Scene #7890: BNCM: The Villa

Owner	Pose
Candy	MEXICO STATE OF MICHOACAN Governor Leblanc's Villa Candy's information, once again, checks out. You stand, shrouded under cover of heavy forest, at the south bank of a large crater lake. Surrounding the lake, clinging to the high-rising walls of the crater, is a ring of green--it looks almost like the blue pool in the center is the iris of an eye, peering up at the starry sky above. The cries of insects fill the air. It's not as cold here as it was visiting Benitez's estate, but the mountain air is still crisp and thin. Bathed in moonlight, built upon a series of terraces carved out into the opposite side of the crater, lies the governor's villa. His manor rests atop the highest level, a two-storey French affair. Ivy brought in from out of the country clings to the sides, in sufficient quantity along aged walls to suggest this place has stood here for a few generations. Federales patrol this area in tightly organized, overlapping routes, armed with wood-stock, top-loading bolt action rifles. Sharing this level with the manor are modest houses for the waitstaff. In front of the manor there lies a wading pool where its image is no doubt reflected in crystal clear blue during the daytime. The next terrace down is a small farming community, with tilled plots and housing for a host of sharecroppers. The third and final level is enclosed by a high brick wall, behind which there is a barracks for the soldiers, as well as what appears to be a small motor pool. Four guard towers along the wall house two soldiers each, manning water-jacketed belt-fed mounted machine guns with adjustable spotlights affixed to each. "Here's what I know," whispers Candy, dressed in dark colors. Gloved hands rack the slide on a blocky, early-model automatic pistol. "Water's full of ahuizotl, but it's the fastest way in. If you don't got a way to deal with little bastards trying to drown you, then you can go the long way around, but careful you don't get your ass blown off," he says, screwming on a suppressor. Slipping the pistol into a leather shoulder holster fastened around his partially unbuttoned work shirt, he continues. "My buddy told me the mines are like the fucking flies the closer you get to the top level. If you wanna go that way but that's a problem for you, I'll make you a sweeper. He also said Leblanc spends most of his time in 'the hangar.'" Candy pauses, fastening his hair into a ponytail with a turquoise ribbon. He tucks the tail under the collar of his shirt, then slips a wool knit cap over his head. "...I didn't see no hangar when I came to check the place out, and my buddy couldn't get a line on where, neither, so I don't know what that's about. Best bet's to get into his manor and snoop around there. They say he's a mage, and his school's one that don't get taught outside his family. Don't figure you got him beat just cause you find him." "You guys ready?"
Sleek Shimmer	After undertaking her own efforts to vet these Watch people, and snooping hard enough to find a means of allying herself with them, Shimmer has decided to make use of her new contacts-and-allies network, see what's going on out there, and maybe earn some future favors... And doing away with this awful artifact being whispered about before it falls into ugly hands is sure a good deed if she's ever heard of it. Which is why she's here, in fox girl form, wearing a dark hooded cloak, hood currently down. The young shifter's crouched down looking out over the expanse, gazing at the situation intensely. "Strange but beautiful place to build. What are ahuizotl? Water beasts? Fanged fish? Hn.... if it was just two guards at a tower I could easily sneak in... risk alerting one with two there to take down quickly..." She folds her arms warily. "The guards are easy to see, but if the lord of the mansion knows mystic arts, there might be alarm wards. Be careful." Just to be sure about that, Shimmer closes her eyes and focuses, reaching her senses out across the lake. At this distance, details might be hard to make out, but a grounds-wide ward would certainly show up...
Candy	"Little bastards that try to drown you and eat your eyeballs," Candy answers Shimmer. "They've got three hands. Two like me and you, and one on the tail." When she takes to searching for wards, her worry is confirmed. There is indeed a grounds-wide ward. These things, however, are not without their weaknesses. Given the relative seclusion of the governor's villa, and its forested surroundings, it's fairly likely that small animals pass through on the regular. Candy also mentioned being able to 'case' this place earlier, though it's unclear if he even knew there were wards, or simply has some inherent means of bypassing them. The good news is that the wards themselves only extend as far as the terraced portions of the crater--traversing the lake or the forest on the approach to the villa won't be an issue.
Rita Ma	"It's really nice," Rita says contemplatively on the trek over, "getting to see mountains that aren't underwater. You can see a lot more of them at once, and they're a lot less gray. Isn't it nice, Mr. Candy?" He has, in fact, seen at least one mountain underwater- the Tres Cruces massif, in her world. This is inarguably a lot prettier. On arrival, she crouches next to Candy, wearing nothing special- her typical outfit is dark-ish colors anyway, not to mention her talents making it largely irrelevant. "When I had to fight that priest on the train, it worked pretty well to cover his mouth. But if it's a special kind of magic... I guess we'll just have to find out," she muses out loud. After a brief discussion of what 'ahuizotls' are and aren't, Rita gives him an affirmative nod. "I'll be okay in the water, then." Her eyes light on Sleek Shimmer; normally she wouldn't bother to bullshit Lilian or Candy at this point, but the presence of someone new makes her a bit more self-conscious. "I didn't bring my diving suit, but I think I'll be fine. See you on the other side, Ms. Rook?" When the time comes, she slips into the water of the crater, disappearing from view beneath its surface. Once she can't be seen, her tentacles unfurl, propelling her through the water at high speed in a feat of sleekly optimized design.
Sleek Shimmer	"Then I won't touch the water." Shimmer decrees. How she intends to do that isn't immediately obvious , but after discussing a few more things on the radio she takes a step forward-- And pauses, smelling - before turning to see - Rita Ma. "... Be careful, sister..." She probably doesn't mean 'sister' literally. That out of the way, when it's time to move, Shimmer moves. She leans forward as if about to take a step, lifts her foot. Her form ripples and glows as a surge of otherworldly power builds-- Then, with the faintest shwooooooooof she blurs into a -- ... into nothing. A vague half-motion towards the other end of the lake. The exact reverse occurs about ten feet from the wards on the distant shores. Shimmer completes the step, crouching down with her hood up trying to stay stealthy. If there were any boulders, outcroppings, structures, or foliage to use as cover she's definitely targeted them...
Candy	"It is nice!" It's much better to see mountains that aren't covered in skeletons and nesting grounds for horrible undersea monsters. This crater is unfortunately only one of those things, but you take what you can get. Rita, swimming through the water at high speed, is harried by black-furred animals that can't quite catch her in a dead sprint. The issue is that they appear to be pack hunters--several, further down the lake, cut in front of her in the murky darkness, their forms becoming more distinct as they approach. Clawed, eerily human-like hands scrape and grasp at her, as long prehensile tails attempt to wrap around her limbs and throat. Clenched hands at the end of those tails try to pummel, as maws full of jagged teeth are bared. Past the packs of ahuizotl, Rita's next obstacle is the shoreline. The wall is easily scaled by someone with her particular gifts, but the four guard towers are, rather diligently for this hour of night, sweeping the shore with those flashlights in uneven, hard-to-predict sweeps. The timing will be tight to get past the wall and the four towers. Candy, meanwhile, disappears into the forest. Rather than follow behind Lilian, he climbs into a tree, or rather, blinks up to the sturdiest branch. Shimmer, skipping across the top of the lake, has the benefit of Rita's presence to keep the beasts within busy. By the time she's in danger of brushing across the ward, Candy's engineered some nebulously understood device. An invisible streak of energy flies from the treeline, not so much piercing the ward as spreading across it. Clouds rush unnaturally above, drowning out the moon and the stars as a heavy rain sets in. Lightning strikes, a crooked finger of electricity piercing the immaterial 'bubble' around the estate grounds. The wards have been turned inside-out; they will only sound an alert for signs of life -leaving- the grounds. As with Rita, the next obstacle is those unusually diligent guards, and their sweeping flashlights--though the sudden thunderstorm has them perplexedly distracted, for a small moment.
Sleek Shimmer	As soon as that lightning strikes and the wards are addressed... shimmer bounds into motion. She lacks another good target for her teleport and so, instead, hunkers down and shifts into her fox form, clothes vanishing as if they never existed in place of fur. Now she's tiny and lightfooted and... And, what's more, with a moment of focus she circulates her qi in wind form, causing a silent faint breeze to drift about her body, catching a little tidbit of sand to show its motion. That little bit of wind lightens her body, and so she bolts out of cover with terrific speed upon spotting an opening in the sweeps!
Lilian Rook	After what happened last time, Lilian has spent a really long time before this mission, and for the first time in her entire life, strenuously considering pants. A turtleneck too. She actually owns a rarely used example of the latter, but after a prolonged period of staring at herself in a full length mirror and trying to imagine every possible permutation of 'tactically sound' casual wear that she can, Lilian does, eventually, give up. She'd look longingly at the her combat skin if she actually got to keep it in her room, but sadly, it can't go with her on dubiously legal business like this. The same as last time it is. Of course she makes sure to greet Rita properly, and then size up the new hire, keeping her mouth shut for Rita's sake with her usual brand of effortlessly tactical propriety. Except for the words "More foxes." and "I'm a magnet." spoken in dry deadpan. Candy's warning goes replied to thusly: <J-IC-Scene> Lilian Rook says, "Frankly, I'm more concerned about attempting to infiltrate a manor house after swimming in the same clothes, than I am malicious water creatures." <J-IC-Scene> Lilian Rook says, "I'm not getting my swimsuit." <J-IC-Scene> Lilian Rook says, "I assure you, knowing the type, 'the hangar' is a not-incorrect euphemism. Like 'the atrium'." And then, some terribly unimportant banter later: <J-IC-Scene> Candy says, "Uh huh. Well, listen, you want a sweeper for the mines, then?" <J-IC-Scene> Candy says, "It's darker than a miner's asscrack in those woods right now." <J-IC-Scene> Lilian Rook says, "I can find my way past them, but not scout and dig them all up without wasting a lot of time." <J-IC-Scene> Lilian Rook says, "I can find my way past them, but not scout and dig them all up without wasting a lot of time." <J-IC-Scene> Lilian Rook says, "I can find my way past them, but not scout and dig them all up without wasting a lot of time." <J-IC-Scene> Candy says, "I didn't know you was into that! Makes sense, though. Good luck!~" <J-IC-Scene> Lilian Rook says, "No comment." Lilian herself passes easily in the night. Clad darkly, moving shrewdly, feet never quite touching the ground, she reaches a fairly clean estimate of where she expects the most implausible outer range of any guard tower's line of sight is, and settles down to trance out at the terraced grounds while Candy works on the wards. Extended short-term forks of potential futures, winding back from the tips of the branching never-realities where mines explode and guards fire to arrive at the trunk that connects Lilian to the key that she wants (and from near there, the curiosity of 'the hangar'. Though she doesn't strictly need the distraction, Candy's thunderstorm monopolizing human attention does allow Lilian to move a little more brazenly, and so she makes use of it, simply appearing at the manor house with a slightly disorienting sense of deja vu. Reluctant to waltz right in after the embarrassing niche fortitude save she'd failed before, Lilian scans the outside surface of the building, both visually to find a room that shouldn't be in use, examining windows and projecting the next two seconds after entering, and magically, to assess if there might be additional layers of protection, or mechanics waiting just inside. She'll enter through one (intangibly) once she has a solid compromise between distance to the objective and ease of remaining quiet in mind.
Rita Ma	Rita weaves and darts around the strange dark shapes as nimbly as she's able- which is very nimbly indeed- but while a dogfighter in the sky has a luxury of space, Rita's 3D maneuvering is constrained by the depth of the lake, and she's unwilling to break the surface. Eventually, through numbers and coordination, they have her hemmed in. So she stops, and she waits as they close in. Wait until they're all gathered around. Wait until they're as close as possible, as dense as possible, until their teeth are almost on her. At the last possible fraction of a second, Rita twists as if doing a ballerina spin, and her tentacles whicker through the water like blades. Each ahuizotl is dissected along a dozen intersecting planes; aquadynamic streamlining parts flesh as easy as water. In the aftermath she lunges after the stragglers who were late for the initial massacre, pulling them apart with teeth and claws until the scattered remainder have run far enough to make chasing them impractical. On the surface, there are just a few bubbles. The lake's water tinges an imperceptible degree more pink. When she's arrived at the opposite shore, Rita stares up from below the water's surface with narrowed eyes. The flashlights sweep overhead. After staring at their beams for a good few moments, she isn't any closer to finding a pattern. So, she simply opts not to play the game. Rita's path out of the water, over the wall, and towards the manor takes her through flashlight beams aplenty. But they simply do not find her. There is nothing there to be seen, not even a shadow. She doesn't shimmer back into visibility until she is much, much deeper in, far from the searchlights' gaze. Maybe in an hour or two they'll find the little wet footprints.
Candy	Shimmer catches wind of an exchange between the tower guards, on her way past. "Did you hear that?" "I can't hardly hear anything over this downpour." "I could swear..." "Well, check the line. Anything?" There's what sounds like the subtle buzz of a phone line. "Nothing. Probably just another squirrel." Past the wall, Shimmer and Rita have a few options. The motor pool isn't far from where they're at--an enclosed sort of garage with a large, open bay door. Dim light inside reveals several half-track transports with covered beds. Each looks like it could carry twenty people, easily. The good news is that the search lights are focused primarily on the lake, and that the thunderstorm will wash away footprints fairly easily. The bad news is that patrols are regular on this first terrace, and the soldiers have adjusted for the storm with uncanny ease, now traveling in pairs. If the motor pool doesn't seem viable or useful, the other option would be the next terrace up, which appears to be a small farming community with a few plots. There's a token presence there, but only the Federales are awake right now--the farmers must all be asleep. There are five houses, and a guard posted for each one. It's hard to tell from this distance, but those guards don't appear to have the rifles that the ones towards the lake do. Lilian does find a room that isn't in use. Through flashes of lightning, past the glare of the window, she can just barely make out the room on the second storey. A small four post bed with frilly lace canopy, unmade and empty. Toys wooden, tin and plush keeping silent vigil, strewn about the room. There was once protection in this room, but it is threadbare, atrophied from lack of use. She can safely enter without noise or alarm--and once she does, she can see the dust that has settled on everything. This is a room of the manor that not even the waitstaff touch. The only sign of any disturbance is that of two rectangular voids atop the dust settled upon a white-gold dresser. There was once a picture frame there.
Sleek Shimmer	Shimmer really doesn't have any use for vehicles, except as stepping stones or cover. She doesn't know how to drive them.... and they're not particularly stealthy. Her small, nimble fox form, however, is VERY stealthy. So long as she uses cover and verticality to her advantage, she's fully confident in being able to evade notice from guards wandering around. Humans are going to be on the lookout for human-like things and bigger... A fox slinking through alleys, leaping from rooftop to rooftop, with almost silent steps... should stand a good chance, right? So, up she goes into the farmlands, which may as well be her native habitat. Any crops which are bigger than knee-high are excellent cover for her to simply trot through and a fox in the fields, presumably hunting for pesky field mice or rabbits or the like, may not be very noteworthy... Assuming they're common around here. She attempts to slink about towards one of the houses, hoping to utilize cover and blind spots - or failing that, just crouch down low and swivel her ears appropriately, in case there's any useful chatter to go over, while she plans her next move.
Rita Ma	Rita's chromatophores, like any other muscle, eventually fatigue. Holding a single pattern is easy; the dozens-per-second color changes required for invisibility are hard. She drops it once she's able, but the patrolling guards still don't see her. Instead, through the darkness and the rain, they might dimly glimpse two shapes: another pair of guards, patrolling side by side. Nothing strange about that. Even the silhouettes of the uniform and rifle are perfect. When she slips inside the open garage bay door, Rita stays in her soldier guise, but her illusory patrolling partner simply dissolves away. "In space, a 'hangar' can be for spaceships," she murmurs quietly to herself. "On the ocean, a hangar bay can be for smaller ships. On land, I wonder... could it be for cars?" The talking has more purpose than settling her thoughts. It also draws air over her tongue, tasting for scents as she glances inside the troop carriers(?) and listens for signs of movement. Leblanc, Candy had said, spends most of his time in the hangar. Is this it? Can she catch a human scent under the rubber and motor oil?
Candy	The motor pool is one of the larger buildings in the villa. It has been designed so that the first thing anyone who enters will see is a notice, illuminated by an early-model lightbulb, hung on chains. It's written in Spanish, but a little concentration can get the gist across once the Understanding kicks in. IN THE EVENT OF ATTACK: 1. Sound the alarm 2. Man escape transports, proceed to exfiltration zone 3. Civilian passengers first - defend exfiltration zone until all transports are loaded 4. Proceed to Alpha Site using nearest available route Have respect and compassion for those who serve you--cowards will be shot Between the capacity of each vehicle, and the number of transports, there appear to be enough to transport nearly everyone in this gated community to safety. Her only company in this room is a mechanic, who's performing some maintenance on one of the halftracks, which is currently elevated by a lift. Her back is to Rita.
Candy	There's a variety of crops being grown--but most of them are indeed knee high. Each plot has a humble spread of crops meant to feed a family moreso than be brought to market. This close to the houses, she can smell the bins that the farmers use to deliver the governor's share. Based on the strength of the smell, it would appear that the tithe asked of each family leaves them more than enough to avoid missing meals. In fact, moving from cover to cover in the rainstorm, the portioning in each bin seems to suggest that the governor's manor receives just enough to get by. The guards here carry only pistols and batons, though bulky, early-iteration radios with heavy battery packs, phone-style receivers and large antennae are provided to each one. Proceeding past this point introduces her to more challenging conditions. The guards near the manor are more heavily armed, each one with a drum-magazine, wooden-stocked submachine gun carried on a sling strap, and heavy-looking flashlights that sweep the ground. Sensing magical defenses as Lilian had, Shimmer's best point of entry would be the abadoned child's room, though she'll have to change up her approach and add some verticality to keep from getting a light pointed her way. There is an odd metallic smell coming from the reflection pool in front of the manor.
Sleek Shimmer	Now armed with her quarry's description, Sleek Shimmer decides to expand her senses. Perhaps she'll be able to detect a man who's capable of working wards over large areas. His lifeforce may be above average! ... or, maybe not. But she can't just sit there and wait. Taking stock of the farming situation, she now can't help but wonder what sort of person this Leblanc really is. He's strangely generous towards the peasants and she hasn't heard a word of complaint or seen a guard being lazy. Which is kind of creepy. With no Leblanc in sight yet, she decides to vault over and up onwards. Verticality isn't, it turns out, difficult for her. She can dash straight up walls and leap to rooftops, very unlike ordinary foxes. Even walk across clotheslines without them snapping or bending precariously, if need be. But she can't help but step by the pool on the way, when sweeping searchlights give her a moment. Stop by and sniff. Sniff sniff. And sense it. Water should NOT smell like that after all...
Lilian Rook	At first, Lilian doesn't really take any if in. Being herre in the first place is already such a stretch for her, and the bright-burning to have it all play out differently than before consumes the the rest of her attention. It's only when she's fully assessed the thick coating of dust on every surface, in her efforts to not disturb any of it, when Lilian really comprehends where she is. Briefly, for another first time, she experiences a twisted up little longing for the boards and sheets here to divulge their past to her. The temptation to stop and make sense of all this --to reconcile it with the person she barely knows of-- is as trong one. In the end, though, not as strong as her reason for being here; even the dust won't stir if she doesn't allow it, finnicky as that is. and so the dresser contents are worth a quick glance before Lilian begins precognitively scouting the halls for the continuation to her direct route, and more saliently, focusing her senses to pick out the exact positions of who might be awake, asleep, or not human, at this hour.
Rita Ma	Rita stares at the warning for a little while, for more reasons than just the mild dificulty of reading it. 'Alpha Site' raises questions; 'respect and compassion' raises more. For a moment her expression wavers. Can someone like this really be so bad? Are we making a mistake? Then it solidifies again, into refreshed determination. Of course he's bad. He's holding one of the keys to the cauldron! We've heard exactly what that thing will do! Even beyond that, living in a mansion like this while others live in little shacks... ... Well, that's different for Lilian, but still. She spots the mechanic, morphs into a different appearance, and backs away so that she can make more noise on her second approach- if she simply appeared silently, it'd be too suspicious. If this isn't "the Hangar", she has no idea what that is or where it is- so she presents herself as a simple farmer girl, carrying a basket under her arm that could contain anything. "Um, excuse me?" she says awkwardly, after announcing her presence with noisy footsteps and pretending to notice the mechanic for the first time. "I'm supposed to bring this to the hangar, but..." She looks dripping wet and apologetically forlorn, like she might've gotten lost in the dark and ended up here just to get out of the rain.
Candy	Expanding her senses thusly, Shimmer does indeed detect two very noticeable tributaries that split off from the river of unformed potential. One is in the woods--Candy. It is, simply put, massive, less a tributary and more a floodgate or dam. But there is another, more rigidly shaped than Candy's. It is strongest, oddly, beneath that pool. It's hard to see, with raindrops distorting the surface of the water, but just faintly visible beneath the clear blue water is a seam, that runs from one end of the pool to the other. If that rigid doorway through which qi may pass is indeed Leblanc, then he is several hundred feet below that pool. Lilian, meanwhile, checks through the dresser contents. This room belonged to a little girl. If the clothes don't give it away, then an old crayon drawing certainly will--a young blond haired girl, maybe eight or so given her height relative to the other figure. She's jumping or perhaps stomping in a puddle of mud. A man in a grey uniform, also stained with mud, laughs, holding the little girl's simplistic stick-figure hand. It's only humans in the manor. Her precognitive ability allows her to plot a route that avoids those still awake--mostly guards with those pistols, batons and those bulky archaic radio packs. Doors begin to open for her, in her premonitions, as she gets further from the young girl's room. She is lead, then, to a study, where a bust of some long-dead philosopher turns its head, and a bookcase swivels open to reveal a compact, one-person lift. Her premonitions revealed other potential entryways in other parts of the manor, some meant only for one, some able to carry several, some even funicular elevators meant to ferry large numbers of people at once. The floorboards creak. The bookshelf shifts. The electric chandelier above buzzes. The windows rattle. All of them are deniable, individually. Together, they are a voice--a language. "One's home is one's castle. Descend for the key."
Sleek Shimmer	"Directly below..." And that water doesn't smell right. But there isn't any better clue right now. Something INTERESTING is down under all of that water. Probably her quarry. But maybe something else... an artifact? Other mystical treasure? Who knows... "Fortune favors the bold!" She states, and abrubtly dives into the pool, shifting back to human-like form, temporarily minus any clothing - such would only make swimming difficult. And that might be a bit of a struggle to dive that far down, but Shimmer's daring enough to try.
Candy	"Oh, don't worry," says the mechanic, without even turning around. "He already knows you're lost. Maybe even that we're having this conversation!" She grunts, wrenching off a cap of some manner. Thick oil flows in uneven spurts, deftly avoided by the experienced mechanic. "It's his eye. But don't let that scare you. He's actually really nice. Just a little distant. The fastest way there from here--" Stricken by sudden amusement, "Well, the fastest way would be the reflection pool, but you'd be looking at a pretty long fall if you took that way." "Next fastest would be the manor. Just step inside, think about the hangar and he'll tell you where to go." Just as Lilian had been, if Rita chooses to take the manor approach, she is guided by the language of the house--floorboards, light fixtures, windows, settling walls and decor--to the nearest elevator. If she decides to take the reflection pool, she'll find that launch bay doors have already opened for Shimmer--but she'll still need, as Shimmer does, the readiness to mitigate a very long drop. Shimmer in particular finds that the water first drains from the sides of the pool, until she is left standing on two launch bay doors that slowly open. It's a long way down, but there is a faint red light that shines below. Getting safely down there will require some acrobatic finesse--there is the sense that this was made for something to come up from below. Lilian, Rita and Shimmer find that the 'hangar' is aptly named. Dim red light bathes everything in crimson. Backpacks with engines, helmets and sets of two high-powered rotors line the walls. Positioned beneath the launch bay doors concealed by the reflection pool, all the way at the far end of the facility, is the ovoid shape of a 200 meter rigid airship. You are far from alone down here. Federales hold early-model submachine guns, readied but not aimed, making eye contact with you as you pass, but taking no actions to stop you. Technicians in lab coats with ties hurry out of your way, revealing, at the nose of that airship, none other than Leblanc himself, regards you from atop an eight-meter tall object--the form is obscured by a large canvas tarp, and your only clue as to what it might be is the can of gasoline that Leblanc has just tossed aside.
Candy	Leblanc does not wear the trappings of his wealth as flagrantly as Benitez had. Rather, he wears the grey uniform of the Federal Army's armored division, unbuttoned to reveal a tank top. In the red light of the hangar, with sleeves rolled up above the elbow, the definition of his arms is easily seen. So, too, is the intricate brass-and-copper prosthesis serving as his right eye. His uniform's rank insignia is small and discrete--likely a development from the revolutionary armies of the north and south depending so heavily on snipers. It marks him as some sort of commissioned officer, three small silver stars. "'Lilian,' 'Rita,' the shapeshifter--and, I am certain, somewhere in hiding, the dynamiter Estevez." The governor leaps down from the canvas. "You have come for the key. Estevez is a known quantity. 'Rita' and the shapeshifter, less so, if not wholly troubling. But you," he says, his eye clicking and whirring, as it focuses on Lilian, "Least of all. The Key of Observation, as the Babylonians once called it, is of no use to me. Your past is shrouded. Indeed, even your name I had to pry from that boorish Estevez boy's lips." He steps closer, his salt-and-pepper brow furrowing as his mechanical and organic eye bore into her in unison. "What guarantee do I have that you will act as the Rational Imperative urges and destroy the cauldron, once the key is yours?"
Sleek Shimmer	What a crazy manner of timing this is! Halfway down the swim the water turns turbulent and starts draining away. The currents tug her this way and that towards one drain or another. She's not a great swimmer and the currents trigger a sudden panic! A few moments of flailing later, she realizes... A different strategy. Stilling her movements, closing her eyes, and calming her mind, she opens her spirit and brings both palms to her navel, setting them opposing each other... light glows faintly there between those palms, and the water begins to swirl inwards TOWARDS HER, and vanish as it reaches just as much as it flows out the drains. This has her stable all the way down through the descent until she plunks down on the launch bay doors. Halting the strange art she stands... and shakes her whole body rapidly like a beast, spraying droplets everywhere. Only then does she focus again, and don clothing. It simply appears around her with a flash of light. It's no trouble at all now to drop down into the hangar... but she doesn't. Instead she dangles from the launch bay doorway by a hand, gazing down at the proceedings and listening carefully. Since he's chosen to speak to Lilian and knows exactly what's up, she doesn't see a need to butt in.
Sleek Shimmer	There IS one thing that Shimmer wants to know though, at least. So she calls down to him in obvious curiosity, "How did you discover us?" No hostility. She doesn't even sound nervous at being found. Seems she either isn't considering him to be a threat, or at least doesn't think he'll become hostile.
Candy	"One's home is one's castle," repeats Leblanc to Shimmer, without turning his head to look at her. The machinery in the launch bay doors groans and settles, keeping her aloft but making noise in time with his speech to accentuate and amplify it--he doesn't know she can probably hear him from up there. "The magical school of my family, passed down the line." He pauses, his mouth twitching and his eyes closing. Leblanc takes a breath. "Within these walls, there is nothing which happens that I do not see or hear." "It will die with me, and this is fine. The Leblanc school was conceived of in a time where there was thought to be a use for estates; before noblesse oblige was proven to be an ideological dead end. As the Rational Imperative dictates, that which is no longer useful should no longer be used."
Rita Ma	Audibly shuddering at 'he already knows', Rita nonetheless nods- "thank you, miss mechanic!"- and ducks out, shedding her disguise with some relief. She's torn, as she leaves, on which would be creepier: getting guidance from an old rich guy's all-seeing eye and disembodied voice, or taking a sheer plunge. She decides firmly to stick with the second option, and then when she actually arrives at the yawning chasm that the reflection pool's turned into, regrets her commitment. Ask Lilian to carry me down? Auuhhh, but I don't want to be a burden... Go through the house? If he's anything like Benitez, I'd rather do anything else. ... I'll just trust my body then. The least bad option. Rita shivers slightly, and then her expression goes flat. Her body leaps down the launch tube, digs its fingers into the structure's wall, and carves shallow gashes all the way down with a stream of sparks lighting up the darkness- braking with the fingertips alone to keep from falling too fast. Her body lands perfectly atop the airship in a deep crouch, then slowly straightens up. It's possible to see the exact moment at which Rita stops moving on pure instinct, because her eyes go wide and she has to clamp a hand over her mouth to keep herself from screaming from what she just did. Terror is replaced, not long after, by awe as she soaks in her surroundings- the machinery, the workers, the size of the airship. Hearing 'the shapeshifter', though, jolts her attention back to the governor, even though it wasn't meant to address her. The question that follows isn't meant for her either, but she manages to fumble her way to volunteering an answer anyway: "Because Candy trusts her. I trust her! And for people like me and Candy, it's a weapon we can't hold. There's no way to fight for 'the people' by enslaving them. The most we can advance our cause with a thing like that, is by destroying it. There is no other use."
Candy	Leblanc listens to Rita, head angled towards her. As she speaks, his eyes shift back towards Lilian, jaw settling. "A well-reasoned response." He removes his hat, greying hat-hair now on display. Reaching into the upturned officer's hat, he provides the third and final key to Rita, before placing the hat back on his head. "Take it--and with it, my warning." He repeats the mantra of his family school, tapping his temple--"One's home is one's castle. In less than a day's time, Coronel Navarro will arrive here to ascertain whether the key has been compromised. She will find nothing but wreckage." There is a glance towards one of the walls. "Estevez, wherever he now hides, I am sure, will be glad to assist, in that regard. Navarro will, upon this discovery, use the telegraph office in Capula to wire her superiors, who will in turn report to Ibanez." "Accordingly, Banco Nacional de Ciudad de Mexico will be heavily fortified, anticipating an attack." Considering the density of soldiers in Mexico City the last time Lilian and the Watch visited, that may be a little concerning. "I beseech you all: tell no one what you have seen here, for it is fiction; the product of years of labor on my part, and theirs," he says, sweeping a hand to the guards, over to the researchers, above, to the manor and the ejidos. With the key handed over, Leblanc nods to his researchers, and beckons to a few soldiers. "The trust that Ibanez has put in me was hard-won, over many years, and that, 'Rita,' is a weapon I will gladly hold--but one which loses its edge if it is drawn too early." As work resumes, Leblanc makes use of heavy hawsing cable, tying it to the bulky, canvas-covered, eight-meter tall object, and, with a team of soldiers, begins the arduous process of loading it into the cargo bay of the airship. Leblanc's voice echoes through the villa, mimicked by trees, by the patter of rain upon earth, by the groan of guard towers. "Make ready the transports and prepare to evacuate to the Alpha Site." A handful of 'Federales,' one for each half-track, take to a funicular elevator meant to ferry multiple people. "All hangar personnel, begin final pre-flight checks for the Hammurabi." The heavy object, with a chorus of 'heave-ho' repeated in time, is lurched into the cargo bay. The amplification stops--and from the bridge of the Hammurabi, Leblanc gives a salute.