Continuing the Vegas Mission
Back at the surveillance van, Neat-0 and Crunch hacked further into the house's security system. This allowed the team to view all the parts of the house that are covered by the internal security cameras, including a panic room in the basement. Neat-0 is able to create a video and audio loop, and play it back into the security station (manned by one of the short butler-types) in the basement. They sent a description of the creature with the spiky elbows back to HQ, to hit the mythological books. They also got the manufacturing information on the safe in the panic room, and sent it to HQ to learn the best ways of opening it. They observed the security station, and found another system of pressure sensors, in the hallway between the security door and the panic room.
The team spent the next 24 hours monitoring the video and phones from the house. This let them observe how Viv gets into the panic room, calling the security station on the dedicated red phone. Then the butler unlocks the door remotely. Neat-0 copies her image and voice, for future use. HQ calls back, with a possible identification of the creature as a "Pharmakan", a Greek entity associated with medicine and poisons. If the creature isn't of Greek mythology, it could be any number of other things. The Pharmakae are repelled by hemlock. This started a vigorous botanical discussion of European v. American hemlock, settling on the European variety. The team asks HQ to ship a quantity of European Hemlock from the nearest available arboretum. HQ also reports that many Greek mythological creatures are vulnerable to silver.
The next day, June 7, Nic makes silver blades for the team, silver claw sheathes/extensions for Choopy, and silver knuckles for Gordon. They also make silver spikes for the front of the RV. The team plans out "Operation Oklahoma" - Choopy and Crunch intend to sneak into the house, as soon as Viv is out of the house before the (presumeably) human maids and cook arrived at the house. That takes four more days of surveillance, during which the European Hemlock arrives.
Early morning of June 11, Viv leaves the house around 8 am, giving approximately 2 hours before the non-butler staff arrive. Crunch and Choopy approached the house, Neat-0 spoofed the security cameras, and they waited for the butlers to move away from the kitchen door. After some minutes, the two upstairs butlers both settled in to watch a morning soap opera. Crunch and Choopy sneak downstairs, and Crunch entered the heating ducts, for a quick survey of the basement rooms, including those not covered by the security cameras. After exploring, they went for the panic room. Neat-0 piped the footage of Viv to the security desk, and in the pair went.
Crunch began working on the safe, while Choopy rifled the writing desk. They found, and photographed, a list of names (with Bert Tolling as the sixth and last name on the list), and a dozen pages with Greek and other symbols on them. Then put them back. When Crunch opened the safe, a will-o-the-wisp flew out, and managed to entrance the two burglars. Watching through the security cameras, the rest of the field team began shouting into their radios, to no avail. Until the pair left the panic room, then with all the yelling in his ears, Choopy was able to shake off the charm. He stopped up Crunch, and with some shaking, brought him around as well. They went back into the panic room, followed by the wisp, and had a look in the safe. They found:
The jug is stoppered with wax. All look ancient. The jug and snake sculpture look to be of Greek origin, the money-knife is Chinese.
They closed the safe back up, and managed to leave the wisp closed in the panic room. The escape from the basement didn't go so well, with three 90+ rolls in the sneaking category. Crunch and Choopy were spotted by the butlers, and pursued out to the grounds. Choopy left some piddle behind. One butler flung a glass ashtray, and hit Crunch's fore-paw, doing a little damage. They made it back to the RV, and a swift get-away was made. Gordon drove through several car-washes, and settled in a new location, an RV park.
The list of names:
Kathy Tucholka
Stewart Daly
Jerry Ipcriss
Arwen Bower
Elise Van Steelandt
And there we ended, to the best of my recall.
Meeting the First Bargainer
Who's Next
I've Got A Little List
The Hammanals! or, On the Road to Mykonos
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