Mark
Experienced
Former Animorph of Arbella
I don't care how much it costs, even my life... They will burn for what they've done.
Posts: 48
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Post by Mark on Jul 29, 2009 14:13:52 GMT -5
"Doves and pigeons are different in name only, a dust bath should be enough to make you look like one of the natives, or maybe just a lose wedding dove. Nah, if they decide 'hey, lets search him' I don't want you to be there for them to find." Except it's too late for pigeons to blend, or really fly comfortably. Maybe if... His eyes, narrowed in thought shot open at what Hope said.
"Skunk? As in 'defence so rank it drives away bears' skunk? If you don't mind me saying so you'd be an admirable bio-weapon for an escape attempt. If you don't mind the possibility of getting shot at while you're firing." He smiled and knelt down to drawn in the muck at their feet with a short stick.
"Alright, here's the compound, the buildings and those doors that I saw earlier." A few boxes and a rough circle made a poor facsimile of what they could see. "Do either of you know how to fire a gun or anything like that?... Nevermind. We need a scout to search for retreat options as well as guard positions, vehicles, you get the idea. We also need a lookout to make sure that the..." He cleared his throat sheepishly "The bait doesn't get shot to pieces, drugged, or shipped off somewhere that the others can't follow. Also needs to be able to provide distraction or help in escape if needed." He took a deep breath before saying the last part. "In the event that one of us dies someone needs to report to the police and SPECTER at the soonest opportunity." Even though if either of them go, I'm not going to follow my own advice. "No blaze of glory heroics, just make sure that someone knows. Hypocrite.
I already know my job, get captured, see who and what I can see and talk to some if I can. Get out at first opportunity. Have to leave my phone and binoculars here though. Can probably keep the cigs.
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Rox
Experienced
Animorph of Arbella
World peace? More like world piece.
Posts: 140
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Post by Rox on Jul 30, 2009 2:57:22 GMT -5
It seemed Mark had quite a talent for strategy. She could see why SPECTER would recruit him. She didn't mind his suggestion of getting dirty to disguise herself so she merely nodded her acceptance of that part of the plan.
"I can be the scout, or whatever. I should be able to see a lot from the air. At least the stuff that is outside. And I think a skunk would be better at being an emergency distraction anyway." Rox chose not to comment on the plan of what to do if something went wrong. She didn't want to think about it. Besides, this wouldn't be too hard, right?
"So you think you will be able to morph a bug and sneak out? Because I really doubt they will just let you escape as is." Rox was already morphing as she asked her question. She just wanted to get this done and over with. She disliked prolonging uncomfortable situations and risking your life was definitely uncomfortable.
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Hope
Experienced
Animorph of Arbella
You'll never let them say, "You'll never get that far."
Posts: 24
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Post by Hope on Jul 30, 2009 21:20:38 GMT -5
Hope nodded at Marks question about her skunk morph. It hadn't exactly been a fun morph to acquire, but she'd caught it on the job. She'd been assigned a job working for the wildlife rescue agency here in Arbella, and the skunk had been one of the first animals she's helped rescue. It had been all to easy to decide to acquire it, since she'd figured it had a defensive mechanism if nothing else in it's favor.
"Well," she said, "the skunk can certainly be a back-up option. I don't mind getting shot at so long as nothing is fatal. I can get rid of the damage otherwise." But she didn't know where she fit into the plan otherwise. Mark was the bait. Rox was either the scout or the lookout. Hope.... had a skunk morph that really didn't give her a lot of options.
"What should I do? I suppose I could try and find something around here to morph and blend in, but I can't be the scout or lookout in skunk form without being suspicious. I really don't think they'd believe a wild animal wandered into the city and then right into their midst." If they believe that, they've got to be pretty dumb. Though, I could just be pessimistic.
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Mark
Experienced
Former Animorph of Arbella
I don't care how much it costs, even my life... They will burn for what they've done.
Posts: 48
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Post by Mark on Aug 2, 2009 14:08:13 GMT -5
He blinked as he considered the options. "I... don't actually know what lives around here... You might be able to morph one of them, or Rox maybe?" He made a point to ignore the almost inevitable outcry at such an option. "I dunno, skunks look alot like cats if you've never seen a real one. Maybe just keep your little dark furred self in the shadows and demorph if you think it'll help? I've heard you practicing and I know you could hurt someon." And I'm useless unless you get me a gun or a detonator... Bad time to mention that.
With a shrug and a worried look he made his way up the stairs to get changed into the rags he'd brought with him the first time. On his way, he wiped his hands along the handrail to pick up any grime he could before wiping his hands on his face. It made him gag, but it could have been worse. Then, focused on the goal at hand, he began to change clothes. When this is over I'm going to take several showers. Especially after rolling in the gutter myself.
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Rox
Experienced
Animorph of Arbella
World peace? More like world piece.
Posts: 140
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Post by Rox on Aug 3, 2009 10:06:36 GMT -5
Rox laughed inwardly as Hope said she didn't mind being shot at. Yeah right. Everyone minds being shot at. However, Rox's mild amusement quickly faded as Mark mentioned that Hope could acquire Rox. She immediately stared daggers at him with her half-morphed eyes. Nobody was going to steal Rox's DNA. Not if she had something to say about it. Besides, even if doing so would keep Hope's identity secret, Rox's identity would still be given away, even if indirectly.
<<You aren't morphing me. It wouldn't solve our problems at all anyway. And I don't know how we are supposed to get close enough to acquire one of them without acquiring a pair of handcuffs or a bullet to the brain ourselves. Besides, even if they do see a skunk, it isn't as if they are going to immediately assume you are an animorph. Wild animals wander into cities all the time. Hasn't a raccoon ever knocked over your garbage can? Or haven't you ever seen one of those stories on the news where a bear gets stuck in a tree in the middle of town?>>
Rox paused for a moment, realizing that she was getting a bit carried away. <<Anyway, stop worrying so much. All we're doing is taking a quick look around anyway, right?>> Now that she was fully morphed, Rox fluttered up off the ground and landed on the railing for the stairway Mark had climbed. That way she wouldn't have to look up quite so much as they talked.
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Hope
Experienced
Animorph of Arbella
You'll never let them say, "You'll never get that far."
Posts: 24
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Post by Hope on Aug 4, 2009 10:35:39 GMT -5
Hope shrugged her shoulders. She'd more been thinking she should morph a bird for the sake of getting above the situation, but it seem Mark and Rox figured morphing "Pepé Le Pew" would work for this job. Also, it seemed mark thought having her on the ground was a good idea, in case things escalated to a fight.
"Alright," she said, "but Rox is going to be the lookout then. She'll have a better view of things from the air than I will from the ground." With that she started morphing, the black and white fur spreading across her. This morph was fortunate that it couldn't smell itself. It was somehow immune to it's own stink, which was the only reason Hope could tolerate morphing something that smelled so bad.
<<I really need another morph, esspecially before we ever come face to face with Sarah. I'm sure my skunk will work wonders against whatever she used to kill all of them.>> She paused though. <<You know, they never said she did it singlehandedly. Do you suppose she could have had others on her side that got killed in the brawl? It would explain her being the only survivor with that mouse morph of hers.>>
Well, it hardly mattered. They hadn't gone searching for Sarah yet and the point was to focus on the current mission at hand. She stopped thinking and finished the morph, glancing around once she was fully a skunk. Mostly she was trying to get used to the animal's horrible eyesight, part of why she practiced morphing it. <<Right then, Mark. I'm ready. Let me know when to head in.>>
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Post by arin on Aug 4, 2009 23:39:01 GMT -5
«A drug dealer seven blocks north of Belmont Road. A girl, university age, travelling south on Jake Berenson Highway.»
"I don't need a running commentary in my head," Darwin muttered snippily, tossing around on his makeshift bed, but it was no use. Orkath's thought-speak voice was feint, at the limits of the thought speak range, and it was highly unlikely that he could hear a verbal response. Morphing just to gain the thought-speak ability crossed the boy's mind, but it was a physically exerting task, counterproductive towards getting any sleep at all. And he really, really wanted to go to sleep.
«Three warehouse workers on break,» Orkath continued, his thought-speak voice getting closer. At least the bird-Yeerk was near the end of his rounds. «Three teenagers huddled on the side of a building. A sm... wait a minute, that's interesting.»
"What's interesting?" Darwin wondered aloud, half-curious now. Orkath so rarely found things interesting.
Orkath didn't hear the query, but the response came as if he had. «One of the teenagers is... morphing.»
That definitely caught Darwin's attention. "An Animorph?" he wondered, sitting up. He glanced skyward, eyes searching for the outline of the unnaturally nocturnal golden eagle wandering along the edges of the building.
«A bird morph,» Orkath elaborated. «Smaller than mine, light-feathered.» Now the Yeerk's thought-speak voice was as loud to Darwin as someone sitting next to him, and he could definitely see the eagle on approach.
"What are they doing here?" Darwin wondered, bringing himself to his feet and surveying the alley again, cautious against any person or animal that might be there.
«I don't know, I can't hear them all that well. Someone said something about being a lookout, I think.» Orkath quickly dove out of sight, disappearing down the side of the nearest building. «The bird morph took wing for a moment, I think she might have spotted me.»
"Land here and stay close for a few," Darwin suggested. "I'm sure they'll move on soon, we should try to avoid them if we can."
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Mark
Experienced
Former Animorph of Arbella
I don't care how much it costs, even my life... They will burn for what they've done.
Posts: 48
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Post by Mark on Aug 6, 2009 16:30:12 GMT -5
((Teenagers? I take pride in the fact that my character is 30ish and looks like an emaciated corpse!))
Thoroughly disguised with grime and filth, as well as the old clothes, Mark just nodded. "I'm going to wander by the gates, when they grab me will be the sign that the plan is working. If they decide to just knife me or throw me in front of a car it means it's not." With a smirk, he dug through a nearby trash can until he found a clean plastic bag and wrapped his clothes and phone in it. Tying it, he stuck it behind the trash can and grabbed an empty fast food cup.
Sighing, he hunched over and made his way down the stairs to the fence. He nodded to Rox before walking along the fence line as if trying to find a way to get to the docks. He clutched the cup in one hand possessively as he trailed the other along the chain links muttering to himself, actually praying that he lived through this.
He made it to the corner of the fence line before he heard a car pull up behind him and doors open. "Well look here! It's that guy we lost earlier. Slick little devil. Grab him!" Before he could really react one of them had wrapped their arms around him and the other had shoved what felt like a cloth bag over his head. Then he felt something hit him at the back of his skull and everything went dark.
~
Raising the small club, the thug tied a length of rope around hands and ankles and threw the beggar into the back of the truck. Then, he got back in and drove the truck down the road and through the gates. He'd been under quota for tonight, and this fixed everything. "Don't worry your little head," He said as his partner grinned. "soon it won't be yours anymore."
((Feel free to get a bit creative. I'm leavin this open ended for a reason.))
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Rox
Experienced
Animorph of Arbella
World peace? More like world piece.
Posts: 140
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Post by Rox on Aug 7, 2009 1:13:53 GMT -5
For a moment Rox thought she had seen Johnny in his golden eagle morph, but she had only caught a glimpse. It was probably just her imagination, but she wouldn't have been surprised if he was following them. Waiting for just the wrong moment to pop out and mess things up. But whatever. Rox had more important things to worry about.
Rox had to admit that Hope had a good point. <<I don't know, but I doubt we will ever find out. At least not unless we actually manage to catch her. SPECTER didn't exactly seem too keen on sharing everything they knew.>>
Rox had no problem with that plan, so she took to the air. She was just glad that they were actually starting this thing. Rox was pretty impressed by Mark's performance. If she didn't know any better, she would have believed he was a genuine homeless guy and not an animorph in a disguise on a mission.
As Rox fluttered casually from building to building pretending to be an ordinary bird. She flew up and landed on a power line that crossed over the road just as a couple of guys stopped their vehicle and grabbed Mark. <<Looks like the plan is wor- Hope, they just knocked him out. Oh man, I didn't expect them to do that.>> There was a slight worried tone in her voice.
<<Hurry up and get into the warehouse area. We may need your skunk skills if he needs to run out of there quick. I'll try to follow Mark and find out who all we're dealing with. Like how many guards there are and stuff.>>
Then, almost as an afterthought, she called out to the eagle she was pretty sure she had seen earlier. <<And Johnny, if that really was you, stop goofing around. We could really use your help right about now.>> Then Rox flew over and landed in the branches of a scrubby tree in order to get a better view of where Mark was headed.
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Hope
Experienced
Animorph of Arbella
You'll never let them say, "You'll never get that far."
Posts: 24
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Post by Hope on Aug 11, 2009 19:40:46 GMT -5
Everything seemed to be fine. Rox didn't even seem to mind that Hope had been kind of running her mouth off, so to speak. Now the plan was going into action. Mark was going to play bait and Rox was watching from the sky to keep Hope informed of things. Hope heard Rox's voice in her mind.
<<Crap!>> Hope couldn't really resist the exclamation. This was not good. Then again, it was Mark's plan. He had only himself to blame when he woke up with a splitting headache. That is.... if Hope and Rox could even get him out of there.
Hope didn't need to be told twice. She hadn't even needed telling once. She was moving toward the warehouse as fast as her skunk legs could carry her by the time Rox had called down to her. Skunks were not necessarily built for speed, hence their extra defense, but Hope was going to push the little stinker to its limits if it meant the difference between a successful rescue and a dead teammate.
<<On my way. Hopefully they won't think anything of me trying to slip inside.... and I apologize ahead of time for my speed. This thing isn't built for it. By the way. I can't see worth crap. Warn me if I'm about to get run over.>> She was hoping she didn't have to cross a street and risk that, but if it came to it she didn't want to end up as roadkill.
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Post by arin on Aug 12, 2009 10:10:10 GMT -5
«One of them saw me. They sent me a thought-speak message, requesting assistance,» Orkath told Darwin, landing on the dumpster above his head.
Darwin's brow furrowed, and he stared at the comfortable, soft bedding he'd just laid down. He didn't owe these people anything, he didn't even know them; why should he risk his neck? "Forget it," he murmured, putting his head down on the pillow and closing his eyes.
Five minutes passed.
«What is a Johnny?» Orkath wondered aloud.
"A toilet," Darwin answered absently, still wide awake, tossing on the makeshift bedding. Why couldn't he just put them out of his head?
Orkath fluttered down to street level, walking in a very unbirdlike way toward Darwin's face. «Why would that human call me a toilet?!» he asked indignantly. «And then expect me to help?»
Darwin sighed. "It's also a boy's name."
«You name your children after toilets?»
"No," Darwin grunted, rolling his eyes. "Just... let me get to sleep." But he didn't close his eyes again... he rolled skyward, letting out a heavy sigh, eyes wide open, looking up. "Do you think they're in real danger?" he wondered aloud. He was unsurprised at Orkath's lack of response; how many days now, had they been talking about packing up and finding some other spot? How many days had they heard muffled cries, or rumors of a fellow streetwalker disappearing?
Yes. The Animorphs, whatever they were doing, were either the cause of the danger, or in danger themselves. And Orkath's observations made the former conclusion unlikely.
Finally, the boy stood up. "Alright," he grumbled, sounding to all the world as if he were finally conceding an argument, though the only one who'd been nagging him was his conscience. "Alright, we'll just... look. No harm in just seeing what's going on, right?" He pulled his sneakers out from under the dumpster and slipped them on. "Go find that bird, Orkath. Try to lag behind enough to give me thought-speak directions, but if you have to leave me behind to stay with it, do it; you can always come back and guide me once it gets where it's going."
As though on ominous cue, the first crack of thunder resounded across the horizon at that moment, and the pair felt a trickle of rain begin to fall on them.
«I hate rain,» Orkath growled, taking wing once again and banking in the direction he'd last seen the dove fly.
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Rox
Experienced
Animorph of Arbella
World peace? More like world piece.
Posts: 140
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Post by Rox on Aug 16, 2009 3:59:44 GMT -5
The truck make was in drove an almost insanely short distance, then turned into a driveway and proceeded to maneuver around buildings. Rox didn't know where they were headed, but she knew it was probably within line of sight of where they had started. After all, they were here in the first place because Mark had seen something from their starting location.
From her position in the tree, Rox could see the truck pull up to one of the buildings just as it started to rain. The guys got out and quickly grabbed Mark. They dragged him none too carefully into the building.
<<He's inside. I'm going to look for a window or something.>> Rox purposefully didn't respond to Hope's comment about warning her if she was going to get run over. She figured Hope would be alright. After all, she was a skunk with a human mind.
(OOC: I hope it was okay to have Mark dragged into the building. If not, just tell me and I'll be happy to change my post.)
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Post by arin on Aug 28, 2009 9:34:10 GMT -5
Orkath gets lost in the rain, eventually giving up on finding the errant dove. «Oh well, guess they're on their own.»
((I'm bowing out. This thread is just going too slow for me.))
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