Broyko chuckles, and says, "Jacob's the reason they called us. Those that can attend the fundraiser incognito can be there as catering staff or security details. Those that would rather do so should be at the convention, in costume, ready to help."
"Somehow, we got a tip Hiltzailea would be there to take out one of the people at the fundraiser. That's not his usual target. It would be a bad idea to assume we weren't being fed this information."
[Secret to Senor Garcia: Hiltzailea was the man the 'other side' had doing Señor Garcia's job.]

Somehow Lilibeth's smile became brighter when detective Broyko mentioned costumes. "Really? You still want us at the convention? and in costume?"

Justicar pondered Det. Broyko's request...

"Technically, I could monitor both events with Drone overwatch.  Would it be too much for me to show up in the Justicar-Paladin at the Comic Convention? I need not move about in the Paladin ~ It'd just be there to stand in one place to draw crowds and attention ~ I, in the Justicar suit could do the meet and greet.  While Karl is monitoring the Political Fundraiser via less obvious Drone overwatch. Karl is tireless at such efforts."

"I require no oxygen, and even unprotected from pressure I will suffer only cosmetic effects - protected, and I will not even have that. I can swim, and indeed will have to. I otherwise sink quite rapidly." Winter Herald noted the request for showing up in costume with a head tilt. "In... costume. So, business as usual for me."

In reply to Senor Garcia (msg # 921):

Justicar suggests, "...my underwater drones can be submirged but near the surface allowing thier passengers to snorkel ~ solving the need for SCUBA gear, and yet not be visible on approach to the isle."
This message was last edited by the player at 21:41, Tue 01 Nov 2022.

I have an idea, Jacob says suddenly.  How about this?  Señor Garcia does a recon of the island with Winter Herald as his back-up.  If you feel you can get Holly Cook out safely, then do so.  If not, then, after the convention and the fundraiser close for the night, the rest of us come in to assist in the rescue.

"I don't think that is wise CMZ.  We have no idea what abilities or sensors or situational awareness the residents of the Isle have.  Plus, no battleplan survives contact with the enemy... we assume Winter, Senor and I will not be spotted but what if we are?  The criminals may have a means of escape we have no knowledge of that may require the entire team to forestall.  If they escape... I cannot guarantee I could locate their signature again..especially if they can 'escape' into another dimension!"
This message was last edited by the player at 23:21, Tue 01 Nov 2022.

"I am fine with this idea, the more simple the plan the less there is to go wrong."



"JUSTICAR, we need information first before we send everyone."

"We have no idea what is on that island. If there is a significant threat on that island at the very least myself and Winter Hearld can report what those threats are to the rest of the LESP team before we are captured and or killed."

"If everyone goes and there is a significant threat or those on the island are just waiting for somebody to show up unannounced the possibility exists that the entire team could be killed."

"You guys are good. Beyond a shadow of a doubt, you can manage a crisis like this in most ways. But this situation is one of the arguments I made when I convinced the suits to let me set up this division."
"First, if you have a vision, or a hunch, or a premonition, it isn't admissible in court. On the other hand, it CAN be considered 'just cause' for, at minimum, a knock and talk. So, you wouldn't have to visit the island covertly."
"A second point, one that my training and experience can provide, would be that transporting an unwilling Holly Cook outside of the country removes any jurisdictional aspects of the crime. The Hague Convention specifically indicates minor abductees, so it doesn't apply. We could contact Interpol, I'm not sure how they could help if these kidnappers are the Refuseniks."
"Last, but not least, unless you find a second location for the particle thingees that lead to the island, we would have to assume the stolen goods from the bank vault are there. We might have a favor or two built up with the Coast Guard, or even the Navy, that we could call in on this. Considering the stuff stolen from that vault, the insurance company is going to be on the hook for upwards of ten billion. Besides, this time you won't HAVE to go in first and find a reason to call in a strike."
The lieutenant is smiling. He looks proud.

"Leading an attack explosives first without reconnaissance is an unacceptable risk to Miss Cook, regarding what I am to understand as the typical M.O. and expectations of the military. My consensus defaults to civilian lives being secondary, a default I had to override shortly after activation. In a warzone, or a scenario mathematically reducible to that, this consensus reinstates itself and prioritizes cessation of hostilities via enemy neutralization as the best means of damage containment and life preservation. I suspect this mirrors a soldier's concerns, or at least, an ideal of them."

Winter Herald, without even realizing it, had crossed his arms. "So, I have an incentive to not reduce things to a warzone immediately. If this can be resolved with scalpel precision, without the need for the team or a preemptive bombardment, we will call for an extraction and leave with a mission complete. If it cannot, then we will call the proverbial cavalry and recommend a LZ and plan."

"In short, I support CMZ's plan, such as it is."

The fundraiser and convention are, at least, a week away. If the GM indicated these were concurrent then he was probably typing faster than he was thinking.

Hikari listens to both Winter and Garcia... and it seemed as if they were not considering his politely mentioned points.  But they were not able to think as fast as he could... so he decided to rephrase his concerns one last time in hopes they might consider his points if more precisely voiced.

"The following are facts... how would you suggest we address them?"
"One. If this Vitaly / Provider is involved, how will you counter his ability to mind control people? Since we do not know the extent of if there ARE any limits to the targets of this meta-human power?  He could very well be able to control machines as well as living minds."

"Two. If this Vitaly / Provider is involved, how do you plan to counter his meta-human team of Criminals the Refuseniks? Since we know nothing of their number or metahuman capabilities?  It's conceivable they have abilities that will make 'sneaking' in to scout impossible to achieve."

"Three. This island is 24 miles off the coast near Atlantic City, the edge of the continental shelf there is approximately 50 to 70m deep. How is the team to rapidly get there if they are needed quickly if they are not on the Shadowhawk within 12 miles of the Island?"

"Four. If the Recon team is spotted what is the plan then?  How will you keep them from fleeing ~ with only two maybe three team-members there?"

It is then that Justicar flexes his left arm and  grunts softly, "...Excuse me... sorry, I should deal with this."

He turns away walking over to a nearby support pillar to stand out of the way and Hikari exits the Justicar suit, he is clad in his insulation grey inner contact leotard.  Looks more like a combination cloth and rubber frog-suit of sorts. He walks over to a first aid kit and unzips his suit to reveal an angry bruise upon his, surprisingly muscular, chest and arm spreading from his shoulder to his upper arm.  Clearly the mauling from the bear's bite was more effective than anyone knew.

He begins rummaging through the first aid kit for an anti-inflamatory cream for some relief...
This message was last edited by the player at 03:13, Thu 03 Nov 2022.

Senor Garcia listened to JUSTICAR complete his list of what ifs before responding with a sigh...

"JUSTICAR, you are overthinking this, and are what ifing the hell out of the situation to justify doing things your way."

"What should be done first is a simple reconnaissance to determine what we are facing on that island, if anything."

In reply to Senor Garcia (msg # 934):

Hikari shrugs... and immediately flinches from his bruised shoulder, "Perhaps.  I hope I'm wrong and you are right and it will just be a 'simple' recon mission."

He settled into silence... out of respect for the elders of the team hoping their experience was superior to his analytical assessment and focused on treating his bruise.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:24, Thu 03 Nov 2022.

Jacob steps up to place a hand upon Hikari's unbruised shoulder.  In this job, there are no guarantees.  There is always a risk to life and limb.  He shrugs.  We all knew this when we accepted the job offer and swore our oath to protect and serve.

In reply to Chimp Man Z (msg # 936):

Hikari looks up to meet Jacob's eye... and reveals to him that... despite his vast intellect he is still a child; his gaze hopeful and full of trust as he nods.

"Thank you Jacob.  We can only do our best and hope it is enough."

He briefly touches Jacob's hand with his fingertips and smiles... his fears and anticipation greatly settled.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:21, Thu 03 Nov 2022.

Bellissima rubbed her head at all the arguing,  "First we will start with a satellite Recon.  We have satellite images good enough for me to identify a field, we will have images good enough to identify structures.  We can also map out the island's prominent features.  We will can try to back track satellites to discover how long the island has been there."

She paused as she arched an eyebrow over the top edge of her glasses, "Holly is currently not under duress, so we can take a little time to do prepare.  Once we know more about the island, we can determine what the best approach is.  Right now everyone is making up plans based on scant information and not trying to use the resources at hand to discover more."

She turned to Justicar, "Can you pull up the satellite images of the island you have now and I will start analyzing them for structures and prominent features." She looked between Winter Heart and Justicar, "Can you two start trying track the island into the past through satellites that have passed over that area? Maybe contact the Navy to get access to military satellites that have passed over the area." She nodded at Lt Broyko suggestion of using their Navy contacts for this.  "That island appeared there sometime in the past, we need to find out when it did. If we get really lucky, we will have images of its arrival, but that would be extremely lucky."

She looked over at Garcia, "Can you use your resources to try to get even a hint of an idea of who might be part of the Refuseniks? Even if it is complete rumor?"

Turning toward CMZ, "Can you talk to the Answer and see if he knows anything about the Refuseniks?"

In reply to Bellissima (msg # 938):

Hikari sits up straight and nods immediately, "Yes. Belle.. I'll get right on it!"

After finishing applying the anti-inflamatory cream, he will re-zip his inner suit liner and get over to the LESP Terminals and don the Justicar helmet and begin issuing directions to 'Karl' and beginning his data searches for more satellite imagery of the isle and that section of the Eastern seaboard...back several months from weather satellite or GPS records if possible as well as military overwatch surveillance.  Looking for the arrival of the island and tracking it back if possible to its location of origin...

00:32, Today: JUSTICAR rolled 63 using 1d100.  Justicar - Computer Operation [87%]. – [roll=1667449931.18491.355584]

00:34, Today: JUSTICAR rolled 8 using 1d100.  Karl - Computer Hacking [47%]. – [roll=1667450085.32147.355584]
This message was last edited by the player at 04:36, Thu 03 Nov 2022.

What about the Sensory Operations skill?

In reply to Chimp Man Z (msg # 940):

Mostly cause I'm not actively using any sensory devices directly... but sorting through records collected and recorded in data files from sensory devices in the past.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:48, Thu 03 Nov 2022.

Lilibeth was pleased that the pointless arguing and bickering seemed to be at an end, though she was somewhat annoyed that the detective had ignored her questions. Still, set against the team no longer arguing, it was a small thing.

She looked at Bellissima as she had suggested what everyone could do to help get the information they needed to get miss Holly back. When the super model woman finished and hadn't given her a suggestion, she spoke up. "Is there anything I can do?"

"I mean...yeah, I'm a medic not a hacker or scout sniper or something so I guess that makes it hard for me to contribute right now," she silently said to herself, though no trace of disappointment crossed her cheerful face.

"One last question before we break and begin in earnest. Bellissima, you are the closest thing to an authority on psychic capabilities. What are the limits of a practiced mind controller on an organic life form, as you understand them?"

Winter Herald was more direct with his searches, knowing exactly what to look for. He was looking for likely patrol routes, and places where one could move unseen (cameras and security). He also did a quick assessment of any visible structures, looking at which points he could destroy, how much effort it would take, and where he guessed the load-bearing point to be (alternative points of dynamic entry and effort required to collapse the structure). He attempted to think like the island designer: where he would put barracks for housing individuals, the infirmary, the ammo dump, and if they had a helicopter landing pad and their likely docking point.

"Also, Runa. Hikari's upper body movement indicates damage sustained, and while he clearly thinks to develop his body, he often forgets that a controlled healing is what results in optimal conditioning for organics, allowing natural forces to substitute for efficiency regarding himself. I do not know the limits of your abilities."

23:23, Today: Winter Herald rolled 49 using 1d100.  Intelligence. TN 98 (with a +2% overflow).
23:59, Today: Winter Herald rolled 32 using 1d100.  Detect Ambush. TN 94.
00:01, Today: Winter Herald rolled 91 using 1d100.  Demolitions. TN 98 with a 2% overflow.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:31, Thu 03 Nov 2022.

Senor Garcia pulled out his smart phone and began to text a contact he knew at his previous organization. "I can try, but I hope everyone here understands that if I am asking for information, my contact may ask for information in return."

Once complete, he too takes a look at the satellite photos and how they can help in the physical recon himself and Winter Heald will be carrying out.

[Private to GM: Asking one of Senor Garcia CIA contacts if they have heard of a group called the Refuseniks even if rumors.

21:54, Today: Secret Roll: Senor Garcia rolled 53 using 1d100.  a roll for whatever skill can help when contacting someone.

Doing an internet search looking up the Refuseniks to see if there is any open-source info

21:57, Today: Secret Roll: Senor Garcia rolled 39 using 1d100.  Computer Operation 60%.
PASS

21:59, Today: Secret Roll: Senor Garcia rolled 61 using 1d100.  Military Intelligence 101%.
PASS

Looking at satellite photos of island. Looking for best direction to ingress/approach.
22:01, Today: Secret Roll: Senor Garcia rolled 46 using 1d100.  Photography 80%.
PASS

Looking for concealed structures, bunkers guard shacks etc on island
22:03, Today: Secret Roll: Senor Garcia rolled 29 using 1d100.  Detect Concealment 110%
PASS

ID likely ambush points on island
22:04, Today: Secret Roll: Senor Garcia rolled 12 using 1d100.  Detect Ambush 105%.
PASS]

In reply to Winter Herald (msg # 943):

Hikari still not in the Justicar but helmet on with vizor up, standing over by the big monitors is organizing the satellite photos on the screen using a LESP touch screen padd; looks over first at Winter Herald then at Runa ~ flushes slightly in a rather cute blush at his cheeks, "... uhm... I'm sure it looks worse than it feels; but if Runa can do something more than my efforts, it would be greatly appreciated?"
This message was last edited by the player at 12:18, Thu 03 Nov 2022.

Lilibeth, preoccupied first with waiting for a response from Detective Broyko and then waiting for Bellissima to answer her question, had completely missed the fact that Hikari was sporting an impressive bruise on his chest. When he turns away from the monitors and looks directly at Runa through his helmet, she finally notices.

The effect of the sight of him injured and his words, upon her are immediate. She fairly leaps out of her chair and walks with a purposeful stride to him, her sundress swirling about her legs. "Oh!, did that happen during the battle?" She raises one hand to gently explore the area, leaning in close, her head no more than a foot away from his chest. "It's not dangerous but I bet its uncomfortable." Lilibeth had learned during her time as an Army medic that soldiers tended not to admit being in pain but being uncomfortable was a much easier admission.

The hand which had been gently exploring the area, checking for any hidden injuries, now lays flat again the angry bruise. She had smiled during the exchange thus far and continues to, giving him a reassuring look as her hand glows briefly with a bright, greenish white light. In less than three seconds, when she removes her hand from his chest, the bruise is gone, without any trace of having ever been there.

She lowers her hand and steps back from him. "There, all better. Next time come see me straight away, mkay? I'm happy to help."

[Private to JUSTICAR: OOC
How much SDC healing did you need? SO I can record how many power points she just spent accurately.]