Open ACME Retro

[Julie Justice]

Julie had stayed in her seat when the alarm had *gone off* and stayed in her seat for a few minutes afterward, waiting to see what might happen next.

Julie was glad to see Sophie. She had met her and talked to her a few times earlier this morning, before they left for this field trip, and had liked her very much. Julie was glad to see that Sophie seemed to have a good sense of humor about triggering the alarm, and she hoped that the other instructors felt the same way.

So far, Julie would say that she was enjoying this class...and this field trip...just liked she had enjoyed her past week or so at ACME. But there were a few things that were different at ACME compared to other schools, colleges, or academies that Julie had been to...or had looked into attending; the most obvious of which was being on a first name basis with instructors, most of whom were only a few years older than the students they were teaching; and all of whom...students and instructors alike...were several years younger than she was. Although Julie got along with almost everyone so far.

But still, it made Julie wonder; why were these instructors visiting this class.. at this time? Was it good news? Or bad news? What would happen if a student really "messed up" badly? Suddenly, Julie missed "the good old days" of having a "report card" to help her gauge her progress.
Julie*thought to herself*:"You've done very well so far today. Don't think about this stuff too much, and make yourself nervous."

Julie heard Ivy say to the other Junior Detectives,
"At least we know what it sounds like if we mess up."

Julie decided to get up from her seat, and try to walk off a little of her nervousness. She went over to where Ivy and some of the other Junior Detectives were standing. She said," Yes...as long as they aren't too serious..and you don't make them too often..you can learn a lot from your mistakes."

 

[Chase]

The alarm was a nice change of pace. Sounds travel well in the desert so the echo made this trap triggering even more powerful. The reverberation reminded Chase Devineaux of atmospheric diffraction and he wondered briefly what this siren would have sounded like on a rainy day. That led him to note the building clouds and lack of wind overhead may trigger some precipitation later in the night, they should finish this as early as possible.

Then he turned back to the three instructors, after calming his barking puppy, "I'm terribly sorry about that, I should've sent the warning sooner about the booby trapped front entrance. Is there something pressing you want of us?"

Chase marked two instructors missing, but understood the schedule also meant Jason West and EugeneGrovington were already setting up the firing range — good.

"I got a message from Chief earlier this morning," he addressed Nace, as a form of respect, but the information was meant to be heard by everyone, "about a stolen cache of Japanese Kokeshi dolls, antiques. The perpetrators came this way through the interstate and stopped by a bunker. It's ripe for evidence identification. Not too pressing, but a good chance for younger agents to learn on the field."

He paused briefly, looking over to Sophie and Ennai partly for affirmation, "Once we're done here, let's head to the range for some practice on basics, and we'll take the Hand to Hand and Survival credits right on the field."

Looking over the Junior Detectives, he hoped they finish this summer with something memorable. Once he announced the case, he sent Eugene and Jason the same message: "We're going ahead with the shooting basics, then we're taking the kids on a case, will brief when I see you."

 

[Neb]

"While we wait for the other students to arrive, feel free to familiarize yourselves with the displays on the tables." Nace continued, indicating the long tables in the room, each of which had several different mockups of different mines, grenades, rockets, and even a couple of artillery shells.

Most sirens didn't really scare Julie, but this really took her by surprise. She was so close to it. She took a few deep, slow, breaths to calm herself down again. She looked around the room, at her fellow students, and saw that most of them had a similar reaction to hers.

He paused briefly, looking over to Sophie and Ennai partly for affirmation, "Once we're done here, let's head to the range for some practice on basics, and we'll take the Hand to Hand and Survival credits right on the field."

Kidman lagged behind, but not enough to be noticeable. That was the point now, not to be noticeable as she reassessed her situation.

'What the ever-loving hell did you dump me into, Redhat?' she thought as she sought to meld into the cracked wall behind her. There was law enforcement and then there was... what the hell was this? Training for infiltrating terrorists cells in the Mideast? She didn't sign up for this.

She looked over the group with a tinge of regret as she slowly inched her way out of the room. 'Sorry, Redhat, I liked the food and the interesting spy stuff, but this is a little steep for me.'

 

[Neb]

Kidman had just about slipped out of sight when she heard a now familiar 'click'.

'...oh for the love of...'

 

[Nace Bilby]

@Kid Kidman had stepped on what was called a pressure release switch. Two thin pieces of metal had been placed under a loose board in the floor near that narrow crack in the wall leading to the stairwell landing.

If she moved her foot it would set of the simulated MON-50 mine, a Soviet version of the Claymore mine, embedded in the crack's ceiling, aimed downward. If she moved her foot it would trigger a camera flashbulb and another shrill siren.

The MON-50 was concealed by thin black cloth and was fastened into the crack's ceiling by a couple pieces of metal screwed through the support beam at the roof of the crack.

It was also about eight inches above Kid's head.

 

[Neb]

Kidman froze. She knew she wasn't going to blow up. The other person hadn't blown up, after all, but being busted was instinctually ingrained as Bad, and she didn't relish having to explain what she was doing to set the thing off in the first place.

 

[Agent Z]

"I got a message from Chief earlier this morning," he addressed Nace, as a form of respect, but the information was meant to be heard by everyone, "about a stolen cache of Japanese Kokeshi dolls, antiques. The perpetrators came this way through the interstate and stopped by a bunker. It's ripe for evidence identification. Not too pressing, but a good chance for younger agents to learn on the field."

"Oh man, that's awesome!" Zack thought aloud. He was excited to not only be working on a case but to actually have all of the top instructors in the field with them. There was a lot you could learn from observation. He smirked then quietly jeered a bit at his sister, "And you'll get to spend time with ACME's heart-throb Chase Devineaux, Sis."

'...oh for the love of...'

Completely oblivious to what Kidman was thinking when she moved away, Zack only heard the identifiable click of a bobby trap. Somehow his Junior Detective friend had wandered further away from the other people and onto a stairwell. This would be really bad for their grades.

The first thing that went through Zack's mind was his instructor Nace Bilby's South African accent repeating a lesson from their first class, "Remember weight moving away will set off a pressure release switch..."

Zack rushed forward, holding his hands up to halt Kidman, "Don't move! You'll set off the trap."

Examining the area, he could see that there was something above Kidman's head which could be connected to the mine she stepped on. Thinking quick Zack could only imagine that they needed to keep the right amount of pressure on the triggered plate... perhaps switching Kidman's foot with something of the same weight.

Indiana Jones style...

"Is there anything we can use around here to offset the pressure? A box or sandbag or... something?"

 

[Nace Bilby]

Nace, for his part, had been listening to the director and his statement about the stolen Japanese Kokeshi dolls as well as making sure Goliath hadn't wandered too far when he heard @Agent Z shout:

"Don't move! You'll set off the trap."

Bloody good thinking. Nace thought when he saw Zack move to the crack in the wall that led to the stairway landing.

He had emplaced the MON-50 into the ceiling of the crack with the pressure release switch wired into the loose floorboard in case the junior detectives had decided to go through the crack instead of the entrance of the school room as another practical demonstration of booby traps.

He wondered what Kid had been doing when she had headed for the crack in the wall, and would address it later when it came time to discuss the students privately with the instructors. But for now he wanted to see just what Zack was going to do.

So far his train of thought seemed quite accurate.

Clever lad.

 

[Julie Justice]

Now that the instructors had told them what was next, Julie wasn't nervous at all. She had done just as well as the other Junior Detectives so far that day.

She had heard the "click" too, and she thought that this must be a type of test, too; a way for their instructor @Nace Bilby to prove his previous point that just because you came into a room and nothing blew up, that doesn't mean that there wasn't something set to go off the way you came in.

Julie *nodded* for a moment at the instructors, before moving quickly and quietly over to @Zack and Kidman. "Well..this an an old schoolhouse..I'm sure we can find some old erasers by the chalkboard..or a book..or a ruler...or even an old First Aid kit might work...,"said Julie as she ran back into the the classroom, and walked around the room for some of the items she suggested.

Julie had wanted to ask Nace to show her how some of these things were set up. Clearly, it wasn't enough to look for these different devices, since they were always going to be hidden. You had to look for other little indications that something had been disturbed to put the device there.

Julie glanced over @Kid Kidman, standing there, frozen in that pose, standing on one foot. Kidman did look scared...but not just about the possibility of setting off the alarm triggered by this trap. She was scared of something else, too. Or someone, maybe. Considering how she seemed to have such a knack for appearing...and disappearing...all day long.. Julie was very surprised that it was Kidman that triggered this trap, and not one of the other students. Julie had hoped that Kidman wasn't too upset by all this, and that she would stay part of their group. But somehow, Julie knew that if Kidman did leave today, it would be awhile before they saw her again. Julie just hoped her mysterious young friend had somewhere safe that she could go.

 

[Ennai]

Ennai looked over the Junior Detectives. They were an interesting lot. Their profiles said a lot about them, but it was different seeing them in person. It was nice. It had been a long time since she had been in a room this easy to breathe in.

They weren't agents yet. They weren't walking/talking agendas. They were kids. Sure they weren't all squeaky clean, but they didn't have to be. They were here to learn, and the sense of earnestness that they gave off that made the guest instructor smile.

Julie decided to get up from her seat, and try to walk off a little of her nervousness. She went over to where Ivy and some of the other Junior Detectives were standing. She said," Yes...as long as they aren't too serious..and you don't make them too often..you can learn a lot from your mistakes."

"The only mistakes that are too serious to learn from are the ones that kill you," Ennai stated shifting her gaze to Julie, the mirth in her face softening her words. "That being said," she continued dryly, "We'd rather you didn't have to learn through those kinds of mistakes."

Chase began to speak and she sobered.

He paused briefly, looking over to Sophie and Ennai partly for affirmation, "Once we're done here, let's head to the range for some practice on basics, and we'll take the Hand to Hand and Survival credits right on the field."Looking over the Junior Detectives, he hoped they finish this summer with something memorable. Once he announced the case, he sent Eugene and Jason the same message: "We're going ahead with the shooting basics, then we're taking the kids on a case, will brief when I see you."

"My name is Ennai," she said making eye contact with the students.

"I will be teaching your 'Intro to Criminal Organizations' class for the duration of the summer, and I will teach Hand-to-Hand Combatives in the evenings for those of you interested. You may come to me with any questions you have, particularly in light of the news that Agent Devineaux has shared with you. Considering recent events, Miss Conrad and I have thought it would be both more interesting and more effective to teach our lesson in the actual field.

Additionally, try not to be afraid to come to me with questions that aren't directly related to the work at hand. I'll do my best to help you in any way I can," Ennai cringed and rolled her eyes, seriousness faltering. "I'll try harder to not be Dr. Seuss if I'm giving you advice," she laughed weakly.

Kidman had just about slipped out of sight when she heard a now familiar 'click'.'...oh for the love of...'

As the room started to leave the building, Ennai turned her head at the sound of a click and one of the JDs beginning to curse.

Ennai watched the girl freeze in place.

"Zack rushed forward, holding his hands up to halt Kidman, "Don't move! You'll set off the trap.""Is there anything we can use around here to offset the pressure? A box or sandbag or... something?"

She stood back allowing the JDs to problem solve and leaned against the wall, arms and legs crossed. She sighed slowly. Well. Slipping out the back is as sure a way as any to survive a conflict. Her face was set grim with recognition. She knew this girl. She had met the type. She wasn't bad. She was just...scared, and used to a certain way of life--a different way of doing things. Ennai looked down at her shoes. It hit a little close to home.

She fought down a shiver, and decided to do something about it. She was going to highlight the benefits of what it means to be a team, to have a team, and maybe, if the case goes well, that high of accomplishment will do some good for the kid...

Ennai sounded like a hypocrite even to herself. When was the last time she had viewed anyone around her as something other than a potential means to an end? She may be working for something larger than herself now, but she was still alone. She was still working deep cover for the agency, even though she was supposed to be finished. She was still hiding in plain sight, doing her best not give in to the urge to slip out the back.

I have to try, she thought, thinking about the girl. After all, what else was there to do?

Having made up her mind, she looked around wondering who was actually going to find something to get the kid out of her predicament. She chuckled looking at the determined redhead. Well. I know where I'm betting my money.

 

[Julie Justice]

"My name is Ennai," she said making eye contact with the students.

"I will be teaching your 'Intro to Criminal Investigations' class for the duration of the summer, and I will teach Hand-to-Hand Combatives in the evenings for those of you interested. You may come to me with any questions you have, particularly in light of the news that Agent Devineaux has shared with you. Considering recent events, Miss Conrad and I have thought it would be both more interesting and more effective to teach our lesson in the actual field.

Additionally, try not to be afraid to come to me with questions that aren't directly related to the work at hand. I'll do my best to help you in any way I can," Ennai cringed and rolled her eyes, seriousness faltering. "I'll try harder to not be Dr. Seuss if I'm giving you advice," she laughed weakly.

Julie looked at Ennai, and said,"Well..so far...I have learned from all the mistakes I've made in life. But law-enforcement is a new area for me. So I look forward to your class, and anything you can teach me so I can avoid those really serious mistakes."

Ennai..a slightly exotic..and very beautiful name..like the woman herself. She was very tall..but then...a lot of people were tall in comparison to Julie, who was only 5 feet tall. But really..this woman was unreal..like some warrior-goddess in some mythology book..or comic-book. Yes, she was the perfect one to teach them Intro to Criminology and Hand to Hand Combat.

Suddenly, they all heard that "click" that had become so familiar to them. She looked over and realized that Kidman had come across one of Nace's traps.

"Zack rushed forward, holding his hands up to halt Kidman, "Don't move! You'll set off the trap.""Is there anything we can use around here to offset the pressure? A box or sandbag or... something?"

Julie *nodded* at the instructors, and went over quickly and quietly to where @Agent Z and Kidman were. "Well..this is an old schoolhouse..I'm sure we can find some old erasers by the chalkboard..or a book..or maybe an old First Aid kit will work..."she said, and quickly ran back into the classroom to find some of the things she had suggested.

 

[Ivy]

"And you'll get to spend time with ACME's heart-throb Chase Devineaux, Sis."

Ivy rolled her eyes at Zack's childish quip.

"...Brat," She retorted, pushing him away slightly, then pausing when there was a sudden 'click'. Her eyes widened, believing she had somehow triggered one of the many hidden pressure plates. It became apparent soon after that the loud sound came from the stairway.

Her brother was quick, and first on the scene to access the situation, with Julie very close behind him.

"Well..this is an old schoolhouse..I'm sure we can find some old erasers by the chalkboard..or a book..or maybe an old First Aid kit will work..."

While Kidman was small in frame, Ivy couldn't picture any of those items giving nearly enough weight. Julie Justice was right however, they were in an old schoolhouse with plenty of things to use as a counter balance.

An object gathering dust near the stair landing caught her eye, it was a bust of Socrates made of plaster with a hard wooden base, the plaque had long since been removed and the nose broken off. With a solid base it seemed capable of providing enough resistance to prevent the alarm.

"I have an idea," She took a deep breath and pulled the bust up a few steps to the landing. It was surprisingly heavy, but Ivy had a habit of looking before she leaped, and solutions that required physical strength came easy to her.

"We'll have to make the switch from Kid's foot to this at exactly the right moment... ready?"

Tilting the object in her hands she kept it inches above Kidman's foot, poising to drop the item when given the word.

[fieldset=Approved Character Mentions:][with]143[/with][/fieldset]