Chapter 1: Strike From The Heavens

[Presence + L&A sounds good to me. The dice say 11 which is 5 XS.]

Facing away from the soldiers Amp smeakered "What I really need is a trap. Whether real or fake. Something they can fight, or think they are fighting, to keep them occupied while we sneak away." Amp was above once again mentioning how useful having the drones under their control would have been. And lets say she heals another HP.

Amp: The agents follow you into the building. "What's the situation, then? All seems quiet."

Discord wrote:SidekickBOT: - Today at 5:40 PM
@Corva:  2d10  = (1+1) = 2
Corva - Today at 5:40 PM
...well
that's a hacking roll

Examining the code left behind by the detonated replicant, Corva is struck by a bolt of inspiration, and is quickly able to leverage that into obtaining full admin access. In addition to disabling the containment system, what does Corva download a data file about from this WF computer?

Discord wrote:Corva - Today at 5:44 PM
Free action: Corva smeakers "Someone prepare to obtain the artifact immediately."

"Understood." James replied to Zushe.  He walked back over to the unconscious man and brought him further into the room, to make it a little easier to keep him temporarily out of sight.  Then, a potentially good idea occurred to him.  Reaching into his pouches, James brought out one of the invisibility field generators he had been carrying around and strapped it onto Isaac without activating it.  He then attached his second generator to himself and turned back to Zushe.  "Zushe, the moment it seems like that Fed team is going to come in here, I'm going to pick this guy up, make us both invisible, and sneak right past them to the extraction.".

"Any objections?" he directed to the rest of the team present.

"I have achieved control of this system. Please standby to obtain target." repeated Corva over the smeaker, still typing away on the console as they searched for any information the WF had on this artifact (using the critical success from the earlier roll).

As an after thought, since none of the rest of the group seemed to be able to follow what they were doing, they ran a quick search for any Aldiek related material on the system. ((Pass by 7 for computers & AI roll))

The hard ion walls are disabled, and the artefact is now gettable.

Reminder: there is an enemy replicant still in the room. He's given up, but he's nevertheless there. Y'all should probably do something about that situation.

Corva: From the experimentation the WF have done on it, it seems that the "heat haze" emanating from the small apertures on the front of the artefact is in fact spatial distortion; prolonged exposure is not recommended. Putting pressure on the handle in the right manner causes the field of distortion to expand and become more disruptive the longer it's held. Used correctly, it could be a devastating weapon, but ensuring that there's no splashback of its effects has proven tricky, as proven by photographs you've now seen.

As for Aldiek info, there is one file regarding "Project Torpedo", the ongoing effort to investigate and end attacks on WF territory within the South American Freestate that seem to originate from the ocean. Being you, you recognise this field of activity as an area where your home's personnel have operated against the surface in the past.

Zushe grabbed a medkit from his belt and began applying it to himself.

James, before you go, grab that artifact. Then keep yourself hidden and await extraction. Voja, Corva, Lester - go and help Amp. I'll be with you in a moment. Once I'm done with this.

He drew a sword and advanced towards the replicant.

"Good thinking, will do." James replied quickly, striding over towards the now accessable artefact.  Paying almost no heed to the replicant, he reached out for the object's handle, but stopped short suddenly.

"Corva," he asked, looking over his shoulder at them, "is there any information on this thing in that terminal?  Is it safe to handle?"

Corva was quiet for a moment as they made sure that all the data they wanted had downloaded onto their hacking computer.

"The device weaponises spacial distortions produced from the frontal apertures. It is advised you handle the item with care. Pressure sensors on the rear handle appear to control the magnitude of the distortions. I advise care when handling the item, and be careful not to point it towards faces." Came Corva's reply as they carefully withdrew a pistol sized item from their tool belt. Taking careful aim through some of the damage done by the explosion earlier, they fired into the console with a industrial strength degausser, before nodding to themselves and collecting their equipment to leave. They looked forward to reading the files on the item, and on Project Torpedo, after the mission debriefing.

"Hmph, sounds like a nasty bit of kit.  Thanks for the info."

Turning back to the zenotech, James carefully reached around and grasped the handle, taking care to avoid contact with the distortions.  He lifted the object and headed back over to where Isaac was lying.  Crouching down, James lifted Isaac up with his free arm and slung him over his shoulder once again, adjusting the invisibility field generators into easily accessable positions.

"I'm heading out.  Do we know how long we have until our ride gets here?" James smeakered, as he activated both fields and headed towards the exit.

Because I forgot to roll...
Agi + Stealth = pass by 8 (rolled 11 under 19)
Also invisible, so that should hopefully help a bit!

As ordered, Lester left the room to assist Amp. This was a different situation than other combat he'd seen. All other combat, really. And as much as preserving the laws of the UIG was important, there was still something a little unsavory about killing sapient beings. "Amp, where are you?"

Using his stealth chip, Lester passed his stealth roll to escape the building on the nose. His goal was to go over to another building without anyone seeing him, and then appear where Amp needed him to lend credence to her subterfuge or, well, fight.

Voja followed Lester's lead, swapping out his shield for an invisibility field, as he left the main compound, he smeaked on ahead. So Amp, where do you need us? Lester seemed to know where he was going, so Voja hurried along after him before waiting for a response.

((He passed his stealth check by 9, and is invisible.))

Now that he was out of combat, and there was less chance of being caught in some kind of xenotech explosion, the Richenbacher Agent started paying a bit more attention to Amps U-view feed. Wait, is that Merissa Forgrave? Do you think she'll be up for signing autographs before we leave? My niece is a massive fan.

Lester looked over to Voja, grinning grimly. "It sounds like a good distraction regardless." He didn't follow the Fed marshall shows, beyond the odd episode or two, but he felt a little bit worse knowing that some super trained and possibly filmed badass would be here.

"I am unaware of this Forgrave. Information requested." smeakered Corva as they finished packing up and activating their telepathic cloak once more. "Additionally, what is an autograph and why is it important to obtain?"

After a moment, as they began to sneak down the corridor, Corva smeakered again. "Additional request. What is a niece?" They assumed it might well be a weapon Voja had tested.

They set off down into the shadows, cloak flickering around them. (Pass by 8 including bonuses for cloak)

Voja was about to explain who Merissa was, but then the questions kept coming, and he had to stop to let them sink in. Did they really not know what a niece was? What the hell was Aldiek doing down there? It must be pretty terrible, if you can't even have family.

He took another moment to try to work out how to answer their questions. Well.. Katya- my niece- is my sister's daughter. He stopped again. They must have sisters under the sea, right? But, maybe they didn't... His expression darkened. That place just seems to get more and more awful all the time. Lena is my female sibling- Sister, and Katya is her female child- Daughter He hoped he wasn't coming across as patronising, but he had no idea what Corva actually knew.

How on Earth was he going to explain celebrities? They didn't know about families! Celebrities were far more... complex. Maybe he should just focus on one thing at a time.

"Ah. I understand." Corva responded, sounding satisfied. Voja was clearly in contact with a female member of his growth batch, and a high ranking member of his corporation as well, given that she was allowed to have a child of her own.

Corva knew that they did things differently on the surface, but surely agents functioned in a similar way to how Aldiek handled them; selective breeding programs in growth vats. How else are you to ensure quality?

Ok, well they seemed to get that at least. But there was still a lot that the Aldiek Agent must not know, he was a little surprised that the UIG hadn't briefed them more. I think we all need to get together after this mission and bring you up to speed on how the world works up here. You... I think it'll help.

OK, Merissa Foregrave. Corva had to know about the Corps right? So this would be the next easiest one? Maybe? She is a WF Agent who has her missions filmed and put on the WDN. I guess to show off how awesome the WF is? Voja was trying, but it was clear he was starting to struggle. He never thought he would have to explain this stuff to anyone. He didn't really know where to go from there, and he started to ramble. The shows are available everywhere though, but outside the WF people see it more as entertainment, you know? The problem is that you don't get to be on one of those shows unless you are a really good Agent, and you have to be super loyal to the WF, cause if you slip up the whole world will see it... He trailed off as he remembered just who he was talking to. Sorry, did you get all that?

"Essentially, yes." James interjected as he crept along the corridor to the building's entrance.  "From what I understand, the propaganda aspect of the shows is mainly intended for their own civilian population.  The fact the over-the-top, mind-numbing rubbish can also be entertaining for other populations is a bit of a by-product."  With a little smirk of derision, he added, "Although, their stiff 'celebrity' agents' exploits can sometimes be quite good for a laugh."  The sarcastic air quotes were clearly detectible through the smeaker.

Zushe: The replicant looks over at the scorch marks where his sister unit was and steels himself, looking up at you defiantly. "Do as you will, human. You'll learn nothing from me."

Voja & James: Your invisibility fields serve you well; neither of you get noticed.

Lester & Corva: If you stick to the shadows you can stay hidden, slip across to the far silo if you want, but acting out in the open will mean this WF division spot you sneaking around them.

Everyone: Encrypted comms come back from HQ, brief and to the point. "Collection outside in 2.75 minutes. Be there."

Zushe nods. "I believe you," he says, ramming his sword through the replicant's chest, doing his best to avoid the explosive buried within.

The sword rams in fatally and slides back out again without incident.

If anyone has any business left, post at least a mention of what you want to do by 12:00 Tuesday; if nothing comes up, or everyone says they're done with the mission, you will be extracted.

Amp would like to try and ditch Forgrave and her team as they sweep around inside a building. You know to avoid an awkward finger/gun pointing exchange but her options for doing that are all awful. Oh she does have invisibility fields, oh good so she will try to invisibly ditch them at the opportune moment.

Lester will stick tot eh shadows unless he needs to provide a distraction to allow Amp to escape. The distraction might just be Voja asking for an autograph, though, working to the extraction point to leave.