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

[animusnpcs]

Once the tentacles have withered away, the retrieval unit--looking a bit rattled, and with a bit of a mangled arm, but otherwise alright--rushes forward toward the room beyond. Things start to quiet down a little.

[midgarhorizon]

Reno, standing guard over Naoya in case something else happened or he even twitched, was about to argue the case when the retrieval unit appeared. The situation didn't seem so desperate... as long as they can keep it that way.

"Nevermind. Let Aria's friend figure it out."

[no_longer_a_king]

Arturia stays at the retrieval unit's side in case anything else comes out of the woodwork. Even when they get into the room.

"Someone use a healing spell--quickly!" Would it even work on the unit?

[slightlyoblivious]

"On it!"

With that and a quick nod to Arturia, Yukiko runs ahead, stopping twice to fire off two more carefully targeted Maragidynes, one on the left side of the hallway, one on the right. Once she gets close to the elevator, she gives the chipped unit a nod, then moves so she's facing the computer room. If anything gets too close, it's going to get fire magic.

"Don't blow up anything you don't have to blow up," she calls back.

Once she's said that, she turns to the chipped unit again, casting a quick Diarahan on it. "Thank you," she says, with a smile.

[bloodyashes]

A breather. Asch doesn't drop his guard, but he does take a pause from slashing into the last of the tentacles in the room to call out to those still in the hallway.

"There's still the issue of that mist, unless fire takes care of that, too."

[animusnpcs]

The retrieval unit smiles at Yukiko as his arm is cleaned up and then moves to one of the shut down terminals. It's reactivated and the retrieval unit inserts something that looks like a flash drive inside a port. The hissing noise dies off, and aside from the residents, it's now completely silent.

[attheclocktower]

Xion grimaces. She was a bit pale, having expended so much energy in a short space of time, though her face was set in a grimace of determination. Planting her Keyblade tip-first into the ground, she leans on it, breathing heavily.

"We should stay here... make sure nothing else happens," she says flatly.

[warriorscribe]

"Is...is Riki going to be unable to reenter?" Enoch asks. "And what should we do about him?" he gestures to Naoya. "He was...possessed. Is there any way to make him safe?"

[sageprincess]

With the threat taken care of, Zelda finally stops casting, watching the retrieval unit rush to the machine. Only when the hissing ceases does she sigh in relief, falling to a knee in exhaustion.

"We did it," she breathes, almost disbelieving. And then, "I am willing to stay, in case those things come back."

Fire power seems to be in high demand down here.

[midgarhorizon]

"Doubt it." It's in response to Enoch. "It looked more tech than magic to me. Whatever's got him might be still in him. Just let me keep an eye on him." Reno's examining him as he speaks, checking for obvious signs without actually touching him. Muttering, he used his javelin for support and squatted down for a closer look. "It happened when he got too close. I'm lucky I didn't get hit by it. Keep an eye on Aria's friend, make sure he stays safe. Xion," he looks up at her, "keep an eye on us both. Just in case I do anything weird."

[stitchedupbodyguard]

Veronica doesn't lower her guard, not entirely, but she does take a deep breath now that the air has been cleared. It seems they'd won, for the moment at least.

"I can stay too." She didn't have power, but she could still stab things. That counts for something, right? "In case anything else happens."

[slightlyoblivious]

Yukiko finally breathes a sigh of relief as she watches the chipped unit get to work. She's tired, but if that's the worst that happens, she'll take it."The mist is a lot thinner down the hallway. I think fire will clear the air out," she answers.

"I'm willing to stay down here just in case, too. I can heal and I can cast. As for Riki, he knows this room better than anyone. I wouldn't put it past him to have a hidden entrance somewhere."

[notachickenhawk]

<I'm not sure if I'd be able to help much.> Electronics... not his strong point. And he doesn't have fire powers. ... That would be awesome. But sadly impossible. He's back in his normal hawk form now.

[no_longer_a_king]

Arturia stays by the chipped unit's side.

"I do not have fire powers myself, but I intend to see this through and was able to hold them off, at least."

And she had resigned herself to dying down here. She would be the last one to leave unless someone could convince her otherwise.

[greyerrant]

"You won't be seeing this through alone, at least"

Loken steps up without another comment, and a green armored figure smirks beside him, looking ghostly.

[no_longer_a_king]

Arturia smiles at Loken.

"Of course not. Being alone here would be foolish." She nodded for him to join her and Yukiko in keeping point around the shipped unit.

[animusnpcs]

The room goes unnaturally pitch black. It appears as if there's nothing in the room at all except for the residents and the chipped retrieval unit. Something flashes in the retrieval unit's eyes, and he keeps working, but not without a warning:

"The glamour system is being manipulated."

[no_longer_a_king]

Arturia reaches a hand out to put a hand on the retrieval unit's shoulder. The Glamour could turn into tanything and so long as she kept her hand on him she hoped she could at least keep track of him.

[puppy_lancer]

Once Yukiko figured out those things were vulnerable to fire, fighting had gotten much easier. Now Lancer could just use his runes to light the tentacles on fire.

"I'll stay. And I promise not to blow anything up now that we no longer need to."

Anything else he has to say is cut off as he hears the retrieval unit.

"Really? By who? How?"

[morphballin]

"I will also remain, to cover the fire-users if necessary. And...attempt to use the machinery, if need be." She's no pro hacker, and she's lacking her scanner, and there's no blaster-port interface, but she'll try, damn it.

And there's the darkness. Shit. Samus readies a charge blast - mostly to provoide some semblance of light.

[notachickenhawk]

<I'm not an owl...> There's vague grumbling from Tobias, but he attempts to fly over to Asch's shoulder to get off the floor.

[sageprincess]

... Din, Nayru, and Farore, will this not end?

"Can it be stopped?" Zelda asks, forcing herself back to her feet and into a ready position with no small amount of effort.

[bloodyashes]

...Well, that's just great.

At the announcement, Asch resumes his place guarding Zelda's back. "He could throw damn near anything at us with the glamour. Be ready."

[greyerrant]

"I'm ready"

Garvi's fists crack, as he prepares for whatever is to come.

[animusnpcs]

Most discussion is going to have to wait--suddenly, everything goes silent. No one can hear themselves talk, let alone anyone else. Only telepathy continues working.