[Nexus] Remnant HQ

[happyturtle]

Outside the Secret Chamber

"It scared me. It wouldn't answer any questions." Sunny says. She does not have the heart of an adventurer. She will always, always choose caution over curiosity.

[UncleWolf]

Outside

Aliz tries to trace it, even co-ordinating with the three Intelligences to look for further traces of the same "scent" through the networks, avoiding anything private or secure unless they "smell" whatever it was near it.

After a few moments, he passes the search over to the three "AI" and gives her a nod. "I think it's a Ghost. Not literally. Someone's hacked in. If you want, I can get Riley to give you a security update on this. Should keep it from happening again."

[happyturtle]

Outside the Secret Chamber

"It wanted help." Sunny says. I'm assuming Aliz has read the messages by now. "But I don't like it. Is that mean of me?"

She's feeling pretty violated that something got into her phone, foolish for not securing it better, embarrassed about the security breach and guilty for not being able to help someone that asked for help.

[UncleWolf]

Outside Chamber

Aliz shakes his head. "No, it's not mean. Most people who resort to this kind of thing are looking to use you. The Gorgons are already looking for whatever caused it, but it seems that they're at a dead end. Seems it hacked into a phonebooth."

[happyturtle]

Outside

"So it wasn't trapped somewhere?" Sunny says. She looks at her phone. "I don't want it back."

[UncleWolf]

[Gate]

"Yes, such a thing is possible. However, the procedure itself is...painful. Even if put under anaesthetic, there will be some quite severe pain for a few hours afterwards as the patient adjusts to his new eyes. Hence, the Lord Professor would need to teach your medical staff how best to perform the operation to ensure it is done quickly, efficiently, and with minimal pain afterwards. Additionally, there may be some slight disorientation while adjusting to the new eyes. Nothing serious, but the Lord Professor would recommend one day before allowing patients back into active duty, just to be sure."

"Where does he wish to meet?" He asks it.

Outside

"So it wasn't trapped somewhere?" Sunny says. She looks at her phone. "I don't want it back."

"Are you sure?" He asks. "It'd be perfectly safe with a few patches from our security network."

[happyturtle]

Outside

"I'll make a clean one," Sunny says. "Let's finish the tests."

[Gnrlshrimp]

[Gate]

"...I'm here. Here is fine. He would not expect you to move any of your medical staff elsewhere in case an emergency of some sort were to occur." The Prof is capable of being present within any creation, after all. "Ideally, as part of the training he would demonstrate the procedure on at least one patient. Will you be able to find a volunteer or two for that?"

[UncleWolf]

Outside Room

"Alright, I can toss this into the incinerator if you wish." He offers before nodding and getting back to the tests.

Gate

"I'm the subject." Geoff says without hesitation as Bugs, the head doctor, arrives. "He's the one you have to show."

[Gnrlshrimp]

[Gate]

"Then, if you could ask Feia to remove this stuff-" The white creation nods at the goopy stuff she used to restrain it, "And show me to your medical facilities, another creation will arrive shortly with the equipment required."

[Chaotic Bob]

[Gates]

I can offer to keep an eye, if requested.
The ectoplasm should dissolve in short order, around now.
It requires but a thought from Feia.

By now, it would appear the bonds are unnecessary.

[UncleWolf]

Gate

As soon as the elderly medic hears Geoff's declaration, he smacks the younger spark over the head. "We're going to use a simulacrum for the test subject. Not him." He says with a finality that leaves no room for argument. After the bonds are removed, the Creation will be led into the infirmary.

[Gnrlshrimp]

[Gate]

"As you wish. Lead the way." And the White Creation follows off after the mean doctor who won't let poor Geoff have super-eyes.

*****

A short while afterwards, a drone appears outside the anti-teleport zone and makes its way over, carrying various bit and pieces required for the operation. It will presumably be led to the infirmary as well.

[The Alexandrian]

[Outside the Gates]

Not far from the gates leading into the Remnant stronghold (outside the reality anchoring field, perhaps), a presumably unidentified soldier sporting a black jumpsuit stands, studying the compound from without, memorizing its every facet. He evaluates the base's visible defenses including troop locations, troop movements, and any general reactions to his presence.

[Gullara]

[Outside the Gates]

Similarly outside the gates and reality anchor, two beings approach.

The first is a military looking man. He has cropped, sandy brown hair, icy blue eyes, wears a stern expression, and looks to be in his thirties. His dark uniform is reminiscent of the SS. He has an armband adorned with a red "R" on his left arm. There is a jian at his waist, as well as something that looks like a gun and a masterball.

Next to him hovers a strange, purple creature. Those familiar to such things will recognize him as a Mew Two. He wears a uniform similar to the man, complete with armband.

Once at the gate, the two wait for someone to receive them. There is a definite military air about them.

[UncleWolf]

Infirmary

When the Creation arrives, it'll be led to a large lab in the Infirmary, where an ooze is poured onto a table, and before their eyes, begins to grow and change into a human form, mimicking Geoff's body. It'll take a while for it to finish growing though, and Bugs watches it carefully, using his medical gauntlet, a type which even Affy would have to admit was more advanced than nearly any others he's seen, to manipulate it's "growth".

Gate

The soldier in the jumpsuit will notice that the defenses are nearly impenetrable with high and thick blast walls, guard towers, and many overlapping firing lanes. The guard movements are seemingly random, and no post is ever left empty. It's all extremely professional. There's only one visible entrance, the main gate, and it's heavily armed.

While no one points the weapons at any of the newcomers, it's obvious that they're noticed as the people in the towers, their long rifles in their hands, turn and watch them, ready to raise their sniper rifles and fire when necessary.

[Gullara]

[Gate]

Gustav nods slightly upon examining the outside of the complex. Efficient, professional, and providing excellent intimidation. All things he can appreciate.

Mewtwo on the other hand actually appears to be slightly nervous despite himself. He looks from side to side a bit too often. This is mostly because of his inability to teleport here.

He mentally informs Gustav of this as they approach, but the man's expressionless face doesn't change.

Once at the gate, Gustav addresses whoever needs to be address with a slight Germanic accent.

"Excuse me. We'd like to speak with someone about offering our services to your... enterprise here."

[The Alexandrian]

[Gate]

The soldier, Blaine, flicks a tiny BB gun out of his right sleeve and begins to fire at one of the snipers!

Blaine continues to stand outside the gates, observing the other two beings' attempt to gain entry without proper clearance.

He is in no way impressed with the base. It had a major flaw with its defense system.

All of the guards were organic.

Synthetic systems were more efficient at guarding a base, though they often lacked the versatility required for front-line combat.

Organics made mistakes. Properly maintained and monitored synthetics didn't.

"Tin cans are more suited to guard duty than meat bags."

Blaine mutters in an indifferent tone under his breath.

Blaine makes no further movements. He needed to assess the worth of this organization. Intel on its capabilities was simply indispensable.

[UncleWolf]

Gate

Blaine may feel a bit of a gust of wind brush past him, but hear nothing until a quiet female voice speaks. "Tin cans lack survival instinct. So do some spies it seems..." There's a hiss of sharp metal being drawn from somewhere around him, but nothing to see.

Back at the gate, a woman in Remnant power armor, her blank white helmet obscuring her face looks at the pair. There's an obviously magical axe on her back, and an assault rifle in her hands. "And you would be?" She asks the pair.

[Gullara]

[Gate]

The man gives her a short nod. "Gustav Rothschild, and this is Mewtwo." Mewtwo also gives her a nod. "We are new to this dimension, which seems to be a common trend around here. It seemed prudent to do what we were trained for. That being working with the military."

[Gnrlshrimp]

[Infirmary]

Considering Affy rarely puts any sort of clothing on his creations, yes, it's probably the most advanced gauntlet he's ever seen. The White Creation peers closely at the ooze as it takes shape, "Interesting. I've never seen anything like this before. Presumably it has no higher brain functions? A very useful way of perfecting techniques without any consequences for failure, if that's the case..."

Meanwhile, the drone arrives and lays out the tools. There's a rather sharp device for removing the eye, carefully shaped to provide zero chance of piercing the eye itself, a couple of tools for making sure the eyelids don't get in the way, several very fine tools for use when inserting the replacement eyes, a set of Affidavit's replacement eyes, and a small bottle of liquid with an accompanying syringe.

[UncleWolf]

Gate

Under the faceplate, Dizzy frowns. "Mewtwo...Mewtwo...why does that name seem familiar?" She mutters out loud as she contacts her superior.

Infirmary

"It is merely an organic ooze. Similar to Algae, that can mimic other DNA strains." Bugs says as he hooks up monitors. "This will serve our purposes well enough."

[The Alexandrian]

[Gate]

Blaine remains unphased in spite of this unwarranted transgression on the part of the cloaked soldier.

If this other (presumably female) soldier is within appoximately 3 feet of Blaine, she may, assuming that the cloaking device she is utilizing either does not mask traces of energy or lacks the ability to manipulate her particle density (or at least that of the cloaking field cast around her body and armor), note that he seems to be aware of the general location of where she is lurking.

If the conditions above are not met, then the soldier's location is unknown to Blaine.

Blaine crosses his arms in a suitably dispassionate fashion.

Although Blaine isn't acquainted well enough with Common to comprehend what the invisible soldier is asserting, the hiss of the weapon being drawn around him allows him to deduce the essence of what was said.

Where did he learn that bit of Common that he just spoke? From a meat vendor in the Red Zone.

As such, Blaine counters, speaking entirely in English in an apathetic tone,

"If I were any sort of hostile, would I really be this conspicuous? Were I a hostile, you would be dead. I would have taken up position in one of the towers nearby and sent some other poor sap out here with an explosive sewn into his abdominal region with the express instructions that he would march up to the gate and get a guard to approach him, as you have. I would monitor him and threaten that I would kill his family if he did not 'follow my word to the letter.' Of course, he would comply, being a passionate man who would never allow himself to be the end of his family. When someone, like you, reached effective range of the explosive, I would detonate it, killing or maiming you, but more importantly distracting the snipers. I would then proceed to execute one of the snipers with a bullet fired from a mundane sniper rifle before masking my thermals and releasing another man into the room I was firing from. He would be holding the sniper rifle I utilized in the execution. Then, my job would be simple, exfiltrate via the sewers and explode the structure from afar, before any troops reached the chamber the 'sniper' was nesting in but after a number of your troops had entered the building."

"It would be clean, precise, and untraceable. You would have claimed that you, at the very least, 'got the guy who was responsible.'"

"And then, the assaults would continue."

"But you wouldn't have to fret about that."

"You'd be dead, and that would, needless to say, be a real shame."

"It's the risk all of us run in this business."

Blaine's demeanor is now one of deep reverence.

Blaine is reliving the death of two of his comrades. The expression etched into his face is the same one he wore when he last looked at his friends.

An expression not of sorrow but of gladness and envy.

The dead are the only ones who are truly free.

[Gnrlshrimp]

Infirmary

"It is merely an organic ooze. Similar to Algae, that can mimic other DNA strains." Bugs says as he hooks up monitors. "This will serve our purposes well enough."

"Indeed it will." Oh, hey, voice change! Looks like White just stepped aside and let Affy take control. "It's not perfect, however. Normally I use a very powerful local anaesthetic to ensure the patient feels no pain during the procedure, but if they start to feel anything, that alerts me that I've got close to something I shouldn't have. Yet to happen, shouldn't ever happen, but better safe than sorry. It is possible to do the operation with the patient completely out, but I like the added safety of them being awake for the operation, if they can handle it."

[Gullara]

[Gate]

"Pokemon. If that helps. Strangely, it seems there is a game loosely based on our world." Gustav frowns very slightly, barely making an impression in his otherwise cold expression.

[UncleWolf]

Gate

The cloaked form constantly shifts shapes and positions, making it hard to focus on for any length of time. "Congratulations. You proved that yours is bigger than mine. Now leave before I get a shred of sense and kill you." Carol tells him in English. Telling someone how you'd kill their men, saying they're dumb enough to fall for it and could do nothing about it, is not a way to make friends.


Infirmary

When the Simulacrum is finished, Bugs steps aside and gives Affy a gesture, telling him to go ahead and begin.

[Morty]

[Machine Yard]

Grimzig's goblins are gathered on the edges of the yard, with the center being occupied by a pair of mechanical legs running around at a high speed, bearing a barrel. Grimzig is arguing with a couple of his associates over some blueprints.

[The Alexandrian]

[Gate]

Yes, such threats are not acceptable in normal, civilized society.

Regrettably, Blaine does not yet fully understand the implications of this fact.

I doubt he will ever truly understand how to make friends.

Blaine scoffs before he turns away from the compound and begins to stroll away.

Without turning his head away from his new destination, he issues a warning to this Carol.

"I know how your brand of security racket functions. Scum feeding off the fear of the people."

"Know that if your corruption continues, next time you see me, I'll be holding a weapon as well."

"If it ends, you'll never have to see me again."

And with that, assuming that Carol doesn't, say, stab him in the back or otherwise prevent his departure, he'll be off.

Never seeing Blaine again is a good incentive to most people, considering how annoying he can be.

[Chaotic Bob]

Wherever it currently is, Feia's illusion fizzles out.

She has now properly and physically reappeared outside the [Gates], carrying a piece of paper and a small orb of white gel orbiting her head.

That paper for the intelligence-boosting has arrived.

[happyturtle]

Edijar's Place

Charity had been sketching out wedding dress designs for her sister when the phone rang, and she had a phone call with "Phoenix".

When the call was over, she tried to go back to what she'd been doing, but the mood was ruined. Now all she could think about was The Cat finding a way to ruin her sister's wedding, the way he'd ruined everything else.

Carl's Place

Sunny comes skipping in, overjoyed. "It worked! It worked!" Of course, Carl won't know what worked, but I'm sure she'll tell him eventually.