thebastion | Day 323 (Open)

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Day 323 (Open)

Who: Colin, anyone interested in what he's doing.
Open: Like a convenience store.
When: Day 323, all morning. (BACKDATED)
Where: Several key locations around the Bastion.
What: Setting up surveillance systems
Format: Action to start, but anything's good.
Warnings: A short-tempered Colin.

[Just the other day he had been speaking with Nathan about the thefts that had been taking place. They'd agreed that some sort of surveillance system would be necessary in order to better defend against the thief.]

[Then the party came back, minus two souls, and Colin's mind went straight into defense mode. Cameras were purchased, sites were chosen, and plans were put in motion.]

[This morning Colin is moving from place to place, setting up cameras and wires as appropriate. Some of the cameras are huge, blatant affairs that can't help but be noticed. Others are tiny, designed to be hidden.]

[He's stopping by most of the buildings in the Bastion to set up at least one camera. If anyone has an opinion on big brother, now's your time to express yourself.]

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Phantoms until such a time as they prove necessary to put into action.

[He flashes an enigmatic, yet friendly enough, smile to her then. He knows she's asking out of concern. ~~And if she's asking for sabotage, well, that's going to be thwarted just as easily.~~]

Most of the people here don't want to live in an observation state. I see no reason to panic them further. They're already not going to like this.

[Mitellux snorted]

Some value their 'privacy' entirely too much without being aware of what they have to sacrifice in exchange.

The price of freedom, I believe the saying goes...

Edited 2015-07-27 20:28 (UTC)

And they're more than welcome to keep their privacy in areas that don't affect all of us together.

[Colin smiles. This argument has been made far too many times in his presence.]

All of this is nothing compared to my home. I've been functionally blind here because of the lack of observation.

The counter argument will go "Those who sacrifice freedom for security..." And then I'll roll my eyes and go about my business.

[Mitellux paused at that, a hint of understanding flickering in her usually guarded expression. Not that her facial structure allowed her to be very expressive to begin with, but...]

If there is anything I may do to assist in keeping this Bastion secure, Starfury, then do not hesitate in informing me.

For now, keep a watchful eye open. All the cameras and turrets in the world won't make a lick of difference if we don't have people who know what to look out for.

And if you want me to make any defensive plans for your area, just let me know. I know better than to make plans for a dragon's lair without the dragon's permission.

[He smiles a little wider then. He clearly respects dragons enough to not make plans that go over their heads.]

I will... take your offer under consideration.

[They may share paranoia, but ... well, paranoia.]

Simply an offer, and one that I wasn't expecting to be taken up on. I was actually expecting to be told to get fornicate myself in biologically impossible ways.

[He chuckles quietly.]

Like I said... your territory is yours. I'm not setting foot out there without permission.

...

But I was wondering, can I ask you a little more about yesterday? Other than Crona and Ragnarok getting killed, I haven't heard too much more of what happened...

You may.

Was there anything specific you wished to ask, or do you require a telling of the events that had transpired?

There was an ambush, but the only thing I really know for certain is that there seem to have been two traps.

Signs of electric burns on the corpse, and obviously the arrows...

What happened? What was the sequence of events?

And if you saw, what the hell were those people using?

[He dearly wants to insult them in his words, but first he wants to know how to properly insult them..]

The electric trap was placed upon the container that the core was set inside.

[She hesitated a bit-]

Under less diplomatic circumstances, I would have attempted to search for traps first, but I admit I had... let my guard down. For that matter, the trap was not triggered until well after the container was opened. Perhaps it was remotely triggered.

[... from there, she continues to describe the series of events from her perspective ((y-you can read the thread for a refresher or something right XD;; ))]

Almost certainly remotely triggered. Not very advanced, though.

[He settles a gaze on her. He's not angry with her, but he may be a little judgmental.]

The rules have changed after the calamity. Even when things are supposed to be peaceful, always assume that someone's going to try to screw you over.

Now... as for the rest of that. How'd everyone handle it? ... And who was in charge, for that matter?

[the dragon narrowed her eyes slightly in response. She was well versed in humanoid facial expressions to read what was on his face. She had already admitted her fault in what she could have done differently, but now he had to needle it in like that?]

I am well aware of the situation as it had transpired and what I could have done differently. Do not presume to lecture me.

[A dull sense of anger rose inside of her, her long born hatred of humanoids in general.]

... are you looking to place blame on one within our party? [Still, she continues on to partly answer the question-] After the initial shock wore off, after Crona was struck down and Rob injured by the volley of arrows, we subsequently decimated their attack force without any further difficulties.

[at least, from her vantage point, the whole ambush seemed to have more or less fallen apart after the initial surprise.]

Edited 2015-07-29 20:27 (UTC)

[His expression softens, and he looks at her with sympathy.]

If I had wanted to lecture you, you would know it. I'm told I'm VERY good at it. That said... it was a reminder. After the end of the world, all the rules change. Resources become more precious, and even allies are likely to turn on you if they think it will have even a shred of a chance of improving their own odds of survival.

[He shakes his head then, and he scowls.]

Also, I KNOW who is to blame for the sloppiness. What I'm looking for is any sign of competency to lessen that. If anything was even done right in the first place.

I don't blame you for what happen, since you haven't heard my song and dance... but everyone else on that trip has heard me say it before. The Bastion's people are disorganized, don't function with any semblance of coordination, and have no apparent intention to try to change that. It's a miracle that more people haven't died.

It's a leader's job to make sure her or his team is prepared for trouble, to not get caught with their pants down. At the very least, it's a leader's job to ensure that a team isn't made up of a bunch of people who are going to freeze if someone yells "Bomb!"

[His opinion is that there shouldn't have BEEN initial shock, but he at least acknowledges that the Bastion's group isn't military.]

...

[... something flashed behind Mitellux's eyes, there for only a second. What she was thinking about was unclear, and she had no interest in saying whatever it was to Colin... but she still had something to say besides that]

You are right. There was little coordination. If our enemies were our equals in power and experience, we would most certainly have not returned.

[she turns her head away from the engineer, back towards the entrance to the skyway]

I will tell you this now: I have had little experience in working with a unit, much less with humanoids. My kind waged a war for decades against those who sought our treasure and hide, and yet even when I was involved directly on the battlefield I worked alone. I am sure you are already aware of what one fully grown dragon can do without reinforcement.

I am capable of providing support as a warrior, but my true nature is that of an assassin. If there was a high value target that was sufficiently exposed enough to be targeted, it was I that was called upon to cut them down.

I will not pretend that I hold the necessary military experience to give you the information required, save the obvious: That I continue to question why the likes of Rob are allowed to continue accompanying these excursions.

...

And I am most certainly not the one you want to look to, to provide organization in this wretched 'Bastion'.

Edited 2015-07-29 21:05 (UTC)

If you've got an opinion on that, you don't need to keep it bottled up. I've got thick skin. You keep it in, it'll eat you alive.

[He smirks, and then he shakes his head.]

Nobody here is qualified to lead this place. Nobody. What we've got are a couple of people who fancy themselves as leaders, and who don't have enough practical experience to lead a starving man to a buffet line.

Zahi MIGHT be able to do it, but I doubt the Caelondians would be willing to follow, and frankly, anyone who blindly trusts Zahi is a fool. The man has seen way too much, and he knows way too much. I like him, but I don't believe for a minute that we're anything more than a convenience to him.

[He fixes another look on her, and he smirks.]

My father keeps a whole file of assassins back home. A whole bunch of lone wolves to do all kinds of different dirty jobs. My wife's one of them, even. Heck, I'm one of them. I don't listen to anyone but family when it comes time to follow orders.

I would have tried to organize them, once. Let's be fair, I DID try to organize some drills. I was resoundingly ignored. These days... Nah. I'm just looking for survival, and for one of them to show even a half a whit of intelligence to ask for help.

They go because they have no other options. And some misguided sense of having everyone pull their weight. Some day, Rob will be able to do that. Right now... no, he needs a lot more training. He's trying, but nobody's doing anyone any favors by bringing him into a hot zone. But apparently he was able to play field medic, which probably helped a little for the Ura.

[She blatantly ignored the request for her 'opinion'. The exact thought that had occurred... was not something that would help anybody if she was to share it]

[as it was, she just snorted; still not turning her gaze away from the entrance]

Perhaps it was a mistake to come here.

No moreso than anywhere else.

Though I confess, I had not seen your chosen lair for myself. Clearly you hadn't been doing that bad for yourself.

I've set up a fallback for myself, for that matter.

[He sounds amused.]

Not exactly in favor of putting all my hopes in one spot, after all.

I can survive on my own if the Bastion does fail but...

[She turned her head to glance back at the monument]

Should this place last long enough to take in all the cores it needs, I would like to see what it is fully capable of.

The Bastion is a convenience and a marvel, yes.

[He glances in the direction of the monument, his expression guarded. He admires the tech, but he still doesn't know what to think of it...]

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Day 323 (Open)

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