[PARASITE EVE: Awakening] (IC)

[Enzyme]

OOC Topic: http://roleplayerguild.com/showthrea...akening-(OOC)/



[November 20th, 2023; 7:34 PM PST]
[META Headquarters Garage]
[HP: 80/80]
[PE: 00/00]

"Is this the real thing or is this just another wild
goose chase?"
(Muffled speaking could be heard over the HoloPhone line, but the exact words or who was producing them
could not be made out.)

"I'm not questioning orders, Commander...I just don't feel like leaving the safety and hot coffee that we have at the
META HQ if this turns out to be nothing of substance," pleaded Gary.
...
"...Yes, sir. Right away. I'm in the car right now, I can't talk...you're BR-Bre-k-ng up. We're almos--there....I will repor--....after...Commander Cruz. "
*Click*

"Goddamn that hard-headed drone! I swear, he's a slave driver."

Gary hoped that the person on the other line fell for his ruse, but most people in this day and age knew that telecommunications were significantly more reliable than they were in the technologically-immature past. Calls were rarely dropped nowadays and signal strength was a worry of the past. Gary impatiently tapped his food on the concrete of the Mitochondiron Investigation & Suppression Team's garage - he awaited the remaining members of his squad to assemble and make haste towards their 1st mission. The garage itself was multi-story, even though there were less than 10 people working at META in total. The garage had a minimalist design, with bleach white concrete and off-white marble columns supporting the structure. Various profanities were etched into the pillars, mostly within the past 5 minutes, due to Gary getting bored waiting for the other 3. Gary received an emergency message delivered by courier earlier today, alerting META of their first task; an anonymous report (at least, Gary assumed it was anonymous since he was not given the name of who filed the report) of a possible Mitochondrion outbreak at Los Angeles Veteran's Hospital. Although the report seemed unsubstantiated, premature and panicked on the part, there was always a slim chance that the kooky and mentally unstable vets still had their head on straight and filed a justified report. The LAVH went through an emergency evacuation and thankfully none of the hospital staff or its patients were harmed; the hospital was closed off shortly thereafter and entry for anyone besides META is forbidden for the time being.

Gary dreaded the inevitable media coverage that would ensue. Playing out the various outcomes of this mission in his head, Gary could not come up with a solution that would avoid the media hounds being stationed, rudely and strategically, in front of the Veteran's Hospital gates. It seemed that every few weeks, there was a report of a Mitochondrion attacking some farmer out in the sticks, but these reports never turned out to be more than just rumor or a misunderstanding; Gary had become accustomed to going on "missions" only to return with his head bowed in shame to META headquarters with nothing to show for it, but wasted electricity and more miles accumulating on his META cruiser.

"Ugh, I hate this part. I think I need to go to the bathroom, but I don't have time for that! Also where the hell are the rest of those amateurs? We were supposed to haul our asses out of HQ 4 minutes ago." Gary said, mildly irritated, but he swiftly returned to not caring one way or the other. Gary was soon distracted by an abnormally lustrous and shiny part on the META-assigned police cruiser, which looked more like something a mafioso would drive, rather than someone charged with the task of eradicating monsters that may or may not exist.

Officer Hylell, his official title, had already withdrawn his weapon from Alphonse's firearm depository prior to waiting in the garage for the rest of his squad-mates to arrive. He assumed Alphonse was signing off in triplicate on the necessary paperwork required to register a weapon. Gary wished the other 3 would hurry the hell up. Punctuality was, strangely enough, a virtue which eluded Gary almost 100% of the time (in fact, he was somewhat notorious for being late to everything regardless of importance,) but he couldn't shake the feeling that this time, META might just be facing the "real deal." A genuine Mitochondrion - Gary could barely contain himself and his hand slithered up and down his holstered shotgun. Although the safety was on and the shotgun was rendered virtually harmless (unless you get hit with the blunt end in the face,) Gary's trigger finger was itching. Thoughts of saving the world and getting paid to eliminate "monsters" quickly faded to Gary's inner dialogue. ("I need to cut my nails. My hands look dirty. The fluorescent lighting in this garage is too bright, my eyes hurt. If those 3 don't get here in the next minute, I'm going back up there and dragging them all into the car.")

[Aorigami]

[HP: 50/50]
[PE: 00/00]

Penelope's breath came in and out harshly with each of her step. Her glasses were tilting a bit on her nose bridge, threatening to fall onto the concrete sidewalk and smashed into millions of pieces under her unknowing step, while the strap of her postman bag repeatedly made painful sawing movements on her shoulder. She couldn't see what was in front of her clearly anymore, but at least she was already out of the busy downtown area. What are the odds, really, to get an emergency call right at the peak of the rush hour?

When she finally arrived at the HQ a minute later, the girl was so out of breath already that she couldn't even report to Gary immediately, who was already standing there waiting with a shotgun. She bent down with both hands on her knees and began to even out her breath. She thought that she ought to at least say something to their leader about her delayed arrival, so she briefly tilted her head up and blurted, "Had to run. Subway not running."

Actually, it wasn't really that the subway wasn't running. It was actually delayed for quite a bit of time, thanks to some jackass who decided it was a good day to end his own life on a dingy rail 50 feet under the ground. During a rush hour. When she thinks of it now, it was actually quite a feat running all the way to the HQ from her apartment; she was basically sprinting across half of the city in only six or seven minutes.

When Penelope finally straightened herself up and fixed her glasses, she couldn't help but notice the doodling carved onto the pillars, which were mostly done by Gary. Her OCD-ness was so far the only thing that made her recognize the fresh profanities that sometimes overlapped the older ones. "Did you just etch into the pillars again?" she asked, though not so much laced with surprise anymore. She'd spent it all on his first etchings. "That's vandalism, you know."

[Knighthawk]

Alphonse was up to his privates in paperwork. Every time he tried to streamline the workload, it always seemed to blow up in his face. Internal affairs was always scouring for forgeries and counterfeit to the point that they had programs to tell if the paperwork had been filled out all at the same time just by pen stroke impressions. So it was that he had to file paperwork for the following:
One (1) Colt Anaconda .45, One (1) Box of 100 rounds of .45 caliber
One (1) H&K Match .45, One (1) Box of 100 rounds of .45 caliber
One (1) HAC 12 Ga. Pump action shotgun, One (1) Box of 25 shells of 12 Ga. Caliber
Four (4) 1 oz. measurements of C-4, Four (4) remote detonators, One (1) remote with 100' range.
One (1) Police paraphernalia (resembling police Baton)

With all of the paperwork finished, he headed downstairs while fiddling with his laptop, he limped down the stairs while franticly seeming to text away when in fact he was drafting up design specs for new baton types to incorporate alternative equipment. His own 'paraphernalia' was a nunchaku style baton, he already had ideas to incorporate the flashing strobe of a combat light to upset the enemy, spring loaded knife for a bayonet-like stab, cattle probe for stunning, pepper spray for blinding. Almost all of these would easily fit in a reinforced titanium tube and triggered by a thumb depression or shaft rotation. He sent himself the design specs for a redundant copy in case anything should happen on the mission.

He put on his red leather jacket with extra pockets sewn into the lining as he entered the garage to brace for the temperature change.

"Hola boss-man."

[Ale]

[HP:60/60]
[PE:0/0]

Finishing her coffee, a very carefree figure exited the elevator shaft at precisely 7:40 AM and it would seem she was the last of the group to arrive. The brunette who wore her hair short gave her companions a cheerless wave as she slowly made her way towards them. In all honesty, her being late was all Gary's fault. Goddamn Hylell never came on time, he was always - by some bizarre stroke of chance- always ten minutes late. It was only practical that if she were to have to wait for their beloved leader that she could do it in her bed and not in the freezing garage. That aside, she caught a glimpse of a extremely exhausted Penelope (which somehow seemed to be pretty common these past few days) and a casually calm Alphonse. Alyssa ignored the profanities on the wall; Gary was quite impulsive and senseless when he didn't want to use his brain so it wasn't surprising at all.

Her appearance was rather masculine as any other day when she's on duty. Consisting of a semi-buttoned white dress shirt that gave a tempting peek at her fairly average chest and a men's slim fit black blazer with matching pair of skinny jeans, her outfit presented her as a feminine looking gent rather than a masculine looking gal. Alyssa had been prepared for this mission since last night, a slight touch of fire seemed to twinkle in her usually calm eyes which worked to reveal that the carefree air around her was just a ruse to hide her anxiety. She just as, if not more, excited as Gary in the carrying out of this mission. She hoped that it was worth the drive and hope the nights sleep she had lost over it. While Gary was eager to prove himself a hero, Alyssa was eager to earn her paycheck and get back to HQ in an effort to visit her niece for dinner tonight. Shaking off the feeling, the girl smiled before wrapping her arms comfortably around the slightly shorter Penelope in a friendly and possessive manner before tilting her head and looking at Gary and Alphonse.

"Ready to depart gentlemen?" her voice purred softly.

[Enzyme]

[En route Los Angeles Veteran's Hospital, 7:59 PM]
[HP: 80/80]
[PE: 00/00]

"Ready to depart gentlemen?"

Alyssa said with an annoying voice, almost as if she was taunting the other 3.

"I've BEEN ready. Get your asses in the cruiser!" Gary put his "serious face" on and scolded the trio and he assumed the leader role.

Like fireflies or moths drawn to a flame, the streetlights zoomed by the META cruiser at lightning speed. Gary peered outside every so often as they got en route to their mission objective. The streetlights and headlights all seemed to blur together into a singular cohesive strip of pale neon light that formed a ribbon around both sides of the vehicle. Awestruck and dumbfounded by the beauty of the cityscape, Gary shook out of his trance and focused back on the road. He gripped the wheel and pressed down on the pedal with all his strength. Gary didn't dare peer at the car clock or his HoloPhone to see how late META was to the hospital. ("Oh well.") Officer Hylell thought to himself. He felt the shotgun strapped to his back digging into his skin as it was pressed against Gary and the driver's seat. The drive was quite short (mostly because Gary broke the speed limit) and there was, obviously, come bickering between the 4 investigators. Before the 4 could finish their debate in the car, they began loading their guns and bracing themselves for the inevitably disappointment of yet another false NMC (Neo-Mitochondrial Creature, Mitochondrion for short.)

Alphonse and Penelope muttered something under their breath about the weather - Los Angeles was blanketed in a rough layer of snow, which is unusual for this part of the world. Gary jumped out of the car and noted the bizarre absence of the media and any firetrucks or ambulances. Jackpot! It looks like META wasn't going to have to play cat & mouse with jurisdiction conflicts among other law enforcement agencies.

"Where the hell is everyone? Alyssa, check the local news feed. Any new alerts. It's not like the Liberal media to miss out on a juicy story that turns out to be nothing." Gary stated. The 4 officers walked in a diamond-like formation as they hopped over the low-laying yellow "CAUTION! CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION." tape. Gary almost slid on some partially frozen snow, but regained his composure before he fell.

"It seems all major news channels and the Los Angeles Times have yet to hear back from their news crews. Considering how early in the morning it is I'm guessing their grabbing some hot breakfast. I'll give Commissioner Wallace a call informing him about the lack of surveillance outside and contact HQ about our current situation. Would you like me to call the nearby hospitals regarding whether they're housing any of the patients from here?"

"Don't bother, we don't have time. We need to head in now. Commander Cruz told me there will be 2 elevators when we get inside, we are to use them to explore all 3 floors: the Basement/hospital morgue (0F), 1F, and 2F. We are to assemble into 2 teams: Penelope and I & Alphonse you will be leading Alyssa. Once prepared, both teams will explore the hospital on different floors, so as to ensure the most efficient quarantine and recovery. Keep your guns loaded, veterans are unstable. Just kidding." Gary concisely summarized everything important Commander Cruz told him over the phone. Well, almost everything. He thought it was funny that the Commander would separate Penelope and Alyssa.


The gargantuan double-doors' sensor was activated and the electronic lock was released. The double doors of the hospital's entrance slid apart and separated and the squad entered inside. Immediately the smell of disinfectant and stale medicine permeated the air. The sterile silver and white monochrome motif was apparent in this hospital - everything looked like it was designed by man. Tasteless, metallic and inhumane, the hospital boasted a kind of terror not found in nature. Nothing appeared to come from Mother Nature in the LAVH, right down to the far-too-bright wide fluorescent bulbs that hung overhead like so many stars in the sky. The pale and sterile blue of the hospital's paint appeared as though it was regurgitated onto the walls. ("Since this is a hospital, it seems quite likely." thought Gary.)

Gary squinted and surveyed the lobby of the hospital. An empty reception desk stood undisturbed and a puddle of what Gary hoped wasn't vomit on the floor. Quizzically, Gary asked the obvious "Where is everyone...?" It certainly didn't look like there was anything wrong with the hospital, let alone an attack. For the most part, everything seemed to be in order; the hospital staff was, in all probability, trained to deal with evacuations and so they evacuated in an orderly manner and not in a panicked state. The hospital was completely silent, except for the low buzzing sound of a weakening bulb overhead. The silence was both unsettling and calming to Gary, he wasn't sure how the other 4 felt. Perhaps it was just the novelty of being in a completely empty hospital, which is not a common occurrence. Gary started going off on his mental tangents again, he refocused his mind on a pair of metallic doors a few yards away - one door had a large UP arrow and the door to the right had a large DOWN arrow. Officer Gary spotted an elevator off in the distance, behind the reception desk and some nursing stations.

"Officer Alphonse, take the lead." Gary preferred to hand off the frontline to someone else every so often, so as to utilize everyone's leadership skills to some extent.

[Ale]

The drive was lively as usual as Gary sprinkled the group with his quote on quote "valuable" insights on the extent of technological advancement and political movement in the last 5 years. Alyssa had completely zoned out the second he started talking, being the silent one in the group gave you that type luxury since you didn't have to contribute as much to the argument and she didn't plan on wasting such a valuable option. Rather, between the chunks of conversation that she did follow along with, the fair lady was playing around with her weapon of choice: a stainless steel .45 Anaconda. While some women liked their either diamond rings, fancy china, or lovely dresses, Alyssa preferred something more practical in the field of self defense. The heavy weight of the gun, its cool steel barrel, its well oiled ratchet, it's carbon butt...she loved it all. Spinning it back and forth, Alyssa mindlessly looked out the window, it seemed it was a lot hotter in the below room temperature car than outside. Bizarre really, one would expect it to be somewhat mild outside, but then again, it was LA she was talking about: the City of Angels was always unstable both naturally and unnaturally.

The car came to a smooth stop despite the speeds they were traveling at. She swiftly loaded six .45 caliber shells into her dearest before she spun the cylinder with her thumb and finally locked it back in place. The car door rose swiftly as the brunette stepped out of the car before letting out a gentle sigh. Well this explained why her breath was fogging the window...reaching her hand out she watched as small crystals of white dance across the sky before settling on the floor. While it was safe to say Alyssa didn't hate the snow, she definitely didn't like it. Her eyes noticed a flicker of shades on the 3rd floor window of the hospital despite the blurring aspect of the snow. Indifferent towards who or what it was, she followed behind Gary without looking up.

"Where the hell is everyone? Alyssa, check the local news fee-"

Mentally blocking out the rest of the orders from Gary, Alyssa was annoyed she hadn't noticed the absence of life on what was suppose to be the hottest scene today. There should at least be news vans WITH people if the people weren't outside. The fact that there was a lack of public authority controlling what was suppose to be a quarantined center of high importance annoyed her. Then again, how many people actually believed in the existence Mitochondrians? How many actually remembered what the Mitochondria is? Unlocking her Holo-Phone she started loading the news feed while remaining within a feet of Gary and the others.

Her dark blue eyes gave Penelope a quizzical look when they passed the puddle as if asking if whether she knew what it was.

"It seems all major news channels and the Los Angeles Times have yet to hear back from their news crews. Considering how early in the morning it is I'm guessing their grabbing some hot breakfast. I'll give Commissioner Wallace a call informing him about the lack of surveillance outside and contact HQ about our current situation. Would you like me to call the nearby hospitals regarding whether they're housing any of the patients from here?" she said in a matter-a-fact tone, one that held an unquestionable air of authority due to its brevity and strength.

"Alphonse, I saw someone on the third floor window..."

She paused for a second.

"Fifth room from the far right side of the building which would mean somewhere in the left wing."

Jamming a wireless ear-piece into her left ear she muttered the name Gregory Wallace before falling back into her routine and casual silence, walking closely next to Penelope as if escorting her.

[Knighthawk]

[HP:120/120]
[PE:0/0]
Alphonse was countering the intellectual logic and reasoning with quotes of greater minds than his own from years past. It was his attempt to witty riposte outside of his areas of focus. "It is clear to me that our technology has surpassed our humanity." He looked over to see Alyssa being silent as usual, she only spoke when there was something worth saying.

The crew piled out of the car to... Nothing. No extra EMT, no emergency or news crews but the SCI tape was already laid out.

"Officer Alphonse, take the lead."
You just don't want to do the paperwork on this one...
Would you like me to call the nearby hospitals regarding whether they're housing any of the patients from here?"
Alphonse, I saw someone on the third floor window..."
Fifth room from the far right side of the building which would mean somewhere in the left wing."
Yes, check for all activity in a one mile radius. If the tape is here, where are the people who put down the tape? Weapons drawn, safety off. Do we got blueprints on this place? Standard procedure is enter the front door with a room by room sweep... Lets take the fire escape to the top floor and work our way down. we can get to the man you saw easier.

[Aorigami]

[HP: 50/50]
[PE: 00/00]

Penelope was about to greet Alphonse shortly before feeling Alyssa's arm wrapped around her shoulders. Warm blush immediately crept up to her cheeks. It was certainly not from the running, that much she was sure. She glanced at the older woman and couldn't help but envy her ever-stylish choice of wardrobe, a far cry from her own choice of V-neck t-shirt and jeans and running sneakers. Despite dressing up all masculine like usual, Penelope sincerely thought that Alyssa always looked like a model stranded away from some high-end fashion runway. A gun-totting, deadly silent model, that is.

"L-let's go, then!" She sheepishly broke free from Alyssa's entwining arms and skipped away towards the cruiser. She found her Heckler & Koch there, and as Gary drove the cruiser out of the garage like a speeding maniac that he was, she began to load it with the magazine that she retrieved from Alphonse and placed it on the black gun holster which she proceeded to wear above her sweaty shirt. Her attention was briefly averted by the snowy view outside, to which she reacted with a surprised gasp. For once in a hundred years, snow decided to fall and the subway decided to not run on the day they finally received a seemingly genuine Mitochondria call. What are the odds, really?

Her dazed state was interrupted only when she heard Alphonse's remark on the technological advances. "I'd have to disagree with that. Technology exists mainly to support humanity. Without humanity, technology would never advance, because that's what we humans do: we grow, and we bring the technology with us." Her blabbering, however, soon stopped when the bespectacled girl noticed how silent Alyssa was. It made Penelope realize how nerdy she must have sounded.

Upon arriving at the hospital, Penelope got out to the empty parking place and approached the building close with her group. Like the others, the stillness of the place confounded her, yet she reasoned that the piling snow could have given some influence as well. She withdrew her gun and unhooked the safety clip like Alphonse had told her to, but not before she regarded Alyssa's finding and withdrew a tablet computer from her bag. Having the ancient piece of technology around often invited mocks and sneers from others who saw her, but Penelope couldn't really care less. Despite the HoloPhones nowadays having substansially more power and preference in the society, she still found it difficult to work without a decent-sized screen that didn't need an extra holographic plugin to convey the visuals that she needed.

As Penelope aimed the tablet's camera at the overall exterior of the hospital, the heat sensor immediately fed the screen with botches of red and orange against the building's cold black, confirming Alyssa's suspicion. "There are two others as well on the right wing." She slipped the tablet back into her postman bag, which she tightened to her back shortly before the four of them stepped into the hospital building. Regarding the empty and quiet interior of the lobby, she couldn't help but quietly noted, "Do you think our arrival is expected?"

[Enzyme]

[Elevators in back of Hospital Lobby, 8:01 PM]
[HP: 80/80]
[PE: 00/00]

"Yes, check for all activity in a one mile radius. If the tape is here, where are the people who put down the tape? Weapons drawn, safety off. Do we got blueprints on this place? Standard procedure is enter the front door with a room by room sweep... Lets take the fire escape to the top floor and work our way down. we can get to the man you saw easier."

"Maybe the hospital had it lying around or there was likely a cop on the scene. There's usually a cop or two or a few in hospitals." Gary told Alphonse as they wandered past the reception desk towards the 2 main elevators at the far end of the lobby.

"Do you think our arrival is expected?"

Gary speculated under his breath ("Penelope could be right. It's definitely a possibility, but it's somewhat unlikely. The emergency call was placed at approximately 7:29 PM and we got here by 7:59. Let's give the media some credit, they'll probably be here in a few minutes. Besides, the roads are somewhat snowy anyway.") Gary managed to shrug off the report of the lights flickering on the 2nd floor of the LAVH, but the presence of 3 separate heat signatures still in the building excited him. For once, META would get to play the hero and all 4 would save some poor veteran who was somehow missed during the evacuation.

The squad now arrived at the two elevators Commander Cruz acknowledged; (damn it, Gary thought, a fork in the road!) The 2 duos had the choice (orders, actually) between exploring the Basement Floor (0F) or the 2nd Floor (2F).

"Alright guys, this is where Commander Cruz said we split up and quarantine the hospital. Search EVERY nook and cranny. Don't leave any stone unturned. META, out!." Gary wasn't hoping his psuedo-pep talk would inspire them, instead, he was hoping that they would wake up and get the job done quicker so Gary could go back to HQ, receive his payment for the mission, and go to sleep. If everything went according to plan, Gary could be home in bed by midnight. But knowing how inept the other 3 were, Officer Hylell realized the chance of that occurring was slim to none.

"Penelope, get over here. We're gonna survey the basement. You two take the 2nd floor." Gary and Alphonse pressed the panel on the side of the elevator and a metallic cable cracked like a whip, signalling the ascent and descent of both elevators. Unlike the elevators at the Mitochondrion Extermination & Suppression Team's headquarters, these elevators were completely silent and arrived like a ghost. A monster of mechanical nature slid the doors open and Gary gave a slight, but solemn wave towards the other two. Gary hoped he could rely on Penelope; He was the type that would much rather not put his life in someone else's hands, but orders are orders. Penelope was still green, but up until this point, she hasn't disappointed Gary all that much.

"Stay safe, you two," He directed his best wishes towards Alyssa and Alphonse, as Penelope and Gary entered the cave-like elevator. At precisely the same time, Penelope and him pressed the 0F/DOWN button on the elevator's holographic display panel. The chrome and crystalline elevator kicked into action and began its downward descent.

[Ale]

[HP:60/60]
[PE:00/00]

"...Of course Gregory, I'm not saying it's your fault, I was just wondering if you knew anything about the situation as the Commissioner...Yeah, just send some new men over...Alright...Alright, you go back to dinner. Tell Linda not to worry and that I'll speak to her over coffee tomorrow."

Alyssa's calm complexion hadn't changed in any manner as she spoke with Commissioner Wallace during the brief elevator ride, she even went as far as easing the otherwise tense Gregory with some pointless small talk. Giving Alphonse the thumbs up and a lifeless wink, she gently left the elevator and spun her silver around thoughtlessly.

"How droll," Alyssa mumbled with a heartless smile that perfectly matched the cold sterile environment they were in, "Looks like META's cried wolf far too many times."

Cocking her hammer, she closed her eyes as she let a soft sigh before moving swiftly forward and pressing her back against the lime green walls adjacent the door.

"We'll keep the same plan we discussed about previously, you move to the left upon encounter and I'll move to the right. If it comes after me, switch positions."

Opening her eyes the serene figure nudged her head towards the door.

"On you."