A Sword of Damascus Steel IC

[ZeroNumerous]

Karen Ostil's Summer Home, New Kiel, 3:02 AM

"Ha. I did what I had to do, Captain. I did it because it was necessary, and I would do it a hundred times over." The woman's voice was, aging, to say the least. She could have that changed at a whim, if she wished. Her soft skin, once vibrant with youth, now held slight wrinkles and had begun to sink in ever so slightly. Her high cheek bone and strong jawline told the tale of a woman who knew what she wanted and would do anything to get it. But her soft green eyes told the tale of an incessant dreamer whom believed in the good of mankind. In truth, the flesh of her body was not her own but instead a simulation of the original. It would grow old with her and she had no intention of fixing the slight gray tinging the edges of her platinum blonde hair done up in the most efficient bun possible. Nor did she intend to fix the wrinkles, the bags or let her voice retain the same youthful edge it once had. Because a woman aged gracefully and beautifully, and this was her one truth in the world.

"You broke our arrangement, Karen. You lied to me, to the backers and to your precious robot." "I did no such--"

She was interrupted by the most uncouth of sounds. A loud bang and bright flash of light that echoed throughout the home and immediately brought the sound of the phone dialing. She had programmed it to call 911 and typed a Companion program to call the fire department whenever an explosion went off in the lab. Just in case something went horribly wrong. The woman felt the bullet enter her body through artificial nerves, and she could even pinpoint the exit wound through them. Shock sent her backward, but the weapon was ineffective against her new body. "Y-you.. How dare---!"

BANG

A1-KO awakens still attached to his recharging station in the Lab. He had shut down to recharge, to 'sleep' as Karen put it, and had been aroused by the first explosion. Before he had even unplugged himself a second explosion echoed through the building. Several oil-stained tables lay arranged in a star pattern around A1-KO's charging station, and two of them are even occupied by full-body cybernetic conversions half-way finished by the automated Companion prog that ruled over the lab. Cold, steel-colored boxes were partially inserted into the headless cybernetic bodies of a man and a woman when the worst possible mistake was made.

The lights went off. The power was out. A half-second passes as red lights click on and the word EMERGENCY in bright red is splayed across all the walls. Those people mid-conversion had three minutes before their brains were irreversibly damaged or outright dead. The only way out of the Lab is a large reinforced blast door lacking power. Luckily that also meant the magnetic locks had turned off and it could be opened with effort.

[Valgunn]

A1-KO

A1-KO's six and a half foot humanoid form hulked from his station with a clank of metal against metal. His dull grey metal exposed to the purified air of the suborbital station and his alien design splashed in red he moved with surprising grace for his obtuse appearance. Karen must've detonated something, he thought grimly not taking a moment to be glad he wasn't involved this time. Fresh scorch marks and shrapnel sized dents pockmarked him from yesterday's near-disaster.

I must preserve them, he judged. Moving with as much care as he surmised he could afford he picked his way through the benches to the half-conversions. Preserve first, then... He ended his cogitation as he reached his two patients. His incredible vision picking out every detail, his hearing picking out every moan and mumble and his smell detecting the precise type of grease smeared about he began.

OOC
Mind + Mechanics (Robotics) - [roll0]

[ZeroNumerous]

A1-KO

The robot successfully saves one patience in just 2 minutes, but that leaves the second with just a minute left of air. He could attempt another speedy conversion, but doing so is risky.

[Valgunn]

A1-KO

A swift clang of metal followed him as he turned to his second patient. His fusion reactor's low hum was added by a soft whine as he put much more energy into his second half-conversion.

OOC
Mind + Mechanics (Robotics) + Dramatic Feat 2 - [roll0]
Rolled in the OOC (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=6603340#post6603340) thread.

[ZeroNumerous]

Karen Ostil's Summer Home, New Kiel, 3:04:32 AM

A1-KO's rapid movement combines with precise handling to hook up the second patient's brain to the bodies' fuel cells. Seconds later oxygen begins cycling through the brain's blood system and A1-KO successfully saves another patient. Now the only thing left is why Karen left the automated system to run these transplants when she so often does lab work by hand? The dark lab tinted with red light does little to assuage A1-KO's worries as it's already been two and a half minutes without Karen shouting or sending him a text.

I'll need a Body check against a TN of 8 for hearing purposes.

[Valgunn]

A1-KO

A1-KO's heightened sense of hearing powered by sensitive equipment tried not to fail him.

OOC
Body + Heightened Sense (Hearing) - [roll0]

[ZeroNumerous]

DM

A1-KO successfully detects the sound of sirens. Judging from the tone and pitch they appear to be fire engine sirens. Maybe something bad happened to Karen?

[Valgunn]

A1-KO

Then, he thought. His electronic mind focused on the whine of sirens. Then I will find Karen and protect her. A grumble and groan issued forth from his mechanical sinew as he wasted little time. With his manifold-metal hands he designed to open the blast door.

He saw her experiments as grim things to anticipate but an even grimmer mood took him when he could not lodge himself between her and her latest disaster. He had grown to care for the only sentient companion he had.

[ZeroNumerous]

Karen Ostil's Summer Home, New Kiel, 3:09 AM

It takes the large metallic robot merely three minutes to get upstairs and into the garage. Another two minutes to get from the garage to the house proper. He finds the front door unlocked as it slides open with a hiss and without the distinctive "Password Please" questioning of the Companion prog built as Karen's doorman. Further in A1-KO sees a dimly lit home befitting the CEO of a multitrillion dollar corporation. Real, earthnoid wood--mahogany to be specific--sits beneath his metallic and dirtied feet. A desk of dark brown wood sits across from the front door with a picture of a warm, smiling red-head whom A1-KO recognizes as Karen's second child. The death of her first at the hands of NDD drove her to find her cure before the second.

Ignoring the redhead, A1-KO eventually stumbles across the kitchen. There he finds the woman he had come to protect sitting on the kitchen linoleum in a light, fluffy blue housecoat. A dark stain spreads from her right side, just where a human lung would be, and taints the uniform's blue with an edge of black. Karen doesn't respond to A1, nor does she look up when he enters despite his lack of stealth capabilities.

[Valgunn]

A1-KO

Alien design and Karen originals processed side-by-side inside his grey metal frame. Five minutes, two explosions, blood, door unlocked... Facts and figures bruised his mind as he tried to hope. With what passes for a deep breath to the mechanoid he tenderly turned her over onto her back.

[ZeroNumerous]

Karen Ostil's Summer Home, New Kiel, 3:10 AM

Blood and oil mixed together in a horrible amalgam in what used to be Karen Ostil's throat. A single shot that went straight into the throat and out the lower back of the head. Her throat was just a messy black and red hole made of twisted metal. Definitely not something a normal gun did. A1-KO recalls the schematics that Karen had once given him on the K-series of bodies, the series Karen used. The blood oxygenation regulator was located just behind the neck, right where Karen had a hole in her head. Whomever had shot her had to have intimate information of the K-series to know where that was contained. A1-KO knows that without the regulator Karen and with the severed spinal cord would have been sitting there, unable to move, trapped in her own skull as she slowly suffocated.

Gimme a Soul check against a TN of 10 or lose 5 EP.

[Valgunn]

A1-KO

In the first year of his self-awareness before his mind became as arcane as it is now Karen had preformed a series of experiments. She stimulated various programs in his code she believed allowed him the ability to feel emotion. His mind was far younger and less complex and the responses were equally juvenile and simple. Simple reactions similar to that of an animal when stimulated in such a manner.

He stood as still as his mechanical body could. Frozen by emotion. It came as a weight on his electronic mind. His body felt heavy and cumbersome obstinate to the unimpeachable data. Karen is, he began in his soul. He struggled to grasp the implications of the word he knew should precede; like a child. He had been too slow...

Inside him his faithful components warmed to electric charge as they and him began to adapt.

The mind crushing weight lifted. Mechanical thews twisted and bunched as much as they could. His body tensed as something more useful to survival replaced the weight. "Who," his alien vox-box painfully dragging out the human word. The crackle of static in his voice menaced the silent morning air.

The overwhelming rush of pain and anger was controlled and lightened him. With the same swift movements had he displayed before he swooped her in his arms. A small chance, he thought as indelicately moved to the lab were he intended to preserve her life.

OOC
Soul - [roll0]

[ZeroNumerous]

Karen Ostil's Summer Home, New Kiel, 3:13 AM

Karen's limp body is easily hefted by the large robot. It takes him merely a minute to dash from the house proper to the garage, and only two to fly down the stairs like lightning. Her Lab, suited for human->cyborg transformation, sat with oil stained tables and tools worn from overuse. The two half-state cyborgs from earlier are still laying on the tables they had originally been in. Their power cells chugging along and maintaining their brains. Whomever had attacked Karen had not come down here. By now the sirens were much louder and plainly heard without even trying. A1-KO estimates they'll arrive within the next five minutes.

[Valgunn]

A1-KO

Steady mechanical hands moved in flashes as he worked. Pulling down A2 he slammed it down onto a nearby grease stained table trusting it's rough design. It was, like him, one of her original prototypes. The second prototype to be exact, after him. It's obtuse design mirroring his. He barely took notice as he tired to safeguard her brain.

OOC
Mind + Mechanics (Robotics) - [roll0]

[ZeroNumerous]

Karen Ostil's Summer Home, New Kiel, 3:14 AM

A1-KO remembers clearly how to perform the transplant. He had done it once before after all. It takes him just a minute to get the robot body down from it's holding place and place Karen's brain inside. Unfortunately the damage to her spinal column makes mobility and impossibility, but at least the old suit's regulator functions properly.

Karen Ostil's Summer Home, New Kiel, 3:15 AM

Six men step off the long red truck. They see no fire, no people and no reason for them to have been called. It doesn't take long for them to enter the home and wander about. They discover the bullet hole in the wall and the mix of oil and blood on the floor. The chief orders the entire crew out of the house as he phones in to the police..

Norman Grey's Office, New Kiel, 3:16 AM

Your phone rings. The piercing shrill of a copper's phone was something you were used to though. On the line was the chief of the fire department in sector C-21. His team has apparently found blood, oil and no fire at 263-C Drive. You quickly remember that as the summer home of one miss Karen Ostil. You figure the only way the fire chief got a hold of you was through the redirect at the front desk. Sometimes, just sometimes, it pays to be the only detective who works the red eye shift.

[Catch]

Norman Grey

3 AM passed in New Kiel not unlike the city as it drifted over the grey blanket that tucked in the planet - silently and unnoticed. The night breathed into Norman Grey's office through a cracked window, letting the haze of blue-white smoke drift lazily out. The detective had reclined back, his chair bumping against the white stucco wall and crossed syth-leather shoes framed the doorway in a shiny black V.

Tringdingtringdingtring

Norman bolted upright and forward, kicking the phone off his aluminum desk in a sleepy blunder, and scrambled to pick up the receiver out of the garbage can.

"Yeah, this is Grey. Uh-huh." He wedged the phone between his shoulder and stubble-brushed jaw, scribbling notes on the back of a crumpled take-out receipt from the wastebasket. Norman let out a low whistle after actually looking at the address he had scribed mechanically.

"263-C? That's- Yeah, I know. Listen, I'll be there in five. Less. Do me a favor? Don't you or your men talk to any reporters. I'm serious. This gets out, KO stock will drop a hundred points soon as the market opens and I will hold you personally f--king responsible for impending economic panic because you wanted your name in the paper."

He sat up, growling into the receiver as he jammed arms into his overcoat, stuffing into its pockets his badge, gun and the half-pack of Venusian Silvers lying on his desk.

"Yes I can talk to you like that, and I don't care if you're the f--king fire chief because a goddamn robot could do the job of your whole department. Have a nice night."

Dropping the phone back into the wastebasket, Norman snatched his grey fedora from the coatrack and slammed his office door on the way out.

"Amateurs," he grumbled.

OOC:


Rush to the scene!

Body: [roll0]

[ZeroNumerous]

I-51, New Kiel, 3:17 AM

Driving through Martian streets is an exercise in navigating insanity on a good day. Luckily for Norman the streets are mostly empty and he's allowed to drive as fast as he can, or at least that's what the little blue flashing light says he can do. It only takes a minute to navigate through the twisting martian streets to arrive at C-sector, #263.

Karen Ostil's Summer Home, New Kiel, 3:18 AM

A1-KO hears the sound of another siren arriving. The pitch of it's horn indicates police this time, and that means someone called them. There's naturally been no response from Karen's second body due in part to the damaged spinal cord.

Norman steps out into the cold morning air to find six men standing around with their helmets off and their hands tucked in their pockets. They were obviously tired and freshly awoken from deep sleeps, but they were the best of the best. The rich part of town basically required them to be. A gruff looking fellow who appears to have been in the middle of a shave when the call came through approaches Norman first. The most distinctive part of his head is the large bandage taped onto his neck. He jabs his thumb at it. "Shaving. So, Mr. Grey. My name is Joseph--Joseph Argeel. We found some oil, a hole in the wall and some blood. Regs say to call you guys, so we did. The broken door is our fault, but other than that we haven't touched the scene."

[Valgunn]

A1-KO

A1 had moved with the hope her brain still lived. A steady hiss filled the room as his systems cooled themselves. Hot air steaming from half-opened vents. Cool air filtering in from other half-open vents. Inside his mind he transcribed in electric the time elapsed. Twelve minutes.

Automated medical machines located in the same lab could perform surgery on her brain and hopefully belittle what damage might have been caused. The half-conversions should be fine, he reasoned. The programs were designed to halt the procedure should the power go out. With clanking treaded boots A1 went to restore power.

OOC
Mind + Electronics - [roll0]

[Catch]

Norman Grey

Screeching through the streets of New Kiel was not the kind of police work Norman had signed up for, but the prospect of investigating the home of KO Corp. was for him the first piece of good news he'd heard in a year and the closest thing to a miracle he was willing to accept. Assuming he was right.

Karen. Karen f--king Ostil. Can't be happening.

Walking up the driveway leading to the massive house, Norman's breathing was rapid, and the normally-silent respiration of his cybernetic lungs was now almost audible. Fsssh-tik-ksssh. Fsssh-tik-ksssh.

Unceremoniously, he interrupted the cluster of idle firemen, standing around like bunch of dull turkeys. He gave the bandaged one a sympathetic wince toward his injury before cutting off the drawled explanation.

"Nice surgery you've got there. Hope you're not the paramedics. And if you're aren't, why the hell aren't they here yet? I don't care if Karen Ostil nicked herself in the goddamn tub, if there's blood, you call the 'meds. If I find her - or anybody else - bleeding out in the basement and there's no paramedics to save her, someone's career is going to be over."

Norman sighed roughly, massaging the bridge of his nose before fumbling a cigarette from his jacket pocket and flicking it alight. He began again with the pretense of calm, laboriously slow, accelerating rapidly as he exposited the details, more for himself than any of the gathered firemen.

"Sorry. Let me get this straight: You found blood and oil, a hole in the wall, but no body. Call came in at, what, 3:02? She's probably got an auto-dial, and if you got here in five... That's enough time to get a body out, maybe. Had to have been planned, unless... "

The last words of monologue carried Norman toward the door in a hurried trot, calling out over his shoulder, "No one comes in, nobody leaves, even if it's Karen headed to the store for a gallon of f--king milk. You got it?"

This is it. This is it. This is it. Fsssh-tik-ksssh. Fssssssh-tik-ksssssssh.

Hand on the doorknob, the quiet rush-click of a mechanical breath calmed him before Norman opened the front door and crossed the threshold into the home of Karen Ostil.

[ZeroNumerous]

Karen Ostil's Summer Home, New Kiel, 3:20 AM

Rushing into the darkened house reveals little to Grey's unmodded human eyes. It take only a few seconds for them to adjust to the dark of the unlit home. He first sees the picture of a smiling redhead staring right at him. He doesn't recognize her immediately, but the reports he had on Karen said she had a daughter. Therefore, that must be her since Karen is a tall and leggy blond. His investigation is interrupted rather rudely as A1-KO finishes hooking up the power.

---

The robot in question finds that the power supply had been turned off via the house control system. Whomever had done so had done so from inside the building and either knew where it was or was incredibly lucky in searching for it. Particularly strange since Karen kept the controller inside a ceramic jar labelled "Cookies". With the power on the lab lights click back on and the Companion prog quietly chimes in with Karen's voice. "Good morning! What do you need from me today?"

---

Inside the home, the front door suddenly slams shut and the distinctive whir of magnetic locks clicking into place drowns out all other noise. The firemen yell out their surprise. A female voice which Grey guesses belongs to a Companion program speaks from speakers situated in the home's walls. "Warning. One unidentified male detected in Living Room. Warning. Intruder apprehension program initiated. Warning. Evacuate the premises or retreat to Safe Room 12."

---

The happy little voice in the lab announces quickly. "An intruder has been detected in the main home. For safety reasons, I am now locking the blast door. Good luck." The heavy metal door slams shut and the magnetic locks engage. A1-KO is now locked within the lab.

Norman will need an Initiative check. If you've forgotten, that's 2d6+Attack Combat Value(without melee or ranged bonuses or penalties).

House's initiative - [roll0]

[Catch]

Norman Grey

Cute kid. Bet she's-

The lights flickering on caught Norman by surprise as he was admiring the glossy image of Karen's daughter, who wasn't too hard on the eyes in a complicated-heiress sort of way. His hand dove into his jacket pocket to encircle the grip of his revolver, but he thought better of it.

Damned security system. Cameras, mag locks, let's hope it has voice recognition. Or won't take out a cop.

Speaking up, Norman raised his voice to address the room in general, turning in a slow semicircle while looking for a security panel, circuit breaker, or at the very least, a huddled person who could deactivate the system before it "disabled" him.

"This is detective Norman Grey, officer number M37264 of the New Kiel City police force. I'm investigating an emergency call placed to this house, on behalf of its owner, Mrs. Karen Ostil. "

If she's heard of me, maybe it will.

OOC:

Initiative! [roll0]

Search! Mind + Heightened Awareness [roll1]

[ZeroNumerous]

DM

Norman's quick thinking causes the house to stall. "Identification presented. Cross-referencing.. Confirmed. One call placed to Emergency Services happened approximately eighteen minutes ago. Possible cause: Explosion. No fire alarms within the home are active. The lab has been sealed as per Containment Protocol. Calling the Missus..

...

...

...

No response. Control of the home has defaulted to the nearest authority figure. Welcome, Officer. How may I help you today?"

[Catch]

Norman Grey

The detective let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding. Norman could only guess at what sort of protections Karen Ostil had placed on her home, but he had a pretty good imagination. A wry thought turned his relief into a grin.

Bet her daughter's window is electrified and hermetically sealed.

He spoke up again, addressing the house that, he hoped, would be compliant if not helpful.

"Unlock the doors and the lab, if you would. No one's getting trapped in here." he began. "Then answer me two questions. Where did the explosion originate and is this house equipped with camera surveillance?"

[ZeroNumerous]

A1-KO

The mag-seals on the blast door popped open quickly and quietly. The door slides open and you're free to wander the house once again.

Norman Grey

The computer does as told and pops all the mag-locks. The house's doors slide open and then responds quickly to his inquiry. "The explosion seems to have originated in the kitchen. Another explosion was recorded three seconds later and then the power was shutdown. Camera systems seem to have been disabled for one hour and twenty minutes."

[Valgunn]

A1-KO

First A1-KO moved to the blast doors. Calculating the required force he would need to open it should he fail to disengage the magnetic lock.

The simple click as the blast doors parted brought his attention from the mechanism he was about to butcher. Without a thought to his good fortune A1 headed up to the house to retrieve Karen's personal computer. Without it he could not activate the medical machines.

[Catch]

Norman Grey

The detective rubbed his whiskers absent-minded as he paced Karen Ostil's front room, letting the new pieces of information interlock with his suppositions.

If someone cut the camera feed, but not the power, we've got premed. Call was placed an hour after the cameras went offline, so either the intruder waited for Karen to come - not totally unlikely at 2:00 am - or he had something to say. Or do.

Addressing the computer again, Norman advanced through the house slowly, looking for the blood and oil that the firemen had mentioned.

"Reactivate the camera systems if you can, and please direct me to the kitchen."

A stray thought flickered across his Norman's mind and he stopped mid-step, realizing his mistake.

"Computer, not counting me, how many living humans are inside the house?"

Premises have to be clear. Perp's probably gone, but I hope I don't find the young Miss Ostil.

[ZeroNumerous]

Norman Grey

"There are precisely 0 living humans not identified as "Norman Grey" in the building." The computer responds in his voice when it mentions his name.

Searching around finds little in usable evidence. Norman makes his way to the kitchen where he finds subtle but heavy indentations in the wooden floor. Almost as if something very heavy ran away from a spot of dark oil and blood mixed together. Above the spot is a streak of oil and blood, presumably where Karen had fallen after being shot. Above the streak is a large hole about the size of Norman's middle finger.

In the middle of his investigation he hears the sound of heavy footsteps coming from the garage.

A1-KO

The robot heads from the lab into the house proper, forward into the living room and then steps into the kitchen. A man in a fedora and crappy coat, whom seems to have had better days, stands over the spot where Karen had been found. It seems you have found the intruder identified by the house.

[Valgunn]

A1-KO

A1-KO was logical in the extreme. It however turns out that killing even a logical being's literal only friend in the world, it makes them as stupid as it makes anyone. A deep metal echo of a voice spoke with a menacing static. "Kill intruder." His words stretched and slow as his vocal box struggled with the human words giving him the illusion of stupidity.

Without hesitation A1-KO's hyperpowerful form lunged forward. Manifold-metal manipulators spread out to catch the detective with his tearing wrath. In the moment of his anger and attack he seemed even closer to his war suit sons.

OOC
Attack Combat Value - [roll0]

[Catch]

Norman Grey

Concentrating on the case was difficult. Drowning in possibilities, Norman felt as he had during his first NDD attack - desperate for air, clarity, sealed off by panic and the failure of his own body. The room swam, rippling at the edges as his sleep-deprived mind struggled to focus on the details.

This is Karen Ostil's kitchen. And that is Karen Ostil's blood, above an exit wound that could have killed a bear. Could be-

The imprints in the kitchen's floor caught his eye, just as the heavy, stomping steps resounded through the house. He whirled, diving into his coat pocket for his revolver.

Still here.

The steel blur rushing at him sharpened his muddled mind into a razor. Norman moved without thinking, before the pistol was even out of his pocket. He forewent the department-trained two-hand grip to flick open the faux-leather badge case, displaying his silvery credentials.

"Norman Grey, New Kiel City police! Head down, hands up or you're gonna lose both!"


Initiative!
Attack Combat Value: [roll0]

[ZeroNumerous]

DM

The cop produces his badge, and A1-KO recognizes it as a standard issue New Kiel police badge. Looking around, both combatants see that the kitchen is rather spacious and little to no obstacles litter the ground. Crossing the very short distance between Norman and A1-KO would be rather easy.

Norman has won initiative, and as such has the first choice of actions.

[Catch]

Norman Grey

Keeping his revolver trained on the robot's chest cavity, Norman raises his voice to address the house's computer system.

"Computer, identify this robot and seal the doors if it tries to leave. How long has it been here?"

"And you," he added, growling toward the intruder. "Stay right there. If you killed Karen Ostil, the scrap from your chassis is going to pave the streets of New Kiel."

[ZeroNumerous]

DM

"Unit designation identifies as A1-KO, or Aiko. The first prototype of the -KO series."

[Catch]

Norman Grey

The detective's eyes narrow, shocked disbelief tinging his already incredulous voice. The revolver dips as he takes in for the first time the visage of the machine standing before him.

"First prototype of... the whole series? Who--what are you?"

Norman breathing accelerates, sweat beading on his forehead as he contemplates the gravity of the computer's revelation.

Fsssssh-tik-kssssssh Fssssh-tik-ksssssh Fsssh-tik-kssssh

Karen's first prototype. All of her secrets.

Fssh-tik-fssh-tik-fssh-tik-fssh-tik.

Norman wobbled, trying to remain focused. The seed of Karen's research was standing in front of him and his lungs felt as thought they would give fail any minute.

Don't cut out. Not now. Don't. Don't.

[Valgunn]

A1-KO

A1-KO did not comply with any of his orders but he instead held still. He stood and glared as much as a robot could at him as his memory verified the badge authentic.

"Yes," he stated flatly. "I, am."

Inside his metal frame his programming was so occulted he could not understand himself. Anger welled inside him for this man despite logic. His slow speech frustrated him. He had no time. "You," he said as he quickly bridged the gap. "Will help."

[Catch]

Norman Grey

Senses sharpened when the detective quickly stepped back as the robot advanced, carefully avoiding the pool of oily blood. He recovered a measure of his normal breathing rhythm, relief sharpening his consciousness like a mug of decent coffee. Norman returned his gun to its place in his coat pocket, but gave the prototype a meaningful look, gesturing toward the kitchen door.

"No, you are going to stay out of the way of my investigation or I'll have you shut down and filed as evidence. I don't need any poorly-programmed androids contaminating my crime scene."

With a heavy sigh, Norman removed his hat, scrubbing a hand through dark curled hair, going grey at the temples. "I have to figure out where Karen Ostil is. And if she's even alive," he said, voice dropping with the gravity of the words.

[Valgunn]

A1-KO

"No," A1-KO said with a finality even he found surprising. Giving over a portion of his mind's power he thought about the distraction he could pose. The house has recognized him and will follow his orders, he reasoned. He was a capable expert in electronics and could override that. He did log being called poorly programmed for later.

No time. "You listen," he said moving close to the detective to ensure he could hear him clearly with his inefficient organic ears. "Karen in lab. Has brain damage." It was taking too long. He urged himself to compact the data further. "Maybe dead, hope not," he added.

"Need her personal computer for medical machines."

[Catch]

Norman Grey

The robot could be malfunctioning. It could be a housekeeping model with cognition. It could be lying. It could have killed her. But Norman's eyes wanted to climb out of his head. He steeled himself, trying to amass some semblance of composure. There was an investigation to conduct, evidence to file. Dispatch would be sending additional officers soon. He had to--

Screw procedure, I'm following the robot.

"Show me," Norman said breathlessly. "I'll help."

[Valgunn]

A1-KO

A1-KO gave the detective the slightest of nods. His head was not designed to nod which in retrospect limited his ability to give subtle social gestures. "Follow," he said as he reinstated his search for Karen's personal computer.

[ZeroNumerous]

DM

While A1-KO heads upstairs, Norman hears the sound of two more sirens coming in. One is a police siren and the second is an ambulance siren. Hurried and confused shouts come from outside now that the annoying hum of the magnetic locks has died down. The front door suddenly buckles inward as a burly man and woman combo slam their shoulders into it. The house reactively reengages the magnetic locks.

"Warning. Ten unidentified humans are attempting to gain entry into the main complex. One SENT unit is available for suppression duty. Do you wish to respond?"

Norman instantly recognizes the acronym. SENTs, or Suppression and Emergency Naval Troopers, are robotic military-grade robots designed for operations in the tight corners of civilian areas or battleships. Large, box like and armed with a large industrial-grade grappling hand able to discharge high amp and low amp electric blasts and a large rotary chaingun able to fire either rubber or hollow point bullets. SENTs can easily stop everything from an unruly mob to a unit of marines without proper anti-tank gear. The SENT would probably tear through the police officers, firemen and paramedics outside.

[Catch]

Norman Grey

A wave up sharp, pungent unease rolled off the aging detective as the sounds of sirens drew closer. That impatient wailing meant word of the break-in had reached the right ears. Reporters would be arrive soon, and then all of Mars would know that Karen Ostil was bleeding out and almost dead. Norman sighed heavily and tried to think.

The one time I actually get backup and I don't want it.

"Listen," Tight with worry, Norman's eyes found A1-KO's photoreceptors as he explained in a hushed voice. The paramedics can help you save Karen, but the cops are just going to complicate things. I can keep them out if you want."

Raising his voice, he quickly commands the computer system.

"Negative. Computer, reroute my voice through the house's external speakers and play this message: This is detective Norman Grey of the New Kiel City Police force, officer number M37264. I've secured the premises, but an explosion in the lab may have contaminated the house. Officers maintain an active perimeter, and paramedics stand by to receive one patient in critical condition."

[Valgunn]

A1-KO

"Preferable," said the automaton locking his eye locked with the detectives. "Time a factor." The time it would take to bring Karen to the ambulance, the time it would take to reach the nearest equipped hospital and the time it would take to perform the surgery. Too much to do, too little time.

[ZeroNumerous]

Outside

The officers break off, tell the firemen to go home and set about making a general scene as they begin tromping around the outside of the house looking for clues. The paramedics, on the other hand, simply climb back into their vehicle and wait. Time was of the essence, but they couldn't be utilized effectively without a patient to help.

A1-KO and Norman find the little, sleek wallet-sized computer Karen utilized. It wasn't as efficient as a palm-size unit, but she felt it was elegant due to the intricate design of camellias etched into it's outer plate. Opening it is a bit of a task for the large-fingered robot, but once it's open activating the lab medical devices is effortless and almost menial in it's execution.

Unfortunately, the scene is interrupted by Norman's radio going off. "Hey. Norm. Norm. That you? Did you leave this damn thing in your car again? Ah well. I found someone outside. He's rather fun--HEY! STO--" The sound is cut off as the officer in question drops his radio and goes chasing after whomever he had found.

[Catch]

Norman Grey

Following A1-KO though Karen's house, Norman's mind felt magnetized for clues, but wayward wonders and pointless observations clung to his thoughts like iron fillings.

Prototype of the KO line. Cameras cut an hour before. Is her daughter safe? Personal computer wasn't taken. Blood and oil? Camellias. Who could have gotten into the house without triggering the alarm like I did? And how--

As a familiar voice shouts from his pocket, the grizzled detective fumbled for the radio, growling helplessly into it as the sounds of footsteps dissolve into static.

"This is Grey, come in. I'm here, come in, damn it! PICK UP YOUR F-CKING RADIO!"

Norman sighed heavily, pocketing the crackling piece of plastic, but taking care to leave the volume turned up, as indicated by a faintly glowing red light. He gave the robot a resigned look, throwing up his hands uselessly.

"Great, there goes our perp. There's probably enough officers outside to nab him, but I've got a feeling it won't be that easy. Let's get to the lab, huh?"

[Valgunn]

A1-KO

"Mee, yees. Yoou, noo," the metallic voice crackled. "Ssecuurityy," he explained. Karen had enjoyed her privacy while she worked and prided herself on the fact nobody could interrupt her without a MOI Tank*.

OOC
*The Motorized Infantry Tank or MOI Tank is an amalgamation of the KO line of armoured suits with a tank. The result is as you would expect, a human sized tank.

[Catch]

Norman Grey

"I don't think so."

The detective's eyes narrowed and he advanced a step toward the robot, squaring his shoulders and drawing up to his full height, despite the fact that A1-KO towered several inches and several hundred pounds above him.

"Listen, I'm in charge of this investigation, and I need to find out what happened to Karen. Right now, that means following you into that lab, and don't give me any sh-t about the 'security system.' If you're so mechanically adept, you can damn well do something about it. I can have this place crawling with cops at a word, and if you haven't forgotten, the house listens to me."

Grey eyes glittered with the dangerous promise. Norman knew this android could overpower him, likely without much of a struggle, but he was not about to let this opportunity slip away. One gunshot and the badges outside would kick in the door, orders or not.

Once in a lifetime. A f--king miracle. No robot is going to get in the way of that.

"If your memory banks haven't lost the data, I'm the one trusting you here, he growled. "For all I know, you could have killed her yourself and are stringing me along so you can finish disposing of the body! That much I doubt, but either you let me follow or you'll have to deal with the entire f--cking New Kiel City police force. And trust me from experience, they're not the type to ask questions first or second."

He stared down the robot, grey eyes to glowing photoreceptors. Sweat beaded on the back of his neck, and Norman ground his teeth in preparation for the worst.

He'll crack. Or I'm a dead man.

[Valgunn]

A1-KO

Anger flushed A1's system, his body shot with almost involuntary static charge, he lifted his form up as high as he could in Karen's home. "Yoou," he began, the whine of his reactor lowering an octave as he did. A speckle of static burped indication of his continuation, the static then stopped. "Doo aas yoou waant. Mee, noo faault." A tramp of treaded footstep led A1-KO away and down to the laboratory.

[ZeroNumerous]

DM

The robot leads Norman through the kitchen, living room, into a small hallway and then into the garage. There Norman stumbles across Karen's three cars. The first is, to put it mildly, a jalopy. The old '55 Humus valued at about three hundred bucks, give or take ten, and were a dime a dozen twenty years ago. The aging car's lime green paint adruptly ends near the trunk where it's begun to flake off in large chips. The car shakes and rattles with each of A1-KO's heavy footsteps and it seems ready to fall apart at just a harsh word.

Beside it is a model that Norman doesn't recognize. It's bleeding edge though, judging by it's shiny, glossy paint and lack of identifying signals. A wild guess says it's a prototype model shipped off to Karen for either testing, owning or just because she asked. The car beside it is a model on the market this year. Three hundred thousand bucks for the economy model, but this one was the special GT edition that cost more than Norman's home. The ads say a companion prog can run the car for you in real time and even avoid traffic--both feats normally too reaction intensive for the slow-learning programs.

From the garage both the robot and Norman take a step out into the cold morning air. They see only three vehicles in the driveway--An ambulance, a police cruiser and Norman's car. The paramedics pay them no mind, but a copper in full uniform starts hurrying over as soon as Norman makes his appearance. He waves as if he were familiar with the detective. He seems familiar, and the man's name is right there on the tip of Norman's tongue. "Hey, Norm! We got a problem. Jimmy hasn't checked in and isn't answering me when I radio him. I dunno where he went and it's starting to worry me."

[Catch]

Norman Grey

The detective huffed an almost-silent sigh of relief as the robot lead him into the garage, which tightened into a surprised whistle as he massaged Karen's cars with eager eyes.

Stubborn android, but at least he's got sense. For a second, I thought I was screw-- Oh, wow. She must have spent at least--

The officer bustling up to Norman interrupted the mental appraisal, and he quickly gave orders without slowing his gait.

"Nate, listen. Jimmy ran off chasing what I think is our perp. Spread three of our boys out in the area where he was seen last and see if you can't find where he went. You find anything, radio me."

[ZeroNumerous]

DM

The man seems flabbergasted. "But, sir, they only sent the two of us in one car. Unless you learned some way to split me into three different guys then there's no way I can canvas this entire area by myself."

[Catch]

Norman Grey

The detective halted, holding up a hand for A1-KO to wait. His voice dropped to a growl.

"One car. There's a break-in, blood and a missing person at Karen Ostil's house--Karen f-cking Ostil's house, and dispatch only sends one car?"

Doffing his hat, Norman runs a hand through dark hair, faded at the temples, before replacing it with a sigh, one that had been delivered to countless hysterical wives, grieving fathers, and desperate-eyed children. It was one near-silent note in an opera of empty pockets, full graves, and never enough hands to do the digging.

"Do what you can. Start where you saw Jimmy last and radio me if you need help. I'll be out in a minute, after I take a look around the lab."

Clapping the rookie on the shoulder, Norman turned to follow the hulking robot, into the lab where Karen Ostil's body lay. He sighed.

[ZeroNumerous]

DM

The rookie just looks at Norman with the most confused gaze he can muster, and when the older cop leaves he starts to wander toward where he think he last saw Jimmy going. "Guess it's now or never."

Meanwhile, the laboratory comes into Norman's view. It's a small, octagonal shaped building disconnected from the house as a whole. It's not even big enough to fit a car inside, and so Norman surmises that it goes downward. Building a basement or sub-level in Mars is expensive due to the mechanical nature of your home. One has to both purchase the home you use and the home beneath it. On top of that, you'd have to protect the area below from intrusion.

As soon as A1-KO heads up to the door it slides open and everything seems fine. But once Norman steps through that door slams shut and the lights flick over to dark red emergency lights. A happy female voice comes over the intercom. "Warning! Intruder detected! The lab is now sealed. In one minute the laboratory will fill with nerve gas! Remember not to do any breathing if you are not in the safe room!"