13.1: Museum Heist pt 1

A myriad of stars blinked down at Lus as he waited in the bushes of the garden surrounding the museum. Wsr wasn't too far away, hiding among the trees closest to their entry window. Vlqtrn remained back at the apartment while Cewi-Bano was camped out with her sniper rifle on a rooftop that provided her a view into the majority of the windows on this side of the building.

Lusac's heart raced as he crouched into the shrubbery, biding his time until Cewi gave them the signal to start. It had been hours since the sun fully set, but now it was late enough they could start their mission without too much trouble. Once Vlqtrn cut the security systems, it would be time. But it seemed their tech expert was running into some unexpected problems since they were already ten minutes behind their planned start, and Cewi-Bano had yet to say anything.

The bushes were uncomfortable, between the branches poking into his ribs and the insects that were eager to explore a new environment. A nasty ten-legged beetle attempted to burrow its way into the skin on Lus's hand, but he was fast enough to brush it off before its pincers got a hold of him. If Vlqtrn didn't hurry up, he didn't know if he'd be lucky enough to catch it the next time.

"I'm in. Finally," Vlqtrn's husky voice sounded in Lus's ear. They were using the same comm set up as before, though now everyone was connected to each other instead of Vlqtrn being the single hub.

"About time," Wsr replied in a frustrated tone.

"The security system is more upgraded than what we normally encounter. Unfortunately, it's also compartmentalized, so I'll have to shut systems off as we encounter them instead of doing a blanket wipe. You'll need to be extra careful not to trigger anything until I give you the go, Lusac," Vlqtrn warned him.

"No mistakes, Lus," Cewi said firmly.

"I got it," he growled. "Have a little more faith, guys."

"We've already had an incident during recon," Wsr reminded him.

"Focus, people." Cewi-Bano's voice left little room for discussion.

"Right, right," Vlqtrn's voice faded off. "Uh, so first I'll shut off the security cameras so you guys can move around the garden freely, and then I'll get the window locks and sensors off for the second story."

Lus shifted among the leaves as he waited for Vlqtrn to complete his planned tasks. They were already starting late, and now with having to wait for Vlqtrn at every step, this mission was going to take a lot longer than they originally planned. Dragging it out also brought on a lot more risk, but there seemed no way to avoid it now.

"Alright. Cameras are down. Working on the window now," Vlqtrn informed them.

"Lus and I will get into position," Wsr confirmed.

Lusac peered out from the branches to see the Kremel emerge from the trees a few yards away. Lus crawled out from the bushes and stood up, grateful for a little more fresh air and the ability to properly stretch. Wsr muttered complaints as he took the time to brush the excess leaves and bugs from his body before he walked over to join her by the building.

They spent a few moments closely surveying the wall and planning their path to the upper window. Lus was a pretty average height for a Human, but since Wsr was over seven feet tall, their combined height would put them in a good spot for Lus to comfortably reach the target window.

"Anytime now, Vlqtrn," Wsr said into the comm.

Lus understood her apprehension, even if she didn't have to join him inside the building. She'd be on look out on the outside with Cewi and then be there to help him down when he exited with the artifact.

"Got it. Sorry. This system is fighting me pretty hard. Hopefully it'll get a little smoother from here," Vlqtrn replied.

Wsr nodded to Lus and held her two hands out to create a foothold, just as she'd done back at the warehouse during their escape. After checking his backpack was still securely strapped to him, he stepped into it, and in the next moment he was shooting upwards, balancing on Wsr's palms several feet above her head.

The window was well within his reach, just as they estimated, and he easily slid the glass pane open and pulled himself to the window sill. He teetered there on the few inches of metal, waiting for Vlqtrn to confirm he could step into the building.

"Blast it," the Kremel's voice sounded in his ear.

"No, Vlqtrn. Don't do that to us," Wsr responded with greater frustration.

"I can't kill the floor systems while the window systems are off."

"Well I can't get into the building without both a floor and a window," Lus pointed out.

"I'm aware."

"Figure this out, Vlqtrn. We don't have time to waste. Someone could see Lus," Cewi joined in.

Lusac's muscles started to burn from holding himself in such a precarious situation, and he mentally cursed the system that refused to give him [Strength] or even [Stamina], both of which he was in desperate need of at the moment.

"Okay. This is risky, but it's the only way," Vlqtrn started. "There will be a tiny delay between the window security turning back on and the floor shutting off. If you are in the air during that time, you'll be safe. So you'll have to jump exactly when I tell you and make sure to jump high."

"I don't like this," Lus stated flatly.

"Me neither. If he lands even a few milliseconds too early, the entire mission is a bust," Wsr added.

"It's our only option," Vlqtrn assured them. "Ready, Lus?"

"Ready." Lus adjusted his position so he could easily spring upwards and forwards into the building when the time came. He refused to think about everything that could go wrong and instead focused on what needed to happen.

"Now," the Kremel said.

Lus propelled himself up and then tucked his knees close to his body to keep them from the floor for as long as possible. In the next second he crashed into the wooden planks directly on his shoulder. He laid there on the floor for a moment, catching his breath and waiting for the immediate pain to subside, all while begging the god of his homeworld to let him have this one miracle.

"You're safe. No alarms were triggered," Vlqtrn said with a sigh of relief.

"Good job, Lus. But go fast. I want you to spend as little time there as possible. The guard schedule is working against us, and we don't have long until we all need to be gone," Cewi said.

"Will do," Lus breathed, trying to keep from sounding as beat up as he felt. He sat up, shook his head to clear it a bit, and then pushed himself to his feet. His right shoulder ached, especially with the full weight of a backpack on it, but he ignored it as he silently crept towards the next exhibit hall. Of course their target was located in the central room, as far from any windows as possible. Moonlight poured in from the windows, with a few orange emergency lights adding to the visibility. It was a little dimmer than what he normally dealt with on the Argo, so all in all, he didn't have too much trouble finding his way.

"Don't touch the door," Vlqtrn warned him as he approached the exit of the current room. "I'll have to manually shut the locks and alarms off for each one, and I can hold them that way for a few seconds before triggering a secondary alarm. Just move through it once I tell you."

Lusac murmured a curse under his breath as he paused beside the next door. This was going to take double, maybe even triple, the amount of time it should have with him having to wait for Vlqtrn at every step. It was also a little worrisome to have to move in sync with someone just using comms, but Lus had no choice but to trust the Kremel.