|
Post by Silas Sedgewick on Feb 24, 2015 18:39:48 GMT -5
Silas left Charlie to do her thing, moving on over towards the elevator and gesturing for Cate to wheel her chair on over, too. "Scoot your bum over, I need your big brains," she grunted. Every time she said that in the past just meant she needed a second opinion, and Cate was far more receptive and fun to talk to compared to the now broken repair bot.
"What do you think about this approach," she asked, nudging the elevator door with her elbow. "We tap into the security feed, follow after whoever is around, and kick coats down here and blast eye-patches up there."
|
|
|
Post by Cate Baxter on Feb 24, 2015 22:34:40 GMT -5
Cate chewed the inside of her cheek as she listened to Silas' plan. "Or. Or. We get everyone nice and snugged away on the Paragon or maybe a certain level, an' then just have Charlie here work her magic to turn off all the life support with the pirates. Give it a few minutes, flip it back on an' we got ourselves a saved space station an' a job well done."
She leaned back in the chair with a shrug, "I don't wanna go huntin' 'em all down one by one. That seems like it'd just get us all dead before the pirates."
|
|
|
Post by Charlie Willow on Feb 25, 2015 10:19:37 GMT -5
"Done!" Charlie popped her head up, waving Si's pad above her head. A fairly standard security camera interface was displayed, though the corner said "Cracked by CBAW v5.6.1.1, nerds."
"I got every feed in the station. A couple are kinda blurry, though." Her voice got a tad shakier. "And I kinda agree with Cate." She shuffled up beside the pair, offering the pad.
|
|
|
Post by Silas Sedgewick on Feb 25, 2015 10:24:58 GMT -5
"The problem with both plans is that we don't know how to tell the pirates from the faculty." She looked back over towards the office, frowning specifically at the dead body--or at least the arm that she could see. "I don't want to go rescuing any nasty characters, or accidentally suffocating any friendlies. If they've attached themselves like a parasite, they'll have blended in like our tour guide," she explained. "I'm pretty sure secret facilities don't have employee logs publicly displayed either."
|
|
|
Post by Charlie Willow on Feb 25, 2015 10:31:59 GMT -5
"Maybe... We threaten to do Cate's plan? I can use this same pad to access any intercom or personal comms." The truth is, she was very, VERY experienced with 'prank calls'. "It'd give us away, but might show us who's who?"
|
|
|
Post by Cate Baxter on Feb 25, 2015 22:20:01 GMT -5
"See. But then don't we just end up with a buncha angry pirates makin' good on stormin' into our little cubby here? We need somethin' to give us an edge." The pilot chewed on her lip, deep in thought. "What if we tricked the pirates instead? Make 'em think everythin' is peachy. Soline is very happy with the progress here, have a nice day etcetera."
Cate leaned forward as she got into the meat of the plan. "I take two o' the nerds with me. We swap you both into their lab coats. I disengage the Paragon, make like I'm leavin'. Charlie can make sure the station ain't got any weapons to shoot me down, then the pirates stop actin' all quiet-like because we ain't here checkin' up on 'em. I circle back, you've now got the targets marked, an' we take 'em all out. Easy as cake. Oh, an' then we all have a victory cake." She grinned as she finished, leaning back for the others to digest.
|
|
|
Post by Silas Sedgewick on Feb 25, 2015 23:34:35 GMT -5
Silas stroked a beard that wasn't there, mulling over the suggested plan. "It could work, but if I shot their lieutenant or captain, or whoever was in charge, they may not come out of hiding without his orders. I guess the best we can do is try, and hope for the best," she shrugged, going through the process of slipping out of her coat. No sense in wearing a lab coat over a duster, after all.
"Grab some coats, and Charlie and I will do our best to wrangle up the bad guys. Just . . . be careful," she said lowly, a sad sort of seriousness falling on her tone and features. "I know it's all been fun and games on the ship, but you're both new to fieldwork, and I'm worried you'll get hurt if you're not careful." She instinctively brushed her fingers across the scarred side of her face, a small unintentional warning for what could happen if you're careless.
|
|
|
Post by Charlie Willow on Feb 26, 2015 21:29:58 GMT -5
Charlie remained entirely quiet, for once, listening to the taller pair figure out the plan. She slid out of her own jacket, deftly stowing a few personal "trinkets" from its many pockets into her belt's few pouches. "I hope one of these nerds was as short as me," she mumbled, before turning her eyes up toward Silas.
She sucked in her stomach and saluted the xeno-specialist, this time with a bit more professionalism. "Won't get caught off guard again, Si." One more cheeky smile, which swung toward Cate. "Just don't strand us." A half-hearted chuckle.
|
|
|
Post by Cate Baxter on Feb 26, 2015 23:29:09 GMT -5
While the pair stripped their coats, Cate left the comfort of her stolen chair and moved to the scientists. "Alrigh'. I need two o' you to join up with me. We're about to operate a darin' rescue mission o' the station. Good news is the pair comin' with me is gonna be perfectly safe onboard the Paragon so there ain't no extra risk to the pair who volunteer. All I need from you is two volunteers to give up their labcoats an' trade with my lovely partners back there."
She paused to consider a moment, looking over the various whitecoats. "An' maybe do your best to look a bit less nerdy an' a bit more dirty. We're gonna be pullin' a good ol' switch-a-roo." With a grin, Cate waited impatiently for a pair to volunteer. In that should no one step forward she picked the best two looking scientists for the trade and volunteered them for the mission herself.
|
|
|
Post by The Tired God on Feb 27, 2015 16:59:07 GMT -5
One might hope for a brave soul to stand apart from the rest. For a scientist to push up their glasses, steel themselves with a deep breath, and do what needed to be done for the greater good. He would take Silas' coat and slick his hair back, and come across as a proper space cowboy. One might hope for that, but what one might hope for was far from the truth of the matter.
As expected, no one stepped forward at first. They cowered and chatted among themselves, muttering and sharing fearful prophecies as to what might happen if they dared attempt something so risky. These were sheep, hyper-intelligent sheep with a knack for data composition and deciphering, but sheep nonetheless. They were not born to wear the pelts of wolves.
Just as all hope seemed lost, one finally nodded solemnly and slipped out of his coat, offering it to Cate. It was the same man she had spoken to before, the timid looking man with crusted snot covering his upper lip and sleeve. "I--I'll do what I can to help," he muttered, nervously wringing his hands together as he took place beside Cate.
After him another came forward, a woman with her hair in a tight bun. She couldn't bring herself to look up from the floor, but she still slipped out of her coat and presented it to whoever might take it. "I hope this works," was all she offered in the exchange, holding herself with her arms wrapped tightly around her front for comfort.
|
|
|
Post by Silas Sedgewick on Feb 27, 2015 17:02:48 GMT -5
Silas saw an opportunity and she took it, offering her discarded coat to the woman and taking her lab coat in return. She saw how the man had wiped his snot over the sleeves of his things, so she didn't dare risk him doing the same to her duster, or worse having to wear something already covered in his snot. Besides that, Charlie's coat was better suited for a man anyway, even if he'd have an awkward time with only one sleeve.
"Here, you may want this as well," she offered, removing her blast vest and offering it to whoever might take it. It would look too out of place under her coat, and she didn't want anyone getting hurt on this risky exchange. She felt confident that she could survive a bolt, or at least dodge one, whereas the others might give up out of fright right then and there.
|
|
|
Post by Cate Baxter on Feb 27, 2015 23:37:49 GMT -5
Cate grinned, giving the first volunteer a rather hearty smack on the back. "Tha's the spirit! We'll get ya through this. Don't ya worry." She waited as everyone exchanged coats and in Silas' case, armor, before she spoke again. Looking to Silas, she gave the woman a sort of half-cocked salute. "Alrigh'. You two be careful yeah? I'll see ya back on board the Paragon when all this is over.
As she lead the scientists away she engaged them in a bit of small talk to help distract them, and hopefully keep up their courage. Just simple things like asking their names, or what brought them out here, or what it was like living on a station like this. This continued until she had them safely aboard the Paragon or they ran into a snag along the way.
|
|
|
Post by Charlie Willow on Mar 1, 2015 16:13:00 GMT -5
Charlie reluctantly traded coats with the leaky-nosed scientist, sighing as she slipped on his shitty coat. "Don't touch anything in the pockets. You might lose a limb." She darkly chuckled. She wiped her own nose on her stump, then slipped on the lab coat.
"I feel naked and ridiculous. Hope this works quick." She did her best to button the coat with a single arm. It shook slightly, and only got worse as she waved after Cate.
"We'll be alright, right, Si? Like, being a gimp is fun and all, but I want to keep these other three limbs." She felt a bit childish, especially when her voice quivered.
|
|
|
Post by Silas Sedgewick on Mar 2, 2015 22:00:02 GMT -5
Silas buttoned up her own coat, then offered to help Charlie with hers, but she seemed competent enough. "We'll try," was all she had to offer to Cate as she skipped off with the safest scientists in the whole station. Despite their prep and own capabilities, Silas wasn't sure how well she'd be able to take down a station full of pirates without her armor and with watching the energetic cripple.
"Let's give them about five before we start our search. Keep that camera up, and we'll have to start monitoring where traffic seems to go." She checked under the tail of her coat to make sure her guns were still there--of course they were. Each little condition made her feel more and more stressed about this, but she wasn't about to show it, trying to put on an air of confidence for Charlie's sake.
|
|
|
Post by The Tired God on Mar 2, 2015 22:09:36 GMT -5
With Cate departing and two disguised scientists in tow, Silas and Charlie were left to watch the bundled scientists and carry out their part of the plan. The elevator came after a small wait, and from there Cate's chatting seemed to relax Sneezy, but did little for the woman.
"My name . . . my name is Jon," said the man with the crusty upper lip. "I joined the station about five months ago? I was part of a different research team for Soline, but . . . I guess I was good enough with numbers to be sent here?" He didn't seem very sure of himself, but most learned not to question Soline's judgment.
"Susan," muttered the dark haired woman. After a long pause she continued, but her voice was still very quiet. "I've been here for seven months. Soline offered my family a way out of debt if I agreed to help with ciphers." She squeezed herself a little tighter as the elevator dinged and the doors opened, revealing the same room they had been led into by the Narid earlier.
Cate's trip, which was likely a loud one, was unmolested and undisturbed, as the staff and undercover pirates did nothing to deter their departure. No one seemed to question why their guide wasn't with them, but perhaps he got tied up or something else kept him from chasing their tailcoats.
Cate would get all the way to the ship and be allowed to detach without incident, which was surprising given how the false Silas seemed so stressed and ready to cry at the slightest surprise, and how the false Charlie seemed equipped with many things that she didn't have earlier. Height. Glasses. Two arms.
|
|