Civilians
 C[re]ate Champion
Posts: 106
Preferred Name: Varmun
Pronouns: He/Him
Character Profile: Character List
Character Name: Isaac Vasari
Main Account: Isaac
Status: Active
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Post by Isaac on Aug 17, 2015 15:15:02 GMT -5
Work together, huh? Isaac honestly expected that, and maybe some part of him wanted it to go this way, but perhaps with the lion thief or—fucking Christ—maybe even the archer. At least he knew those two were capable. But this guy? He had gotten busted by a child. Isaac had no choice but to get a copy of that formula, but could he really put his trust in this guy?
Well, the more the man spoke, the more Isaac realized he truly had no choice at all. He could sense a threat in the man’s last words. Although Isaac didn’t find this guy the least bit intimidating, it was a bad idea to upset a man with connections.
“Fine,” said Isaac. “We’ll discuss things tomorrow.” Isaac took another look around with his infrared, spotting no one nearby just yet. The police would make a sweep soon, though, and they needed to get out of here before then. Isaac switched to his NUIP filter, allowing himself to see more clearly as he walked back over to the hooded man and said, “Oh, but one more thing.” He then gave the man a hard scowl and a sharp glare. “You may have thought that was subtle, but it wasn’t. So let me be perfectly clear with you: Don’t ever threaten me again.”
The next day, Isaac arrived at the pub that the hooded man had described. Although he had never been inside the place, he had seen it before. He approached it from the alleys, avoiding direct roads and crowds whenever possible. He had his hood and bandana raised and he even wore his visor as he entered the building. The last thing he wanted was for this other thief to learn his identity through this little meeting, so he came prepared. And when Isaac entered the pub, he was far from out of place. Plenty of people had their hoods up or were dressed in ratty cloaks and other shady clothes. It was a few minutes short of noon, so Isaac took a seat at a table and waited for the hooded man to find him.
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Vigilantes
 Smiley Specialist
he's big enough
Posts: 164
Preferred Name: Nama
Character Profile: ♦♦♦
Character Name: Levenin Refure
Main Account: Levenin
Status: On Hiatus
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Post by Levenin on Aug 17, 2015 15:51:50 GMT -5
He’d wanted to call in to Canaan so badly. Though sleep had come easily overnight, it wasn’t until Levenin woke up the next morning that the side effects really hit him. It’d only been two USB sticks worth of Magix code so why did he feel this awful? Faulty black market products, to his dismay. Mira was understanding, a rarity considering how short she’d been with him lately. He was gone every night on secret heists, not returning until past midnight and every time, she’d wake up to confront him about his whereabouts. The clinic excuse was beginning to wear thin. However, she accepted it over and over, and that was all he cared about.
”Did you catch a bug from work?” asked Mira as Levenin reluctantly dressed himself to head in.
”Probably.” A straight up lie.
Levenin came to the clinic as always before he was inevitably sent to rest there in a spare patient bed. He worried if they could sense it was magic withdrawal. He’d never explain his way out of that. Thankfully, Carcassone was the one to lay him down instead of Cyrene, who would’ve played a game of 20 questions with the man. ”You shouldn’t have come in like this,” she said, to which he went through the motions of telling her it was his duty to show up. He did, however, give the woman a reminder to wake him before noon. Lev wasn’t about to miss the meeting he’d arranged, withdrawal or not.
The pub loomed overhead, a generous shadow combating the heat of the day as he stepped through the threshold. A stained smock from Canaan still hung over his work clothes but appearances didn’t matter too much right now. Lev spotted the familiar hood and visor from last night in a secluded corner before taking a seat across from the man. So he’d shown up after all, but not without drawing attention to how shady he looked. Maybe it was just Lev who was foolish for not bringing his own disguising, not even an ID scrambler. The pub itself was infamous in the underground for being a safe enough haven for criminal types. A conversation here wouldn't be eavesdropped upon.
”So I feel like we got off on the wrong foot yesterday,” Levenin began after clearing his throat nervously. If he could help it, he’d be more polite this time around. ”Umm, if I said anything nasty, I’d like to apologize. I mean, we’re gonna work together so makes sense to start over, right? So… I’m Nineveh. Nice to meet you… again.”
Lev smiled, though it only made the muscles in his face ache from the strain. ”I’m not really sure how to approach this so I guess we’ll get straight to the point?”
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Civilians
C[re]ate Champion
Posts: 106
Preferred Name: Varmun
Pronouns: He/Him
Character Profile: Character List
Character Name: Isaac Vasari
Main Account: Isaac
Status: Active
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Post by Isaac on Aug 17, 2015 22:12:49 GMT -5
The moment Isaac saw someone approach him, the moment he saw those familiar eyes, he had to wonder: Was this guy really confident, or really stupid? The man sat down in front of Isaac without wearing any sort of disguise. Maybe his ID was scrambled at the very least, but he put a lot at risk in exposing his face.
But when the man spoke, Isaac got the impression that his exposed face was meant to be a show of trust, at least to some extent. Isaac wouldn’t return that display, but at the very least, he said softly, “Yeah, that sounds good. No one’s happy after a failed job, after all. Call me Zail.” He then stretched his hand out across the table, offering a shake to seal their partnership.
Isaac then put his elbows on the table as Nineveh encouraged them to start, and he began, “I scoped out the house this morning. There was a truck out front from Cybertek Security. Two technicians came out of the house right after I arrived, but I didn’t see what they installed. Knowing Cybertek, it could be cameras, laser grids, motion detectors, security drones, attack drones, or sentinel androids. More than likely, it’s a mix.
“I gave the property a thermal scan, and it looks like the family didn’t hire any more guards. There were only two around, but they seemed more active. They were patrolling the house constantly. On the plus side, right after the techs finished up, I saw the wife and kids pile into a car with three suitcases. The husband had a suitcase, too, but one of the techs said something to him and he went back into the house. The family left without him. My guess is they’re all going to take a vacation in another city, hide out until we get caught or we get what we came for. He wanted to go, too, but he needed to stick around to take care of something with Cybertek. Whatever security package he ordered, it’s not finished, yet. We need to make a move tonight before they get everything up and running.”
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Vigilantes
Smiley Specialist
he's big enough
Posts: 164
Preferred Name: Nama
Character Profile: ♦♦♦
Character Name: Levenin Refure
Main Account: Levenin
Status: On Hiatus
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Post by Levenin on Aug 18, 2015 14:21:35 GMT -5
Zail, an unusual name to the ears, though not like Lev had any room to comment with his own unique birth name. It was probably a fake identity. Zail was already sporting the same covering he’d worn the night before, so why wouldn’t he go the full mile on the disguise? Levenin was an unknown entity to him. It only made sense. Levenin eyed his visor warily, thinking on if he was being studied carefully at that very moment. They had to perform some special function, logically. Could they detect his personal information? Now the thief regretted not even bothering to put his hood up.
Levenin weakly returned the shake with one of his own, though it was a far cry from a firm grip. Atrophy was a strong word to describe what the Acid Magix had proceeded to do to him in the last 12 or so hours, but it felt damn near close. His fingers quaked and trembled as he rested his arms on the table. And embarrassingly, his stomach loudly begged for something to eat. Could Zail notice? Such a great first impression if he had.
”I’m glad we could come to an understanding so soon. I was honestly really nervous,” he confessed with another painful grin and awkward laugh.
He listened as closely as he could, barring the distractions from feeling incredibly under the weather and a waitress passing by to give them a courtesy glass of water. A few sips was all Lev could savor before the man promptly dropped it under the table mid-conversation. No more picking up anything during the withdrawal period, apparently. ”Well, uh, can’t say they weren’t proactive,” said Lev, tilting his head to the side with a persistent blush in his cheeks. ”I didn’t think they’d respond so fast, though. And uh… so drastically. I guess it was because he was afraid of his family getting involved again. I wonder if his wife and kids know about any of this…”
A twinge of guilt as he recalled the screeching of the daughter just then. The target might’ve been a manipulative and greedy man after profit, but Levenin imagined the fear for his children was very real. ”Strange they wouldn’t hire more guards even just temporarily, especially if everything hasn’t been installed yet. If he knows multiple people are targeting the lab then… It’s not like he’s short on money or support for whatever he’s trafficking so why not hire extra help? That, and the fact he’s staying behind knowing he’s not secured. You think it’s bait for a trap?”
Levenin slumped backwards, mumbling something unintelligible to himself. So many possibilities and outcomes to ponder. ”Then again, I guess Cybertek wouldn’t know his lab is down there and he’s only staying to make sure they don’t find it until installation is done. It is kinda highly illegal and all… Though, uhh, I’m not really great at hacking and if Cybertek is involved, then I’m not sure what good I’ll be at getting us inside. But now that I know there are only two guards, taking them and any engineers out of the action wouldn’t be out of my league.”
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Civilians
C[re]ate Champion
Posts: 106
Preferred Name: Varmun
Pronouns: He/Him
Character Profile: Character List
Character Name: Isaac Vasari
Main Account: Isaac
Status: Active
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Post by Isaac on Aug 18, 2015 15:31:19 GMT -5
"It makes sense to me," said Isaac, leaning back in his seat. "You were up on the second floor. Anyone would think you were there to hurt someone." Isaac tried to keep any judgment out of his voice, but the more the two of them talked, the more he realized that Nineveh wasn't a thief—he was something else. And although Isaac didn't want to be a part of Nineveh's true schemes, he couldn't back out of this now. He needed that formula.
"I imagine the two guards I saw weren't the ones from last night. Those guards were the day shift, and I have a feeling we'll find more tonight. We'll need to stake the place out for a while before we actually make a move, see if we can determine what security packages the owner got and how many guards he has at night.
"As for the security system, I'm not the greatest hacker in the world, but I've dealt with Cybertek before. I can open their locks and get past their cameras and laser grids. The drones and androids will be a bit harder to deal with, but of course they're all controlled remotely. One of the guards will be operating them on-site. If we take him out, the robots won't be a problem. And, lucky for us, the owner's not gonna want the Secret Police monitoring his men's vitals; they'll find out what he's been doing all this time. Still, it would be a good idea for us to simply knock the guards out. Killing them will send up a red flag to the government."
Isaac took a moment to sit back and think, tapping his finger against the table. Nineveh's lack of skills really wasn't reassuring him here, but Nineveh did at least seem confident in his ability to take care of the guards. After taking a moment to think, Isaac said, "Alright, here's what I'm thinking: We scope the place out together; I'll give the house another thermal scan and see if I can figure out which guard is controlling the robots—he'll likely be sitting down at a computer, so that shouldn't be hard; I'll unlock whatever door is most viable and we'll go in together; then, I'll loop the footage on the cameras if there are any, and then you'll take out the guard; after that, you take out anyone who's still around while I get you past security. And if there aren't even any drones in the first place, then the plan stays the same: I hack, you take down guards.
"Sound good?"
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Vigilantes
Smiley Specialist
he's big enough
Posts: 164
Preferred Name: Nama
Character Profile: ♦♦♦
Character Name: Levenin Refure
Main Account: Levenin
Status: On Hiatus
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Post by Levenin on Aug 19, 2015 3:30:32 GMT -5
Levenin didn’t miss the tone change in Zail’s voice as the man pondered about why the thief had been there. True, being upstairs did seem suspiciously like he wasn’t there to mess with the drug lab at all. Which he did care about that, but his method involved removing it by another means other than directly. His hands clenched around the edges of his smock. That night, his confidence was enough for him to go through with the job. However, now he began having second thoughts as the two discussed the added hitches in their plan.
”Yeah, you could see it that way but I just got kinda lost. I don’t really like getting physical. I’m relieved his family won’t be there the second time around. It’ll mean not involving the kids...” A hint of self denial inched its way into his words. Of course he wasn’t going to throw the children into the middle of this mess… except that he was in the worst way.
”Knocking out the guards is definitely something I can do. I have plenty of time to come up with something for that.” All he had to do was keep any vitals at normal levels while rendering them comatose. Too easy. NUIPs weren't as scary as most people made them out to be, especially when they were simple to fool. All it’d require was some modifications to his existing poison recipes to pull off and an afternoon’s worth of brewing in Ellie’s kitchen. He could already hear her complaints about the smell.
Levenin nodded in agreement with Zail’s mode of attack. It’d take a while to pull off but it was the safest option. ”I’ll lure guards around and keep them separate from one another. I can serve as a distraction and have them follow me while you hack your way in. Make ‘em all think there’s just one of us there. You should be the one in charge of taking out whoever is controlling the drones and cameras. I’ll take out the others one at a time. It might be slow but it’ll hopefully mean being free to do our own jobs once it’s over with.”
A heavy intake of air as he concluded the rambling. Lev felt less uneasy now after putting it into perspective for himself. If his past exploits were anything to go by, then his skill as a distraction was top tier. Being on the same page meant this time, they’d do it for sure. They had to or else.
”I’ll meet you at the corner of Sunset and Fawn, near the house. Just to make sure everything’s clear before we go in. Make it... at 10 PM after the sun’s been down a while. Hopefully before the overnight installation really starts.”
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Civilians
C[re]ate Champion
Posts: 106
Preferred Name: Varmun
Pronouns: He/Him
Character Profile: Character List
Character Name: Isaac Vasari
Main Account: Isaac
Status: Active
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Post by Isaac on Aug 19, 2015 8:32:43 GMT -5
Night came slowly, the day passing by with agonizing anticipation. But Isaac was grateful. A slow day meant a slow night, and the two hours he had of a hacked GPS would be enough to pull off the heist.At Isaac's request, he and Nineveh sat up on a rooftop diagonal from their target. No one ever looked up, so Isaac felt comfortable here, watching from a distance. He gave the house a quick glance from afar, the simulated stars and streetlamps giving him plenty of light."The owner's car is still here," said Isaac. "If Cybertek came back today, they're still not done." The owner had been packed up and ready to go this morning. If the security system was complete, he would have been long gone. This gave Isaac a little comfort, but he knew this would still be a challenge.
Once more, Isaac tapped his visor and turned on his infrared filter. He now gave the house a sharp, hard stare, scanning the whole place from top to bottom, sliding left and right across the rooftop to make sure the thermal images didn't overlap. Depth was challenging with infrared, but Isaac managed to be certain of his findings. "Seven guards tonight: Three guards in the basement with one sitting down and the other two on patrol; two up on the second floor, patrolling; two up on the third floor, standing guard outside what I assume is the master bedroom. There's a third figure up there, just sitting down—most likely the owner. I can't see any laser beams from this far away, though. I'll have to give the place another look when we approach."Isaac lowered his visor to the bridge of his nose and thought things over. Getting inside with so many human eyes in a relatively small space was going to be tricky. The fact that one guard was sitting downstairs in the lab made it seem pretty obvious that there were drones in the house, too. It would be difficult to avoid detection.But Isaac had a plan, and he said, "We'll slip in through a window on the second floor. We'll take out the two guards there first, then move to the lab." Isaac wanted to take out the robot operator first, but this was probably the safest route. The guards would have their eyes on the side door to the lab, and the lab didn't have any windows. Approaching from the stairs with infrared sight would be the safest way down there.If you want to have Lev get inside the house in your next post, feel free to say that Isaac hacked a window lock for him. If not, I'll do that in my next post = w= |
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Vigilantes
Smiley Specialist
he's big enough
Posts: 164
Preferred Name: Nama
Character Profile: ♦♦♦
Character Name: Levenin Refure
Main Account: Levenin
Status: On Hiatus
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Post by Levenin on Aug 19, 2015 15:14:05 GMT -5
Levenin worried he wouldn’t make it on time. His legs refused to carry him not too long after camping out at his friend’s Lower Class apartment for the day. Knowing she’d highly disapprove, he had to hide away in her bathroom and upload another string of Acid code to combat the effects. It was counterproductive. Installing something that would only serve to make it worse in the long run to improve things in the now? He had to if tonight’s mission would even happen.
Brewing went smoothly as expected. No dropped vials or syringes all over the floor, at least. Levenin only left after making absolutely certain his bases were covered. Today’s concoction was a paralysis venom with a dose of sleeping agent to keep the guards down. He felt even more suspicious than usual as the materials were stashed within the shadows of his cloak. If anyone ever saw, they’d think he was peddling something big time.
”Sorry…” was the first word he said upon climbing to the roof with Zail. Any additional apologies about his tardiness ceased as he listened to the findings. Another Acid upload in the meantime to make sure it lasted the night.
So seven people total, all but the drone operator being his responsibility. It was a good thing he had the foresight to pack heavy on the poisons. ”I think we’ll be fine,” said Levenin with optimism in his whispering. ”I brought something new to try out that’ll hopefully give us an easier time. It’ll be hard to detect by camera, anyway.”
Waiting for the other man to make a move first, Lev followed him down as the two leapt across the gap and next to the targeted windowsill. Probably the most difficult task yet, as there was little room for misstep. The coast remaining clear, Zail hacked the window open for him, though Levenin held off on jumping in immediately. His eyes could barely detect them, but there was a single guard not too far down the hall, the second’s location unknown. Close enough for an experiment.
Cracking open the pane ever so slightly to avoid excessive noise, he fished out darts no bigger than the palm of his hand. He’d never used these until now but tonight was a good time to try. It was better than barging in and hoping the guard was a lousy shot. Lev slipped one inside a launching tube as he took aim. He puffed and frowned as it lodged itself in his target’s protective vest. And then a moment of panic as Levenin hurriedly loaded another dart when the guard seemed to notice something sticking out of his shoulder. The second attempt thankfully landed firmly in the side of his neck.
The effects worked swiftly. By the time the first dart had been removed for observation, the guard slumped to the floor in a silent heap. Levenin gave a thumbs up before crawling onto the second level first. Now was not the time to be so childish, but the excitement of a successful test run took over for a moment. ”Can you see where the other one is?”
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Civilians
C[re]ate Champion
Posts: 106
Preferred Name: Varmun
Pronouns: He/Him
Character Profile: Character List
Character Name: Isaac Vasari
Main Account: Isaac
Status: Active
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Post by Isaac on Aug 20, 2015 10:15:25 GMT -5
Isaac hung on the side of the house like a spider, one hand on the windowsill to the second floor, other on the cable of his handheld. With a swing of his body, he raised himself up to quickly plug his handheld into the window lock before swinging back down. He then reached into his pocket, pulled out the little PDA, and hacked the window with a preloaded program.
From there, Isaac fell down onto the grass of the side yard, watching the area with his infrared sight. He could see one of the guards inside react to Nineveh's first missed shot. A soft sigh escaped Isaac's nose, and he put a hand to his forehead, wondering how he was going to explain to Madam Roux that he couldn't get the formula.
Thankfully, Nineveh's second shot hit home, and the guard fell to his knees, pressed his hands against the floor, and fell to the floor as his arms gave out—a rather quiet knockout. Isaac had expected the guy to either yell that he'd been drugged or hit the ground with a thud. Isaac bobbed his head, impressed.
As for the second guard, Isaac glanced to the right, spotting the man's thermal image. He then ran for the house again and rejoined Nineveh up on the windowsill. The guard's image had been rather clear, but there could be things blocking Nineveh's shot that Isaac couldn't see. So he lowered his visor and looked around the room before whispering, "In the kitchen, behind the dividing wall. Based on the noise…" Another sigh left him as he listened to the clacking of bottles and the rush of air. "…He's at the fridge." These guys were truly incompetent. No wonder the owner wanted robots.
Isaac slowly, quietly raised the window up the rest of the way and climbed inside. The guard was still out of sight in the kitchen, and Isaac kept an eye on his heat signature as he helped Nineveh climb into the house before shutting the window behind them. Isaac then crept around the room, pointing Nineveh in the right direction of the guard. But also, Isaac had to make gestures with his hands to indicate infrared beams scattered around the floor. Between every archway—such as the one leading into the kitchen—was a beam that only Isaac's visor could see. He could do nothing to expose them to Nineveh, only flick his finger back and forth to indicate one existed, then hold his hand above the floor to let Nineveh know how high it sat. The one leading into the kitchen was only six inches high.
While Isaac waited for Nineveh to take out the guard, he looked around at the handful of laser beams, and he thought, The security up here is still lax—no drones, no cameras. The owner must have prioritized the lab.
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Vigilantes
Smiley Specialist
he's big enough
Posts: 164
Preferred Name: Nama
Character Profile: ♦♦♦
Character Name: Levenin Refure
Main Account: Levenin
Status: On Hiatus
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Post by Levenin on Aug 20, 2015 16:09:23 GMT -5
Levenin waited for a moment as Zail gathered the requested information, silently wishing for a quick survey. Not nearly as dextrous or blessed with upper arm strength as his partner, he struggled to keep his grasp on the sill. He kept watch for any sign of movement on the second floor. The guard would stay knocked out for a while yet, but Lev knew he wasn’t the only one present. Just behind one of these doors was the target himself, maybe lying in bed and unable to sleep in peace. It was so tempting to just roll inside and get this task over with. His eyes detected no other figures, there were no sounds of footsteps trudging up the stairs. It’d be over in a minute.
But Lev shook his head. Doing that wasn’t part of the plan. His own interests weren’t the only ones at heart here. Whatever Zail had going on, even though it didn’t sound too positive, was just as important. If they became enemies because of the events here tonight, then that was something to deal with later. ”All the way down there…?” asked a confused Levenin. Somebody wasn’t taking their job seriously, it seemed.
Finally getting the O-K, Levenin thanked Zail with a nod for pulling him up through the window and into the hallway. He set one foot down at a time to keep down on noise reaching the first level. So far, so good. Along the way, he retrieved the failed dart from the guard’s vest. It was reusable and supplies were bound to be blown through in no time with how lousy of a shot he was.
He shrugged his shoulders in response to the hand gestures until Levenin saw what the other thief was referring to. A very faint red line leading into the kitchen as he reached the bottom of the stairwell. Several in his field of view, in fact. Of course, how could he expect any less from a security system in progress? He couldn’t grasp the full shape of the beams (his splice wasn’t nearly as powerful as infrared detection technology), but it was enough to step over and under them.
With that, Zail disappeared somewhere behind him. There’s a wall between us… And counters and chairs and… This room wouldn’t be easy to navigate. To his luck, the guard was currently on a midnight snack run throughout each cupboard. With the way he took his time sifting through boxes and cans of whatever the family had left behind, Levenin snuck in and behind the dining table. A clear shot.
He aimed another dart, though it stuck itself in the nutritional facts of a cereal box before the guard closed the cupboard door. Another landed in a loaf of bread securely tucked under his arm. This guy’s enthusiastic movement over taking someone else’s food was beginning to wear thin. The third and fourth went in just as he sat down to build the pilfered meal (the fourth dart was unnecessary but oh so satisfying). And as Lev exited the kitchen to give another thumbs up to Zail, he had the strongest urge to steal a bite to eat himself.
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