(Building Plan - That would be an Incite Effect manoeuvre restricted by Craftsmanship. Need to know how a building goes together to know how to fix it. Difficulty: 6.)

 

Feeling better after his brief patrol of the area (and getting out of the dump they get to spend time in,) Rhys takes his time looping back towards the house, avoiding excessive use of his teleportation in order to enjoy the misty night. Doing so gives him an opportunity to search for escape routes for the, uh, more mobility challenged of the members of the group.

(Rolled a 5 on Investigation to find a good escape route in case everything suddenly heads south, tagging Knowledge of the Streets for a +2, and I switched out Deceit for Investigation, the first didn't really make sense.)

Without a lot else to do, Rhys heads back to their temporary hideout a bit more slowly than usual, wondering if he's got enough time to check over his sword and do a bit of maintenance.

 

@Zephyr: Where your casual trek across the rooftops had paid out in knowledge of the local streets, your search for escape routes hits the jackpot. Very near to the house is what at first glance looks to be a phone line exchange hut, but upon closer inspection it is revealed to your experienced eye to be a Bolt Hole with a narrow tunnel leading off a fair distance away before turning out of sight.

You get the impression that this place is used frequently, however, given the fold out bed, battery powered lamp and poster of an attractive blonde woman pinned to the wall. It doesn't look like it has been occupied in a few days though, so you feel fine with looking around a bit.

(For reference, this place is 3 streets/zones away from the Abandoned House and about the same distance from the casino as the house is.)

 

Still focusing on discerning more information, I absently reply to Dynamo, "Almost there..."

(Spending 1 Fate Point on improving my roll, swapping out Capes (+2) for Investigation (+2).)

(After figuring out what we need [i.e. this comes after whatever Aekiel posts]) I turn to Wisp and inform him, "I'm not too sure if I can make it well and truly solid, but we don't really need that, do we? I'm pretty sure I can just make sure it doesn't fall down any time soon."

(Roll: 4U1+5 => 5 )

I focus on the building's walls and foundations, binding them into more stable shapes. Concrete flows in as a thin film to fill in weak points and holes in the walls, reinforcing the structure and making sure it doesn't collapse on our heads.

"Well boys, we got ourselves a solid building. Nothing short of a cape fight or earthquake's gonna bring this thing down on our heads, as long as we're not in here for a few weeks."

(Added aspect to building: Haphazard Support)

Pooling my costume-turned-statue into a comfortable (if hard) seat, I settle in and lean back, taking a moment to focus more on the here-and-now instead of the constant buzz of movement in my zone of awareness.

"Well, here's what I found out..." (waiting on Aekiel)

 

@Fissure: Your improvements to the building seem to have worked well enough for the moment. The upper floor doesn't sound like it's groaning any more, at least.

Settling back into your surveillance task you find that your vision is much clearer now than it was before. Perhaps all you needed was a distraction to get your mind into gear. Either way, you are thankful that your power seems to be cooperating with you now.

Casting your mind's eye back into the investigation, you begin relaying the facts to your team mates. First, the Vault seems to be surrounded by a thick layer of metal sandwiched between plates of ceramic.

Secondly you can feel the 'holes' where metal wires extend throughout the concrete that makes up the walls of the basement. A bit of extra concentration rewards you with the feeling of more 'holes' extending outwards into the soil. There's something odd about them that you can't quite process, however. The ground around them seems to be vibrating slightly.

Thirdly, you find that your increased perception has made it easy to spot the security cameras in the building. They cover all but a few places. What's interesting though is that they're not the only cameras you can sense. There seem to be a few in odd places, including the womens' bathroom.

All in all, you seem to have a decent overall picture of the building.

(Feel free to relay this information to the others and start making assessment rolls. If you're trying to work out the security system, the base difficulty is 7 for Dynamo, 9 for everyone else.

Otherwise you're looking at Difficulty: 4.)

 

"Well then, from the sounds of things, looks like things aren't going to be as easy as we initially hoped. I'm thinking that they've got some sort of pressure sensor set up, we can probably trick it or go around it, but we'll have to work out the details such as it's range and how sensitive it is. In all honesty I'm going to guess this is some stupid tinker fuckery that's meant to be like the final safeguard against shit like what we're trying to pull. Hell, knowing my luck, it's probably some sort of bullshit tinker thing that can somehow detect the itty bitty vibrations that Fissure will make from doing his tunnelling thing"

"Although that just makes me wonder if it would be even be able to detect my approach, I prooooobably wouldn't make much of a disturbance because I'm just making like, a fucking microscopic tunnel because that's all I really need, but well, for all I know I could hit a hidden fault like and cause the entire place to fall into a sinkhole or something stupid. But anyway, odds are it wont be a big deal if it's just a sensor since we can trick those."

"What could be a problem though, is if it isn't a sensor, but in fact a shield of some sorts, the fact that it's effecting the walls as well and the floor kinda implies that it's not just look out for tunneling, that and the fact that there's apparently vibrations and could mean that a tinker has been fucking around with shit because fuck tinkers amirite."

"So what I'm getting at is that it's either some sort of detection thingamajig oooooooor some kind of defensive doohickey, either way, tinker fuckery is your job to handle Dynamo so have fun with that."

(Placing an aspect of "A Second Opinion" on Dynamo using Burglary, I'll roll once Aek confirms that I can do it)

(Spent a fp to reroll and then bumped up the time scale to 15 minutes)

 

So, assuming Rosetta is successful, what do we do? We can get into the vault, but they'll probably know. There's that odd guy in the security office. He might be the resident Tinker or Thinker. Probably pressure sensors, there's security cameras all over the place, and plenty of security all over the place.

I could, of course, always just turn the whole basement into a sealed off mass of dirt and concrete, but I think we'd prefer to avoid that, if possible.

 

Wires throughout the building, in the concrete, in the soil. Vibrations...

"It's one giant nervous system. Nothing this sophisticated on the market anywhere else. We're looking at a surveillance Tinker, or at least one who's focus lends itself to it."

(Discovered Aspect Tinker Alarm System)

With that metaphor in place, I look closer, Tinker-thought flowing more smoothly now that I can see the system in a light more suited to me.

"All the sensors and defensive systems are interlocked. Given the way the wires are threaded through the concrete, I'm willing to bet that cutting through any of them will trigger the alarm. As for the sensors, some of them are for pressure, some are cameras, and some are even vibration, though with the upstairs traffic, those are likely to be a little less useful."

Having diagnosed and analyzed the nervous systems, I look for weaknesses. Gaps in the immune system of this great body, where sickness and force could break through.

"There's not much in terms of external or internal weaknesses. I think those wires extending into the soil might nix a tunneling entry, too, Fissure. However, we have learned one important thing. This alarm system is Tinkertech. That means even if the staff can use it, there's only one person who really knows how this system works. We get him, the alarm system is cracked."

 

"So uh, first of all, fucking called it about the surveillance and defensive shit. Secondly, since you're describing it as a net, that means that there a gaps in it. Sure they may not be large gaps, but well, I don't need much. We could have Fissure guide me in past those gaps into the vault itself. The problem with that though is that well, it's pretty risky any d there's the simple fact that there's probably cameras and shit on the inside, plus who knows what else."

"I think that you may be onto something for targeting the tinker, simply because of the fact that unlike a normal one, getting rid of the person watching will have a far larger effect. Without the tinker the control things or ensure things are running properly, the defences will be significantly weaker, and with tinkertech shit set up, odds are they wont bother to have normal defences up as well, meaning with the Tinker down, we'll have an open shot at the vault."

"The main suspect for the tinker is the fatty in the surveillance, if it's possible Fissure, any chance you could try to focus on him and that room to get as much extra info as possible? Even if he isn't the tinker, there could be useful info there as well."

 

"I can try, but I can't really guarantee I can get anything else."

(If I make a roll for investigation, I got a +2. If it was a "Capes" roll, I got 0)

 

Well.... Tits. Shoulda called it the Tinker's Theatre.

With all this, our best plan might be for me to take Jack with me, teleport directly into the security room while Kyle and Campbell go for the vault as fast as they can. That way we can tie up the security system, hopefully, as well as dropping our tinker directly into their nervous system.

That leaves Masal to start us off with the distraction, and once that's rolling we go in hard and fast.

On other notes, it wouldn't hurt if we find a way to ruin traffic patterns, probably easiest for Kyle, to keep the police from getting involved. I've also found a bolt hole a couple blocks away, that we can drop people or cash in as we finish if we don't want to use this building.

Unless you need something from me, I'm going to make another circuit or two.

 

@Fissure: You try to focus on the room, but find that you can't tell any more from a more directed look than you could from a regular one. Your sense isn't like normal sight in that way; it's more like a highly specialised omnipresence inside a given radius, so trying to focus is less a matter of skill and more a matter of how?

(Roll Alertness. Difficulty: 3)

Zephyr: You head out on another patrol of the area, focusing less on the terrain now and more on the people and places below you. You spot at least half a dozen Starbucks as you leap from rooftop to rooftop, using the winds to direct your jumps over the wider gaps.

You see a number of police cars suddenly appear and encircle a vehicle on a street a few blocks away from the abandoned house. You stop to watch as the cops aim their guns through the windows and order the people inside to get out of the car. It is as you watch the arrest happening that you hear a familiar sound.

Turning away from the regular folks down below, you turn your eyes skyward and see what you expected to see.

A small, metallic disc is hovering in place about thirty feet from you. The person atop it is dressed in a bright orange gi in a style similar to what you have seen from pre-Leviathan Japanese TV shows. His mask is made of what appears to be ceramic, though who knows with Tinker tech the way it is, and is stylised with Kabuki markings that give the appearance of a happy, smiling face. His name is Nimbus and he was once your friend.

Beside him floats a man who is, in many respects, the exact opposite of Nimbus. His costume is minimalistic and a drab grey colour, which contrasts with his vivid green skin. He's bald, that much you can tell behind his slate grey, blank mask, but he seems to be otherwise normal. His name is the Martian and he is the second member of the 7 of Swords.

"Hey Zeph," says Nimbus. "What you doing hanging around here?

 

"So yeah, I just had a pretty awesome idea, I'm thinking that we hit the security room first and that there's a pretty easy way for us to do it. What we do that is we have Fissure plot out the best path for me, which I then take, and once I reach the security room, I make a tiny little hole somewhere not noticeable, and then I start leaking knockout gas into it. Either two things will happen, either it works and everybody in there is out like a light, at which point I go in, and I then disable as much of the security as I can, oooooor somebody notices what's going on and I take them out myself. Either way we end up blinding them, making heading into the vault much easier."

(Also, I swapped Deceit and Stealth)

 

Brow furrowed as I try to focus in... different ways?

It's hard to really express things in English when the language doesn't really have words for the things I try to express. In any case, I need to get this done. First friends in London and I'm already letting them down. Frustrating beyond belief. Maybe if I...

(Alertness Roll: 4U1+3 => 5)

"That may be a possibility. We could combine avenues of attack, as well. I open a hole in the security office and seal off the corridor leading to the vault and security office. If I make a wall a metre thick, I don't think anyone short of a heavy brute will be able to break through it. Maybe an anti-bunker missile, but I doubt they'll stock that kind of thing in a Casino. The two entrances are even along the same part of the corridor, which doesn't have any other rooms adjoining."

 

(Gorram back button, eating my response.)

"Nimbus! Oh, you know me. Got antsy sitting inside doing nothing, went out to stretch my legs. And arms. And powers. Anyway, I noticed a commotion, couldn't help checking it out as I went by. Hey Martian. You're looking... uh... normal. How goes the ass-kicking and name-taking?

 

"You know what, that's a good idea Fissure, multiple angles of attack for this shit. Dynamo can teleport into the security room, since it's fucking teleportation, odds are they'll have no warning before he arrives and shuts things down.

At the same time, I head for the vault, hopefully Dynamo should be able to fuck with some of the defences to make it easier, but with security down, if I fuck up, odds are he'll be able to stop an alarm. Whilst that's all going on, Fissure will be making it harder for the rest of the security to get into the vault, giving me time to grab all the loot."

(Also, Correllon, install Lazarus, it's pretty awesome for saving words.)

 

@Fissure: As you try to experiment with your power you realise there's something very odd happening outside. Zephyr, who you've been keeping half an eye on while he has been patrolling, is now standing very close to two floating objects. One of them seems to be a rather tall man floating in mid air and the other feels like he's standing on something made mostly of metal. They are all out of your range of effect for the moment.

(5 zones horizontal distance between the Abandoned House and the rooftop they're standing on.)

@Zephyr: (Roll Deceit to see if he suspects you're hiding something. Nimbus rolled 4. Martian rolled 2. Congrats dude, you get to be our intro to social combat. )

You can't see the upper half of Nimbus' face but by the set of his jaw you can tell he's frowning. That changes a moment later though as his expression breaks into a smile.

"You know, same old, same old. Got caught up in a fight with the Invokers last week." He grins now, showing pearly white teeth. "You hear about that? Shit got intense for a while."

The Martian doesn't say anything, but he does stare at you intently through the eye holes in his mask. He was never much of a talker, even when you weren't labelled as a villain.

 

"Hmm, now that I think about it, we've been focusing on shit that we already know about a lot. What I mean is that well, we already know that the vault is going to be secured, and that there's a security room near it, because well, we've already got the floor plans, what I'm wondering, is there anything that you've sensed that might not be on here."

Wisp starts to look over the floor plans and the extra drawings that Dynamo has done, and then starts to fill in the new one with the extra information that Fissure has given him, trying to find any slight differences between the two that could hint to something important.

(rolling burglary to find secret shit like hidden rooms or other surprises.)

(got a -1, I don't find shit)

(I also did some test rolls, Aek can confirm that the dice hate me, of my ~25 rolls only 5 above 0 D: )

 

@Wisp: Given the incomplete knowledge of the structure you're working with, it's unsurprising that you don't find anything particularly obvious when looking over the floor plans. You can be sure there are no hidden rooms though.

 

I snap to alert after noticing Zephyr having company.

"Guys. Dai has... friends. Two unknowns, one guy standing in mid air, another guy standing on what I think is some sort of metal device, but I can't really tell much other than bits of rubber and plastic floating in the air. Given his history, even heroes might be friendly."

I turn my head to Thomas, asking "Thomas, can you go check it out? You're the only one who can get anything without them knowing. The casino can wait."