Log:Science Fair, Scene 3

Science Fair 2007/05/28 	 Allure Amber and Azure Artemis BadaBoom Blue Angel Rebound Quicksilver 3

According to Apollo, the ACRO base is located beneath an electrical substation. The station is a fully automated facility manned by a skeleton crew of power company employees.

Azure says, "Allure, did Apollo mention the way in?"

Allure explains about the elevator. "So what do you think? Try the code or try to work around it?"

Rebound says, "Do we have any alternatives?"

Azure says, "Try the code. It hasn't been long. They won't expect Apollo to have said anything and after the retreat they'll be playing catchup. Straight in and fast, take them off guard. That's my reccomendation."

Allure says, "That's true. Ok then, fast it is."

A woman in a sleek-looking suit of power armor. The suit is predominately blue, with bits of pink trim. The form of the suit appears sculpted to the frame of it's wearer and it is definitely female in shape. The face is a silver, featureless faceplate.

Once Allure points them out, it's clear to everyone that the figures are indeed quite familiar.

Azure moves to get sight of one of the armored fingures and throws a pebble at it.

BadaBoom and Blue Angel freeze at the sound of the pebble skitterign across their path. Blue Angel turns in the direction of the Azure. She starts to creep towards Azure and she beckons for BadaBoom to follow.

Allure creeps in the same direction, figuring if she's there things may run smoother with Blue Angel anyway.

Azure waits for BadaBoom and Blue Angel while showing no aggression.

Once close enough for quiet conversation, Blue Angel asks quietly. "What are you doing here?"

Allure says, "Trying to rescue Nils, of course. I imagine you're doing the same."

Azure says, "Same as you at a wild guess. Getting Nils back while he's still breathing."

BadaBoom says, "I mean he's a creep and all, but he's our little creep."

Rebound says, "So, seeing as we're both here for the same reason..."

Allure says, "You can have him once he's out of there, no arguments. I think we have a better chance of pulling this off if we work together, though."

BadaBoom grumbles, "I'm not taking orders from any of these fools." BadaBoom turns and start creeping back towards the fenced perimeter. "If you want to help, then keep up, and stay out of my way."

Allure says, "No one said anything about taking orders. We do have the code for the elevator though."

Allure starts creeping after BadaBoom.

Blue Angel says, "So do we. Nils may be a genius, but he needs to get a better password on his computer."

Azure aims a thumb at BadaBoom, "Does she have any skill at detecting or disabling security systems?"

Allure thinks. o O (I think she can disable them. I doubt skilfully is her style.)

Blue Angel says, "BadaBoom. Wait up a moment. Let's see what Azure can do." She gestures for Azure to move ahead.

Azure and Amber start a sneak looking for and hopefully disabling any security encountered on the way to the elevator *if* BadaBoom waits up a Blue Angel suggests.

BadaBoom lets the twins pass her. "It's easier to watch my back this way."

Azure backtracks. "One of you two has to fly me in on the exact path I say. It's the only way to avoid being seen for sure. Once inside the fence I can disable the cameras so the rest can enter." Azure tells BadaBoom and Blue Angel.

Blue Angel says, "I can fly you in. Hold on." She offers her hands to Azure.

Azure grabs hold and directs Blue Angel on the route, and timing, that will get them past the cameras.

Angstrom lifts Azure into the air, courtesy of jets in her boots and lower back. She flies in and sets Azure down on teh rooftop of the inner complex, inside the vision of the cameras.

Blue Angellifts Azure into the air, courtesy of jets in her boots and lower back. She flies in and sets Azure down on teh rooftop of the inner complex, inside a blind spot in the vision of the cameras.

Azure says, "Thanks." and moves to the camera covering the route in for the others, working on setting up a loop bypass so it shows an empty patch of ground no matter what's happening in front od it.

Rebound says, "Ok. Follow my steps exactly."

Allure follows Rebound. "At least you avoided 'walk this way'."

Rebound smiles. "I doubt that any of you could." With his first step he stretches and strides clear over the fence. Then he steps normally, left ten paces then straight toards the camera that Azure has disabled.

Azure smiles and nods as the rest rejoin. "We can sneak or go for it from this point.

Allure says, "Sneak till we're down the elevator, ideally."

Azure nods, "Okay, you got it." and the twins move out ahead again, doing the neak and search.

Angstrom while sneaking inside, Blue Angel whispers something to BadaBoom. BadaBoom shrugs in response.

Quicksilver was running a bit late. He comes running in, though he stopped that before getting too close and starting approaching slowly. He works on sneaking up.

Evenutally, the group reaches the elevator down to the ACRO base, with Quicksilver catching up to them.

Azure whispers a question Blue Angel, "Nils had the code on his PC. He sneaked in here to grab the bits for Vivki?"

Blue Angel says, "No, he's never been in here, but he hacked the security. He moved the designs to his computer along with some information, like the codes.

Azure nods, "Okay, so we don't know how depth this shaft is. Take a breather and I'll check it for alarms and the like.

Azure whispers, "This is reicky. A camera inside. I'm going to try and bypass it. If I fail we need to charge. Everyone ready? BadaBoom can you take Quicksilver down with you? Blue Angel, can you take Allure?"

Rebound says, "I can carry two people down."

Quicksilver cocks his head, "Down as in jump or what?"

Badaboom says, "Do I look like a flier to you?"

Azure says, "Depends how deep the shaft is. If I blow the camera we ought to smash our way in and not wait for the elevator. If it's a long shaft the flyers will be there first by a fair margin."

Azure looks over at BadaBoom, "Uh, yes. Power Armor and it doesn't fly?"

Quicksilver nods and shrugs a bit, "I could always climb down, or jump down. Couldn't be carried anyway though, quite heavy." he grins.

Allure says, "If you're jumping, you'd better be first in!"

Blue Angel says, "I'll fly Boom down. Rebound can get Amber and Allure. Quicksilver can jump, maybe."

Allure nods. "Sounds good."

Azure nods, "Almost good enough, but Rebound can take Allure. I'll get myself and Quicksilver down. Okay, stand by."

Quicksilver hmms and looks at them and nods.

Armored troops, armed with jet packs, grenades and plasma rifles.

Azure grins after about tweleve seconds working on the camera, "Or we can take the elevator and travel in style and comfort."

Allure says, "Style and comfort - yes, definitely more my sort of thing."

"Well, cross your fingers." Rebound says.

Rebound says, "Let's punch the code and go."

Allure punches the code. Reasoning if it's changed she'll have the more up-to-date.

Azure nods, "Lets just check. We have two codes. Are they the same. If not which do we use?"

Quicksilver cocks his head to the side, "What is the weight capacity of the elevator?"

Blue Angel states her version of the code.

Azure chuckles quietly as Allure punches in the code as she speaks. "Uh, forget I said anything."

Rebound says, "Knowing ACRO, this elevator would have to be able to carry some heavy hardware. How much do you weigh, big guy?"

Quicksilver shrugs, "about 800 kilo." he shakes his head and chuckles a little.

The elevator doors open. BadaBoom steps inside.

Rebound smiles. "Need to get you on a diet."

Allure follows.

Allure nods. "Something lighter. Nothing but lithium for you!"

Azure and Amber follow.

The elevator ride down is smooth and uneventful. It's hard to guage exactly how far underground you travel, but the ride takes about twenty seconds...

Quicksilver smiles but doesn't say anything.

When the elevator arrives on the bottom level, the doors slight open into a small lobby. Exits lead left, forward, and right. Two security guards in ACRO uniforms spin to face the elevator. They appear to have been caught off guard.

Azure and Amber act in harmory, each activating force armor and extending energy whips, one to each guard, grabbing them warmly around shoulder and neck and squeezing while also pulling them back towards the elevator and the waiting heroes (and others).

Azure catch the guards before they can react and pull them to the elevator. By the time they reach the elevator however both guards are hanging limply from the quietly hissing black energy lashes of the whips.

Rebound says, "Nice job Amber and Azure." He looks at the three possible directions ahead. "Now... which whay?""

Amber whispers, "when you feel lonely reach out and -touch- someone"

Allure asks Blue Angel, "Any idea?" since they may have plans for the place.

Blue Angel says, "We didn't find any floor plans in Nils's notes."

BadaBoom starts heading down the corridor dead ahead.

Allure says, "Follow or split up?"

Quicksilver shrugs, "Splitting up is always a bad idea.

Rebound says, "Normally you're right... But we're here to find Nils. Best way to do that is to split up."

Azure says, "Might by Nils' only chance though. I agree but this is an unusual circumstance."

Quicksilver nods, "Who with whom then?"

Azure says, "I'll take left, Blue Angel with BadaBoom, rest go right?"

Allure says, "Ok. Wait. One of New Blood should go with Blue Angel and Badaboom, to keep in touch. I'll go."

Azure says, "Be careful."

Allure says, "I will."

Rebound says, "Ok. That works. Let's go. Good luck everyone."

Azure and Amber head down the left hand corridor

Blue Angel flies off after BadaBoom.

Allure hurries after Blue Angel.

Quicksilver nods and moves with the others, keeping as stealthily as he can.

Rebound nods to Quicksilver. "Let's do this..." He heads off down the right corridor.

The twins are forforing a degree of stealth for speed. Their best weapon right now is suprise.

The underground facility is rather expansive. The corridors run at least 15" in their respective direction before the left and right corridors bend and the middle corridor stops at a security door. Along the walls are hatchs leading into what look like storage spaces and laboratories, mostly darkened.

The twins assume Nils will be either under guard or in a guarded security area. They'll bypass any darkened areas or obviously low security storage.

Allure somewhat assumes Badaboom will blow the door, and so prepares herself for a door-shattering kaboom.

Quicksilver moves along with Rebound, "Open to ideas, usually used to having specific goals and objectives."

Rebound bounces along the floor and ceilings over the hall as he moves. "Nope. Right now, move fast, strike hard."

BadaBoom says, "Stand back." She snaps her fingers. A moment later there a giant blast that even the otehr groups of heroes can hear.

Allure thinks. o O (Just as I thought. Stealth lasts till Eva meets the first obstacle.)

The doors are still standing, but a hole the size of a manhole cover has been blasted through it. One the other side, a number of ACRO troopers turn and stare back at Allure, Blue Angel, and BadaBoom. They scramble to get ready. Meanwhile...

As the twins turn the bend, they encounter a group of ACRO troopers 10" distant. As that's happening...

Quicksilver and Rebound turn the corner to find a group of ACRO troopers guarding a doorway 10" away.

Allure, if she can be seen, can be effective. Already she tries to 'distract' any ot the troopers that can see her.

Azure and Amber break into a run towards the ACRO troopers intending to close with them before they recover from their surprise, flipping open pouches on their utility belts and donning gas masks and in Amber's case anti-laser goggles.

Rebound bounces down the hallway towards the guards. When he reaches them, he unfurls his arms and tries to catch two of them with a clothesline.

The guards move quickly, dodging out the the way of Rebound's swinging arms.

Allure, if she can be seen, can be effective. Already she tries to 'distract' any ot the troopers that can see her.

Allure, unfortunately, can't be seen very well through the hole in the door.

BadaBoom peeks through the hole in the door. She snaps her fingers and moments later there's a blast on the other side of the damaged door.

An explosion rattles the room where the troopers are, but it seems weaker than normal.

Amber quickly analyses the tactical situation. Multiple troopers, grenades, flash goggles. She decides to level the playing field *before* the troopers start using their grenades. Lashing out with the whip, first with casual strength and then with more powerful strikes (sweep) at any surviving fixtures she destroys the lighting system in the underground area.

The twins lash out at light fittings destroying two of them.

Quicksilver charges down the corridor, but doesn't do anything yet, since he can't reach without seriously injuring people whom might not be able to handle such.

Blue Angel points through the hole in the door and fires an energy blast at a trooper.

The energy blast slams a trooper again a wall, hard. He slumps down, unconscious.

In the twins' corridor, one trooper tosses a grenade into the hall. The other open fire.

The grenade rolls past the twins before it detonates, and the twins manage to evade getting hurt in the hail of plasma fire.

In th center corridor, one trooper runs to the controls and opens the security door. Two others throw grenades at Allure and Boom. The remaining three open fire.

The twins duck and weave and spin and leap... but it's luck that saves them from the grenade.

In the hail of fire, Badaboom is hit.

Blue Angel calls over to BadaBoom. "You alright?"

Azure and Amber complete their task moving another 3" closer to the troopers and lashing at the remaining two light fittings in the area.

"Si... Now they've made me mad." BadaBoom says.

Azure smashes one of the remaining light fittings but her sister's whip lash catches on a length of wiring conduit breaking away from the ceiling and is deflected.

Amber's lash pulls away enough of the ceiling to destroy the final light source. The area is shrouded in darkness.

Rebound seems unphased by the blasts he's taken so far. He turns and tries to punch out a trooper with a mailbox sized fist.

Rebound flattens on of the troopers, leaving him dazed and squirming on the ground.

Allure worries the usual distraction trick might not work fast enough here - so she tries something innovative, reckless, and probably stupid. She does some acrobatic flips into the room, slipping between the troopers, while chanting a cheerleading chant - all of this of course to get the troopers' eyes on her and off Blue Angel and Badaboom.

BadaBoom kips up to her feet quickly, and gives Blue Angel a puzzled glance. Blue Angel says back, "I know... but I think it's working. Get them!"

Blue Angel blasts on of the troopers. He's knocked down, but still on his feet.

"Boom!" Eva snaps her fingers. The explosion drops a trooper.

Quicksilver tries to remember where one of the troopers is, since he was that close to them and looses a punch in that direction.

Whether he hears something or remembers, he lashes out with a fist and connects with one of the troopers, though the trooper is still standing.

Rebound makes his fists even bigger and swings away.

Rebound smooshes a trooper against the wall. When the first comes away, the trooper crumples to the ground.

The troopers fight the twins try to saturate the area they think the twins occupy with plasma fire.

Three guards fire on Allure.

Rebound is hit, but not badly hurt.

Blue Angel drops one of hte troopers with an energy blast, leaving three of them on their feet.

Azure and Amber haven't done anything about the fuards yet. That's about to change. In the darkness the twins listen, move on silent feet, and strike.

Azure hears something slamming against walls. Next time they'll think first and get the right gear before tearing off hot-footed.

Allure does her best to keep the agents' attention on her. She keeps up the tumbling, this time taunting them: "Can't hit me!"

Rebound slams another of the gaurds, knocking him out. Quicksilver takes a blind swipe and misses.

"Bang!" BadaBoom knock a trooper onto his back.

Another trooper drops after being hit by Blue Angel, leaving two standing.

Allure's taunting is interupted by a cry as she's hit by a blast, but she not badly hurt.

Azure and Amber continue engaging the guards, and promising themselves they'll work on this situation in the Gym. They're making hard work of it.

Azure feels one guard go flying but misses with her other whip attack

Allure just keeps up the prancing about for now.

BadaBoom misses with her bomb blast attack.

The troopers fire blindly and miss.

"Zam!" Blue Angel fires an energy blast that strikes a trooper. He grunts and drops forward. First to his knees, then to the ground. One trooper is left.

Azure and Amber still continue engaging the guards. . o O(What the &*$" good is thermal imaging glasses back at SG)

Allure suddenly cries out and, rolling low, lunges at the legs of the trooper, trying to knock them from under him. Not that she expects to do much - the main point is to draw his attention away from the others.

The attack only succeeds in getting the trooper's attention.

"Zam!" ... the trooper is dropped by the energy blast.

The final trooper by the twins turns and tries to feel his way down the corridor.

Blue Angel says, "Not bad." Beyond the troopers there's another sealed door.

BadaBoom snaps her fingers. There's no explosion, but she flicks a mote of energy which sticks to the door.

Azure listens and then strikes. The thought of letting the trooper go never entered her head. Never, never, leave a active enemy behind you.

Azure listens as the last (?) trooper hits the floor.

Amber gets out her PDA, switches to web browser mode and turns the screen brightness right up. It's still just a feeble glow-worm of a light but she can move on and search for Nils.

BadaBoom plants four little wisps of light on the door. "There. That should do it. Stand back."

Ka-BOOOOM! There's an explosion at least twice as large as before. The door is blasted wide open. Beyond it, Artemis stands with Nils cradled under her arm, slumped and limp.

The twins comes across a locked door, perhaps the escape route the trooper was going for.

The twins do have what's needed for that. Sure it's probably a escape passage but just in case they grab a spare pair of flash goggles and start working on the door.

The message over the channel changes their plans. They begin hurrying back to the central corridor.

Artemis drops Nils in a heap on the ground. Nils rolls onto his side, moaning. "Oooh..." The powered suited villain turns and flies down a different corridor. A heavy blast door slams down, blocking the way behind her.

Blue Angel fires a blast after Artemis, but not before the blast down slams down into place. The energy blast barely leaves a mark.

Allure drops to her knees to check on how Nils is.

The room where Nils is located is a large laboratory space, with exits along each of the squared sides. Suddenly, blast doors begin to shut over the four remaining exits.

Badaboom makes for the door. She tumbles under the descending barrier.

Allure has barely picked Nils up before the doors come down.

Blue Angel flies out of the room just in time. She hovers there for a moment. Considering doubling back. Then the lights in the complex go red. "Warning. Self Destruct Sequence Activated."

Allure says, "Nils - are you awake?"

Through the blast door, Allure can hear the dampened sound of one of BadaBoom's blasts. One time. Two times. Then silence.

"Ooooh..." Nils says. He seems drugged and sluggish.

Allure says, "Nils - wake up - I need you. This place is rigged to self-destruct. I need a super-genius to figure out how to shut it off!"

When the twins arrive at the blast door, Blue Angel and BadaBoom are there.

Nils groans some more. It seems unlike that he'l be revived without treatment.

The twins are running full out and slam into the door as the quickest way of stopping. "Can you blast it?" Amber asks BadaBoom. She pulling something out from a utility belt pouch.

Allure thinks. o O (Too far gone - I hope the twins can get here, or we're both dead.....)

Badaboom says, "I'm not sure... It's a lot tougher than the other doors..." She sighs, resting her hands on her knees. "I'm runnin out of pop..."

Allure looks, at least, for some spot in the room where there might be some shelter - where, if the initial blast doesn't kill them, they might live till someone can dig them out.

Blue Angel asks the twins, "Can you jimmy the lock?"

Amber pulls out a small device no larger than a single cell torch. "I'll work on the bottom, you blast the top when you're able to." she says placing one end of the device to the door. A hideous high pitched whine starts and climbs in frequency into the almost inaudible range.

Azure nods and works on the lock.

"Thirty seconds to detonation." A voice says.

Amber says, "This will literally shake the blast door to pieces. I just hope we have enough time."

Blue Angel says, "I'll help fly people to the elevator."

Badaboom asks nervously, "How long do you think it'll take?"

Azure nods absently while working on the lock. Amber continues to hold the device to the door watching to see if stress cracks are starting to appear around the point of application.

Amber says, "As long as it takes. Where you planning on going somewhere? That's one of my team in there. I'm not leaving."

Badaboom sighs. "Well, hurry up them." She snaps her fingers and unleashes another explosion.

Cracks begin to appear in the surface of the door.

Badaboom blinks as she look at the door. "Madre... Not even a scratch." She drops backwards, sitting on the floor.

There's a glimpse of hope as a the disrupter opens a hole through to Allure's side of the door.

"Twenty seconds to detonation."

Allure picks up Nils and runs to the hole. "Lend me your medkit!" she calls through the hole.

Amber grins in relief, "It's working anyway. You know I never really expected this little thing to affect a door that thick." She holds the device to another point of the door to enlarge the hole as Azure passes a medikit through.

Allure applies the medkit to Nils - hopefully he'll be out of critical condition in a moment at least!

Azure says, "While I was in Washington yesterday, or was it the day before... anyway I visited the Redskins. They were at the Gym for Summer Camp last year. I've got tickets for their opening pres-season. I figure a bunch of us can travel down and see the game. Some be good."

Amber listens to count down. "I can get another." She says and pushes the power setting right up past overload critical.

Allure pushes Nils through the hole and then climbs through herself.

Azure says, "Blue Angel, can you fly Allure and Nils out of here?"

Blue Angel nods. "Yes. Come on." She helps pull Allure to her feet and takes a hold of Nils.

Allure says, "Thanks!"

She flies towards the exit.

Allure hangs on tight.

Badaboom starts running for the lift.

Amber and Azure grin at BadaBoom after Blue Angel starts flying, "I don't think we're got time to get out. That elevator took twenty seconds coming down. But let's run like heck anyway. And if we don't make it, you did good in my book staying down here until your guy was safe."

Allure keeps applying the medkit to Nils - she figures that if the place does to up, the healthier he is the greater his chance of suriving.

Badaboom tumbles to the ground, seemingly too exhausted to run. "You... you go..."

Azure scoops BadaBoom up, on the run if possible, slowing if not. "Leave someone behind? We don't do that. All or none." she tells BadaBoom.

Rebound bounces past Blue Angel, Allure, Nils. "Take the elevator up when you get there."

Blue Angel reaches the elevator with Nils and Allure.

Amber says, "BadaBoom, do you have one more blast left in you?"

Badaboom looks up at Amber.

She nods tenatively.

Allure hits the button.

Azure says, "We're not going to make it out by the elevator, agreed? That will never have time to get up with the troopers, Nils, Allure, Blue Angel, et al, and get back down for us. The passage I went down had a door, looked like an escape tunnel. I say we head for that passage and you blast the roof in behind us to block off the blast from the base. What do you say?"

Badaboom nods.

Rebound bounces into view for Badaboom and the twins. "Guys!"

Amber says, "What are YOU doing here. You should be in the elevator getting out of here."

"We can argue later." Rebound says, "The elevator's already heading up..."

Azure says, "We guessed. We're heading for what I think is an escape tunnel down the passageway I cleared."

Rebound stretches his arms around the twins and Badaboom. "This ride is going to be a little bumpy." He starts pinballing off the walls, floor and ceiling, heading towards the escape hatch. Halfway there, there's an explosion as the countdown hits zero. The explosion rocks the elevator, but it continues dutifully towards the surface.

Underground, the entire base trembles as an explosive charge consumes the room where Nils was being held. Successive charges begin to detonate, in a pattern that radiates out from the central lab.

Amber says, "Noisy isn't it?"

Allure is grateful the elevator is only shaken. Perhaps they designed it so it
 * wouldn't* destroy the powe plant itself?

Rebound reaches the hatch, looking back the bend in the corridor is visible with fire starting to lick around the corner.

Amber says, "BadaBoom, your turn. Bring the roof down before that wall of fire and flames gets here if you don't mind."

Azure hurries to unlock the hatch.

Badaboom looks up at the ceiling and says, "It's now or never." She snaps her fingers and in the blink of an eye there's a giant, controlled explosion. The roof collapses to form a makeshift barrier. BadaBoom collapses, knocked out.

The combination of the barrier and the escape hatch serve to protect the twins and the others from the explosion. Unfortunately, the escape tunnel caves in. An hour or two passes before an SG rescue arrives via a Mamba Tunneling device.