Spending all of brunch talking to a "Vulcan" and pretending he was just as much of a hardcore fanboy as Spock was one way to start a day
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"2183." That answered that mystery quickly. After the Guild rose in power, all other groups were deemed obsolete. Of course he had never heard of her Vipers -- there was only the Guild.
He took note of the plate in her head (what had happened there? From the tone of her voice, it sounded as if...), but it was what she said next that piqued his interest. Why was it that the assassins were the only people to firmly understand that Landel needed to be destroyed and running would solve nothing? Maybe their profession just allowed them to think more clearly than the rest. "And have you made any strategic plans for this task?" he asked, his tone and mannerisms suddenly shifting from a polite coldness into something completely businesslike. It was an unfortunate situation they were in, to be certain, but professionals were professionals and they needed to remain level-headed and calm. "Have you gained information on where he is, the technology he is using, the security, any back up measures he may have, or if he is even still alive after that attack on his person the night before? I'd like to think you and the men you've allied with are better than to only see the goal as a simple hit without taking anything else into consideration."
What he asked next was hardly a question and more of a demand. "What is it you know that would help you achieve this mission?"
"We have intimate knowledge of a location Landel personally appears during the nightly games he plays with us. It is behind heavy security in the form of a puzzle lock we have obtained half the keys to," Beatrix replied. "All intelligence gathered tells us that the entire building and the surrounding areas are his grounds and meeting him on our own terms is not currently feasible. Yet, we will not sit on our hands."
She paused to subtly check the locations of the staff. "Aside from the standard creatures that roam the halls at night, Landel has powerful servants - some humanoid, some not - set to protect areas of import, though there is yet to be an established pattern as to their placement, though their frequency is every other night. On the nights where those servants are not stationed, Landel takes prisoners from our own ranks, brainwashes them into his service and restores any lost abilities and weapons to them. They take the place of the servants and impede the progress of those they can."
As for the speculation of Landel being dead... "No one knows if Landel still lives after last night, but reaching that location will give us an answer. We know someone who has had contact with Landel in this location before. Even if he is dead and not there, the import of this location suggests that the one to take over for him will make himself or herself known."
Venom said nothing as the woman explained, the occasional nodding of his head being the only outward sign that he was, in fact, listening. Once she completed her basic report, he kept silent once giving her a quick "Thank you," processing the information given and thinking it out to himself, tying it into what he already knew, what he could assume, and questioning to himself about what made no sense.
It looked as though they had already gotten an admirable head-start on finding this man (or where they assumed he was. A part of him had his doubts that that was really where he had been for months), but he hoped it would not be in vain. It would be unreasonable for them to focus solely on what laid beyond that door (was there enough men in the group to split the party into two different tasks, though? Using only assassins may have been a near-sighted choice if they couldn't), well secured as it may be. If Landel had held any sort of intelligence, he wouldn't have left so many clues to his location, none the less the keys, well-hidden as they may be. Unless you had a death-wish or were of the less-than-sane sort, you didn't play a game you had a chance of losing. Chances were that his location was not static, if the ease of which those monsters attacked him said anything (if he had stayed only beyond the door described, there was no possible way they could have broken in like they had. It was only common sense), even if that locked door held something of interest or someone claimed to see him there before (how did they manage that if it were locked?).
Second of all, there was also the problem that Landel may have been dead, working for someone else, or was out of commission. Would his death and that alone be enough to find a way back to their own worlds and times? If he were dead, he had been replaced by the computer system heard now and they needed to find a way to disable it. If he was working for another, there was a more deadly force to be dealt with after him, making all their efforts to take out middle man a waste of effort, time, and resources (...did they have resources? Or was his mind going back to Guild-mode? He would need to ask the woman for more information later). Him being injured was the best case scenario for them, but Venom was far from optimistic. Regardless the situation, they needed a plan.
The information was filed away for later. For all the questions he had, this wasn't the time or the place. Instead, he only asked one simple, basic thing. "What is your name?"
Call her Arlene? Suggesting that wasn't her true name. It didn't matter. If she had a reason to hide what it really was, he wouldn't force the issue. It wasn't that vital at the moment.
"Venom," he answered before he turned his attention to the side, examining the others in the area. While the only one he immediately recognized was Sora, there was a hand-full of talent to be had in the field. He supposed if they were going to brainwash anyone for military purposes (what other federal training could they speaking of?), it may as well be those you would not have to train...
Was that really what they were trying to accomplish here?
Speaking of that. "Is that all you wished to see me about?"
Venom. Likely that name was as genuine as Arlene was. Beatrix just simply did not use her real name or her assassin alias in this place. She didn't care if people figured that out any more, but the idea of an assassin hiding their real name? That was a real stretch of logic there. Enough sarcasm.
"I wanted to assess you," the Bride replied. "My group is in need of one other to deal with the puzzle locks as several of the doors are coded to require a set minimum of people for them to even open." It went without saying that they had tried force and other means. "As I said before, I prefer to work with professionals and there are benefits to associating with us - weaponry being only one of them. If you are interested, I will extend you an invitation for tonight's run on a trial basis."
So that was it, then. Venom wasn't surprised, but not impressed either. It also answered his question on how many men this group had (this door couldn't have had that many keys, making the number of allies sadly limited). Still, there wasn't any reason to not join for the night in order to assess what they were doing, if it needed better planning, and so on.
After all, if they were going to involve him in anything, he was not the only one on trial.
"I'll deeply consider it." He shifted his weight onto his right leg, letting the motion disrupt his hair enough to fix the woman with one visible eye. "Where have you planned to meet?"
"Outside the Sun Room doors," Beatrix replied, fixing Venom's eye with her own cold blue ones. "Both myself and one of the others have brief appointments at the beginning of the night, but we will be at those doors. We will not be lingering once all of us have gathered."
He nodded his head again, purposely destroying the brief eye-contact between them (not that he needed to do much to accomplish that; she was taller than he was. He had to look up at her. This annoyed him) and ultimately masking his face once again.
The day was not over yet. Everything needed to be preserved and remembered in case this "trial" had to be put on hold. Interested in this little group of allies as he was, something else could come up. If it did, he needed to be ready, collected, and able to create plans in place of the ones that failed. If there was nothing else to say...
"Will that be all, Ms. Arlene?" If it was, he would like to spend some time alone to write down his thoughts, if it was all right by her.
"I will be sure to do that, and I thank you for your time." He politely bowed once again before turning and taking his leave, saying nothing more.
With this now out of the way, he'd rather be somewhere quiet and less bright if he were going to write down everything he needed to. Having been given the choices earlier (by his now less-than-pleased nurse. "Mr. Lant, can't you stay in one spot? I thought we agreed you'd try to make some friends!"), he knew exactly where to go.
[Emo Assassin, to the library. Emo Assassin, you are wanted in the library.]
The Bride is again free to any interested partiesquickdrawbkiddoAugust 18 2009, 19:54:04 UTC
Beatrix watched Venom walk away for a brief moment before she rolled her shoulders. She still felt a bit of a twinge from where Ophelia had cut her, but she was mostly healed. How interesting the way things seemed to heal in this place. Not that she was complaining.
Shifting back into her stance, Beatrix picked up where she left off, her body fluidly moving into the next kata.
So now he had emotional as well as physical exhaustion. Great. Depth Charge let out a long, slow breath. Forte was just lucky he’d been too startled to get him back for putting him through the Pit for what had happened. But that could wait. Right now, he was just glad he was back in one piece.
… glad? Was that the word for it? Relieved, maybe, in a selfish kind of way. Well, whatever. Between Blitzwing upping and vanishing and him feeling sorry for a ‘con and people coming back from the dead, he’d barely had a chance to sit and think.
Not that his nurse cared. The second he stepped away from Forte she came bustling up babbling about getting some fresh air, and the next thing he knew he was outside "enjoying the day". Lucky him.
Fortunately there was at least one face he recognised, even if he wasn't sure what the attached body was supposed to be doing. Some kind of Earth martial art, most likely. "Hey," he called listlessly, shuffling towards the woman, "Arlene, right? They shut you out here too?"
"Guess so," he answered. She had a point. Sure, he'd protested, but being outside was a Pitload better than being trapped indoors with the humid press of watching eyes and bottled thoughts, and even the chill in the air was worth it just for the sake of the feeling. A little reminder of what was waiting outside of the Institute. Depth Charge shrugged it off, determined not to get sentimental. "What was that you were doing? Human martial arts?"
He took note of the plate in her head (what had happened there? From the tone of her voice, it sounded as if...), but it was what she said next that piqued his interest. Why was it that the assassins were the only people to firmly understand that Landel needed to be destroyed and running would solve nothing? Maybe their profession just allowed them to think more clearly than the rest. "And have you made any strategic plans for this task?" he asked, his tone and mannerisms suddenly shifting from a polite coldness into something completely businesslike. It was an unfortunate situation they were in, to be certain, but professionals were professionals and they needed to remain level-headed and calm. "Have you gained information on where he is, the technology he is using, the security, any back up measures he may have, or if he is even still alive after that attack on his person the night before? I'd like to think you and the men you've allied with are better than to only see the goal as a simple hit without taking anything else into consideration."
What he asked next was hardly a question and more of a demand. "What is it you know that would help you achieve this mission?"
Reply
She paused to subtly check the locations of the staff. "Aside from the standard creatures that roam the halls at night, Landel has powerful servants - some humanoid, some not - set to protect areas of import, though there is yet to be an established pattern as to their placement, though their frequency is every other night. On the nights where those servants are not stationed, Landel takes prisoners from our own ranks, brainwashes them into his service and restores any lost abilities and weapons to them. They take the place of the servants and impede the progress of those they can."
As for the speculation of Landel being dead... "No one knows if Landel still lives after last night, but reaching that location will give us an answer. We know someone who has had contact with Landel in this location before. Even if he is dead and not there, the import of this location suggests that the one to take over for him will make himself or herself known."
Reply
It looked as though they had already gotten an admirable head-start on finding this man (or where they assumed he was. A part of him had his doubts that that was really where he had been for months), but he hoped it would not be in vain. It would be unreasonable for them to focus solely on what laid beyond that door (was there enough men in the group to split the party into two different tasks, though? Using only assassins may have been a near-sighted choice if they couldn't), well secured as it may be. If Landel had held any sort of intelligence, he wouldn't have left so many clues to his location, none the less the keys, well-hidden as they may be. Unless you had a death-wish or were of the less-than-sane sort, you didn't play a game you had a chance of losing. Chances were that his location was not static, if the ease of which those monsters attacked him said anything (if he had stayed only beyond the door described, there was no possible way they could have broken in like they had. It was only common sense), even if that locked door held something of interest or someone claimed to see him there before (how did they manage that if it were locked?).
Second of all, there was also the problem that Landel may have been dead, working for someone else, or was out of commission. Would his death and that alone be enough to find a way back to their own worlds and times? If he were dead, he had been replaced by the computer system heard now and they needed to find a way to disable it. If he was working for another, there was a more deadly force to be dealt with after him, making all their efforts to take out middle man a waste of effort, time, and resources (...did they have resources? Or was his mind going back to Guild-mode? He would need to ask the woman for more information later). Him being injured was the best case scenario for them, but Venom was far from optimistic. Regardless the situation, they needed a plan.
The information was filed away for later. For all the questions he had, this wasn't the time or the place. Instead, he only asked one simple, basic thing. "What is your name?"
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"Venom," he answered before he turned his attention to the side, examining the others in the area. While the only one he immediately recognized was Sora, there was a hand-full of talent to be had in the field. He supposed if they were going to brainwash anyone for military purposes (what other federal training could they speaking of?), it may as well be those you would not have to train...
Was that really what they were trying to accomplish here?
Speaking of that. "Is that all you wished to see me about?"
Reply
"I wanted to assess you," the Bride replied. "My group is in need of one other to deal with the puzzle locks as several of the doors are coded to require a set minimum of people for them to even open." It went without saying that they had tried force and other means. "As I said before, I prefer to work with professionals and there are benefits to associating with us - weaponry being only one of them. If you are interested, I will extend you an invitation for tonight's run on a trial basis."
Reply
After all, if they were going to involve him in anything, he was not the only one on trial.
"I'll deeply consider it." He shifted his weight onto his right leg, letting the motion disrupt his hair enough to fix the woman with one visible eye. "Where have you planned to meet?"
Reply
Reply
The day was not over yet. Everything needed to be preserved and remembered in case this "trial" had to be put on hold. Interested in this little group of allies as he was, something else could come up. If it did, he needed to be ready, collected, and able to create plans in place of the ones that failed. If there was nothing else to say...
"Will that be all, Ms. Arlene?" If it was, he would like to spend some time alone to write down his thoughts, if it was all right by her.
Reply
Reply
With this now out of the way, he'd rather be somewhere quiet and less bright if he were going to write down everything he needed to. Having been given the choices earlier (by his now less-than-pleased nurse. "Mr. Lant, can't you stay in one spot? I thought we agreed you'd try to make some friends!"), he knew exactly where to go.
[Emo Assassin, to the library. Emo Assassin, you are wanted in the library.]
Reply
Shifting back into her stance, Beatrix picked up where she left off, her body fluidly moving into the next kata.
Reply
So now he had emotional as well as physical exhaustion. Great. Depth Charge let out a long, slow breath. Forte was just lucky he’d been too startled to get him back for putting him through the Pit for what had happened. But that could wait. Right now, he was just glad he was back in one piece.
… glad? Was that the word for it? Relieved, maybe, in a selfish kind of way. Well, whatever. Between Blitzwing upping and vanishing and him feeling sorry for a ‘con and people coming back from the dead, he’d barely had a chance to sit and think.
Not that his nurse cared. The second he stepped away from Forte she came bustling up babbling about getting some fresh air, and the next thing he knew he was outside "enjoying the day". Lucky him.
Fortunately there was at least one face he recognised, even if he wasn't sure what the attached body was supposed to be doing. Some kind of Earth martial art, most likely. "Hey," he called listlessly, shuffling towards the woman, "Arlene, right? They shut you out here too?"
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"You are correct," she replied, bringing her motions to a stop. "Though I am out here by choice. The sun feels nice even if it is a bit cool."
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She thought of something Depth Charge could be useful for. "You are one of the Cybertronians?"
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