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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Lazybones" data-source="post: 5299361" data-attributes="member: 143">Traveling this weekend, so early post. * * * * * Session 27 (November 3, 2008)Chapter 121“Keep still,” Catalina said, kneeling beside the immobilized Vala Night.  “Um… yeah?” the agent replied, although there was an obvious strain in her voice.  The sonic mine had been set with a pressure trigger rather than a proximity sensor, so at least it hadn’t detonated, but that had also meant that their sensors hadn’t detected it until Vala had literally stepped on it and armed the device. “Can’t get at the mechanism,” Catalina said.  “Well, I didn’t really like that leg anyway,” Vala said dryly.  “Think you might have to stay there for a while,” Catalina said.  “Maybe we can dig around it, expose more of—” “The mission is more important,” Vala said.  She pointed toward the balcony.  “The door up there’s going to be rigged, but it’s a better shot than the front door by a long shot.  If you can get up there… well, it’s up to you heroes from here on out.”Catalina nodded and carefully stepped back toward the others, who’d watched from a few meters away.  “We’ll be back when we can afford to take time to move it carefully.”“As soon as I hear shooting, I’m making a jump for it,” Vala said.  They made their way along the wall until they were under the balcony, which jutted out only slightly from the wall, maybe a half-meter.  There were no merlons, ironwork, or other features visible, and Catalina frowned as she looked up at it.  “I can try a throw,” she said.  “Nothing I can see to hook onto, though.  Maybe if I can loop the rope over, draw it down the far side.”“Might have better idea.  Hand me rope,” Vasily said.  The Russian took the coil, flipped a dial on his cuff, and sprang into the air.  Jets of hyper-compressed air shot from the vents in the small of his back and along the back of his thighs, and his leap carried him straight up six meters, landing him on the edge of the balcony with inches to spare. “It works!” Jane said, remembering at the last moment to keep her voice low. “That wasn’t exactly quiet,” Hadrian said, glancing around the edges of the castle while Vasily lowered the rope.  “Our burglar should go first,” he said, nodding Catalina toward the line. Climbing up a rope was always more challenging than rappelling down, but with Vasily’s strength-augmented help from above, the transfer of the team from the ground to the balcony was completed without incident.  By the time that Hadrian was pulled over the edge the space on the balcony was quite crowded, but Catalina had found and disarmed the sensor on the steel door that led inside.  “They might have detected the broken circuit, we need speed,” she said, overriding the electric lock and pushing the door open.  They made their way inside, doing their best to remain quiet, which was more than a little difficult in sixty kilos of powered armor, weapons, and gear.  Catalina took the lead, scouting ahead down the corridor behind the door.   The interior of the castle was an odd juxtaposition of old and modern, the ancient stone blocks of the walls marked both with sconces for torches and fixtures for electric lights.  Catalina saw that all of the interior doors had electric locking mechanisms, with keycard ports set into the wall next to the handles.  She made her way down the hall, pausing at the first intersection.  She heard voices, and waved to the others to stay back.  Easing forward, her plasma pistol in her hand, she subtly twisted the gain on her audio pickups.  They were speaking French, but she was fluent, and didn’t need the translation software installed in her suit computer to decipher what they were saying.“So, you see that new alien?”“Man, ugly as sin.”  The second speaker laughed, a hard guttural sound.  “Don’t know what rock they dragged that one out from under.”“I wonder if they’re going to give us leave this time.  I swear, I think I’ve been on shift for a month now.”Catalina leaned slowly forward, looked around the corner.  The side passage ended in an open doorway about ten paces ahead, with a small foyer beyond.  She couldn’t see the speakers, but as she watched a cloud of smoke trailed into view, dissipating in the air.  She raised a hand and held up two fingers, then gestured toward the corridor ahead.  The Alphas came forward slowly, and for the most part quietly, although to Catalina’s ears, the faint whine of their suits’ servos and the crunch of their feet on the floor sounded like shouts.  She leaned back and took out her motion sensor, shutting off the speaker.  By the time that the others had reached her, she had a fairly good picture.  She slipped forward to verify that the guards were still there; they were talking more in low voices, and the occasional puffs of smoke suggested that they hadn’t changed position.  Vasily lifted his gun, and James moved his finger across his throat, but she shook her head and gestured toward the corridor ahead.  Vasily nodded and sent Jane across, the former CIA agent creeping slowly forward.  The others followed one by one, until all of them save for Catalina and Vasily were past.  The Russian tapped Catalina on the shoulder and started forward, but froze in mid-step as Catalina pressed her hand to his chest.  She was right at the edge of the corner, listening. “Did you hear something?”</blockquote>

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