The insect guy babbled something about how ants routinely move objects several hundred times their own weight, then proceeded to start moving statues (with difficulty that did not match his earlier ant story). Jailbird put both hands in her pockets and backed away from the door once a statue was there to bar it, feeling far too lazy to keep helping with that. "Uh, she could be hiding it anywhere. She's been a prisoner for a long time and she's used to all that bunk: strip search, cavity search, you name it! Could be anywhere," the jailer shrugged.
Thankfully, there was no need to do all that; soon enough, Nitro located the remote, tucked into her the jeans of her costume. It looked a little bit like an old video game peripheral, kind it like a joystick. It wasn't wholely obvious how to turn anything off, however, as the whole thing was just a joystick with one big, red button on top.
"That's it! Now you just have to spin the stick and keep lashing the button, hard as you can. Or we can watch some more fireworks, of you like. It's a little like watching a sand castle be smashed!" Gala offered from her bed. "Once you're done, let us see if something can be done about this cage, alright? I can't live with being caged for too long~"
Use joystick?
If not used immediately, time will advance
Gala's Mansion
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Nitro managed to locate the controller, and contacted Tina and Jail. "Alright, I've got it," Nitro said. "I'll shut down the traps, and then you guys can make your way over here and we can finally put a stop to this." Nitro looked over at Gala and nodded, spinning the stick and mashing the button on top, hopefully shutting down the traps. He then looked over to Gala, and remembered that she was likely trapped by some invisible construct the mime had made. He decided to contact Jailbird again for tips on how to proceed. "Hey, Jail, how do I get rid of something this mime makes, in this case a cage?"
Summary:
N1: Use controller to shut down traps
[TURN SPLICE]
Summary:
N1: Use controller to shut down traps
[TURN SPLICE]
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Thankfully, Gala's strategy for shutting down the devices worked slowly but surely. Devices shut down by order of proximity as the stick was pointed towards them and the button was pressed. Eventually, mop up became a simple matter of listening for where one could still hear something clattering or rubbing blades together, pointing the stick towards it, and "shooting it" with the remote. "Good, it looks like the guys outside have stopped," Jailbird sighed. The big insect armor guy sighed even heavier, as he had moved three incredibly heavy statues for no reason. "As for that barrier, no clue. The few times she pulled something like that and we had to combat it, we had to call on the Techari eggheads to clear it up. We'll probably have to bring em in for this too..."
"Don't mind me! I will be fine waiting for those boys to show up. For now, the two of you should focus on taking in that very tricky mime," Gala suggested, resting on her side to get comfortable.
"Swell, then. Nitro, you keep yourself still and don't let the mime get away. Don't let her talk you into anything either!" Jailbird instructed Nitro... It was hard to tell if she was joking or not. "Watch her hands. You have to restrict them tightly or she can make almost anything!"
With Nitro atop her and her hands smushed behind her back, it seemed unlikely that she'd have any use of them. She stared up at him with blank, creepy eyes, possessing no emotion whatsoever. Was she still scheming? Was she bitter at being caught? Did she have objections to being pinned down by the opposite sex? Was she fond of being pinned down by the opposite sex? These questions were all impossible to answer.
"While Jailbird makes her way up and contacts Techari, why don't I feed you a little story of Mime and who she used to be? Or perhaps you'd prefer to keep focused? Too bad; I'm in here so I'll talk if I want to!" Gala giggled. "Mime was once a great Teksqp assassin in a team specializing in odd jobs. One of her missions went awry and she was caught with her teammates dead; no NetPolice of outside influence in sight, just her and their broken data. It was supposed to be an easy mission, too! Anyways, there was no questioning her, due to her condition, and our new family leader, KevlarMan, was no good making the call... He always votes execution, you see, and crazy as we are, nobody was comfortable with that."
"So we imprisoned her in our Teksqp renegade cell, overseen by the old warden. Well, when she broke out and injured him and some other Teksqp, we realized she had a beef. We collected her and put her under Jailbird's care, since the old warden chose to resign. Jailbird has a lot of experience with the Teksqp and she's well suited for the job... but not that well suited, apparently! Here Mime is again, exacting vengeance. My guess is she is trying to completely eliminate Teksqp and was hoping to throw us into disarray by choosing to attack a party where most of our influential members had gathered. I wonder why she is so bitter? You would think of there was some kind of intrigue and mysterious motivation, she would be going after those mysterious assailants rather than lashing out at her imprisoners and former allies. Maybe she really did just slaughter them and she's going after us because the imprisonment was bad for her? Whatever the case, that's her history."
"Even now, here are those who believe she was wrongly imprisoned and argued for her release. But look what happens every time she gets out! In my opinion, if this keeps up, we are going to need to look for a more... permanent solution, if you'll pardon the cliche," Gala laughed with an unrepentant smile. If there really was a moral quandary here, she sure didn't seem willing to personally entertain it.
Mime continued to stare upward without blinking or saying a word.
"Don't mind me! I will be fine waiting for those boys to show up. For now, the two of you should focus on taking in that very tricky mime," Gala suggested, resting on her side to get comfortable.
"Swell, then. Nitro, you keep yourself still and don't let the mime get away. Don't let her talk you into anything either!" Jailbird instructed Nitro... It was hard to tell if she was joking or not. "Watch her hands. You have to restrict them tightly or she can make almost anything!"
With Nitro atop her and her hands smushed behind her back, it seemed unlikely that she'd have any use of them. She stared up at him with blank, creepy eyes, possessing no emotion whatsoever. Was she still scheming? Was she bitter at being caught? Did she have objections to being pinned down by the opposite sex? Was she fond of being pinned down by the opposite sex? These questions were all impossible to answer.
"While Jailbird makes her way up and contacts Techari, why don't I feed you a little story of Mime and who she used to be? Or perhaps you'd prefer to keep focused? Too bad; I'm in here so I'll talk if I want to!" Gala giggled. "Mime was once a great Teksqp assassin in a team specializing in odd jobs. One of her missions went awry and she was caught with her teammates dead; no NetPolice of outside influence in sight, just her and their broken data. It was supposed to be an easy mission, too! Anyways, there was no questioning her, due to her condition, and our new family leader, KevlarMan, was no good making the call... He always votes execution, you see, and crazy as we are, nobody was comfortable with that."
"So we imprisoned her in our Teksqp renegade cell, overseen by the old warden. Well, when she broke out and injured him and some other Teksqp, we realized she had a beef. We collected her and put her under Jailbird's care, since the old warden chose to resign. Jailbird has a lot of experience with the Teksqp and she's well suited for the job... but not that well suited, apparently! Here Mime is again, exacting vengeance. My guess is she is trying to completely eliminate Teksqp and was hoping to throw us into disarray by choosing to attack a party where most of our influential members had gathered. I wonder why she is so bitter? You would think of there was some kind of intrigue and mysterious motivation, she would be going after those mysterious assailants rather than lashing out at her imprisoners and former allies. Maybe she really did just slaughter them and she's going after us because the imprisonment was bad for her? Whatever the case, that's her history."
"Even now, here are those who believe she was wrongly imprisoned and argued for her release. But look what happens every time she gets out! In my opinion, if this keeps up, we are going to need to look for a more... permanent solution, if you'll pardon the cliche," Gala laughed with an unrepentant smile. If there really was a moral quandary here, she sure didn't seem willing to personally entertain it.
Mime continued to stare upward without blinking or saying a word.
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Nitro looked down at the mime beneath him, who stared back up with those blank eyes. "How's she going to talk me into anything?" Nitro asked. "I was running under the assumption that she couldn't talk." Nitro didn't avert his gaze from the mime either, focusing on keeping her put until reinforcements arrived.
He did, however, catch a few points in Gala's history lesson. "How does she keep getting out, though?" Nitro pondered aloud. "I'm sure they'd have the forethought to restrain her hands, at the very least. Maybe someone's helping her?" Nitro's thoughts travelled to the Right of Operation Templars that had attacked the prison the mime was probably being held in at the time. Was she a double agent for them? He idly glanced at Mime's neck, seeing if she had the same black thing embedded in her neck that Rack had had.
Another thought occurred to him. Did she manage to slip out after he partially destroyed the place? He hoped not, and if he was partially responsible for the assault on most of the Teksqp, he certainly hoped they didn't find the connection and come after him.
At any rate, he kept staring back at the mime, trying not to let the blank stare of his captive get to him.
Tina, meanwhile, watched as the insect Navi moved the last of the blocks away from the door. She moved toward the door with a bit of caution, and took a tenative peek out of the door to see if the coast was, in fact, clear.
"Alright," Tina said turning back to the group, Jailbird in particular. "I imagine some of the Navis that are still here are going to be trying to get to Gala's bedroom to see what exactly is going on. While reinforcements would be good, too many people would probably allow the mime to slip away again amidst the confusion." She turned to the insect navi. "Do you think you could provide some crowd control or some sort of distraction while Miss Jailbird and I make our way through?"
He did, however, catch a few points in Gala's history lesson. "How does she keep getting out, though?" Nitro pondered aloud. "I'm sure they'd have the forethought to restrain her hands, at the very least. Maybe someone's helping her?" Nitro's thoughts travelled to the Right of Operation Templars that had attacked the prison the mime was probably being held in at the time. Was she a double agent for them? He idly glanced at Mime's neck, seeing if she had the same black thing embedded in her neck that Rack had had.
Another thought occurred to him. Did she manage to slip out after he partially destroyed the place? He hoped not, and if he was partially responsible for the assault on most of the Teksqp, he certainly hoped they didn't find the connection and come after him.
At any rate, he kept staring back at the mime, trying not to let the blank stare of his captive get to him.
Tina, meanwhile, watched as the insect Navi moved the last of the blocks away from the door. She moved toward the door with a bit of caution, and took a tenative peek out of the door to see if the coast was, in fact, clear.
"Alright," Tina said turning back to the group, Jailbird in particular. "I imagine some of the Navis that are still here are going to be trying to get to Gala's bedroom to see what exactly is going on. While reinforcements would be good, too many people would probably allow the mime to slip away again amidst the confusion." She turned to the insect navi. "Do you think you could provide some crowd control or some sort of distraction while Miss Jailbird and I make our way through?"
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The mime was not an RoT agent, it seemed; no black, inset ring adorned her neck, although it looked like one could fit in there pretty easily and nobody would notice thanks to her color scheme. Gala laughed and shrugged her shoulders lazily. "Who knows how she keeps getting out? We've even tried a straightjacket before; she'd cut through it when we checked again in a few minutes. She's very resourceful... and very dangerous. I don't envy you your current position, hm hm hm~" Sort of ominous... But at least for now, the mime was not attacking.
Back with Tina, the insect guy pressed one claw to his chest and grinned. "Of course. They will be awed by the music of my cricket's antennae," he assured the two of them, then marched out the door. He stopped as he got outside, however; the wreckage of the mansion was a sight to behold. One wall had collapsed and another had nearly followed; rather than steel beams or wooden planks, what held together was a series of formerly animate traps on long, steel cables and arms. Smoke rose from some locations while debris settled in others; data seemed strewn across the wind, bled out by who knows how many Teksqp navis. One could only hope there were no injuries that could actually be fatal. Anyone who was here was probably less aware of the situation that Tina or Nitro, and thereby either still hiding or had already run away. "I guess... There's nobody to sing to," the insect guy murmured, dropping his arms at his sides.
"The only thing you'd get back would be more cricket chirping anyways," Jailbird responded, climbing out of the closet and reluctantly bringing the psycopath with her, then promptly dropping her onto the ground. "Let's get upstairs and end this thing. I've got to think up a way to make myself worthy of a pay raise between here and there, though, so uh... not too fast," she urged Tina. The insect guy followed after them with the straight-jacket navi slung over one shoulder, having nobody to distract after all.
When the crew made it up, Mime rose her head to look at them, then promptly dropped it back onto the floor and looked in another direction. There was still no emotion, but perhaps just that gesture showed some of the disdain she felt for the Teksqp, for whatever reason. "Alright, Bozo, you're going back into your box," Jailbird grunted, coming in with both hands on her hips in an authoritarian way. Her face showed unusual intensity... probably fake intensity. She really just wanted to impress Gala.
Gala tilted her head, but gave little other reaction. "I'm sorry that my party went so poorly for all of you," she cooed.
"Think nothing of it, ma'am," the insectoid guy answered.
"Yeah, cause Nitro and I were here to save the day," Jailbird added, slapping one arm around Nitro's shoulders in an overly familiar way. With her cloak spread, Nitro could see now that she was still dressed in the cop outfit from earlier. "Don't worry, I'll take care of getting Mime back where she belongs!"
"By yourself? Heavens no, Jailbird! She got out under your watch, and then she was in chains and locked in a prison cell!" Gala laughed, sounding hysterical. It was a little painful to watch as Jailbird shrunk back, realizing that she hadn't made any headway at all. "Nitro, on the other hand, has performed excellently, but this task seems a little beyond even him. I understand Boss Oni is on the premises. I will have him and his full troop of woman servants escort Mime back to her cell."
Nodding, Jailbird sighed and sat down on the floor. "Well, looks like our part's done here, Nitro. No promotion, no money, no studs... I've got nothin' here," she groaned, then pulled a small flask from her pocket. She drank it down quickly, then wiped her lips with her bare forearm. "Damn am I unlucky. Jailhouse luck..."
"You just came to get the money we forgot to send you, right? Well, my memory's sparked from seeing Mime, at least. You'll get that money!" Gala informed her. Jailbird jumped up and nodded thankfully. "For a little while, at least," the hostess chuckled meanly. "In the mean time, let's see about your reward, Nitro. You've done a service to the Teksqp faction, so I think you've well earned your sixty faction points, as well as a bonus ten. Seventy total! Go buy yourself something nice~"
"Do I get any faction points?" Jailbird asked with a hopeful grin.
"No. You get to avoid a reprimand for allowing Mime to escape again," Gala chuckled, causing Jailbird's shoulders to slump again. "I'd also like to give you a chip, to commemorate the occasion. It's a CandyBomb! It isn't much, but it's a chip I really like... Because isn't it nice to play tricks on your friends?" the lady in red giggled. "Of course, I can't give it to you right now, so why don't you go back and submit a report? It will find its way to you."
((Nitro gets 14 Gala FXP, 24 Jailbird FXP, 2 ChitinMan FXP, 1 Boss Oni FXP))
Back with Tina, the insect guy pressed one claw to his chest and grinned. "Of course. They will be awed by the music of my cricket's antennae," he assured the two of them, then marched out the door. He stopped as he got outside, however; the wreckage of the mansion was a sight to behold. One wall had collapsed and another had nearly followed; rather than steel beams or wooden planks, what held together was a series of formerly animate traps on long, steel cables and arms. Smoke rose from some locations while debris settled in others; data seemed strewn across the wind, bled out by who knows how many Teksqp navis. One could only hope there were no injuries that could actually be fatal. Anyone who was here was probably less aware of the situation that Tina or Nitro, and thereby either still hiding or had already run away. "I guess... There's nobody to sing to," the insect guy murmured, dropping his arms at his sides.
"The only thing you'd get back would be more cricket chirping anyways," Jailbird responded, climbing out of the closet and reluctantly bringing the psycopath with her, then promptly dropping her onto the ground. "Let's get upstairs and end this thing. I've got to think up a way to make myself worthy of a pay raise between here and there, though, so uh... not too fast," she urged Tina. The insect guy followed after them with the straight-jacket navi slung over one shoulder, having nobody to distract after all.
When the crew made it up, Mime rose her head to look at them, then promptly dropped it back onto the floor and looked in another direction. There was still no emotion, but perhaps just that gesture showed some of the disdain she felt for the Teksqp, for whatever reason. "Alright, Bozo, you're going back into your box," Jailbird grunted, coming in with both hands on her hips in an authoritarian way. Her face showed unusual intensity... probably fake intensity. She really just wanted to impress Gala.
Gala tilted her head, but gave little other reaction. "I'm sorry that my party went so poorly for all of you," she cooed.
"Think nothing of it, ma'am," the insectoid guy answered.
"Yeah, cause Nitro and I were here to save the day," Jailbird added, slapping one arm around Nitro's shoulders in an overly familiar way. With her cloak spread, Nitro could see now that she was still dressed in the cop outfit from earlier. "Don't worry, I'll take care of getting Mime back where she belongs!"
"By yourself? Heavens no, Jailbird! She got out under your watch, and then she was in chains and locked in a prison cell!" Gala laughed, sounding hysterical. It was a little painful to watch as Jailbird shrunk back, realizing that she hadn't made any headway at all. "Nitro, on the other hand, has performed excellently, but this task seems a little beyond even him. I understand Boss Oni is on the premises. I will have him and his full troop of woman servants escort Mime back to her cell."
Nodding, Jailbird sighed and sat down on the floor. "Well, looks like our part's done here, Nitro. No promotion, no money, no studs... I've got nothin' here," she groaned, then pulled a small flask from her pocket. She drank it down quickly, then wiped her lips with her bare forearm. "Damn am I unlucky. Jailhouse luck..."
"You just came to get the money we forgot to send you, right? Well, my memory's sparked from seeing Mime, at least. You'll get that money!" Gala informed her. Jailbird jumped up and nodded thankfully. "For a little while, at least," the hostess chuckled meanly. "In the mean time, let's see about your reward, Nitro. You've done a service to the Teksqp faction, so I think you've well earned your sixty faction points, as well as a bonus ten. Seventy total! Go buy yourself something nice~"
"Do I get any faction points?" Jailbird asked with a hopeful grin.
"No. You get to avoid a reprimand for allowing Mime to escape again," Gala chuckled, causing Jailbird's shoulders to slump again. "I'd also like to give you a chip, to commemorate the occasion. It's a CandyBomb! It isn't much, but it's a chip I really like... Because isn't it nice to play tricks on your friends?" the lady in red giggled. "Of course, I can't give it to you right now, so why don't you go back and submit a report? It will find its way to you."
((Nitro gets 14 Gala FXP, 24 Jailbird FXP, 2 ChitinMan FXP, 1 Boss Oni FXP))
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Nitro looked over as the group entered, breathing a sigh of relief as he climbed up off of Mime. He smirked a bit as Jail hammed it up a bit with her "serious business" routine, it certainly didn't fit the Jailbird he knew. He gestured over to his SP as he picked Mime up off of the ground. "Hey, TNT, you wanna come keep an eye on her for a sec? Be sure to watch her hands." He said, being sure to keep his hands on the mime's. Tina nodded, trading spots with the explosive navi.
Nitro felt an arm clap around his shoulder, and looked over to Jail, wincing a bit as the jailer shrunk back, feeling a bit guilty for the position she was in.
Of course, when the conversation turned to his reward, he grinned a bit and nodded. "Thanks, Gala, that's really generous of you," he said, though his expression faltered a bit as he watched Jailbird get scolded again. He turned back to Gala. "Candybomb? That sounds right up my alley, to be honest. I'm sure I'll find it useful, thanks."
He turned to Jail again. "Come on, Jail, let's get her to Boss Oni before she tries anything again." He led the group out of the room, nodding to Gala as they left, before leaning in to talk to Jailbird somewhat privately. "Listen, I did a bit of thinking in Gala's room while I was keeping Mime under control," Nitro said. "And I can't help but feel responsible for her getting out. Tonight probably hasn't gone the way you hoped, but maybe there's something I can do for you? I could split my reward with you or something, maybe toss you a chip or some zenny, just name it."
Nitro felt an arm clap around his shoulder, and looked over to Jail, wincing a bit as the jailer shrunk back, feeling a bit guilty for the position she was in.
Of course, when the conversation turned to his reward, he grinned a bit and nodded. "Thanks, Gala, that's really generous of you," he said, though his expression faltered a bit as he watched Jailbird get scolded again. He turned back to Gala. "Candybomb? That sounds right up my alley, to be honest. I'm sure I'll find it useful, thanks."
He turned to Jail again. "Come on, Jail, let's get her to Boss Oni before she tries anything again." He led the group out of the room, nodding to Gala as they left, before leaning in to talk to Jailbird somewhat privately. "Listen, I did a bit of thinking in Gala's room while I was keeping Mime under control," Nitro said. "And I can't help but feel responsible for her getting out. Tonight probably hasn't gone the way you hoped, but maybe there's something I can do for you? I could split my reward with you or something, maybe toss you a chip or some zenny, just name it."
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"Huh? Well, the explosion might have had something to do with it, but she might have gotten out again regardless. This creep is where they derived that old stereotype that nobody likes mimes from... Just a twisted, slippery criminal. Anyways, you're sure sweet to offer, but I can't take handouts from a fellow working grunt, you know? Damn, it's a shame you aren't a few years older... I would give you a screw like you wouldn't believe," she groaned, seeming to have forgotten the real reason that she couldn't count that as an option. "God knows I need one... Let's go find the fat man-"
"Gala! What a travesty of a party this has been! I didn't come here to be menaced by my own kind!" the fat man in question bellowed, bursting into the room with the support of one of his subordinates under each arm. All of them were still dressed in their costumes from earlier, but had obviously been through some ordeals to stay alive.
"Oh, settle down, you! Chums, please take your leave while Mr. Oni and I tackle the issue at hand," the hostess requested, shooing everyone out.
((+2 Jailbird FXP))
"Gala! What a travesty of a party this has been! I didn't come here to be menaced by my own kind!" the fat man in question bellowed, bursting into the room with the support of one of his subordinates under each arm. All of them were still dressed in their costumes from earlier, but had obviously been through some ordeals to stay alive.
"Oh, settle down, you! Chums, please take your leave while Mr. Oni and I tackle the issue at hand," the hostess requested, shooing everyone out.
((+2 Jailbird FXP))
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Nitro nodded as everyone was ushered out, with both him and Tina slipping past who they could only assume was Boss Oni (albiet with some difficulty due to how much of the room his prominent gut claimed) and went out the door. Nitro whistled at the wreckage that had been caused by the traps, kicking aside a loose piece of rubble. "Seems kind of counter-intuitive for traps to demolish the building their supposed to protect," he noted.
"To be fair, they were all running simultaneously," Tina noted.
Nitro shrugged. "Makes sense, I guess." He turned to Jailbird. "Well, Jail, it was good seeing you again, all things considered," he said. "Who knows, maybe next time we run into each other things'll actually go your way." He shrugged again as he called attention to the fact that Jail always seemed to go less-than-perfect for her around him. "Anyway, we're gonna jack out now. We'll see you around!" With that, Nitro and TNT were jacked out transported out of the wrecked mansion.
[NITRO.EXE & TNT.SP JACK OUT]
"To be fair, they were all running simultaneously," Tina noted.
Nitro shrugged. "Makes sense, I guess." He turned to Jailbird. "Well, Jail, it was good seeing you again, all things considered," he said. "Who knows, maybe next time we run into each other things'll actually go your way." He shrugged again as he called attention to the fact that Jail always seemed to go less-than-perfect for her around him. "Anyway, we're gonna jack out now. We'll see you around!" With that, Nitro and TNT were jacked out transported out of the wrecked mansion.
[NITRO.EXE & TNT.SP JACK OUT]