[Infernal Prisoner] Wrath Brings Forth Blood

[Oshiro Saki]

Ayumu agreed to Kosei's idea of splitting up to cover all their bases. Although it made more sense that the artifact would be kept on a lower level, there was always the chance that it wasn't, and that's what Ayumu was making sure of. And, if it turned out that the artifact wasn't there, he could always just start breaking things and blame the Bakufu for it.... that was one of their secondary objectives, to stir up a conflict bewtween the parties. Kosei thought it would be beneficial to follow his AiT partner's lead and disguise himself as a Bakufu soldier, one that he had seen on the way in, as it seemed that the blame of the attack/snatching of the guantlet would be placed on them. He assumed that Gin would transform as well.

Despite how incredibly low the two must have been going into the earth, it felt to Kosei like it only got hotter, though as they descended it also got easier to breath. The tightness of the staircase left him feeling alone, despite the close proximity of his leader, right behind him. It was so quiet, even with the nearly silent footsteps as they struck the metal grated steps, and instilled a certain feeling of fear in the AiT... not that he was afraid of the enclosed space... but becaus ehe was afraid of the silence.

You know that ringing sound you percieve when you're in a quiet area? Some people say it's an auditory illusion brought about by the inner ear's ability to detect frequencies below the threshhold of human senses. This is completely wrong. That ringing covers up something else alltogether. If you are quick, patient, and maybe a little lucky, you will be able to hear past the ringing. What you will hear are voices whispering to each other. THey will silence themselves quickly, but with practice, you will become more adept at catching and interpretting what they are saying. You will hear things of the past, the present, and the future. However, you must be careful. There is no such thing as a voice without a body. And when you start noticing them, they will start noticing you.

At least, that's the story his dad would always tell him to scare him. It still creeped him out to this day.

Anyways, once the two finally reached the bottom of the stairs, they were in an enormous amphitheater type of room, near the top, on a balcony. A solitary guard stood between them and complete stealth. A lamp on the wall lit the landing.

OOC: I'm assuming the guard has his back to the lamp.

BIC: Kosei elected to not use his scimitar to take down this guard, and instead went for a more crude method to take him out. Kosei silently landed on the floor, the guard's back to him. Kosei croouched and sneaked up behind the man, so as not to allow his shadow to be visible by his victim. Once he was close enough, he stood straight up and put his left hand around the man's mouth and the other on the top left of his head. About one hundred and sixty-eight newtons to the left later, the man fell to the floor, neck broken. Kosei looked over at Gin, to see what she was up to.

 

[Santaru Rin]

Ayumu crept through the corridors, testing a few doors as he went. Nothing hinted at the location of the gauntlets. He found a mess hall, guard rooms, and even a few bunk rooms along many mostly empty offices and cleared rooms with no determinable purpose. At the four ordinal points of the building, he found stairwells. Eventually, he gave up on the ground floor and ascended the northeastern stairs. The steps were reinforced with a flange of iron, forcing him to take extra caution in his movements lest he be heard. Daylight filtered in through the many small arrow slits; the wind wheezed in and out of these, bringing with it the scent of winter. The next floor was a few landings up. As he climbed, Ayumu noticed movement through one of the slits--a small group of irregulars was approaching the redoubt. They were not Bakufuu men, and they certainly were not samurai.

Below, Gin arranged the corpse on the chair, tying the unfortunate soul into position with a few cords so that a casual observer wouldn't notice that the guard was missing from his post. She looked at Kosei and shrugged.

An unsecured stair leading down would take them inside the structure they now stood on with the dead body. The light picked them out clearly; it would be in their best interest to have a lower profile if they wanted to leave mostly unnoticed. Gin gestured toward the steps. They would have to descend to search for the gauntlets--it was probably better not to try to rappel down the strange building...

The interior of the odd tower had an almost organic feeling design. Soft, highly polished stone took on such visceral shape that it almost seemed as though one was traveling through the petrified organs of some gigantic beast. The corridors were rounded, and the rooms were like chambers of a huge heart. All lines here curved, culminating in fine, rounded edges. The building was clearly occupied, as the interior was illuminated with mis-matched braziers and candelabras which had left soot stains behind. They seemed so ill-matched to the structure that they were certainly something brought by the occupying Cabal. Lingering groups of twos and threes through the structure would require Kosei and Gin to evade them to avoid detection... Or to accost them and risk alarm. The place seemed important enough--the armed men here talked in hushed tones, and within more than one repurposed office, soft conversation flowed between aged warriors of poise.... If the gauntlet was anywhere, it was somewhere in this building--and guarded.

 

[Kogami Ayumu]

Why was this place so empty? It was strange, Ayumu had to say. After giving the first floor a fairly thorough search he found nothing and nobody. There were stairs, however, which led him to think there was a possibility that someone might be upstairs. He decided to ascend one of the stairwells, expanding his search but stopped when something caught his eye through one of the slit-like windows. Outside, a group of men was approaching the redoubt. They were dressed like neither the Bakufu or Cabal men which led Ayumu to believe they were with Ryuu's forces. 'They're inside the walls? I thought both forces were negotiating.... then again, Takayama said that might be over by the time we got here. Hm. If they were to come in here, perhaps the Cabal and Ryuu's lackies would blame one another for the gauntlet's disappearance,' Ayumu thought as he started out the window at the soldiers below.

He decided this was a good idea, and if not that, an entertaining one and descended the stairs returning to the room he'd come from and opened the door and the hatch to make it stand out. He returned to the main entrance to the redoubt and paused for a moment to quietly unlock the door, then pushed them open just a crack to let the men outside in and immediately sprinted back to the room with the hatch. On the way he created a clone with the appearance of a Cabal soldier while he himself remained in active camo. The clone would pause outside the door to the hatch until one of the invading soldiers spotted him, then run inside, at which point Ayumu would dispel the clone. Meanwhile, Ayumu himself would simply be making sure nobody ran in to his invisible body before the clone led the soldiers to the hatch. Hopefully they would assume that he descended in to the hatch.

Mischief managed, Ayumu would find a set of stairs and start up them waiting until he was alone to give the other two an update through the radio. "Hey... just a heads up, there may be some of Ryuu's soldiers heading down there... hopefully they and the Cabal will be too busy with each other to notice some invisible people, eh?" he'd whisper through his headset before moving upstairs to continue his search for the gauntlet- or any more shenanigans he could get up to.

 

[Santaru Rin]

The Ryuu mercenaries frantically scattered to cover upon seeing the main fortified door of the redoubt open a crack. Ayumu moved on after he set his plan into motion, letting the gamble play out as it would. Thus, unseen to our heroes, the mercenaries approached the doors from the sides, sneaking ever-so-carefully to test the waters of what they perceived as a trap. The irregulars were professional despite their mismatched gear and treated the set-up with a great air of superstition... But greed spurred them on, even into what could have been mortal danger. Soon, a handful of mercs were descending down into the earth's innards.

On the next floor, Ayumu found that the layout now included two separate armories, quarters for low-ranked officers, and a kitchen and mess hall. He found a single samurai dozing in a room just off the corridor facing opposite the fortress's main gates.

The third floor, however, held something more interesting... The controls for the fortress's mirror-based signaling system.

 

[Kogami Ayumu]

Ayumu was pleased to see the mercenaries took the bait, entering the redoubt. He hadn't expected them to pour in recklessly, but he figured they'd go for it once they realized that it was apparently safe. They couldn't pass up such a golden opportunity when they'd been locked out for however long. They moved in to the fortress, and some even entered the hatch. With any luck, they would soon run in to a few samurai. Pleased with the results for the moment, Ayumu moved upstairs to see what else he could get up to. The second floor was uneventful aside from a slumbering samurai. He made a note to see if he could use that later, but the mercenaries would probably find him soon if he didn't wake up. This was none of Ayumu's concern, so he moved to the third floor.

He cautiously moved up the stairs and searched the third floor until he came upon something very interesting. 'Hmm, what's this? Jackpot,' he thought as he made sure no one was around and approached the mirror signaling system. Of course he wasn't immediately sure what to do with it. If possible, he wanted to signal more Cabal to come and mix it up with the mercenaries for added chaos, assuming that they were using this signaling system. He'd adjust the mirror to send a signal of S.O.S. to the nearest tower in hopes that he would invite some attention from the Cabal. If nobody seemed to be coming, he would try signaling another tower or building until they sent someone to investigate the redoubt... and find the mercenaries.

 

[Oshiro Saki]

What Kosei didn't think of, Gin did. She crudely tied the now dead soldier to the chair in a make-shift attempt to keep him upright, so he appeared alive... sorta. The idea was to trick people far away, not people looking right at him. Even though the guard was tied to the chair, it was difficult to get his head to remain upright, especially with a broken neck. The best that the two could do was lean in backwards on the chair's back, with the result making him look as though he'd fallen asleep. If someone were too far away, they wouldn't be able to tell this, but if someone got closer up, it could buy Kosei and Gin precious seconds that they might need later on.

The stair leading down into the amphitheater looked... fishy. Kosei assumed that they must have been trustworthy, as they appeared to be the only way to and from the ground to the balcony, but they seeemed... open. Exposing. THe AiT got the idea of using chakra to walk down the side of the wall, even though it looked extremely smooth. In reality, it didn't matter how smooth or how rough the surface was, any shinobi worth his salt could walk up it or down it or any which direction; Kosei simply noted how smooth it was. In fact, the entire room was smooth. And now that he thought about it... there didn't seem to be a very defined wall, as opposed to a cieling or a floor. They all curved together to make one big piece of whatever the room was made out of. The odd shape of the room was offputing as well. Why would an underground bunker be created like this?

What weird architecture. Kosei thought.

Not knowing what to expect from the stairs, Kosei remembered that they had to play the role of non-shinobi. Meaning, if something were wrong with the stairs, they needed to fall for whatever traps, if any, accompanied them. If they didn't then it would clue them in as to who may have stolen the artifact, or at least hint them in Kumo's direction. And that was a big no-no. Sighing inaudibly, Kosei took the lead down the stairs, Active Camo still... well, active.

As it turned out, the stairs were fine. Kosei felt a little silly now, but you can never be too prepared for anything when you're an ANBU (or at least in training). Whispers could be heard from many directions, as small groups of twos and threes patroled the area. The two ANBU went straight through the room, stopping and avoiding patrols when they drew near, giving them ample space to avoid detection. It really wouldn't have mattered even if they had passed two feet from the Kumo-nin; Active Camo is an excellent cloaking technique. THht was, unless there was a Sensory-type ninja in their presense. Even though there weren't supposed to be any shinobi in the midst of this "third party," as I said before, an ANBU can never be too cautious. Kosei kept at the ready every step of the way.

 

[Santaru Rin]

The redoubt's signaling system blinked to life. A lamp hissed to flame, illuminating its cage of mirrors. The reflected light bounced to the gatehouse, where another set of mirrors split the captured light and sent it to each of the bastions around the walls, and to the outlying towers beyond--except where such structures had crumbled, leaving nothing to capture the signs. Nearby buildings' systems activated as well, and soon distress signs were blowing up the hillside, so to speak.

Beyond the confines of the fortress, both encamped armies took note of the sudden burst of telegraph activity. Scouts were drawn back from the hill and spies doubled down on their covers. The two factions rumbled to uneasy readiness, uncertain of whether they would be fighting each other or someone else. Small teams were dispatched to seek discreet entry to the fortress.

Within the fortress, the few samurai on alert surface-side soon noticed the lights. Radios came to life...

Down below, Kosei and Gin paused outside of a large room with a rather complex door. Who put such mechanisms in place if they weren't meant to guard something? A barred slit showed that there was a light on in there, meaning that someone or something occupied it. If the gauntlet was something valuable, it made sense to investigate this spot. First, though, the duo would have to do something about the door--quickly and quietly.

Spoiler

Once you have opened the door via the method of your choice:

A wooden altar upon a dais on the left side of the room held a pair of articulated gauntlets. They were somewhat small, fit for a boy not in his full growth or perhaps for a woman. The iron armor radiated subtle malice, not unlike a Jounin's killing intent. Two sconces to either side provided illumination; a window on the outer wall provided a glimpse into the rest of the great caverns, suggesting that there were more wonders and horrors here yet to be investigated... But now was not the time.

Outside, Kosei could hear the hiss of a radio and padding feet coming closer. Gin motioned for him to hurry...

Cabal forces are about to converge on Kosei and Gin's position now that their topside security is aware of someone playing with the signals. The Bakufuu and Ryuu mercenaries are sending in teams to investigate and engage--each other or anyone else they find. The mercenary team has penetrated the underbelly of the fortress.

Retrieve the gauntlet and make your exfiltration post. You may mod Gin doing reasonable things, Kosei. This is the time to make your really sweet epic post if you want it. You can choose to kill the mercenary team that has already gotten into the bunker, or you can avoid them. Once you have made your post and exited the topic, post in your gates exit/briefing topic to deliver the gauntlets to Takayama.

 

[Kogami Ayumu]

'NOW we're talkin,' Ayumu thought as the mirror signaling system came to life. He began systematically signaling all the towers he could see, stirring up the hornet's nest as much as he could to get the fortress in full chaos mode. All they would know, if Kosei and Gin were successful below, is that the gauntlet had gone missing and only two factions were present inside the fortress: Ryuu's goonies and the samurai. The shinobi were silent, hidden, and they would never have a lick of proof that they had been responsible. He only regretted there was no way to draw the two camps outside in to full conflict, but they had almost assuredly taken notice that something was happening in the fortress.

Now Ayumu needed to get out of here. He had coaxed those mercenaries in to going down in to the tunnel, so using the same path they had didn't seem like the brightest idea. He also wasn't sure he would be able to remember the way they came, as he had been blindly following Gin before. Going down the stairs, Ayumu descended to the first floor, carefully peeking around corners before making his move, even if he was invisible. Once he reached the first floor he slipped out the doors before investigating samurai arrived.

'Now, how should I get out of here?' he thought, glancing around. There was always the front gate, but it was closed. There was the gatehouse next to it, probably having a method of opening the gate, but it was undoubtedly occupied. Plus, how would it be explained that they opened the gate? He wanted to do something with it, but it was too risky. Instead, he went to a wall of the fortress that was in the shade and applied chakra to his feet and hands, then began to scale the wall using his chakra to stick with it. Along with his cloaking, he figured this would be a decent way to get out unseen. Once he reached the top, he would go over and scale the side downwards. Assuming he scaled the wall in peace, he would head towards the location where they tied up their horses and wait to meet up with Gin and Kosei.

Ayumu reached the site where they had left their horses not long after escaping the fortress. Gin and Kosei had already arrived which Ayumu was glad to see. Better yet, they had the gauntlet. The mission was a success, though only time would tell if they had managed to keep suspicion off of the shinobi. Hopefully the chaos that had erupted before their escape had done enough to cast the factions suspicions on one another. Ayumu fastened the horse's feed bag to the saddle and climbed up, preparing for the journey home. It would be a bit more swift than the journey there, but they still needed to remain out of sight, lest they be implicated in the pilfering of the gauntlet. Soon enough, they would reach the gates.

[Topic Left]

 

[Oshiro Saki]

Once Kosei and Gin crossed the room, they were met with an incredibly large wall (of course), but that wasn't what Kosei was focusing on. No, he was looking at the large vault door on the wall. It seemed impenetrable, if breaking it open was to be the method of getting passed it. It had to have been a foot thick, with a locking system that would have made Houdini second guess trying to open it. An ever so light, chakra-infused, inaudible tap on the door by Kosei inticated that it was reinforced steel, and it would only open one of two ways: Either the door was unlocked, or the wall around it was destroyed. Kosei shoot his head Looks like I'm gonna have to use Ninjutsu for this one... Hopefully nobody catches on. he though to himself, weaving a few hand signs before placing his right index finger to the lock.

Behind him, Kosei heard radio static, and words came through indicating that there was trouble on the outside of the fortress Looks like Ayumu did his part. Unfortunately, it would make things harder for the other AiT to actually get the gauntlets, assuming that they were in this locked room. But, as luck would have it, the few guards holding the room had a bit of a blond moment. Instead of staying by the vault, they got up and headed towards the outside of the fortress... at first. It was only about ten seconds before three or four turned back, emembering that they had an important artifact to guard, but in those few short moments Kosei had used magnetism jutsu to maneuver the lock not-so-silently into a correct position, thereby unlocking the door and opening it. It was around this time that Kosei remembered they key ring he'd taken... Ah, well. he thought.

Samurai guards ran across the room when they noticed that the door was opened.

Inside the room, Kosei heard the guards coming, so he knew he needed to be quick. He had even less time than he thought he would have. To the left, he saw an altar made of somewhat rotted wood, upon which were two silver gauntlet. Bingo. Kosei ran up the few steps of the pedastal to the altar and grabbed the two pieces, which disappeared as soon as he touched them, vanishing in his ANBU jutsu. He paused for a moment. Kosei thought that... they didn't... I don't know, feel right. They felt like they might have been alive somehow, like they had an energy all their own. Kosei didn't have a lot of time to think about it much. The guards were closer now.

Reaching for Gin, Kosei found her with his hand (as she was still invisible). Kosei formulated a plan then and there as to how they would escape. It was crude, and definitely not how he would do things if he weren't trying to make as much ruckus as possible, but it would work... in theory. Kosei uncloaked, and motioned for his superior to do the same. Catching his drift, Gin reappeared, then immediately transformed into a another Bakufu soldier, like Kosei and Ayumu had before. Without skipping a beat, the guards burst into the room, and the two were discovered.

Kosei reached into a belt pouch and jumped to his left, dodging a slash from one of the guard's katanas. Gin also dodged. From his pouch, Kosei pulled a cylindrical device, which he tossed in the direction of the guards before he and his partner both shut their eyes and plugged their ears. That device, a flashbang, exploded almost directly next to two of the guards, and relatively close to the other two. When Kosei opened his eyes, he noted that three guards had bleeding ears, and all were blinded, with one randomly swinging his sword in a vain attempt to hit something. The AiT burglar purposely dropped the keyring as he and Gin fled out of the room, up the stairs, and back out the tunnels from which they came, miraculously avoiding anymore patrols or alerted guards. They escaped out that hole they came in, into the snow, still disguised as Bakufu, then sprinted towards their steeds (Destroy Presence still cleaning up after them).

When they arrived shortly thereafter, they met up with Ayumu, who appeared unharmed, though a little shaken up. Or maybe he was just excited... whatever. "And thus concludes our field trip, class. What did we all learn today?" Kosei remarked sarcastically, before taking off with Gin leading the two AiT back to Kumo, away from the fortress, gautlets on hand.

[TL]
[MFT]