743/Calling In A Siege Expert

Calling In A Siege Expert
Date of Scene:	24 March 2020
Location:	A classified and secure SHIELD storage facility.
Synopsis:	Lara Croft and Dane Whitman examine the Siege Perilous, and consult someone with firsthand experience....
Cast of Characters:	Dane Whitman, Lara Croft

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Dane Whitman has posed:
Dane Whitman may not be an official member of SHIELD but he's managed to eventually arrive at something approaching decent terms with them of late. Even if he was mildly alarmed to discover how much they knew about him, his ancestry and well...everything else...he's at least made the effort to be a team player. So when "Agent Jones" asked if he would be willing to examine a particular object that had recently come into their possession and might be within his realm of expertise, he once again agreed.

So having been polite about accepting, Dane's a mild bit annoyed that at the moment he looks more like a prisoner than an expert, mostly because he has a thoroughly opaque black sack pulled over his head, and has had it on for the better part of the last hour, in order to protect this storage facility's location. After all, he's not cleared for it. At least they didn't cuff him or anything, and "Agent Jones" is leading him by the arm until he brings them to a stop, inside a small antechamber that leads to the main storage facility. When the sack is pulled off, Dane shakes his head a bit and says more than a little dryly:

"Thanks."

A single SHIELD Agent sits behind an unadorned desk, looking rather bored towards Dane as he asks, "Spread your arms and legs, sir. I need to wand you for unauthorized devices."

"Yeah, all right." Dane assumes the position, sighing just a bit. He gets it, really, but Agent Jones told him to leave his phone, photonic sword and shield at home. So he did. Team player, remember?

A few moments later, the Guard seems satisfied, and swipes his keycard to open the door, gesturing for Dane to step through, speaking in that sort of dull tone that only the supremely bored can manage:

"Your escort will meet you inside, Sir."

So Dane steps through, giving the fellow a mildly forced smile and fighting hard to keep any sarcasm from entering his tone when he wishes him a nice day.

Lara Croft has posed:
Lara had one day off since her return from Australia where they located this Siege Perilous artifact and brought it to SHIELD after battling with HYDRA agents that were trying to discover a safe way to claim the power of the chair... it hadn't worked out so well for those agents that HYDRA put to said test.

Dust in the wind, as they say.

Back at the Triskelion in upstate New York today, Lara is in the Warehouse facility where the Siege is being kept and its been moved to a study chamber off of the main warehouse. It's here that she's to bring Dane once he is through the red tape of entering a facility of this design.

When he emerges, she's there. Dressed in a dark navy blue SHIELD jacket that is unzipped over a charcoal grey tank top that ends just above her slim fit cargo pants of a dark shade similar to that of her jacket. Lara's hair is tied back into a loose pony tail behind her shoulders, and her eyes are down upon her phone's screen in one hand and a cup of /something/ in the other.

When he arrives, she looks up to him and she affords him a soft smile. "Mister Whitman?" Lara says, her voice already clearly British in origin, London regional to be precise.

She puts her phone away and walks toward him, then extends her hand to him. "I'm Lara. Croft." She pauses then. "Agent Croft." She's still getting used to this new title in her life of several other titles she also doesn't care for.

"Sorry about the uncomfortable entry methods." She tries to smooth him over.

Dane Whitman has posed:
Dane turns his attention to Lara, his smile is a touch wry but he doesn't seem terribly angry, reaching to give Lara's hand a firm shake, "Call me Dane. I get enough of Mr. Whitman at my new job." His tone is light, and once he releases Lara's hand he cants his head, "Pleased to meet you, Agent Croft. I'm guessing you're my escort for the day."

At Lara's apology, he glances over his shoulder and shakes his head slightly, "I get it. You folks deal with all kinds of stuff that nobody wants getting into the wrong hands." He grins just a touch, "But if I get to leave a suggestion card before I go, I'm suggesting a blindfold instead of a sack."

Lara Croft has posed:
There comes a small smile to Lara's face when he speaks of the black bag. "I'm really sorry. I don't understand why they can't just make some kind of sunglasses that are supremely darkened. A blindfold even seems excessive in this day and age let alone a /sack/."

As she turns around she motions on ahead further down a hallway and starts to lead in said direction. "You can call me Lara too, I'm new to this Agent thing and it's not precisely my favorite title, if I even have one." They walk past two guards then that have their backs to either wall on both sides of them. Lara nods to them, but they seem stoic in nature.

Her stare goes back to Dane then. "So did they tell you anything about why we've asked you to come in here today?" She inquires, not sure of how loose tongued the others are who helped get the man here.

Dane Whitman has posed:
"Pretty much nothing beyond it being something that fits with some of my "unique" expertise." Dane says, his expression growing more troubled, "Which generally I'd guess to mean that either someone dug up some side-project my dearly departed uncle had squirreled away, or it's something magical, possibly a weapon of some kind." He shakes his head, "But no, Agent Jones doesn't talk much. Get the impression that's the case with a lot of folks around here." He says with a glance to a couple of the stone-faced guards as they go, though the tone isn't really cutting or mocking. "And I figured it wouldn't do much good to ask questions. SHIELD seems to let folks know things on their own time. Guess it comes with the territory."

Lara Croft has posed:
Lara's cup is lowered again down to her waist level as she walks along side of Dane and listens to his response. The various things he says have different reactions visible on her visage and she glances over to him to show a light smile and a little nod. "I've only been with them officially for a little over a month now and, well, much of what you just said is very accurate." She then lets her smile turn into a slight grin that comes and goes. "There are good and kind people in the ranks of the agency though. But they're usually not found in sections of it such as this one, this is... very serious business."

As they walk, they take one turn to their left and start down another hallway. "As for why we brought you here, well... I think it best if I get your natural reaction to it." She states then, taking her eyes off of him then and turning to slow their steps as she reaches a nondescript door with a silver handle that reads her palm when she puts it around it, then the little red light blinks green and the door clicks open.

"Come on in." Lara says softly.

The door is opened and inside is what is basically an interrogation-sized room with a tarp / blanket laid out on the middle of the floor and a series of lights setup around it that are all pointed at the middle of the floor, because on said tarp is the Siege Perilous, well lit from all angles.

It has a metal bucket turned over on top of it with a hand drawn sign that says 'Do not sit in this chair or you will instantly die.'

Dane Whitman has posed:
"I'd hope so. I can understand it though. Can't be easy work, trying to keep the world in one piece without anyone realizing how close it gets to cracking on a semi-regular basis." Dane strolls along, stepping through the door after Lara opens it, and well...there's definitely a reaction or three. A widening of eyes, a sharp intake of breath, a mixture of disbelief and shock and even a flicker of humor as he spots the bucket and reads it's message. But after a moment, he shakes his head slightly, still gaping a bit, and says almost absently,

"OK, yeah...I can see why you folks called me."

He comes back to himself , and looks more intently to Lara now, "Where on Earth did you find this?"

Lara Croft has posed:
The Siege is old, clearly old, but it's in remarkably good condition considering it's true age and what all it has likely been through. When Dan seems to come to the realization of what he's looking at, Lara is standing back off of the edge of the tarp that it is sitting on, between two of the large lamps shining down upon the chair. She shows another soft and light smile at his reaction and then his question.

"Australia of all places." Lara says to him then, she takes another sip from her Starbucks-style coffee cup and then lowers it again down to stomach level. "About forty five minutes out of Alice Springs, by way of helicopter. How it got there.. is still a bit of a mystery. But it has apparently been getting passed around from black market owner to black market owner for some time. As one of my colleagues said... It's a wonderfully fantastic piece to have in your personal collection, until you - or a loved one - gets drunk one night and sits down in the first chair they find."

She shows a smirk then again, glances from the chair back to Dane. "I saw it in action myself. HYDRA agents attempting different methods to try to get get around its... security measures. None were successful. It was, gruesome."

Dane Whitman has posed:
"Huh. Australia. I guess there are places that make less sense." At least it was a colony? Dane starts to make a slow circuit to study the chair from all angles, "Since you called me specifically I'm guessing you already have an inkling what this is, so if you need me to verify, yes, as far as I can tell at a glance, it's the real thing." He doesn't take his eyes off of it as he asks, "Any restriction on how close I get? Pretty sure I can follow the printed instructions, at least." He glances to Lara at the mention of Hydra, nodding almost absently to himself,

"Well, thank God for small favors, then."

A heavy sigh then follows, "Still, the thought of this just being someone's...trinket." There's a bit of a twist in Dane's stomach at that thought. "It deserves so much better."

Lara Croft has posed:
Lara takes one step on to the tarp, and to her left to stand a little more on the chair's right. She looks from it to him and then shakes her head. "You're free to get as close as you like. Frankly..." She glances toward the doorway. "Several of the people here don't seem terribly interested in the chair even remaining here at all. I think some might be entirely okay if it were demolished." She smirks lightly then and steps over to a table just off of the tarp to set her cup down before picking up her notebook off of the table.

"Siege Perilous, crafted by Merlin himself." She softly states before turning to face Dane with her notebook in hand. "What I'm trying to do is compile a list of possible ways that sitting on the throne might be... non-lethal. Aside from holding the Holy Grail, of course." She glances down at her papers (because she's old fashioned and loves a good pen and notebook) and then back up to him. "Finding a suit of armor that belonged to Sir Galahad is my leading theory. I believe the throne would be biased toward him, and his armor might... fool the chair in to believing it is him upon it."

"Additionally, I'm curious to know what others might know of the chair, any other powers or abilities it might have that I am not aware of."

Dane Whitman has posed:
Dane takes a few steps closer, reaching out, reverently, to place a hand on the chair, "Demolish it? I doubt that would succeed unless you had a very powerful magic user or artifact weapon on-hand to do the deed. Merlin made things to last. It might appear destroyed and then just...reappear somewhere else. In fact that would be my educated guess on the likely outcome."

He takes a deep breath in, letting his hand fall. "I don't think the armor would work, even if you could find it. Not unless it contained some trace of his spirit, or maybe all of it. But yes, Galahad was who the seat was meant for. Though depending on which version of the legend you're going with...some say it was Percival."

"Aside from granting a messy death to the people it's not reserved for, what else have you already figured out it can do?" He adds, "As for others...I suspect most sorcerers with any sort of grounding in druidic traditions probably knows a fair bit. Most of the real top magic experts probably do too."

Dane frowns once more, looking thoughtful, "I know someone that probably knows more than any of them, but...I'm not sure if I can get in contact with him here. Or how much he'd tell us even if we could."

Lara Croft has posed:
When Dane speaks his thoughts on the chair, of Galahad and of Percival, Lara pens those things down on the notepad before she lowers it down to her stomach and then cross her arms over it to pin it there. She looks between him and the chair before she exhales softly. "I witnessed Zatanna Zatara send a friend of her's back to an alternate reality where the friend originated from, using this chair... as a... magical battering ram of sorts, to push the doorway to the alternate dimension open."

Lara gently shakes her head to that though. "I don't know the specifics to that though, and I'm not sure I'd understand them if even if Zatanna explained it to me. I do plan to ask her more about it someday, but the experience all around was a little... heavy for her, so I'm giving her time off of the subject before I seek her out for more questions."

Her eyes leave Dane and go back to the chair. She sighs softly. "So in the meantime, I'd like to know as much as possible before this item is likely to be placed inside of a box and then put within a vault. As impressive of an artifact as it is, it's too dangerous to be put into a museum. Even if it indestructible, the people it could harm certainly aren't."

She glances back to him then. "I don't suppose you know Merlin do you?" She jests, of whom Dane was referring to know.

Dane Whitman has posed:
"Dimensional transit should be possible, from what I know of it. Galahad supposedly ascended into Heaven upon returning with the Grail...again depending on which version of the legend you're going with." Dane replies, crouching down now and studying the chair closely, ""Stands to reason that a sufficiently powerful sorcerer could use it to make a full dimensional gate, but they'd probably have to be a real powerhouse."

At Lara's quip about Merlin, Dane chuckles, "Not exactly, but I know someone who did, after a fashion. Under the right circumstances, I can communicate with the spirit of Sir Percival. Or just Sir Percy of Scandia, as he prefers. My ancestor."

Lara Croft has posed:
"Well." Lara starts then as she uncrosses her arms and lowers the notepad down in front of her waist while holding it by it's edges with either hand. "I witnessed three individuals sit upon the chair and be burned to cinders before I witnessed a fourth much more peacefully vanish into... what I assume to be... where she belongs. It would seem dimensional travel is completely possible, with the right talent and skill directing it. But--"

Lara starts to pace around to stand behind the chair and she motions toward it with her left hand and the small fancy pen she has between her middle fingers. "My goal is to render this chair to be inert. I think that it has served it's purpose in history and it would be better served... deactivated now, so that it could be worked into the rotation of exhibits at museums, such as here in New York, or elsewhere around the world. Then it could truly serve a brand new purpose." She pauses for dramatic effect. "For education."

Her hand then goes goes up to swipe at some of the loose brown hair framing her face, to push it off of her forehead and out of her eyes. "So if you can help come up with a way to... shut the chair's power off... that is my ultimate goal here. I don't want items put into SHIELD's vaults, sealed away for however long. I don't feel that serves the world any greater good. But it won't be allowed to leave here until it's no longer a... weapon, of sorts."

Dane Whitman has posed:
"Well...." Dane considers, "I don't know if it could be deactivated permanently. In most of the Arthurian Cycles, the High King will come again, in Britain's hour of need...and I wouldn't be surprised if this is meant to play a part in that, should it all come to pass someday."

He takes a couple steps back, rubbing at his chin, his eyes never leaving the Siege Perilous, "It -might- be possible to render it...dormant. Put it to sleep, effectively. How long? I have no idea...but probably quite a while. If it worked, maybe we could get Ms. Zatara or someone else SHIELD trusts to monitor it for signs of reawakening."

Lara Croft has posed:
"I thought as much." Lara quietly says about the chair not being able to be deactivated. "You know, it's quite a thing for a Wizard with such power to create something so dangerous, yet leave it on for seemingly the rest of eternity and not even offer us a way to viably deactivate it. There's a... certain level of negligence and irresponsible use of power in such a notion. To me, at least." She smirks softly again.

With a breath taken in then, Lara raises her notebook up and starts to walk back toward the table at a slow pace. "If even just to be able to temporarily switch it's death yielding potential into the 'Off' position is all that we can achieve, then thats an option I would still like to take, Dane." She says as she reaches the table and sets the notebook down again before turning around to lightly lean back against it's edge.

"Zatara would likely volunteer to watch over it, I believe she to be an honorable woman and she'd know that this is now in the hands of the public because of her as well. But-- that being said, if it must, it can be sealed away for the foreseeable future. Which, sadly I think is what is most likely."

Dane Whitman has posed:
Dane rubs at the back of his head, looking somewhere between mildly amused and mildly uncomfortable as Lara brings up Merlin's penchant for leaving dangerous things lying around. He clears his throat, and adds,

"Yeah, well...about that." He takes a couple steps back, "If we're going to try to do it, might as well try to consult the real expert first."

There's a pulse of pale light, and suddenly in Dane's hand is a long black blade, with a golden crossguard and hilt.

"This is the Ebony Blade. Forged by Merlin from a fallen star. By right of blood and test of worth, I am it's bearer." He looks more...resigned about it than anything else.

"I have no idea if this is going to work...I can usually only summon Sir Percy's spirit under very specific circumstances, but this is...kind of close? I can promise that I don't think it'll do any harm to try. I'm going to place the sword on the Siege."

Lara Croft has posed:
Lara remains by the table leaned back against it until she watches him summon that blade with a clear sense of... reluctance? She then stands up straight again as it appears and she takes a step nearer to observe more clearly. When he speaks, her eyes are on him, until he refers to placing the blade on to the chair.

Seems... fine to her. She nods and motions to him. "Feel free." She states then. "If there's no way to make the circumstances better for you, for this, then yes. I didn't bring you here to place you in harms way though." If that is how she's interpreting this display of power and ability from Dane.

Her eyes do go to the Ebony Blade though to linger upon it, because well... items like that have always intrigued her.

Dane Whitman has posed:
"No, it probably won't do me or you any harm." Dane smiles towards Lara, moving up to carefully lay the sword across the armrests of the chair. He takes a few steps back, and barely the third footfall has fallen before a spectral figure erupts into view, visible from the waist-up and fading beneath, but bright and quite distinguishible otherwise. The figure is clad in chain mail and wears a helm that hides his features. The voice that speaks carries a weight of sorrow and long years of noble struggle when he speaks,

"Ah! I had not expected my peace to be disturbed so! The Perilious Seat is not for me, Dane Whitman, nor you. For what purpose have you summoned me?"

The words are clear in Lara's head, but at the same time she can sense that they're being spoken in a far, far older English than the modern parlance.

The ghostly knight turns its' gaze towards Lara, "And who be this Lady, who bears within her a blood as old and proud as our own?"

Lara Croft has posed:
Lara nods her head gently once to what Dane says before she turns to watch the display as it unfolds and the spirit of a very famous person is just... suddenly there, and speaking. To describe it as surreal, would be an understatement. Lara had read about all of the knights many times in her youth, and at the age of 22 now she's barely begun to grasp the ways that magic can truly effect this world... though it's been quite a crash course in it the past half a year or so.

A look is given to Dane before Lara back to the spirit. She doesn't hesitate to answer for herself, and rarely is it that Lara puts her title of birthright to use, but in this instance?

"I'm Lady Lara Croft, Duchess of Surrey, Sir." She replies to the Knight, she motions to the man with her. "I have asked Dane for his assistance with the Siege Perilous. I am looking to find a way to... put it to rest. So to speak. It's services in this world are not needed in this moment, and it's danger outweighs it's need to protect itself, currently at least."

Dane Whitman has posed:
"Well met, Your Grace, this humble knight is at your service, such as I can offer it." Sir Percy's spirit bows, as much as one can with no visible legs, though the movement of the torso gives the impression that the rest of him is still attached, if not visible.

Dane arches a brow at the mention of Lara's title, but he's silent now. Really quite interested himself, as he's never seen Sir Percy interact with anyone else.

"The makings of Merlin are in many ways beyond my ken, in death as well as life. I know they can be countered however. Largely by other makings of his. The Ebony Blade has sundered more than one of Merlin's leavings having fallen into the hands of the wicked and become twisted by their evil. But I gather that destruction is not your aim."

Lara Croft has posed:
Lara gives a glance over to Dane after revealing that possibly surprising title of hers. It's not one she shares around the SHIELD HQ very freely, though some are aware of it.

Her attention returns to the spirit though and she has to offer him a soft smile for his kind manners and regal nature toward her. She'd normally correct most people about all of this, as she isn't one to dwell on this side of her life... but not to this spirit, that would confuse and upset him - more than likely, she's smart enough to realize that.

"Heavens no, I've no desire to see the Siege come to ruin." She tries to flourish up her British accent a bit more than usual too. She knows her accent isn't entirely pure anymore due to her worldly travels causing it to become a bit diluted over the course of her youthful upbringing.

"I value the throne for what it is, a part of a very important story. Your story, your people's story. I merely do not wish to have it harming others anymore, I feel as though it's time the Siege be retired from it's duties, so that it can be viewed more safely by others to learn about our history as a society. But... as Dane has said, that might be more complicated than any of us can solve." She gives another glance over to Dane then.

Dane Whitman has posed:
"Sir Percy, could the Ebony Blade draw off the magic of the Siege? If so, would we need an intermediary? Another sorcerer or sorceress to help initiate the transfer?" Dane speaks now, turning his attention back to Sir Percy.

"Ah, I see your intention and your thinking now. It would be good to see the glory and honor of Camelot remembered in more than song and legend. You seek a worthy goal, but alas, I do not have the answer you seek, but to say that I would not think it impossible. In truth I was surprised that the Siege did not lose it's power upon Galahad's ascension. But then again I did not recognize then the cycle of ages, and that the day would come again when Camelot would rise." Sir Percy looks now to his descendant, "You can but try. With or without the aid of others. I know not the shape it will take, but I do not surmise there would be harm in the attempt."

Lara Croft has posed:
Lara stands off to the side of both of them then, her eyes going from the living man to the spirit of a man and then back to the other again as they speak. "It sounds as though then there's at least a chance, and if nothing else? Well... at least it shouldn't cause any harm. That much is a relief." She says with a small smile for both of them.

Lara's right hand goes up to brush her bangs out of her face once more and she looks to the spirit of Percy. "There are some in the world today who would attempt to use the Siege to cause harm to others. Myself, and two colleagues, just recovered it from such people in the past few days. They were attempting to find a flaw in it's design, so to speak, but thankfully... they were not able to. This is another reason we hope to let the Siege's power be - even if just temporarily - dispelled. It's a complicated world today, and there are many factions within it that are looking for any chance and way to gain a little extra power." She motions to the Chair in question. "Even this falls in to that category, I'm afraid."

She places her hands gently together then and nods once to Percy. "Thank you for your help, Sir." She tells him.

Dane Whitman has posed:
"You are most welcome, Your Grace." Sir Percy intones, bowing once more, and unceremoniously fading out of view.

Dane blinks a little at that, then chuckles softly, "Well, guess you outrank me." He teases lightly, moving back to carefully take up the blade.

"Ok, well...I'll admit I don't have the highest hope of this working, but let's see..." Dane turns the blade about bringing it into a defensive posture over the Siege. There is a sound when the blade draws near...like a tuning fork or a low microphone feedback. Dane doesn't seem overly worried by it. He holds the blade there for a few moments, and despite the sound, there is no sign of anything happening. After a few moments, Dane carefully lays the flat of the blade across the high back of the chair. Once more, the sound remains...but nothing else."

"I don't think it's working." Dane admits, stepping back with the blade in hand, once again turning it about so the point is downward, resting his hands on the crossguard. "We may have to see if Ms. Zatara is willing to help again...when she's ready."

Lara Croft has posed:
Lara glances over to Dane after the spirit dissipates and she reacts to his quip with a small smirk. "Not something I planned on sharing about myself, admittedly." She softly replies before she takes a step back to watch him do his attempt at this. While he does said attempt, she reaches into the pocket of her jacket and draws her phone out again to record what he's doing more closely than the camera's in the room already are. She likes to have her own footage on things like this to analyze in the ways she's most used to doing... and being a young woman in the year 2020, even with her unique upbringing, she's a bit reliant upon her phone as most others are now.

When Dane announces his findings she turns her phone off again and slips it back in to her pocket. She takes a step toward him to offer his shoulder a soft and light path. "Your efforts here are truly appreciated." She tells him. "You've gone out of your way, and I'll note that in my report."

Lara turns then and steps back toward the table where here notebook is. She moves to pick it up and scribble something else down. "Perhaps in a few days I'll contact Zatana and talk to her about all of this." Lara says, as she looks back to him then. "Maybe she'll be ready to try and help then."

Dane Whitman has posed:
"My pleasure, Agent Croft." Dane replies, then his smile twists towards a bit wry once more as the blade disappears from sight, "Well, except for the sack. Which I imagine I get the pleasure of wearing on the way out just like on the way in. Oh well."

He glances towards the door, and gestures for Lara to precede him, though he does take one last, somewhat wistful look at the Siege Perilous before following, "SHIELD definitely has my number whenever you're ready to try again."

Lara Croft has posed:
Lara turns to face Dane then and she finishes what she's writing in her notebook, then lowers it down to her side. "I apologize in advance for your exit experience, if that is how it goes." Which she knows it probably will be. Her notebook is placed back on the table and she picks up her cup of tea again. She turns to walk with him back out of the research room. "This really was helpful though, so the efforts you've gone to today are truly appreciated." She adds on the way out. "I'll... I'll try to talk them out of using the bag." She says then as they step back out into the hallway, leaving the Siege to rest in the center of the room again with it's ominous sign taped to the metal bucket.