epidemiology | EVENT ▸ RESCUERS DOWN UNDER

Entry tags:

EVENT ▸ RESCUERS DOWN UNDER

RESCUERS

Tensions are high in the Democratic City-State of Drakstaden. It's been two days since the infiltration of the Broadcasting Station, where a secret recording of the Prime Minister laying out plans to enslave the lower classes was broadcast to the entire city -- leading to a number of bystanders, Ophelia, and Rost to get arrested and thrown in prison.

Of course, no one's useful to the resistance effort behind bars, so Rost makes contact and explains that they've been spending the past two days planning a prison break -- and it's time to put it in action.

▸ VAKDIR PRISON

Rost’s most studious member, Brynja, proposes that the prison break effort be split into two groups: a distraction group and an infiltration group.

The infiltration group will need members familiar with technology who will be able to use -- and if necessary, manipulate -- the Vakdir security tech. Stealth and speed are of the essence, as being caught could blow the entire operation. It’s possible there will be run-ins with stray Vakdir who will need to be dispatched quickly and quietly, then hidden; fighters who specialize in guns, explosives, or other loud weaponry might want to join the other group.

The distraction group will have to busy the Vakdir on guard duty and, in the worst-case scenario, take them out before they can investigate or stop the break-in. Good conversationalists are required, but good fighters are necessary, too. Most importantly, creative minds who can think on their feet and get themselves out of tight spots are ideal for the distraction group.

The main Vakdir security is positioned in the lobby near the entrance and around the perimeter of the building. The minimum number of guards at any given area is two; the Vakdir do guard duty in groups. The most important thing while there are no alarms going off is to keep the guards busy and in place -- you don’t want them heading back and finding a group of infiltrators. Whatever it takes to keep them there! Each guard is a different person and has a different personality, so what works for one may not work for another. If an alarm goes off -- when an alarm goes off, since one does near the end of the operation -- it’s time to pull out all the stops. This is when it likely gets violent, unless you’re particularly persuasive. The security camera footage will be deleted and the released inmates won’t be taking any prisoners themselves, so no one will be left to remember your face; don’t worry about becoming a fugitive.

The infiltration part is a little trickier. Brynja knows the location of an alternate entrance, but it's locked. The only hope is a small, impossibly high window. Looks like you’ll have to do some teamwork! With some standing on each other’s shoulders -- and a good lookout -- someone will be able to drop in through the window (watch your landing!) and unlock the door from the inside. Unluckily, one of the first obstacles they’ll run into is a retina scanner. Luckily, a few of those retinas are nearby... some Vakdir officers have accidentally stumbled upon the team. They’re unprepared, but armed; take them out quickly, before they can alert anyone. Once they’re out, you can hold them up to the retina scanner.

The door to the holding cells is the next obstacle. It appears there’s a password, one that changes daily if the TODAY’S PASSCODE IS... is any indication. For a moment, it looks like they’re out of luck, before a prompt pops up: WOULD YOU LIKE A HINT? If pressed, it will bring up the following hint:

6
16
1611
111621
31161211
THE PASSCODE IS THE NEXT NUMBER IN THE SEQUENCE.

Eventually, someone’s bound to figure it out -- the answer is 132116111221; each number describes the number before it. In this case, one three, two ones, one six, one one, one two, and two ones. Once inside, it’s up to inventors to hack the locks or bruisers to brute force their way in. Either way, free the prisoners! Yes, all of them -- not only are most of them probably locked up for bogus charges, but the more people on your side, the better your chances are for winning not just this battle, but the war.

Once they’re all free, it’s time to lead them all back the way you came so nobody trips an alarm. Except... everyone’s a little bit worked up about being freed and running amok. And it looks like someone just tripped an alarm all on their own.

Well, no one said it would be easy!

▸ DISCUSSION

After the break-in and escape, you'll need to lie low. Go back to the hotel, hide with Rost, spread throughout the city with your newly freed friends -- whatever you like. But wherever you go, you'll notice that Vakdir presence has increased, even in the previously unguarded lowest levels. If you're wanted for crimes, you'll need to be especially careful, unless you want to constantly be running for your life.

With the sudden surge in criminal and treasonous behavior, the entire city has gone on lockdown. There is now a curfew in place: everyone must be in their homes by an hour after sunset, which, given the short daylight hours on this part of the planet, means citizens only have ten hours per day of freedom.

This curfew applies to the rebels of Rost and Ophelia, of course, though with your combined resources, you should be able to find a way to get around it and continue your work throughout the city, whatever that may be.

Still, things are bad. And despite the combined efforts of Rost and Ophelia, things keep getting worse; Rost worries that the Vakdir will increase its efforts to root them out, pulling innocent citizens into the thick of everything and bringing the lower class ever closer to the Prime Minister's planned subjugation.

Purple-haired Rost agent Froken stops by the hotel one day before curfew, surreptitiously letting Ophelia know they're ready to do whatever it takes to finish this once and for all; Rost is prepared to hear any suggestions that Ophelia may come up with, trusting them as experts in this matter (whether or not that's true for the individuals in the guild).

But first, you'll need to discuss what to do.

▸ OOC NOTES

This log takes place over one day, with the next log beginning two weeks later. Get ready to get serious!

Please note: due to a dip in activity, we have shifted some plot points, combining this log and the next. The next planned !plot log on 26 May will be the final log of this mission.

If you have questions about this log or the mission, please direct them to the dossier. Questions about the game in general can be directed to the FAQ.

▸ Up now:

Player Plot: Mayission Impossible (sign-ups closed).

▸ Coming next (Futurology runs on timezone UTC):

19 May: Resolution submissions and voting begins.
23 May: Resolution submissions and voting ends.
26 May: Final log of Mission: Drakstaden.

▸ CR/Welcome Meme ▸ Drakstaden Dossier ▸ Drakstaden Locations ▸ Drakstaden Bounty Board ▸ May Calendar

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Still hesitant, Hayame sniffs the flask... but in the end she forces herself to drink from it. The flavor is less familiar from personal experience (who would waste good tea on a jinba?) than from simply smelling it in the air, but. She thinks the taste is normal enough.

She's quick yet to hand it back to get her hands on the makeshift weapon she's commandeered again, but-

The throbbing pains feel a little less urgent. Her head feels a little clearer.

Hayame convinces herself not think about how. Medicine shouldn't work that fast.]

... then let us head there. By your lead.

["Thanks".]

[ Majima nodded as he took back the flask. Hayame looked a little improved, though whether that was because of some placebo effect or the tea really did work that fast, he had no idea.

He turned and headed back down the hall. The main force of Vakdir might not be on to them yet, but as they turned a corner, there was at least one lone officer that seemed to have gotten separated from the others -- he was absorbed in talking over his communicator.

"Yes, sir... er, rendezvous in the next block? Understood." The man pocketed his radio.

Welp, only one thing to do here: stalk up behind him as he was talking. The man looked visibly shocked as Majima slipped the taser out of his belt and jabbed it into a vulnerable spot between his helmet and body armor.

His scream as he jittered and fell to the ground was enormously satisfying. ]

[As much as Hayame wants to be the one to take her revenge, to wrench it out of the armored hands of these Vakdir, to retake her true form and show them just what it was she was capable of when she wasn't confined to this weak, small body that was just the right size for the electricity that coursed from their weapons... she knows she is a liability right now.

Though it burns, she hangs back, watching Majima's movements as her own fingers tightened around her stolen taser, longing to be the one to inflict pain on them, to return each kick and stomp and electrocution that had been visited upon her-

Until the scream echoes down the hall... and the man's radio statics in his pocket before a voice comes muffled through What was that? All members of bravo team, report!]

[ Time to be hurrying along -- though Majima wouldn't exactly shed a tear if some Vakdir did end up catching up to them, truth be told. ]

Hayame-han, ya know how to use one of them laser guns?

[ The radio was now filled with a confusion of Vakdir trying to report in at once; it seemed that the other groups had thrown them into some disarray. They'd figure it out sooner or later, though. ]

[She hates the human legs more than ever- but Hayame still pushes them to run. Clutches her left hand to her chest to attempt to keep from jostling it and adding to the pain that comes from pushing an underfed and bruised body to action... but- guns.]

Basically.

[She's held a musket before. Lance's "bayard". How hard could it be, you didn't need almost any muscle st all to use them.]

Pretty sure these tasers only last a few charges before they run outta electricity. That's what happened with the last group we ran into.

[ He shoved the material of his jacket side, revealing a metal gun in a side holster. Majima unclipped the belt and offered it to sling over her shoulder. He'd just have to trust that Hayame wouldn't shoot him in the face by accident. ]

Just in case.

[Having not been conscious by the time the tasers her opponents were using ran out of juice, Hayame can only take his word. And his gun, apparently- she awkwardly shrugs into the holster best she can to make it accessible with her unbroken right hand, (thankfully her dominant). It was so small, this weapon-

But she'd seen what it could do, and though she longs instead for the familiar, polished wood of her bow, her arrows-]

Very well.

[ The sound of footsteps was getting closer -- two, maybe three guards. They dashed into the corridor, bunched up and practically asking for an unfortunate taser incident. But perhaps their armor protected them from friendly discharges.

"Stop there!" the one in the lead cried, charging towards them. "That's one of the prisoners!"

So they recognized Hayame, at least. As the man came at them, Majima slipped past his baton and jammed his blade into the join between the man's arm guards and chestplate. The smell and sizzle of cauterized muscle rose almost immediately from the point of impact; Majima pulled the blade free as his companions continued their rush. ]

[Hayame has handled guns on a few rare occasions- mostly just overseeing their transport. The loud weapons from across the sea, heavy metal and wood contraptions that spewed metal powered by explosion within. But this handgun is nothing like that, in shape, size, or method. This one isn't propped against the shoulder, doesn't have the same recoil. She's seen them used, in this world and others, but-

She still handles it like an archer, moving into the same stance she would fire an arrow from, elbow locking, sighting down the gun the same way she would a bow, her index finger extended along the shaft (barrel) to aim... middle finger releases the string (pulls the trigger)...

And the weapon fires directly into a Vakdir face.]

[ Boy, that Vakdir sure was lucky he was wearing one of those stupid helmets as part of his stupid body armor. Or maybe not so lucky, because judging by his screams and state of collapse and clutching at his face, the material was now melting into his skin.

Maybe they'd be able to save him. Maybe not.

Either way, the third guard was now turning tail and fleeing outright, coincidentally in the very direction they needed to escape in... which was a dead end, save for the door at the end of the hall. Majima didn't seem inclined to break into a run and chase him, especially if his retina scan would help open the door, but he was moving forward, toward the exit. ]

Nice shootin'. C'mon, looks like he's gonna do our work for us.

[Thankfully for Hayame... good aim was translatable.

She almost aims at the retreating man's back, honor in combat be damned after the abuses she has suffered in this place... but Majima's words remind her. She had seen the men use their eyes to open doors... so rather than have to scoop the orbs from a corpse's face...

She grits her teeth with a nod and follows.]

[ The man fumbled at the door handle, trying desperately to open it before it occurred to him that he'd completely neglected the retina scanner.

Distantly, Majima wondered what the point of having scanners on the inside of the building was. Preventing escapes, like this one? Didn't seem like it was working too well.

Either way, by the time Majima reached the guard, it was a simple matter to simply grab the back of his head, slam his forehead into the door to stun him, and hold him up to the door. It clicked and swung open, revealing chaos and shouting outside. Reporters trying to get a good angle to deliver their news reports, rubberneckers, agents, and Vakdir... ]

Guess no one in Hathaway plans those perfect movie heists. We can follow the streets back to HQ, I guess.

[It burns to rely on Majima like this- to rely on anyone like this. To know that she ought to be faster than him, stronger than him... and yet be hanging back in human form, watching, at least trying to feel useful by guarding their backs, fingers twitching on the handle of the gun.

But then the door is open, into a different chaos... and all she can do is follow, the weapon still drawn and left hand clutched close.]

Shit-

[Her face would already be known to the authorities after she and Odinson had been caught for taking down that drone, but Majima-

She whips her gaze about, looking for the best route... but she hadn't made it to the higher levels before her arrest, and again, she is forced to grit her teeth and defer to him.]

Which way?

Right there.

[ If nothing else, Majima was quick to pivot with the unexpected bedlam, making a quick line to where one of the reporters was drawing a crowd. The officers were too harried to bother with much more than trying to keep her off the premises, and it looked like the one charged with this area in particular was green.

Once in the crowd, it was simply a matter of acting like he was just trying to go about his business while making his way toward one of the routes they'd cleared earlier. ]

Lucky for us they're makin' such a fuss. Gonna be tougher to get around after this, though.

[ Sleek boutiques, hipster-looking eateries... alien, compared to the relative squalor of the lower levels. But now they were descending to the mid-levels, with hopefully more breathing room for fitting in. ]

[Where Majima goes, Hayame follows, even feeling a burst of blood in her mouth when she bites her tongue to prevent any sounds of pain as she jostles through the crowd and pain lances through her half-mangled hand despite her best efforts to keep it protected. Within the crowd she isn't so noticeable to anyone not directly next to her... but once they leave them behind...]

Wait-

[Her prison uniform stood out... a lot.

Passing a boutique whose owner had stepped a short distance out to rubberneck at all the goings on... she slips inside, quickly going for the nearest item of clothing large enough to throw over her clothing. No time to actually change, even if she could easily move her arm.]

[ Nice one, Hayame. Majima stood by during the exchange in case the owner decided at that very moment to remember he had responsibilities to his shop. He didn't, however, apparently much more interested in whispered rumors about what was going on with the Vakdir's prisoners.

Now that they were a little further away, they could afford to slow their pace at least a little. A door in one of the now-abandoned side streets opened; inside was a pink-haired woman, beckoning to them.

"I'm Vera, from Rost. Do you need any help? A place to rest? Information on the operation?" ]

[She comes back out with a grey skirt wrapped over jumpsuit trousers, a cape-like coat thrown over shoulders, struggling to make a scarf into makeshift sling.

She starts when the door opens, almost has the gun aimed at the woman's face before she speaks... but even then she hangs back. They had no reason to know if she was telling the truth, or if this was a trap...

But,]

A safe route back to the mid-levels, should one still be open to us.

[That's what they needed.]

[ "Of course. This way -- you can cut through the workshop and into the garage." The woman turned and headed down a cramped hall and into an office filled with junk parts -- radios, scavenged circuit boards, processing cards. ]

You know how the others're doing?

[ Majima asked, with a quick glance around at the various machine innards strewn over desks and shelves.

"Last I heard, your agents were all able to escape. Not all of the other prisoners were, however..." The woman's spirits seemed slightly dampened by this admission. "But we have faith that you'll be able to help us." ]

[Good. ... Perhaps, if this proved not to be a trap. Hayame grits her teeth and follows, gaze darting about in paranoia, looking behind each part and pile of metal for shadows of Vakdir.

But there were none, and so the woman earns at least a single comfort. If it could be called that.]

Their sacrifices will be honored.

[For those weak enough to be left behind... that was all the comfort that could be had. (That, and the burn to know that she had only barely avoided being one of them.)]

[ Oh. Goodness. Well.

The workshop emptied back out the door into what indeed looked to be an old garage. "Back when this area was being built, they didn't care about rhyme or reason. That's why a lot of passageways like this one are still here." ]

Yeah, seen places like this before. Pretty decent place to hold up, since the cops never bother with 'em.

Thanks.

[ The woman nodded. "Just follow this way out, and you'll be near the hotel."

'Garage', as it turned out, was a rather generous way to describe the twisting, tight conglomeration of odd motorbike spaces, charging docs, and meters that made up the winding passage of concrete. Claustrophobic? Just a little. ]

You holdin' up all right?

Our thanks.

[Echoed, barely audible, but a "thank you" nonetheless. Hayame has no concept of a "garage" to be confused by the state of this one, but the tightness of the space combined with the tightness she already feels just in the human skin she's wearing is... not comfortable.

Not that she expects comfort in this place. But she's on high alert, checking each shadow, each corner for enemies, for signs of betrayal-]

I'll make it.

[She says it... perhaps more to convince herself than to report it to him, but.

There, at the end of the "garage" (more like tunnel)... she sees the offensive brightness of a neon sign blinking through the lines of a door.]

[ Sounds of the crowd from outside, not as pressed in as in the lower levels -- more like a dull, constant murmur. The neon was oddly comforting to him, though doubtless Hayame wouldn't feel the same sense of being reminded of home. ]

Yeah, and once ya do, I bet one of those magic-types can heal ya right back up. Maybe we can find Maya-chan; she seemed pretty worried about you.

[ Apparently Maya was now Maya-chan, nobody question this. Either way, Majima didn't seem particularly aware of Hayame's reluctance to accept magical aid (although if he'd thought about it and her general distrust of things not consistent with her version of Japan, he really might have suspected).

There was a patrol drone outside. lololol ]

[In the prison... Hayame had already decided that she would need to sacrifice her dignity for the sake of her hand. That unlike the bite mark on her rear, the splash of acid burn across her flank, the slash of scar on her lower chest and left arm... this injury would affect her ability to fight. Might weaken her clutch upon her bow, affect her aim...

And she couldn't have that, no matter how much she dislikes the feel of a stranger's sorcery invading her body, forcing it to unnatural result.]

Who?

[... she doesn't quite remember the girl's name. Not now, (not with -chan on it), and not when she summons up the images of people she expects to be worried for her.

Which, considering she hates the very idea of being worried over... is a very small list.]

[ Maybe they ought to hang back a bit, wait for this drone to complete its patrol. ]

Y'know, Maya. Real short, long black hair, looks Japanese [ but was she? hmm ], kinda got a priestess look goin' on with her clothes?

[ Maya seemed to know Hayame, so ????

Maybe they'd never exchanged names...? Maybe Maya just hadn't made a strong enough impression? God, he couldn't imagine the latter. ]

[After her last run in with a drone, Hayame is inclined to agree with that decision, hiding yet in the shadows of the garage as she tries to distract herself from the pain and edge of paranoia by trying to place the name.

... She's nearly thrown the girl across a room, but proper introductions got skipped along the way.

The description works, though, and a grimace overtakes her features.]

I would sooner slit my own belly open before I allow that human girl to see me like this.

[... Maybe it's the pain and disgrace of imprisonment that's making her that mean sounding??? (Majima is human, too, Hayame. Also, you're kind of human-shaped right now yourself.]

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

what doesn't hayame like demolition man??

6/10

three seashells needed

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject