lucetilogs | MISSION # 4 - Third Floor Revisited

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MISSION # 4 - Third Floor Revisited

Who: Shikamaru (field leader), Tony Stark (hacker), Mia (healer), Tear (healer), Melaka, Sheik, Kazooie, Freyjadour, Caius, Joshua Bright, Jubei, and Leonhardt
What: MISSION # 4 - Third Floor Revisited
When: March 22nd to 23rd
Where: Abandoned Malnosso Facility
Summary: The site of a previous infiltration is revisited due to strange creature that now infests it.

Twelve volunteers had been selected this time, the largest group assembled for a mission yet. Specialist Davis didn't like it. Sure, the eggheads in management had told him that they didn't pick out anyone too powerful, but the situation was already pretty damn volatile. If these Lucetians decided to stage an escape, they'd be looking at one bloody battle to keep them in. Even if he personally didn't give a damn where they were. They'd probably be more useful on the outside, killing cultists full time.

The scientist staffed with them was still putting the finishing touches on the droids when the volunteers arrived. Pinching the bridge of his nose, he sighed and turned around. Time to deal with the test subjects. Time to send them off to die, he figured. This is a suicide mission for anyone taking it, I don't care how good they're supposed to be.

It took him a minute to find the leader of the group, Shikamaru. He hadn't expected it to be some kid and initially started speaking to Tony Stark, before realizing his mistake. What was with all the animal people too?

"This is Research Building #56. Over a year and a half ago, volunteers from your Region Six- your enclosure, were tasked with an unauthorized infiltration of this building to weed out members of the organization that had been designated traitors by the previous administration. I'm not a politician and I'm not on an ethical committee. So I don't care about what went down then or why. What I do know is that I've lost three of my best teams trying to contain some hellish monster that your people were partly responsible for releasing."

That last portion probably pissed them off, he figured, but he wasn't apologetic and continued. "I know one of you has been in there before. Don't count on it doing much to save your asses. The creature originating from the third floor is now infesting every single level of the building. We have Shifts keeping it in, but the creature is adaptable. We estimate in three days, it will breech the barrier. Your group has forty-eight hours to get in and get out. That's assuming you do get out. No matter how tough or badass you all think you are, going in there cocky drops your chances of survival even lower than it already is."

That, he decided, was enough. He left further explanation to his staff. The scientist followed soon after, explaining that the droids would be accompanying them. He was quite enthusiastic about them and unusually fond of the robots, referring to them all by different pet names chosen by himself (such as 'Sparky' and 'Wires' and so on). He emphasized that they shouldn't be tampered with, urging them to remember the mission and that this was no time to try and steal technology. One final word of warning he imparted on them was to be wary of other droids in the facility. Some of them had been infected by the biological monster, which had apparently found a way to power them by its own life energy, which was more potent than the Shifting that powered the uninfected ones.

A lower ranked officer was the one to see them off. A little starstruck to be working with Lucetians, she hurriedly offered them back packs containing supplies they might need: canteens of water, energy bars, some rations, cutting tools, gas masks, and so on. Resisting the urge to want to reach out and touch Jubei, she smiled awkwardly and led them to a hover platform. (Those who have been on the farm would recognize these as being common there.) After taking the group to the top of the building, the point where they would enter, she saluted and waited for them to disembark. She did so sadly, since she wasn't sure they would actually survive.

---

The original layout of the building can be found here It's a ten story complex once used for a wide variety of purposes. The team will need to make their way down from the roof to the third floor, where the creature will be found. Specialist Davis has given them a special bomb to be planted in the heart of the creature. When detonated, it will drag everything in it back into that creature's home world. This is a place no one will want to go, no matter how much they may hate the place.

Each door requires an ID card to bypass. Although Tony was given an adapter card to swipe at each doorway, it will require determining the constantly fluctuating pass code to bypass. Attempting to destroy the doors will be dangerous, as they are heavily reinforced with an unknown variant of metal harder than titanium. They are more likely to bring the building down on them trying to breach it in that manner. The doors blocking stairwells will be even more tightly locked.

The creature grows in a plant like way, but seems to be composed of a mammal-like flesh. Large bulbous eyes grow out of it, making it aware of its surroundings. The team will be watched at all times, but it will only begin to become aggressive once they reach the seventh floor, unless they are openly hostile to it before then. One of the earlier threats will be large gaping mouths from the ceilings, walls, and floors. A putrid gas reeks from inside it, enough that it can paralyze anyone that happen to get a full dose of it. The teeth can stretch out to try and drag in its paralyzed prey. These teeth are razor sharp and nearly indestructible.

The lower they go, the more every surface will be covered in an oily flesh. Although soft, in some places it can be extremely difficult to penetrate. They may be required to burn it away in order to access door panels. One consistent threat they may face are zombie-like MSF soldiers. They resemble walking corpses (with decay already set in), but partially covered by the creature's flesh, with new eyes and mouths on different parts of the body. Those that are from the most recent mission (on floor 5) will still be in possession of semi-automatic machine guns, although their aim will be clumsy. The zombies are extremely strong and resilient, enough to match your average elite cultist.

Some infected droids may yet be encountered. Although their physical condition is rusted and looking beyond repair, they seem to be able to move anyway despite their deteriorated state. Although they have more power than their normal counterparts, the fleshy tentacles that keeps them locked in place are more fragile than their metal components and can be severed. The six droids accompanying them will be quick to destroy any of the remaining parts of the droids. This is just as well, as the parts are corrupted, rusted, and not even fit for scrap metal at this point.

Deeper below, large tentacles will sometimes pierce through the walls and doors (yes, even that harder than titanium stuff) and start openly attacking the group. At this point they will likely start losing some of the droids to the attacks and may suffer grave or fatal injuries themselves. The tentacles are lined with spikes and micro-quills that inject a quick and deadly poison into the system. Although the poison can be magically eradicated, the volunteers will need to ensure that there are no micro-quills still in the skin, as it will continue to inject poison into the victim otherwise.

On the third floor, the group will finally be near the heart of the creature. Zombified creatures that were once scientists and researchers will be present, now fully covered in the creature's flesh and stronger and faster than those on the previous floors. The tentacles will be more aggressive, the mouths hungrier, the entire area will only grow hotter due to their battle. As they draw in closer, they will begin to hear a loud 'thumping' that will increase in intensity, even causing the area to vibrate. This is because their target, at this point, is quite literally a giant heart, about seven meters tall and now crossing into the two floors below. The heart will pulsate and use the same techniques it had been previously to defend itself, but will otherwise be stationary. Although they can attempt to attack it using whatever means, it will regenerate from all damage in moments. They'll just need to cut it open long enough to plant the bomb inside it.

At that point, the group will need to set the timer to escape. It's still impossible to descend from the third floor, so they will have to go straight up as quickly as they can. The creature will be scrambling at that point and although hostile, less directed than before. The building, however, will be on the verge of collapse and may begin falling down on them in some parts. Speed will be the only thing that sees them to the other side.

If they succeed, Specialist Davis will have a hot meal and hot showers waiting for them, before sending them back to Luceti.

You can use this post for questions and plotting!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Part 1

[If there's one thing made very clear by the specialist's explanation, it's that this mission is every bit as dangerous as it sounded initially. Despite that, though, Joshua - clad in a long-sleeved variant of the outfit he wore during the last draft, albeit wearing gloves rather than bandages - doesn't seem to be particularly alarmed by the new information. If anything, he's oddly calm. And why wouldn't he be? High-risk missions are something he's used to, after all.

...The added risk of this thing potentially breaching the surrounding barrier if they fail is definitely something new, though. But that's just another incentive for them to try their best, right?

Once he finishes putting on his own gas mask, unless someone catches his attention or addresses him first, Joshua's only going to head over to the others in his team before they all head down to the next floor. He doesn't really want to spend more time up here than absolutely necessary, so he'll mostly refrain from starting conversations himself for now.]

---

Part 2

[Once they're actually progressing through the floors, there's a bit of a shift in Joshua's behavior: every so often, he'll look toward the bulbous eyes on their surroundings. The flesh covering everything is admittedly a bit strange, but it's those eyes that bother him, and rather noticeably at that. He really does not like the fact that they can't seem to avoid being watched by this creature so far. He's used to hiding from his targets, not being in plain sight, and his repeated glances toward the eyes to confirm if they're still tracking them likely makes it obvious that he's not all that happy about this, to say the least.]

[Leonhardt will find Joshua quick enough, and like the boy, he's also not in the least bit alarmed. If they don't do this, then someone else less suited would have to. Like Joshua, he's used to dangerous missions.

He'll go ahead and cast Earth Guard on the two of them. He's got more EP, so that is likely best.]

Our priority should be keeping Earth Guard cast on the healers as much as possible.

[And having said that, he'll go ahead and slip on his own gas mask. He only needs a nod of acknowledgment and once the others arrive he can cast with the mask on or not.]

[Exactly. At least if they do this, that means two others who might not have as much experience won't have to put themselves at risk.

In response to Leonhardt's word, Joshua just nods.]

All right. [He figured that's probably what they should do. Keeping the healers safe is definitely something they should prioritize, and Earth Guard is a fairly effective way to accomplish that.

He pauses for a moment as if contemplating something. When he continues, his tone is more concerned than before - not much, but enough to be noticeable.]

...Are you sure you'll be fine, Loewe? [It's been less than a week since he came back, after all, and even though he's been doing well so far... well, Joshua still can't help but to worry a little.]

[And Leonhardt can't help but sigh in response to that. He should have expected Joshua would be overly worried for no good reason.]

You can stop the excessive worrying now.

[Doesn't what happened recently plus how dangerous this mission is count as a good reason? It does from Joshua's point of view, at least.]

I'm not worrying excessively. We're not exactly here to exterminate a group of Poms. [And he doesn't want a repeat of what happened earlier this month. He'd like to think they'll be fine despite everything they've been told, but he's still a bit uneasy about his brother tagging along on this kind of mission so soon after all that.

...Someone's being a little overprotective still, to say the least.]

[Yes, Joshua is being a bit overprotective.]

And there is nothing that has affected my ability to fight. Have you seen a thing that concerns you in the past few days? [Because really, if he wasn't all right, there has been enough time to show at least some symptoms, but he's acting more like his normal self.]

Well... [As far as he could tell, there weren't really any noticeable abnormalities. Leonhardt's been doing fairly well during the last few days, all things considered.]

... No, I haven't. [He's willing to admit that much. It's not as if his condition has been progressively getting worse again like before - that would point fairly clearly toward some sort of problem, so that not being the case is a bit reassuring. But still...]

[But still Joshua has to be a worrywart, right?]

And I have noticed nothing off during my training. Worry about yourself so I don't feel a need to jump in and protect you.

[Right. At least Leonhardt being this insistent that he'll be fine is easing his concerns a little.

Still, that response actually earns a sigh this time.]

I know. You said that before, Loewe. [Or, well, something really similar. He definitely hasn't forgotten that conversation.]

[It's a very normal response for Leonhardt though.]

It bears being repeated because I don't want to see you doing something reckless to protect me.

[It is, but it's still something he would've remembered even without it being brought up again.]

Don't worry, I won't. [He'd rather have both of them make it through this alive. As long as he still has other options available to him, he's not going to do anything needlessly reckless just to keep Leonhardt safe.]

Then we are agreed. We'll both get out of here alive because to think otherwise is to set ourselves up for failure before we even start.

[It's not just sheer arrogance, it's just sound strategy. If you think you'll die, your chances of dying increase greatly. If one doesn't set their goals high, they never will accomplish anything great.]

All right. [That's a good point. If they go into this expecting it all to be a suicide mission - which is what the specialist had made it sound like - then it's more likely that that's what it'll turn out to be. Acknowledging that it's a dangerous mission doesn't hurt, but that doesn't mean they should take on a defeatist attitude toward this.

... ]

I wonder if we can find out more about this creature... and why it's here. [All they were told was that people from the village released it; logic dictates that that means it was already contained here before that happened. But why would the Malnosso keep something this dangerous here...?]

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[Seeing as they're both on the same team, Caius will give Joshua a quick wave of a gloved hand once he heads over.]

We're on the same team, yeah? My name's Caius, what's yours?

[He at least wants to be on a first name basis with his team so he's not yelling 'oi you' if something goes wrong.]

[In response to Caius' waving, Joshua raises his own hand in greeting briefly. That name sounds familiar... Wasn't it on that list for that project last month? Hydra Social, if he remembers right? Hm.]

We are. I'm Joshua. It's nice to meet you, Caius. [...Even if these aren't exactly the most ideal circumstances for a first meeting, but that doesn't mean he can't be polite right now.]

Same to you.

[Quickly looking Joshua up and down to see if he can get an idea about what sort of person he is. Also that's a nice scarf there, white scarves are the best.]

So what are you bringing to the team, another sword fighter?

[Caius' scarf is rather nice too. White scarves should really be more popular.]

That's right. I prefer dual-wielding, though. [As he says that, he gestures slightly toward the sheathed swords at his waist ~~never mind that Falcom for some reason didn't include them in that picture up there, sigh~~.]

I can use offensive and supportive magic as well, but it's not my specialty. [Well, orbal arts, really, but "magic" seems to be the more commonly recognized term here in Luceti. And while it's true that they're not his specialty, he's still decent at using them... although he'll probably try to conserve EP for Earth Guard and the few healing arts he has. Offensive arts are nice and all, but those seem like they're going to be more useful for this.]

That's cool, must be hard using two at once though. [He just sticks to the one sword and an arm guard, using a second weapon would probably just end up throwing him off.]

And even with two swords you have magic too? Heh, sounds like you're pretty well prepared. [It's weird how most people here can use some sort of magic and yet back home only the people who used wands or staves could cast magic.]

It's not too difficult once you get used to it. [And, well, it'd be worrying if he wasn't used to it, considering how long he's been using this particular fighting style.

As for the magic... he'll refrain from commenting on that. Explaining how he can use it might end up taking too long, considering combat orbments or similar technology don't seem to exist in most worlds. So instead, he'll opt for something else.]

It looks like most of the people on our team are sword users. [As far as he can tell, Tear seems to be the only one who isn't... which makes sense, if she's their team's healer. And considering they're supposed to deal with threats the first team may have missed, it does seem logical to him that their team would mostly consist of people who are primarily physical attackers.]

Oh. I'll probably stick to one all the same. [He grew up learning to fight with one sword, throwing another into the mix would just throw him off.]

Hey yeah, except you, Leonhardt and that girl all use magic. I'm the only one here going in with just physical artes. [No that he minds, magic is way too complex for him anyway. Hitting things with a sword can do just as much as what magic can do without all the incantations.] If you run into trouble or something just call me over and I'll come help out.

Good idea. If you're used to wielding one sword, switching to two would probably be difficult. [Maybe not if he's only been using it for a short time, but that's not the impression he's getting. He probably wouldn't be on this mission if he was that new to using a sword.

Again, he refrains from commenting on that bit about magic. His magic technically stems from an item he carries with him; it's not an innate ability, so in theory, he could pass it on to someone else and they could use magic as well. That's... probably not a good idea, though, considering it takes some time to get used to combat orbments and he's not sure if giving away the ability boosts it provides is a good idea right now.

In response to that last bit, though, he gives a small nod.]

Got it. And if you're in trouble, you can call me over for help, too. [He's not as much of a tank as his brother, and he's not as good at using the Body Split Craft... but between his speed, his crafts and his arts, he should be able to help out if need be.]

Exactly! I mean I've seen guys who used two before but... Yeah, one is enough. [In truth he probably just couldn't coordinate himself well enough to swing two and keep his artes going. Maybe he'll give it a shot someday all the same.

As far as he knows, magic is magic and it can't be passed on just like that. It's probably for the best he doesn't know anything else though.]

Then we've got each others backs, cool. Guess I'll be counting on you if things get rough. [He nods in response and even smiles a little too.] 'Course I'm the one going in with just a sword here, probably more important that you're kept safe over me. I can handle myself fine.

[...He's not sure if he likes the idea of that being a reason to keep him safe. As far as Joshua's concerned, he isn't any less expendable than anyone else, abilities be damned.]

I should be fine, too. [It's not like this is the first time he's been on a mission that essentially amounted to kill-or-be-killed... or place-bomb-and-escape-or-be-killed, for that matter.]

If you're going to prioritize keeping someone safe, it might be best to focus on Tear and Mia. [They're their group's healers, after all, and if what they've learned about what they're dealing with so far is true, they'll definitely need their aid. Ensuring their safety should definitely be their top priority.]

Well yeah those two come first, of course, but you're probably worse off losing someone who can heal and stuff than just a swordsman, right? I get that everyone should be kept safe and everything but... If the worst comes to the worst, you know.

[Not that he knows much about strategy and battle but back home if one of the magic users kicked the bucket you would have a hard time getting back on your feet, unless you threw a life bottle out.]

It depends, really. Sometimes, a team is worse off if they lose a swordsman than a healer. [It's a matter of skill, really. Since Joshua's not entirely certain about how capable most of them - Caius included - are yet, he's definitely hesitant to say there's anyone they can afford to lose in a worst-case scenario.]

But if worst comes to worst... Loewe's more capable than I am, so it would be best if you look out more for him than for me. [Mia and Tear still get priority, but Leonhardt definitely ranks higher on that list than Joshua does - from his point of view, anyway.

...He probably shouldn't be using his nickname. Force of habit, that.]