"Ah yes forgot.Still not used to a female bodyguard. Damn Chivalry and what not." He says stepping in front of her and stopping to look back.
"You know Widow I almost have a hard time telling when you are joking, At least I hope you were joking" He says as he peers about looking for a sense of direction and possible hallways.
As Doc Icarus works, Batman will scan for other intruders. Or security forces looking into the fight on their doorstep.
Nite Owl and Widow descend what must be at least 2 levels before coming to the floor. Built into the wall is a sealed hopper style clear wall panel. Within, there are gas masks and several pneumatic syringes, as well as full body hazmat suits and radiation badges. There are also high powered micro flashlights and other survival gear.
The staircase joins a cross shaped intersection with hallways leading in the cardinal directions. The hallways look older than the building above, possibly left over from the naval base that once sat here. The tunnel back toward the water (west) leads to an exit, while the others are unlabeled.
===============
Back above ground, Icarus examines the lizard armor, finding that it is composed of a sort of soft material interwoven with a metallic hexagonal pattern. Peeling it off looks time consuming, but not difficult.
Batman sees two security personnel in black tactical gear exiting the main entrance to the building. They wield some sort of short barreled energy weapons. Two more look down from the roof.
Dottie eyes the equipment behind the panel. "Wow. Prepared even for nuclear attack? That or they've got a heck of a generator. Good news is if we get trapped down here, we can probably survive for a few weeks."
"I think we'd want to get closer to the center of the building. North?"
"True, but why? I mean I knew this was an abandoned Navy base, but why keep it?"He said as he grabbed one and tossed another bag to Dottie.
"You never know, if this is where there might be other more sinister things afoot" he says with a smirk as he stuffs a gas mask and other stuff into the bag before he takes a flashlight.
"So you got anything in your bag of tricks that can help us navigate this subterranean realm."
"True, but why? I mean I knew this was an abandoned Navy base, but why keep it?"He said as he grabbed one and tossed another bag to Dottie.
"Paranoia? I mean... the Navy would have anti nuke stuff as a matter of course--including if someone tried to blow up their own submarines."
Dottie stops in her tracks as a crazy idea crosses her mind. "Does this place still have access to the water?"
"So you got anything in your bag of tricks that can help us navigate this subterranean realm."
"I have my own flashlight and considerable charm." Dottie pulls said flashlight (a mini maglite) from her inside jacket pocket.
Batman will raise his hand to wave at the security guards as they come up. "Hey there. We were following up some leads from the attack on Oracle and that led us to this guy. It looked like he was about to break into your facility, so we thought we'd stop him before he got in."
The security men part as another man exits the building and approaches, "Thank you, heroes, I don't believe I know your handles, but I recognize you from the attack on Oracle earlier today. My name is Mr. Dallas. We appreciate your help, but I believe that my men and I can take it from here. Whoever this fellow is, it seems he isn't much of a fighter."
War Widow and Nite Owl come to the end about 80 feet down the hall. The hall ends at an old fashioned pressure door with a 6 inch glass port and a wheel for cranking it closed. The door is closed and latched from this side, but there doesn't appear to be any sort of lock.
Dottie looks at the door. "Come to think of it, I think we should have gone a different direction to get further into the complex, but... this is continuing to make me think they still have some interesting stuff down here." Dottie peers through the port.
"Whaddya think, Nite Owl?"
"Maybe" He said cryptically as he looks at this door trying to note any special sensors.
There doesn't seem to be anything new here, Nite Owl. All of this looks pretty old fashioned.
"This would be fun to explore, but you're not gonna find your computer here. Let's remember this for now. Let's go back to the intersection and try west instead."
As you head west, you come to another staircase leading up to a trapdoor labeled Conference Room C. The tunnel continues west until it ends not far away in a modern steel security door, the frame of which has obviously been welded into the older construction more recently.
It occurs to Nite Owl that some of the conduit on the wall probably contains network cable. If he had some sort of terminal, he could probably jury rig access from here. Probably something available in the conference room, as well.
Nite owl stands to examine the door and the possible set up needed to operate the door. He looked back at the trapdoor stairs and tapped his chin.
"Okay seems we need to get into that conference room to maybe get to some computers to basically hack into the door Unless you have superhuman strength or something? Like maybe super martial arts? If not then I think the door to the conference room or we double back and try a different route out?"
Dottie snaps her fingers. "Focus, Owlboy. You're forgetting the mission: get information on their metals program and see how that connects to the Ani-Men so we can stop them from creating more traffic violations inside skyscrapers. THAT'S why we need access to a computer you haven't already broken, remember?"
She tries to open the trapdoor; if it's locked, she tries Dallas's key pin.
Dallas' pin works miracles, and the floor hatch into the conference room above pops open with a barely noticeable pneumatic hiss. Dottie peaks into the room and finds it empty, with the window panels in frosted mode (Switchable privacy glass).
Dottie hops up into the room. "You need a hand up?" She says to Nite Owl.
He chuckles and springs into the room with little effort."Nah I'm good. Kinda have super leaps."
"And I didn't break it, it just was a bit more of a difficult nut to crack!" He says as he looks about the room."however, I really do wanna see what is down in those tunnels. I mean what is going on here?"
Dottie looks around for security cameras.
"Super leaps? Since when do owls leap?"
She finds a bowl of pretzels left over from a conference and grabs a handful. While noshing, she tilts her head at Nite Owl. "I'm curious too. But that's not the mission. Plus would it do for representatives of Oracle to poke around in a competitor's basement? I don't really care what risks you take, but do you?"
"They hop" he says with a chuckle.
He does a quick scan of the room as he talks, sounding distant.
"No it would be bad if I were caught. Besides, I doubt he wouldn't have left me in his office alone in most circumstances.Luckily I have good lawyers and am a know game junkie and can write it off as trying to access my online games. Which most work consoles don't like"
Dottie continues to look around the room, eating pretzels. She presses a random button, and wall panels slide open to reveal a Mondopad, one of those fancy dancy giant computer tablets people use for presentations.
"Is that a TV?" Being fresh out of prison had its downsides.
Nite Owl finds a wide variety of computer equipment, a telepresence suite, but nothing particularly hidden or secret. He should be able to access the network from here.
"Yes and a computer" He said answering Dottie, before he finds the computer equipment and begins to stretch his fingers.
"Okay attempt number two"
With access to a terminal that is not locked down to the personal ident of the a department head, Nite Owl makes quick work of accessing the network.
On Dottie's recommendation, he clicks through files, accessing the files for rare metals.
Nite Owl quickly discovers that he is not the only one to hack the Horizon network, but that there was another hack just a day before the break in. At that point, an IP that you can trace to a warehouse in Queens accessed the rare metals lab and downloaded a ton of information about the work. While rare metals is working with tiny amounts of adamantium and vibranium, they have primarily been working with synthetic vibranium, attempting to overcome the explosive qualities of reverbium.
There are also records indicating that this same external computer hacked security systems and allowed access to the facility.
"While you're in there can you get into their security systems and make sure our little journey hasn't been recorded on security cameras or microphones?"
She smiles. "Oh, and well done. This time."
"Thanks, I chalk it up to the fact this terminal has been hacked before. Seems to be a weak link." He says as he accesses the security system and begins to move things around
As he does he sticks a flash drive in and downloads the info on the warehouse.
As Nite Owl is working, something seems off. He has the sense almost of someone looking over his shoulder, or as if someone is moving just ahead of him on the network.
"I think someone is either trying to ferret us out or thinks I am trying to ferret them out. Widow remembers this address in Queens...(insert the address from the computer documents)..NOw let me just finish the erase loop and done." he says pulling free the flash drive, before he turns to Dottie.
"Now My dear I believe it is time we flee"
Dottie nods and commits the address to memory.
"Find a way out through the tunnels and tell the tale of our miraculous escape later, or run out into the hallway here harried and confused, having managed to get away from our captor?"
"Well either option is good. I do however need to loop something in another computer to show that the system was hacked. Also, will need to upload my game info so it will show that's what caused the whole system error. So at least we should try to head back to the office." he said opening the door for Dottie.
"We should probably go back the way we came, then, as his office was locked down."
Dottie closes the panel to the Mondopad and makes sure the pretzel bowl appears relatively unmolested (if minus several pretzels). Then she jumps back down the hatch.
Nite Owl and Dottie move quickly back into Dallas' office, closing the door to the emergency exit just as the main door swings open and Mr. Dallas reappears.
"The situation is under control. There was some sort of lizard themed supervillain, not one I recognize, climbing on the outside of the building. Two vigilantes brought him down and my men are mopping up. I'm afraid that with all of the excitement, perhaps it would be best to reschedule a visit for another time. We will need to do a full inspection of the facility to make sure nothing was compromised."
Dottie nods. "Sorry about the mess," she indicates the coffee she spilled earlier. "I got a little antsy. Maybe I should drink less coffee." She laughs nervously.
While pointing at the coffee spill with one hand, she also surreptitiously drops Dallas's pin on the floor with the other, to make it look like he simply lost it.
"Anyway, so far your demonstration of your security has been most impressive. We'll have Mr. Cole's assistant contact yours for another appointment."
Dottie and Nite Owl beat feet to the parking lot, no doubt under the watchful eye of their comrades outside.
Once they have driven away, presumably to a rendezvous point with the rest of the team, the "War Widow" asks Doc Icarus and Batman if they saw whatever triggered the alarm.
He'll explain about the lizard man and how they took him down. "Since we were on their property, we really didn't have much of a chance to question him or much right to refuse turning him over. But the Doc got a look at some of the suit mechanics."
"SOunds fun, We have a lead. Hopefully it will explain alot"He said looking at the others pulling out a flash drive and looking to War Widow.
"Also Widow here has the address"
Dottie recites the address. "Warehouse in Queens," she adds.
"As for your little adventure, Batguy... I wonder why they returned. Apparently this is the second time they've attempted to infiltrate Horizon--and failed, according to Mr. Dallas. At the first infiltration, they gave all the relevant information to SHIELD. Pretty desperate to try not only a security system they couldn't beat the first time, and one that might be in SHIELD's sights to boot."
Dottie frowns. "Unless they lied about SHIELD. They sure as heck didn't show up at Oracle after the kidnapping, and if Horizon's attack drew their attention, surely Oracle's should have too. Maybe protecting a whole city block from a team of supervillains with explosives isn't their sort of thing these days." She shrugs.
After a pause, she thinks aloud once again. "Also, why one fella, when they know the security here is tight? Did we injure all the rest of them?" She smiles. "Maybe that means we know their numbers now."
While he doesn't know much about SHIELD, the lizard had been on his mind a bit as well."Perhaps the Lizard had some inside knowledge that would help him get in. Or he was expected. Hard to say."
"oh, and it's Batman." he adds a little self-consciously.
Dottie reaches out to poke Batman's mask on the nose. Whether she manages to or not, she says, "You're cute, Batguy."
"Expected? Hmm. What an interesting idea. Why'd you think that?"
"Probably expected, seems I wasn't the only one snooping in Horizons database. Plus the underground levels seemed a bit ominous. Might investigate it later. As for the Lizard are we sure he was using stolen tech in a similar fashion to the bird, Ape and Cat we faced earlier?" He said rubbing his chin in contemplation.
"Well, while obviously animal-based aliases are common..." Dottie waves to Nite Owl and Batman, "it seems a little too coincidental for the next infiltrator to ALSO have a critter theme like the ones we fought. I'd guess that these Animal-Men are working together. Although Lizard-guy could've gone rogue. Maybe the White Skull's a lousy boss." She shrugs.
"As for the underground levels, Horizon's built on a navy base, you said, right? So there's tunnels down there dating back to then. They use them as escape paths. Could lead to some other stuff as well... but unless your data shows the Animal-Men--Ani-men?--trying to infiltrate those levels, that's just an intriguing distraction for now. Their metals lab was elsewhere."
Some quick work by Nite Owl traces a hack into the Horizon systems back to a physical address at a warehouse in Queens. Sketchy Warehouse
Once they get to Queens, Dottie asks some useful-looking passersby about the area, acting like a lost tourist. She mentions the area around the warehouse, and one guy tells her with some alarm about the gang operating there. She then considers, "Oh gosh, maybe it was 34th and not 43rd..." She thanks him and departs.
She reports back to the others. "Apparently this place is a hangout for a gang called the 66 Blades. Usual stuff--extortion, drugs, prostitution. The place might be crawling with them--20 or 30 guys. I'd expect lookouts but not any high tech security."
She looks at the other three. "Sounds like they're upgrading if they're hacking into major tech companies. Or someone else is using them for muscle. Nite Owl, you didn't get a layout of the warehouse, did you?"
The building is an old meat packing warehouse, so there isn't much info about the layout online.