Preparations (Lightning In A Bottle)
Apr. 2nd, 2026 08:19 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
phormthevixdjinn[The following interlude represents the initial entry in the Lightning In A Bottle series.]
The cavernous steel hallway reverberated with the sounds of her heels, each step clacking with a resounding, severe echo as she sped along the corridor. The arctic fox, clad in her flowing black-and-pink lab coat, maintained a brisk pace as she made her way through the subterranean passage.
Despite its enormous size, and the late hour, the corridor was bustling with activity. Personnel of all kinds moved swiftly in either direction, uniformed underlings tending to the numerous imperative construction tasks set before the collective team. Welding sparks and percussive hammering filled the space as her stride carried her through the din with purpose.
"Oh!" A tiny voice cut through the heavy noise as she walked past a particularly busy intersection, heavy with welding. The sound caught her ear immediately.
"Oh! Administrator! Miss Administrator!"
The Administrator turned briefly to her side without halting her gait. She adjusted her angular-lensed glasses as she peered down at the source of the voice. There, a diminutive, stocky mouse rushed toward her, her own lab coat marred with black soot and assorted, dubious crimson stains. She carried a clipboard in her hand.
"Chief engineer Mechaotic. How fortunate. I was hoping to speak with you. What's the status of construction?"
The Chief kept pace with the administrator handily, scurrying beside her despite her much smaller stature.
"To be honest, Poly? Challenging." The engineer pushed up her rounded glasses as she flipped up the top page secured to her clipboard. "Physical construction is well in line to meet our timetable, but establishing a robust and sufficiently insulated connection to the arcana battery arrays is proving to be more difficult than we anticipated."
"Anything we can't handle?"
"No, nothing of the sort. It's just likely to take an extra few days to navigate these issues. We hadn't factored in the bandwidth estimates that the surveillance reports came back with."
"We're taking those reading seriously?"
The mouse shrugged, "It's the only data we have to go on. I've been working on the assumption that those levels are real. Mostly because... Well, I mean, given what the target supposedly is."
The fox let out a short breath through her nose. "Fair enough. So long as we make sure to take the time to do it correctly. I assume we're building in overhead?"
"Yes, of course. At least fifty percent overhead. There's no way of knowing if the recon data represents the total maximum, after all."
"What about the interior? Shielding, communications... And all the other accessories we're going to need?"
"Those are in place. Though honestly, Poly, is the communications array really necessary on this?" Mechaotic shot a quizzical glance upward at the Administrator as they continued to dodge henches in the hallway. "It's exceptionally expensive to rig up a two-way holo-projector for what will likely be a fruitless five-minute conversation."
Poly shook her head, immediately. "This isn't an issue I'm going to compromise on. We give her the option first, Mekkie. We extend the offer before we hit plan B."
"Of course, of course. Just, well," the mouse let out a little grimace. "From everything I've read on the dossier, something tells me plan B is an incredibly likely outcome."
Without missing a beat, the Administrator navigated smoothly around a series of gigantic, rounded spools of cylindrical material that dotted the corridor. The Chief managed the path in her wake, though with a few errant bumps into the spools and a number of various construction personnel.
"Even so, we try plan A first. We might be surprised, and the cost is relatively small compared to the incredible benefit." The Administrator's eyes suddenly flowed upward from where Mekkie walked alongside her, locking on to the side of the passageway. "Ah, I see we've found our third."
The Chief's nose snapped upward, just in time to see the tremendous hyena leaning nonchalantly against the metallic wall of the extended corridor. Both the vixen and the mouse immediately recognized that wide grin, a smile that oozed with effortless charisma. They recognized not just her face, but her larger-than-life charm, without her ever having spoken a single word. There was a kind of confidence, strength, and kindness there in her eyes and it was all communicated obviously, even from behind the colored material of her wrap-around visor. The hyena kicked herself forward off the wall where she was leaning, the light catching her shining black-and-pink bodysuit in such a manner that her bristling musculature was on clear display.
"Ahh, my favorite gals. Are you two having a meeting without me? Pssh, come on now."
"Oh!" Mekkie's smile was bright and genuine. "Hello Commander, lovely to see you!"
"Wh-" The hyena was suddenly caught unawares by the mouse's words. "Hey, don't call me that. I hate that title. It's a formality, nothing else. Plus, it sounds fashy. Ugh."
The Chief furrowed her brow for a moment. "Would you prefer I call you 'head security officer and lead mesmerism researcher'?"
The Commander let out a sigh, "... I guess 'Commander' has brevity to it, eh? But come on. You can call me 'Dee', that's not hard, right?"
The hyena fell into step alongside the vixen and the mouse as the Administrator breezed past, following in the wake of Poly's billowing lab coat on the other side opposite the Chief.
"Commander," the Administrator stated pointedly. "Your equipment. Has it been deployed?"
"Yeah, no worries. It's all in there. Shit, but it was a hell of a lot of work, though. Never had a setup quite this thorough before. No one's really needed quite this much! Usually it's just... You know." Dee motioned to her tinted visor.
Polymayhem took a tablet from an approaching henchofficer as she walked, talking to the hyena uninterrupted as she skimmed over the report. "Well, you understand we can't exactly put the eyewear on her, should it come to that." The tablet was returned with an approving gesture as the hench peeled off, disappearing down the corridor.
"Pfft," Dee intoned. "Something tells me I could make a persuasive case."
"We're talking contingencies here, Commander."
"If you want a real contingency, just find a way for me to get in there with her. A little one on one time would be sufficient for me t-"
The Administrator stopped dead in her tracks, turning on her heel to thrust a fingertip directly into the chest of the much larger hyena following her.
"Stow that bravado, Commander. I have a very high opinion of your physical prowess, as you are well aware. But this is a matter of safety and security. I'll not have you jeopardize your health or the lives of any others over matters of your ego."
Dee tried her best to hide the slight blush behind her cheeks, "Aw, come on now. You know I c-"
"I'm fully aware of your accolades, and I respect you for them. But we're dealing with a complete unknown right now. You would be as likely to overcome her as be turned into so much paste on the wall. We don't take chances. We do this properly."
The hyena rubbed the back of her neck, letting out a labored sigh.
"Yeah, okay, point made."
"On that topic," the Administrator continued, "What about the hardlight projectors? The subroutine?"
"Hardlight'll be online within the hour. It's rigged up with a link to the main network as well, so we'll be able to interface it to the subroutine without issue. That being said, holy shit, Poly, who the fuck did you have to blow or blackmail to get that much hardlight tech delivered from central?"
The Administrator answered with an arched eyebrow and an exasperated expression.
Dee only smiled and continued, "On that point: To get the subroutine into the isolation chamber, we're piggybacking off the communications setup. The holo-projectors shouldn't take much of the bandwidth on that channel, so we've got enough space to send her in that way. Our gal assures me personally she'll have everything she needs to work her magic, even if it's just a fragmented, isolated slice of herself."
The vixen nodded curtly. "We're sure this won't impact the rest of the network? We really can't take her away from the rest of the organization for this. I would prefer air-gapping the entire operation, but her expertise is going to be invaluable, even if just a subroutine."
"Hey, you don't have to tell me twice. Last thing we need is for our folks in the field to suddenly have comms go dark, or lose their link. All the scenarios I've run indicate that her subroutine should be enough to do what we need - and I ran some DOOZIES. Besides, you know how she works her magic. I've already integrated her with my program, so I think we're sitting pretty."
"And the program will be sufficient? An analysis of the dossier indicates that resistance will likely be high. Potentially violent."
The hyena made a dismissive gesture with her paws, "Not a problem. So long as the shielding is everything mousey here claims it is, we'll not have to worry about a breach." The Chief Engineer gave a very bright, very enthusiastic thumbs up, as well as a genuine, yet goofy, smile to match.
Dee mirrored the enthusiasm with a thumbs up of her own, then continued, "Admittedly the profile we're dealing with here is a unique one. But some light recon I've done in the last week may have found some interesting hooks we can deploy. If it comes down to it, I think we've got some extremely effective methods at our disposal."
"Excellent. In that case, all we're waiting on is for the link to the arrays to come online."
Mechaotic nodded her head vigorously, "I expect it to be finished within the next 72 hours. Longer if we want to do some manner of dry test before the real thing. The Arcana Array is more or less in place, but it is completely dry right now."
"Of course, run any test necessary," the Administrator echoed. "We want the asset promptly, but rushing into this will do us no good. Take the time you need. I want to ensure we do everything we can to see that this goes right."
"Sounds like we've got this on lock! But uh," the hyena leaned slightly down toward the Administrator, "aren't we kind of forgetting the most important part? Like, for example... How do we, well... start all of this? We can't exactly roll up on her and black bag her, you know?"
Both the Commander and the Chief Engineer swore they saw an unearthly glint enter the Administrator's glasses.
"Zero worries on that front. We've got a heavy hitter from home base who's tapped into her method of travel. If this goes to spec, we can literally hijack her. She'll have zero concept of what's happening until we have her diverted."
Dee stopped in her tracks for a moment, stunned, before let out a tremendous, barreling laugh that echoed clear down the underground corridor in every direction. "NO WAY! You mean, you actually got...?"
The Administrator gave a thin, knowing grin of her own.
"Oh, splendid!!" Mechatoic bounced with visible excitement. "I'll have to ask her if I can take readings while she works!"
"Alright," Poly straightened her lab coat as she regarded her two companions. "So far as I'm aware, the higher ups at central have given us the green light. As of two hours ago, we are cleared to initiate the process whenever we deem fit. They've requested we start with a formal, direct offer. Failing that, we have unlimited latitude to deploy any methods we desire, so long as it poses no significant impact to the rest of the organization. Or damages the Arcana Array."
The Administrator pointed toward the smaller mouse, "Chief, make sure those connections are up and running - and ROBUST." She turned her finger toward the hyena next, "And Dee, I suggest you ensure that your program is as thorough as you can possibly make it. Lets double and triple check that our good friend will have enough in her subroutine to fully enact whatever you've come up with."
Mekkie gave an enthusiastic, effervescent salute. "Yes Ma'am!"
Dee cut a smirk so sharp it might've sliced through the steel walls of the passageway. "Oh, we're gonna have a live one, gals. This oughta be fun. I am legit pumped."
Polymayhem turned on her heels again, her own steadfast smirk belying her confidence. One might've thought she was attempting a dramatic pose there in the center of the corridor, her companions flanking her on either side, henches busily flowing in every direction behind her.
"Alright ladies. Let's catch lightning in a bottle."
The cavernous steel hallway reverberated with the sounds of her heels, each step clacking with a resounding, severe echo as she sped along the corridor. The arctic fox, clad in her flowing black-and-pink lab coat, maintained a brisk pace as she made her way through the subterranean passage.
Despite its enormous size, and the late hour, the corridor was bustling with activity. Personnel of all kinds moved swiftly in either direction, uniformed underlings tending to the numerous imperative construction tasks set before the collective team. Welding sparks and percussive hammering filled the space as her stride carried her through the din with purpose.
"Oh!" A tiny voice cut through the heavy noise as she walked past a particularly busy intersection, heavy with welding. The sound caught her ear immediately.
"Oh! Administrator! Miss Administrator!"
The Administrator turned briefly to her side without halting her gait. She adjusted her angular-lensed glasses as she peered down at the source of the voice. There, a diminutive, stocky mouse rushed toward her, her own lab coat marred with black soot and assorted, dubious crimson stains. She carried a clipboard in her hand.
"Chief engineer Mechaotic. How fortunate. I was hoping to speak with you. What's the status of construction?"
The Chief kept pace with the administrator handily, scurrying beside her despite her much smaller stature.
"To be honest, Poly? Challenging." The engineer pushed up her rounded glasses as she flipped up the top page secured to her clipboard. "Physical construction is well in line to meet our timetable, but establishing a robust and sufficiently insulated connection to the arcana battery arrays is proving to be more difficult than we anticipated."
"Anything we can't handle?"
"No, nothing of the sort. It's just likely to take an extra few days to navigate these issues. We hadn't factored in the bandwidth estimates that the surveillance reports came back with."
"We're taking those reading seriously?"
The mouse shrugged, "It's the only data we have to go on. I've been working on the assumption that those levels are real. Mostly because... Well, I mean, given what the target supposedly is."
The fox let out a short breath through her nose. "Fair enough. So long as we make sure to take the time to do it correctly. I assume we're building in overhead?"
"Yes, of course. At least fifty percent overhead. There's no way of knowing if the recon data represents the total maximum, after all."
"What about the interior? Shielding, communications... And all the other accessories we're going to need?"
"Those are in place. Though honestly, Poly, is the communications array really necessary on this?" Mechaotic shot a quizzical glance upward at the Administrator as they continued to dodge henches in the hallway. "It's exceptionally expensive to rig up a two-way holo-projector for what will likely be a fruitless five-minute conversation."
Poly shook her head, immediately. "This isn't an issue I'm going to compromise on. We give her the option first, Mekkie. We extend the offer before we hit plan B."
"Of course, of course. Just, well," the mouse let out a little grimace. "From everything I've read on the dossier, something tells me plan B is an incredibly likely outcome."
Without missing a beat, the Administrator navigated smoothly around a series of gigantic, rounded spools of cylindrical material that dotted the corridor. The Chief managed the path in her wake, though with a few errant bumps into the spools and a number of various construction personnel.
"Even so, we try plan A first. We might be surprised, and the cost is relatively small compared to the incredible benefit." The Administrator's eyes suddenly flowed upward from where Mekkie walked alongside her, locking on to the side of the passageway. "Ah, I see we've found our third."
The Chief's nose snapped upward, just in time to see the tremendous hyena leaning nonchalantly against the metallic wall of the extended corridor. Both the vixen and the mouse immediately recognized that wide grin, a smile that oozed with effortless charisma. They recognized not just her face, but her larger-than-life charm, without her ever having spoken a single word. There was a kind of confidence, strength, and kindness there in her eyes and it was all communicated obviously, even from behind the colored material of her wrap-around visor. The hyena kicked herself forward off the wall where she was leaning, the light catching her shining black-and-pink bodysuit in such a manner that her bristling musculature was on clear display.
"Ahh, my favorite gals. Are you two having a meeting without me? Pssh, come on now."
"Oh!" Mekkie's smile was bright and genuine. "Hello Commander, lovely to see you!"
"Wh-" The hyena was suddenly caught unawares by the mouse's words. "Hey, don't call me that. I hate that title. It's a formality, nothing else. Plus, it sounds fashy. Ugh."
The Chief furrowed her brow for a moment. "Would you prefer I call you 'head security officer and lead mesmerism researcher'?"
The Commander let out a sigh, "... I guess 'Commander' has brevity to it, eh? But come on. You can call me 'Dee', that's not hard, right?"
The hyena fell into step alongside the vixen and the mouse as the Administrator breezed past, following in the wake of Poly's billowing lab coat on the other side opposite the Chief.
"Commander," the Administrator stated pointedly. "Your equipment. Has it been deployed?"
"Yeah, no worries. It's all in there. Shit, but it was a hell of a lot of work, though. Never had a setup quite this thorough before. No one's really needed quite this much! Usually it's just... You know." Dee motioned to her tinted visor.
Polymayhem took a tablet from an approaching henchofficer as she walked, talking to the hyena uninterrupted as she skimmed over the report. "Well, you understand we can't exactly put the eyewear on her, should it come to that." The tablet was returned with an approving gesture as the hench peeled off, disappearing down the corridor.
"Pfft," Dee intoned. "Something tells me I could make a persuasive case."
"We're talking contingencies here, Commander."
"If you want a real contingency, just find a way for me to get in there with her. A little one on one time would be sufficient for me t-"
The Administrator stopped dead in her tracks, turning on her heel to thrust a fingertip directly into the chest of the much larger hyena following her.
"Stow that bravado, Commander. I have a very high opinion of your physical prowess, as you are well aware. But this is a matter of safety and security. I'll not have you jeopardize your health or the lives of any others over matters of your ego."
Dee tried her best to hide the slight blush behind her cheeks, "Aw, come on now. You know I c-"
"I'm fully aware of your accolades, and I respect you for them. But we're dealing with a complete unknown right now. You would be as likely to overcome her as be turned into so much paste on the wall. We don't take chances. We do this properly."
The hyena rubbed the back of her neck, letting out a labored sigh.
"Yeah, okay, point made."
"On that topic," the Administrator continued, "What about the hardlight projectors? The subroutine?"
"Hardlight'll be online within the hour. It's rigged up with a link to the main network as well, so we'll be able to interface it to the subroutine without issue. That being said, holy shit, Poly, who the fuck did you have to blow or blackmail to get that much hardlight tech delivered from central?"
The Administrator answered with an arched eyebrow and an exasperated expression.
Dee only smiled and continued, "On that point: To get the subroutine into the isolation chamber, we're piggybacking off the communications setup. The holo-projectors shouldn't take much of the bandwidth on that channel, so we've got enough space to send her in that way. Our gal assures me personally she'll have everything she needs to work her magic, even if it's just a fragmented, isolated slice of herself."
The vixen nodded curtly. "We're sure this won't impact the rest of the network? We really can't take her away from the rest of the organization for this. I would prefer air-gapping the entire operation, but her expertise is going to be invaluable, even if just a subroutine."
"Hey, you don't have to tell me twice. Last thing we need is for our folks in the field to suddenly have comms go dark, or lose their link. All the scenarios I've run indicate that her subroutine should be enough to do what we need - and I ran some DOOZIES. Besides, you know how she works her magic. I've already integrated her with my program, so I think we're sitting pretty."
"And the program will be sufficient? An analysis of the dossier indicates that resistance will likely be high. Potentially violent."
The hyena made a dismissive gesture with her paws, "Not a problem. So long as the shielding is everything mousey here claims it is, we'll not have to worry about a breach." The Chief Engineer gave a very bright, very enthusiastic thumbs up, as well as a genuine, yet goofy, smile to match.
Dee mirrored the enthusiasm with a thumbs up of her own, then continued, "Admittedly the profile we're dealing with here is a unique one. But some light recon I've done in the last week may have found some interesting hooks we can deploy. If it comes down to it, I think we've got some extremely effective methods at our disposal."
"Excellent. In that case, all we're waiting on is for the link to the arrays to come online."
Mechaotic nodded her head vigorously, "I expect it to be finished within the next 72 hours. Longer if we want to do some manner of dry test before the real thing. The Arcana Array is more or less in place, but it is completely dry right now."
"Of course, run any test necessary," the Administrator echoed. "We want the asset promptly, but rushing into this will do us no good. Take the time you need. I want to ensure we do everything we can to see that this goes right."
"Sounds like we've got this on lock! But uh," the hyena leaned slightly down toward the Administrator, "aren't we kind of forgetting the most important part? Like, for example... How do we, well... start all of this? We can't exactly roll up on her and black bag her, you know?"
Both the Commander and the Chief Engineer swore they saw an unearthly glint enter the Administrator's glasses.
"Zero worries on that front. We've got a heavy hitter from home base who's tapped into her method of travel. If this goes to spec, we can literally hijack her. She'll have zero concept of what's happening until we have her diverted."
Dee stopped in her tracks for a moment, stunned, before let out a tremendous, barreling laugh that echoed clear down the underground corridor in every direction. "NO WAY! You mean, you actually got...?"
The Administrator gave a thin, knowing grin of her own.
"Oh, splendid!!" Mechatoic bounced with visible excitement. "I'll have to ask her if I can take readings while she works!"
"Alright," Poly straightened her lab coat as she regarded her two companions. "So far as I'm aware, the higher ups at central have given us the green light. As of two hours ago, we are cleared to initiate the process whenever we deem fit. They've requested we start with a formal, direct offer. Failing that, we have unlimited latitude to deploy any methods we desire, so long as it poses no significant impact to the rest of the organization. Or damages the Arcana Array."
The Administrator pointed toward the smaller mouse, "Chief, make sure those connections are up and running - and ROBUST." She turned her finger toward the hyena next, "And Dee, I suggest you ensure that your program is as thorough as you can possibly make it. Lets double and triple check that our good friend will have enough in her subroutine to fully enact whatever you've come up with."
Mekkie gave an enthusiastic, effervescent salute. "Yes Ma'am!"
Dee cut a smirk so sharp it might've sliced through the steel walls of the passageway. "Oh, we're gonna have a live one, gals. This oughta be fun. I am legit pumped."
Polymayhem turned on her heels again, her own steadfast smirk belying her confidence. One might've thought she was attempting a dramatic pose there in the center of the corridor, her companions flanking her on either side, henches busily flowing in every direction behind her.
"Alright ladies. Let's catch lightning in a bottle."
no subject
Date: 2026-04-03 03:32 am (UTC)A bit of explanation is probably in order here:
A few months back, before I really had an idea of what I was going to do with the Lightning In A Bottle AU, I wrote the entry above. Effectively I was spitballing ideas, and just wrote out a flash-fiction account of what might be considered a first step into the story. It was only afterward that I sat down, roughed out the characters, and then started writing more in-depth chapters.
That initial entry was pretty rough, and lacked a lot of detail. Back then, the characters didn't even have names, and instead were only referred to by their positions (And to be honest that itself was something of an evolution, as in the original pass at the 'primary' story they were naught but silhouettes).
Because of this, I never really posted the story here. I sort of dumped it out on Mastodon. When it came to posting here, I just started with "A Matter Of Concern" and moved forward. I thought this entry was too meager, and too insignificant.
Looking back on it, however thin and rough this entry is, it includes a lot of important set-up that is just... lacking otherwise. There are a few details buried in here that would otherwise go uncommunicated. So I polished the words up a little and included it here. This is primarily so that I can collate all of the entries into a master list eventually.
So, that's why a weaker, thinner entry is being posted now, and out of sequence at that.
I ask for your patience, please, as further entries are underway. As always, thank you for your time, and your attention. I appreciate your being here.
no subject
Date: 2026-04-08 11:05 am (UTC)