Billy drops the handful of money he was holding unceremoniously, "I mean, I'm not hurting for money. I'm just trying to figure out what John doe wanted them for."

In reply to Billy Laser Fist (msg # 920):

"Oh yeah for sure, no I gotcha. That probably all depends on what Johnny D is. He match any of the species in the museum? I get kinda bored with exhibits," Roger says as he fits pipes.

In reply to Yardbird (msg # 921):

Wait theres a museum?!  I'll go check it out once I'm done with this... Actually, Percy, go take a look.

The doll toddles out of the room.
This message was last edited by the player at 12:15, Tue 30 July 2019.

In reply to Nightmare (msg # 922):

Basilisk shakes his helmet slowly and sighs.

In reply to Basilisk (msg # 923):

Percy trundles out of the room and makes its way back to the grand staircase. From there, the doll has two different galleries to consider exploring: the southeast, and the southwest.

***

Roger has the network of pipes basically reassembled with ridiculous alacrity. He's just putting the finishing touches on his work by the time Rebecca completes her investigation on the alien body and begins to work at prying the object out of its palm.

After a few false starts, she finally manages to wrest it away from the cadaver's deathgrip. This proves to be a mistake, for the object turns out to be a remote of some kind with the sort of thumb trigger the's supposed remain depressed.

A whirring sound can be heard from back behind the tanks, and Hitch's laughter can be heard from all around you as another projector -- this time, audio only -- activates.

"WHOOPSIE! Hope you're wearing something fireproof..."

A high-pitched bleeping sound begins to repeat at a rate of approximately one tone per second.




This message was last edited by the GM at 22:33, Tue 30 July 2019.

In reply to The Watcher (msg # 924):

“Not now, chief. I’m in the zone,” Roger says, keen to the challenge of outfoxing the trap.

"Run!" Billy shouts, pivoting on his heel and running back to the first basement chamber, "Incendiary, get out!" He waves Xander and Ibis toward the stairs.

In reply to Billy Laser Fist (msg # 926):

This is the fuel storage area!  Running won't help!

Raj, how long do we have?  I can do something but it won't be pretty.

~~~~Hold action to yardbird~~~~

In reply to Nightmare (msg # 927):

Did you try holding the button again?

Basilisk, moving as quickly as possible given the cumbersome suit, begins looking around for anything resembling sheet metal or non-flamable liquids.

Where will the blast come from?  Can you hide in a water tank?

In reply to Basilisk (msg # 928):

Roger listens intently to two bleeps as he and surveys the array of tanks. He shakes his head suddenly.

"No that guy had the trigger, not the bomb. Tanks are probably wired. Everybody out."

He marshals Basilisk and Nightmare toward the door (if they allow him), grabs his gun from the corner, grits his teeth as he pulls the body out of the room, and secures the door behind them, assuming everyone is out.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:34, Wed 31 July 2019.

In reply to Yardbird (msg # 929):

Roger learns very quickly that it is impossible to move Nightmare if she doesn't want to.  His hands push right through her body as she phases in and out.  She shakes her head.  Her hair flashes a deep ombre of brilliant red at the tips and deep burgandy at the roots.



/ooc: I think this is a round... basically I need a round, maybe two...

Percy comes back (hopefully into the room)

Nightmare calmly checks the tanks looking for the explosive device.


This message was last edited by the player at 18:08, Wed 31 July 2019.

In reply to Nightmare (msg # 930):

"Nightmare there's no time. I didn't see the detonators when I rebuilt the damn tanks. Out, now!" Roger yells from the door as he tries to maneuver the dead body through the threshold.

In reply to Yardbird (msg # 931):

She follows the beeping sound to its source.

Then stop wasting time trying to change my mind...

1.  I'm faster than they are... by a lot.
2.  This is the fuel room, if this goes up I assume it is going to take a medium/large chunk of the building with it.  I don't think running is going to do much.
3.  If I can find literally anything hardwired then I can get the rest of it.

She locks pink eyes to Roger.

Trust me.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:29, Wed 31 July 2019.

In reply to Nightmare (msg # 932):

"I'm shutting this door. If I don't, the blast will take us all out for sure. Last chance," Roger says, peeking around the door with just his head and watching Nightmare's face for any sign of reconsideration before sealing it.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:57, Thu 01 Aug 2019.

In reply to Yardbird (msg # 933):

Roger sees nothing but grim determination on her face, this is clearly a precocious teenager who has seen some shit.

Percy will close the door behind him.  You take care of the things I can't do.  Give me orders and let me know if you get stuck.

In reply to Nightmare (msg # 934):

Roger glances in the direction of Billy's footfalls, then back to Nightmare one last time before closing the door.

"You guys are insane."

In reply to Yardbird (msg # 935):

Billy's warning jolts those not in the room into action, and they follow him to take cover as far from the presumed bomb as possible.

Roger holds the door open just long enough for Basil to lumber through before throwing it shut and putting his trust in some combination of the possibly suicidal junior scientist and the ultra-dense material the building seems to be constructed from.

***

Rebecca rushes over toward the tanks, her eyes darting back and forth as she attempts to discern the source of the beeping and, thus, the location of the detonator. She fails to find the telltale sign of wires she was hoping for, and has just decided that the detonation solution must be some sort of flat, plate-like device rigged against the wall behind the tanks (or, she wonders absently, perhaps inside the tanks themselves?) when the beeping comes to a stop.

The silence that follows is soon filled by the awful roar of a hellish explosion that rips through the room, threatening to take Rebecca along with it...

OOC: Rebecca, please make the following checks: Phasing, Agility, Endurance

***

Those standing outside of the room with the bomb in it are pleased to find that the door does its job better than expected. They experience nothing beyond a muffled WHOMPH.

In reply to The Watcher (msg # 936):

She reaches out to place her hand on the disk as soon as the silence takes over.  In the half second pause she steels herself, phases out, and calls to her companion.
A physical and psychic scream rips through the facility as she tries to withstand the blast.

[Phasing: Red]

[Agility: White]

[Endurance: Yellow]

In reply to Nightmare (msg # 937):

Rebecca's comms short out as the firestorm engulfs her, but only briefly. Screwing her eyes tightly shut, she braces for impact...
This message was lightly edited by the GM at 21:07, Thu 01 Aug 2019.

In reply to The Watcher (msg # 938):

A long moment passes, and then the door starts to shimmer in a very familiar way, followed by the faded outline of a smoking clunky eva suit stomping through the wall.  The bubble of the helmet heads straight towards Roger's chest and he feels light pressure that becomes heavier as the ghost of Nightmare coalesces into the girl.  She lightly pounds her head against him to punctuate her speech.

I almost had it.  I was right there.  I was so damn close.

She finds a peice of loose scrap and kicks it, sending it skittering across the room.  Those who left hear a new psychic scream, this one a wordless scream of frustration.

The comms for the team crackle and snap as Nightmare's voice comes in mid sentence

...collateral damage.  Do you read?  All clear in the fuel room, blast was executed for maximal collateral damage. 

In reply to Nightmare (msg # 939):

Roger pats Nightmare on the back twice before kneeling to eye level and gently moving her to arms length by her shoulders.

"Then where were the detonators?"

He tilts his head raises an eyebrow at her. His expression is drawn tight against the hollow of his face like he's riding a motorcycle into a strong headwind.

"No, y'know, I'm just gonna go ahead and answer. You didn't have it. What you did in there was reckless and not cool. Put us all in danger and almost got yourself killed. No need for it. I don't care about your phasing. You roll the dice on a stunt like that and lose even once, and that is it. That is all, my dude. Done. You get me?"

Roger stands up and goes to inspect the damage -- assuming he feels it's safe to re-enter the fuel room -- stepping over the dead alien he dragged from the impending cataclysm.

"Tell y'all right now. Ceto doesn't make heroes. Makes graves though. Seen plenty of those. And I ain't digging another one." Roger says over his shoulder with a tone bearing no emotion. He goes on to mutter something about pipes and finishing the op in one piece.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:33, Fri 02 Aug 2019.

In reply to Yardbird (msg # 940):

It was on the wall, small black disk.  I was trying to save the fuel supply... We can't restore power to this facility now can we?

She looks at the floor as she takes the admonishment, and then mumbles to Roger's feet in teenage embarrassment.

I get it. 

She follows him into the room, Roger sees the tanks and pipes are slagged, anything that didn't melt is smoldering or on fire.  All of the wiring needs to be replaced.  There is also a doll that is mangled, and charred to a crisp standing with its arms out by an area on the floor that is not nearly as burned out as the rest of the floor.

In reply to Nightmare (msg # 941):

(With the immediate danger over, initiative order is suspended).

~~End Combat~~

In reply to The Watcher (msg # 942):

"We can always make more fuel. Or find it. Hell, we could use Abraxas as a battery to power that hatch between floors."

"Just one charge?" Roger says and whistles as he surveys the damage.

In reply to Yardbird (msg # 943):

Roger considers the damage and reaches an inescapable conclusion: either Hitch had no idea what he was doing, or he went to tremendous lengths to engineer a contained explosion. It could have been much worse.

That said, the fuel tanks are now ruptured and it is plain to see that any actual fuel they contained has been lost. The water tanks are in better shape, with a remaining capacity of about 20%.

Foul smoke fills the room from the burning wires and their melted coatings, not to mention the slagged pipeworks. It will take Roger some time to repair the room, in part due to the materials needing to be replaced, remade, or repurposed to be usable once more.
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:24, Sat 03 Aug 2019.