ic [IC] The Drone Ranger

[EternalPhoenix]

Pacer grinned mischievously. “Neighborhoodsearchcomingrightup!” Then she simply wasn’t even there anymore. The world froze, and the young speedster was occupying an awful lot of space virtually (but not literally) simultaneously. Of course, from her perspective, she was just moving around. First she peeked in every window. Then she started vibrating through walls. It slowed her down, but not everything was visible through a window. She went through every floor of every building in the entire Theater district. And just for the sheer hell of it, did the same in the Fens. And who’s to say a few anonymous tips didn’t find their way to the local police precincts after that run. Scant seconds after she seemed to vanish into thin air, she was suddenly standing in the exact same place. “Youwon’tbelievetheFensman.”

[olopi]

GM

 

 

The neighbourhood search was similar to ones Pacer had done before. A lot of empty houses, a lot of houses with people currently doing things in them. Then again, this was the theatre district, which meant a lot of theatres, and those were not that common of a sight. Their prop rooms always were interesting to explore. Some had more props, some less. Some used cranes and platforms to transport them, some simply had small props and carried them around. And then, there also were the different props. Mostly medieval themed ones in most of the theatres. The modern-style theatres had smaller props, painted boxes, and maybe some prop-weapons.

 

Prop weapons like, … a bunch of rifles, and a variety of drones? The drones being of the same kind as the ones Pacer had taken down not too long (in Stallmode) ago. All situated, nicely, in a small room, behind a variety of props, looking like they’re made of cast iron. Something not quite fitting into the rest of the prop environment for sure.

Outside, the theatre’s name. The Modern. They certainly liked simple names. And onwards Pacer went, there were more things to see. Primarily the Fens. Which were, well, the Fens. Poverty everywhere.

Edited August 11, 2016 by olopi

[olopi]

PC

 

 

 

When Pacer suddenly appeared again, Bonfire took a step backwards instinctively, probably not being used to things appearing out of nowhere.

 

Which he really wasn’t, still. Appearing out of nowhere was something he himself pulled quite a lot, but being on the receiving side didn’t feel nice. Sure, he’d expected it, but it was still rather surprising when suddenly somebody stood where before there was nothing.

 

“Oh, you can say that again. I see ‘em every day, it’s a place everybody’s happy to leave if they’re able to. But alas.”  

 

Bonfire turned his shoulders around a bit, looking around the area. The street the three of them were standing at by now being mostly empty, safe for a single private car that had just driven past.  He exhaled, which left a bit of smoke floating in front of his face, before turning back over towards the Twins, looking at Pacer and adressing her.

 

“So, what’d you find? A location? Any leads? Or just the hole of everything bad that are the Fens?”

 

Edited August 11, 2016 by olopi

[EternalPhoenix]

Pacer grinned smugly. “Totallydude. SuperawesomePacerstrikesagain.” She struck a (presumably) heroic pose, but only succeeded in looking slightly ridiculous. “ModernTheatreproproom. Nottoofar. Meetyouthere.” And then she was just gone. Again. For about half a second. “Youknowwherethatis?”

 

Stalwart shrugged. “I just moved here. I don’t know where anything is. Bonfire, have you heard of it? Or do we need to follow Pacer there?” The speedster he was referring to didn’t look too happy about having to play guide for two slowpokes, though.

[olopi]

PC

 

“Huh. A friend of mine actually works there. No idea where it is, though.”

 

Bonfire quickly grabbed his phone again, still stored in some kind of pocket that wasn’t actually visible, so it once again just appeared by phasing through his pants.

 

“Which isn’t really a problem nowadays. GPS does have its benefits. It’s probably gonna cost me my kidney to get us there, but we’ll know where to go. “

 

So, following the instructions on Bonfire’s phone, the two of them set off, towards the Theatre. Not too long a walk, so there wasn’t really any need to use powers. They already were two people in costume (which was just his head in Bonfire’s case), no need to raise further attention just then.

 

 

Edited August 13, 2016 by olopi

[olopi]

GM

 

 

 

Pacer arrived back at the theatre not even seconds after she had last visited. Her brother and their ally would not get here for some time, so Pacer had to spend time by herself. To some people that meant waiting in one area. For Pacer, that didn’t really mean anything. She could go wherever she wanted, but it still was time that had to be passed.

 

On closer look, the theatre lived up to its name. While the building it was in looked about the same age as most the theatres in the area, the entrance area, visible through a window front, was full of top-notch, modern looking furniture. Currently, the building was empty, the theatre closed for the day. Two different plays were on their current schedule, both happening twice a week, with Wednesday (in)conveniently being empty timeslot.

Edited August 13, 2016 by olopi

[EternalPhoenix]

Well, they knew where the bad guys were. Bonfire and her brother would be along in a while. In the meantime, all Pacer had to do was wait. Tch, like she needed the backup. She could take care of this herself, no problem. Without even checking to see if the door was locked, she vibrated through. In an eyeblink, she was in the prop room. Time wasn’t exactly standing still, but it was close. A full second would take subjective years to pass right now. Starting from the prop room, she attempted to put her eyes on every square inch of the theatre. If she found someone, anyone, who looked like the source of the drones, well…a few thousand punches were in order. What she didn’t realize is that in a smaller space like the theatre, even if they didn’t disturb the air when they passed or trigger sonic booms, someone moving very fast would leave a blur as they passed through again and again and again.

[olopi]

GM

 

The theatre appeared to be empty. Not a single soul to be found within. A variety of things, open doors, a few bags on the ground, suggested that people had been here today. The stage being built up with a prop, a crude depiction of a living room, also suggested that somebody had been here today. A few scrips were lying on the floor all around the stage, but other than that, nothing.

 

Pacer continued going through the theatre. Nothing here, nothing there. A lot of empty space, even more space filled to the brim with props. A staff room. The various clothes and bags suggested that yes, people had been here. The people working here, that was. As she passed around the corridors some more, she noticed a schedule, being written on one of the walls.

 

By schedule, on Wednesdays, the actors would arrive and start practicing at 10 AM, then work until four, where a two hour break took place, before more work into the evening. A strange schedule, but a favourable one, as it meant that Pacer and the two guys would have a good hour or so before the theatre’s staff would arrive again.

 

 

Edited August 20, 2016 by olopi

[olopi]

PC

 

 

 

Not long after, the two guys arrived, having made their way towards the theatre. Down a few alleys to raise less attention, and the two soon arrived at the theatre’s back entrance. There, Bonfire leaned against the wall and pulled out his phone, before then looking up to Stalwart.

 

“Now we wait for your sister to get us in … somehow, I guess? I’d rather not break-and-enter. Do you have any way to contact her? Or do we wait for her to make her way here somehow?”

 

Then, he once more looked down onto his phone, swiping through a few pages.

 

“Hm. Just sent me another message. There might be some kind of further pattern. He’s looking through it now, but apparently there’s something. Which would help, if he’d told me what exactly he’s talking about. But, for now everything I know is “Something’s up” ... Great.”

Edited September 11, 2016 by olopi

[EternalPhoenix]

Stalwart shrugged. “We could just knock.” He stepped up to the door and did just that. The door fell into with a crash. Stalwart looked shocked. “Uh. Oops.” He looked at the frame, which was smooth painted wood. “I thought that was steel.” He looked back at Bonfire regretfully. “I’m always breaking things.” He looked back through the doorway”I should go in and apologize. It’s the right thing to do. I don’t have a lot of money, but maybe we can work something out.”

 

Pacer, of course, had heard the door crash and just appeared inside of it. “Bro, you’re late. Did you break another door? Well, don’t just stand there. I’ll show you where the drones are kept.” In an instant she was at the nearest turn in the hall, tapping her foot in an impatient blur.

[olopi]

PC

 

Ah, great power. There was some saying Cass had heard a few times when it came do people with super-strenght and being responsible, but he couldn’t remember it well enough to quote it. Instead, he simply was a bit suprirsed, but also slightly annoyed, this was more potential negative attention.

 

“Works.”

 

Not that it was something people could tell, Bonfire’s face did not show any emotion. Instead, he calmly walked up to the doorway, inspecting the frame a bit, before stepping through and following Pacer’s lead. He looked back a few times, to make sure that Stalwart kept up the pace, but moved with determination otherwise. Not long after, the two men arrived at the cast iron prop, conveniently covering the entrance to the room containing the drones. It was a prop of quite some size, about twice as tall each of the group, standing there, not really looking like anything specific.

 

“So, how do we get through? I guess you could lift it and carefully put it down so there’s an entrance?”

Edited September 19, 2016 by olopi

[EternalPhoenix]

Stalwart shrugged. “Simple enough.” He picked up the cast iron prop as if it was made of foam. “Metal’s a lot easier not to damage. Most everything else is so fragile. It’s hard not to break things.” He sighed as he stepped over to put down the prop. “Sometimes I feel like I live in world made of cardboard and glass.” He put the prop down very gently, leaving the doorway completely clear. “I have to be more careful. That door was the third thing I’ve broken today. And I had a good streak going, too…” He glanced at Bonfire. “At least you’re made of smoke or something. I can’t hurt you.”

 

Pacer, meanwhile, had jogged to the Shenandoah Valley. She let out a mighty yell at one of the highest overlooks, grinned to herself, and raced back. She knew exactly what her twin was going to say, and hadn’t felt like hanging around for it. She’d heard the “I need to stay in control or someone could get hurt” speech entirely too many times, usually directed at her after some…unfortunate accidents that totally weren’t because she was speeding out of control.

[olopi]

PC

 

“Eh. Occasionally you have to lean back and relax, breaking things is part of the job, whether you like it or not. Until you accidentally, or even not accidentally, destroy something major people won’t mind much. Just have to show off the results. Gotta break a few eggs for the omelette that is criminals, if you get what I’m saying.  Wait here for a sec, I’m gonna scout this place out.”

 

As he slowly seemingly dissolved, and started to fade out, Bonfire added one last sentence addressed to the Powerhouse teen. “Yeah, not a lot of things can hurt me when I’m like this, so no worries.”

 

Then, he disappeared. After about 10 seconds, the twins could hear his voice again, now coming from inside the tiny room. He sounded slightly disappointed, but somehow managed to sound excited at the same time.

 

“Okay, it’s clear. Come in, maybe you can spot something I missed.”

 

The inside of the small room was not very spectacular, especially to Pacer, who had already seen it. A few drones, stored on hooks along the walls, a computer on a desk, and a rather large antenna next to it, standing on the ground. However, while Bonfire was looking at the various drones, Stalwart noticed some bits of paper, partially hidden under the keyboard.

Edited October 25, 2016 by olopi

[EternalPhoenix]

Pacer started (for lack of a better word) playing with the antenna, batting it back and forth at relatively slow speed. Stalwart just looked at her, then picked up the keyboard. “Bonfire, I think there’s something here.” Pacer, already bored, had run off somewhere, leaving the antenna to stop swinging back and forth on it’s own. Stalwart studied the computer. They weren’t necessarily his thing, but maybe he was using one of the really easy to guess passwords, or maybe he didn’t use one at all. Assuming the culprit was even a he to begin with.

 

Pacer had returned, with an ice cream cone. The girl really was a bottomless pit. Her brother wasn’t even fazed, but she spoke anyway. “What? Did you want one?”

 

Stalwart wasn’t even looking at her as he pored over the paper bits. “No, Pacer. Just don’t drip on the floor.”

 

Pacer waved him off dismissively. “Never happen.” She licked the cone slowly, even for Stallmode. Some things were just worth it. Mmm, double chocolate chip.