IC New Beginnings DAWN Options

[Thvor]

Sam felt...weird...as they entered the palace grounds. At the same time, he noticed Con and Samantha reacting--the ork, especially, seemed almost queasy. What the drek was that? he wondered to himself, but figured it had to be some sort of security barrier. He couldn't identify what, specifically, had changed, but he made sure to keep his discomfort hidden. When the guide offered a tour, he decided to accept--it never hurt to know where things were, and he didn't really want to sit around idly for two hours.

[farothel]

"We are," Sammy said, "this is an aspected domain and if you're not trained in that particular aspect, your power is reduced. It's a real embuggerance."

[Necrogigas]

O'Connor really wasn't a fan of this place. He looked over Starlet and Torley to assess how they were dealing with the restrictions on their magic. Though Clem was nominally the tactical lead, during most of this run she'd retreated within herself if he wasn't actively needling her. It might be an Japanese thing with Jane, an overriding boss, on hand to give out order. Regardless, they didn't have time for that.

He turned to Snow, "Do a sweep for bugs, then you should take the tour with Torley. The rest of us will keep this place on lock." A layout of the palace, even a limited one, would be good to have. O'Connor wanted Snow with Torley since she wasn't affected by the magic drain.

O'Connor spoke to Clem next, "Starlet, Torley, and I are going to need a bit of time to get use to this place. Stick close to the boss lady while we work this out." He found the most open area in the suite and began shadow boxing to acclimate himself to his slower reaction speed and lowered agility.

[SleepIncarnate]

Nodding to his suggestion, Snow opens up her scan program, running it as she walks around the room. "I am not seeing any signals around. If there are any bugs, they are beyond my skills to find." She turns and looks to O'Connor, giving him a slight nod. "I will go on this tour then. I can figure out dinner clothes after." And with that, she cleans up her pack and joins Torley on the tour.

[Crossbow]

Palace Map

[Crossbow]

Jane, Torley, Clem and Snow are shown around the building. The rooms in the runners’ wing opens into a courtyard, with access to the rest of the outside grounds. Although you are no allowed to wander, you can see in the central part of the structure you are staying in is an ancient mosque. The palace in Ife is the center of the Yoruba faith as well as the Yoruba kingdom. As such, it holds immense cultural and spiritual significance for the Yoruba people.
The palace itself is a sprawling affair of white marble, built in two concentric circles with a large circular wall surrounding the entire property.
Inside all of the buildings, your guide tells you, priceless artwork decorates the walls and bronze statutes, recovered from archeological digs sponsored by Oni Adegoke, are displayed prominently.
Around you in your wing you note several distinct groups. A severe looking group of elves dressed in the style of Tir Tairngire, a tall Nubian wearing Celtic robes, a Chinese delegation led by a 40ish aged woman who looks like a college professor, and Sam’s South African friends. Various security people are present, including uniformed personnel bearing the logos of Aztechnology and the APEP Consortium who are housed in the other wing.

[Crossbow]

After a few hours several guards arrive to escort you through a twisting maze of hallways and corridors, down several flights of stairs, and finally into a vast internal room—the converted mosque, Jane tells those of you that didn't take the tour.

The door to the vault is big enough for a large truck to drive through it, and as you walk in you realize the walls are a good two meters thick. Four armed and armored guards stand at the door, and the room is wi-fi inhibited. The showroom inside is like being in Aladdin’s cave of wonders—if you’re an antiquities buff, that is. Artifacts and antiques are carefully displayed on shelves, on the walls, inside glass cases, and even in tanks of what you guess is seawater. You see gemstone-encrusted masks sitting beside shards of ancient pottery. One table has a climate-controlled glass case filled with sheets of
papyrus, Egyptian hieroglyphics on the fragile sheets.

Masks and statuettes from across Africa stand on pedestals and glass cases. Another large table has a sizable map stretched out along it, with a small AR tag labeling it the “Piri Reis map.” You realize Samriel is in the vault. He’s lingering near the Piri Reis map and speaking in what sounds like Sperethiel to a red-haired elven woman, and he doesn’t appear to notice your group's entrance.

[farothel]

Sammy couldn't do much there, as she didn't know much about antiquities. There was not all that much antique stuff, at least not this kind, in East LA where she grew up. Old and battered stuff yes, lots of it, but not antique. So she just kept a look-out for the other groups, trying to figure out who they were. When she noticed the humans they had met on Victoria Island, she nudged Sam to make sure he was aware these guys were there. Then she went on the team comms.
"The one we're looking for is here," she said, painting an AR Arrow over him to indicate him to the rest of the group, "how do we proceed?"
The last was directed to Jane. She had hired them to find the guy, which they had done now.

[SleepIncarnate]

Snow nods, taking note of the ARO. <It would seem our job is complete, unless Jane has something else?> She also turned her gaze to Jane at this.

[Necrogigas]

O'Connor eyed the target and then the various bodyguards and site security. He did what little he could to ready himself for what may come. He wasn't expecting a confrontation here and now, but knew better than to be anything less that alert and prepared. The small part of his mind reserved for non-adrenaline junkie thoughts really hoped a fight didn't break out here.

He was barely coming to grips with the physical toll the palace's domain took from him. He could barely imagine how Torley, who would be drained mentally, and Starlet, who would be drain spiritually, were coping. Their team's Awakened majority has gone from a great boon to crippling weakness. He made a mental note to talk to Starlet about all this advanced magic drek later. They'd need someway to counter this in the future.

[Crossbow]

“Samriel was just the first step, remember? That golden sphere/sextant thingie? That is the prize. Spread out, look around, maybe it’s here somewhere. It could have been his admission to the auction, which we still don’t have yet, so mind your manners.” In spite of her statement Jane seems locked in on Samriel, or what he is looking at anyway. She moves up to Starlet, “I know you guys are hurting in here, but can you get a scan of that thing he is looking at, my people seem to think there might be something special to it.”

[farothel]

"I can give it a try," Sammy said. Slowly she drifted towards the object Samriel was looking at and when she was close enough, she opened her sight to the astral. She also tried to get a look at the elf as well, just in case.

[Crossbow]

STARLET

You look at the map with your Sight. You are used to the printed—or in this case, handwritten—word not being discernable, but are surprised to find that not only are certain markings on the map clear, but there are symbols/glyphs around the edges and strange notations everywhere.

In fact, it seems even better defined than what you saw with your physical senses. Glowing lines crisscross and meander across the map and strange ideograms mark additional features. As you study it, you get the impression of great age; in fact, it seems to be the oldest item in the room.

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Starlet is quite distracted by the map, but the rest of the team takes note of Samriel, who notices the mage's observation, then kind of starts the slightest bit before a rather confused grin comes over his features.

[farothel]

It's definetely magical, she texted to the rest of the team, it's a map of some kind and it's old. Really old.
"Oh, hello," she said to Samriel, "good afternoon, sir. Do you know anything about this? It looks quite old. I've never seen something that old before."
Babbling like an airhead came easy to Sammy, as she had quite a lot of experience being on the recieving end of it.

[farothel]

It's definetely magical, she texted to the rest of the team, it's a map of some kind and it's old. Really old.
"Oh, hello," she said to Samriel, "good afternoon, sir. Do you know anything about this? It looks quite old. I've never seen something that old before."
Babbling like an airhead came easy to Sammy, as she had quite a lot of experience being on the recieving end of it.

[Crossbow]

Samriel actually laughs at the act. It is a somewhat mean thing, his laughing. It grows to an uncomfortable volume, but it doesn't seem forced.

"You are really going to try and pull THE SAME airhead bit months later and half a world away? AMAZING." the elf actually doubles over holding his belly.

The two of you are attracting an unusual amount of attention from the mostly quiet folks circulating among the lots.

[Necrogigas]

O'Connor and Clem side eyed each other and moved into position. Clem interposed herself between Starlet and the target, while O'Connor moved closer to cover Jane.

[farothel]

"I'm quite sure I've never met you before, sir," Sammy said, "I would remember I think. Unless someone gave me a shot of that…. Laes was it I think."
The memory of waking up on a hill without memory on how she got there was poking her at that moment, but if that was the case, there was little she could do about it right now.

[SleepIncarnate]

Magic was not something Snow knew how to do anything about, so instead, she mingled around the edges of the room, looking over this and that. And then Samriel and Sammy start making a scene, and her attention is clearly on them. Thankfully, it seems most others in the crowd are watching as well, so she's not standing out for that.

[Crossbow]

"I see your ugly sister is still as protective as ever, and is that the little speed freak that wouldn't keep his mouth shut? He is looking a bit worse for wear. Amazing, I figured the way you were snapping at each other if the beasts didn't kill you surely you would have killed each other." Samriel looked around the room, completely missing Torley (natch) "Or were you the only ones who made it off that mountain?"

[Necrogigas]

*Ah, drek. I just fraggin' knew that Tir run would frag us in the hoop at just the best time.* O'Connor really hoped Samriel hadn't kept close tabs on them since the mountain, keeping Snow an unknown. He whispered to Jane, "So apparently he recognizes us from a bit of biz we did a few months back. We all got hit with Laes, so I can't tell you how he was involved. Drek, this is bad." O'Connor started scanning the room to check for any security forces or bodyguard moving in on them.

Intuition 3 + Perception 3 + Visual 2 - CM 1 = Pool 7
Perception: 7d6t5 2

[Crossbow]

"Calm down." Jane says, putting a hand through his arm. "He is affected by the same magic that is hitting you and Starlet, he is not going to start something here. This kinda thing can happen at times in the shadows, you never know when you are going to see an operator again, or if they will be on the same side next time."

[farothel]

Sammy put her hand on Clem's shoulder so she wouldn't go hitting him for the 'ugly sister' comment. But clearly he did know something about that mountain. She filed that away under the 'good to know' category.
"It seems you know quite a bit more than I do," she said, "maybe we should have a chat later so you can fill in the blanks as it were."

[Crossbow]

"If you are interested in the map, I am betting we are going to have much more than 'a chat' later. I have seen what I need to see here, excuse me...ladies." Samriel purposely and nonchalantly walks past them, closely as possible to Clem, as he takes his leave.

When he does Jane moves herself and Con over to the two orcs. "If Samriel is interested in this map, that is something my employer will want to know, I should make a call or two." Jane will leave them unless she is stopped.

[Necrogigas]

O'Connor kept back at a great enough distance to give Jane privacy, but he wasn't about to let her out of sight.