towerofanimus | Infiltration Plans

Entry tags:

Infiltration Plans

Characters: Tohko Amano, whoever she asked to show up, and any random person who feels like possibly dying for a good cause.
Setting: Floor 11, 28th, early evening.
Format: I'm starting in prose, but I'll match you.
Summary: Tohko, after getting Dax's note, has sent out a few notes of her own and told people to show up here to discuss plans. How well these plans will go is anyone's guess.
Warnings: If people like Ganon or Sephiroth try to show up, there will be arguments and scuffles to chase them out. I don't think that'll happen though.

It was cold in the eleventh floor, and the water was frozen, which made standing a little difficult. However, Tohko didn't think anyone would come in here, due to how cold it was..which was why she had told people to meet her here to discuss things.

She had sent out notes and tried to get other people involved. All she could do now was sit on the cold floor and wait for people to show up before starting to form plans. She had never been a leader of a fighting group..but there was a first time for everything.

Especially now.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Yes, and you will probably need as much help as you can get for this. It is something we will only have one chance at. If they realize that we are after something, they will not stop until they gain it for themselves, and Ruana has Dax's abilities now. Whatever he hid is probably no longer safe from her. Yet, if we let too many people become involved that could give away our plan too, and she will have the chance to gain that information without us ever being able to try. This is not an easy task you have taken upon yourself.

[Diarmuid runs a hand through his hair.]

You know I was a leader once. I will do all I can to help, but this is like no war I have ever been in. My knowledge will only be of limited use here. Still, we must try.

[Even if his skills as a leader are limited in this situation, Diarmuid can still fight, and he will--to the death if need be. A glint of something flickers across his eyes. He hasn't felt this focused for a long time.]

Exactly. If we fail on the first try, that'll probably be it. Do or die. However..I didn't know Ruana had gained Dax's abilities. However, I didn't let too many people know about this..I didn't want to risk it getting out of hand. This isn't going to be easy..but nothing worth fighting for ever is.

[Tohko smiled and nodded when he said he was a leader once.]

I know..and I thank you for trying and giving it all you've got. I'll try to make sure you don't wind up dead..and even if our knowledge won't do us much good, we still have to try.

Well, I'm assuming some, since I'm new and don't know a lot about their powers, but Ruana mentioned something about his psionics being delicious and then it was like something shifted in the whole tower.

[He has to hold back a shudder as memories of the transmission push forward. He can't stop himself from bringing his hand to his throat, though. There are moments when he swears he can taste blood. It's...unnerving to say the least and he's not sure if it's something Ruana has done or his own messed up mental state causing it.

Both are terrifying prospects.]

All of the new uncollared people--they are gone now and since we haven't heard anymore from that shadowy...thing, I'm guessing he's gone too. I can only guess she did it, and since it wasn't done before, it leads me to believe she used something she gained from Dax to do it. His powers would make the most sense.

And while I don't claim to know much about Dax...

[He had been so wrong about trusting the man, after all.]

...I don't think he would have set things up like this if that information wasn't something we could use. It has to be important. He cared about us. Enough to risk his life. He wouldn't ask us to do something this dangerous without there being a real benefit in it for us.

[Tohko sighed and nodded as she thought. While remembering that murder and feast was terrible, she would have to put up with it.]

..That does make sense then. Dax was responsible for bringing in the new people and that shadowy personification from the Collective Unconscious, so if Ruana gained his powers, she would be able to send them back. And there are stories where people can gain the others powers by consuming their hearts..and that sort of thing.

But you are right. There's no way Dax would sacrifice this much and take this big of a risk if there wasn't something for us to gain here. We'll have to be careful..both for our sakes and to respect Dax.

[Diarmuid nods.]

You're right. Have you started making any plans yet? Just how much detail did the note he sent you give about the location and kind of security around the information?

[It was now Tohko's turn to nod.]

I've made a battle formation of sorts..and Dax gave me some information, but not everything. Not a detailed map of the Administrative level. I don't think he dared. All I know is that he placed some security there to make sure the other Administrators couldn't get to it. I'm not sure if that will hold up now, but the defenses must be strong if he thought that Ruana and Jason wouldn't be able to get in.

I know someone who's been to the Administrative floors before too, so I'm planning on asking him to be our guide, if he wants to be. If not, I'll look around for someone else. I am not going down there blind.

[Diarmuid smiles gently at her.]

Excellent. That was my main worry. The administrative level is not a place we can wonder blindly about in. We would most certainly be caught in a very short time. If this person would be willing to guide us, our chances of success will go up dramatically.

However, we have to find a way to actually get down there as well. Those who went down, they said the elevator was left open, wasn't it? We cannot count on that again. Not with Dax gone.

We also have to find a way to distract them. That might be the hardest part of this whole thing. So much counts on the other administrators not being there to see us.

[Tohko returned it. Whether it was a mask or genuine was impossible to tell at this point.]

No..we can't. It may be possible to try and wedge the elevator doors open or destroy them, but that would give us away instantly. And you're right..a distraction would help.

[Tohko scratched her head, thinking.]

Maybe a small team can stay up here and pull another riot as distraction. I know a lot of people might die..and I'll tell people to avoid Jason if they can and just keep him busy..but if we have a team above ground causing trouble, Jason will have to come up..

[A sudden realization!]

..And will have to use the elevator to do so. We can sneak in just as he's coming out. How does that plan sound?

[Diarmuid shakes his head sadly.]

I don't think it will work. It relies too much on a chance occurrence...namely that we can cause enough of a problem an administrator will actually come up instead of just sending retrieval units after us or finding some other way to stop the violence.

[Like doing something to their collars for instance.]

This is a not safe place for them. So many of us want to harm them, especially after what just happened. I think it would have to be nothing short of disaster to get them to show their faces here. There has to be another way.

And we also have to keep in mind that what we do might have consequences for the whole tower--even those not involved. I don't know if it can be done, but we need to try and do this with as little attention as possible. If we can do it without getting the administrators' attention at all it would be ideal, but I doubt that will happen. The most we can hope for is getting as little attention as possible which means we should probably only take people who will stay focused on the task at hand. That means letting everything else we might see or find down there go for now as hard as that might be to do.

[Tohko sighed and nodded. He was right. Two months ago, that plan might have worked..but not now.]

You're right..it might have worked in the past..but not now. And I don't think it will be possible now for anyone to go down there without at least one Administrator knowing about it. Dax may have let people slip through..but I don't think anyone else will. At least, not without tracking them, recording them, and punishing them later. If they can.

And I've told everyone that I've involved that we're only going down there for the things Dax left us. I'll say it again, just to get the message through..but there's no way we could take any side trips while keeping the information and keeping people alive. We have to get down there, grab what we can, and run.

..What ideas might you suggest for getting into the elevators then?

I don't mean to make it sound like I'm doubting anyone. It's just, after what we have just learned, I know it will be tempting to try and find out more, and we can't risk that. That is why we must choose carefully who goes down.

[He almost wants to suggest just battle trained warriors go, but he doesn't want insult Tohko or anyone else who might want to help. Besides, those who aren't warriors might think of things that those who are might not and in this place those ideas very well might keep people from dying.]

Unfortunately, I have no answer for the elevator question. I haven't been here long enough to know exactly how everything works. I didn't even know the nature of all the administrators abilities until this all happened. I knew they had them, sure, but not what and how strong. A lacking on my part, but so much has been going on that I just never got around to getting that information.

Right..I understand. Don't worry, it doesn't sound like you're doubting anyone. Depending upon how many people we manage to scrape up, we might not have a large pool of people to choose from.

[Tohko nodded, thinking.]

That's alright..it's not like this information is open for all to see whenever you want. If we can't wedge the elevator open, we could try exploding it..or making our own path, if we can.

[Diarmuid doesn't reply right away and it look as if he is thinking. Once he is done, he shakes his head.]

I just don't know. Instead of guessing, though, it might be best to talk to those who were down on that level. Maybe they will be able to make a better guess about things than we are able to. After all, they were the ones who were down there. The might have seen something that will help us out.

And I don't think damaging the elevator will work anyway. If it is damaged, what will we use to travel down into the level? Fighters could probably make their way down if the access shaft is unblocked, but anyone else who isn't very strong or agile will not be able to.

[Tohko sighed and nodded.]

That's true..I'll have to see if the person I talked to is willing to help out..or at least give me a map of what he saw of the place.

And I wasn't planning on damaging the elevator so that it couldn't run..but you're right. I don't know enough about elevators to say whether or not they will still go down if a part of the side is missing.

My guess is no. Those kind of things seem to be pretty picky when it comes to damage because of the safety aspects. At least, that's what I gather from the limited information I have on them. And considering the purpose of this place, we really can't assume that everything will work like a normal version of said thing would. There is nothing normal about this place. We start causing problems up here or mess with the elevator at all and they just might lock it down so it can't go anywhere.

Normally, I would say no too..but since things are so bizarre here sometimes, it could be worth a try if things get desperate enough. However..you're probably right. If we started messing with the elevator before we could get it to go down, they would probably lock it or do something to prevent us from using it.

[Diarmuid nods and then spreads his hands in a helpless gesture.]

I really wish I knew more so I could offer more alternatives. Unfortunately, I do not. However, you already know I will do all I can to help. All you need to do is ask, and even if my knowledge is limited, I will always be glad to listen. Strategy and planning is something I am pretty good at for the most part. If nothing else, I have a pretty good eye for finding flaws in plans that others might have missed.

[And Tohko will just ignore that gesture..but even she will have to admit that without a way in, they can't do anything for now. Except plot and plan.]

That's pretty useful, actually. I can form plans, but I sometimes get stuck in my own head and miss simple things if I don't ask someone or if someone doesn't point things out for me.

..I've actually been forming a battle formation of sorts. If you could listen to it and give me suggestions, that could be helpful.

You have also not seen actual battle so it is only natural that you miss things. That is why it is important to have fighters and non-fighters around. It can be easy to miss things from one view or the other just because of different focuses and experiences.

[Diarmuid smiles at her.]

Of course, I will listen. What are you thinking?

That's true..but even outside a battle, I miss important clues. Sure, I latch on to other important things sometimes..but I also miss other things. But you are right: it is good to have fighters, non-fighers and people of different persepectives in a group for this reason.

[Tohko returned the smile as she started to explain.]

First, the group that goes down should be rather small. I don't know how large the Administrator level is, but the fewer people, the less chances we have of being spotted. Maybe only fifteen people, tops.

Healers and non-combatants should stay in the center of the group so that they can better heal and not get easily killed.

Lancers and archers should stay at the front of the group, for obvious reasons, and the guide should be a bit ahead of them, along with the leaders. But not too far up ahead.

Swordsman and other fighters should surround the healers and non-combatants, ready to take out what the lancers and archers leave behind.

..How does that sound? Any suggestions?

[Diarmuid smiles gently at her.]

Did you read that in a book? I get the impression you have been doing some research, because yes, that is a basic formation, though it would be best to keep Archers at the back of a group. They are ranged attackers. You don't want them up front where they can be easily taken out. Ideally, they wouldn't even be with the man group at all, but off away in an area where they could try to pick people off before they even encounter the main group.

However, the organization you are talking about is really much more complex than what we will probably need. The basics are solid--non-combatants and healers should always be where they can best be protected--but being much more complex than that may lead to trouble if things go bad down there. Fighters will know they need to keep an eye on each other, but especially on those who aren't fighting or are healing. That may be all we need.

A small group to start is good, though. I would even suggest perhaps a much smaller group than 15 if the right group can be assembled. Do you know how big the groups that were down there before were?

[Tohko kept smiling and nodded at his advice. It was pretty sound, and she burned it all on her brain. Hopefully she would be able to retrieve it later.]

Actually, I haven't been doing much research. I've read stories where battles happened and people worked in stealth groups, but I haven't done any actual research apart from fiction.

I'll remember your advice about the archers though. I'm not sure it's possible to set them up somewhere beforehand to pick off people, but if it becomes possible, we should try it. If not, we'll keep them to the back.

[Tohko looked a little puzzled when he said that her strategy was too complex, but she nodded anyway.]

Alright then. I'll think of a simpler formation then, just in case.

However..I don't know right now how big the groups were that went down first. I'm guessing they were no larger than twenty, but that's just my guess. However, I do agree with you. If I had my way, I would restrict it to just ten or six people and no more. However, there may be a lot of people who could help us out in ways we don't realize yet, and a few latecomers. So..it's fifteen tops. It probably will be smaller though.

The thing about anything you read in a book is that it is usually set up for a perfect situation where everything goes right. Any fighter will tell you that never happens on the battlefield. That is why it is often more important to be set up in a way that is flexible. That way, as things change on the battlefield, you can change with it.

[There is a reason warriors learn so many different weapons after all.]

As for the archers, honestly I don't think having anyone separate from the group down there is a good idea. If someone can only fight from a ranged position, it will probably be better to have them elsewhere. Remember, as you pointed out, if we get a lot of people to help, we might just want to pick those best equipped to go down there. A purely ranged fighter would not be a good choice in this situation.

Diarmuid..you're forgetting that people lose a lot in stories too. Not all battles there have the heroes win. But you are right-it's best to have a flexible battle strategy.

[Tohko nodded, thinking.]

You're right. If people can't fight in close groups downstairs, we'll leave them topside. We'll probably have a different use for them there anyway.

[Something flicks across his eyes for a moment. Is she really telling him heroes don't always win? Of course, he knows that! Could she really say he had won in the end?

Diarmuid doesn't say anything though, pushing the flare of emotion away as quickly as it came. This is Tohko after all. He knows she doesn't mean anything. He's just so worn out that he's finding insult where none is intended.]

It's good to think ahead, but sometimes that can cause trouble too. Why don't we let things go for now. Find out more about who wants to help and talk to your friend. Just keep an eye on yourself. If you overwork yourself now, it will mean mistakes later when we can't afford to have them.

Infiltration Plans

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