[Adventure!] The Exotic Acquisitions Department

[Heritage]

The British Museum, London. Monday April 11th, 1938.

It was a crisp morning in early spring when young Arthur 'Eggy' Eggleston limped his way across Great Russell Street, dodging a black cab with some difficulty; he was still getting used to the blasted cane, which was a bloody nuisance much of the time, as well as making him look much older than his twenty-three years. It was a fairly cold spring so far, rarely making it above 10 degrees Celsius, and the cold made his leg ache; still, it was better than winter had been. The Greek revival entrance to the museum looked especially oppressive on chilly days like today. Eggy was neither unattractive nor particularly handsome, but his face was pleasant enough and he always did his best to dress sharply.

As he stepped inside and shook of the cold, he paused to allow several tourists to pass him before hobbling down a short hallway to the right, which led to a cramped supply closet. Once he was sure he wasn't being followed, he stepped into the closet and pulled down on three of the hooks, which activated a hidden mechanism to lower the whole chamber below street level; it was one of several clever entrances into 'the Aviary', a term coined by one of the wags in the War Office that had unfortunately stuck. I suppose to them we're all cuckoo birds in Exotic Acquisitions, Arthur though sourly. It was all so unfair! By all rights, Arthur and the other experts should be lauded for their exciting new research, but all the bean counters and military brass could do was make jokes.

“We’ll show them,” the intense young man uttered under his breath. “We’ll show them all.”

Every time he stepped into the Aviary proper, Arthur had to catch his breath, for it was a truly wonderful sight; a large round chamber some twenty meters across all paneled with dark cherry wood salvaged from a 17^th century vicarage nearly gutted by fire (which gave the whole place an oddly smoky smell), the center open with several desks and worktables around the edge, while the outer walls opened into a series of small offices. With some difficulty, Arthur dropped into his chair behind his desk, and then fished out his pocket watch. Quarter past eight; the others should be arriving fairly soon.

[z005]

"Skip breakfast again, Arthur?" The woman always managed to sneak up behind him, no matter the fact that there weren't even corners to hide in. She was dressed conservative librarian's dress, all neutral tones, flowing lines, and coifed hair, but Eggy knew that underneath was a skin-tight suit and a dozen different metal picks tucked in places men should not think about when it came to their coworkers. It was eerie and disconcerting - but then the ambrosia aroma of strong Turkish coffee wafted past her. A large mug was set down on the corner of his desk, quickly followed by a trio of hard-boiled eggs. True to form, all three eggs had silly faces dyed into them, with 'Eggy' done in ridiculously beautiful calligraphy beneath the faces.

"Do you ever sleep, Elaine?" He tried to summon up a grouse, but hot breakfast was a pretty good balm for startling him - again.

She chuckled, "Not if I can help it. And besides, there's a bed down here and I don't have to pick up after William. And we're out of eggs at home." She pulled up a chair across from his desk and plopped down, elbows on the desk and chin in hands, all innocent blue eyes and perfect naive British lady. "So, which part of the world are we saving today?"

[Mel Grimson]

"I was wondering that, too." Mel Grimson's voice - gruff to some degree no matter what - made Arthur mentally jerk back in surprise again. Much because from the proximity of those spoken words, the older American was right behind him. Again, like Elaine, Mel always could surprise Arthur Eggleston despite the room's layout. At least with the red-head it made some kind of blithering sense, given Grimson's experiences and talents.

"Don't tell me you were here as well, Mel." Arthur sighed, taking a sip of the Turkish coffee.

Mel walked over to a different desk nearby and sat down on it. His clothing was arguably more working-class, tweed flat cap, long trousers, and a light double-breasted jacket - but again similar to Elaine Parker, Arthur didn't doubt the ex-soldier was armed with his easily concealed revolver and chain.

"Nah, followed you right down here, Arthur." Mel grinned, before his gaze challenged Elaine humorously. "You're hoping it's Crete again, aren't you, missy?" The EAD team had come there to investigate reports of advanced and esoteric technology hidden in the detritus of the ancient Minoan civilization. So had a Nazi unit with local help. To top things off, well, the minotaurs in the Labyrinth of the palace hadn't been pleased at any intrusion.

But Elaine had deciphered the Linear Script enough to use the mysterious artifacts in the royal wing, Mel and Anne outfought the Abwehr grunts, and Tarik had bamboozled a surprising number of opponents into occupying the Minotaurs. A definite success, all in all.

[Lady Aceworth]

There was a light, but hurried knock, followed by a harried Anne opening the door, still dressed from flying.

"Oh no, I'm late, aren't I? There was some ungodly turbulence from Cardiff, and I had a pretty harrowing experience a few days ago that I had to talk with the authroites about. Something in regards to something I had to deliver to Cardiff earlier in the week, took a different plane than my baby and ended up in the drink... luckily a fisherman spotted me and took me back to shore. The package arrived safely, by the way."

She was rambling... "Oh sorry I couldn't have changed into something more proper for being here. I just arrived at the docks about 5 minutes prior to my arrival here. I came as quickly as I could."

In fact all she had time for was straightening her brownish-red hair, which looked pretty good considering it was under a pilot's 'helmet' a few minutes ago, and a fresh layer of lipstick. So everything from the head-up was a prim and proper english lady. But from the neck down it was all aviatrix. From the white -custom made flight-coveralls, the tan jungle-boots, the parachute over her arm, and the life preserver around her chest she was still untying, revealing the coveralls had a blue sailor collar to them, and she had a turtle-neck shirt underneath.

"Oh, Eggy... that prior mission we were on was... Quite fun actually. Luckily my skill with this American pistol was up to it's pedigree." She said, patting her M1911 sidearm. "But now... something tells me this isn't a social gathering..."

She smiled at Elaine. "Oh, and thanks for watching my back, back there last time. If it wasn't for you, I would have been shot by that one Nazi. Luckily it ended up the other way around."

[Heritage]

Despite his best efforts, these remarkable individuals tended to put Eggy a bit out of sorts; well not so much Lady Anne, who was fairly normal in most respects, but the other three... Grimson, the American chap, radiated power and malice, although of course he'd always been very civil despite his 'colonial' manners. Miss Parker, for all her apparent good breeding, knew far too many things that a proper lady shouldn't know. And as for the swarthy Tarik...where had that blasted Easterner gotten himself off to, anyway?

"Well, I'm glad all of you enjoy the excitement, because personally I'm the most comfortable right here-" Eggy thumped his cane on the floor for emphasis as he took another sip of coffee. He pulled the morning paper out of his slim attache case and spread in on the desk before him. "As for your next assignment, I'm not entirely sure; I expect Professor Tremayne might- ah, here they come now."

Two voices could be heard approaching; the patient drone of an older man and the high-spirited chirps of a young lady. One of the glass doors that led back up into the main building of the museum opened, and indeed the familiar figures of Prof. Nigel Tremayne and Judi Hampton (the team's secretary and sometime research assistant) appeared.

If you opened a copy of the Oxford English Dictionary to 'academic', you might imagine you'd find an engraving of Prof. Tremayne marking the entry; thin and narrow-shouldered with an owlish face made even moreso by the large round lenses of his wire frame glasses, he was also invariably wrapped in tweed. But behind those glasses were a pair of pale blue eyes that flashed with intelligence and a dash of wit. The professor, you see, found nearly everything in the world to be fascinating.

Judi Hampton, the youngest member of the team at barely twenty-one, was a recent Cambridge graduate, which Oxford alums Eggy and Prof. Tremayne gently teased her about from time to time. Bright and outspoken with the passion of youth, she was as devoted to her social causes as she was to the study of history and oddities. She was also quite lovely, with pale skin and shoulder-length auburn hair; Eggy sat up a bit straighter when she walked into the room and cleared his throat.

"Yes, yes, Judi, that's all well and good," the professor said, waving his free hand, the other arm holding a rather large stack of books and papers. "But it's simply a matter of perspective; the problems of the urban poor are sadly not going away anytime soon, but this devilish German situation is much more pressing now." Then he turned to nod at the others in the room with a smile. "Good morning, all of you! Arthur, is the tea ready?"

Arthur said nothing as his large ears went pink and stared down into his Turksih coffee. "Oh don't worrry, I'll attend to it, professor." Judi placed her stenography pad and pencil on her desk as she went about the classic English ritual of tea preparation. "Just no one say anything interesting 'til I'm done!"

[Lady Aceworth]

Anne nodded to the Professor. She had a weakness to intelligent folk, particularly ones who have devoted themselves to the cause of furthering the human condition. Although his companion was just as interesting. Seeing a moment of clarity... "Actually, Professor, you are both right. The Nazis will become everyone's problem fairly soon, I am afraid. That is, with Prime Minister Chamberlain following his suicidal policies."

She adjusted her outfit a bit, setting her gear down next to a chair and taking a seat. "After all, it's those policies that almost perforated me and my friends here not too long ago, and I wager they were the ones responsible for sabotaging my courier mission last week."

"Hopefully the sound of Jackboots won't be a common thing we hear."

"I am suprised that Judi is with you though, Professor. This is a dangerous game we play. Actual value or not, those we don't want having what we are finding... are quite... adamant on getting their hands on what we find."

Anne left her point there. Anne was a lady keyed in and almost craving danger. Judi... didn't seem the sort to take a bullet to a toe without fainting. In a way, Anne felt slightly embarassed. She is a British Lady, yet here she is without reservation. Well either that or not taking the time to get properly dressed for afternoon tea.

Now Anne was blushing.

[z005]

"Tosh, Anne," Elaine waved away her teammate's concern. "If we all did as was expected of us, you and I would be laid up with a half dozen babies and some insufferably chivalrous husband already." She snuck away one of Eggy's eggs and nibbled at it delicately. "As for the Germans, they're a problem, I guess, but really, how much of one?"

She blinked and sat up straighter, brightening as she entreated Professor Trelayne, "Unless they've gone and gotten themselves something interesting?" She batted her lashes at the older man, "It's been ever so boring a morning, Professor. Please say a trip to the Continent is in the making. Preferably for something shiny."

For all her flippant frippery, she was as focused as hound on point, sniffing for any chance to shed her illusion of respectable lady of society for the thrill-loving and elusive mask of her other self, the adventurer Archimedes.

[Lady Aceworth]

Anne held back some of her response...

"Actually if we did what we were supposed to do we would be equals to men..." she thought, grimacing a little at Elane's overcompensation. Then again... was Anne?

"Actually, Elaine, we all should at least be allowed to operate within our proven capabilities, not assumed ones."

"As for mission, I hope it's somewhere that has water at least warm enough not to catch hypothermia from." Anne almost sounded like she whined for a moment. Remembering her few hours sitting in a raft wearing a soaked flight suit in the southern waters of england, waiting for pick-up. "To be honest though, I don't mind most possibilities. The unknown is part of the fun."

Anne's classic grin returned, she forgot how awkward she felt.

[z005]

Elaine arched a slow brow at Anne. "You think I was saying any differently, my Lady? I said 'expectations', not 'capabilities'. We, as women, are expected to be docile, overly emotional, weak, and above all, dependent on the men in our lives." She bit the top of her egg off in a moment annoyed pique, then set about methodically reducing her stolen goods to a few crumbs on her hand. "Best not to then make assumptions about Ms. Hampton's capabilities then, mm?"

Her breakfast finished, she brushed the crumbs into the wastebasket and awaited the return of the secretary and the formal start to their morning meeting. "Has anyone see Tarik this morning? I owe him a pastry from the Vienna mission and it'll be dreadfully difficult to pay my debt if he's hied himself off to somewhere exotic, or wherever it is the he disappears to when he's not here."

[Lady Aceworth]

It didn't seem to Anne her assessment was a judgement, the girl who was with the Professor was a whisp of a girl compared to Anne.

"When the woves come, it's better to sent the hounds, not the sheep." Anne catches herself muttering. Holding her hands to her mouth. She had a look of shock.

She's been dealing a bit much with... the rougher element as of late, Elaine and Mel in particular. Were they actually rubbing off?

[Heritage]

The professor looked somewhat flummoxed by the minor display of catiness between the two ladies; even after he finally found the words, it took a bit of work to get them out.

"I, I, I'm terribly sorry, but do you think it's too dangerous for our Miss Hampton to come downstairs from the stacks with me? Because I assure you, that's all we did." He smiled. "I suppose there might be some sinister black-clad Tong members hanging about up there, but if so, we eluded them splendidly!" He placed his large stack of books and papers down and began scanning a few sheets as he spoke crisply, with a surprising hint of steel slipping into his voice. "Miss Hampton may not be a field agent, but she is an invaluable part of this operation; future generations will need to know how we won this war, even if they probably won't ever read about it in our lifetimes." He peered over the tops of his glasses at Anne. "I mean no offense, your ladyship, but I will not have you or anyone else question the young lady's qualifications or presence in this room." He turned his focus back to his papers. "Now let us speak no more of the subject; I can smell the tea approaching."

Judi promptly came back to the Aviary, her tea tray bearing a fine silver tea set and an array of small sandwiches; noting the somewhat tense atmosphere in the room, she frowned slightly. "Oh dear; the mood has gone somber in my absence." Placing the tray on the nearest desk, she hastily grabbed her stenographer's notebook. "Anything worth noting for posterity?"

Prof. Tremayne merely smiled. "No, my dear, nothing at all." He gestured towards the tray. "Now, once everyone has helped themselves to tea, we shall begin."

For his part during the whole affair, poor Eggy could only stare mutely at his former professor, clearly astonished to see this side of the older man.

[Lady Aceworth]

Anne smirked. This was the first time that the Professor had told her off like that in quite a long time. They usually got along.

Either something was on his mind, or even though even she knew she was out of line that he decided to make an example of her.

She deflects her sense of embarassment, and her feeling of being scolded to cleaning the goggles on her flight helmet.

[Mel Grimson]

Mel hadn't said anything during the brief upsurge of commentary between the two women. For obvious reasons. Though the whole issue seemed rather superfluous to him, and he did have to wonder what Anne was talking about. After all, Judi wasn't exactly going out with them on the actual missions, and aside from anything else, this was an important group, and everyone had their part to play, chosen specifically for them.

Even the secretaries. Mel only smiled a tad during the sequence, when the Professor had showed a bit of rather strong conviction on the subject. Atta boy, Professor, I knew you could do it.

He got off his desk-seat, snatched up a cup and a sandwich and sat back on his desk-seat, all ears for the next briefing.

[z005]

Even though she'd already had an egg, Elaine took to the tea with relish. Judi somehow made better tea than was reasonably possible, and the same with the tea sandwiches. If the thief felt any embarrassment over the altercation with the lady of the group, she showed none of it. She simply smiled her thanks to Judi, nodded at the professor, and eagerly awaited the unveiling of their next assignment.

[Lady Aceworth]

Anne nodded to the Professor, accepting his admonishment.And the lovely tea.

But Anne felt she should apologise for speaking out of turn behind someone's back. "I'm sorry, by the way, I'm sure anyone here working for the Exotic Acquisition Department is quite capable."

"So what is the mission?"

[TarikTheTurban]

"Yes, what indeed?" The hidden entrance behind the bookshelf creaked closed as Tarik finished pulling his cape free of the hinges. "It doesn't take a psychic to know that the lot of you have been dilly dallying with superfluous talk of past missions, the perceived qualifications of our staff, and of course the Nazi war-machine. I do so dislike those fellows."

Tarik made his way further into the room, adjusting his small white Turbin as he took a seat near Elaine. "I felt my time better used by giving the above floors a more thorough examination for any unwelcome outsiders, and yes, professor I have concluded you are indeed correct. There do not seem to be any undesirables lurking about above us today. Therefore, I shall not apologize for my tardiness. I believe I have arrived just in time for the briefing, after all." A smug smile spread across the Mystical Muslim's face as he straightened the jeweled medallion, The Enigmatic Eye, on it's chain around his neck.

Tarik crossed his legs and relaxed in the chair as he paid the professor his utmost attention. Not a sideways glance nor greeting was given to the others in the room. He had no need to meet their gaze to discern their thoughts, and he had no desire to delay the days proceedings further with petty 'hello's' and 'how do you do's'. Still, the group as a whole knew he meant well, even if his attitudes were as eccentric as they always were. Same old Tarik. Same old stuffy indifference.

[Heritage]

With great effort, Prof. Tremayne did not heave a great sigh at the rather casual arrival of Tarik; the man could be difficult to work with, but his skills in the areas of the mind were unmatched. Both Judi and Eggy, familiar with the temperment of their mentor, had to wedge their mouths shut to keep from laughing. With great deliberation, the older man began to fish a 8 x 10 photo out of his stack of papers.

"Your mission, you'll be happy to know, involves a trip to sunny Monte Carlo, to attend a very exclusive auction of rare antiquities held at the Hôtel de Paris; you will be bidding on Lot 47, which is this-" And here he presented the photo of a rather haunting bronze head of apparent Greek origin. "According to X-rays, the piece contains a rather lot of delicate mechanisms, which is especially interesting as it appears to be several thousand years old, most likely Third Century BC."

Judi looked askance at the photo. "The auctioneers, they're not..they're not claiming it's the Bronze Head, are they? The one purported to be have owned by Pope Sylvester II and Roger Bacon?"

Tremayne laughed. "Of course not, Judi...but they are hinting at it broadly. Very broadly indeed, in fact." He turned to the rest of the team. "Now of course the museum would be very happy to aquire such a rare item, assuming it's authentic, and we're prepared to pay up to ten thousand francs for it, but to be honest, we expect you to be outbid." He leaned in closely, a sly grin on his face. "Even more than the item itself, we want to know who else wants it!"

[Lady Aceworth]

"Oh my..."

She brushes off her outfit a little as she looks at the picture. "Do we have some sort of hard threashold, and do we have a clue as to how far those interested will go?"

"I mean, whoever will be representing us on the bids will have to know where to give up and let the others go nuts. Wouldn't want to stop too late and have the price be higher than even they can stomach."

She scratched her head. "I got some experience on making bids, and the Aceworth name might bring bigger monetary guns to the auction, enough to loosen pockets when I decide to purposely drop from contention."

"What do you think?" Anne asked politely. "Unless you have an expert on this sort of thing to handle the Auction?"

[TarikTheTurban]

"Well, Miss Aceworth, I believe two can play at that game, as the saying goes." Tarik's subtle smile was all the signal the group needed to know that he was about to regale them with another one of his ingenious, if convoluted ideas. "If the Aceworth name may attract the attention of our hidden adversaries, a friendly bidding war between miss Aceworth and the Psychic Sultan himself," Tarik pressed a hand not-so-humbly against his own chest, pausing for dramatic effect, "...Is sure to draw any other significant players out of the woodwork. But perhaps, more importantly, if I am involved in a bidding war, it will be easier for me to discern any hidden agendas that our adversaries attempt to keep secret from us." Tarik raised the cup of tea he was holing from its saucer. The group at large was bewildered as to where he'd gotten it from, "Not that I must needs reduce the difficulty of such a trivial task, but our success is of the utmost importance. Any additional guarantees that we shall succeed would be welcome, I'm sure." He paused to sip from his tea. "Of course, my presence at the auction has an additional benefit. With such proximity to this potential artifact, I should be able to discern whether or not it is indeed a device of mystical power, or if our reports have misled us."

Tarik, looking very satisfied with himself took another sip of tea before replacing the cup of the on the saucer he held in his left hand. He smiled at the room of his peers, contented with the knowledge that he continued to be a major asset to their team.

[Mel Grimson]

Mel cracked a grin looking over the item, and hearing Tarik and Anne get caught up in the bidding war. "Careful now, you don't want to get too much attention...." Then he thought otherwise of that statement. "Or rather, take all the attention. That way Elaine and I can go all unnoticed, when it actually gets to be time to lift the skull, if it's the real McCoy. Since the Professor said, we're likely to be outbid. That and any other sneaky spying on those parties that want the skull."

[Lady Aceworth]

"I'd have to agree with Mel in this matter. A sure way to aboid crashing and burning is reducing the number of variables we have to keep in the air. Namely How many of us will be bidding. Going too high will arouse suspicion and going too low may rouse a non-involved party to jump on everyone."

Anne smiled. "Although, there is something to be said with holding the bait, and one of us winning could still draw the attention we seek."

"Although with the talent we have here perhaps Mr. Grimson's plan should be what we consider. No offense, Tarik, but we should keep this simple."

[z005]

Elaine yawned and stretched. "Is the point to get the head or to know who wants it, or both?"

"If it's the first, easiest to just nab it while it's in storage. The second, we just go and bid. The third....we nab it after we bid on it. For the first and third, Mel and I will stay out of sight and do what we do best. Anne and Tarik go in separately and bid separately. Dress to impress and flirt or act at least a little outrageous." She glanced between the two of them, giving them both a cheeky grin. "I think the two of you can figure that out. If it's the second option, you both still go in, but Mel and I get seats as well and watch the crowd."

She flicked her hands in a shooing motion, "And there. Simple and we know where to start once the professor picks which way we jump."

[TarikTheTurban]

"Tut tut." Tarik took another sip of his tea, leaving his teammates wondering at the nature of his disapproval, "Whatever gave you the idea that we'd be bidding on the real artifact. Of course the two of you will be making off with it before the auction. So glad your keeping up." Tarik actually met Elane's eyes as he said this, and even more astonishing, he smiled.

"Unless I miss my guess, they won't have the real expensive items on the auction floor during the bidding. They'll unveil them for a short time before the actual auction so the patrons can get their fill of looking, but when it comes time to actually bid on the lots, well, you'll already be long gone." Tarik placed his tea and saucer down in front of him. "Now it just becomes a matter of convincing the acution house curator that he's in desperate need of hiring extra security for the occasion...And that I know just the man of the job. Wouldn't you agree, Mel?"

[Mel Grimson]

Mel grinned at the idea. "A good idea, although timing might be a bit of effort. Enough to make sure that we have a good sense of who's buying, before we pull the heist. But I got a few ideas on how to throw suspicion away from myself of course. I may very well be an initial suspect in the hulla-balloo. But generally, we got a plan," And at that point he chose to take a bite of sandwich. "Mhmmm?"

[TarikTheTurban]

"Indeed we do!" Tarik lifted his tea once more in salute to Mel's determinations, "And the beginnings of a plan can be just as good as a well thought out plan when you're capable of a little quick thinking. And, well, quick thinking is my middle name. I'm not kidding. 'The Quick Thinking Kwamii' is one of my aliases. 'The' counts as a first name, last time I checked." It would be a few seconds, and Tarik would be halfway through taking a sip of his tea before the rest of the group realized he'd been making a joke.

[Heritage]

At the first mention of stealing Eggy became visibly upset, and he rapped his cane smartly on the floor. "Now see here! This museum will not be party to any sort of illegal activity! In the first place-"

The Professor held up his hand. "Of course we will, Arthur, Europe is on the brink of war; as Mr Grimson pointed out, the real trick will be the timing." Then he inclined his head towards Tarik. "Also be aware that you may not be the only person trying to..authenticate the item during the viewing; it might be an instance were the other interested parties are forced to show their hand."

At this point, Judi looked slightly agitated and held up her hand. "There's another point you're all forgetting as well."

Eggy looked relieved and smiled at the team's secretary. "At last, a return to reason! I'm glad to hear that not everyone wishes to be a partner to such madness!"

Judi smiled and continued. "Actually, I was going to point out that any of the really sinister devils will more than likely *not* be at the auction in person; they will more than likely send their agents." She gestured towards Mel and Elaine. "Which is why we have people who can follow them back to their employers undetected."

Prof. Tremayne was clearly delighted, while Eggy looked rather appalled. "An excellent point, Judi; I'm sure our field team is more than up to that task!" He pulled out his pocket watch. "Now, the auction is the day after tomorrow, so you will all have to move quickly; if you need to make any purchases, please hold on to any receipts so you can be properly compensated. Off you go!"

[Mel Grimson]

Mel supposed someone was going to get uptight about this. What surprised him was that the Professor and Judi understood the likely necessity of stealing the Skull, if it was the real McCoy. He brushed his sandwich crumbs off, put down the tea cup, drained dry, and popped off of his desk seat.

"Sorry to hear you feel that way, Egg." Mel said with a bit less cheer in his voice, "But speaking as a former doughboy, I'd steal a dozen of that Skull if it could stop the war, or I'll settle for making it less nasty." As he began to amble to the exit that took the EAD back into the public portions of the museum, he added, "If you're lucky, it's a fraud and we don't need to nab it."

[Lady Aceworth]

Anne scratched her head. "Eggy... if we were going to let one of those that we don't want to have that head, then we would have to steal it anywhays after they win it. Sometimes for the greater good we have to act proactively, even from the shadows if we must."

"We're fighting a different breed of war... But, as always, I will defer to the EAD's orders. I will focus on putting on a good show at the Auction. Well, I an Tarik."

She smiled, nodding to her mysterious partner.

"I even got a good dress for the occasion back in the Spirit of Cardiff." She stretched out grabbing her gear. "Since we're flying there, I'll start the pre-flight and inspection. Danny Boy's pretty good at finding sabotage."

When she starts to walk out, she nods to the Professor and Judi. At least they know what needed to be done to protect the world.

"You are stronger than you realize..." She thought. "Clear skies, everyone. We'll meet up at the dock. The train ride underground is quite a novelty I look foreward to."

[TarikTheTurban]

For all of his mystery and Flamboyance, Tarik was likely the member of the team with the lowest maintenance costs. He carried no equipment that needed maintenance. He wasn't a fan of firearms, and so never needed to purchase ammunition. All Tarik usually required was a hot cup of herbal tea, and some good conversation. The EAD wouldn't have to worry about receiving too many purchase receipts on his behalf.

"But speaking as a former doughboy, I'd steal a dozen of that Skull if it could stop the war, or I'll settle for making it less nasty." As he began to amble to the exit that took the EAD back into the public portions of the museum, he added, "If you're lucky, it's a fraud and we don't need to nab it."

"Indeed," Tarik nodded in agreement with Mel, "In this case as in many others, the study of Machiavelli's The Prince pays off. I believe the famous line is, 'In the actions of men... the end justifies the means'." Tarik took a moment to glance at each member of the group. "Are we not all in agreement that we stand for leading the world toward better, more peaceful days?" His gaze landed upon Eggy, "In this, the grandest of schemes, what is the price of a few small illicit activities if it provides a better world for all? You being such a fan of your breakfast should know that it is impossible to make an omelet without breaking a few eggs in the process."

Anne scratched her head. "Eggy... if we were going to let one of those that we don't want to have that head, then we would have to steal it anywhays after they win it. Sometimes for the greater good we have to act proactively, even from the shadows if we must."

"We're fighting a different breed of war... But, as always, I will defer to the EAD's orders. I will focus on putting on a good show at the Auction. Well, I an Tarik."

She smiled, nodding to her mysterious partner.

"I even got a good dress for the occasion back in the Spirit of Cardiff." She stretched out grabbing her gear. "Since we're flying there, I'll start the pre-flight and inspection. Danny Boy's pretty good at finding sabotage."

When she starts to walk out, she nods to the Professor and Judi. At least they know what needed to be done to protect the world.

"You are stronger than you realize..." She thought. "Clear skies, everyone. We'll meet up at the dock. The train ride underground is quite a novelty I look foreward to."

"The lady is correct," Tarik said in judgement, "In this assignment I see our path to be a clear one, even if it should be fraught with a multitude of varying difficulties." Tarik laid the index and middle fingers of his left hand against his temple as he said this. He wasn't actually peering into the future, but his associates didn't have to know that; and after a dramatic wave of his right hand, they'd never doubt it. "Time is of the essence! We must be on our way with as much haste as we can muster. Therefore I take my leave of you just as our fair flying female friend has done. Güle güle, ve sabah iyi*."

Translation

*"Good bye, and good morning"

[z005]

Elaine squeeled and shot up from where she'd been sitting, streaking out of the room in excitement. Pretty much the exact opposite of Tarik, her list of 'necessary equipment' had sent Eggy into a fit the first time he'd seen it. Then she'd explained what each item was for and even offered to show him how she managed to walk around with a complete arsenal artfully hidden by her modest dress. He'd declined, mostly by spending ten minutes beet red and coughing every time he'd looked at her. She still giggled whenever she remembered that.

She caught up to Mel just as he was entering the stacks. "I'm already packed - well, never unpacked - and mostly dressed. Wanna check out the auction list for some possible....ahem....private acquisitions before we head out? Eggy has a birthday coming up," she added with a wicked smile. "I mean, sometime this year, at the least."

She bouncy and bubbly and entirely far too excited for the upcoming possible heist - so fairly normal for the start of a new assignment from Mel's experience. If he wasn't careful, she'd drag him along on some pre-heist heist and get them both in trouble before they even left the country!

[Mel Grimson]

Mel smiled, as long as Elaine didn't get too carried away, all was well. And he had to be prepared for her getting carried away. "Sure... for the old routine." The old routine was the traditional cover where they were husband and wife. Mr. and Mrs. Denner was the names they used most of the time. And in this day and age, even with the woman's movement, the age differences were not to be worried about. "I should have little to pack, but we do want to review the special gear inventory."

[Heritage]

The next morning found the team gathered at Lady Anne's hanger on the Thames. The structure was fairly non-descript, though those who opted to ride the tiny electric train directly from the Museum had quite an alarming experience on the way over; fifeen miles an hour doesn't normally feel very fast, but if you're in a small open car careening through a pitch black tunnel less than three feet wide and the only light souce is a feeble electric lantern, the speed seems rather excessive.

The Spirit of Cardiff bobbed up and down in the filthy river water, illuminated by the dim glow of electric lightbulbs and the light that squuezed in between the closed hanger door. A narrow floating catwalk led to the plane itself, which was getting a last-minute once-over by a skinny young boy in overalls and goggles. At the team's approach, he stopped and waved. "Mornin', all!" He grabbed his forlock and he bobbed his head at Elaine. "Miss!" Then he noted the large leather cases on the cart she pulled behind her. "'Ere now, all o' them got to come along?"

[Lady Aceworth]

"Don't worry, Danny Boy... I already calculated the amount of fuel we'll need for our cargo. We had enough time to weigh everything."

Anne was in her usual flight gear, although with everything on it was hard to tell that the pilot standing there was in fact a Lady of high birth.

"No need to worry about such matterings today. I do hope you've done the typical checks for the engines and a security sweep?"

Anne decides to help Elaine with her belongings, not that she could take care of it. More as to expedite the effort. "Here... we should get this stuff on quickly."

[Mel Grimson]

"What else is new, kid?" Mel grinned as he got the assortment of equipment Elaine and he were taking along on. Safecracker's equipment, lock-picking tools, the two between them had enough to break into the Loeuvre, and take all the high-faluting artwork off the walls. The thought brought a sad moment to Mel's mind. As said before, he had been a doughboy, and at first, he'd been excited to take it to the Hun in Paris.

Then the fighting wore him down. And though he was not some diplomat, or highly educated man, he had common sense and cleverness enough. Mel, when the details of the treaty reached him, could only groan in frustration. It sounded like blaming Germany, and a whole lot of shit that Americans wouldn't have stood for if they had been given double-barrels. Much less the Germans.

And now, two decades later, the whole nasty Great War was about to get itself a bloody daughter, with Hitler as the midwife.

[Lady Aceworth]

"To be honest Mel, it sounds like you're relishing this mission with... some vigor." Anne said with a grin. "I mean I know you got time with the Americans in the Trenches... and thank you by the way... there's probably many of our boys alive thanks the the blood of yours..."

She cleared her throat. "But in any case, I never thought bein' a second-story worker was part of your resume. Then again it seems for you it'll be an asset, at least for our mission."

"No offense intended, by the way, I'v just been wondering." She said. Her lightly freckled smile still apparent. She's decided to go with no makeup and she wasn't a bad thing to look at. Even for a rough around the edges flier. "And where is taht bloody Tarik... I swear we should dress him as Gandalf..." In one of her pockets on her overalls, a fresh copy of The Hobbit was tucked nicely in it.

OOC Note

The Hobbit was published in 1937. Anne probably got a copy for something to read. Wanting to try something new.

[TarikTheTurban]

As they walked toward the Spirit of Cardiff, Tarik remained relatively silent. It served him better to observe the moods and thoughts of his team than to expend energy on his own thoughts and opinions. The time for his input would come, and until that time, he would continue gathering as much information from the minds and moods of his team as he could. It would be useful to him later. After collecting his things, he walked silently near the back of the group. Watching, waiting.

As they finally approached their ride, Tarik finally spoke, "Gentlemen and ladies," All eyes were upon him. Tarik simply had a way of commanding the attention of his peers whenever he willed it. Even those in the midst of boarding the plane stopped what they were doing and turned their eyes to the teams Mystical Maestro. "This undertaking has the sad fortune of occurring during a volatile period of this country's existence. I speak not of our current mission, but of our endeavors on the whole." Tarik paused for dramatic effect as he was so fond of doing, "I must therefore stress that we strive to establish this particular mission as the first chapter in a wholly new and glorious epic that describes the current histories of our beloved nation."

Tarik strode forward so that he was in their midst and looked toward each member of the group in turn, "It is no secret that the times in which we exist are destined to be remembered for all of our human history. It is also no secret that no one may ever tell of our particular deeds. Interestingly enough that does not diminish their substance!" He thrust his forefinger into the air to punctuate this point, "We endeavor not for fame or glory, but for the safety of the good world in whole. While the entire continent remains divided and perched on the precipice of war, we must strive to be the steam vent on this pressure cooker that has become of Europe."

"Gather your wits, friends, for you will surely need them!" Tarik gave a swirl of his cape and strode toward the plane, "I predict this mission will be most unlike any other we have faced heretofore. Time is of the essence, and so let us away. Tarry no longer, friends. The fate of the country, nay, the world hinges upon our success!" With that, and a twirl of his voluminous mustache, Tarik was the first to board the Spirit of Cardiff.

[z005]

Elaine arched a brow at Tarik's speech, then smirked at Mel. She muttered to him in her best low-brow accent, "And 'ere I jus' do't fer the thrills. Makes one feel all common and unworthy, 'e does."

Still chuckling, she made her way on to the plane; she privately wasn't the fondest of air travel - not enough exists, not enough room, and the smell was abominable most of the time - but it was fast. And the Spirit of Cardiff was better kept and equipped than any most other areoplanes she had seen, in thanks to Lady Aceworth's efforts.

She looked back to the others, already settled in for the ride. "Well, are you all coming, or do I have to figure out how to fly this thing myself?" she demanded with an irrepressible grin.

[Lady Aceworth]

Anne was dumb-struck at Tarik's grandiose melodrama. "Okay..."

She blinked but soon Elaine brought Anne out of her dumbfounded stuper. "Oh, right, I am the pilot after all! Danny! Get set, we're taking off in 10! The rest of ya get on or you're taking the boat!"

She had a smile on her face. It felt great her baby was finally getting usedfor something other than her flying about for the Flying Circus. Some of the friends she made among those madmen and so very few women were a dangrous crowd though, although that provided her the preparation for dealing with this sort of work. That and the conception for all of the failsafes and safety features she put into her aircraft.

She takes her seat after checking to make sure the parachute in the seat back was peoperly loaded in. "Heh... so glad I came up with this."

She buckles in, the straps of the parachute made part of the seat restraint system.

"Anne, so all we need to do to unhitch from our seat if we need to bail out is that red handle?"

"Yep. Makes it so that you've got your parachute with you without needing to put it on. Saves a bit of time when you gotta jump, right?"

Danny was more relieved Anne considered that. "The passengers got the same setup?"

"Yep. Like hell only we deserve the consideration of a safe landing."

Anne looked back to the passenger compartment. "I'm sure you've been briefed on how things work on my aircraft in an emergency, so no need to review. Just sit back, keep your restraints on, and enjoy the flight."

"Oh, and the usual vomit bag is located under your seat, right next to the life preserver. I thought of everything this time."

She adjusted the goggles on her leather pilot's helmet. She couldn't wait to take off.

[Heritage]

Once all the passengers were onboard and strapped in, Danny signaled to the ground crew, who pulled open the hangar doors; the full breadth of the Thames was revealed to the passengers; all the hub-bub of the river craft coming and going, the distant cries of fishmongers and the smell of petrol fumes. Then the plane's twin Pratt & Whitney rotary engines roared to life, blowing various pieces of debris around the inside of the floating hangar. A loud blaring of an air horn alerted the men on the boats as the majestic aircraft pulled out onto the river and began to pick up speed.

Outside the windows one the left, one could easily make out the familiar sights of the City; The Houses of Parliament, Big Ben and of course the dome of St Paul's. It took them a little while to pick up sufficient speed for take off, but once they passed under Tower Bridge they were soon airborne; Danny raised the wingtip pontoons as they banked south, on their way to the sunny Mediterranean.

[Lady Aceworth]

Anne appreciated that their route wasn't going over the north sea. That and the water was going to be warmer and warmer as the flight progressed. She kept at about 1500 feet above the ocean surface, enough to keep a good eye on ships that might be on her flight plan's route. She looked about her cabin and cockpit and sighed. She really should clean up.

"Sorry about the mess, guys. I had been recently doing some upkeep on the hull and had to patch a few bullet holes.It would be nice to know that I finally got the fire suppression system in the engines installed as well. It's a pretty slick setup if you ask me." Anne says, peeking again into the passenger cabin. "Everyone comfortable? I know the seats aren't exactly the finest in travel, but I had to work with my engineering design."