synopsychic | Welcome to your life, there's no turning back

Who are you, how good is your security clearance, are the cameras controlled by computers, what is 'AMA'?

[ Nailed it. ]

Oh, AMA is an acronym we use on the internets. "Ask me anything."

(He unironically nailed it. Those are all great questions.)

My name is Madoka Mawaru, formerly a student at Occultar High School for the Study of Outer Sciences and Eldritch Defense before becoming a traveller.

My OVERLAY is Doctor Michelle Madison, mathematician and engineer for Area 54, the detainment center many of us got snatched away to. Susan D'Eath, who is probably an Infiltrator, lead the actual abductions.

Doctor M & M is officially a Specialist with courtesy rank as an Agent and a lot of stuff she's learned on a need-to-know basis - like the fact that we're after artifacts of alien, extraterrestrial origin and an escaped alien detainee - but she WILL get questioned by Actual Agents if she does funny things and gets caught.

I'll get back to you on the cameras. My gut says no, that's an anachronism for 1989, but there's alien schizotech that might have been incorporated over Doc M&M's protests.

...Pending confirmation that the alien we bagged is mostly harmless, I think getting them their stuff and helping them phone home is probably a good idea.

Edited 2017-06-30 21:35 (UTC)

[ Unlike many people from modern worlds, Altaïr had a higher opinion of someone who said they were a student. As a young student, he had already become proficient in several languages and made his first kill. Students were also grown men in his time, the equivalent of someone heading towards their doctorate in a world where many people were illiterate. ]

You will be a great help with letting us pass unnoticed and directing us where to go. My name is Altaïr. I have passed in scholarly circles to enter forbidden places or free captives before, but I come from about eight centuries before the time of this Jaunt. The best skill I can offer now is stealth. I can look the part of a guard or scholar as well.

It would be good if we could take out the cameras, whether by destroying their computer or just the electricity cords they use. Then we would only worry about being seen by guards in front of us. Another way is taking out the lights, though that would limit the rescuers to those who can see in the dark. Zed has offered to strengthen that darkness with his magic, in case they have cameras that can also see in the dark. He says he can also pick locks.

Electromagnetic pulse would do it, and would be believable "picked it up off an ET" tech. It would fry everything electronic in a large radius without hurting anyone.

Depending on how old you are and your skillset - and how good you are at forging documents - we might be able to hire you on for your black ops skills since D'Eath is complaining about us being shorthanded as is. Figure you should... shit. I need to check records.

If you can obtain that device. I do not think anyone I know has this 'pulse.' Of course, if we have anything electronic, we should leave it in our Hammered Spaces.

[ Now there's an idea. He only found out what black ops were during this Jaunt, but it sounded very like some of the things he did back home, minus the government approval. ]

I plan to go on the rescue tonight. That is too short notice to hire someone for something so important, unlike the labor jobs at the festival. But it may do us favors later, or even grant me supervised entry just for tonight. I can make magical copies of existing documents on paper. I do not know how my name would be stamped on it, but as for my seal, I am able to sign with Latin letters.

I am twenty-six, and as for my skills... [ There is a slight pause as he decides which to tell and which to hide. ] I have passed as a scholar, a soldier, a peasant, a noble, and a man of the cloth, with some skill to do their jobs. This Jaunt, I am passing as a 'biker roadie,' though I am less convincing in conversation. In addition to a soldier's ability to ride and fight, I scout and infiltrate. Often I must climb buildings and use stealth during the day when there are many people about. I can lead small groups of people on missions like these.

[ It is more than he is willing to tell someone all at once, but Travelers here and there have bits and pieces of this already. ]

I can act like we're interviewing you and whoops who knew he was a security risk. But then, I may be trying to get out and pose as someone leaking this stuff, an objector. And if I'm doing that, I might be able to actually create an EMP bomb and make this look like an inside job.

Which it kind of is, now that I think on it. Zed doing his thing after if he can be subtle might help too.

Sounds like your skills are all standard issue spy-scout-rogue stuff. How are you fixed for combat against men with guns?

Dark sunglasses and a suit might be a good look for you at the interview, hit up someone with wardrobe manip.

I do not think Zed is subtle, but he was only planning to release his magical darkness after the lights went out. That is all I trust him to do.

I spent my time dodging arrows, not guns. But I know what they do. I can disarm someone easily. I just do not know how to use them myself. Knives are quieter.

Will they not kill you for both revealing their secrets and making a bomb?

Not if I escape with you.

And lose our only person inside? Unless you believe that your time there must also be short-lived...? I myself will hardly make it through an interview. They may ask me if I know how to use a car, gun, or computer. Your electric pulse bomb must be used before they suspect me of strangeness like they do the rest of their captives.

We're on accelerated time - Armin spoke with the folks on Walkabout, and it's been a week for them for each of our days. If we're going to get our guys out and maybe expose this agency it's going to need to be quick.

It is worth trying to expose their crimes before going to war with them, yes. A government must answer to its people.

Ahahahaha I'm an idiot. I don't even need a bomb. One of our mainframes will do just fine. Set it to run the program, and I redefine the words "computer wizard."

As long as it does not involve any obvious wizardry.

[ It is painfully obvious that computers are not his strong suit. ]

I would like us to be discreet. That is why I want to get everyone out instead of just waiting for the Jaunt to end. The longer they stay there, the more these 'black ops' people find out about us.

I wouldn't be trying to herd this clowder of cats if I wasn't trying to be subtle. And my literal wizardry will look like an innocuous search program to the uninitiated.

We must also take care to hide the truth from not only the guards, but also the overlays we rescue. I understand they may not trust us and refuse to come because of this. They may have more faith in the government to release them eventually. In that case, we must leave them. We cannot force them; that would only compromise us and send the wrong message.

You're welcome.

I know an operative of a Super-Secretville fishing for information when I see one. Figured on top of you asking for the jolt, having the intel couldn't hurt. What's their deal, anyway?

...Also, on the off chance they have any disco balls around, I'd stay the hell away from them, especially in conjunction with other mirrors and bright lights.

Edited 2017-07-01 05:29 (UTC)

ET monitoring and artifacts. Purple alleged shapeshifter dude dropped in, then escaped. We have his... starship, in disrepair.

Not home, then. We'd have heard of a setup like that. Or the aliens, for that matter, and all we ever got was a crashed rocket that Helena designed. Not terrible extra-terrestrial.

Can't say that I've seen anyone purple around, so this guy's clearly doing a good job avoiding his default state. Any other specs on him?

More to the point, any idea how to call off the kidnappings? It's only a useful tactic to a certain point and things have definitely gotten excessive.

Moon's one of the Ruling Arcana on this - and she cheated to get Raidou out of the round. 80's movies are full of colorful aliens coming in peace.

Pending confirmation that the P. E. T. is mostly harmless, going public in a splashy, unavoidable way is probably the way to go.

Edited 2017-07-01 06:42 (UTC)

[Great, something else Raidou will repress until he inevitably ends up in a(nother) dungeon. Wonderful. But it's not Madoka's fault and mentioning it would only add fuel to the dungeon tire fire, if Raidou looked back on the network.]

Well, if you want splashy and unavoidable, we do kinda have access to a great big stage...

That would be the 80'st way to do it. We could call the band Starcrash. Purple neon everywhere.

Oh ho. Welcome back, and thank you for the inside source of information. We'll almost definitely need to start grabbing people back from the government here, or we could end up with a situation like what existed in Newport...

Was there any special technology being employed that would be out of place in the 1980s that you're definitely aware of? Things related to teleportation or the vague phrase "interdimensional travel", for example?

Not by humanity. We have a bunch of stuff we don't know how to use from the guy's ship. Several of his personal effects went missing.

...unless you're suggesting portalling us out and then my shrugging and going "those wacky alien transporter beams lol." Which they might buy, but comes with it's own problems. What are you proposing?

I was just wondering if portaling out would work in the first place, to start with.

Still, I think it's to our advantage to make any use of magic as ambiguous and subtle as possible. They might expect and accept it, but the fewer clues we leave to our nature, the better.

Good plan. There's a reason my plan starts with "use a plausible technological thing to neutralize cameras and records."

We'll be relying on you for that, and I for one appreciate it. I'm quite skilled at getting into and out of places undetected, but even a 1980s computer system is largely beyond me...

Reverse-podded?

I think I was better off listening to Zed try to plan... Though would like my bag back if possible, it has my spellbook. Not that I can cast anything unless given time. Worst spell I have is a fireball and we still might be too far for my dieties to hear my pleas.

I can get it for you from the internee personal effects lockup. Sorry I can't do more.

...podding means doppelgangered. For a while my school was doppelgangland; I should tell y'all about it when we get back to Liminal.

If you can do that thank you. I'm going to hope that they can't decypher it. I don't know the locking spell my master uses yet.

Dopple... You have doubles here? Or there... They are... I'll explain it in liminal if you want I don't think here would be the time nor place to talk of black magicks.

I am all about stopping the dark magics, but that's not here or there, thank God.

I'll get you your spellbooks. You may need to "overpower" me.

I... Am still a beginner, and not even sure if the gods here will grant me power, but if you can also slip me some magnesium and nitrate, I might be able to fake it. Doubt I'd be able to get saltpeter and a flint stone, not to mention that would be more dangerous. I don't want to hurt anyone.

My father was one of those captured.

[Drizzt's fear is controlled, but definitely there.]

I can sneak silently and take people out without killing them. I also have the ability to create a portal to facilitate escape. I will do anything to have him safe.

Wait on the magic until my bomb goes off and everything goes dark. I don't want to leave evidence of supernatural abilities on the hard drives here.

And welcome aboard. If you can send images, send me a picture of your dad and I'll see what I can do.

Agreed. They do not need reason to hunt us more than necessary.

I... do not, I am afraid. Could someone read my mind for his image?

Yeah, so some of us are a ways out from the place still, but once I'm there I can probably get a layout of the entire complex and stamp it into everyone's brains. No security clearance needed because fuck that.

Welcome to your life, there's no turning back

around evening

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