Ex Machina; Infiltration

[animusmods]

Characters: Riki and the infiltration team
Setting: administrative levels
Format: any
Summary: Riki's efforts must be sabotaged. Stealth is the name of the game and time is of the essence.
Warnings: psychological horror

Though the chipped unit does not follow, he sees to it that the team advances the rest of the way. At the end of the lit corridor is a set of double doors, heavy-duty polished metal with small windows set into each one.

Through the windows, a massive machine is visible, connected to thousands of holographic screens that are hard to make out at the speed at which they're being manipulated. The machine sits in the center of the room and is networked to four elaborate terminals stationed along the walls via a complex tangle of panels, wires, and towers. Each of these terminals controls its own set of floating screens; the sheer amount of holographic monitors in the room is disorienting, and really, it's hard to tell what's connected to what.

In the chair in the middle of the enormous set-up is Riki, maneuvering all of the screens with the same ease with which most people breathe. His back is to the doors that lead into the room, and for the moment, he is utterly engrossed in his work.

Comments

[warriorscribe]

"...It's true." Enoch's voice betrays his reluctance to admit it. "I'm sorry, Riki. There are many of us here who feel you can't be trusted. But not all of us. You know that I trust you - or would like to."

He pauses, and takes a breath, lets it out slowly. "It's also true, what Reno says. Restoring the tower is one of our goals as well, if we can. There are those who would like to stay. If you are working for our combined benefit, you will have nothing to fear if you leave this room, only for a few moments, and allow us to look at it for ourselves."

[midgarhorizon]

"And how about you give us a translation upgrade so we can read this stuff? If this thing pans out, maybe one of us can work with ya." Reno speaks up, probably for the last time. He's getting nervous and he knows his big mouth could get them into trouble here, not with so much riding on this. "There's no reason why we can't try work together to save everybody's skin, y'know. We're not totally unreasonable and nobody likes sitting around."

[animusnpcs]

"That's all? I can leave for a little while. The longer you take the more you're wasting my time, though.

As for translation, we'll see. I can't do it right now."

He'll step through a door in the back, though. The room is empty except for the residents within.

[keybearer]

Riku blinks, arms dropping to his sides. He glances at the door for a few moments, before sighing. "Well, that was easier than I thought it'd be. You think he's really gonna do that for us?"

[the_white_rider]

Was Riki honest? Maybe. But after what they heard, a healthy dose of skepticism couldn't hurt. It wasn't in the administrators' habits to be benevolent.

"Will he save our worlds at the cost of his own life?" Gandalf slowly shook his head. "I do not think he would want to save this tower only to then die. There has to be something more."

[sageprincess]

"Regardless, Aria's people should be able to translate the language, at least. Hopefully that will help provide insight into his true intentions."

Zelda will be heading back to the entrance they used, both to inform Aria and to get out of this darkness. She's had enough of it already.

[animusnpcs]

The entrance is sealed.

[midgarhorizon]

"Well, fuck."

[sageprincess]

...

"Aria?" Zelda will now start banging on the door, calling for the retrieval unit that used to be on the other side.

[animusnpcs]

There's no response. Inside the room, there's a vague hissing noise.

[the_white_rider]

Never trust an administrator.

Gandalf taps his staff on the ground and erects an invisible shield around the people in the room-- That probably won't mean much against whatever Riki is planning, but that can only be better than nothing.

[warriorscribe]

Enoch doesn't know what that hissing noise means, but he does know they're trapped in there - he'd had to get out of the way of the door. It's a shame he doesn't have his Arch with him - knowing battle wasn't the aim, he didn't want to go down there with it. And now he's down one tool to possibly pry the door open. Instead, he begins searching the equipment in the room. Is there anything that has an icon next to it, something, anything that looks like it could have to do with sound or voice or speaking? What he's looking for is called a PA system, but he doesn't know that.

[bloodyashes]

Zelda will only get to bang her hands against the door once or twice before one of her companions pulls her back - Asch is gentle, but firm in pulling her away from the door and towards the center of the group.

"I doubt they'll be able to hear us through there." Not much point in locking them up, otherwise.

[midgarhorizon]

"Gas." That's probably what the hissing sound is, though Reno's imagination gave way to something worse. With the administrators, it's always worse.

A few soft curses follow. "Shiva's tits. If anyone's got real powers down here I suggest fucking blasting that thing open. Maybe look for a vent. There's got to be a way out of here." His voice sounds strangely calm, and he starts in on the search for a new way out, using his hands if he has to in the darkness. "Gandalf, if you can do that, can ya blast the door open?"

[imperialsun]

Ahh yes. Why was he even surprised this was happening.

"I can try to contact Chidori, but I'm not sure she'll be able to get here in time" Naoya offered, as he was rubbing the necklace he had gotten back from Zo.

Without thinking, he muttered Erusaer Tsymmom hoping it would somehow cause something to happen much like it had with the other.

[the_white_rider]

The tip of Gandalf's staff would start shining brightly. If it worked, the light should be enough so that the surroundings would be enlightened, but not so much that it'd blind the characters. He then turned to Reno at his question.

"I am maintaining a shield, to protect us from Riki's devices. I will only try if no one else here possesses such power."

Keeping the shield up would be preferable if possible.

[animusnpcs]

All the machines within the room are off at the moment. The hissing sound continues, but for now nothing else seems to be happening. Gandalf's staff lights up the room, casting various shadows from various pieces of equipment.

[stitchedupbodyguard]

Veronica is on high alert now. Both her blades are out and she is scanning the room around them. Could she smell gas? Was it her imagination? And what was that noise? She could see better in the dark than most, but that probably wasn't helping.

"Dammit." she hissed. "What do we do?"

Quick tag before I hop into the shower

[no_longer_a_king]

Arturia had been rather silent through most of the encounter. This continued even now as, with Caliburn in hand, she approached the sound of hissing to find out what it was.

[animusnpcs]

The hissing comes from high up--through the ventilation system, it looks like, though the vent isn't so much a vent as it is a series of tiny holes in the wall.

[evokingfool]

While he hope there won't be a battle, Minato always carry his weapons with him as a rule. His right hand slipped down and touched his holstered evoker.

"If no one wants or can do, I can use one of my Personas to try to open the door."

[attheclocktower]

Xion glanced around the room, more than uneasy, especially that they were sealed in. There had to be a way out, if they could just get to Aria...

The last time she'd tried this had been when Aqua arrived. It was nearly two weeks after her powers had come back and yet...

"I'm going to try something," she said, her voice shaking, but with a note of underlying steel all the same. She had to do something.

She lifted her hand, willing the corridor - however shaky and unstable - to form, and let her or whoever went through just outside the door that Aria and the other chipped units should be waiting at.

[animusnpcs]

Something snakes through Xion's corridor--it's a mess of whirring and clicking sharp-looking machines. They're sealing up the corridor behind them as they go, and they're moving rapidly.

[no_longer_a_king]

Arturia rests her hand on the wall, staring up at the vent curiously.

"Do what you can," she said, cursing herself for not asking about that vision she had of Ruana in the machine during Zo's carnival.

She began to stalk around the edge of the room to see if there were more vents, pausing only when Xion opened her corridor. Then falls into a battle position as the machines snake through.

"Everyone on your guard!" she shouted. If these things were coming through, what about whoever was on the other side?

[attheclocktower]

Xion screamed, letting the power go in an instant when she saw the machines trying to snake their way through.

With luck she might be able to stop the ones or parts that weren't all the way through, but it was entirely possible she'd be all too slow - especially with them working to close it themselves.

A horrible thought occured to her "He wanted this! He wanted us trapped in here!"