Lucky turned to Ames. “We’re building stairs? Ohhkay, beats climbing.” He said before replying on his communicator with a less than enthusiastic.>>“Copy that. Building a stairwell once Fred is positioned.”

“Here, let me Have the Fred remote. Why don’t you try using that gameboy thing you grabbed and see if you can call us an elevator or something. They can’t all have needed those things The Major has.” He took the FRED controller and began To maneuver it to them and then into position. "I need the practice with this thing anyways."

Meanwhile, Hilda listened curiously to Kaspar's strange plan, then shrugged off her backpack and rummaged inside. At last, she produced a climbing kit, spring-loaded camming devices, and a coil of rope a hundred feet long. 'So we don't need these then?'

"I am picking up ten different modulations in this room alone. I do not, however, have any way of determining what's on the other end of each without activating each different modulation, one at a time. We could send drones through and take a look that way," she replied as she continued scanning the room."

"Why not?" Tate replies to Lucky. "It's certainly a good security measure, though I don't quite understand how they'd work. So, if you're standing over here in these quarters and activate it with your kara'kesh, do you get to go anywhere?"

"Remember, there wasn't a bedroom in the other quarters, nor in this one. Since there aren't any stairs, could this take you... up? ...to the sleeping quarters? There is at least a third level to this, based on the outside."

"So, could you go to someone else's bedroom with your ribbon device?"

"Or... can you only go to Quarters-A's bedroom from Quarters-A?"

"We didn't explore that option."

"And, since there are no stairs, and there are usable spaces up on the second level, could these other modulations Naseem is picking up... could they take you to these spaces?"

"So, one would be the gym, one would be the rec room, one would be the mess hall. Wouldn't one then be the Control Room? And another be the bedroom? That's five of the 10. Hilda hasn't checked out those other rooms on the other side. Maybe that's where they go."

"And, Hilda, if Freyda is going to have to ferry us up to the next level and the third level, one at a time... making stairs out of your rope might be a good alternate. Do you know how to make a loop ladder out of the rope?"

'Já, I took the course at SGC.' Hilda declared, and began to sort out the rope to create a makeshift loop ladder. 'Lady Freyda, if you take me back up, I can tie it to the railing and drop the rope down for the others.'

     Kaspar nods at Naseem's response,

     "So, ten Rings going to ten different places, but no way to know where those places are without going through.  I see.  Thank you, Naseem." Kaspar says, "The idea of sending a drone, or something else with a recording device, then recalling it, is an excellent one, I think."

     "And we will do that--but first let's investigate the control room that Hilda found.  Perhaps there, we might find some information--a diagram or list, maybe--concerning the Ring Transport system."

Once Hilda gets the loop ladder made--a series of loops to use as foot holds to 'step up' the rope, Freyda ferries Hilda up to the balcony level where she can tie off the rope ladder.

Hilda can then assist anyone climbing the ladder to get over the railing.


Freyda then floats her hoverchair down to the control room. When the door slides open, she moves her chair into the doorway to keep the door open while she studies the control room and tries to make sense of the various controls and monitors.

Hilda tied the rope ladder securely to the railing, then gave it a few hard tugs to test it. Confident that it would keep, she dropped it over the edge, letting it unfurl all the way down to the floor. 'Okay, climb up!' she called down to the rest of the team, and stood ready to help them over when they got to the top. She wondered who would be brave enough to go first...


OOC: I don't know what, if anything, to roll, but... Climb 14

Having watched Hilda make the loop ladder, Tate was confident that she did it right. It was still a bit tricky to step into each loop, step up, and then extract your foot from the previous loop... you needed to turn your foot to the side so it released the tension on the rope and wouldn't catch.

He stepped over and placed his foot in the first loop above ground and began climbing, showing everyone else how to do it. It was only slightly harder than climbing stairs, but you could use your hands better with the rope.

Again, for safety reasons, when he got to the top, he let Hilda assist him over the railings. With the backpack on, it would have been impossible to step between the railings. He wasn't sure the gap was wide enough for any of the team to slip through, so climbing over the top railing was the better choice.

"Good job, Hilda!" he told her.

He then helped her assist the others climbing up and over.

     Kaspar watches as Hilda sets up the rope-loop ladder, and then as Tate climbs the damn thing--with apparent ease.

     Looking up towards Hilda and Tate, Kaspar heaves a heavy sigh, and throws his arms up in the air,

     "Why do you hate me so much?" Kaspar whines in an overly melodramatic tone,

     "I'm an Old Man!  I'm older than anyone else, here....except for Freyda....and likely Hecate....and, I don't know about Gavan--what's the average Tollan lifespan?"

     Kaspar stops and shakes his head, realizing he's gone off track,

     "Doesn't matter!  Point is, I do Mountain Hiking, not Mountain Climbing! *sigh*  Well, what's done is done.  I just suppose I'll have to risk life and limb...."

     Kaspar begins removing his issue backpack, "I'd probably break my fool neck, climbing with this on...." he mumbles, casting a glare up at the younger American, waiting at the top of the rope ladder.

     Putting his pack down on the floor, Kaspar steps up to the rope ladder and gives it a tug,

     Looking up at Tate and Hilda, Kaspar quite sincerely says, "If I fall and die, then all of Poland will rise up in righteous indignation, screaming for your heads, mounted on pikes."

     Kaspar then gives them a grin and a wink, and starts to climb....

Once Tate was clear, Lucky stepped up to the rope ladder,"Definitely beats building a staircase." He looked at Col. Gorski as he began to climb, "Don't worry sir. If you fall, I'll be the first one here to help you, provided you don't land on me." He smirked and waited his turn to climb.

The DC to climb the rope loop ladder is only 5, so Kaspar manages to climb it without too much effort even if he doesn't do so all that gracefully.

Asherrra then climbs up the rope without using the loops at all.

The Cimmerian turned out to be surprisingly strong for her size; when Tate had reached the top, Hilda grabbed him and hauled him over the railing with ease. Once done, she clapped him powerfully on the back. 'Thanks!'

Unfortunately, getting Kaspar up would not be nearly so easy. Hilda rechecked the rope and heard his complaining. 'Old Man, do you want to ride up clinging to the back of an Asgard flying chair instead?' she called down in friendly teasing. 'Or just hold on to the rope, and I lift you up?' she added. There was nothing like much worse options to make the first look better. More seriously, Hilda added 'Lucky, hold the rope for him.' If it swung too much, Kaspar could lose his grip and fall, and then they'd never hear the end of it.

Lucky grabbed the base of the rope ladder. "Got it Hilda. I'll tie his pack on after he's up so it can be hoisted up." He suggested once he was in position, then could not help another teasing barb, "Sir, if you are going to fall off, I'd prefer if you didn't use me to land on." He chuckled slightly.

Naseem waited at the bottom, staff weapon in hand and kept watch whilst the others climbed up the rope.

Sarah will follow up the rope, the equipment she had been using to catalogue what they'd seen... no where in sight.  She doesn't seem to have a problem with the climbing.

Once the last of her team was up Naseem put her staff weapon on her pack in such a way that it was held in place and quickly went up the rope using the strength of her arms only. One she had made her way up she unslung the staff and swept the area, tapping one of the military on the helmet. "Last man."

Up the  rope ladder ahead of Maj. Ansari, Lucky pulled up the ladder just to be safe. He tipped the bill of his boonie hat to Hilda, "Remind me to never underestimate the resourcefulness of a Cimmerian Shield maiden. Smart thinking Hilda." He looked to the officers, "Orders?"

One by one, Hilda helped each member of the team up and over the railing, rechecking the knots after each one to be sure they wouldn't slip or fail. She laughed at Lucky's compliment. 'Smart thinking is not letting you all climb up a FRED and a pile of things and falling on your arses.'

Once they were done, she pointed down the corridor. 'The control room is through there.'

In reply to Lucas Wheeler (msg # 882):



     "That....won't be....necce....ssary....Hilda...." Kaspar gasped out, as he slowly, carefully--and effectively--climbed up the rope-loop ladder, "Thank....you...."



     Kaspar scrambles up over the top edge of the concourse and then, still on his hands and knees, and with a light sheen of sweat on his skin, he turns to look back over the edge and down at Lucky.

     "You mean....you wouldn't try...." Kaspar asks breathily, grinning down at Lucky, "....to catch....your Commanding Officer....as he fell?  I thought you were a Marine, Lucky?"

"Really Sir? Never said a dumb Marine." Lucky replied, catching his breath after the climb and realizing he was out of shape. "That would put two of us out of commission since even if I did catch you, the impact of the fall would be enough to injure both of us likely. Not to worry though, I would have been the first one there to help if you had fallen, well secnd since Major Ansari was there too." He smirked.

Naseem nodded. "I can assure you that I would step smartly out of the way so as to not be hit, make the kind of astute observation only a Marine officer can make like, 'That looked painful and will likely leave a mark' and would proceed to heal you."

She looked at Lucky. "Sounds about right, wouldn't you say, Gunny?"

"Yes Ma'am." Lucky nodded in agreement, then could not help laughing

"I doubt if we'll all fit in the control room, even if we would be of any use," Gavan suggests.

"I think that means this is your problem, Sarah... and perhaps Asherrra can help. What do all the controls mean?"

Having been directed to the control panel, Sarah will consider what might be written there....