for time, trying to think of a decent plan to escape, hopefully intact. Apprehensively, she reached for Scyrix.
Sci? We really need you here right now. She felt his acknowledgement somewhere in the city.
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Posted: Mon Dec 18, 2006 3:20 pm
A slight tap sounded a no less than a yard from the fallen girl's ear. At that time she wasn't too concerned, gloom overcoming her previously curious mood. This was not a good day.
As soon as the voice reached her, Nel practically jumped up, in surprise, eyes wide and mouth open, an all fours, ready to get up. Who was this? Was he the hand she saw? Is this the "Alice" she had head about just a few moments ago?
Slowly and cautiously, the lass got up to face the man. She wanted to be face to face to look intimidating... it wasn't even close. The man had a good few feet over her.
"Are you hurt?"
Those words, they echoed through her head.
"Sq--d L--r D--d-r-ich ge- to ----"
One more voice... interference...
"Sci? We rea--- alley 45-- ght now!"
The symbol's eyes widened, as she shrank back down, covering her face... letting out a small whimper.
"I... who... where is it..." the thoughts... they made no sense... what was here? What was happening? What was real? Who were these people?
"I... I... I..." Nel studered... "No... I'm no hurt... Alice?" the poor lass answered to the best of her ability... her voice shaky. Although she could unintentionally intercept transmissions... communicating with others was impossible.
Through her the bars that were her fingers, the entity looked at the man from her metallic shell.
"What manner of creature is this Alice?"
Covered in trash and crouching... not very impressive. Body of a Bydo, power so great, but a child's mindset nonetheless.
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Posted: Mon Dec 18, 2006 5:35 pm
Fear pulsed through Scyrix like an electric shock as the child bolted upright. Her silver hair and iridescent eyes clearly marked her as a Bydo, if but a small one. Instinctively, Scyrix's whip-tentacles leaped from his back, looping and winding about his body until it appeared as though he were imprisoned within a cage of black ropes. His amber eye flashed dangerously as he regarded the young Bydo, who seemed rather pitiable in her present condition.
Kari's voice resounded in his head, though it sounded strangely muddled, as though he were underwater and she on the surface. He watched as the Bydo shrank away, looking preoccupied, as Scyrix often did when he was being spoken to telepathically. She uttered a few confused syllables, before responding to his query about her wellbeing.
"No... I'm no hurt... Alice?" Her voice was small and confused; the voice of a lost child. Scyrix relaxed markedly, retracting the tentacles so as not to frighten the little girl away again.
This little one was human, he realized, despite her strange appearance. He knelt in front of her, wanting to be at eye level with the girl. Alice. Is that what she had called him?
"What manner of creature is this Alice?" The girl spoke again. Scyrix considered her question and answered gently.
I am human, like you. My name is Scyrix, not Alice. Carefully, he extended a hand, beckoning her from the pile of garbage she sat in.
Do not be afraid, he coaxed.
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Posted: Mon Dec 18, 2006 7:56 pm
As the man made a sudden motion of leaping back, the girl almost collapsed again, nearing into the wall, making a light clanking noise. Those eyes... they were frightening to the child... so she hid, covering her own eyes, going by the famous rule that stated that "If you can't see them, they can't see you."
So close... Nel peeked through a hole made by her fingers... and there he was, crouching only inches away from her face... looking right ahead... The symbol gasped and shut drew those delicate little fingers together, closing the opening through which she peeked only moments before.
"What manner of creature is this Alice?" inquired the voice from the man in front of her.
"A..." as the girl's mouth opened, a wisp of flame escaped "...lice is Alice and you are not Alice but C-ee-r-i-ks?" the false Bydo carefully pronounced the game which was just presented to her.
"Alice. I believe we have Resistance activity in 452..." Nel said, proudly, as if it was an answer to a complicated problem while she removed those small hands from her face.
"Some... some... sum?" muttered the lass to herself, turning the words on the tip of her tongue, trying to remember what she heard... but it was hard... so many interruptions.
"Mmmm..." moaned the entity once more as words entered her mind. With the moan, she cuddled up again, holding her head. "Out. Out! OUT!" Nel repeated forcefully, as if it would cause the voice to leave.
"Do not be afraid..." came out a whisper...
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Posted: Mon Dec 18, 2006 9:50 pm
Scyrix winced as she repeated the word 'out.' He looked away and withdrew his hand. Perhaps she wanted him to communicate with her in some other manner. Could he speak? He hadn't uttered a sound since the--the--something that had happened years before. For some inexplicable reason, he blinked his left eye furiously. If he could only try to speak, maybe she wouldn't be so frightened of him anymore. Yes, that was it.
He opened his mouth, but the words wouldn't come. Perhaps he wasn't trying hard enough...
Scyrix, NO! A voice in his head rang out. Left eye shut, he searched frantically for the source of the sound; his other eye glassy and unfocused, gazing at the damp pavement as though he could see things there. The voice in his head was Kari's. A surge of anger seared his insides. Who was she to command him? He would become stronger, push himself beyond his limit in order to obtain power great enough to crush the invaders... for her sake as well as his...
Pain exploded behind the assassin's left eye, spreading from his forehead all the way to the nape of his neck. His eye felt as though someone had lit it on fire. Hands shaking violently, Scyrix clutched the left side of his face, grimacing and reeling sideways. Dimly, he registered his body's collapse on the ground as his mind opened to the thoughts around him, their voices louder than ever. He let their cacophony wash over him, and a peaceful expression lit his features, though the tendril-whips splayed out on the asphalt still twitched now and again.
Do not cry. You should not cry, he told the Kari inside his head. It was all right, he felt perfectly fine. There was nothing wrong at all. Please stop. He’d never seen so many tears before…
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Posted: Tue Dec 19, 2006 1:47 pm
"Woahwoahwoahwoah!" Radus shouted, the pitch in his voice oscillating dangerously. All these weapons pointing menacingly at people's heads made him extremely nervous. "Let's just calm down for a second, okay? Look..."
He trailed off. If Kari hadn't gotten involved, he would've turned on his MP3 player while dropping to the ground, pretending to cooperate. The music would let him skyrocket his epinephrine levels, providing him with unimaginably faster reaction and movement speed, giving him a serious edge in attempt to incapacitate the two technocrats he faced now. However, she had gotten involved, and if he did anything, she would probably be hurt.
"If only Scyrix hadn't run off like that," he thought to himself, painfully grinding his teeth in panicked thought as he tried to reason his way out of the situation, "Then maybe I could do something without worrying, but with just one of them here..." It was too late for that, though. Scyrix wasn't here, only Kari, himself, and the technocrats.
Radus stared down the barrel of Thane's gun. "Look," he repeated, this time with more confidence in his voice, "I'm no stranger to... to the street, all right? Show me a badge or something so I know I'm not being scammed." The young man continued to hold the papers behind his back, carrying himself such that, though his voice said otherwise, his body clearly stated an attitude of "These are mine. Get your own."
He glanced warily back and forth between Thane and Diederich. There was no question in his mind that they were real members of the technocracy, but that didn't mean that they knew he knew.
"If you really are technocrats... I'll go with you, BUT," he added, cautioningly waving the index finger of his hand not holding the folder, "only me. You let her leave. I'm the one who has the things you want. Not her. Any other way and we'll end up with people dying, and you know how the bydo hate that, even if you aren't members of the police."
Radus didn't just feel like he was on thin ice. He felt like he was on thin ice, stomping as hard as he could with cleats. If all went well, though...
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RogueKazimeras Vice Captain
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Posted: Tue Dec 19, 2006 3:11 pm
"Sounds good to me." Thane said, not even caring that a gun was pointed at his own head. "She backs down, we take you." He explained. "And, if she's willing to back down, I'll show you my badge, so that you know I'm a technocrat." Thane condescended with a grin. He'd just use his thumb to cover up where his name was, so they couldn't ID him later on. He wasn't an idiot.
Jurgen remained silent, but had the small crossbow at the ready, just in case someone needed to be tranquilized. "Just remember. No sudden moves." He finally spoke, his voice thick with a German accent. "First veapons come down, zen zey get put avay, and people back away, slowly." Jurgen said. "You too, Operative. Let's make zis mutual, ja?"
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