Wednesday, March 12, 2014

Dreams of Stars Part 19


            L’lorne stood against the darkened wall of the Asylum and waited for the guard up in the tower to turn away.  He would, eventually, or she’d make him if need be.  She looked towards the old house, double checking that Deborah was fast asleep.  Leaving the girl behind on this midnight expedition was necessary.  Sure, they knew her mother had been brought here, and probably still was, but what else was inside?  L’lorne had to know before they went in, because if Ritch 'arrd was inside, all her plans could be ruined.

            That and it was fun to play the role of a cat burglar.  The guard had turned away, and L’lorne quickly climbed up the bare concrete wall with her bare hands.  Her fingers barely touched the rock as she pulled herself up and over, finally landing on the other side of the wall without even an audible thud.  A quick dash across the small courtyard and a quick flash through the door’s electronic lock and she was inside.

            Her examination of David Engera’s plans, as well as those she had complied with her own sensors, had confirmed the multiple layers of security the building had been built with.  Redundancies were everywhere, electronic locks backed with old fashioned key locks and simple detectors and cameras.  Some of the systems looked practically medieval, but they worked perfectly well with the more advanced systems, allowing nearly total control of the facility and those inside.

            None of which could actually stop L’lorne.  As she passed by cameras, she directed them to not see her or her actions.  Doors and locks gave way with a simple touch, and sensors were overridden with a mere look.  The hardest thing to get around was the multitude of guards that strolled the halls.  L’lorne used the great skill of misdirection and her own gymnastic abilities to overcome this obstacle, though she did consider simply killing her way through.

            That would spoil everything, though.  Killing people would throw everything into chaos, and it would be impossible to get Deborah in through all this, and there was the chance that her mother would be moved as the panic increased.  Better to do it the silent, stealthy way.

            Tomorrow, she and Deborah would be back, first walking through the front door, just as they did at the CDPC, then breaking off from their intended path and finding their way to the secured area Engera had highlighted.  It might even be a good idea to be a touch lost, so Deborah can help find their way through the building.  Yes, that would be good.

            How to get around the guards with her though?  L’lorne considered this as she braced herself against the ceiling, disappearing from their view.  Fighting them wouldn't really be a challenge, but doing this trick with the girl in tow would be nearly impossible.  Also fighting them would help endear her to Deborah that much more.  Of course, she would have to not kill them to do it, or make it appear that way at least.

            The hallways were well marked and brightly lit. It was built like a professional, modern incarceration facility, not some gloomy dungeon as the exterior suggested.  The density of the guards seemed to grow as L’lorne got deeper inside, and nearer her goal.  Perhaps fighting them would be too much.  Disguises might prove more effective for the distance and time they would need to spend inside.  Fighting their way out would seem more plausible than fighting their way in at the very least.  L’lorne backtracked a bit, noting the locations of various laundries and locker rooms.  The problem would be getting Deborah into a uniform, as they were very, very unlikely to come in her size.

            Checking the map, L’lorne found she was right in front of the hallway down to the most secure section of the Asylum.  The doors were locked with a combination of electronic and mechanical locks, locked in a tandem system.  The guard in the nearby booth, that had suddenly developed a blind spot where L’lorne was now standing, held one set of keys while the authorized person held another set.  Turned together, they would easily open the door.

            This presented a problem.  They would only have one set of keys.  Teaching Deborah how to pick locks was a possibility, as was simply making a key, but neither seemed all that interesting.  As she thought on the options, the door clacked open, and she had to step aside, then dive in quickly behind the leaving person.  He looked to be either a doctor or a scientist, standard white lab coat and all.  Before slipping in, L’lorne stealthed up.

            It was a good thing, the hallway ended only a few meters in at yet another door guarded by a pair of heavily armed guards.  Neither saw as L’lorne approached them, studying their weapons and gear as she did.  A scan of the walls reveled a sequence of retracted wall partitions that opened to create a staggered pattern to the hallway.  It would slow any attacker or escapee, while giving the guards a smaller area to concentrate fire and extra cover from armed opponents.  “Very clever,” L’lorne whispered.  Neither guard heard her.

            These two could come in handy, and she touched each on the shoulder, attaching an invisible, but very potent, line to their nervous systems.  On command they would become her willing puppets, a perfect diversion for responding guards to run into.  She then pushed the door open that was held by just as complicated a lock system as everything else, and entered the room.

            The room was big, just as the plans had said, but it was also densely packed with equipment, especially a dozen giant cylindrical structures that dominated the room.  Each one a maze of pipes, wires, control panels and displaces.  L’lorne was about to check the contents when a loud clang drew her attention to the large air vent just to the left of the door.

            “Deborah?”


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Questions

1. What kind of person is Lcorn Llorne? What does she look like (in your mind)?
2. What kind of person is the Deborah Ignigus? What does she look like (in your mind)?
3. Does the setting seem fitting? Would you like to know more?

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