A Researcher's Jailbreak

A Researcher's Jailbreak
Date of Scene:	30 March 2014
Location:	Traverse Town - District 3
Synopsis:	Days after Rhiannon's capture, several forces converge on the prison facility holding her. Things go well. ...Or not. Depending on your perspective.
Cast of Characters:	Vex, Mercade Alexander, Angantyr Vespar, Don Corneo, Rhiannon Zellen, Warden Thache, Alise, Zerum
Tinyplot:	A Researcher's Inquiry

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Rhiannon Zellen has posed:
Several days ago, a certain Vieran Judge had captured Rhiannon Zellen, resident scientist of Shinra. Be it by guile, or mere happenstance, there was no one around to witness just how it had happened. Nevertheless, she was taken to Traverse Town and locked into a prison facility. Specifically in a block meant to restrain magic users.

The area was surprisingly well kept. It looked more like a mental asylum than a prison, if anything. White floors, walls, and doors made up the appearance of the place, starkly constrasted by the security staff with their black uniforms. There was a guard posted at each door, an electrical nightstick in hand and firearm holstered at their side.

The cells themselves were what made this block of the prison building mildly intriguing. They were stark white, just like the outer halls, but running along the walls in a uniform manner were glowing lines of varying colors. They lead all across the walls, connecting ultimately to a pair of bulky shackles that imprisoned mages were attached to.

The shackles were intricately designed, and obscured the entire hand and forearm. It was more like a large cylinder. Closer observation would reveal that these shackles were siphoning power from prisoners constantly, as evidenced by the flow of energy moving away from the shackles and flowing to other parts of the facility. Prisoners were kept powerless and restrained in this manner.

Panning over to Rhiannon's room, she too had recieved the same treatment, shackled to that magic draining device. Having been told of her crimes, as well as her present condition, minor allowances were made for care, but after those short reprieves, it was back to being restrained. It went to be said that prison security was on high alert, having to contain such a high profile inmate.

"......"

She'd said little the entire time. Her expression had never betrayed anything in the way of sadness or anger. When addressed, the woman only smiled in a manner that was somehow infuriating. Several guards needed to have their shifts changed due to 'conversing' with her, and almost giving in to the urge to harm her.

It was quite a handful really.

And on this day, it seemed that all was quiet. There was a new guard posted at her cell, one that had yet to try and make conversation.

"The higher ups are still deciding what to do with you." The guard, a man in his middle age, said. He faced forward, never once looking at the scientist. "There've been calls for execution even. You know that, right?" Asking that, a sidelong glance was spared into the cell.

Rhia said nothing in response, she just smiled, keeping her eyes closed.

The guard just tched and rolled his eyes. "Figures. Got nothing to say to the common man, eh?" He shook his head and faced forward again. The Director had told them not to engage in too much conversation. She had a way of getting into people's heads. Driving them to irrational anger. He couldn't fall victim to that.

More infuriating silence was her given answer to the guard's remarks however. She was oddly patient, despite the fact that days have passed without outside incident. After several minutes, Rhiannon's eyes slowly opened, that calm smile still on her face. Her gaze was fixed forward, eyeing what little of the halls that she could see from her suspended position. "...I do wonder..." She mumbled quietly to herself, smile remaining on her face despite...

Zerum has posed:
It wasn't that Zerum enjoyed combat, because he prefered the more professional route to solving problems, but in the unlikely(hopefully) event that developments escalated into violence, he didn't want to be unprepared, so he was decked out in his dark-knight apparel. His signature thorned crown, which offered an unspeakably stalwart aegis, was always contrasted by the fact that it unendingly sapped his health, so when possible, he'd either implement his draining techniques, a standard earmark of his trade, or he'd be attended by someone capable of offering some medicinal aid; on this day(or evening, in the Traverse Area, the position of the natural sun was hard to distinguish), the armored drow was accompanied by yet another dark elf, a female, whose stature wasn't quite as exceptional as his own.... but this should not have been a factor that would've diminished her worth!

On the contrary, her getup was notably more unique than his own, what with her possessing a few add-on cybernetic limbs(maybe akin to Dr Octopus??) that gave her the ability to multi-task. Hailing from his own world of origin, which had technology far beyond that of many others that fused into the World of Ruin, it was very likely that Zerum's sidekick's external framework was either born of the kind of stuff that could be found in certain parts of The Blue Planet, or maybe it was a blend of that, plus whatever she could scrounge from Montressor Spaceport? No, she wasn't apt to skyrocket into outerspace or warp between dimensions, but having the potential to slap several irritating folks at once was pretty darn useful, which could very well make her the envy of any nanny the world over.

Zerum Valos didn't mind being outshone visually by his subordinate, even so... he was content to know that he was the one running the show, even if the audience only saw the she-elf who was starring center-stage, within the dark elf posse. Not to be totally dwarfed by his companion, he had a nifty little talent that was a rarity in the World of Ruin, and he was about to apply it, or at least make a valiant attempt. "I can now comprehend fully why we were compensated so loftily, Miss Vex. I would like you to loosen things up a bit, so that I need not strain myself as much.... Perspiration quite a bother, after all." That was her cue to start shooting at one of the walls so that Zerum could follow up by ripping out the metal scaffoldings.

Alise has posed:
Elsewhere in the building, a small group of people have gathered around a large table. Though the accomodations are somewhat lacking, as the facility is not designed for making people comfortable, the standard-form office chairs that have been wheeled in for the occasional are likely a great deal more pleasant than the prison shackles.

On one side of the table a lone young woman sits with her arms crossed gently over each other so as not to wrinkle the expensively tailored suit she wears. Two nondescript figures in fully body armor complete with face-obscuring helmets stand at attention a few feet behind her, each of them bearing the familiar insignia of ShinRa on their uniforms.

Alise sighs softly and drums her fingers against her bicep, glancing at the empty seat across from her. The man who has occupied it on and off for the last several hours is no where to be seen having ducked out for 'private discussion' related to the matter at hand for atleast the tenth time during their negotations.

This was taking too long. She knew it was going to be difficult but so far all they'd managed to do was establish the mere possibility that negotation was a option and even that had been like pulling the fangs from a zolum. She'd like to think it was her natural charm that had won them over but the truth of the matter is that she'd been reduced to veiled threats merely to get in the door and things had not improved much since then.

Damn that woman.

Vex has posed:
Normally, Vex would rarely be so kitted out for combat. But, how could she deny joining an old friend? Not that she'd refer to the man as such. After all, to her, anything but advancement is useless...ideally. Her frail flesh, while less than ideal, still exists, and along with it the emotions that ride along.

"Given the amount of compensation we were given, I estimate a point-five-three-seven percentage increase in operational efficiency upon using a Shinra-Brand Ifrit-Mark-Three White Phosphorous Grenade as opposed to merely shooting the local girders. The fifteen-point-five percent chance of bodily injury to bystanders is below the acceptable amount of collatoral damage." Rattles off the woman. And indeed, she rattles. Swathed in red, voluminous robes that cover all but her gloved hands, the five-foot, three inch woman's race can only be seen by a pair of ears sticking out from her cowel; holes cut out for them. The rest of her is in shadows...aside from the two, metallic appendages that snake out of the back of her robes. One is launched with what appears to be some form of rifle, while the other seems to be a common shinra grenade launcher.

Despite her earlier comments, the appendage wobbles, tilts, and then fires the gun straight at the aforementioned scaffolding.

Rhiannon Zellen has posed:
Indeed, Alise was being given a rather obvious runaround to the matter of releasing Rhiannon. After another 'strategic break', the prison director stepped back into the room, clearing his throat and adjusting his suit and tie. It was less impressive than Alise's ...Something that likely struck his pride. He was an older man, in his 40s and balding a bit. But he still endeavored to take care of his appearance as best as he could. He was joined by two security guards, less impressively decked out than the Shinsec, but close enough.

"My apologies for the wait, Miss. This is a sensitive issue, you see?" More mindless, time wasting prattle. "Now, where were we? Ah, yes. We were just about to discuss the possibility of negotiating the fate of Rhiannon Zellen." He leaned back in his seat, producing a cigarette from a box in his breast pocket, having it lit by a guard. "Smoke?" He offered the box towards the Turk, a lazy smile on his face. ...Wasn't it against regulations to smoke inside?

This was corporate red tape, if there ever was any.

This useless posturing was suddenly cut off as a distant sound of stone and metal being rended could be heard, followed by a loud siren. Seconds later, a third guard burst into the room. "Director! We've got a problem! Intruders!" The Director's eyes widened at that. "What!?" The demand caused the back end of his cigarette to be crushed between his teeth before falling to the ground. "Damn it! I knew this was going to happen!" He spouted out angrily, a fist impacting against the desk. "Reinforce our position at the prisoner's cell! And send a team to intercept these intruders! Tell all others to keep their posts but be on high alert! Now go, go, go!"

Alise was given a smile and a clear of the throat. "Ahem. My apologies, Miss Alise. But these discussions will have to wait another day. Please, my men will escort you and your men out of the building and to safety." He didn't ask for help. His pride and the capabilities of his facility were on the line!

MEANWHILE

Zerum and Vex's efforts to break in were met with the facility alarm going off...followed by guards converging on their location rapidly. About ten men, armed with pistols trained on them. "Stop right there! Surrender yourselves immediately! Do not resist! I repeat, do NOT resist!" They held their ground, some kneeling to take better firing positions.

The game was on.

Zerum has posed:
Zerum rotates his head towards Vex, after she elaborates on how she intends to deal with the problematic barrier that has presented itself to the both of them; not an engineer himself, he can't exactly confirm that her calculations are accurate until the attempt as been made, so he nods his head, surmising that the expert is experienced enough to know what she's talking about, giving her permission to go forth, "So be it." He then taps his chin in consideration, ".....But, I cannot extrapolate as to why you're even remotely fixated on the the potential for casualties that'd involved, be they grander or fewer. As far as /I/ was aware.... we were hired to carry out a jailbreak, not to evaluate the worth of the lives of the citizenry.... that seems like a totally irrelevant part of the equation, Miss Vex."

All conjecture aside, he's grateful that she's using her brain, even if some of it involved a little bit of digression, for excessive thinking was superior to suboptimal quantities of contemplation, in his view, unless it pertained to a prospective victim, in which case, he hoped that they would be dullard, thus more easily conquered. When the sirens went off, that was the one thing that immediately agitated Zerum the most, because of the loud nature of the ringing that went through his ears, which was only compounded by the ramblings of the troopers who were now trying to bar his path into the inner sanctum. "I don't have a hearing problem, good sirs; if you told me not to resist the first time, I assure you that I will disregard your piteous warning the second time, as well." With that, he attempts to exert influence over their guns(made of metal?) to either dismantle them, or rip the armaments right out of their hands, since they were not miles away; when metal was within proximity, he could manhandle it with the force of a gigas, but once it was distant.... it became a problem for him.

Assuming Zerum succeeds in wrenching some/all of their weapons from them, he will attempt to knock some on them unconscious by pistol-whipping them using their own weapons, but if he fails, he'll probably have to explore other avenues.

Alise has posed:
From the look of concern that spreads on her face, it's clear that the explosions took Alise off guard as well. She glances in the direction that she believes the sound originated from for a moment but her attention is drawn back to the Director upon his outburst, expecting him to associate the attack with their presence but it seems such a thought never occured to the man as he sends his guards storming away without pause.

Alise slowly unfolds her arms, lifting a single finger to press against the bridge of her slender glasses. As the metal frames slide up against her face, they catch the light in an ominous way, reflecting twin ovals of pure white that obscures her narrowed eyes.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Director, but I no longer have the luxury of playing this game."

The Turk rises from her seat, flipping the entire table up into the air in a single heave. Her fist explodes through the wooden barrier now hovering in the air between herself and the annoying politician, smashing into his chest and sending the man flying into the far wall with a dull crunching sound.

Withdrawing her arm from the ruined table, Alise motions to the two ShinSec guards who have already prepared their weapons and the pair of them move to cover the doorway while she takes care of a quick matter. The Turk withdraws her cellphone from its holster on her belt and kneels beside the unconscious Director. Moving with a purpose, she fiddles with her gadget for a moment before pressing each of the man's fingers against its screen one-by-one. The machine whirrs softly each time, recording the data incase they need it to bypass any of the security. She gets a retinal scan for good measure too.

"Okay, we're good. Move out and pray those floor plans we acquired are accurate."

Don Corneo has posed:
Not one to leave someone, especially a potential business associate in trouble, Don has takent he liberty of heading his zeppelin and crew over to Traverse Town. His men, group of SOLDIER 3rd and a few scattered 2nd class, looking a bit more rag tag than they might have been under the company, descend upon the facility from the dirigible via jetpack. One must always have a sufficient amount of these things on hand when one runs an airship, he finds, also jetpacks are awesome. The Don kept close contact with them via radio, of course. "Alright boys, standard search and destroy I think--err, Search and Rescue, scratch that last one--looks like someone's already gotten their attention now, in fact," the alarms were going off already, whoops.

Zerum and Vex would suddenly find they were having some company join them... a bunch of blue and red armored modernized soldiers come trooping around to the broken portion of the wall, peering at the two through high-tech goggles. A few have a few... personalizations to their armor, the 'LOVE' tattoo with the arrow through it that the don so proudly bears, though a few of theirs have a sword or a dagger going through the heart rather than a cupid-esque arrow, ouch.

Vex has posed:
"Casualties incurred may decrease the potential work pool for the nearby Montressor Spaceport, thereby decreasing the overall maintenance of the Hallowed Space-Faring Vehicles within. This may lead to an increase of five-point-seven degrees of the Holy Spirits within to become most wroth, thereby ceasing to perform their Most Logical and Divine Function." Explains Vex as though this were obvious. The woman is, by all account, weird, and likely missing a few screws somewhere in her head. Perhaps literally.

Even as she's speaking, as the guards arrive, she peers at them from beneath her cowel. That rifle of hers fires off two shots before the lead guard is even done speaking. Another metal arm snakes out from her robes, fiddling with her grenade launcher as she provides covering fire, attempting to keep the men before her pinned down.

Rhiannon Zellen has posed:
"What the--?"

"Hey! My firearm is-"

"Damn it! Another magic slinging freak! Fall back! Fall back and-gah!"

Those were the various exclamations made as Zerum exerted his power over metal, whipping the weapons from the hands of some of the guards, finding themselves assaulted by their own weapons. A few escaped the catastrophe of Vex and Zerum. Three exactly. They managed to avoid being struck by their pistols or taken out by Vex by some miracle, and doubled back into the facility, producing radios from their belts. "All personnel, we've engaged with two elf-types, plus a band of unknown soldiers! They've got some kind of strange magic! Metallic weapons are useless! I repeat-"

The other guard running nodded to one of his two companions. "You warn the others and form a counter strategy! I'm heading to the prisoner! And you fall back and hold the line! Backup will be here soon! Godspeed!" A nod, and then the three of them broke off in different directions. Ready to fulfill their missions even if it meant the end of them.

MEANWHILE

The Director arched a brow as Alise adjusted her glasses. "Game? Who are you to say that this is a ga-WHA!" The table flip obscured his vision, and then a fist came crashing through, sending him flying back. He must have been level one because that took him out immediately. The guards that were with him each looked at each other, and then at Alise. If the director were a more honorable man, they may have moved to stop the Turk, but now? ...They thought it better to let the man sleep. Right now, they were more worried about their comrades. The red tape could wait till later.

And so they took off, listening to their radios and following the flow of information given.

MEANWHILE.

"...Oh my." Rhiannon mumbled, having obviously heard all the commotion by this point. "Having trouble out there?" She asked casually at the guard who was on duty. Said guard grit his teeth at the radio contact and narrowed his eyes. "Shut your mouth, you witch." He grumbled, tucking his nightstick away and producing a machinegun that was slung onto his back.

"Damn it. Figures this <GOOSEHONK> would happen the moment we bring in someone like you." Other guards were turning up now, taking position and discussing strategy. "That damn rabbit had to have seen this <GOOSEHONK> coming..."

Mercade Alexander has posed:
Sometimes, it just doesn't pay to get out of bed.

Mercade Alexander is out and about, working his way through Traverse Town for a specific reason: Chita told him that Rhiannon was captured. Mercade was planning on going to viit her.

And that's when he hears the explosions and gunfire. Mercade tips his hat, looking under the brim as he sees the chaos begin to unfold. "Huh." He says. "Wow, that's a lot of visitors tonight."

Merccade walks up past the fleeing people, and stands behind Vex and Zerum. "Hi guys." Mercade drawls pleasantly. "I know you both want to get in fast, but cutting the line and committing excessive violence like this just isn't polite. Now, I'm going to have to ask you guys to get back in line and stop lowing up the prison."

Mercade looks relaxed and unsuspecting to the untrained observer. His posture, however, is loose, prepared to move at any time.

Because he's pretty sure he's going to have to.

Angantyr Vespar has posed:
Angantyr steps out from behind the guards.

"Gentlemen, you are a bit out of your league here. Step back and allow me." He says towards the guards, "Try sealing the parameter, in case they get by me." he say, calmly and raises a hand up, in the face of people coming to break out a prisoner...one that NEEDS to die, or at least stay in a box for the rest of her unnatural life, Angantyr would give surprisingly discounted rates. A keyblade forms, a silver weapon with dark vine-like pieces wrapping around the silver. The Tyrant Breaker, as it is called, as it points towards Vex, Zerum, and assorted company.

"You heard the man, I'm here to show you the door."

Zerum has posed:
When he's joined by the SOLDIERs, Zerum peers over at Don's troops, suspecting that they're on the premises as a means of securing Rhiannon from her captors, which already causes him to feel comforted.... better odds, he ponders inwardly, though not dubious in the slightest that he'd've had the tenacity to attempt this on his own. Always one to debate an argument coming his way, he looked sidelong at Vex, "That sounds fairly indistinct. Indirectly related, co-arising interdependent phenomena are highly difficult to calculate, especially when they are obscurred by the fact that you don't have specs on /who/ we could be killing." He frowns, "....Logical and Divine function of the spaceport? Now you're just exposing your affection for engineering institutions."

He sighs, and shoots a glare at one of the sirens emitting volumous noise, causing it to explode, before he turns his attention back to Vex, "Let's continue this discussion another time. The air is becoming thick in here.... to quote the proverb often used by the populace...." Speaking of thickness, and density, he points to another wall, indicating that he yearns for Vex to destabilize it, so that he can finish the job, thereby granting them access to more rooms in the building. He knew where Rhiannon was, but getting there would take some doing. If he had to go to upper or lower levels, that would've been easy enough, as well; he and Vex would puncture a floor/ceiling, then he'd magnetize the both of them to arise or descend to the appropriate level.... Yet, before he can reach any of the other floors, he's solicited by Mercade, who starts making requests, "Excessive violence? Don't speak nonsense. I was out for a stroll, and it just so happened that this wall was blocking my trajectory. When I rearranged it a little bit, people started threatening me and telling me to stop my procession. I dislike being given commands."

Promptly, he looks at Vex, "Give him our business card, and let him submit a complaint to our agent..... or do whatever else you can think of to dismiss him, if you please." It's at this point that Angantyr appears with a rather intimidating weapon in his hand, and Zerum Valos narrows his eyes a bit, "Show me to Rhiannon's door, and we'll have no issues." But.... as a precautionary measure, he conjures up a strange magical force which grants him added protection from incoming attacks, yet.... he takes no offensive action!

....So far.

Alise has posed:
The ShinSec allow the prison guards to pass for the moment and Alise doesn't bother ordering otherwise. They aren't here to destroy this group and killing people pointlessly isn't her style, regardless of how ruthless her superiors may expect her to be. So long as the mission is accomplished she has a great deal of leniency as to the methods thanks to being a Turk.

After checking to make sure the Director is alive, the woman motions to her escorts and they both nod at once before darting into the hallway. She waits a few seconds and then follows after them, instinctively heading in the direction that will take them to the lower levels of the prison. She's studied the map they bought from someone on the inside well enough to know it mostly by memory but all the same she calls it up on her phone, glancing at the screen every so often to ensure they keep on the right path.

Fortunately, most of the guards have been called off to deal with the incursion but it's only a matter of time before someone notices them. Rhiannon's cell isn't likely to be lightly guarded either since it's pretty obvious to anyone she's the main target of this jailbreak.

Don Corneo has posed:
"Okay, looks like there are some others there, also possibly some other people with guns--maybe the TURKS came to bust her out," Corneo is busy in communication with his lead soldier, one of the 2nd classers with red gear. He's actually watching all of the action from his zeppelin via a shoulder-mounted camera and can pretty much see whatever they see, not just speak via radio. "Now we don't want to let too many of these guys out so don't wreck the place," he cautions, tapping a finger against his desk as he watched the show. "I bet they're not expecting something like us though boys, so lets do this," and with that the Corneo henchmen are getting to work, readying smoke canisters and priming themselves to go in like some kind of SWAT unit. Their target? Well a lady of course, why else would Don be here?

There would be the THUNK'ing of metal containers and gas would suddenly be pouring out from several grenades thrown the prison guards way, punctuated by some random bursts of machine gun fire. Or maybe those were just stun rounds? Possibly. Of course, if the prison guards had guns too, fine--the SOLDIER unit Corneo employed also had a few toys of it's own.

The team doesn't seem to notice Mercade at first, however they do notice Angantyr. "Can't let you do that, sta--woah, look at that big fellow there, be on guard boys," the Don frowns as he saw the somewhat bad quality video through on his end, suddenly feeling like he and his team had their work cut out for them here. "Welp, make him not a problem I guess," he shrugs and gives the order.

Rhiannon Zellen has posed:
"Who are-" A pause as one of the guards sized up Angantyr, and then looked off towards the intruders. Well, technically, this one was an intruder as well, but if he said he was going to help...Who was he to refuse? A quick nod was given. "Right. You do whatever it is you do. I'm calling a sealing of the perimeter, but it's going to take some time! If you're going to help, buy me that time!"

With the demand given, the remaining guard fell back out of the combat zone, radio to his ear. "I need an update! Where is that Shinra correspondant? Has she left the building?" ... "What do you mean she took out the director and ran off? Damn it! This is NOT the time!" He cursed his fate as he yelled into the radio. "Any available hands, I need you to search the building for that woman! She is NOT to be left at large! We will lose OUR heads if the prisoner is taken! Now go! Go!"

It would seem the security forces have their hands full. Crap was hitting the fan faster than the blades could turn. This was going to be a PR nightmare for sure.

MEANWHILE

A lone guard rushed through the hallway, talking into his radio quickly, taking and given information on the situation. "Yes! I'm on the second floor, on my way to the third! I plan to rendevous with the protection team and-huh?" He slid to a stop as he spotted Alise and her Shinsec guards...all alone and at large apparently. "...You! Right there! Hold it!" He demanded, training his rifle at the Turk and her company. "Where is the director and why are you still here? Answer me! Now!"

He was prepared to fire.

Vex has posed:
Vex turns to the group that's led by the Don. She gazes at them momentarily, before turning away. They might be allies, but right now? She has guards to deal with.

"...Agreed. We shall continue this later." Agrees the woman with her fellow elf, before her attention is split by mercade. Luckily, it seems it's time to reload her rifle, one of her appendages fiddling. The warnings of the guards hardly seem to phase her.

"Incorrect. Current levels of lethality are below the maximum threshold of eighty-seven-point-three-five percent mortality."

Her appendages cease fiddling, as grenades are changed out, and ammo is reloaded. Her rifle is trained on Mercade, but doesn't yet fire. That grenade launcher, however, lets out a loud 'plunk!' sound as it fires a grenade.

"...Calculating...current level of operation efficiency and building damage still below acceptable maximums. Awaiting further parameters."

Alise has posed:
Alise spots the straggling guard first, her eyes snapping sideways a moment before her head turns. She doesn't answer the man because there's no time to waste on small fry like this. For all she knows, this group is prepared to execute their prisoner in case of an event such as this. She needs to get down to the scientist immediately.

The Turk reaches up and grabs one of the small spherical bulbs dangling from her ears, tossing the flashbang disguised as an earring into the middle of the hall between them. She closes her eyes for a few moments and presses up against the wall to avoid any errant panic fire from the guard but once the bright flare snaps off she takes action.

Tearing down the hallway at a dead run, Alise closes the distance in a few short breaths and launches into a series of basic but brutal CQC maneuvers, smashing her heel into the man's ankle and then twisting his arm behind his back to relieve him of the gun he carries.

Rhiannon Zellen has posed:
Alise would find that this one was no run of the mill soldier. He had skills. Skills and moves. And moves and skills. "What the-HEY!" He blinked quickly to clear away the flash, but then reflexively dodged the combo of brutal attacks that otherwiser would have incapacitated him otherwise. Weaving in and out between blows like a veteran. He was no mook apparently. "I'm warning you! Back down!" He growled, his rifle turned aside, but not disarmed completely.

He spun with the momentum of the attempted disarmament, leading into a roundhouse kick toward's the Turk's head. And then followed it up by leaping back and creating distance. "You are in contempt of the law! What reason do you have to assist a criminal!? Are you mad!?" He demanded, setting a cartridge into his rifle and aiming it. "I won't warn you again! Fall back!"

Then a volley of shots were fired. ...Rubber bullets. Warning shots in other words

MEANWHILE

Walls were being destroyed, grenades were detonating...it was chaos. And the troops were doing all they could to keep it from spilling further into the facility. The emergency perimeter lock hadn't engaged yet....yet. But soon enough, it would. Ang and Mercade just needed to buy that time. But who knew what would happen?

MEANWHILE

"...Are you sure you have things handled out there?" Rhiannon asked casually, an amused smile on her face as she watched the guards pacing and discussing outside her cell. She was ignored in favor of bigger problems. "How is the engagement near the entrance? We have backup? Good! Make sure they hold the line! I have reports that the Shinra correspondant is being engaged as well! Don't lose our positions! We need to keep her here at all costs!"

The stakes were increasing.

Angantyr Vespar has posed:
"Alright, it seems that intimidation doesn't work. Never does." Angantyr says, and then just...MOVES with fluidity that is just wrong for someone his size. He is fast, and brutal, as he swings the blade down right towards the first of the Don's Men, aiming to hit him with enough force to crack bones, before he steps forward again, swinging. "The name is Angantyr Vespar. Mark it well, because I'm going to ingrain the name into your pathetic souls." he says, once more with the fierce exterior, maybe they'll be smart and run away, preventing this from going on any farther.

Darkness starts surrounding the dark knight, as he starts focusing his power from the darkness between the stars...to here.

Warden Thache has posed:
Well. Isn't this a mess.

A figure watches the proceedings from nearby. Someone obviously not from around here. A tricorn hat, pirate's coat, the smirking face and the twitching cat's ears marks this figure as a pirate captain familiar to some.

A dagger in one hand is casually thrown up in the air to catch as he regards the mess that people are making of a jailbreak. The man sighs quietly to himself. "No appriciation for art anymore. They just blow a hole in the wall. Tragic really, its like they are asking for a fight."

He seems to shrug slightly, peering down from the roof of a nearby building. He tilts back his head and takes a long pull on the flask that seems to have appeared in his hand by magic, then dissipear just as fast.

"Might as well join them."

He leaps right off the building without hesitation in the least. What comes with him is a little solar sailboard. Surfing down on gravity waves alone as he cuts as gold-tinged path towards the chaos. At the last second he leaps off the sailor and the compact little craft crashes into the side of the hole that Vex and Zerum just made. Accidently widening it. Possibily making them nervous.

The cat-captain rolls to his feet, hands on the hilts of his swords and a wide grin slashed across his feline features.

"I hope no one minds if I cut in?"

Alise has posed:
Not expecting such a display of skill from what she assumed was an ordinary guard, Alise is momentarily caught aback by his swift recovery. She leans back in time to avoid the roundhouse but the rubber bullets are sprayed in a wide enough cone that there's no hope of avoiding them all.

Throwing her arm up to protect her head, the Turk ducks long enough to recover her balance and then rushes directly into the hail of gunfire. Even if they were actual bullets, the suits that Turks wear are more than just stylish, they double as protective gear. Not that she'd be so eager to dive in head first if that was read lead flying her way.

"Sorry, but I have a job to do!"

Alise's leg snaps up as the last couple inches between them vanish, attempting to smash the gun aside with a hard kick. She follows through seemlessly, flowing into a straight punch into the guard's side. A small flick of her wrist triggers a slender blade hidden inside of her sleeve and springs outwards like a pilebunker then just as quickly retracts.

She doesn't have time to play nice with this one.

Zerum has posed:
More assurance that providence was smiling at him for the moment, Zerum had every reason to believe that his 'allies' were competent, given some of the weapons they were employing. The drow himself hadn't been involved in too many jailbreaks, but he judged that gaining experience was a helpful tool, if it didn't revolve around losing his life. Sizing up Angantyr, the armored drow decides that the man's grip on the silver blade was tight enough that it would require too much focus to try ripping the thing from his hands, plus, he wouldn't be able to take the large fellow by surprise with that trick, since it had been displayed when dealing with the troops....

This would mean that Lord Valos couldn't take the path of least resistance. Demolishing a wall should have been the first clue that labor would be involved in the entire affair, but when Warden decides to join the fray, Zerum circles around towards him, instead, since he's only carrying a dagger. Casting yet another barrier around himself, he follows up by levitating so that he's a foot above the ground, and he begins his interrogation, "When you say 'cut in'..... do you actually mean 'cut up'? That thing you're carrying doesn't look primarily designed for ceremonial purposes, I confess...."

Don Corneo has posed:
Of course, the Don's men do carry shields as well as machine guns, along with their other gear, and Angantyr's fist would THUD a bit painfully against the first he tried to give a fistign to, the soldier backing up a bit and looking a little surprised. He and the rest of the squad bring their MP5s and other weapons to bear and fire. Hey, they aren't complaining. And so the battle is joined more or less, Don Corneo watching it all intently from the office of his zeppelin, likely a beer clutched in hand as he sits there. "Go for the gold, boys! and by gold I mean the woman. Is she even hot? I should have asked to get a picture or something, damnit."

Angantyr Vespar has posed:
That's cute. The Don's men fire things at him, the darts hit, but he brushes off the attack, aiming to swing his fist again. Luckily for them, all he hits is metal. The baton hits, and he hardly feels it, his eyes flare up. "Never is the easy way.." he says, before Warden swings down, boy oh boy...another face he didn't want to see. "What...nevermind, do whatever you want.." Until it interferes with his goals, then it'll likely come to blows.

Angantyr swings the weapon around again, this time darkness trails off of it...as if the weapon itself is cutting the air and giving you a vision of the abyss beyond the light.

Angantyr swings a fist, aiming to rip a shield off, before he drives the blade forward, aiming to shatter the defenses of the men.

Mercade Alexander has posed:
This is entirely too messy. Mercade frowns at the responses from Zerum. "Please don't assume I'm an idiot, sir. Though if you are here for Rhiannon, I am afraid that I will have to deny you entrance."

Mercade then hears Vex, and frowns. "Are you serious? No wait, of course you are." He sighs. "All right, I guess we'll have to solve this the other way." Mercade says, tensing... As Warden drops in. "Wha..." He blinks. "Hey, aren't you..." He pauses. All he remembers is 'the guy Avira is always complaining about.' "Um... That guy Avira is always complaining about?" Oh well, may as well. "I think that entirely depends on who you're planning on cutting, though."

Mercade thrusts his hand out, opening his Heart. "I know what I have to do, however."

There is an explosion of Light as he draws out his Keyblade, the weapon a bold, ornate brassy design, with a star-like eye in the keyhead. "Please leave." Mercade says to Zerum and Vex. "I insist. I won't be letting you kill anyone else." He lashes out with the Twilight Seeker Keyblade, a whiplike lash of light striking out towards Vex and attempting to encircle them, before Mercade pulls back, cleaving across with an arc of multicolored light that cuts through the air in a wave before he spins, lunging at Vex with an explosive blast of erasing energy.

Rhiannon Zellen has posed:
"Gnh!" The soldier's gun was knocked aside, that time, but he didn't pay it any further mind. The battle was still on. The blade however caught him off guard. What? Fighting secret agents isn't part of his job description! So the hidden blade managed to puncture his protective gear, the point stabbing into his side just slightly. "...Ugh, poison? You have no honor!" He growled, stumbling back for a second before suddenly lurching forward.

He ducked low, lashing out with a combination of punches before ending in an elbow thrust to push the woman away. Whether or not that succeeded, he would leap back to create more distance, pulling out another firearm that was slung behind him. Some manner of shotgun. "Fine! If you want to stand against the law, then I'll be your opponent!"

He then took aim and fired. But what was fired was more than just a standard shotgun spray, it was augmented with some manner of magic light. This soldier was definitely not a mook.

MEANWHILE

"Achoo!"

Sniffling, Rhiannon looked about curiously for a second. "...I feel like someone is talking about me. The rotund, strange variety too." How specific.

"Quiet in there!" One of the guards yelled back into her cel before resuming his vigil. "...They'd better not get through. We have enough trouble already..." He grasped his radio with one hand tightly, hoping for SOME good news. Anything!

Don Corneo has posed:
"Alright, darts are in, that should slow him down, fire, fire!" Don is sort of an arm chair general in a few regards, well, he definitely seems like the type that might be into RTS games, however in this case the game is for real. The darts inject Angantyr with some kind of toxic sedative, likely designed to subdue rather than kill. The followup by the stun baton here and there is likewise, though thanks to how the Dark Knight is up so close, they might be finding it better to respond with more persuasive force. The second punching lands directly on one of the Soldier's and he's pushed back, his comrades are there waiting to back him up, however, guns blazin'.

Alise has posed:
The shotgun blast catches Alise square in the chest at short range, literall lifting her off her feet and sending her sprawling in the corridor. She lies on the ground for a moment or two, wincing at the pain but none of the shot managed to penetrate. That bruise is going to be a nasty one in the morning though.

Seeing that their commander is struggling, the two ShinSec bring their own firearms to bear and open up on the prison guard with a few controlled bursts of automatic fire. The Turk remains prone to avoid any friendly fire accidents but a quick motion from her causes the soldiers to fall back behind cover.

Alise flips to her feet nimbly despite the injury and levels a punch at the side of the guard's head, followed by another to his torso that causes a small explosion of raw force.

"Honor is a luxury of those with strength. Unfortunately, I am a weak woman and all I care about are results."

Warden Thache has posed:
"Cut in my friend! Dancing term. Just me being polite asking if you don't mind me joining this little fight." Warden's voice is cheerful as the magie levitates up into the sky. His grin only grows before he taps his heel on the ground.

His boots light up, the tech on them humming as he flots into the air as well. The pirate seems to stand on air just as well as on solid ground. Casually almost he grins towards Zerum.

"Oh these? No no. Not ceremonial..." He pats the hilts of the pair of sabres at his side. "Pirate's don't usually carry ceremonial weapons. I'm just here because of the entire mess you've made of this jailbreak. It offends my sensibilities!"

A glance is cast first towards Aug and then Mercade. "Ah! Lord Idiot is here! That explains the explosions!" He adds cheerfullly before Mercade gets his attention. "...Avira is always complaining abou---OH! Are you Lord Puppy?" A pause. "You must be! Warden Thache, a pleasure on meeting you." A pause. "Shouldn't you be with your lady friend, since she /did/ turn herself into a popsicle recently?"

His eyes twinkle however as he shrugs. "And no, I'm not planning on cutting you today!"

Today being the operative word. Its hard to tell just what the murcurial pirate is planning.

His gaze retursn to Zerum. "I'm afraid however I was paid to be here. So...if you object, well please. Feel free to go ahead and do so!" The pirate still doesn't draw his weapons or attack, just content to sit there and chat for the moment it seems.

MEANWHILE...

"How did the cap'n talk me into this..." mutters a little racoon. One with a small satchel and a pirate's bandana wrapped around his head. One with a little skull and crossbones embrodered on it. "Oh Spooks, it'll be easy! Just crawl in though the vents. See how the doctor is doing. No difficulties at all!" He drags himself though the vents in question, covered in spider webs and with an annoyed look on his face. "He gets this job next time!!" The racoon continues to grumble as he shuffles his way to the vent as near as he could manage to Rhiannon's cell.

Angantyr Vespar has posed:
Angantyr swings the weapon with purpose, darts aim for him again, but this time the blade cuts through them, sending them landing harmlessly on the ground. A Baton strikes him on the chest...but the armor protects him from it, and he looks down at the soldier, not to be confused with SOLDIER. He swings again, both hands on the keyblade as darkness trails behind it like a hungry beast.

Then he steps forward, once more aiming to swing his hand out to tear through the shield that the men might have, and swings the blade upwards, aiming to bounce them into the walls for DOUBLE DAMAGE...

Oh wait, wrong system.

Uh... damn it's been years sense I played FF7..

Zerum has posed:
When Mercade frowns at Zerum's response, the drow tosses another morsel his way, "I said I was out for a stroll. I did /NOT/ clarify upon where my eventual destination would be, did I? But you are correct in /YOUR/ assumptions; I am interested in finding Rhiannon. I'd rather you take this up with my assistant, on the other hand, seeing I'm preoccupied at this instant...", which was Vex, obviously.

Conveniently enough, Mercade does just that, leaving Zerum to his devices, as well as those of Warden, for the time being. The momentary flash of light does force Lord Valos to shield his eyes a little, since like sound, high-intensity illumination was uncomfortable for a creature whose very race evolved in the darkest of the depths, despite the fact that miraculously, he wasn't as blind as many organisms that dwelt in the deeper places of the world. Cats, being noctural predators, probably knew something of the art of crawling around in the dark, so perchance it was that Zer would have preferential odds facing him, versus the man who pulls keyblades out of his chest. But.... would aggressive activities between them ever actually erupt? It seemed apparent the two were going to duel with verbiage rather than scuffle, on account of neither taking action against the other.

Zerum does take the opportunity to invoke a curative(of sorts) spell on himself, besides his subordinate, in the meantime, since Warden has refrained from administering any blows, "I won't object to your presence if you don't interfere with my progression. You see these folks over here...., and here....?" He points to Angantyr, Mercade, Vex, and Don Corneo's guards, "They're all distracted with one another, because the mechanics of the universe are such that they aren't able to do more than one task at a time, it seems. That frees me up to pierce this facility while they are busy. So you can either stand in my way, or you can allow me to go liberate Miss Rhiannon. Do you copy?" And, just as he promised, he starts moving inwards, unless Warden objects in some mode that consists of something more substantial than vocalizations.

Don Corneo has posed:
Actually, the soldiers here totally were former SOLDIER, at least before the unit went rogue. As for the Dark Knight, he's proving to be something of a problem, several of the unit getting wounded in while their shields are punctured by his attack. Responding in kind, severa lf the soldiers seem to be girding them for a rushing attack on him, using their numbers and trying to flank him. It would seem to be devolving into a kind of a brawl by now, but one against so many! Can he hold out folks??

Rhiannon Zellen has posed:
"Tch!" The Prison guard cursed inwardly, falling back to avoid to support fire from the troops behind Alise. Some of the rounds grazed his body as he moved to get out of the way of the firing zone. But that action set him up perfectly for the Turk's follow up attack. "Gah!" The combination of blows sent the man toppling to the ground, but he tucked into a roll and recovered, retreating behind cover.

"Fitting words for one dressed like you! Are you a spy?" The question was given a chance to be answered as he moved out of cover, strafing and firing several bursts of shotgun ammo before closing the distance and aiming a gun butt to her chest. "Stand down already! The prisoner is not worth it!"

MEANWHILE

"Hrm?" Rhia mumbled, choosing not to antagonize the troops this time. Instead, her attention was drawn to a grate above, leading into the ventilation shafts. She could have sworn she heard a noise... "...?" And a tilt of her head followed. She was restrained rather dramatically by the magic siphoning device the room was outfitted with, so movement was minimal. She didn't call out, lest it actually turn out that someone was there.

Vex has posed:
The coweled woman seems to just /stare/ at Mercade for a few moments. Her limbs bob and shift flexibly. She may well seem to be confused, before simply nodding.

"Correct. You will not cease the operation of this mission." She says bluntly enough as Zerum works his magic.

Her weapon never quite seems to cease being pointed at merchade. The elf-woman even starts to stride forward towards the facility...up until the point that Mercade launches a keyblade-generated blast of energy her way. It hits her straight in the chest, sending her flying into a wall. She collides with a heavy metallic thunk, collapsing to the ground. Her robes, however, prove resilient. At least there's a little blood leaking from her sleeves now.

The fall seems to have knocked her rifle slightly crooked, and it fires uselessly into the ground. The grenade launcher, however, works just fine. Plunk! A fragmentation grenade goes flying towards Mercade.

"Continued resistance shall result in a thirty-point-eight percent increased chance in mortality, and a ninety-seven percent chance increase of bodily injury." She helpfully informs Mercade in a slightly monotone voice.

Warden Thache has posed:
"Tempting, tempting..." Warden singsongs to Zerum's offer. The cat taps a fingertip against his thigh as he seems to contemplate things. "Oh I copy well enough. I just am bad at following orders is all...so..." His arm snaps out to the side and what seems to be animated rope made of some kind of glowing golden energy unspools. It whips towards Zerum intending to tangle him up. A way of objecting at least.

Even it doesn't employ guns.

"I'm affraid I'd going to have to insist you stick around and entertain me for at least a few more minuites!"

MEANWHILE!!

Rhia might be able to see a pair of glowing eyes, and the switching nose of a sentiant racoon peering down at her though the grate. Spooks raises one claw to his lips in the universal sign for silence as he works around to try to get a good view of her guards. Making sure they arn't looking his way as he starts to remove the grate.

Alise has posed:
"I'm a Turk," Alise answers honestly without a hint of sarcasm. "The details of the job vary."

The shotgun proves marvelously effective at giving the quick-moving woman no where to go in the confined spaces of the hall and she's forced to take the brunt of another pair of blasts as the guard rushes her again. Looks like she's going to have to switch tactics here.

The butt of the shotgun smashes squarely into Alise's chest but rather than fall away she bends and rolls with the strike, allowing the majority of the force to deflect away to the side. It's still painful but pain isn't important right now.

The Turk reaches out to grab ahold of the weapon and hold it against her body, hoping to keep her opponent from taking another shot at such close range.

Angantyr Vespar has posed:
Punches and kicks beat into the body of Angantyr, he weathers the storm like the Dark Knight that he is, manuevering into another brutal blow, aiming to tear through more of their armor. Even as they flank him, he just accepts the blows and steps forward. His eyes flare, before, he aims to grab the nearest of the Don's men.

"Alright, enough play time!" he says, aiming to litterally drag the man into the air. Darkness pools around him, the blood of those who spilt it this fight pools around him...before claws tear through the ground, aiming to litterally tear and scrape at the SOLDIERs fighting him, aiming to toss the whole lot into the ground infront of Angantyr...

"Tyrant..." he starts, the sword starting to glow brilliantly, before he thrusts it forward, a brilliant light aiming to fill the hallway, aiming to tear through the Don's men, aiming to blast them right out of the facility...

"BREAKER!"

Zerum has posed:
As Warden considers Zerum's proposition, the drow is already weaving through the masses with his levitation skill, believing that there may be a chance that the feline fellow is finished with debating, and planning to leave, but the dark elf is in no such luck, for a cord launches outwards at him, seeking to coil about his person, and detain him temporarily. One arm and one leg become ensnared by the strange tendril, causing him to desist for a few moments so that he can rip free of the things, but his leg stays a little more tangled, so he doesn't immediately relieve himself of those constraints. Retaliation is swift, and Lord Valos draws his blade from its holster in a singular motion, while releasing an onslaught of incisors of purely congealed darkness in Warden's direction, deciding to dispense with words, until further notice.

Don Corneo has posed:
There are howling screams as one of the soldiers seems to be /torn apart/ in a red mist as the rest of the unit are thrown back. "Hey, what am I paying you guys for!? Getup and fight, already!" Don slams his fist down against the table, rocking the display and sending his beer toppling over and running out onto the carpet. Damnit, that would need to be wet-vacuumed out. "Alright, if you can't take the heat then get out," he says with a sigh, hand covering his mouth as the order goes out for the Don's men to retreat.

Rhiannon Zellen has posed:
The gambit worked well enough. The guard was kept close at hand this time, attempting to wrench his shotgun away from Alise. Seems he valued that gun more than his rifle, which he'd discarded nearby earlier. "You're a tough one, 'Turk'. I'll remember that name when this is over!" He stated, meeting the woman's eyes in their deadlock.

"Are you so confident in your job and your company that you'd break the law for them?" He growled angrily at her. "I won't have it! That Zellen woman needs to be executed! Her crimes are too great for there to be any chance of redemption in this world!" He felt strongly about that. Maybe it was personal. Regardless, he didn't have the chance to attack due to struggling to get his firearm away from Alise.

MEANWHILE

Rhia blinked slowly, staring up at the pair of eyes in the vent. Well, this was new. But then, she had a hunch that this sort of thing could happen. They were so busy fortifying their magic defenses, that they neglected their material defensive protocols. Silly.

She lowered her gaze back to the guards in the meantime, as if she'd seen nothing at all. They were all standing tensely in the hall, lined up on either side of her cell. ...There was a window between them and in front of Rhiannon's cell. ...Maybe. Just maybe.

MEANWHILE

Another grating alarm sounded off across the entire facility as the emergency perimeter sealing gates had apparently been activated. Steel walls slowly began to lower, cutting off various corridors...

Angantyr Vespar has posed:
Angantyr doesn't stop their retreat. They should have done it sooner.

He looks at the really mauled guy, and sighs, throwing a potion on him. Maybe he'll stablize and maybe the guards will bring him to a white mage and then shove him into a box for attacking a prison. He's at least tried.

And then Angantyr focuses his power again, drawing it into himself.

"NEXT?!" He calls out towards the other two.

Alise has posed:
Alise's stony stoic expression finally breaks as she gives the guard a light smirk in reply. "You keep going on about 'the law'. Haven't you realized that your laws don't apply to the entire world? As a citizen of Midgar, Doctor Zellen's ultimate fate is our business. You're the ones taking justice into your own hands."

She twists suddenly, snapping the gun in her hands hard to the side to try and dislodge it from the man's grip with an old CQC trick. As before, she flows quickly from strike to strike, immediately wheeling around to plant the heel of her expensive leather dresshoes into his solar plexus to try and knock the wind out of him, followed by yet another bone-shattering punch to drive him into the floor.

Warden Thache has posed:
Magic and blades arc towards the pirate and the man just smiles shortly towards the predicted responce. Warden kicks off thin air to leap towards the drow mage, the daggers and darkness /just/ missing him. Darkness tugs on the edge of his coat but finds no purchace on the man himself.

He dashes forwards his ears back and a fierce light in his eyes to pass close by on Zerum's left side. Close enough to speak at least. Close enough to rake at the drow with a neon purple claw that seems to almost explode into existance and form around his left hand.

Obviously something Grid based.

MEANWHILE!

Spooks carefully unscrews the grate, his eyes on the little window and the guards. He waits. Waits. Waits till no one is looking before dropping into the room. Using the limited field of view and the good Doctor's restraints as cover he crawls up to try to find how to pick apart her magic sapping prison. Clever paws have skill with locks, but he isn't sure how this one is put together. Him and his bag of tricks might be able to figure something out. He's like an evil Felix. "...evenin' love," The racoon mutters quietly. "Gimme a jiffy and I'll see if I can have you out. Cap'n is causin' a ruckus up above."

Mercade Alexander has posed:
Mercade grimaces as Vex replies to him, and he narrows his eyes as he hears the thoomp of the grenade at his feet. Mercade's eyes widen and he vanishes in a detonation, a bright flash radiating out as he is engulfed in fire and smoke.

And then Mercade launches himself forwards out of the smoke, hexagonal barriers vanishing around him as he throws his singed and wounded body out of the explosion. "NEVER TELL ME THE ODDS!" Mercade yells back, raising his Keyblade as he swings his Keyblade around, firing a spray of gleaming particles across the area. He lands, turning and slamming forward to swing hard with the Keyblade, flashing downwards and hitting a ground and trying to launch Vex with what leverage he can muster.

A moment later, Mercade lashes out with another lasso, trying to pull Vex out of the air and slamming her towards the ground.

Zerum has posed:
With his knee bent inwards, tucked against his buttocks, Zerum was unbalanced, and was certainly displeased with his capability. Electing to wholly shear off the ropes that were constricting his lower appendage to his thigh, the dark elf swipes at the coils, dispatching them neatly, so that he can tend to his enemy with a little bit of dignity, as any nobleman would surely wish. When Warden speaks to him, he growls, as though agitated by something his accoster relayed, though whatever it was, is very well anybody's guess. Following this, the violet-pigmented talon bursts after slashing at Valos, causing him to wince in anguish, eyes shutting halfway, but he doesn't yelp; probably because habitually-speaking, adding to cacophony only made things more painful, and he'd trained himself not to make a lot of sound even if he still very much expresses pain in a visual medium.

Rhiannon Zellen has posed:
His eyes narrowed at Alise's words. "So you're saying Midgar would pardon this woman for her crimes? Is that it!?" That smirk somehow really annoyed him. He was losing his cool! But no, he needed to calm down. He was soldier, the mission was of utmost importance, not his feelings.

Alise successfully got the gun out of his grasp. The following blow left his breathless, and then the next sent him tumbling to the floor. "Guh..." A deep sigh, and then he stood. This one was stubborn. "Whatever the case may be, she is in our lands and will adhere to our laws. I've been ordered to keep her here. And here is where she's staying."

That was uttered calmly, and then he dashed forward, launching into an array of brutal, but efficient CQC manuevers. A series of punches to test her guard, a kick from the direction she wasn't favoring, and then an uppercut to the chin in an attempt to send the Turk flying.

MEANWHILE

Spooks would find that there were keyholes on both cylindrical shackles. They were apparently both made up of two halves locked together in place. It could probably be picked open. ...Maybe. "...Well, you're a new one." Rhia muttered quietly, arching a brow at Spooks. "I don't believe we've had the pleasure." A small smile. The mention of captain set the cogs in her head turning and soon. "...Oh, that man." Warden. Well, she was expecting Shinra. But a pirate would do.

Vex has posed:
Gleaming lights slams down upon Vex, but the elf-woman takes the blow nearly without complaint. Thunk-thunk-sizzle of burning metal...and eventually flesh would reach Mercade. Blood pours...and blackish ooze. It may well smell of oil. Unlike the last, however, she doesn't seem adversely effected. The slamming keyblade, however, is met with the butt of her rifle. Mechanical arm and gun alike bend against its power, but then holds.

Unwilling to use a grenade launcher so close, she instead deploys her manipulator arm. What appears to be a thin claw on the end opens, and then quite simply reaches for Mercade's neck. Should she grab, she'll attempt to strangle the man with her mechanical arm, lifting him up into the air. Her broken rifle fires off randomly. It could very well accidentally hit the man, so wild and sparking is its associated arm!

Warden Thache has posed:
Warden's usual tatics were to /not/ leave his opponents with any dignity. However the cat was being...a cat. He was playing with his food today. There is a touch of a smile at the annoyance in Zerum's face. He delights in annoying nobles.

Its in his blood. He can't help himself.

The ropes comes back in, trying to tangle up the elf as the captain goes bounding by again. Again that gauntlet flashes in the darkness. The feline moves like his namesake, sure and quick as a hunting cat. This time he lands...well...ends up upside down. On the ceiling. Just stuck there thanks to his boots, one hand holding his hat in place. "We enjoying ourselves yet?"

MEANWHILE!

"You can call me Spooks. Cap'n sent me," The racoon mutters as he flicks his gaze from the shackles to the door itself. Trying to make sure he's not seen. "Yes. That man. Dunno if someone payed him or he's doing it on a whim, but he's up there doing...something. While I do the work as usual." Clever claws pull out a set of lockpicks. One held in one hand, the other in his mouth. "Giffme a moment." He says around the pick, his voice muffled. "See wha I can do."

Angantyr Vespar has posed:
Angantyr stays on the outside of the prison...if they failed to keep her in, Rhi would have to get out through him. He lets Warden and Mercade handle their fights, though he looks towards Mercade, "You got this?" He asks.

Alise has posed:
Alise reacts with practiced and efficient maneuvers of her own, swatting aside the majority of the punches in a flurry of motion that carries the two back and forth as if in some elaborate dance. However, as such things can go, she misreads his movements at the end and the kick slams into her ribcabe, sending a sharp crack through the air. The follow up strike meets no resistance as she doubles over and the woman's head snaps back, sending her glasses flying into the wall where they shatter dramatically into little glass fragments.

There is a moment of stunned silence from the two ShinSec guards as it looks like their commander, one of the famed Turks, has been laid low by some punchclock goon. They recover their wits quickly however and raise their weapons at fire again the moment she hits the ground.

But that moment never comes. Alise takes a step back to catch herself and lets out a pained grunt. She slowly brings her head back around, sending a searing bolt of lightning through her mind that almost drops her to the floor yet again but she lifts a wrist up to her mouth and bites one of the buttons off, swallowing it whole. A flood of numbness flows through her body only moments later as the disguised painkiller goes to work. It won't last long but it should be enough to keep her in the fight.

Alise takes a deep breath and spits, leaving a blood-stained smear on the polished floor. "I don't know what fate lies in store for her. It's not my place to judge. But I've been ordered to bring her back, so that's what I'm going to do."

She narrows her eyes, getting a serious expression once again. "This is your last chance to stand aside."

Zerum has posed:
The truth was, the pained expression from his sentiments were a deception, because the things he was told were hardly disagreeable, while on the other hand, the cat and mouse game was definitely annoying, even if Lord Valos was still in extremely good health, if not almost in a perfect status. Both of them were exchanging feeble blows that were more for show, because Zerum was too mindful of keeping up appearances, which were perpetually being thwarted by the cat. "Vex. I'm going in. Rendezvous at the designated location, later....." Zerum calls out, as Warden's ropes surge forth and aim to wind him up, only to be severed cleanly by the blade of the dark-knight(the elven one).

He was already in the air and zooming through the corridors of the facility by now, and suspected that Warden would be hot on his tail-- whether he reached Rhiannon on not, he was going to put on a good show, and that meant at least getting through a few sectors before making his retreat. The feline may have had no idea that this was what Zerum was doing, however, after a little while, if he didn't come across the good doctor, he'd abandon his quest and bust another hole in some wall somewhere, then flee.

Rhiannon Zellen has posed:
"Not happening." The guard replied smoothly, doubling backwards to collection if magic imbued shotgun in the lull of the conflict. This woman was good. Probably better than he was. But he couldn't just give up. "You have your orders and I have mine. Neither of us are going to just back down, are we?"

That question needed no answer. "There's only one thing to do here. And that's to complete my mission." That said, the guard aimed his shotgun tentatively, taking a deep breath to focus and feel out the current situation. Those Shinsec could fire at him at any time. And he had no backup. The forces were tied up elsewhere. This was a tricky situation.

Time to take a gambit.

He dove forward, regardless of Sinsec's actions and released a burst of shotgun fire, and then another, and then as the distance was closed, he took aim once more, aiming point blank at Alise. But instead of shotgun ammo, a ball of electricity formed on the tip of the firearm before blasting outwards in a burst of chain lightning. "I warned you!"

MEANWHILE

"I see..." Rhia mumbled quietly, nodding to herself. It sounded like what she'd seen of that man so far. If he was paid, she had to wonder who. ...Not that it really mattered. "Well, do as you must." She hardly had room to complain.

Odd that the guards outside the cell weren't paying attention to them though. What was happening?

"What was that? A path was opened and the intruders are making their way inside?" One of them guards spoke into a radio. "Damn it! We'll keep our positions here! All men, ready your weapons! We're going to offer them a pleasant greeting!" And then a grin from a few of them. "Hope they aren't allergic to bullets! ...Actually, let's hope they are!" And a collective laugh. Morons.

Mercade Alexander has posed:
Mercade twists, spinning the Keyblade as he struggles against the rifle. Sparks fly as Mercade is forced backwards. His technique is... not the best. It's clear he's not used to using the weapon even if it is powerful. As the arm comes in, Mercade yells and whips the Keyblade aside, barely knocking it aside to keep it from grappling him.

"GAH!" Mercade yells. "Who are you, anyway? Why do you care about Rhiannon?" Mercade says, bringing the Keyblade around to slash repeated crescent waves of multicolored light at the cybernetic being. "And why do you have all of those arms?"

He likes questions, okay?

Alise has posed:
"It would seem not," Alise says levelly, her stern glare fading into a blank mask. This is a duel between two professionals. Regardless of her feelings for that snake of a woman, she has been ordered to bring her back and her own personal sense of honor won't let her accept failure so easily. Or perhaps it's just some sort of unhealthy obession, a driving need to fulfill her obligations. Either way, there's no time to think about it now.

This time the Turk doesn't even bother to dodge. She holds her ground as the guard rushes her, knowing full well his intentions to use the weapon that's served him best thus far. Alise shields herself from the full brunt of the attack, crossing both arms infront of her body. The durable fabric of her suit blunts the assault somewhat but even through the hazy tingle of her drug-induced numbness she can feel the impacts rattling her bones.

As the guard draws within reach, she finally unleashes her own gambit. The lightning arcs into her body but instead of searing her flesh with magical voltage, the crackling bolts merely pass right through her as if she were a ghost. No, even worse than that - the magic flows into her body, spiderwebs of tiny blue bolts crawling across the surface of her skin.

"Sorry," she says, as her eyes begin to glow with a dull yellow light. "It's not going to be that easy."

Alise lurches forward, bringing her fist into the man's torso fast as greased lightning. The concealed blade snaps out again but this time instead of a single thrust she jams it into his body over and over, pumping the man full of deadly venoms. Her fist draws back a final time and she brings it home with a solid whump that rocks the entire building with kinetic force.

Warden Thache has posed:
Warden frowns just slightly as he finds his attacks parried. The pirate tilts his head to one side as Zerum speaks. "...hey now friend, you arn't planning on runnin--" Zerum leaves the magical equivelent of a dustcloud behind him. "...yes. I think he is. Come back here! You can't run in the middle of a fight!" He calls as he gives chase though the halls and corridors of the prison.

The glowing gauntlet on his hand shifts form to that of a glowing submachine guns and he sprays gunfire after the fleeing drow.

Not /accurate/ gunfire. In fact it seems to put more holes in walls than targets. It looks impressive however, and it keeps attention on him. He'll give chase for quite awhile, and do what he can to put many holes in many walls.

MEANWHILE!

Spooks continues to work, franticly pulling and pushing on tumblers in an attempt to get the shackles to click open. He's using all the distraction of the guards that he can against them. "So," He adds quietly. "Are you going to be able to handle yourself once I get these open, or am I going to have to try to deal with the guards with cunning and gas grenades?"

Vex has posed:
"The requested information is currently not available. Please fill out form Three-One-A, and submit to the indicated address." Her manipulator arm, as it's knocked away, reaches into her robes. There's a suspiciously printer-like sound, and she pulls out a form. The one-page document is in three point font, and the address is almost microscopic. It's offered rather gently to Mercade.

Then, she's hit neatly by the blade, and once more goes flying...straight through a wall. She lands with a thud of metal, and what may actually be a curse.

That grenade launcher goes off one final time, making a 'chunk' as her ammo finally runs out.

"...Praise the Machine. Blessed Ammo remaining: eighteen incendiary rifle rounds. Zero fragmentation grenades. One white phosphorous grenade."

Rhiannon Zellen has posed:
Alise somehow managed to survive the assault, which drew surprise out of the soldier. Even more when his lightning charged gambit was turned against him apparently. The counter attack came in full force, finally taking the resilient guard down. He laid upon the floor, bleeding with several puncture wounds and poisons flowing through his body. "....." Silence as he weakly lifted his communications radio. "...M-Mission failed...Shinra...Correspondant...incoming...." And with that, he let his arm fall, eyes closing. Was he dead? ...Nope. He breathing was there. If only slight. A medical team would get to him perhaps.

And with that, Alise was free to move onward.

MEANWHILE

Rhia remained quiet from then on, till the bonds were finally undone. With a faint click, and a whirr of steam, the halves separated, finally freeing her arms. With those out of the way, she stood, rubbing her wrists. "Hrm?" Spooks was given a brief look at the question. "Well, my magic has been drained. I have some physical prowess, but I am not fully up to form."

A smile followed that. "Therefore, I will leave things in your capable hands no doubt, but I can assist as necessary." A stare towards the cell door. "Shall we then?"

Not even a thank you.

Alise has posed:
Alise stares at the fallen body of her opponent with something akin to respect. But she doesn't have time to make sure he lives, she's already running on borrowed time. When those pain killers wear off... well, she'll keep going but it's not going to be pleasant. Then again, her work rarely can be described as such. Cleaning up after a corrupt government's dirty little secrets isn't the sort of thing most children dream about when they're sorting out what to do with their adult lives.

Unfortunately, the guard's final transmission means that there will be more people waiting for her, assuming the interlopers from outside haven't dealt with them yet. She motions to the ShinSec, who finally stop gaping at what they just witnessed and rush ahead to clear the way for her. Alise follows them at a steady pace, trying to keep her heart rate low so the medicine will last longer.

Mercade Alexander has posed:
Mercade looks at the papers handed to him with a blink. He pulls out a magnifying glass, letting the Keyblade hang in the air next to him as he zooms in. "What, are you kidding? I can't even follow the jargon in this. What kind of hellhole did you design this form in?"

He is answered with grenade. Mercade is sent flying, the forms smouldering as they flutter through the air and he hits the ground hard. The Keyblade flashes, the Detective having grabbed it in his passage as he flicks it at the rifle, sending several bullets flying out of the weapon's magazine. "I can't say that I understand you... But I will say this."

Mercade stands, energy gathering around him as he begins to focus himself. Gentle points of light flicker into existence, gathering around him in a faint aura. "I can't let this go on any longer."

Warden Thache has posed:
Warden slows down with a smirk on his lips as Zerum gets away from him. The pirate hovers there in midair for a moment, glancing down the ruined hallways with a soft chuckle bubbling out.

"Hrmmm. Well then. That was fun." He murmurs as he turns, pulling a little tracking device out of his pocket and starting to stroll towards where Spooks is currently helping the doctor out. It might take him a bit to get there but he strolls on. Leaving Zerun to run on his merry way.

Speaking of Spooks.

Urgh. Almost making the little guy do the heavy lifting. "Right then." He says stoutly as he fishes a small filter mask out of his satchel and passes it to Rhia. "Just hide next to the door and I'll see if I can clean the way out for the rest of your Shinra folks." Should Rhia make herself scarse? Spooks will walk up to the door to her cell and knock on it. Trying to get the guards attention, in his hot little paws are a pair of knock out grenades just waiting for them to open the door. "Cap'n says that there are enough holes in the outer walls that a small army could walk out without being missed. Think we arn't going to have a problem there." He adds as he waits.

Vex has posed:
The woman seems to be having a bit of trouble. Sparks come from beneath her robes, and she seems to be having trouble getting to her feet. She simply stares at Mercade for some time.

"...Critical levels of damage sustained. Mission moving beyond parameters. Evacuating."

With that, she starts to limp away towards her evacuation point. This time, it's her hand that reaches into her robes, and chucks a sizzling grenade in Mercade's direction.

It explodes with white fire.

Rhiannon Zellen has posed:
"Is that so?" Rhia did as she was asked of, stepped aside and letting Spooks knock on the cell door.

"Huh? A knock? From the cell?" One of the guards turned around, opening the door cell door cautiously, and clearly bewildered by the situation. ...Only to find a racoon on it's hind legs. "......HUH? What the hell are yo-wait..." Silence. ...More silence. "GRENADES." He called out to the others in a panic. There was a scramble at that point as several of the guards on point retreated down the hall and out of the blast zone, only to find...Warden. "Another intruder! Don't hesitate, men! Riddle him with bullets!" A bunch of them took aim, fingers moving for the triggers, but for the quick-footed Warden, they may well have been moving in slow motion...

"Oh my..." Rhiannon giggled to herself as the ensuing chaos took place, a hand resting against her cheek. "This is quite amusing, I must say."

For now, it would seem that the soldiers had retreated out of their way in the meantime...and right into Warden. Another attachment retreated in the other direction, finding themselves face to face with Alise. "...It's the Shinra correspondant!" And they took aim as well. "Stop where you are!" ...These ones looked far less capable than the man she'd taken out earlier.

Mercade Alexander has posed:
The white phosphorous grenade detonates, the flame scorching past Mercade as he leaps backwards. The edges of the detonation blacken his coat and body, causing him to land with a wince. He's going to be feeling this one in the morning... He looks up under the brim os his hat at the retreating Vex. "No." Mercade says. "You do not get to walk in here and talk about killing people and then just walk off."

Energy focuses around him as he raises his Keyblade, pouring his Will and Heart into his weapon as he calls out to it... And through it, Power responds. There is a shearing beam of white light that explodes upwards as he raises it to the darkened sky, a bolt that pierces the darkness and slams down around Vex, six white cylinders radiating power and crackling with fence-like arcs of energy as they rotate, drawing inwards to hem in and lock down Vex.

"You want to get into the jail? Allow me to assist." Mercade says, before he hurls the Keyblade into the air.

It hangs over Vex, a sizzling point of light gathering at the end of the Keyblade. A pencil-thin beam fires downwards, coruscating with energy as it grows, Mercade pouring everything he has into the magical strike. The beam widens, engulfing the gave in a column of light... And the Keyblade descends, slamming downwards to strike the ground in a silent implosion.

Alise has posed:
Alise isn't in the mood for being nice anymore, that luxury has been taken away from her. She motions to the ShinSec and they open fire on the guards, displaying the incredible skill and precision for which Midgar's elite fighting force is known, dispatching them in short order. The small group continues along their predetermined route and within a minute they stand before the the helpfully labeled high security prison ward.

Once again, the soldiers lead the way to help ease the burden on their escort but the majority of the guards have been called away by the battle or taken out through the trickery of Warden and his little helper.

Alise drops out of her measured jog, covering her face with a handkerchief quickly as the gas billows out of one of the cells not far away. The vapor irritates her eyes but she's been trained to deal with such things.

"Doctor Zellen? Are you there?"

Vex has posed:
Caught neatly in the column, the woman seems to concentrate. Electricity dances around her entire body, her sparks only increasing as light blast down into her. When it all ends, there's the scent of fried cloth, flesh, and machinery. But the woman still stands. Two of her robotic appendages are smoking. The last one reaches up to the beams...and ignites. Black smoke fills the area. There's a hissing sound...and then a flaring of what sounds distinctly like a jetpack. Vex rockets into the sky...for about fifteen seconds. She's forced to abort a bit, sending her kareening towards her evacuation point. Face first! Wham!

Warden Thache has posed:
"Gentlemen!" Warden greets the fellows with the guns with a smile as they stare in shock at the cat captain. "If you pardon me. I don't have time to play anymore!" The cat raises the pistol-like weapon and it empties bright purple death into the cluster of guards as the cat rakes his aim though the few poor men left there. Not all of those are kill shots, but all of them are ment to put the people down.

He doesn't have time he wants to waste either.

Whisling as he strolls though the carnage he kicks one man that might have been either twitching or reaching for a com system to put him back on the ground.

On he trots as he spots the billowing gas that he knows oh so well. "Ah ha! Spooks! Well done!" He calls out as he rounds the corner, waving his left hand as if a magician as the pistol returns to a simple purple bracelet. "Rhiannon? I trust my friend took good care of--" Alise breaks around the corner and the cat spins to face her only to smile a lopsided smile.

"And...Alise wasn't it? Miss 'you should smile more'." He winks once towards her. "After you my dear."

Rhiannon Zellen has posed:
"Oh?" Rhia arched a brow at a familiar voice down the hall and poked her head out of her cell after Spooks, to see Alise and several Shinsec guards coming. "Well now. You are rather late. But nonetheless, I suppose your efforts should be...applauded." A smirk followed that statement, having assessed the Turk's current condition.

And then Warden. "Aha, the captain himself has come. How dashing." Couldn't tell if that was genuine, or some kind of joke. But nonetheless, she let her arms slip into her sleeves as she looked between Alise and Warden.

"...So, am I correct in assuming that this is some manner off prison break?" Her smile grew a little at that. "You realize this will be a nightmare, yes?"

Not that she cared.

"Shall we then?"

Alise has posed:
Even if she wanted to smile right now, which is bloody unlikely considering the flippant pirate and woman responsible for her current unpleasant situation are both in the same place, she's too far in the zone to worry about such trivial displays of emotion. It might just be the painkillers.

"If you have a way out," she says, glancing to Warden without bothering to answer Rhiannon's jab. "I'm all ears."

The ShinSec troopers move to the Turk's rear, keeping an eye on the hallway incase more guards show up, their senses far more alert than hers at the moment. Infact, she's starting to get a little dizzy. Not much time left.

"But be quick about it," she adds.

Warden Thache has posed:
"There are enough holes in the outer walls that the place looks like a cheese wedge my dear," Warden drawls with a slight shrug of his shoulders. "I can lead you out one in the side walls. This way if you would."

He smirks slightly at Rhiannon's description of dashing and in a moment actually offers the doctor his arm as if escorting her out of a ball and not out of a jailbreak.

"Of course it will." A smirk. "You're involved." He winks once towards her before gesturing out in the other direction, and presumeably freedom. "Now. We shall."

Rhiannon Zellen has posed:
Warden's arm was taken, going with the joke all the while. "Well now, come along Alise, it would not do for you to be left behind, mhmhmhm~" And a chuckle followed that.

And soon enough, they were off, leaving a ruined prison facility, and an impending PR nightmare in their wake. There were incapacitated soldiers all around, there were massive holes in walls everywhere, and the director had to be hospitalized.

...All in a day's work apparently.