Lovelace will begin to crack the electronic locks that hold the prisoners captive. If it's not a giant timesink, she'll also break people other than Mindjack out. If nothing else, they'll provide Mindjack with someone to control.
Printable View
Lovelace will begin to crack the electronic locks that hold the prisoners captive. If it's not a giant timesink, she'll also break people other than Mindjack out. If nothing else, they'll provide Mindjack with someone to control.
Flicker will fill in the others on who the middle aged guy is and what Lovelace is doing.
"Terawatt - keep an eye in the skies, hopefully, there won't be any more Drones? Deca, Fitzy, let see if there are any admin areas near the cells which may or may not have the keys in while Lovelace is cracking the key panel. There was nothing in the far admin area."
Watching the skies it is, then. Not crazy about being ordered about but I ain't objecting to the chance of shootin' more turkeys, and if we live through the next half hour we can maybe get antsy about whose job it is to tell who to do what.
I follow Flicker's lead.
"Wait 'til it all goes wrong", Flicker thinks to himself, "then watch the blame come my way faster than a speeding superhero." He starts looking round for an admin area in the cell blocks.
The locks to the gate are number-key operational, and the code they use is definitely complicated. Lovelace does have the tools to break this, but there really are nearly countless possible variations, and the time it takes is far longer than desired. While Lovelace, in the form of a ho-hum accountant, works feverishly, others in the nearby cells are calling out for help.
The one who had identified herself as Valerie Ramirez, a name none of you seem to recognize, continues to wail in the cell two down to Mindjack's. "I have money! I have safety! If you spring me, it's all yours! They're experimenting on us - and I say like Hell to that! Break me out and it's all yours!"
After nearly a minute, which Lovelace realizes is pretty fast for breaking this code, the doors open and Mindjack is released from his prison.
Mindjack, however, complicates it with a shrug. "Thanks for opening the door, but I'm not really interested in leaving. I got another woman caught here, and I'm not going to let her rot. I might be a killer, but I'm not a dick." Stepping out of the chamber, he sighed pleasantly as the null field dissipated, and then began to float calmly. He gestures down, pointing at Kamaria's cell.
"She needs to be free before I'm going damn anywhere. And trust me. I'm a nice enough guy, but I'm not going anywhere I don't want to go." Mindjack smiled for that.
The night was still; but based on Lovelace's interception of feed earlier, she knew - and had relayed - that more were on their way. They couldn't be far. Every second here was another chance that the entire cavalry, not a skeleton crew of sixteen drones, would descend on this place like locusts from the sky.
Flicker does find the "guard shack". It is adjoined to Building 1, not Building 3 where Mindjack is. It's door is sealed by truly insane amounts of security; it requires what is clearly a code, and a retina scanner, at the least, but there is also what looks like a pinprick - perhaps a DNA sequence test. However, with a small window open, he can see inside, for a place to land... and teleports within. It has a screen that watches each cell, the one that transmits its feed to the admin building proper. It also has a panel covered with cell numbers, and a series of buttons underneath, all of them labeled with clear and informative V'sori words.
"There's one hell of an enemy force barreling down on us, and you want me to... Fine, whatever. It was a damn miracle to break your code in under a minute, and I don't know if I can repeat that. What do you know about that Ramirez character over there?"
"I wonder if there is anywhere we can turn off the null field for the entire block? Lovelace, broadcast something out there to Destruction saying that Mindjack is free and then start on the next cell. You know, it's a shame we can't just remove the wall between this cell and the next."
Flicker gives an experimental teleporting tug on one of the blocks in the wall of Mindjack's cell. If nothing happens, it's back to looking for the master off switch for the null field.
"Eh, tell you what. We get locked up, Dilbert, I'll make the same demand on the next crew Dr. Destruction sends to bust me out," he offered to Lovelace with a bit of a roguish smirk that was hard not to see the genuine mirth in... even if what he said made him come off a little entitled.
Levitating, he began to marshall his own power, looking to the horizon. "I'll try to keep them off if they land, but Kamaria's coming with us." Glancing to Valerie, though, at Lovelace's request, he shrugged a little.
"I have no idea who she is."
"You can't let me rot in here! Please!" she cries out, in response.
-----
It seems like power fails inside of the cell. Flicker is unable to affect anything with his powers inside of the cell. There seems to be some sort of null field projected within it somehow.
I didn't see the extra part of that post, first time around.
"Actually, I've got a better idea. Lovelace, keep hacking at that cell", then turning around, "Hey Ramirez, you get to be a guinea pig. By the way, anyone know the V'Sori for open. I found the master control panel for all the cells, I might be able to turn off the null fields and open them, if I knew which button to press."
Huh, here comes Mindjack. Time to bail, any second - and if it weren't for those dweebs down below I guess I'd be lighting out right now an' trustin' the rescued party had smarts enough to pour piss out of a boot, if the boot had instructions on the heel. Can't run out on 'em just now, though.
"Best of luck. If you bring me there, I'll hack that one. It's a nutty little language, isn't it? "Quote:
Originally posted by CatInASuit
"Actually, it wil probably be just as fast to hack the main control panel as the individual locks here. C'mon Lovelace, change of plan, I'll teleport you in and you can open everything up."
Flicker will Taxi Lovelace in, rather than trying to Move Other
Is anyone else doing anything?
Actually I am lost at this point. So I remain on guard.
Summarizing: You have defeated three separate squads of drones; you almost had to handle two to three at the same time, but fortunately, Lovelace scrambled such.
You have found the cells, as located on the map above. You know which cell Mindjack is in. Next to his cell is another one containing a female he has called Kamaria. A few cells down is another named Valerie Ramirez. One Mindjack requires before he'll go with you be freed (Kamaria), the other is promising untold wealth to be freed (Ramirez).
Others are also begging 'take me with you' sort of things.
All guards at the facility have been downed; Lovelace knows that the response is maybe three minutes away at best, now, meaning you are on borrowed time as a V'sori force is heading your way. Lovelace has told you this.
Lovelace and Flicker are now heading in to try to open ALL cells with the big global switch in the guard room.
Does that help, WhatExit?
It helps a lot.
I will pick a part of the wall the is outside two cells and attempt Decay on the walls hoping to free two prisoners.
"Hey Fitzy, you can do more than fly and throw lightning?", says Flicker as he heads past with Lovelace in tow.
When Lovelace arrives in the main control room, she'll begin hacking the system and try to release the locks on all the cells at once.
The Decay begins to work; with the density of the wall, it is taking some time to eat through the material, but the channeling druid Fitheal begins to see a hole that allows through into Kamaria's cell.
However, shortly thereafter, Lovelace's hacking proves sufficient; using the nearby computer which operates the panel, she is able to access the system and override it to release all the locks on all the cells, releasing some roughly thirty super-villains.
[MINOR RETCON; everyone gets a benny!]
Of course, like Mindjack, in addition to the nullification effect in the cells, they all have the same nullifier gauntlets that they had gifted you all with. Yes, so ignore Mindjack's earlier bit about flying, as he wasn't, as he has nullifiers on.
In the distance, as Terawatt can see from here, is the approaching ship of Doctor Destruction. However, Lovelace will also see on the screen broadcasts from the V'sori force as they try to raise the local guards.
It will be a photo finish.
"Let's go open up those null-cuffs. We're going to need all the help we can get."
"Someone explain to me what to do to open these cuff and I should be able to try it."
"I'll try and teleport them off, the gauntlets should only affect the wearer so getting them off should doable, but no guarantees. Otherwise, we're going to need a key, or someone with insanely high strength to rip them off. Or we can wait for Destruction to get here and he can rip them off."
As they cannot be locked picked, I will attempt to teleport them off also.
"Can't Deca just rip them off?"
"Hurry it up down there!"
prepares to go down flinging bolts like Tesla's maddest fantasy.
Always choosing action over words, Deca will step forward to one of the prisoners, checking the gauntlets for a weak spot and attempting to break them without damaging the prisoner's hand. She's intent on what she's doing, but suddenly mutters, "Breaking his hand and pushing it out would be much easier..."
Kamaria looks somewhat alarmed. "Even if you can find a way, I wouldn't suggest releasing the gauntlets on everyone here. The enemy of your enemy is not always your friend. Some of the people here are unpredictable psychotics."
"That's why we are starting with you and Mindjack", replies Flicker. "Besides we can always leave them on and everyone can just make a run for it anyway."
Previously on Z-Force.....
Terawatt is getting ready to face oncoming V'Sori forces, Lovelace is monitoring communications and Deca, Fitheal and Flicker are trying to get the null cuffs off the prisoners starting with Mindjack and Kamaria.
and now for the concluding episode of....
I'll restart this once I get a roll-call
Ok, here goes....
The race is on, Destruction's ship closing in with the V'sori close behind as they attempt to prevent the escape of all here. From above, Terawatt can see them incoming, Destruction's ship will make it first, but close behind is a V'Sori Barracuda. The small craft is straining to get there and provide the enemy with some idea of what has happened. Perhaps the first response, by no means the last, and still a danger to all here.
Deca strains muscle and sinew against the nullifier gauntlets around Ramirez's wrists, but to no avail. They refuse to budge and Ramirez has to stifle a gasp of pain as Deca tries to force the issue before giving up. "Maybe I should try breaking something else", she mutter as she pauses.
At Toughness 14, they are really difficult to break using Strength
Fitheal gathers what Sorcery as he can manage and starts trying to teleport the gauntlets from Kamaria. He can feel it within his grasp to move himself, but the added distraction of moving the gauntlets as well is beyond his limit.
Teleport by itself probably isn't enough, you would need Move Other as well and you don't have enough points in Super Sorcery - Hint: look at Malfunction
Flicker concentrates hard and mutters "Come to Flicker" under his breath, before teleporting the bracelets off Mindjack. He grins, as he drops the gauntlets on ground. "Like taking cash from an armoured van"
Lovelace can hear some fragments of V'Sori communication and although she cannot understand what is being said, its sounds frantic and angry.
Funshine is possibly the smallest captive there and despite everything has been freed by what appears to be an Omega cell looking for someone. There is a large crowd of inmates all with gauntlets on and then a cry goes up from somewhere near the front.
When Flicker gets the gauntlets off, there is a sudden forward surge of inmates all wanting to also have their gauntlets removed. Cries of "Me, me, me" shout out into the Night air as they start pushing each other to get to the front. A couple of scuffles break out between the bigger villains as they all want to be the first to have their gauntlets removed.
In a few rounds, Destruction will be here, but at the moment, you are about to have a riot on your hands.
Go for it...
Lovelace will continue her hacking, trying to shut down the V'Sori network by dumping every virus and worm she's got into the system.
"Shaddup!" yells Terawatt, punctuating his statement with a pair of lightning bolts to ground close to the agitated mob. "You'll get what you're given, so quit yellin' - we got enough to handle already!"
Funshine runs to the front finding Flicker and sees him nearly surrounded by a quickly forming mob. Funshine summons Patches and both begin enforcing a perimeter by running back and forth at 120 mph snapping and pawing at anyone who draws too close looking a bit too agitated.
With Terawatt's interruption the crowd quietens slightly and then they start looking around as the sound of incoming vehicles can be heard through the compound.
Lovelace infects the local computer systems and will render it pretty unsuable from this point onwards. The further system is resisting efforts, and the radio traffic is still continuing between the oncoming ship and the base.
Looking out at Destruction's ship and then down at the crowd on the ground, Terawatt, can see that it is not going to be big enough to fit everyone in. Beyond yourselves, you may get another 10 or so in, but some people are going to be unhappy.
Flicker looks at Deca and Fitheal. "Ok, line them up, I'll see how fast I can get all those Gauntlets off", while turning to Kamaria and removing her Gauntlets. A look of concentration and a snarl of disgust crosses his lips as he fails to instantly remove Ramirez's Gauntlets. "What? What is it? Why can't you take them off?" she cries out.
Being the smallest, Funshine finds himself being kicked to the back of the group standing around, as people start milling around wanting to be at the front, but not upset Terawatt, flying overhead.
Looking as happy as ever, Mindjack rubs his wrists while backing out of the way of the rest of you.
Standing by to greet the arrivals with a storm of lightning bolts... it's never a good day to die, but I ain't going easy, no matter what.
Fitheal will gather his powers for an old hobby. He will attempt to play gremlin and make that high-tech cuffs malfunction.
Funshine chillaxes doing nothing in particular.
Apologies, I missed this the first time round.Quote:
Originally posted by deepsoulfunk
I will add that you are currently captured along with all the other inmates in this particular prison. You are currently equipped with a set of nullifier gauntlets, meaning you are unable to use any of your powers and are currently about as much use as an animated teddy bear until they are removed.
You are also at the back of the queue.
lol, oops I misinterpreted what "freed" meant :smack
Kamaria smiles in grim satisfaction as the gauntlets come off. She moves out of the way of the others needing help while she rubs her wrists, testing to see how well her abilities respond now that the nullifier gauntlets are off. She'll test her Animal Control, seeking out any insects in the area to create a swarm for her use.
Using the threat of violence which cannot be answered, Deca starts to move the crowd into some semblence of a line, although some are torn between having their gauntlets removed and just running for the incoming landing craft.
For Kamaria, it's like someone turned your hearing on again. One moment, it's silence but when the gauntlets were removed, you could hear everything again. As you start concentrating on picking out the small insects in the area, one cry cuts clear through your consciousness. Somewhere in the vicinty, Izzy has found his mistress again.
Trying as different tack, Fitheal concentrates on the gauntlets, a brief spark of electricity crosses the space between his hands and Ramirez's gauntlets. There is a brief hiss of something and the fall off. "Thank you, thank you", she exclaims
Spellcasting roll(d12) +2 = 8 + 2 = 10, so he can make it work
Malfunction roll: Spirit (d8) - 4 Vsori Tech = 8 + 6 (re-roll) - 4 = 10 - success
Funshine starts to get this sinking feeling looking at all the other inmates, that he isn't really being noticed. While trying to disrupt the systems, Lovelace manages to shut down the radio between the incoming craft and the main V'Sori base. Flicker manages to remove another set of gauntlets and starts looking down the line. Terawatt gets buzzed by the landing craft as it comes in. He can see the main side door open and Destruction looking out.
"And how do you expect to fit them all in this craft?" comes the mental communication to Terawatt from Destruction. "Or do you not expect to leave?"
"We've done our job-- let's beat it." Lovelace activates her Disguise Device to resume her accountant disguise, flips her Deflection Corset to the "on" position, and shuts her laptop. "All right, folks-- we're releasing your cuffs, but we can't help you get out of here; there's no room on Destruction's ship. Take it or leave it."
"Hey, the V'Sori are welcome t'waste time roundin' this lot up again, far as I'm concerned. Meantime, boss, you're the one knows how much room you got - any 'impulse buys' down here catch your eye?"
Kamaria beams as she hears Izzy's cry, satisfied to know her companion has found her again. The discussion of leaving people behind makes her raise a brow, but she doesn't argue against it. "You're safer leaving the majority here anyway, but finding a few valuable allies might help you later."
"Humans, Hybrids, Atlanteans, nothing unusual, any of them may suffice. Wait...what is that? Strange, a Teddy Bear moving around with Nullifiers on. Is that possible? What powers it? That one, yes, that thing at the back. It intrigues Destruction and will be worthy of examination."Quote:
Originally posted by Malacandra
There is an outcry from the crowd when Lovelace mentions leaving them behind, not altogether helped by her change of appearance. But it is stifled by the mention of whose ship it is.
"Deca, give us anyone you think who can break these Nullifier Gauntlets", asks Flicker. Over the next three rounds, Flicker and Fitheal, can release another 4 inmates between them, out of the 26 still with Gauntlets on.
During this time Destruction's ship twists around in mid air and lands close behind the group. The blast from the thrusters whips through the players as it raises dust and then the noise drops to a low hum, ready for a fast getaway. The side is open and standing in the doorway is Destruction himself, waiting impatiently. Mindjack has already started to head across.
From above, Terawatt can see that the Barracuda will be overhead in about 5 rounds.
Okay, fly down to that animated teddy bear, announce "Boss says you're sprung! Come with me," and grab it. Then "Get a move on - we got less'n a minute before the shit hits the fan!" to the rest.
Lovelace tucks her computer under her arm and starts moving toward Destruction's ship. Time to leave!