2977/A nightingale debut

A nightingale debut
Date of Scene:	07 September 2015
Location:	Slum Urbania
Synopsis:	While trying to rob the secret vault of a powerful magician's nightclub with Jimmy Wen, Ferham finds herself giving a striking performance of her own!
Cast of Characters:	516, 606

---

Ferham (516) has posed:
     Along with her various other exploits, Ferham had decided to give a call to a certain mage after she had gotten a load of his mystical technique (or thought she had) after an alleyway shell game. Flagging Jimmy down later, she had told him of an artifact that she had heard about from an old associate of hers, Miss Clokwerk, which was apparently something she had wanted to get her hands on. Ferham knew that if Clokwerk wanted it, then she should probably go check it out. Problem was? It was currently being held in the vault beneath a nightclub in Downtown Slum Urbania, and the story went that it had some magical connections, as well as to organized crime. This was where Jimmy came in, as the femmebot had dropped him a line and offered him a deal on it if he would assist her in getting in and getting it, without running into trouble.

     The building looked like a fairly normal nightclub from the onset, though a little street savvy could tell you the place was likely frequented by gangsters, though there were more than a few 'disappearing act' specialists among said people. The Fading Suns lounge was host to a large dance floor, a stage as well as a full bar and seating for a large number of folks in either end. Right now Ferham was working on one of the rear exit doors with a micro plasma cutter of some sort, while she kept in touch with Jimmy over a small earpiece radio (sort of like a codec, really) having him watch out for her, while she did the deed, more or less.

Jimmy Wen (606) has posed:
     Jimmy's mojo causes some annoying interference over the radio band, but he's more or less able to be heard clearly. Parked outside in his Bel-Air, he's used a bit of motor oil to create a circle around the car and throw up a ward. It's not invisible, because that could result in an unfortunate fender-bender and a difficult visit to the parts store--but it is somehow less noticeable, more unimportant. "Coast's clear so far, Legs. People are avoiding that alley like the plague." Could someone have put a ward over the alley itself to dissuade people? A passive effect of unease would be easy enough for most wizards, even without much prep time. But it's doubtful. These guys probably don't even know what they have! Should be easy money tonight. "How's the door coming?"

Ferham (516) has posed:
     "I ought to hire you for things like this more often, Wen, your skills are coming in handy over there," Ferham teases the magician a bit good naturedly as she slid the small plasma cutter around the second part of the lock's metal loop--the edges glowing red hot for a moment as she was able to just lift the two halves--loop and lock body away from eachother. She had chosen a small cutter since it would make minimal noise, she didn't want her activity being noticed. And, as heavy duty as the lock was, it could still be cut, so this simplified things. The door opened and she was in--now it would just tkae her a short time to make it through the dusty backroom to the basement.

     "I'm in, nobody heard or saw me, do you feel anything from where you're sitting?" she must have been asking about any sort of magical wards or the like that might be in place. Descending the stairs, the femmebot found herself in a moderately sized room filled with old junk--dusty antique furniture, old building materials, parts of the establishment's old sign that had been stowed down here... and bingo, a large reinforced matte black polymer and metal door at the far end of the room, half-hidden by an old Welsh dresser. "I think I found the vault, are you hearing me okay?" she asked, voice just above a whisper.

Jimmy Wen (606) has posed:
     Jimmy chuckles in the driver seat of the Bel Air, snacking on a meatball sub. No trouble yet--if every job is like this, he'd love to come along! Getting paid to sit back and eat is aces. "Yeah, my mojo is playing hell with the reception, but I can hear you." He lifts the earpice away from him for a moment while the feedback sorts itself out. With a few authoritative raps of his finger against the device, the interference clears away and he can use it again. "Before you start working on the vault, I want you to look around. Is there anything in there that looks like it doesn't belong in there? Any weird symbols, strange paintings? Look on the ceiling, too. No one ever looks up."

Ferham (516) has posed:
     "It's pretty cluttered in here, Wen, I might need to look," Ferham blinked as she looked around, pausing in her efforts to push the dresser out of the way of the door. The door was to the vault kept here, likely a presumedly secure cache of relics or valuables from /someone/ with influence and power. It looked reinforced and likely opened by combination, though Fer was busy looking for any electrical security systems when Wen warned her. This gave her some pause, turning and moving those high heeled thigh-high booted legs of hers around the basement, peering here and there. Of course, what she might not have seen was the sigil marked on the ground which only showed itself when her boot scuffed away the thick pantina of dust that had laid there undisturbed for what was probably months. She was already past it and peering behind a sofa when it began to glow. Uh oh.

Jimmy Wen (606) has posed:
     Jimmy yawns. "Well, make sure that you do." Thaumaturgy isn't like the stuff that your typical wizards throw around in a fight--it's subtle, and a wizard with a lot of free time can put some very powerful stuff into a trap if he needs to. "I don't want to see you flying through the front door because you tripped someone's security measures." He reaches beneath the driver's seat and adjusts it, reclining slightly and stretching. His right hand then retreats from the lever and reaches for his soda. "How's it looking? Need any help?" It's the kind of question lazy people ask because they have a feeling the other party is going to say 'no.' He looks around, past the spot he's keeping an eye on, just to look at the scenery. Pretty out tonight--it'd be a good night for listening to the radio if he wasn't sure the hexing effect would kill either the car radio or the earpiece if he had one more electronic device running.

Ferham (516) has posed:
     The light crackle of energy from the ward Ferham had activated made her look back, but not seeing the immediate cause--she turned back to what she was doing. Nope, nothing behind this dusty old heap--then something happened. Fer wasn't sure exactly what it was, but the next thing she knew there was a force, or a /pull/ coming from behind her, soon finding an overstuffed armchair collide with her and knock her into the seat with a resounding 'Eek!' which would likely be heard over the earpiece she had. This chair wasn't just being pulled by the ward however, it was controlled by it--something she realized when it turned her right toward it to face it, then began zooming towards the half-uncovered glowing sigil on the floor. As she struggled to pull herself up, glowing phantasmic hands erupted from the back and cushion of the piece of furniture, clasping over her shoulders, mouth and one of her legs. Her green eyes looked terrified as she peered through the ghostly hand that held her face down and back against it as she was pulled closer, her booted feet kicking frantically. A bright light engulfed the dusty attic space, whatever it was, this was one heck of a defense system.

     On the other end, Wen would be able to hear what sounded like her voice muffled, and then silence after a brief struggle.

Jimmy Wen (606) has posed:
     "Motherfucker. Hold on, I'm coming."

     In his haste to get out, he drops his meatball sub onto the upholstery. Well, there goes a few hours or some of the haul from this job. Sigh. The wizard checks his pistol, then conceals it under his jacket, opening the driver side door of the Bel Air and striding confidently towards the alley. He's learned that if you act like you're supposed to be going somewhere, less people will question you if you're not supposed to. Thus, his stride is quite assured, even though he knows he's probably walking into some serious shit. The place doesn't have a threshold since it's not someone's home, but power isn't everything--this might be a pretty clever application of the power that /is/ available.

     Once he's in the alley, Jimmy pulls his pistol and puts his back to the wall opposite the door. It's not that he knows to do that, he's just seen it in movies and figures it helps... somehow. Also like in the movies, he turns and breaches, both hands on his gun. Huh... that felt pretty cool. Okay, enough of that. He steps inside and searches for Ferham. "Fer?"

Ferham (516) has posed:
     There would be radio silence from the bird woman for a few moments, though the door she had cut was still open, and the tracks in the dust would signal that she had gone down into the basement--but she didn't seem to be down there, either. The basement was dead silent, except for what felt like a low level hum of magical power, of resonance. Something had been there, and now Ferham was not there. The vault door as well seemed untouched. There had been tracks in the dust going down into the basement... but none coming this way out again. It was like she had gone down here... and just disappeared. If Wen was that sensitive, he could definitely tell something was up here. But where had the mage's bird lady partner gotten off to, exactly?

     From above there came a peal of applause and human voices, apparently there was some activity in the nightclub up above. A brief inspection of the ward on the floor would likely give some ominous sort of omens--enchantment? teleportation? It seemed capable, but to /where/ exactly...?

Jimmy Wen (606) has posed:
     Jimmy sighs. Some investigation of the basement reveals nothing, and she doesn't look to be in the back room, either. He takes a breath and looks with his Sight, for just a moment. In that moment he is assaulted by the everything of this place--by what was, what is, what might be. Emotions: hope, sadness, anger, amusement--all common things one might expect to find in a nightclub. But fear? That's unusual. The afterimages are burned into his mind with perfect clarity, and thus, so are the relationships between everything in the room. Ferham wasn't harmed, she was moved. And when it happened, she was /quite/ scared. It's an impressive feat, if the wizard was one from his world, but he doubts it. It's a big ocean, with lots of fish.

     Jimmy looks for a spot to head upstairs and takes the stairs, emerging backstage.

Ferham (516) has posed:
     There seemed to be a good amount of activity in the club tonight, as apparently the lone announcer was giving an opening for a new act. There was a lot of men in the lounge area tonight, with a few women in evening wear scattered between them, with the lights going down rather low. Backstage, there was a few people running around--a bouncer which moves to stop Jimmy--a rather large, broad shouldered but stout Italian looking gentleman, wearing a suit and sunglasses, who tries to grab the gun from him before it goes off and alerts the entire establishment. There might be a bit of a struggle. What looks like a waitress runs through, alarmed about something even before she notices Jimmy being confronted by the bouncer, apparently things were not as they seemed to be and the place had been alerted to Jimmy and Fer's presence.

     Speaking of Ferham... as the curtains rise on another act out on the stage of the club, what looks like a familiar rather tall and leggy woman clad in a strapless red sequin cocktail dress emerges, seemingly as if she had risen up from a dias set into the floor--and likely she had. Sliding up and into place, the woman stepped off, matching red sequin stiletto heels glittering in the light, wearing tan but transparent nylons visible through very high slits in the dress. She had shoulder-length black hair, her eyes done up in eyeshadow and lips in red rouge lipstick, she raised a hand clad in shoulder-length red velvet opera gloves, beginning to sing into the microphone present.

     "She woooore bluuuee... velveeet."

Jimmy Wen (606) has posed:
     The jig is up, and Jimmy knows that. His mouth isn't going to get the bouncer's hands off of his piece, and the Laws of Magic mean it's going to have to be muscle against muscle. He scuffles with the muscle for a moment, trying to yank his gun free. No dice. The two of them wander back and forth in a fruitless and circuitous path, each one trying to best the other. Mostly, it's Jimmy getting led around and refusing to let go. The bouncer would appear to have more strength, but thanks to Ancient Mai's insistence, Jimmy isn't without some tricks of his own--Wing Chun. Jimmy removes one hand from his gun in order to turn and strike the taller man in the solar plexus with his elbow, then brings his fist up in a backwards motion towards the bouncer's face to try and knock him off balance.

Ferham (516) has posed:
     The bouncer, who had one arm over both of Jimmy's, uses his free left hand to begin throwing a few wailing punches into the man's abdomen and stomach area, unless Jimmy distangles himself real fast. The larger man is strong and is trying to use his weight to move Jimmy off balance, but whent he elbow goes into his solar plexus, this is just enough time the mage could need--as it does knock the bouncer's air out. The sunglasses on his face are askew as he staggers back, the music from the stage covering the sound of the fighting. He then raises an arm, wheezing and choking to try and deliver a straight punch to the younger man's jaw.

     On the stage, the woman kept singing blue velvet, the same one by Bobby Vinton, in a slow and cooing female lounge singer fashion. It had to be admitted that Ferham did look amazing in that red sequin dress--there was even some familiar pink markings on it around the chest area, though Jimmy had probably never seen Fer without her helmet or other armor before, either.

Jimmy Wen (606) has posed:
     The bouncer's fist is as big as Jimmy's head, or maybe it isn't. When you're under the effects of adrenaline, everything seems faster, everything seems bigger, more dangerous. He's got a loaded gun in his other hand, and even though this is far from the wizard's first fight of this nature, he still feels the urgency of the situation. That gun might go off, and take him down. It's tough to get learning converted into practice, but this isn't Jimmy's first rodeo. As that fist comes for his face, he sidesteps, then snaps out an arm and locks the bounder's into place. Holding it out, he jams the elbow of the other arm upwards as hard as he can, remembering the princple. Swing soft, strike hard. His elbow connects with the bouncer's arm, trying to dislocate it at the joint.

     From this point of view, he can clearly see Ferham, and the sight of her on the stage /singing/ when she should be downstairs /stealing/ is enough to strike an even balance between confused wizard and pissed wizard. Of course, she /is/ pretty easy on the eyes without that armor, but there is a struggling goon right next to him who will surely take advantage of any further distractions.

Ferham (516) has posed:
     The bouncer struggles for breath, his shaved head reflecting the lights of the nightclub as those sunglasses hang off his face, he is agape in pain as the arm Jimmy had caught suddenly is bending in the exact opposite way it should, with an accompanying pop and a wheeze of pain from the man. He doesn't have the breath to scream, thanks to the earlier chest blow, and it looks like he's going down onto one knee, down it looks like, for the most part.

     Ferham doesn't seem to notice Jimmy, at all. She's going through with that number about blue velvet and the night, her demeanor seeming to take pleasure from the way the song goes off without a hitch and the audience claps in applause. Already however, there is a bit of a changeup from that tune to something a bit faster, more upbeat--the cocktail dress clad femmebot taking the microphone from the stand as she begins moving those hips of hers around, voice raised into what might be something vaudeville in rhythm.

Jimmy Wen (606) has posed:
     "Sorry." Jimmy steps on the bouncer's wrist and retrieves his gun, smashing the butt into the other man's temple. He looks over his shoulder. Fer's still singing, so he reaches into the bouncer's wallet and takes a few bills for the trouble. After that, he touches his earpiece and checks it to make sure it wasn't too damage in the scuffle. "Come on, Legs. We're leaving." He stays in the shadows, hoping the fembot can hear him.

Ferham (516) has posed:
     Though Ferham would likely be distracted if the man had called out to her, she seems to be absorbed in whatever task she's in right now--looking as she's singing some kind of rousing 50s musical number with spicy lyrics. The kind that might have been sung at nightclubs like this decades ago--jeez, how old was that enchantment? As the music picks up even louder, Fer raises her red gloved hands to the front of the dress and with a flourish like a magician act, it's gone, instead revealing what looks to be a red silk leotard (patterned after her armor, no less) clinging to her chest. It's high cut, and shows off those stocking-clad legs quite a bit. If Jimmy hadn't already recognized her from her face before now, those legs were a dead giveaway as to who she was. It wasn't as if Wen ever forgot a pair of legs, right?

Jimmy Wen (606) has posed:
     "Fer..." He hisses from backstage. "Ferham!" It's that awkward, stop-doing-that tone of voice you get from people who don't want to actually go and /get/ you. But, it looks like Jimmy's got no choice, and it looks like this is definitely her. Indeed, he doesn't ever forget a pair of legs, and now that he's seen her without her armor--well, he didn't even know it /was/ armor, to be honest. Now he's going to have to figure out exactly what's been done to her and undo it, and to do that, he needs peace, quiet, and time. All three of those are at a premium in a nightclub which is potentially aware of his presence and is absolutely aware of hers. "Sorry, Fer."

     Jimmy runs out onto the stage, aviators blocking the stage lights. Several boos erupt from the crowd before he even gets to her, and they only worsen when he tugs insistently at her wrist. "Come on, Legs, it's time to go."

Ferham (516) has posed:
     Fer was right in the middle of that musical number and only seems to notice anything when the boos begin coming up from someone invading the stage. This is when she blinks a bit in alarm and doesn't notice Jimmy until he's almost right next to her, having followed what people were looking at in the crowd. "What the--" she doesn't seem to take much to get moving however, and she's apparently easy to tug around in this rather embarrassing mode she's been enchanted to, Jimmy likely can just haul her right off stage. "You're interrupting my performance!" she whines, though it doesn't sound like the usual throaty feminine charm she usually has, this is more whiny, surprised, the opposite of calm. At least she seems to be able to be tugged along quickly behind him in those red stiletto heels, anyway. Would Jimmy be able to fix her and dispell the enchantment?

     Almost as if on cue, the curtains close.