#baronyofthesilverwolf

He's wondering if he should TALK in front of Artemis.

Lydia’s expression tightens at Madern’s words. “I see your point. ARTEMIS is indeed an invaluable asset, and if the thief is sophisticated, they might target anything of interest.”

"As for treasures, there aren’t any of those here, as far as I’m aware. Most of our items are just standard tech and office equipment. I do have a few personal items that have sentimental value, but I wouldn’t classify them as fae treasures.”

She adds, “If there’s something specific you’re looking for, I might be able to help. Otherwise, what we’ve lost is practical, though it’s certainly frustrating.”

He ponders this, then says "Do you value a snow globe?"

Lydia looks momentarily puzzled, then replies, "Not particularly. It’s just a decorative item. It was a gift from a client, but it’s not something I would consider essential or valuable in a technical sense. Why do you ask?"

She glances over at a desk, then Lydia's eyes widen in realization. "Wait a moment... It's missing. How odd. I hadn't noticed it until now, but it was definitely on that desk earlier. Could it be related to the thefts? We never thought to consider it significant."

"Which Client?" He asks "Because it appears to have vanished as you see. And... your client just became a possible suspect"

Lydia slowly shakes her head. “Actually, we have a whole box of those snow globes in the closet. They’re just promotional items that were handed out at a trade show. If the thief took the snow globe, they might have mistaken it for something more valuable. But honestly, it’s just a trinket.”

She looks at ARTEMIS and says, “Maybe it’s time to revisit the footage with Enigma Mode enabled. If there’s any Glamour involved, it could reveal something we missed before. Sometimes the key is hidden in plain sight, but it only becomes visible through the right lens.” An appraising look at Madern.

“Why don’t you take another look with Enigma Mode? It might help uncover something crucial that we haven’t seen - you've got a fresh set of eyes on things."

"I'll take a look, but after that, I want to look at those snow globes"

"I'll go get the box." Lydia says, dubiously.

"Enable E.M.?" ARTEMIS queries.

"Yes, please" To both

The Sidhe steps off, perhaps not minding fetching and carrying for a commoner when it's to her best interests.

"EM Enabled" buzzes the ChimerAI.

As ARTEMIS switches to Enigma Mode, the footage shifts, and a subtle overlay plays on top of the video. It's not precisely the same as Faerie sight, but appears to be a machine approximation thereof. Now watching the clips again, Madern notices subtle shifts in glamour - around the edges, where no one else was looking.

In one clip, the level of coffee in the coffeepot lowers by an inch. In the clip with the janitor, Madern can now see that the fellow is an elder Satyr, leaning on his mop even as he cleans. After he passes out of the frame, there are footprints visible in a corner of the freshly mopped floor that gleam with a touch of glamour. Not hoofprints.

In the clip where he saw the initial anomaly with the snow globe he actually sees... it's very faint and in a corner, not surprising others missed it - what looks like a hand reaching out of... nowhere. The hand is fuzzy - fizzy? See through, and looks almost like a glitch, as it pokes the snow globe, then picks it up and both hand and globe vanish.

And in the clip where nothing seemed to happen?

Lydia is coming back, lugging a dusty box. She sneezes. "That's where a custom coax tube was snatched, right out of a locked file drawer."

In the clip , he sees there is a faint gleam of glamour around the cabinet... then the glamour gone. Just a blip!

He takes this all in, "That's.. odd. How is Artemis against veiling? SOrry Artemis, I should ask you that, but still"

"Bless you by the way" At the sneeze, and he kens the snowglobes, looking them over anyway

The snow globes are dusty, and have a little nerdy-looking dude in a hawaiian shirt standing at a beach. The "snow" is actually sand. Cute. It says "Wish you were here!" The logo is a smooth font "SHS" - he recognizes it from the article earlier, SmartHome Securities. No glamour, muggle items, tchotchkes.

Lydia nods thoughtfully. “Given that ARTEMIS records on both the magical and mundane spectrum, and there were both fae and mortals present for at least one of the thefts, it’s unlikely that any Veiled Eyes can completely obscure something from both mortal perception and advanced technology. If something is hidden, it would have to be exceptionally well-concealed or manipulated to evade detection by all three simultaneously.”

She adds, “The fact that ARTEMIS picked up on the subtle glamour suggests that whatever is affecting the items has a very specific and sophisticated method of interference. This points to a more targeted approach rather than a simple cantrip.” She sounds intrigued, but then shakes it off, as if remembering that she's PISSED - no matter how interesting this is.

"Here, see... your janitor, the satyr? FOOT Steps behind him, not Hoof steps. "

"That's with the EM on"

He goes over each clip he saw "Artemis is tracking an invisible man? Or so it seems"

She SQUINTS. The footsteps are only there a moment before vanishing. "You have a good eye." Impressed. "I didn't catch that!"

ARTEMIS says "Correction: not invisible. Observation data indicates no physical presence detected. Anomaly identified. Data integrity issue detected. System error in assumption. Logical conclusion: presence not in conventional visibility." Can a computer sound upset/worried? If so, she does.

The screens flick through until coming up on the janitor view again, and this time, different filters flicker across the screen, stopping on one labeled "PREDATOR".

Lydia blushes a little, "In joke there. That's our heat sensor."

The clip plays, and the only source of body heat shown is the Janitor, as he moseys across the room - then a small flash of color where the foot prints are - for just a second, a human form is lit on the screen! Then it's gone again.

"I hate to say it, good eye or not, this maybe beyond my areas of expertise" He ponders "I'm not a scientist or a wizard, but... I do think maybe you should see if you can find finger prints near where things vanished if you haven't already tried"

"Oh, gloves. Nevermind" Frown

Another thought, he snaps his fingers "Now a FOOT Print might give us treads or at least shoe size"

Lydia’s eyes widen with understanding. “Good point. I’ll have our team look into any footprints or tread patterns we might have missed. We might be able to match them to a specific type of shoe or boot.”

ARTEMIS’s screen briefly flickers as she processes the new directive. “Scanning for additional data on footwear patterns. Alert: possibility of non-standard or altered footwear detected.”

Lydia adds, “We’ll cross-reference this with any known employee or visitor records to narrow down potential suspects. Can you wait an hour or so? We have coffee, and some tech magazines.”

"Sure sure.. and Artemis, tell me more details on the alert, please?" He asks

ARTEMIS responds with a series of clicks and whirs before replying:
"Alert Details: Anomaly detected in footage analysis. Specifically, the system flagged a discrepancy where no physical presence was detected, but evidence of interaction with physical objects was recorded. Anomaly identified as 'footprints' and 'heat signatures' inconsistent with known data patterns. Further analysis using 'PREDATOR' filter revealed brief, anomalous heat signature consistent with transient human form. System error in data interpretation resolved. Monitoring ongoing."
The machine’s tone is methodical but has an undertone of concern.

"There, there, love. I'm not mad at you." Lydia pats the camera head as she might sooth a pet or small child. She translates to Madern, "Artemis saw signs of someone interacting with the space, even though she didn’t initially register a person. She detected fleeting heat and footprints, indicating someone was there, but also that they weren't there. It's confusing her. Machines, like Sith, tend to deal in absolutes."

He is offered a cup of coffee - its actually really good, quality stuff! As the processes he requested are run in the background.

He takes a sip "Really good. Reminds me a bit of this jamacian blend I tried once before I discovered it was Dame Gladiolas" He considers "So Artemis is dealing with what to her seems a paradox. Okay... if this were science fiction I'd say someone was slipping in and out of subspace or had a fantastic cloaking device."

"But normally to slip into the dreaming THAT deep you'd need a trod or a rath?" mm

Lydia considers Madern's comment thoughtfully, her eyes narrowing slightly as she processes the implication.

"Subspace technology or advanced cloaking, huh?" she muses. "In our world, we have our own ways of making the impossible possible. If someone's managing to slip in and out of our reality like that, they might be using some highly sophisticated or magical tech. But, even so, it would need to be someone who understands both high-tech gadgetry and... well, magic. Sci Fi isn't off the table for us."

"After all, isn’t ARTEMIS a perfect example of how science and magic can blend together?” She smiles fondly at the ChimerAI.

"She's like nothing I've seen beffore " THere he was honest about it

"Me either. When I Chrysalized, the only thing that came with me was an encoded USB drive. I was mocked by my fellow fledges." Lydia admits, then gives a smile. "Imagine their faces when I decoded her and was able to upload into a hardware interface!"

ARTEMIS chimes, "ANALYSIS COMPLETE. Access to advanced combined chimeric technology likely requires specialized knowledge or resources. Correlation with stolen items suggests integration with high-tech engineering similar to that utilized by SmartHome Securities. Connection: Shoe treads match style known for low-static emission developed for use in high-tech environs. Proprietary design copyright - SmartHome Securities.”

Lydia looks to the snow globes, her jaw dropping a little.

"Corporate Espionage? I suppose that makes sense"

"They're reporting thefts as well though " He ponders

"Exactly... they were robbed too. In fact, they were one of the first companies to get hit!" She shakes her head. "I have half a mind to march over there and... ohhh, but I can't. It would be completely out of character for Entrepreneur Lynn Draper to just visit her competitors and ask "hey, did you steal my gear after someone stole yours?"

"But you could go." Her eyes light up.

"I could " he says cautiously , careful not to look her in the eyes. Damn limpid pools of princess seeking a favor. Sidhe women.. danger, Will Robinson.

She takes one of his hands in her perfect, porcelain, manicured hands... "Help me, Ernie Wan Kenobi. You're my only hope."

At that he turns, Our childlings will be both Nerdy AND Beautiful then he regains SOME sense "I'll try. Let's talk approach and how banal you think it is?"

Lydia nods appreciatively, a mix of relief and determination in her eyes. “Thank you, Madern. I’ll make sure to give you all the support you need. As for the approach, I suggest you go in as if you're just a tech enthusiast interested in their latest advancements. That way, we’re less likely to raise suspicion or cause unnecessary alarm.”

She pauses, considering the level of Banality involved. “As for how banal this situation is - I would argue that Tech can be PLENTY glamorous if it’s innovative or exciting. It’s the mundane use that leans towards banality. If we stay curious and respectful, we’ll keep the allure and avoid the routine.”

"I'll fill you in on the way over - unless you need to head back and reconnoiter later? Need to pick up gear or backup?"

(PAUSE as Madern considers this)