Venture into the Forest(IC)

[Vahnyu]

As Serge spends some time inspecting the deeper trappings of the panel, he notes that while the flashing lights are still powered, the actual controls are disconnected from their power source. "Interesting... very interesting..." he mutters, and turns to his friend.

"Well, buddy, this has been some fine and well-spent seconds of our lives indeed. This thing, like the rest of the panels over there, are actually disconnected from the electrical grid of this facility, their lights just for show. It appears that everything here is completely automated. Very efficient, to be sure, but I'd guess that there MUST be some sort of mainframe computer from which all the machinery take their time-schedules, and for things like manual overrides. It must be somewhere, if not inside the facility, at the very least, close by. Although..." Serge pondered another possibility. "... now that I think about it, having this place completely remote controlled, would be an interesting, and quite unsettling idea."

Going on a bit, he expanded upon his theory. "See, the orders could come from a computer outside this room, perhaps on another country or continent, even, by utilising a network of some sort. Very costly, and more to the point, very risky and intercept-prone, but for someone who can utilize space bending technology, pulling this off successfully wouldn't be that far off of a possibility(In fact, it may actually prove simpler). The unsettling part would be that whoever controls this place could know of our arrival, and spy on our movements, even as we speak." Taking a short break to catch his breath, he added "There would still be a need for a physical interpreter, a machine that receives orders and translates them into readable data for each machine, and receives feedback that it forwards back to the remote computer, but locating that machine would be a lot harder than finding a computer... Then again..."

After giving this some more thought, Serge said to Subito, making sure to give more emphasis to his following words "If I could find a part of this intra-network, I could try to access it, and see where the data flows. It could be worth a shot, give us a more detailed idea about this place. What do you think, bro?" he asked his classmate.

[Ari]

El Heraldo stared calmly at Net Fly for several seconds before replying "Surge, if you had any idea how much sense that made to me, you would say it a second time, just to make this whole place a bit smarter. I have only the barest idea about how to use computers myself, and you still made perfect sense. I'll watch your back while you figure this place out, but I'm afraid I won't be able to do much, you know? Luckily the robot things we've seen didn't look to bad, I can probably take 'em" he slid the Banner back into its loop, and floated a little into the air "So, we going to look in the lower levels for this presumed A.I./transmitter, whatever-thingy device? Or do you have a better plan than wandering?"

[Vahnyu]

"Surge, if you had any idea how much sense that made to me, you would say it a second time, just to make this whole place a bit smarter. I have only the barest idea about how to use computers myself, and you still made perfect sense. I'll watch your back while you figure this place out, but I'm afraid I won't be able to do much, you know? Luckily the robot things we've seen didn't look to bad, I can probably take 'em"

"Hehehe, thanks, buddy. And I will be counting on you!" Serge said with a slight embarrased look. He had hoped to make his theory as simple as possible, but he was still affraid that he might have bored Subito out of his mind. Needless to say, he was glad to see that his friend paid attention.

"So, we going to look in the lower levels for this presumed A.I./transmitter, whatever-thingy device? Or do you have a better plan than wandering?"

"Probably, yeah, but hopefully, we won't have to go in blind. Any operating machine in this facility will be connected to the main device. I won't be able to send orders the device from any of those machines, but I may be able to ascertain the device's location. So, I communicate with the machine, we follow the trail, we find the mainframe, I establish a link, and we get our answers."

[Ari]

"Then let us away, O Fearless Leader!" proclaimed El Heraldo grandly, and without a trace of irony "Let us find the thing that gives movement to this obscenity of iron, and cease it's evil forevermore!" smiling broadly he set himself just behind Net Fly, with his back to the mutant "I'll make sure nothing sneaks up on us mate, me and my ears just might do some good here after all"

He followed as quietly as he was able, sliding gracefully through the air with his eyes straining behind his brown mask, and his ears alert and twitching, primed and ready to sound the alert the moment he heard or beheld anything amiss.

[Ari]

GM

It was easy to find the first central computing unit. All the signals racing through the wires and bouncing between semi-hidden receptors were simplicity itself to track to their source. The vast, echoing hallways didn't do much to make the trip seem very pleasant though. Especially the odd murmurs and clanks at the edge of Subito's hearing...

It was almost anticlimatic, a large, bronze-colored elongated box with wires coming out of it at several points with a wi-fi receiver stuck at the top, looking very out of place with its neat, modern plastic against the turn of the century tech that greeted the pair's eyes. To Serge however, the thing was like standing next to a beehive, a buzzing mass of communications happening several dozen times a second.

[Vahnyu]

"Well, time to get to work." Thanks to Heraldo's watchful gaze, Net Fly felt assured and safe enough to completely concentrate on finding the mainframe, without having to worry about his surroundings. Before operating the machine, he examined it carefully, to see if anything seemed out of the ordinary. Seeing that nothing was out of place, he decided to carry on. Pressing a button near his earpiece, Serge opened the suit's communication channel and connected with the device in front of him. Let's see... the active ports are... follow the branching paths... no, that's a printer... no... no... hmmm... aaaaaa? no, wrong again... This continued for quite some time, until he was able to successfully ping the mainframe computer and recieve a reply on his echo request. Bingo! Connection established. Keep Alive, 2 hours. Maximum timeout... ok, everything is in working order. Let the fun begin.

Net Fly made use of the keyboard that was projected to his mind from his device, as he projected his consiousness to the mainframe, and started typing commands to retrieve the schematics of the base. Upon finding what he was looking for, he downloaded the file on his suit's Memory Drive, and disconnected from the device. "Pheww. That went surprisingly well." he exclaimed, as he gathered his bearings and faced his friend. "Ok. Sorry if I took too long. I've got it. The mainframe is located on the first level, but outside of a lift on the third level, it's completely inaccessible. I've downloaded the map, so It can point us the way. Shall we?"

[Ari]

The Herald had had world enough and time to regret extending his hearing. He could hear strange whispers and soft clinks that he couldn't identify or place the location of no matter how hard he'd tried. It was with a feeling of vast relief that the two Claremonters found themselves at the computer box. In the agonizing minutes that Serge needed to figure out the strange placement of the mainframe, he strove to keep from imagining horrible metal monsters sliding into view, arms made of knives and fingers of curling screws, and a buzz-saw where the head ought to be. When Net Fly told him they would have to go even deeper into the complex he almost groaned, but caught himself in time and put a brave face on it. I encouraged him to look further into this damned place he reminded himself sternly and I am a coward and hypocrite if I won't stick this to the end! Nodding firmly he grinned at his friend "Must not have wanted just any old Joe to get at their secret files, huh? I really wonder what happened here now" he saluted smartly "Lead on! I'll do my best to keep a listen out, as usual" he resumed his usual few feet off the ground, gleaming in the dark room "You reckon we'll have to fight anything here?" he asked as he followed Net Fly through the winding stairs and passageways.

[Vahnyu]

Net Fly was focused on matching the schematics he downloaded, with his surroundings. He couldn't really afford to pay enough attention to realize Subito's uneasiness. When Heraldo finally spoke, it almost caused Net Fly to jumpstart.

"Must not have wanted just any old Joe to get at their secret files, huh? I really wonder what happened here now"

"Wha-!? Ah, right, sorry, yes. Emmm, I suppose if we are to find out, we will, soon enough."

"You reckon we'll have to fight anything here?"

"Well... on one hand, this place seems to have been abandoned for a long time. On the other, it doesn't appear scorched down or demolished, meaning that while it may be technically abandoned, it could still hold a few nasty surprises for us, bro. I hope that we don't encounter any trouble, but we should excpect that we will, nonetheless." After a moment's silence, he spoke again. "Oy, I think we're getting close."

[Ari]

GM

The elevator wasn't much to look at. A rusted hulk of slightly warped metal with a bent roof and deep, narrow imprints on the floor. The apparatus still worked though, and with a pull of the lever they rattled up the dizzying passage. The elevator shaft was lined with what seemed like mine lamps, flickering bulbs that dimmed worryingly as they passed. The ride aws jostling, seemed to shake them to pieces unless they flew, and the hole in the roof didn't make it seem any less nerve-wracking, but at last it came a squealing halt at the summit, and the doors slid open, grinding against their holding slots as they creaked apart, revealing a dim passageway filled with silent metal bodies staring at the walls, their eyes softly glowing and fading in an eerie rhythm.

[Vahnyu]

Serge had come to a stop, examining the robots, and trying to determine whether they would pose a threat or not. Hmmm... It's as if they're trying to get somewhere, but they seem... disoriented, and they seem unable to move... not unlike a remote control toy csr model that's stuck on mud, and out of visual range of it's controller or something... Looking at Heraldo, who also kept an eye out for the robots, seemingly unsure as to whether he should be careful or not, Net Fly motions at him, to get his attention. Putting his finger in front of his mouth(well, in front of where his mouth would be, if not for the mask) in a signal of keeping quiet, he then motioned, and started moving, towards the room him and Heraldo were heading to, in a display that indicated that they should proceed quietly, but proceed nonetheless. Well, it's not like they seem to be trouble, but it pays to be careful, at any rate.

[Ari]

For his part, El Heraldo had no idea what was wrong with the things. All he saw were automatons staring at the wall and jerking slightly at times, the reasons for this not nearly within his grasp as it was to Net Fly. Glancing at his friend to get his opinion of the matter, he saw the gesture for silence just in time, closing his just-opened mouth with an audible 'click'. A soft nimbus of golden light shone about him as he followed the mutant over the heads of the robots, staring down at them with no inconsiderable confusion and vague annoyance.

H wished he could talk to Serge's mind, it would have been handy.

[Ari]

GM

The packed robots stood shoulder to shoulder, looking even more boxlike than they truly were in the dim, flickering lights of the hallway. Thankfully, they didn't fill the room the two had come looking for in the first place, and without incident the two young heroes gently touched down before a what could only be the mainframe. From what could be seen of it under the dust and old grime that covered most of the room.

It was huge,(at least twice as tall as the two teens standing on each other's heads, and ten of them could have lain from end to end and not reached longer than it), it was covered with blinking lights, it had a massive control panel built into its side with a large and dusty manual lying on a small pedestal next to the panel like an angry, musty god.

[Vahnyu]

"Heh! Never trust a computer that you can't throw out of the window, and never trust a machine that weights less than it's own manual." Serge noted whimsically to his friend, Subito. In truth, he felt a bit intimidated, by the sheer amount of information the book likely contained. "Hmmm... maybe it would be best to throw a glance at the books contents? You know, help me familiarize with it's operating system, make sure the machine doesn't spontaneously explode in our faces, that sort of thing." He joked, rather weakly, one would note, as he neared what could very well pass for an ancient tome. Taking a deep breath, he attempted to open the book, looking for the index page, which he would scan for anything noteworthy, such as basic operations.

[Ari]

GM

One thing the book wasn't was lean on indexes. Every single page was listed in the Contents section directly after a blank page, with a brief summary of the leaf's purpose and relevance to the function of the mainframe.

Thus, it was a breeze to quickly locate the needed explanation for turning it on(it seemed the lights only came on when it was off. Somehow), and even an exhaustive series of ddaigrams showing how to use the control panel to program the thing for its various functions. One of the functions listed was "Controlling the Goals and Movements of the System's robot Servants", and by the worn edges of the page this part had seen frequent use, as did the scribbles throughout the margins recording various questions and odd problems that had arisen over the years of the thing's use.

in fact, just about every page was all but filled with little notes about problems that had been encountered during the mainframe's use.

[Vahnyu]

"Heh, this would make for a funny read, any other time, Heraldo. Apparently, the previous owners have spent the better part of this book documenting the spectacularly many problems that they encountered while using the mainframe." Leaving a sigh, Net Fly put the manual down, and headed towards the mainframe's interface console. "Oh, well, we have work to do here, right? I'll be operating the mainframe from the panel, since the controls seem simple enough. Watch my back, bro." He said to his friend, while smilling behind his mask. He powered the machine, and as the manual said, the lights went out. "... Yeah, when the lights are on, it's an indication that the machine is off. Weird and backwards, I know." He said, as he started operating the computer. Now let's see if we can trace where the signal outbounds from this network...

[Ari]

"Will do Surge" Heraldo affirmed heartily, spinning around in midair to keep an eye on the hallway full of straining robots. He was beginning to regret his ill-concieved treasure hunt. Not that he was about to say it. Thinking aloud he said to the packed machine men "What i want to know is: why make a place that is pretty much totally automated, and then put robots in it? Far as I could tell, they weren't needed at all, and ended up becoming a dangerous problem" he glanced at the mainframe, scowling at it with real dislike.

Shrugging his powerful shoulders, the heraldic patriot said casually "Hey Serge, don't answer if you're in the middle of anything delicate, but what do you think about, uh" there was a short silence while he stared at the jerking robots, wondering how to put it "well..nationalism? See," he quickly began "on the one hand I've got nothing against Puerto Rico, it's where I'm from, its spirit gives me powers beyond what I'd probably have normally, but the way things are I feel like i oughta side with whatever the people there decide, what if it ends up being, well...something wrong? Would it still be right to use this power, what?" he looked anxiously at Net Fly "'S something that's been realy bothering me lately." he raised a red-gloved hand, adding "Like I said, if you're real busy at the moment, I don't need or want an answer right away."

[Vahnyu]

"What i want to know is: why make a place that is pretty much totally automated, and then put robots in it? Far as I could tell, they weren't needed at all, and ended up becoming a dangerous problem"

"Who knows? Perhaps the robots were created first but proved more cumbersome than the simpler automated devices that were intergrated later. Maybe they were created afterwards in order to handle more complex assignments. Or they were meant to be soldiers... Your guess is as good as mine, really." Serge replied whithout quite taking his face from the screen.

"Hey Serge, don't answer if you're in the middle of anything delicate, but what do you think about, uh... well..nationalism? See, on the one hand I've got nothing against Puerto Rico, it's where I'm from, its spirit gives me powers beyond what I'd probably have normally, but the way things are I feel like i oughta side with whatever the people there decide, what if it ends up being, well...something wrong? Would it still be right to use this power, what? 'S something that's been realy bothering me lately. Like I said, if you're real busy at the moment, I don't need or want an answer right away."

"Woah, hehe! That's a very loaded question there, partner." Net Fly replied, while he was still typing some commands. "Hold that thought for a bit... aaand... done! The programm I was writting is ready. It will use a number of accurate aglorythms to determine the location of the signal. Ok." Turning around, in order to face his friend Subito, Serge tried to address his doubts. "Now, about your concern..." thinking on the matter a bit, he said in a slightly deliberate manner "The question is: What is a nation? More importantly, what is a nation to you? Is it a collection of people? Ideas? Beliefs? Customs? Is it a mirror of yourself?..."

Pausing a bit, as he gave it some more thought, Serge continued "I'm not sure if I can answer your dilemma for you, Subito, but I can certainly tell you this. Being a hero... means doing what needs to be done, when no one else can, or will, arise to the occasion. Loving your country is a fine sentiment, and you should be damn proud of it! As you should be aware that no country is without it's faults, and sometimes, it falls to our shoulders to help the country understand that. If you trully feel that something's wrong, do not mindlessly let yourself be lead, but neither should you distance yourself from the problem. Especially since you carry the blessings of your country, it is your duty above everyone else to make sure that the good people of Puerto Rico follow the spirit of it's ideals, not just the letter."

"As for the moral validity of using your powers, well... What does it matter? What difference does your powers' origin make? I've heard and read about a lot of people whose powers come from demons, or other such sources. Many of them do not feel any oblidged to do anything that goes against their own ideals. Helping is helping, and that's all there is to it."

"But then again, that's just my opinion." After a moment of silence, he asked "Hey, have you spoken with the Blue Dame about this? Maybe she can help you about your dillema... I don't know if she heard what I said, or if she agrees, but I sure hope she does, to a degree at least." Looking back at the screen, Serge noticed that the results had came in. "Oh, it's already done? Guess I really got carried away with the inspirational speach there, huh? Sorry." Serge sheepishly apologized. "Ok, let's see... huh... According to these findings, the source of the signal is not too far from the entrance, about 10 miles to the north. Well, at any rate, we should leave this place. We can at least call this place in. Afterwards, we can go and follow the trail on foot, or flight. Your call, though I wouldn't mind a break."

[Ari]

Subito listened with great care and attentiveness while Serge spoke, nodding every now and again to show he was paying heed to what the gadgeteering mutant said. He wasn't used to just listening to people talk, and he found it a rather refreshing experience to be on the receiving end of such a speech. When at last Net fly had concluded and deciphered the results of the trace, he shrugged, saying casually "Good thinking, I haven't eaten lunch yet, and we left our backpacks at the front door to this place anyhow. Might be best to do one thing though: stopping the factory downstairs. Whoever's getting those weapons won't be doing any good with 'em, I'll bet" he added darkly, flying neatly over the packed and straining robots. Once had landed and was making his way back to the elevator he looked and Serge and began

"Thanks for that, man. I'm sorry for the weird way I asked that, but like I said I've been thinking about it for a while, and getting more and more worried about what the answer might be. I mean, I was reading about the American Civil War recently, and apparently the Spirit of this country tore itself in half to give a champion to each side. If something like that happened to Puerto Rico, I dunno what I'd think or do." Leaning against the dirty wall of the elevator he continued "I haven't really tried to ask the Blue Dame about it, mostly because I don't really think she'll see it the way I do. The way she thinks about the place is...well, it's like the way you think about your body, its moods can affect her: if there's turmoil she's troubled, if something really good happens for it she's happy, stuff like that."

Your friend speaks a great deal with a great deal

Huh? Oh, yeah. He's got a real gift with words, y'know?

I am considering what he said, tell him what I say to you once I have decided. It will be a mere moment

Holstering the Banner with a 'clink' as it slid into the ring, he went on "That and she takes the really long view. She remembers things going back to the days before the Spanish came there, when she lent her power to the old inhabitants to help drive them off. After that, it took centuries before the place had a coherent spirit and will to let her take form again" he paused and seemed to listen for several seconds before nodding once and saying quickly "She heard you Surge, and she agrees. After all, she gave me her powers so I could help people, so that makes two of you, I guess!" he said laughing

[Vahnyu]

Net Fly followed Subito's lead closely. "Hahaha! Well, it's good to know that you won't have to worry that much about it, at least." Serge said, as he patted his friend's shoulder. "I'm just glad I could help. You know, for a moment there? I was half-convinced I was making that up, to be honest." he joked, trying to further lighten the mood, not only for his friend, but for himself as well.

Going back to the matter of the weapons, he interjected a thought "Hey, you're thinking that we should desroy them? Hmmm... I... I don't know if we should be hasty on doing that. I mean don't get me wrong, the last thing our world needs is more weapons, but don't forget that they are also evidence. I'm not familiar with the full foresnic capabilities of the FCPD, nor the legal structure, but I'm pretty sure that intact weapons would provide for more concrete evidence of foul play. On the other hand, however..." pausing a bit, as he ran some other possibilities, Serge added "...not getting rid of the weapons doesn't ensure that they won't find their way to the streets... And even if there was only one left, it could be relatively easily reverse-engineered... thought it would most likely end up in the hands of the government, not that's it's a guarantee or anything... I don't know... what do you think?"

[Ari]

"That's a good point buddy," conceded the stocky teen as he tilted his feathered cap a little further back on his head "I meant more just stopping the assembly lines so the guns and stuff don't get shipped out or whatever. If we stop the supply line now, it'll for sure get whoever's invested in this place to come and check it out. Then they could be nabbed, you know?" he shrugged a litle, frowning at the recollection of what he had seen down in the factory "For sure we need to let people know what we found here in case this is connected to something else; but yeah, pretty much no matter who we tell about this, there's the chance all thi stuff will be put to ill ends sooner or later. But," he continued thoughtfully "we can't really keep something like this hidden or else somebody with less scruples will find it somehow, and then it will be protected and guarded by more than hidden doors and being decrepit. I say we tell Mr. Summers about this, I'm sure he'll know what to do."

His eyes had slowly worked their way up to the roof, and snapped down abruptly to meet Net Fly's "You on board with that Surge?"

[Vahnyu]

"You know, what? Calling mr Summers sounds like an excellent idea, Subito!" Serge said, complimenting his friend. "Especially considering that what I had in mind was just the police. Headmaster Summers seems like the kind of person who would definitely know how to best handle this situation. And even if he himself doesn't have experience with illegal firearms, someone from the rest of the faculty ought to have, either way. Nice one, bro!"

"Ok, let's do this. We'll destroy the assembly line, and then, we'll go to the surface, contact Summers, take a small break, then go after the source of the signal." Checking his equipment to make sure that they still operated in normal parameters, Net Fly thought to himself. Well, what do you know? Calling Summers honestly didn't even cross my mind. Heh! At times, Subito seems unsure about himself, but he really is a sharp one, when it counts. No wonder the Blue Dame chose him as his champion!

[Ari]

Brightening at the compliments payed, Subito grinned, a little embarrassment creeping in all the same "Thanks man, you're a way smart guy, and normally I'd follow your lead with no problem, but this seemed..I dunno, a bit trickier than either of us could really decide? Nah, that's not it..."

He dismissed his powers with flash of light, and pulling his baseball cap from his rear left pocket looked around at the rusting hulk they were standing in, sliding it on with rough care "Say, this place is givin' me the creeps for real, what say you Surge about what should we do before leaving? Take one of those robots just in case the place collapses on them?"

[Vahnyu]

"Thanks man, you're a way smart guy, and normally I'd follow your lead with no problem, but this seemed..I dunno, a bit trickier than either of us could really decide? Nah, that's not it..."

"Indeed." Serge responds. "If there's one thing I know, it's that no amount of intelligence can substitute for actual experience, and that goes double for our line of work."

"Say, this place is givin' me the creeps for real, what say you Surge about what should we do before leaving? Take one of those robots just in case the place collapses on them?"

While taking off his costume was a simple matter for Subito, Serge had to manually take out his clothes from his backpack, and put them over his costume. "What? I'm freezing!" he said defensively, while he took of his mask, and put it in his backpack. "But yeah, a robot. Sure. Let's take one with us..." Serge responded as he started making his way towards the corridor with the malfunctioning robots. After taking a few steps, however, he stops and turns to Subito, saying "... But NO making the robot our mascot! It would need constant maintenance, and I already spent too much of my time calibrating my suit as is."

[Ari]

"What? I'm freezing!"

A look of slight bafflement came over Subito's face, and looking up from the control panel he had started examining he began

"Huh? But I fe-oh" realization "Uh...right. Sorry Surge, forgot you feel temps a lot sharper than I do" he said, muttering almost inaudibly as he quickly turned back to the control panel.

A sudden idea came to him, and he left the elevator to follow Serge just as the other student made plain they couldn't have one of the robots as a mascot "Whaaat? Nah man, that's more your and Cole's thing. If you guys wanted a robot buddy, I bet you'd have made one already" he said jovially "Here. lemme carry that robot, it won't be much problem for me, unless you want to lift one of those things around" he added with a grin, checking the heft of the metal bulk with his arms.

[Vahnyu]

"Ehh, don't worry about it." Serge responded. "I'm still wearing my suit, after all, and I'm pretty sure it functions adequately. Here, let's do this; I'll grab it's... legs, while you can grab it from the shoulders, or, whatever. Just so long as we get to get out of this claustrophoby-inducing atmosphere." Serge seemed eager to leave that facility and return to the surface. "Not to mention, if we take one of the Robots, the other Robots may not take that too kindly. Just in case, be ready to make a run for it." He warned his friend, as he went to take the robot by it's feet.