Hellfire Club: The Mission [CLOSED]

[astonishing_xmods]

WHO: Nightcrawler and those selected for the mission.
WHAT: The Hellfire Club infiltration mission
WHERE: Manhattan
WHEN: Late evening
WARNING(S): Could get violent.

Team One was already on the ground, infiltrating the party. The rest waited in silence aboard the Blackbird, hovering in complete stealth mode high above the island. Back at the Institute, Professor X closely monitored the communications of the team, ready to give the signal when ready...

It was go time.

[[ OKAY HERE'S HOW IT'S GOING TO GO.

Top levels will be going up for each mission phase. Each phase will, OOCly, go on simultaneously so no one has to wait for another team to complete their task. Players have freedom to play as they like, but the mod characters in each team (Feliks, Shindou, Reimu) will most likely lead the action in the direction it's intended to go. The mod account will pop in for NPCing every now and again.

Have fun! ]]

Comments

[psykick]

Well, in lieu of a third techno-gifted mutant, her phasing should get them past most physical obstacles. It takes her only the space of a breath to shift from solid to intangible. What bits of fringe are visible from underneath her hood change from light brown to white as her eyes change from brown to red.

"Leave the security measures to me," she says. "I can phase two other people, no problem." Thank goodness for all the practice with Shindou, Kanji, and Bridget. She had two people down pat now and is getting close to phasing three other people with ease.

[littlewhitelies]

"You mean like... density shifting?" M'gann pauses for a second to look back, and the expression on her face is probably best described as a look of jealousy AND pure admiration. She's surprised to the point that her words come out verbally instead of telepathically; though over the link her emotions are plenty loud, and there's a small whisper of 'just like Uncle J'onn' in the background.

"You could probably phase through something if there's a problem or an attack, huh?" She remembers to switch back to telepathy after that, and she keeps floating down the hallway with one ear open for trouble.

[astonishing_xmods]

[The hallway does stay wide and tall...and long to boot, stretching a fair distance before the corner up ahead even comes into view. The stark, white walls glare under the fluorescent lighting overhead.

And then everything cuts off. Every light-source in the corridor dies all at once, leaving only the faint glow of the rooms up ahead and behind. Those will disappear an instant later as the steel-on-concrete roar of several gates crashing closed between the team and either exit ricochets all around them.

They'll need to find a way through each of them if they want to move forward. That should be simple enough, really. But as for guessing what will meet them on the other side?

Good luck.]

[psykick]

"I don't usually think of it as 'density shifting', but yes, I can go through pretty much any--"

And then the security measures start kicking in.

Which is so not good.

Bad enough there's now how many unknown barriers between them and the end of the corridor. There's also no lights. Rinka cautiously reaches out to the last places she'd seen M'gann and Toushirou before the light had been cut off.

"Grab on guys. But hang back a little so I can see how dense these things are first."

[icy_heavens]

He can't argue against the usefulness of phasing on a mission like this. Good skill to have for an infiltration team.

"I'll take lead on combat if we need to do it. Cryokinesis sure as hell isn't a stealth power."

And then the lights go out, that hideous screeching sound sets his teeth on edge. Wonderful. They've gone and tripped the security measures already. Tch. He reaches out in the general direction in which he'd seen Rinka before the hall went black, finally managing to get ahold of her arm after a bit of blind fumbling. Phasing ought to be an interesting experience if nothing else.

[psykick]

Feeling one person's hand on her arm, Rinka stretched forward her other to find the gate. She'd grab the second person once she knew what they were about to pass through.

"Three layers, about fifteen centimeters thick total. Inner layer not as dense as the two outer. Feels like the density of concrete and steel. Meant to slow down the usual sort of intruders. Won't be a problem for us though."

A phaser isn't your usual sort of intruder after all.

[littlewhitelies]

M'gann gives a yelp when the lights get cut out, jumping upwards a few more feet by reflex, before letting the levitation cut out and drop her back to the ground. Now M'gann has to take back that feeling of so much bright and white light being uncomfortable; it's A LOT better than fumbling around in the dark. She stays tensed up and in place, trying her best to listen.

"Okay, okay... that's good. That you can handle it, and have the powers for it." With that thought, she moves forward and cautiously reaches out for some contact. It's time to REALLY get her game face on, as the traps have clearly shown.

[astonishing_xmods]

[Phasing through the first gate is no problem, but on the other side there's only more dark and another barrier. The entire corridor has been locked down tight. Getting through the second is just the same.

When the trio slips through into the third enclosure, however, they'll be met by a burst of arcing light from overhead: twin electroshock bursts, firing from the paired turrets mounted along the ceiling. They aim down the center of the corridor, blasting high and low.

Anyone hit will find that they're only strong enough to deliver a painful stun...but then a split-second later all the light is gone, and there's only the whirring sound of the turrets recharging up above.]

[psykick]

Once Rinka feels the second hand grasp her shoulder, she spreads her power over her two teammates.

"Okay, hold your breath for a second and---"

She steps forward, towing them behind her. Once she feels herself clear the gate, she keeps going until she's sure the two behind her are clear as well.

"--breathe out. Huh, dark here, too."

Keeping her power spread to M'gann and Toushirou, she walks forward again and feels another barrier like the first.

"Going through another barrier."

After two compartments of pitch black, the sudden light is more than her eyes can take. Blinking rapidly as she fights to recover her vision, she grabs for her teammates' hands, trying to make sure they stay intangible to whatever attack might come.

"Don't let go!"

[littlewhitelies]

Right, they're handling this fine so far; for M'gann personally, it feels a little weird. Half like holding her breath inside a tunnel, half like walking through something kind of syrupy. (Plus, there's the fact that she puts her feet down to actually walk, rather than float; this is probably taxing enough without having to tug her along through the air.) It's disorienting, which only makes her slow to react when the air starts crackling.

She tries to go for the air, but is a little too slow; all she pulls off is drifting a little...and being right in the path of a painful zap running along her skin. She winces hard, but doesn't cry out; instead her breath comes out in a pained hiss, and she hopes there's enough space between them that the shock doesn't run from skin to skin.

Her head swims as M'gann throws a hand out towards the direction of the shock.

"I can do this!"

She says that for the others and to spur herself into action. She closes her hand into a fist and tries to telepathically yank at one of the turrets she caught a glimpse of.

[icy_heavens]

The low blast hits before Rinka can get a hold on him again and he hisses sharply. He's disoriented for a few seconds, but his old combat lessons had been very painful ones and he'd learned to deal with it quickly.

The turrets, where are they? He directs his own power across the ground, the only reference point he's got right now. Ice crackles along the floor, creeps partially up a wall. If he hits the turrets, he might be able to get them to seize up.

[astonishing_xmods]

[There's a low, creaking rumble, followed by a metallic screech and a flare of sparks arcing from the ceiling as one of the turrets is torn free from its mount. The hum of its partner still charging doesn't dissipate, however. Apparently, the ice didn't reach high enough to shut it down.

When it fires again, the team might be able to pinpoint its location along the ceiling just above the gate. Assuming they're not too distracted by the electric blast still aiming to send them sprawling, that is.]

[littlewhitelies]

"Ohhhh no-" She has just enough time to think that, as the electric humming sound fills the air. She knows what this is leading up to-

When the turret fires again, this time M'gann doesn't try to fly and evade; she's already learned that lesson. Instead she drops low to the floor, crouched down and staring up at wherever the electricity came from.

"Aim to your right!" She calls out what she's able to see. "Just one more to take out!"

[psykick]

Despite feeling rather useless at the moment, Rinka uses the flash from the remaining turret to pinpoint where her teammates are. She goes for M'gann first, holding out her hand so she can spread her intangibility once again.

"Miss M, give me your hand."

[icy_heavens]

He catches the location of the other turret, concentrates his ice there even as the blast comes out. It's a deep, intense freeze he intends to put on that thing, hopefully shorting it out and making the metal brittle.

He reaches out again to where he remembers Rinka might be. Really, he'd rather not get floored by another one of those damn electric pulses. They're not fun.

[littlewhitelies]

M'gann doesn't have to be told twice, either. She goes grasping for Rinka's hand from her place on the floor, and with her other arm M'gann shoves against the ground to push herself up. She floats in the air before she finds her feet, and makes contact.

That's when she finally breathes out.

"Not unconscious; that's a plus, right?"

Now they just have to see if the ice attack worked.

[astonishing_xmods]

[Toushirou gets it this time; the zap of the turret's electronics shorting out is audible, and then the walled-off section of the corridor they're in is silent once again.

The lights aren't helpful enough to turn back on, still, but once they go through the last gate up ahead they'll find the corridor turning into a narrower hallway with dim, back-up lamps going overhead. If the walls weren't still smooth metal, this part of the facility could almost look like office-space. Doors branch off to what appear to be meeting rooms and storage space. At the end of the hall, a lift much like the one the team had appeared outside of waits, its controls offering only further descent.

But at least nothing down this way is trying to kill them so far?]

[psykick]

"Definite plus."

Once she feels M'gann's hand in her own, Rinka turns back and searches for Toushirou's, straining to listen for those little sounds that would indicate where he is. The rub of fabric, the squeak of boot against the floor... there. Her fingers grab onto the sleeve of his uniform right as she hears the second turret short out. She heaves a sigh of relief and thanks Master Roshi for all that weird blindfolded training he'd had her do.

"Okay. Got you both."

When this is over, she's going to suggest low-visibility training to Shindou. Even with a psychic link being able to find each other in the dark can be tricky. For now though, time to get through the next gate and onto whatever comes next.

[icy_heavens]

About damned time they got those things taken care of. He isn't about to drop his guard, however. Never let your guard down on a mission. The narrowness of the next hallway doesn't particularly bother him; he prefers open spaces, but he's small enough that it's hardly an issue. Who knew being so small would come in handy so often?

"Quick check of the storage before heading into the lift. Might find clues about what to expect before we go down."

It could turn out to be all mundane stuff, but better to at least do a quick sweep. Any security measures are likely to get nastier the further down they go.

[littlewhitelies]

"Okay..." M'gann on the other hand sounds wary and tense as she glances around the hallway. It's good to have visibility back, but... "This is going to cut into my mobility; you might want to take point after all."

She still follows the orders of opening a few of the doors. Her feet stay stuck to the ground now and she stays coiled up; ready to jump backwards in case anything DOES decide to spring out from those rooms.

"Good reflexes on those electric generators, by the way." She sends that out while investigating and working her way towards the lift. "Looks like defensive density shifting- sorry, phasing. That works okay on some of these things. Might need to use it again, depending on what's waiting for us."

[psykick]

Rinka quickly starts sticking her head through doors, taking a peek inside before withdrawing. Definitely not the first time she's used her powers to poke around places she shouldn't be. At M'gann's comments, she smiles a little.

"Thanks. It's not the most useful power for attacking, but it's handy when people start shooting flames at you."

There's a brief, mental chuckle.

"'Density shifting' sounds way cooler than 'phasing'. I might have to start calling it that."

[astonishing_xmods]

[There really doesn't appear to be much to find here, at least not without a thorough search. One room is stashed with what may be damaged or tabled projects: gutted robotics, boxed-up equipment, and a few stray, cybernetic limbs stacked here and there. It's a little macabre but not very promising. Another is just a cramped office with table, desk, and computer. One wouldn't think its owner could be all that important, judging from the space allotted here. There's just not much dirt down this way.

But there are additional security measures. When the team gets halfway down the corridor, several slots along the ceiling overhead slide open, each dropping a round, silver-white canister down to the floor. There are five total, and they land evenly spaced down the length of the hallway.

As soon as they hit the ground, they begin spouting gas, thick and a smoky white-grey. That stuff burns, and anyone caught breathing it will swiftly find themselves going light-headed as they fight to get air. Already, the gas is billowing up in clouds, threatening to fill the length of the corridor.]

[littlewhitelies]

M’gann makes a worried, slightly unnerved face as her eyes go wide; whether it’s at the exposed robotics or the talk about fire is anyone’s guess. Her hands even go up to her mouth as she turns away from the doors and goes back to the hallway-

Just in time to see the canisters drop. She winces, drops down, and scrambles backwards when she catches even the first hint of that burning sensation.

”Not fire!” She doesn’t mean to transmit that thought, but it still blares through the link as she desperately reassures herself and tries to get her mental balance back. ”Hurts, but not fire.”

She still needs to do something about those canisters though, before they all suffocate. But thankfully, they’ve already got a few open doors lining the hallway, and those objects look like the right size for lifting and throwing.

M’gann doesn’t employ much finesse with trying to lift the canisters and throw them; just landing them in one of the rooms and then slamming the doors on them will be enough for her.

[psykick]

Rinka has her head stuck through a door when she hears the sound of something hitting the ground behind her. She gives a short mental curse, as she hadn't anticipated holding her breath for too long when she'd phased through the door. Turning around to see what's landed in the hallway, she sees the gas billowing toward her as M'gann notes the way it burns.

Clamping a hand over her nose and mouth for good measure, Rinka goes for the canister closest to her. Unphasing her hand, she grabs the canister, then phases it down into the floor. When she pulls her hand free, she scuttles backwards, trying to find a patch of air that's not been contaminated by the gas. In a few seconds her lungs are going to burn, not from the chemicals, but from the effort of holding her breath.

[icy_heavens]

Damn it. He holds his breath reflexively, recoils at the first hint of heat, which isn't comfortable for him in general anymore. Heat is hell. He instinctively smacks one hand over his mouth to further avoid breathing in the gas, other hand directed out toward the remaining canisters. Ice crackles over them, blocking the flow of gas.

And because the whole move is reflex on his part, the release of power isn't quite wholly controlled; the temperature in the hallway dips noticeably, some of the gas shifting into frost.