A Plan of Heists and Massacres

The inky model of the First Station rose and, true to its real-life equivalent, squatted wide and rectangular along its every dimension. Rather than the boring, square edges of the hobbles housing the Plate's prisoners, the Lawmen were permitted some artistic display in how their defenses were arrayed: the walls were corrugated metal cut into wide enough gaps to make climbing them difficult and, more importantly, easily spotted by any Lawmen patrolling the air or walkways above. Those walkways connected the four towers that rose at the corners into weapon platforms, each topped with fake sentry models wielding strange weapons pointed outward. Into three of the towers were carved colossal statues of the legendary Humans, one to each, while the fourth glowed with a rune-enchanted declaration of the First Station.

The rest of the rooftop consisted of metal irises that, in the model's animation, dilated to release pairs of Lawmen at a time into the air above or permit the same to re-enter their base. Ten of these doors animated on the model, each spaced out to permit orderly, safe deployment from all ports; it was easy to imagine an army rising from the First Station like a wounded bee hive, permitting a horde of golden bees to answer a threat in seconds. No other windows or openings made themselves known on the fortress, save at the ground level: four doors, one to each side and carved into the corrugated walls, and each seemed more like a flat plane of steel than anything approaching a hinged door.

The door and the walls melted away as Zalla's fingers neared the model, revealing rooms her mind shaped into it. Golgon was loathe to surrender control of the display, but only Zalla had any idea of what the Station actually looked like inside; the layout of the building was a well-kept secret that no Lawmen had leaked--for reasons John already knew--and apparently mind-reading was a rare talent on Vantage, let alone the Plate.

John, Tricia, and Miles all struggled to stack behind the ex-Lawman to see what she was pointing out as her hand’s presence burned away the layers of the model. Her hand now hovered over the first floor near one of the gates. "Every ground entrance has a checkpoint like this one: a series of four rooms, each linked to go in a line of processing and purity checks, and each designed to detect and dispel any illusion spells or non-licensed runic magic that passes through them." Zalla glanced behind herself and realized the struggle to see what she was emphasizing. With a wave of her hands, the walls all fell away, revealing the many rooms inside. Small, surprisingly human--even civilian--offices made most of the outer-wall spaces, though something like an armory could be spotted at every floor.

The First Station also had tall, empty rooms that penetrated every floor, and these appeared at every corner within the towers outside. John’s cursory search for some kind of stairwell or elevator revealed nothing; apparently the Lawmen never walked from floor-to-floor, but instead flew up or down as needed inside those towers. As the model was rebuilt and remolded by Zalla, showcasing every floor as it went, only its fifth story seemed particularly distinct: only armory rooms could be seen there along its edges and, underneath the many exits on the ceiling, there was only a large, empty staging area.

“Once inside, the First Station is a proper headquarters for our operations: the Warden's office is at the heart of the fourth floor, every Keeper has an office here in the event they must review evidence, reports, or hold meetings, and the first and second floor contain multi-purpose chambers for Braves to conduct training, reviews, or maintenance on equipment."

"The Braves maintain the gear?" John suddenly asked. "I'd think you guys had technicians or something to handle that."

"They maintain the basics. After all, only Lawmen are allowed in the First Station; there aren't even any holding cells here, unlike the others. Any body found here is either a loyal protector of the Peak... or a corpse." Her hand waved, and the inky model began to blur as more of it rose to make a plateau. The visible floors all vanished except a single room on the first floor: another "elevation" room without stairs, except this one went down into the plateau. The ink melted away and modeled the basement carved into the stone beneath the First Station, earning brief confusion from the natives.

"So they've got a basement,” John declared, confused by their confusion.

"Such a construction project would take... so long, and so many hands," Golgon whispered, marveling at the sight, "they could not have had Lawmen carve into the stone, not with the risk of the Violet below!"

"I do not know how they went about it," Zalla confessed, "but I do know what lies below... because this is where we keep evidence, contraband, and anything we're meant to protect." The basement enlarged as the model "zoomed in"; the fluidity of the liquid made it nearly on-par with one of Tricia's holograms.

A glance at his lover revealed her rapt attention as she studied the display, bringing John a brief smile. Like a kid in a candy store.

"This bottommost chamber is constantly guarded, warded with runes of protection against breaching, and is made entirely of Grade I zeebok... making it more valuable than almost anything we could put in it, at least until now."

"The zeetok," Hurk hastily whispered.

"The pelos," Cidi added.

"An already-manufactured key," Golgon chuckled. "So all we need to do is fight through their checkpoint, some army of Lawmen within, and down into a guarded vault with... what sort of lock, exactly?"

Zalla eyed the Ootuk with suspicion. "I mentioned no lock."

"You did not, child," Golgon confirmed with a nod, "but I have had the misfortune of meeting your Warden... and I had always wondered what her key unlocked."

Zalla's mouth hung agape in shock before she dared to ask, "How did you... how? And how did you survive meeting the Warden?"

Golgon shook his wings with a mirthless smile, making the pieces of bok in it clatter. "My wings did not wear away on their own, you know."

"This Warden is the boss, then?" John asked impatiently. "Is she stronger than the Purifier?" Because if she is, I want even less of these people anywhere near this mission.

"She commands the Lawmen of the Plate, yes, but she is not… stronger than the Purifier, no," Zalla admitted with obvious difficulty. "But the Purifier is... artificial; a weapon of the Peak, consecrated and empowered, and armed with Her power. The Warden is a veteran... and her talent comes from years of service, not dangerous technology."

"I promise she isn't above unleashing dangerous technology as well, child," Golgon cautioned, "but yes, the Purifier is a new kind of enemy... one we have never faced before."

John had unveiled the ice magic-wielding enemy that nearly killed Miles as being called a Purifier... and the mention of his title made colors of the room pulse with new, violent energy.

[MM = https://youtu.be/F-iZBpRrB4w]

That, and that ethereal music that no one else seemed to hear, began to pick up as Miles' fists tightened enough to crack knuckles. "The Purifier's mine, so no one else needs to worry about him."

"Wait a minute... so everything we want is in that vault?"

Zalla nodded at her master. "All of the refined metals saved from the refineries have been stored here, presumably piled high, in this chamber that is roughly half the size of this one."

"And there's... just a few guards?"

"Four Brawlers and a Brave guard its door, and six more Hammers all the tunnels of the basement," she explained, waving her hand as the toy-sized sentries marched along the tunnels and rooms beneath the First Station.

"And the only thing we need to open it is the Warden's key-"

"I believe I've explained this all already, Master," Zalla tersely replied.

"What is it, John?" Tricia asked, as confused as the others at John's growing smile.

"He's just going to steal it on his own." The room turned to Galley who, with crossed arms doing their best to hide her chest in the folds of her robe, shrugged in an almost bored expression. "Ah... I guess no one here really saw what happened in that Cabal barrier, huh?"

"She's right," John said with a nod. "Well, I mean... it just sounds like all I need to do is portal through this place, steal the key, tunnel to the vault, open it, and let all the riches just drop on our laps over here."

The room watched with quiet attention until Golgon asked, "But don't you need to be familiar with where you open these 'ways' of yours?"

"I'll just open small holes, see where I'm going, and keep going through the whole Station like that."

Zalla shook her head. "The Lawmen will see you doing so."

"Let them," John replied, "right up until I just grab the Warden and take the key."

The colors and music began to fade as Miles' enthusiasm died. "But... that means we just sit here? Doing nothing? No fighting, no killing, no... anything?"

"It's the safest way," John explained.

"It doesn't get anything done but get us the stupid metals!"

"We need those metals, child," Golgon chided his subordinate.

"But we don't need to put lives at risk! A brilliant little trick... if you can pull it off, John the Newman, hah!" Hurk's massive hand slapped the Gamer on the back playfully; it took effort to not be pushed by its "soft" impact. "I already made a clearing to put everything we gain on this venture... right there, see?" Hurk motioned to a barren corner of the hideout. "So we'll go on and get into position nearby, in case we still have to attack... but with some luck, it won't come to that. Right, Golgon?"

Golgon was silent for a few beats longer than John expected. The old man scratched at his chin as he considered the variables in play… the needs of his mission… and the needs of Vantage. The elder nodded cautiously. "One cannot argue against the wisdom of achieving our goals without risk of bloodshed… though it does mean the Lawmen will remain at full **** to stop us when we attempt our ascension.”

“Finally,” Miles bitterly exclaimed, “so let’s bash in a few of those murderous shitheads!”

Golgon gracefully disregarded the comment. “Our mission should be two-fold, then: to cause enough of a calamity or distraction to warrant the Lawmen’s response outside of the Station… and then letting that distraction permit this infiltration. But will the Warden remain in the First Station as this goes on… even if we’re rather… effective?” His question was pointedly directed at Zalla as he walked near her.

“No matter the calamity, the Warden will not leave the First Station, even if the Station itself is attacked… especially if the First Station is attacked.” The map shifted to show that central office again: four entrances, a three-quarter circle of a table, and an unarmored Dorani in official-looking, angular clothes at its center. “She has advanced command of the Lawmen Network and is able to deploy orders simultaneously across her Keepers and Braves. She can also command them individually as needed, down to the newest Hammer. But to do so, she requires the utmost concentration and will not tolerate any distraction.”

“So sneaking the key away, if I can just lift it from her, would be easier the more distracted she is while commanding them…”

“If you can find it on her person,” Zalla clarified.

“I have my ways.” A beat passed...

“He’s going to fuck it out of her,” Rave deadpanned, “isn’t he?”

“I mean I’m going to use my acquisition spell!”

“I would not advise trying to **** the Warden in front of her escort,” Zalla cautiously advised. Four Lawmen suddenly materialized on the display, each against one of the walls of the Warden’s command center. “Two of them will be Guardians with security runes, and the other two, while Braves, shall be armed with weapons enchanted to burn away flesh; each will be heavily-trained and ready to defend her life… or dignity.”

“I’m not going to fuck the Warden,” John firmly declared.

Tricia tipped her head to the side. “I would hope he wouldn’t risk our lives and the operation merely to fornicate with yet another Abyssal creature.”

“I say fuck the Warden,” Miles suddenly declared in English, “take the key, fuck her again, and then bring her here so I can fuck her.” Rave and Tricia blinked in surprise at the rainbow-haired misfit. “What? It’s no less than she deserves.”

Galley shook her head. “Good grief…”

Miles gave Galley an eager wink, which was not returned.

Golgon couldn’t follow the English conversation but assumed it wasn’t important enough to translate. “Do not underestimate the Lawmen, John the Newman... tread as carefully as you can with this approach, and do not risk them destroying or moving the metals before we can intercept the same. Only one of us can fly after them if they do, after all... and I can't be asked to carry it all," Golgon ended with a chuckle in his throat. “Now let us discuss our deployment.”