Re: Farewell to September, A Matter About a Car and Legal Trouble IC Thread 29

[Adley]

[Morgan's office]

He pondered for a moment, "Lobster rolls are a great way to serve leftovers, for certain. Though I'll admit, I've never tried that with the lemon-garlic mayonnaise. Perhaps a good idea for some experimentation."

"There /are/ no leftovers if you know how to eat a lobster right," he teased. "That's it, we're going to Rhode Island. Or at least the Cape. Or at least James Hook, at the harbor. Hey, speaking of that I need to go there," he said, suddenly remembering Nuwisha's request. "Not to the restaurant, to the harbor."

[Library]

"I know, the Nephandi's greatest weapon is the havoc they cause when they make one of ours Fall. Even so I can not help but feel angry at our own for what they intend to do to Cadence and that there is nothing I can do for her. I can go to Horizon and make sure she is not alone at the end, but other than that there is nothing I can do and that saddens and frustrates me." Antonio said and sigh sadly.

He sighed and nodded. "Yes, of course it does. "Either way it seems that the Fallen win their battles, the way things are; something has to change so that we can win the most important war.  But perhaps there will be another way, someday sodalis. It might not be soon, perhaps not for all those that Fall either but for some..." He frowned. "I promised when they took my cabalmate that I would try, no matter what happened."

[Kyle's room]

At some point he shut the book and grumbled, "I feel like I need another book to understand this one, as if I skipped over a whole year's lessons and am reading above my comprehension. Well, maybe some of it will sink in later," he said, conceding defeat for the time being. He still felt too fidgety and keyed up, plus his body was starting to annoy him with twinges. His mind was wandering off and wouldn't follow the sentences on the page. Every shadow around the room could be something lurking, and he kept checking around for dangers. He reached out and took a cookie and ate it, brushing the crumbs off his fingers.

"Yeah you might be right about that Adley."
Kyle said and he rubbed at his hands and went over to the sink you had filled and put them in with a little sigh of relief.
"How did you know cold water helps? You know I get this imagine in my mind at times of being injured and going to a stream to cool my hands down."
Your brother said and you remembered that Carmon and Ernje had let Arto stop at a steam and stayed longer than they should as the cold weather soothed ad calmed the wounded Diedne.
"Ok thanks for dropping by Adley, I will be fine I am just planning on going to bed."

He nodded at him, looking a bit faraway a moment. "Yes...well, that may be a conversation for another evening for us to have," he said, not wanting to overwhelm him or interfere too much with what his avatar wanted to share with him and at what rate.  "Avatars can sometimes remember things...it feels them with you, when you are with them, and then those things it may remember for all eternity. It may be able to share what seems important to another host. Sometimes things that happened linger, like a wound or important feeling and it can manifest in different ways, like an aversion or a recognition of someone you never met before."

"Ok thanks for dropping by Adley, I will be fine I am just planning on going to bed."
Kyle said and smiled.

"Goodnight then." He collected up all his things and went upstairs again, slowly. Then after spending time in the chapel, he went back to his own rooms. Studying there didn't seem to fare any better. He placed the pile on his desk and his notes. He cleaned up all his weapons and tools, then tried to meditate instead of reading again. Maybe he just had too much information and trying to stuff in any more was not helping. At least that would be relaxing, since he felt jumbled up and he couldn't sleep for various reasons.

[Jeremy Silverstein]

He shrugged, "Not necessarily - certainly, within places like the Chantry would be safer, but depending on the exact illusion, people might not see it as an illusion - for example, if people see you running down a back alley when you yourself have become invisible and are waiting on the corner to let pursuers run after the decoy; it would let everyone see the same illusion without the extra effort of having to interfere with minds to do so. I'd surmise it might take the same amount of finesse, but less brute force. I'm not an expert on this, though, it just seems like it would be worth investigating as an alternative."

"That sounds cool Sir."
Yu Die said and nodded.
"It be a fun type of magick to learn."

"I would love to add real life illusions to my repertoire. I could think of some pretty fun things to do by combining both types." Serge said with a mischievous smile.

"I am sure some mages do, and we might even get spirits to play with us Mr Yager."
Anna said happily.

He arched an eyebrow, "I'm... not sure that would be entirely advisable. From what I've read and heard, few spirits aside from the Fey have much of an understanding of the concept of games - and you definitely won't want to be playing games with the Fair Folk."

"Playing with the feyfolk sounds like a unique brand of fun. But given the stories, probably isn't the most wise decision." he said with a grin. "And aren't their spirits of fun or spirits of joy that would take part? Or just a spirit of games. Last I heard there's a spirit for everything, even microwaves."

He grinned, "We could always rent some space for it at the Umbral Port; that would probably earn us some hairy eyeballs from the Technocrats. Excepting the Void Engineers, perhaps."

"Or perhaps they would like to join in and play with us, though I do not know if it is legal to let them Sir."
Yu Die said and grinned.

"Nah the void engineers would probably wouldn't be too pleased. Taking up a potential workplace to play a game." Serge said with a smile.

"I will let them know you inquired about their well being Mr Yager."
Dr Wong said and smiled.

"Thank you." Serge said with a nod.

"Good evening Cousin."
Rosa said as you left for you rather unused room.

Serge made his way to his room and when he got there, he turned on the light and said, "Hello room. We havn't been aquainted yet. Sorry, its been a busy day." to the room itself.

He gave the room a good look around, trying to look for closets, desks, and other places where he could put his stuff.

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Adley] (Steelhaven at 9 in the evening)

(Jeffry's office)

"There /are/ no leftovers if you know how to eat a lobster right," he teased. "That's it, we're going to Rhode Island. Or at least the Cape. Or at least James Hook, at the harbor. Hey, speaking of that I need to go there," he said, suddenly remembering Nuwisha's request. "Not to the restaurant, to the harbor."

"Well I do need someone to play Mercere for me tomorrow and deliver a message to Chantry Riverside you would pass the harbor on the way there."
Jeffry suggested.

(Library)

He sighed and nodded. "Yes, of course it does. "Either way it seems that the Fallen win their battles, the way things are; something has to change so that we can win the most important war. But perhaps there will be another way, someday sodalis. It might not be soon, perhaps not for all those that Fall either but for some..." He frowned. "I promised when they took my cabalmate that I would try, no matter what happened."

"You must have felt the same horror and helplessness when they took Miss Alexander that I feel about Cadence now."
Antonio said and frowned.
"I agree we need some other way to deal with the Fallen than just continuing te destruction."
He commented and frowned.
"How are Miss Alexander doing now? is she recovering?"

At some point he shut the book and grumbled, "I feel like I need another book to understand this one, as if I skipped over a whole year's lessons and am reading above my comprehension. Well, maybe some of it will sink in later," he said, conceding defeat for the time being. He still felt too fidgety and keyed up, plus his body was starting to annoy him with twinges. His mind was wandering off and wouldn't follow the sentences on the page. Every shadow around the room could be something lurking, and he kept checking around for dangers. He reached out and took a cookie and ate it, brushing the crumbs off his fingers.

"Perhaps you are just to stressed to learn? When I am really really stressed I can read a book or watch a movie but not remember what I have seen or watched later."
Kyle said as he looked up from his own book.
"It would make sense if you where stressed after all that have happened today."

He nodded at him, looking a bit faraway a moment. "Yes...well, that may be a conversation for another evening for us to have," he said, not wanting to overwhelm him or interfere too much with what his avatar wanted to share with him and at what rate. "Avatars can sometimes remember things...it feels them with you, when you are with them, and then those things it may remember for all eternity. It may be able to share what seems important to another host. Sometimes things that happened linger, like a wound or important feeling and it can manifest in different ways, like an aversion or a recognition of someone you never met before."

"They remembers things to? And another host so they reincarnate?"
Kyle said and turned from the sink to give you a surprised look.
"I only thought they where like magick organs or something."
He said.
"Though mine do look at me and I can see her at times so it do make sense that she remembers thing...do you think she is like really old?"

"Goodnight then." He collected up all his things and went upstairs again, slowly. Then after spending time in the chapel, he went back to his own rooms. Studying there didn't seem to fare any better. He placed the pile on his desk and his notes. He cleaned up all his weapons and tools, then tried to meditate instead of reading again. Maybe he just had too much information and trying to stuff in any more was not helping. At least that would be relaxing, since he felt jumbled up and he couldn't sleep for various reasons.

"Goodnight Adley."
Kyle said and smiled. After you had been to the chapel and sat down meditating in your own room at least that was relaxing, though your body still ached allot you got into a meditative state and that managed to relax you at least to some degree but chances where that you would be high strung for a while.

[Serge] (Steelhaven at 9 in the evening)

"I would love to add real life illusions to my repertoire. I could think of some pretty fun things to do by combining both types." Serge said with a mischievous smile.

"Well they would be harder to protect against a good personal ward will prevent you from being able to affect the mind of another, but it is harder to protect one's eyes from seeing actual changes of light and shadow."
Anna said and Yu Die frowned.

"Playing with the feyfolk sounds like a unique brand of fun. But given the stories, probably isn't the most wise decision." he said with a grin. "And aren't their spirits of fun or spirits of joy that would take part? Or just a spirit of games. Last I heard there's a spirit for everything, even microwaves."

"I was always told to stay far away from the fay."
Anna said and frowned.
"Yes there should be spirits of fun and spirits of games even spirits of individual games and they might be willing to play."
The young mage commented.

"Nah the void engineers would probably wouldn't be too pleased. Taking up a potential workplace to play a game." Serge said with a smile.

"Probably not but the Umbra docks are huge and there are all sorts of places we could use there like some of the benches we walked past when we arrived there Sir."
Anna said and smiled.

"Thank you." Serge said with a nod.

Michael nodded and that and smiled.
"Well me and my student should go then, good night Mr Yager, unless there was anything else?"
He asked.

Serge made his way to his room and when he got there, he turned on the light and said, "Hello room. We havn't been aquainted yet. Sorry, its been a busy day." to the room itself.

He gave the room a good look around, trying to look for closets, desks, and other places where he could put his stuff.

You had some basic furniture a desk, a living room table, some shelves and a closet in the bedroom, but the furniture where old and worn.

[Colin] (Steelhaven at 9 in the evening)

(Rosa's apartment)

He nodded, "As The Doctor put it, this world is protected."

"Dr Who Sir? I like watching that show."
Yu Die said and smiled.

He arched an eyebrow, "I'm... not sure that would be entirely advisable. From what I've read and heard, few spirits aside from the Fey have much of an understanding of the concept of games - and you definitely won't want to be playing games with the Fair Folk."

"No playing with the Fae might not be a good idea Sir, but we might be able to find a spirit of fun out there and have them join us."
Anna said and Rosa grinned.
"Perhaps the Chief will let us borrow his imps."

He grinned, "I think we could stretch the rules pretty far at the Umbral Port, since it is accorded neutral ground - though it might prove more of a danger for the Void Engineers than for us."

"They are not allowed to have fun with Traditionalists Mentor?"
Anna asked.

He grinned again, "I said no such thing - I'm merely suggesting that spreading such gossip might lead to a prime spot on their menu."

"I better not then, I am young and plump I am probably delicious."
Anna said and Rosa chuckled at that.
"I guess both of us would make prime spots on the menu then."
The young Cultist commented.

He smiled thinly, "Not here and now... but it is not impossible to find a way to restore their Avatars before the end. That... could save many Fallen Avatars, though the individual Magi will... likely yet be executed for their crimes, all the same... but there's still hope for a second chance, in another life down the line."

"Do you think it can be done that quickly Sir? Finding a way to cleanse Avatars, I do not particularly want to cleanse mine but I want to make you proud and I want to save my friends."
Anna said and looked at you.
"And I know some asshole Nephandi I would love to tell that their souls could now be saved that they would soooo enjoy."
She said with and evil little grin.

He smiled sadly, "It is a Greek fable, so I think your mother may well have told it to you... but you were so little then, you might not remember. And it would most certainly not be on the Nephandi recommended reading list. Still, if Freddy can't tell you the story tonight, I'll do so tomorrow."

"I would love to hear the story then Mentor."
Anna said and smiled.
"I do not remember much about my mother but I seam to remember her telling me stories but I do not know which."

He nodded and sat down, reaching for the bottle and pouring a goodly measure of gin in each glass, following up with tonic and a couple of ice cubes, "They are... slightly different, yes, but every Tradition has its own little group of odd ones, I suppose - to one extent or another. But, let's change the subject. I wonder, how long were you in the military before seeing action?"

"Oh definitively there are odd ones in all Traditions in mine we are all odd."
The Etherite said before he took his glass and took a good sip.
"Not long, I got basic training and then I was sent out, they needed engineers on the front lines and I was motivated to go. Damned Nazis."
He grunted.

You and Rodger spend quite some time drinking and sharing stories until first numbness and then sleep came, Rodger stumbling to a guest room saying goodnight though you hardly remembered his words, and then you woke up the next day feeling nauseous and having quite a bit of a headache.

[Nicole] (Out with the girls at 9 30 in the evening.)

'A few. Don't see 'em much no more.' Nicole replied. 'Not making assumptions - using facts. Like it's estimated that to keep a family of four in an okay lifestyle today costs around $70k, which means that your example is either getting outside help, the one working is earning much more than average or they're eating macaroni in the cold and dark when you're not there.'

"That would be middle class Nicole, the problem is that we ave fewer and fewer middle class and more and more who are dirt poor, but on a middle class income one can keep a family going on one income, and yes most of those I know have it tight with money but they get by."
Fran said calmly.

'Look...' pulling out a packet of cigarettes out of her pocket. '-this is too intense a topic to be dealing with right now - this is meant to be relaxing, not a political debate. If you're interested, ask me about it tomorrow.' looking around the table with a slight frown. 'Where's the... oh, exiled here too. At least it's not raining or windy...' pushing herself up off the chair and wandered towards, clearly off to suck burning leaves.

"I agree let us discuss it some other time."
Fran said.
"Do you want some company I could do with a smoke as well."
Theodora said and stood to join you unless you protested.

'Of course it makes sense - it's built our world, every kid's taught this. Well, excepting Hogwarts attendees...' glancing at Theodora and giving a good-natured grin.

"Yeah my education might have been a bit unusual in that department it is like when someone ask me what my first phone was, well it was this small crystal ball I could communicate though."
Theodora said and grinned.

'I think another round is needed. The glass-bottom is this odd clear colour. Who's shout is it?'

"I will go, do everyone want to same or something else?"
Fran said.
"I think I will have something stronger, the beer is delicious but there is a limit to how much liquid I can drink."
She said and Helga smiled.
"Give me a glass of whiskey it do not need to be fancy."
The Cultist commented and then Fran looked at you.
"Another beer or something else Nicole?"

I don't think. Find usually when I do about you lot I end up more confused and with a headache.' Nicole replied, absent-mindedly playing with a lighter.

'Oh... that. Now that's a tale which requires fresh drinks first. And perhaps some hot fries.'

"There is nothing like thinking to give headaches."
Fran said and grinned.
"Drinks and some food is coming up."
She said and she headed to the bar and returned after a while with fresh drinks and two large plates of fries just as the people gathered around the TV watching the game cheered over something.

'But you'd have learned so much more with the Dursleys. Like: where the hell does Vernon get his fat-man clothes?' Nicole quipped. 'Jeez... how some Scientists hated those books and films... wait, you were sold?' tone making it clear this was one of Nicole's moral red lines.

"Well joking aside while I do appriciate my magickal educaton I have had to take classes to learn some rather basic things for how to survive in the real world."
Theodora said then se nodded.
"I was sold for twelve drams of Tass it is not unusual in the Order of Hermes, we consider apprentices to be the property of their teachers until they are fully initiated to be done with as the Mentor pleases. There was even a trial way back where a Hermetic where accused of torturing to death several of his students, he was found not guilty as the Tribunal aknowledged his apprentices as his to do with as he please. Several of us are trying to change this point of the law as it can lead to allot of abuse, especially it is not that uncommon for young women apprenticed to male Hermetics...well you can imagine yourself what might happen."
The Tytalus said and frowned.
"It is a bakwards system."

(OOC: Well then just a few coversation lines to tie up and we can change to thread 30 then.)

[Warpmind]

[Morgan's office]

"There /are/ no leftovers if you know how to eat a lobster right," he teased. "That's it, we're going to Rhode Island. Or at least the Cape. Or at least James Hook, at the harbor. Hey, speaking of that I need to go there," he said, suddenly remembering Nuwisha's request. "Not to the restaurant, to the harbor."

Colin grinned, "Ah, but I have a little sister who never was all that fond of lobster - so the few times we had that growing up, there was always some left of hers, so mum usually redistributed it for sandwiches the next morning."
He arched an eyebrow, "You've got to go to... Ah, the water spirit?"

[Rosa's apartment]

"Dr Who Sir? I like watching that show."
Yu Die said and smiled.

He grinned broadly, "Welcome to the family, Yu Die."

"I would love to add real life illusions to my repertoire. I could think of some pretty fun things to do by combining both types." Serge said with a mischievous smile.

He nodded, "I think that could make you a dangerous man on the battlefield."

"Playing with the feyfolk sounds like a unique brand of fun. But given the stories, probably isn't the most wise decision." he said with a grin. "And aren't their spirits of fun or spirits of joy that would take part? Or just a spirit of games. Last I heard there's a spirit for everything, even microwaves."

"I was always told to stay far away from the fay."
Anna said and frowned.
"Yes there should be spirits of fun and spirits of games even spirits of individual games and they might be willing to play."
The young mage commented.

"No playing with the Fae might not be a good idea Sir, but we might be able to find a spirit of fun out there and have them join us."
Anna said and Rosa grinned.
"Perhaps the Chief will let us borrow his imps."

He nodded, "Note that I said 'most spirits' will likely not understand games. Some will, and some will simply have an... unhealthy different understanding of what constitutes a fun game. A microwave spirit might consider 'Pop goes the Hamster' a fun game... and I'm not sure how much the Chief's imps would understand of game pieces. They think shoelaces look like tasty candle wicks, and that's roughly the extent of their interest..."

"Nah the void engineers would probably wouldn't be too pleased. Taking up a potential workplace to play a game." Serge said with a smile.

"Probably not but the Umbra docks are huge and there are all sorts of places we could use there like some of the benches we walked past when we arrived there Sir."
Anna said and smiled.
He shook his head, "There's plenty of recreational area there. Alternatively, it should not be hard to set up a small gaming shack a little distance off the Umbral Port area, so long as we don't try putting it on the proverbial runways."

"They are not allowed to have fun with Traditionalists Mentor?"
Anna asked.

He pondered for a moment, "I'm not entirely sure they're allowed to have much fun at all, really... But no, associating with Traditionalists and such is... risky for them, potentially able to get them dragged into an unpleasant debriefing."

"I better not then, I am young and plump I am probably delicious."
Anna said and Rosa chuckled at that.
"I guess both of us would make prime spots on the menu then."
The young Cultist commented.

He arched an eyebrow at Rosa, "Well, if I've heard correctly, you play an instrument, right? So you would probably be safe."

[Hallway]

"Do you think it can be done that quickly Sir? Finding a way to cleanse Avatars, I do not particularly want to cleanse mine but I want to make you proud and I want to save my friends."
Anna said and looked at you.
"And I know some asshole Nephandi I would love to tell that their souls could now be saved that they would soooo enjoy."
She said with and evil little grin.

He shook his head, "Can it be discovered quickly enough? I don't know... I know it can be done, but proving it... there's a lot of inertia against it. It's one hell of an uphill battle..."
He smiled darkly, "And yes, I suppose Diego, for example, would be quite... exhilarated to learn that his soul could be saved despite his misanthropic personality..."

"I would love to hear the story then Mentor."
Anna said and smiled.
"I do not remember much about my mother but I seam to remember her telling me stories but I do not know which."

He nodded, "Like I said, if Freddy can't tell you the tale, I will, tomorrow."

[Colin's apartment]

"Oh definitively there are odd ones in all Traditions in mine we are all odd."
The Etherite said before he took his glass and took a good sip.
"Not long, I got basic training and then I was sent out, they needed engineers on the front lines and I was motivated to go. Damned Nazis."
He grunted.

He nodded, "I made Flight Lieutenant before I was sent out to fly in Desert Storm. So a bit more than basic training. Managed to do my part in keeping fatalities down, too; medevac was... well, it felt a lot cleaner than strike missions. Especially the one where we got... flawed intel about the target area..."

[Jeremy Silverstein]

"Well they would be harder to protect against a good personal ward will prevent you from being able to affect the mind of another, but it is harder to protect one's eyes from seeing actual changes of light and shadow."
Anna said and Yu Die frowned.

" Not sure about harder, but would definitely require a different skill set. I'm sure theirs some spell out there that lets you detect those illusions." Serge said with a shrug.

"Probably not but the Umbra docks are huge and there are all sorts of places we could use there like some of the benches we walked past when we arrived there Sir."
Anna said and smiled.

He shook his head, "There's plenty of recreational area there. Alternatively, it should not be hard to set up a small gaming shack a little distance off the Umbral Port area, so long as we don't try putting it on the proverbial runways."

"Sounds doable. Is that recreational area really just free for anyone to use though?"  Serge asked sounding skeptical.

"I was always told to stay far away from the fay."
Anna said and frowned.
"Yes there should be spirits of fun and spirits of games even spirits of individual games and they might be willing to play."
The young mage commented.

He nodded, "Note that I said 'most spirits' will likely not understand games. Some will, and some will simply have an... unhealthy different understanding of what constitutes a fun game. A microwave spirit might consider 'Pop goes the Hamster' a fun game... and I'm not sure how much the Chief's imps would understand of game pieces. They think shoelaces look like tasty candle wicks, and that's roughly the extent of their interest..."

"Well, if any are interested, maybe the spirits can just watch us play. Maybe they'll learn a thing or two about mortal games."

He nodded, "I think that could make you a dangerous man on the battlefield."

"I've always wanted to be called that." he said with a grin.

Michael nodded and that and smiled.
"Well me and my student should go then, good night Mr Yager, unless there was anything else?"
He asked.

"No, nothing else. Sorry for taking up so much of your time. You have a good night too Master Wong. And you to Yu Die."

You had some basic furniture a desk, a living room table, some shelves and a closet in the bedroom, but the furniture where old and worn.

"God, what a boring room. Well I'll fix that in time." Serge said as he went over to his luggage and began to unpack.

He stored his clothes, which consisted mostly of simple jeans, shirts, jackets, sweatpants and other random pieces of clothing, in the closets.

He pulled out three other sketchbooks that he had stored away and tossed them on his desk along with a large plastic container which contained his more advanced art supplies.

He unpacked several pill bottles and lined them up neatly along the desk. They consisted of drugs that Ange had prescribed to him both to help with his anxiety problems and as a focus for his magick. Things like adderall, xanax, and one bottle whuch just had the cult of ectasy symbol on it.

Lastly he pulled out his laptop and placed it neatly on an empty side of his desk. The outside of his laptop was a horrific mess of pop culture stickers and marker drawings that covered nearly every available space. In fact it was difficult to tell what brand the laptop originally was.

He took out it's corresponding charger and then plugged one end into a nearby outlet and ther other end into his laptop, hoping to charge it up for the night.

[Nicole Bouchard]

Anja's Post:

'Finally hit a nail. 70k a year is in the top 20% in this country.' Nicole replied.

Anja's Post:

'C'mon then'. Nicole said, giving a nod towards the door.

Anja's Post:

'Heh... can imagine that makes conversations about childhood tough. What do you do - say you grew up Amish or something?' giving a smile.

Anja's Post:

'Hmm... is it Everclear time already?' Nicole quipped. 'Same again, but with a whiskey chaser. Or rye, if they've got it.'

Anja's Post:

'Shit... lost twenty bucks.' Nicole complained as she took the drink, eyes focused on the screen. 'Thanks.'

'So... where to start. After my adventures in trance auto repair, I got out of there. Worked my way sorta-south, hoping time and distance would shake it. We know that don't work, but it's not like I fucking knew that.'

'Ended up in some dusty Snowbird town in New Mexico, y'know the ones which are seventy-five percent trailers and RVs? Didn't plan to, but the Plymouth decided it was all too much and got stuck there, I did.'

'Well, I was there in a diner, plotting my next move then this woman came and sat down opposite me. Looked like an escapee from a TV prayathon, she did. Asked me a couple of questions which made no fucking sense at the time. Odd thing was, she got all happy when I couldn't answer... which put me on guard. Thought she might be a cop or something.'

'Then she started to talk. Usual God-botherer crap; how Jesus loved me, that He had plans for me, blah blah blah. This puts me on red alert; I know their fucking type - there's groups out there who love to "reach out to the unfortunate", and bang, next thing you know you're a happy-clappy cultist wearing a muumuu and with a dozen kids from some beardy creep in sandals.'

'So, I tell her to shove it in no uncertain terms, go on my way, think nothing more of it. Manage to get enough cash together for the car repairs, get wasted to celebrate. And to forget how my life had got this fucked up.'

'They came the traditional way: bashing open of the door at stupid-o'clock. Just gag me, wrap me up in the bedsheet and cart me off.' Here Nicole paused, took a swig of her drink and gave a little smile.

'Who wants to guess who they were or what happened next?'

Anja's Post:

'That is wrong.' Nicole said calmly after listening to this in silence. In an uncharacteristic quiet tone, which some of her companions might realise was the sign of someone being pushed past anger and to pure cold fury.

[You've got a PM waiting for you, Great One!]

[Adley]

[Morgan's office]

"Well I do need someone to play Mercere for me tomorrow and deliver a message to Chantry Riverside you would pass the harbor on the way there."
Jeffry suggested.

He nodded. "I'll probably take the T if I can't catch a ride, I don't know how I will feel about driving tomorrow. I can take it if it's small enough, but I'd rather not go alone." Admit it or not, he would be hurt and any sign of weakness might be enough to get him picked off by the Technocrats.

Colin grinned, "Ah, but I have a little sister who never was all that fond of lobster - so the few times we had that growing up, there was always some left of hers, so mum usually redistributed it for sandwiches the next morning." He arched an eyebrow, "You've got to go to... Ah, the water spirit?"

"Not fond of lobster," he said, as if the words made no sense. "Well, lucky you then, I feel bad for her though." He smiled a bit then nodded. "Yeah, there's a lot of things like that to do and I wish to do them in a timely manner."

[Library]

"You must have felt the same horror and helplessness when they took Miss Alexander that I feel about Cadence now."
Antonio said and frowned.
"I agree we need some other way to deal with the Fallen than just continuing te destruction."
He commented and frowned.
"How are Miss Alexander doing now? is she recovering?"

"She is doing somewhat better, thankfully. Time will tell," he said. "But she seems to be sleeping now, which is good. Thank you for asking."

[Kyle's room]

"Perhaps you are just to stressed to learn? When I am really really stressed I can read a book or watch a movie but not remember what I have seen or watched later."
Kyle said as he looked up from his own book."It would make sense if you where stressed after all that have happened today."

"Probably, you're right. Though it's more like several weeks, even if it was only one week. Time magick...still though this book seems like it has something to say. Maybe when I empty out my mind it will be able to fit in there."

"They remembers things to? And another host so they reincarnate?"
Kyle said and turned from the sink to give you a surprised look.
"I only thought they where like magick organs or something."
He said.
"Though mine do look at me and I can see her at times so it do make sense that she remembers thing...do you think she is like really old?"

"They can, at least some of them, and no, they are much more than that, Kyle. They are not just a physical thing, like your brain or an eyeball, though those have their epheral state as well. They are the highest form of ephemeral spirit that we know about. As to how much and in what form do they remember or how strong each are, that is likely to be unique. There is a lot we don't know or cannot be generalized, and you will have to determine is true for you. But yes, they do reincarnate, that is how widderslainte come to be, did no one explain? Hrm....alright, this is important to know although not the most cheeful of information. Once an avatar Falls, for whatever reason, and has gone through the process of the caul in one lifetime, it will always come back Fallen. That is what we call widderslainte. You personally did not choose the caul in this life, but some former host did, for whatever reason and your avatar Fell. And unfortunately, and distressingly, that means that you have those urges from your Fallen avatar when you awaken. Many widderslainte are not like you, or my cabalmate - they do not or cannot fight the urges, or do not have anyone that understands what is going on, like your birth father and end up...well, doing harmful things. That is why that rite is used, because no one has figured out a way to stop this from happening and do not want the avatar to reincarnate."

He frowned. "The avatar is, in it's own way, as eternal as our universe is, at least that is how I think about it. It does not have the same fixation on temporal matters except when it is incarnated with a host, because we are the flesh, so we age and eventually die, we order our lives accordingly to one effort and the next. The spirit is eternal, and will come back...but the process of the caul is not just for one lifetime." He put his pen down and looked at Kyle. "We call them the Fallen from a reason, whether you want to say Fallen from grace in a metaphorical sense or Fallen from the idea we call Ascension, which each avatar shares a path with us. The Fallen's path is one of unmaking, of of descending back to chaos and ultimately back to No-Thing. The reason that you are prone to paradox is because the universe is not very obliging of the fact that Fallen want to ultimately unmake it and do so with each spell they use, so it is more unforgiving of such magick. It is far easier to destroy than to create. Creation takes effort, thought, sacrifice, creation is an investment of sorts, in reality. It's a kind of intentional change. When in balance, there is room for things to be destroyed so that new things can arise, that is the natural way of things. But that is not how the Fallen want it. They do not want any-thing, no potential, no being-ness, not even it-self. I believe this is because the caul un-births the avatar from creation, creating a pain and loneliness that drives it and divorces it from understanding what it was before the Fall. It remembers the darkness of No Thing. It doesn't remember the glory of the Tellurian or how it connects to others anymore, or at least most do not, without some prompting." He shook his head, the words falling together easier than having read anything.

"What we call Dragon's tongue is the unmaking of the world with each breath used to form it and that is why only the Fallen and widderslainte know it. It destroys other possibilities around it, so that only the will of the Fallen caster remains. Now...knowing all that, you can see why your internal struggles have been hard...but also why they are so important and why it is so critical to not give in to the desire just to destroy. I believe that there may be some way to restore some avatars, that there is a reason why you are not like the others. I do not yet know how or why, exactly. It may take quite a long time to figure out, even if we are able to do so in this lifetime. But the fact that you can remember things from Before the Fall seems significant to me. So the short answer is yes, I believe that you are remembering something your avatar knew from the past. Before it Fell."

[Adley's room]

After you had been to the chapel and sat down meditating in your own room at least that was relaxing, though your body still ached allot you got into a meditative state and that managed to relax you at least to some degree but chances where that you would be high strung for a while.

He blinked as the window rattled again and huffed, trying to tell himself that there was nothing there. But he looked anyway, his mind wanting to know what time it was now. He pushed the thoughts away and restarted the cycle. The pain that was everywhere, he figured, was something in itself to meditate on for a short while - wherever he felt it, he accepted that it was how he was for now, and stopped trying to repress it, then brought his attention back to the energy cycles of his body and then emptying out his thoughts, turning over each brick in the path again and seeing where it fit, which to carry and which to lay down for now.

// Yes, just tying up the last bit of convo with Kyle I think, for Adley

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Colin] (Steelhaven at 9 in the evening)

(Rosa's apartment)

He grinned broadly, "Welcome to the family, Yu Die."

Yu Die smiles at that.
"I like the old series best the one you can get where one story are a handful of episodes that you can buy on story by story basis on DVD."
The young Akashic said and smiled.

He nodded, "Note that I said 'most spirits' will likely not understand games. Some will, and some will simply have an... unhealthy different understanding of what constitutes a fun game. A microwave spirit might consider 'Pop goes the Hamster' a fun game... and I'm not sure how much the Chief's imps would understand of game pieces. They think shoelaces look like tasty candle wicks, and that's roughly the extent of their interest..."

"So the imps might just end up burning up the game pieces."
Rosa said and Anna smiled and looked at you.
"Who are these imps Mentor?"
She asked.

He shook his head, "There's plenty of recreational area there. Alternatively, it should not be hard to set up a small gaming shack a little distance off the Umbral Port area, so long as we don't try putting it on the proverbial runways."

"I could talk to this guy at our Chantry named Lars Sir he is friends with one of the administrators of the Umbral docks I am sure he can set something up."
Yu Die offered.

He pondered for a moment, "I'm not entirely sure they're allowed to have much fun at all, really... But no, associating with Traditionalists and such is... risky for them, potentially able to get them dragged into an unpleasant debriefing."

"It must be really boring to be a Technocrat Mentor."
Anna said and sigh.
"Why would anyone want to be one?"

He arched an eyebrow at Rosa, "Well, if I've heard correctly, you play an instrument, right? So you would probably be safe."

"Dragons don't like to eat violins Mr Wainwright?"
Rosa asked sounding amused.

(Hallway)

He shook his head, "Can it be discovered quickly enough? I don't know... I know it can be done, but proving it... there's a lot of inertia against it. It's one hell of an uphill battle..."

"So my friends do not have much of a chance then Mentor?"
Anna said and sigh.
"Can we do something at all for them? I know we can not save them but...I don't know something?"
She asked sadly.

He smiled darkly, "And yes, I suppose Diego, for example, would be quite... exhilarated to learn that his soul could be saved despite his misanthropic personality..."

"Yeah just tell him, and here is your Avatar on bleach, that might scare him more than the ritual, fucking asshole."
Anna grumbled then she sigh.
"Is it odd that I feel a little bit sad for him as well, I mean he deserve to be hung from his balls while a werhedgehog use his ass for a nest but that ritual...no one deserve that."
She muttered and looked down.
"Even if he is a asshole supreme."

He nodded, "Like I said, if Freddy can't tell you the tale, I will, tomorrow."

"Ok...thank you Mentor."
Anna said as you reached Freddy's apartment.
"Good night then."
She said and she gave you a hug.

(Colin's apartment.)

He nodded, "I made Flight Lieutenant before I was sent out to fly in Desert Storm. So a bit more than basic training. Managed to do my part in keeping fatalities down, too; medevac was... well, it felt a lot cleaner than strike missions. Especially the one where we got... flawed intel about the target area..."

"I did my best to keep our guys in the air but that did not always mean I could stay safely back at base and it was far from clean at times. I technically where not there to fight but...sometimes I had to get to a downed plane or a car and the enemy was in the way and you know while the Nazi regime where horrible and I will hate it until the day I die, the German soldiers, most of them where just kids, little more than boys...and they cried and bled and died just like American soldiers did...poor bastards."
Rodger said darkly and he sippedfrom his glass.
"There is much that happened I wish I could forget."

[Serge] (Steelhaven at 9 in the evening)

" Not sure about harder, but would definitely require a different skill set. I'm sure theirs some spell out there that lets you detect those illusions." Serge said with a shrug.

"Have you ever encountered someone with a personal ward Mr Yager, trust me it will make affecting them with magick allot harder, while and illusion made with ligt and shadows are really there and do not affect anyone directly and as such do not trigger wards."
Anna said an she raised an eyebrow.

"Sounds doable. Is that recreational area really just free for anyone to use though?" Serge asked sounding skeptical.

"The Umbra port are in the form of a large field, there is plenty of room so i someone set up a tend and a table to play there I doubt anyone would mind as long as they ask permission first Sir."
Yu Die said and smiled.

"Well, if any are interested, maybe the spirits can just watch us play. Maybe they'll learn a thing or two about mortal games."

"I have been told that is not how Spirits work Serge they are perfectly what they are but do not easily learn things outside of their domain."
Rosa commented.

"No, nothing else. Sorry for taking up so much of your time. You have a good night too Master Wong. And you to Yu Die."

"Good night Mr Yager."
Yu Die said and she waves to you as Michael nods.
"Not a problem at all Mr Yager and thank you again."
He said before he and Yu Die left.

[Nicole] (Out with the girls at 9 30 in the evening)

'Finally hit a nail. 70k a year is in the top 20% in this country.' Nicole replied.

"Which is a big problem considering the prices of living, food and everything else, prices have to come down or pay have to come up we need a solid middle class back and programs to make sure the poor can have decent lives."
Fran said and nodded.

'C'mon then'. Nicole said, giving a nod towards the door.

Theodora went with you outside the poison her lungs.

'Heh... can imagine that makes conversations about childhood tough. What do you do - say you grew up Amish or something?' giving a smile.

"Usually when talking with sleepers I just lie."
Theodora said and shrugged.

'Hmm... is it Everclear time already?' Nicole quipped. 'Same again, but with a whiskey chaser. Or rye, if they've got it.'

"I will see what I can find."
Fran said before she head to the bar to order the drinks.

'Shit... lost twenty bucks.' Nicole complained as she took the drink, eyes focused on the screen. 'Thanks.'

"You bed on the game?"
Fran asked.

'So... where to start. After my adventures in trance auto repair, I got out of there. Worked my way sorta-south, hoping time and distance would shake it. We know that don't work, but it's not like I fucking knew that.'

'Ended up in some dusty Snowbird town in New Mexico, y'know the ones which are seventy-five percent trailers and RVs? Didn't plan to, but the Plymouth decided it was all too much and got stuck there, I did.'

'Well, I was there in a diner, plotting my next move then this woman came and sat down opposite me. Looked like an escapee from a TV prayathon, she did. Asked me a couple of questions which made no fucking sense at the time. Odd thing was, she got all happy when I couldn't answer... which put me on guard. Thought she might be a cop or something.'

'Then she started to talk. Usual God-botherer crap; how Jesus loved me, that He had plans for me, blah blah blah. This puts me on red alert; I know their fucking type - there's groups out there who love to "reach out to the unfortunate", and bang, next thing you know you're a happy-clappy cultist wearing a muumuu and with a dozen kids from some beardy creep in sandals.'

'So, I tell her to shove it in no uncertain terms, go on my way, think nothing more of it. Manage to get enough cash together for the car repairs, get wasted to celebrate. And to forget how my life had got this fucked up.'

'They came the traditional way: bashing open of the door at stupid-o'clock. Just gag me, wrap me up in the bedsheet and cart me off.' Here Nicole paused, took a swig of her drink and gave a little smile.

'Who wants to guess who they were or what happened next?'

"My guess are they where the mother fucking Society of Leopold assholes who had guessed you where Awakened or your bloody family sending you of to get saved camp or both."
Helga muttered and she continued to mutter about that into her glass.
"They could have been Top Hats?"
Fran suggested.
"I will assume that since you are here alive they are either dead or wish they where and that in the process some shit blew up."
Theodora said and grinned before showing some fries into her mouth and waiting for the rest of the story.

'That is wrong.' Nicole said calmly after listening to this in silence. In an uncharacteristic quiet tone, which some of her companions might realise was the sign of someone being pushed past anger and to pure cold fury.

"Yes it is and the sick thing is that when I make Adept and take an apprentice technically I will own them as well and I can not say I really want to do that."
The Tytalus said.
"But you are right it is wrong and fucked up!"

(OOC: I know but since there are four long posts to reply to I use between a hour and a hour and a half on each post right now, which is also why this post is late, and I have been busy for the past days so I have had to focus on the IC posts. I will get to it as soon as possible.)

(OOC 2: I have to post this and then start on Strife's post as my internet might be going down.)

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Adley] (Steelhaven at 9 in the evening)

He nodded. "I'll probably take the T if I can't catch a ride, I don't know how I will feel about driving tomorrow. I can take it if it's small enough, but I'd rather not go alone." Admit it or not, he would be hurt and any sign of weakness might be enough to get him picked off by the Technocrats.

"Mr Bridges the one who repaired your car is dropping by tomorrow you can do back with him perhaps he live at Riverside."
Jeffry suggested.
"I will ask him."

(Library)

"She is doing somewhat better, thankfully. Time will tell," he said. "But she seems to be sleeping now, which is good. Thank you for asking."

"I am glad to hear her, poor girl what happened to her was not right, I am glad you managed to strop it before it was to late, even so the poor child must be terrified."
Antonio said sadly.

(Kyle's room)

"Probably, you're right. Though it's more like several weeks, even if it was only one week. Time magick...still though this book seems like it has something to say. Maybe when I empty out my mind it will be able to fit in there."

"Perhaps you have to give it some time and do something simpler for now until you manage to stress down."
Kyle said then he smiled.
"I have some milk and cocoa powder, I got some groceries earlier from...ehm sorry I do not remember her name yet, anyway I could make you a cup of cocoa if you want perhaps it will help."
The young mage offered.

"They can, at least some of them, and no, they are much more than that, Kyle. They are not just a physical thing, like your brain or an eyeball. They are the highest form of ephemeral spirit that we know about. As to how much and in what form do they remember or how strong each are, that is likely to be unique. There is a lot we don't know or cannot be generalized, and you will have to determine is true for you. But yes, they do reincarnate, that is how widderslainte come to be, did no one explain? Hrm....alright, this is important to know although not the most cheeful of information. Once an avatar Falls, for whatever reason, and has gone through the process of the caul in one lifetime, it will always come back Fallen. That is what we call widderslainte. You personally did not choose the caul in this life, but some former host did, for whatever reason and your avatar Fell. And unfortunately, and distressingly, that means that you have those urges from your Fallen avatar when you awaken. Many widderslainte are not like you, or my cabalmate - they do not or cannot fight the urges, or do not have anyone that understands what is going on, like your birth father and end up...well, doing harmful things. That is why that rite is used, because no one has figured out a way to stop this from happening and do not want the avatar to reincarnate."

"No...no one explained this to me."
Kyle said and he looked down at his hands in the sink.
"My father said I was a widderslainte that I was born with a dark Gift and that is why the Traditions would destroy that gift and that if they did I would suffer terribly an want to die. I can understand that the Traditions do not want...someone like me I have hurt animals when the urges overtake me and my parents have never had another kid for they where afraid of what I might do...with good reason, it got better as I got older but often it was part way the fear of my father's punishments and part way me wanting my parents to be proud of me that kept me from doing things an there are these horrible things in my mind, just...horrible."
The boy said sadly, struggling to keep his composure.
"Why would the one who had my Avatar before me do that...enter a Caul? Why? Did he not think it would hurt himself and me and the ghost lady herself? Why would anyone do that?"
Kyle demanded and he wiped at his eyes to hide tears that where welling forth.
"I do not want to be like this and have these urges I do not want to be...born wrong."
He wept.

He frowned. "The avatar is, in it's own way, as eternal as our universe is, at least that is how I think about it. It does not have the same fixation on temporal matters except when it is incarnated with a host, because we are the flesh, so we age and eventually die, we order our lives accordingly to one effort and the next. The spirit is eternal, and will come back...but the process of the caul is not just for one lifetime." He put his pen down and looked at Kyle. "We call them the Fallen from a reason, whether you want to say Fallen from grace in a metaphorical sense or Fallen from the idea we call Ascension, which each avatar shares a path with us. The Fallen's path is one of unmaking, of of descending back to chaos and ultimately back to No-Thing.

"I did not know that she...the ghost lady where such a being as you describe I just see her now and again she stands over me and watch me when I sleep."
Kyle said and he smiled slightly then he turned serious again.
"I like to unmake things, one of the things I use to control the urges are to delete the data of things, cleaning out hard drives and disks, unmaking the data, but reaching non existence that sounds nice to me, but I would not want to force it on anyone else."
The young mage said softly, wiping his tears.

The reason that you are prone to paradox is because the universe is not very obliging of the fact that Fallen want to ultimately unmake it and do so with each spell they use, so it is more unforgiving of such magick. It is far easier to destroy than to create. Creation takes effort, thought, sacrifice, creation is an investment of sorts, in reality. It's a kind of intentional change. When in balance, there is room for things to be destroyed so that new things can arise, that is the natural way of things. But that is not how the Fallen want it. They do not want any-thing, no potential, no being-ness, not even it-self. I believe this is because the caul un-births the avatar from creation, creating a pain and loneliness that drives it and divorces it from understanding what it was before the Fall. It remembers the darkness of No Thing. It doesn't remember the glory of the Tellurian or how it connects to others anymore, or at least most do not, without some prompting." He shook his head, the words falling together easier than having read anything.

"I...do not know how to create with my magick Adley, when I create a fireball it do not really feel like I am creating it but rather like I am destroying any possibility that the fireball do not exist, like carving something from rock by removing the rocks around the design."
Kyle said and he lowered his hand into the water again.
"I am not sure I understand though, what do the Caul do Adley? What is it? Do you mean that once my Avatar saw non existence and now it remembers it and that is why she...we are wrong?"
He asked.
"Can I become normal? I mean can I become a normal mage and not be this way?"

"What we call Dragon's tongue is the unmaking of the world with each breath used to form it and that is why only the Fallen and widderslainte know it. It destroys other possibilities around it, so that only the will of the Fallen caster remains.

"Yeah it is a very strange language and in a way that is how it feels to speak it, not that I do so well, as if one destroy the words instead of speaking them."
Your brother muttered.

Now...knowing all that, you can see why your internal struggles have been hard...but also why they are so important and why it is so critical to not give in to the desire just to destroy. I believe that there may be some way to restore some avatars, that there is a reason why you are not like the others. I do not yet know how or why, exactly. It may take quite a long time to figure out, even if we are able to do so in this lifetime. But the fact that you can remember things from Before the Fall seems significant to me. So the short answer is yes, I believe that you are remembering something your avatar knew from the past. Before it Fell."

"Yeah it is...difficult, really difficult like I said there is this...darkness inside of me, that is just...I can not even call it hate, it is nothing and it calls to me, it is so beautiful and it want me it want me so badly and it is so hard to resist, but I want to resist for I am a good person or at least I want to be."
Kyle said then he frowned.
"I do not know why I am not like other widderslainte, perhaps it is due to my parents. I hope I can become normal but...I do not know how this darkness is just a part of me."
He said then he gave you a confused look.
"How do you know my memories are from before I Fell, could I not have been a wounded Nephie that where cooling of by a stream?"
He asked as regarded you.

(OOC: Sounds good. My internet are unstable by the way so if I get slow with posting I might be off the net for a while.)

[Jeremy Silverstein]

"Have you ever encountered someone with a personal ward Mr Yager, trust me it will make affecting them with magick allot harder, while and illusion made with ligt and shadows are really there and do not affect anyone directly and as such do not trigger wards."
Anna said an she raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, I did encounter someone with a personal ward. Yes, it did make fighting them harder. Yes, I do know what your talking about. Trust me, I know the advantages of indirect magick over direct magick." Serge said with a sigh, tired of being thought of as ignorant no matter what he said.

"The Umbra port are in the form of a large field, there is plenty of room so i someone set up a tend and a table to play there I doubt anyone would mind as long as they ask permission first Sir."
Yu Die said and smiled.

"Ask permission from who? Who runs the place?" Serge said.

"I have been told that is not how Spirits work Serge they are perfectly what they are but do not easily learn things outside of their domain."
Rosa commented.

"Eh, then they'll watch if its part of their domain. Spirits of competition or knowledge would love to chill around a game site. Or a spirit of vengeance or anger around a game of Mario party." Serge said with a shrug.

(Serge's Room)

Back in his room, Serge was placing some of his drawings onto various empty parts of the walls. He remembered one particular trapped picture that he had created with the help of Mr. Bergen. The endless drawing with runes inscribed as a circle that repeated a message for eternity, mesmerizing onlookers into reading it forever. He carefully pulled it out of his sketchbook and placed it innocently on one of the walls in front of the door. He didn't expect it to actually activate but he would be lying if he said that the didn't want someone to walk in right now. Just to see if the picture could work...

(OOC: No problem Anja.)

[Nicole Bouchard]

Anja's Post:

Nicole does what she intended to do... [does Theodora ask a quick-fire question?]

Anja's Post:

'Yeah. Good odds too. Thought the Panthers were going to walk it...' ending with a shake of the head.

Anja's Post:

Nicole gave a laugh at the guesses. 'So, there I am, in a tied up bedsheet, in that weird point you're both drunk and hungover. Was then tied to a board or stretcher, shoved in the back of an SUV. Now I've got no fucking clue why; but clearly not normal cops or nothing.'

'Finally, they decide it's time to talk. It's the prayathon woman again. Said they did it to "save me", that the forces of evil had been close. Couple of others; a young guy cute in the sickly-wholesome way, older black dude. He does the whole classic preacher thing, with me as the truly captive audience, in the back of some RV.'

'Starts going on and on about the demons which walk amongst us, their servants and unwitting minions etcetera etcetera. How I'd heard "the call to action", but like Jonah I'd run from it and so they'd been sent by the Lord blah blah blah...' ending with a dismissive wave of the hand.

'Anyone like to update their guesses?' ending with a little grin, half-hidden behind the beer glass.

[No worries.]

[Warpmind]

[Morgan's office]

"Not fond of lobster," he said, as if the words made no sense. "Well, lucky you then, I feel bad for her though." He smiled a bit then nodded. "Yeah, there's a lot of things like that to do and I wish to do them in a timely manner."

Colin smiled thinly, gaze suddenly focusing on some point in the past, "Yes, she was always the odd one... I think she might take some deep satisfaction at how things turned out in the end, if i could tell her... Or maybe she'd just take offense at my usurping the title so thoroughly..."

[Rosa's apartment]

Yu Die smiles at that.
"I like the old series best the one you can get where one story are a handful of episodes that you can buy on story by story basis on DVD."
The young Akashic said and smiled.

He smiled, "Well, that, or there are... slightly less legal ways to get everything that still exists... I have a plan for getting what was lost back, too, but that's probably going to get me into trouble... again."

"I've always wanted to be called that." he said with a grin.

He smiled thinly, "Some would assume that the most dangerous man on the battlefield is the one who has the most destructive power... but that is insignificant next to the person who controls what everyone sees of the battlefield itself; the one who controls the information can make sure everyone else is maneuvered into the most advantageous or disadvantageous tactical positions before the first shot is fired... That's what I was mostly doing in the Labyrinth, in fact."

" Not sure about harder, but would definitely require a different skill set. I'm sure theirs some spell out there that lets you detect those illusions." Serge said with a shrug.

He nodded, "True, there are counters to optical illusions - there are counters to everything, as I am sure Anna can cheerfully show you - but it remains easier to resist the spell with your name on it than the spell labeled 'To whom it May Concern'."

"Yes, I did encounter someone with a personal ward. Yes, it did make fighting them harder. Yes, I do know what your talking about. Trust me, I know the advantages of indirect magick over direct magick." Serge said with a sigh, tired of being thought of as ignorant no matter what he said.

He grinned, "That's part of the problem with being a Mage, I suppose - we all tend to get into lecture mode rather easily... I'm sure you'll get around to that particular mentality soon enough, too."

"Sounds doable. Is that recreational area really just free for anyone to use though?" Serge asked sounding skeptical.

He shrugged, "I would guess yes and no. The coffee shop, much of the outdoors area, that sort of thing, anyone can sit down and do their own thing there so long as they don't actually bother anyone or get in the way of daily operations. Setting up a permanent thing, though, might require a permit or two. And gathering a half-dozen people in the coffee shop for six hours without keeping the barista occupied with serving us might be frowned upon."

"Ask permission from who? Who runs the place?" Serge said.

He nodded, "Essentially, yes - either the Port Administrators themselves, or the manager of the area or shop in which we decide to plant ourselves for a while. Theoretically, I suppose we could chip in to rent a hangar for a period of several years, but that might get a bit pricey, and probably frowned upon for taking up valuable hangar space for something other than an Umbral craft."

"I could talk to this guy at our Chantry named Lars Sir he is friends with one of the administrators of the Umbral docks I am sure he can set something up."
Yu Die offered.

He nodded, "That could work."

"So the imps might just end up burning up the game pieces."
Rosa said and Anna smiled and looked at you.
"Who are these imps Mentor?"
She asked.

He thought for a moment, "I think they are called Curly and Poodle - nicknames, of course - and they're a pair of little fire spirits. Small, playful, and perhaps not the brightest, but very loyal to and fond of Master Morgan."

"Well, if any are interested, maybe the spirits can just watch us play. Maybe they'll learn a thing or two about mortal games."

He nodded, "It might be easier to incidentally attract the odd spirit than to try to deliberately summon one whose nature fits the game."

"Eh, then they'll watch if its part of their domain. Spirits of competition or knowledge would love to chill around a game site. Or a spirit of vengeance or anger around a game of Mario party." Serge said with a shrug.

He grinned, "A spirit of Capitalism around a Monopoly board? A spirit of War next to the chessboard? Be careful what you wish for; there might be a few gods out there who could take an interest if you pray hard enough for their aid."

"It must be really boring to be a Technocrat Mentor."
Anna said and sigh.
"Why would anyone want to be one?"

He smiled thinly, "Mostly, I think, because that's more comfortable than getting shot. The Union has a fairly strict 'Join Us Or Die' policy when it comes to Awakened individuals... It's not easy to survive out there without joining either the Union or the Traditions - though I never joined a specific Tradition, myself, just managed to... affiliate myself with the Traditions as a whole."

"Dragons don't like to eat violins Mr Wainwright?"
Rosa asked sounding amused.

He grinned, "Oh, they're probably fine with violins, but everyone knows there's no cure for minstrel cramps. If you'll pardon the pun."

[Hallway]

"So my friends do not have much of a chance then Mentor?"
Anna said and sigh.
"Can we do something at all for them? I know we can not save them but...I don't know something?"
She asked sadly.

He smiled thinly, "We can work toward finding the way to revert them... and we can show them a small measure of kindness; make sure they at least get a good meal they like before... the end."

"Yeah just tell him, and here is your Avatar on bleach, that might scare him more than the ritual, fucking asshole."
Anna grumbled then she sigh.
"Is it odd that I feel a little bit sad for him as well, I mean he deserve to be hung from his balls while a werhedgehog use his ass for a nest but that ritual...no one deserve that."
She muttered and looked down.
"Even if he is a asshole supreme."

He smiled wryly, "Many things Gabriel did, I take great exception to, but Diego... that was one of the things he really got right. Opera-singing bastard he is."
He turned serious again, "And no, almost no-one deserves that ritual. Almost..."

"Ok...thank you Mentor."
Anna said as you reached Freddy's apartment.
"Good night then."
She said and she gave you a hug.

He smiled and hugged Anna back, "Good night... and Sweetie? Call me dad. or daddy, hm? Especially when we're out among Sleepers. I'll see you at breakfast. Might be a little worse for the wear, but we'll have breakfast."

[Colin's apartment]

"I did my best to keep our guys in the air but that did not always mean I could stay safely back at base and it was far from clean at times. I technically where not there to fight but...sometimes I had to get to a downed plane or a car and the enemy was in the way and you know while the Nazi regime where horrible and I will hate it until the day I die, the German soldiers, most of them where just kids, little more than boys...and they cried and bled and died just like American soldiers did...poor bastards."
Rodger said darkly and he sippedfrom his glass.
"There is much that happened I wish I could forget."

He nodded and took a hearty swig of his own drink, "So much I would want to forget... I'm just not convinced I deserve to... I still see a parade of ghosts most nights, dredged up from my own mind; most of them stare at me silently, more with regret than blame..."
He grimaced, "And now that I can see real ghosts, that's probably going to get a lot less pleasant, if there are some of those there, too..."

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Serge] (Steelhaven at 9 in the evening)

"Yes, I did encounter someone with a personal ward. Yes, it did make fighting them harder. Yes, I do know what your talking about. Trust me, I know the advantages of indirect magick over direct magick." Serge said with a sigh, tired of being thought of as ignorant no matter what he said.

Anna did not comment further she was to polite to, but she did give you a bit of a look.

"Ask permission from who? Who runs the place?" Serge said.

"There are several administrators from both the Union and the Traditions who run the Umbral docks together Sir."
Yu Die said.
"We would have to ask permission from one of them."

"Eh, then they'll watch if its part of their domain. Spirits of competition or knowledge would love to chill around a game site. Or a spirit of vengeance or anger around a game of Mario party." Serge said with a shrug.

"Spirits of competition yes, knowledge probably not there would be better places for them and a spirit of anger and vengeance, yes sure and then as you defeat your opponent they make you fall, shattering your drink glass in the process and vivisecting yourself on the pieces, do not call spirits of vengeance unless you really mean vengeance, wanting to best your friend in a game is not vengeance, hating someone so much because of something they have done to you that you want to rip their eyeballs out of their skulls but extend the nerves and leave them attached and then show those eyeballs up their own anus, then sewing it shut so that they can experience their own eyes slowly rotting inside of their own ass, that is vengeance."
Anna said in the same tone of voice she would use when discussing what color curtains would look best in her room.

(OOC: Do you want to roll Arete for the rune trap drawing to see if you can make it into an active enchantment?)

[Nicole] (Out with the girls at 9 30 in the evening.)

Nicole does what she intended to do... [does Theodora ask a quick-fire question?]

Theodora smokes in silence for a while then she nods towards your arm.
"So what are the story about tat? Did you loose your real arm or did you have it replaced as an enhancement...and did it hurt?"
The Tytalus asked.

'Yeah. Good odds too. Thought the Panthers were going to walk it...' ending with a shake of the head.

"Panthers that are one of the teams?"
Fran asked and glanced at the screen.
"Which ones are they?"

Nicole gave a laugh at the guesses. 'So, there I am, in a tied up bedsheet, in that weird point you're both drunk and hungover. Was then tied to a board or stretcher, shoved in the back of an SUV. Now I've got no fucking clue why; but clearly not normal cops or nothing.'

'Finally, they decide it's time to talk. It's the prayathon woman again. Said they did it to "save me", that the forces of evil had been close. Couple of others; a young guy cute in the sickly-wholesome way, older black dude. He does the whole classic preacher thing, with me as the truly captive audience, in the back of some RV.'

'Starts going on and on about the demons which walk amongst us, their servants and unwitting minions etcetera etcetera. How I'd heard "the call to action", but like Jonah I'd run from it and so they'd been sent by the Lord blah blah blah...' ending with a dismissive wave of the hand.

'Anyone like to update their guesses?' ending with a little grin, half-hidden behind the beer glass.

"Could be crazy Choristers, I mean some of them are decent but some of them are crazy as fuck."
Helga said and frowned seamed a little uncomfortable.
"I have heard rumors about something actually, that there are those who hunt the Awakened though they often go easier on our kind that the others...but they have powers, some of them are real good at neutralizing magick and others have powers of their own, I have heard nothing but rumors but...what you describe almost sound like them."
Fran said and frowned.
"How did you get out of the situation?"
Theodora asked.

[Colin] (Steelhaven at 9 in the evening.)

He smiled, "Well, that, or there are... slightly less legal ways to get everything that still exists... I have a plan for getting what was lost back, too, but that's probably going to get me into trouble... again."

"Hum...I have heard that some can find old lost signals as their energy is still kicking around out there, or if you could find the tapes that where rewritten some mages could restore what was lost using Entropy."
Yu Die suggested.
"Possibly."

He nodded, "True, there are counters to optical illusions - there are counters to everything, as I am sure Anna can cheerfully show you - but it remains easier to resist the spell with your name on it than the spell labeled 'To whom it May Concern'."

Anna nodded at that and then she fronwed.
"And it is easier to shoot the counterpsller than to use some magick to try to get through her barriers."
She commented wryly.
"But yes making a physical illusion is usually easier than to make someone see something as then you make the illusion but do not affect them directly, it is the difference between setting someone on fire with magick directly, and making a fireball that you then toss at them."

He grinned, "That's part of the problem with being a Mage, I suppose - we all tend to get into lecture mode rather easily... I'm sure you'll get around to that particular mentality soon enough, too."

Anna grinned at that and Yu Die gave a small chuckle.

He shrugged, "I would guess yes and no. The coffee shop, much of the outdoors area, that sort of thing, anyone can sit down and do their own thing there so long as they don't actually bother anyone or get in the way of daily operations. Setting up a permanent thing, though, might require a permit or two. And gathering a half-dozen people in the coffee shop for six hours without keeping the barista occupied with serving us might be frowned upon."

"I think no one would deny us bringing some chairs and a table for a few hours of gaming Sir and setting up somewhere out of the way, but no a permanent place is something else."
Yu Die said and smiled.

He nodded, "Essentially, yes - either the Port Administrators themselves, or the manager of the area or shop in which we decide to plant ourselves for a while. Theoretically, I suppose we could chip in to rent a hangar for a period of several years, but that might get a bit pricey, and probably frowned upon for taking up valuable hangar space for something other than an Umbral craft."

"There are shops and stalls, even a barber shop over there so I am sure we could fin some place to play if we asked the administrators."
The young Akashic said.

He nodded, "That could work."

Yu Die nodded at that.

He thought for a moment, "I think they are called Curly and Poodle - nicknames, of course - and they're a pair of little fire spirits. Small, playful, and perhaps not the brightest, but very loyal to and fond of Master Morgan."

"There are three of them, Curley and Poodle...I am not sure what the third one is called though."
Rosa said and smiled.
"Are they cute Mentor?"
Anna asked.

He nodded, "It might be easier to incidentally attract the odd spirit than to try to deliberately summon one whose nature fits the game."

Anna nodded at that.

He smiled thinly, "Mostly, I think, because that's more comfortable than getting shot. The Union has a fairly strict 'Join Us Or Die' policy when it comes to Awakened individuals... It's not easy to survive out there without joining either the Union or the Traditions - though I never joined a specific Tradition, myself, just managed to... affiliate myself with the Traditions as a whole."

Your apprentice nodded at that.
"I guess you are right about that Mentor. Hum...so you are an Orphan member of the Traditions right but not of a specific Tradition?"
She asked.

He grinned, "Oh, they're probably fine with violins, but everyone knows there's no cure for minstrel cramps. If you'll pardon the pun."

Rosa just gave you a bit of a look at that.

(Hallway)

He smiled thinly, "We can work toward finding the way to revert them... and we can show them a small measure of kindness; make sure they at least get a good meal they like before... the end."

"I guess that is the only thing we can do for them Mentor...but will they even be able to...eat in their situation, I know I loose my appetite when I am scared."
Anna said sadly.
"An they must be very, very scared."

He smiled wryly, "Many things Gabriel did, I take great exception to, but Diego... that was one of the things he really got right. Opera-singing bastard he is."
He turned serious again, "And no, almost no-one deserves that ritual. Almost..."

"Yeah Gabriel protected me...but that was scary when Diego tried to hurt me."
Anna said and frowned then she looked down.
"Who would deserve a thing like that Mentor?"

He smiled and hugged Anna back, "Good night... and Sweetie? Call me dad. or daddy, hm? Especially when we're out among Sleepers. I'll see you at breakfast. Might be a little worse for the wear, but we'll have breakfast."

Your young apprentice smiled a little.
"Ok...dad...."
She said then she nodded.
"I can help out with making breakfast so don't worry about that it is ok if you are hungover."
Anna said and grinned.

(Colin's apartment)

He nodded and took a hearty swig of his own drink, "So much I would want to forget... I'm just not convinced I deserve to... I still see a parade of ghosts most nights, dredged up from my own mind; most of them stare at me silently, more with regret than blame..."

"No we do not deserve to forget what we did my friend, we do not deserve to get rid of those ghosts, that is the price we pay for our actions, necessary as they might have been they where still horrible."
Rodger said softly and drained his glass.
"We will see those ghosts to the day we join them in death I fear."

He grimaced, "And now that I can see real ghosts, that's probably going to get a lot less pleasant, if there are some of those there, too..."

"Indeed, every so often those ghosts are not from our own mind but a thinking, feeling spirit and that do not make it better."
The Etherite said before he refilled your glass and then his own and added some ice.

[Warpmind]

[Rosa's apartment]

"Hum...I have heard that some can find old lost signals as their energy is still kicking around out there, or if you could find the tapes that where rewritten some mages could restore what was lost using Entropy."
Yu Die suggested.
"Possibly."

Colin grinned, "I was actually thinking of just aiming a regular old rabbit ear antenna at 1960s London and thereabouts, to pick up the original transmissions. I think I can pull it off, but I might have to be a bit cautious with selling the lost episodes to the BBC..."

Anna nodded at that and then she fronwed.
"And it is easier to shoot the counterpsller than to use some magick to try to get through her barriers."
She commented wryly.
"But yes making a physical illusion is usually easier than to make someone see something as then you make the illusion but do not affect them directly, it is the difference between setting someone on fire with magick directly, and making a fireball that you then toss at them."

He grimaced, "Yes, well, I was rather at a loss for good options then and there... and I was in something of a rush to save Tian's daughter, and her mother. I'm glad you made it, though. At least I didn't have Primium ammunition; that would have been, well... worse."

"There are three of them, Curley and Poodle...I am not sure what the third one is called though."
Rosa said and smiled.
"Are they cute Mentor?"
Anna asked.

He nodded, "I'm afraid they're going to be quite insufferable with pestering me for treats in the future, now that they know I can see them... and they are indeed cute enough to get away with it."

"Spirits of competition yes, knowledge probably not there would be better places for them and a spirit of anger and vengeance, yes sure and then as you defeat your opponent they make you fall, shattering your drink glass in the process and vivisecting yourself on the pieces, do not call spirits of vengeance unless you really mean vengeance, wanting to best your friend in a game is not vengeance, hating someone so much because of something they have done to you that you want to rip their eyeballs out of their skulls but extend the nerves and leave them attached and then show those eyeballs up their own anus, then sewing it shut so that they can experience their own eyes slowly rotting inside of their own ass, that is vengeance."
Anna said in the same tone of voice she would use when discussing what color curtains would look best in her room.

He gave Anna a slightly sideways look, "Well, you're not wrong about that, Sweetie..."

Your apprentice nodded at that.
"I guess you are right about that Mentor. Hum...so you are an Orphan member of the Traditions right but not of a specific Tradition?"
She asked.

He nodded, "Precisely. Some day, I hope to establish a House of my own, to help bind the Traditions closer together, but until then, I will simply have to stand alone between the ten Traditions. Well, nine and the Hollow Ones, depending on who you ask."

Rosa just gave you a bit of a look at that.

He smiled thinly, "I would apologise, but it is so rare that I am given such a perfect straightline..."

[Hallway]

"I guess that is the only thing we can do for them Mentor...but will they even be able to...eat in their situation, I know I loose my appetite when I am scared."
Anna said sadly.
"An they must be very, very scared."

He nodded, "Inevitability, or seeming inevitability often helps give a strange calm... often, one might want a last, pleasant memory when going to one's last journey. A meal is a common last wish, as such..."

"Yeah Gabriel protected me...but that was scary when Diego tried to hurt me."
Anna said and frowned then she looked down.
"Who would deserve a thing like that Mentor?"

He hesitated, "In 1470, one of the brightest and most capable Mages in the Traditions, Heylel Teomim, committed a terrible crime; they betrayed their Cabal to the Order of Reason, in a desperate attempt to unite the Traditions against a common enemy... It was a necessary evil, to prevent them from becoming something worse, a being called Moloch. The plan... sort of worked, and the Traditions survived the immediate crisis. But the scars of what they did still linger, and now... perhaps it is time to let old wounds heal at long last, and face the new crisis as we should have all those years ago. But Heylel Teomim earned that punishment - in their case, it was necessary for that to happen. A... few others have committed similarly horrible crimes deserving of the punishment, but it happens far too often..."

Your young apprentice smiled a little.
"Ok...dad...."
She said then she nodded.
"I can help out with making breakfast so don't worry about that it is ok if you are hungover."
Anna said and grinned.

He grinned, "You're a little jewel, did you know that?"

[Jeremy Silverstein]

He grinned, "That's part of the problem with being a Mage, I suppose - we all tend to get into lecture mode rather easily... I'm sure you'll get around to that particular mentality soon enough, too."

"Everone tends to leap into lecture mode whenever I open my mouth. I wanna be the one doing the lecturing one day." Serge said in a hopeful tone.

He smiled thinly, "Some would assume that the most dangerous man on the battlefield is the one who has the most destructive power... but that is insignificant next to the person who controls what everyone sees of the battlefield itself; the one who controls the information can make sure everyone else is maneuvered into the most advantageous or disadvantageous tactical positions before the first shot is fired... That's what I was mostly doing in the Labyrinth, in fact."

"Oooh, the tactician controlling everything from the shadows. The puppet master controlling the movements of both his enemies and his allies. Their always fun ti watch on tv. That'd be a cool to role as well." Serge said with a grin.

"I'd love to be that. Not because I'd be good at it but because I'd probably be better at that than being physically on the battlefield."

He nodded, "Essentially, yes - either the Port Administrators themselves, or the manager of the area or shop in which we decide to plant ourselves for a while. Theoretically, I suppose we could chip in to rent a hangar for a period of several years, but that might get a bit pricey, and probably frowned upon for taking up valuable hangar space for something other than an Umbral craft."

"There are several administrators from both the Union and the Traditions who run the Umbral docks together Sir."
Yu Die said.
"We would have to ask permission from one of them."

"I could talk to this guy at our Chantry named Lars Sir he is friends with one of the administrators of the Umbral docks I am sure he can set something up."
Yu Die offered.

"This Lars guy sounds like our ticket in." Serge said with a smile.

He grinned, "A spirit of Capitalism around a Monopoly board? A spirit of War next to the chessboard? Be careful what you wish for; there might be a few gods out there who could take an interest if you pray hard enough for their aid."

" Could be an interesting game to witness. Seeing how having certain spirits present affects play." Serge said with a smile.

"Spirits of competition yes, knowledge probably not there would be better places for them and a spirit of anger and vengeance, yes sure and then as you defeat your opponent they make you fall, shattering your drink glass in the process and vivisecting yourself on the pieces, do not call spirits of vengeance unless you really mean vengeance, wanting to best your friend in a game is not vengeance, hating someone so much because of something they have done to you that you want to rip their eyeballs out of their skulls but extend the nerves and leave them attached and then show those eyeballs up their own anus, then sewing it shut so that they can experience their own eyes slowly rotting inside of their own ass, that is vengeance."
Anna said in the same tone of voice she would use when discussing what color curtains would look best in her room.

"Got it. No spirit of vengeance." Serge said not looking too disturbed by what Anna said, although he did wonder if Anna forgot her promise to not be morbid so quickly.

(Serge's Room)

As Serge placed the trapped drawing onto the wall, he rmemebered Mr. Bergens words about renewing the enchantment. He walked over to his art supplies and pulled out a higher quality pencils and began retracing the words and the runic symbols. Darkening and bolding them so they stood out.

He imagined his the effect that he wished to achieve, the victims he wanted to ensnare, what would happen to them and what they would see, all while softly chanting to himself, "The end is never the end is never the end is never the end is never the end is....

(OOC: Yes please! Mind 3 Arete Roll: 7, 6, 3, 10 - 6, 5, 10, 2 - 8, 7, 2, 7 - 4, 6, 7, 1 )

[Adley]

[Morgan's office]

Colin smiled thinly, gaze suddenly focusing on some point in the past, "Yes, she was always the odd one... I think she might take some deep satisfaction at how things turned out in the end, if i could tell her... Or maybe she'd just take offense at my usurping the title so thoroughly..."

He looked at him a bit confused, but didn't seem to want to pry. Clearly something had happened, though.

"Mr Bridges the one who repaired your car is dropping by tomorrow you can do back with him perhaps he live at Riverside."
Jeffry suggested.
"I will ask him."

"Thank you, sir."

[Library]

"I am glad to hear her, poor girl what happened to her was not right, I am glad you managed to strop it before it was to late, even so the poor child must be terrified."
Antonio said sadly.

"You helped, without what you found out, well...but at any rate, yes she has been through a lot."

[Kyle's room]

"Perhaps you have to give it some time and do something simpler for now until you manage to stress down."
Kyle said then he smiled.
"I have some milk and cocoa powder, I got some groceries earlier from...ehm sorry I do not remember her name yet, anyway I could make you a cup of cocoa if you want perhaps it will help."
The young mage offered.

"I'd like that, but only if you want some."

"No...no one explained this to me." Kyle said and he looked down at his hands in the sink."My father said I was a widderslainte that I was born with a dark Gift and that is why the Traditions would destroy that gift and that if they did I would suffer terribly an want to die. I can understand that the Traditions do not want...someone like me I have hurt animals when the urges overtake me and my parents have never had another kid for they where afraid of what I might do...with good reason, it got better as I got older but often it was part way the fear of my father's punishments and part way me wanting my parents to be proud of me that kept me from doing things an there are these horrible things in my mind, just...horrible." The boy said sadly, struggling to keep his composure.

"I suppose it would have been hard to explain, when you were younger. But as you got stronger you fought it. and got better at figuring out how to deal with it, too. Right?"

"Why would the one who had my Avatar before me do that...enter a Caul? Why? Did he not think it would hurt himself and me and the ghost lady herself? Why would anyone do that?" Kyle demanded and he wiped at his eyes to hide tears that where welling forth. "I do not want to be like this and have these urges I do not want to be...born wrong." He wept.

"There are many reasons why people seem to have Fallen, as many as there are Fallen avatars, maybe. Sometimes, they didn't know what would happen, they were ignorant. They didn't understand that it would affect someone else, or didn't believe in avatars, or that they could reincarnate. They were naive of all of that and were exploited. Some felt it was the only way to achieve something, save another person, or they were blackmailed, or put in some other bad situation by the Nephandi. Or the Nephandi offered them a way out of a bad situation, at a cost they should not have paid or did not fully understand. And some perhaps yes, they did want it and truly believed in the Fallen's ways and wanted to become a Nephandi. So, it is complicated. For your avatar, we don't yet know why the person who went through the caul, did what they did. But we do know that you did a lot of very brave things, and have struggled with the urges, and tried to do good and you chose to do all of that regardless. And you have done good, even if you were born with an avatar that went through that caul. You helped saved the world, Kyle. You really did, and it was at no small cost to you either."

"I did not know that she...the ghost lady where such a being as you describe I just see her now and again she stands over me and watch me when I sleep."
Kyle said and he smiled slightly then he turned serious again. "I like to unmake things, one of the things I use to control the urges are to delete the data of things, cleaning out hard drives and disks, unmaking the data, but reaching non existence that sounds nice to me, but I would not want to force it on anyone else." The young mage said softly, wiping his tears.

"It would still be very sad to me for your avatar to be unmade, I would rather it be able to rejoin others again and not as a widderslainte. It's still a lost to us, it's like watching the stars go out in the sky one by one."

"I...do not know how to create with my magick Adley, when I create a fireball it do not really feel like I am creating it but rather like I am destroying any possibility that the fireball do not exist, like carving something from rock by removing the rocks around the design."Kyle said and he lowered his hand into the water again.

"That is what Fallen magick does...or should I say undoes. Hermetics call it Qlippothic, after the shells or husks. Aramaic writes it as 'Other Side'...the Qlipothic forces are the shadow of creation, the shadow of the Tree of Life. What is without the glory of creation, the divine spark. Some of this will make more sense later, once you start studying."

"I am not sure I understand though, what do the Caul do Adley? What is it? Do you mean that once my Avatar saw non existence and now it remembers it and that is why she...we are wrong?"
He asked.
"Can I become normal? I mean can I become a normal mage and not be this way?"

"The caul, from what I have seen - and granted it may not be the only way of it - was once a baby. Those that I know of were birthed by the creator of the caul, and were ritually destroyed, its Name taken away and it's body and spirit twisted to form into a portal, an unbirthing chamber, outside our reality. Where we should not look. Nonexistance, perhaps yes. People with avatars go in there, and they either go crazy or Fall. Or are occasionally spat out." He frowned, looking very uncomfortable. "When you are born, you become the flesh and the spirit together and if you are lucky you awaken someday. The caul takes that process and makes it an anathema, it's opposite. It unbirths you, it pulls an avatar apart and then the person goes back to the material realm. So yes, once Fallen the experience is that, and that is why she is the way she is...she is hurt, traumatized and torn from the Tellurian that was her home, she remembers that and has forgotten some other things. I'm not an expert, but from speaking with many people and what I have seen recently, that is what I believe right now. As for becoming a normal mage, if there ever is such a thing, ..most will tell you no. I would have told you know a few weeks ago. But, right now I think it is possible. I am not exactly sure how, yet. We will have to work on it together."

"Yeah it is...difficult, really difficult like I said there is this...darkness inside of me, that is just...I can not even call it hate, it is nothing and it calls to me, it is so beautiful and it want me it want me so badly and it is so hard to resist, but I want to resist for I am a good person or at least I want to be."
Kyle said then he frowned.

"It is what it remembers from the caul. But maybe you can help her remember things too. Things that you love about the universe, even small things are good."

"I do not know why I am not like other widderslainte, perhaps it is due to my parents. I hope I can become normal but...I do not know how this darkness is just a part of me." He said then he gave you a confused look. "How do you know my memories are from before I Fell, could I not have been a wounded Nephie that where cooling of by a stream?" He asked as regarded you.

He sighed and added more cold water to the basin. "I don't want to overwhelm you, but I don't think that this memory is from after you Fell..." He sighed and leaned against the counter. "But imagine that if an avatar can reincarnate, again and again and it has memories, would it not be possible for avatars to sometimes meet again, in a new host? Under completely different circumstances? Once they fought one another, or were friends, or hated one another...all of those things. Now, I've also heard that avatars were a bit different, or mages related to them differently, they were less personable back in the day than they became in later years, as well. So things have changed. Hopefully it is a sign for you as well, that there is hope."

[Tane Karyak]

[Tane's apartment]

there was a werespider who was slain in the battle

That might be the one i'm talking about. Is that true? Do we have the remains?

If we overextend ourselves, we'll have our necks cut.

I sadly agree. Tane nodded with a grin

what it looked like from the outside, but your words ring true.

Nobody asked me to stop at the moment. When i was retieving her i was asked not to kill her, something i was clearly not going to do. I know how valuable that kind of prisoner could be. We could know where and how are the other nephandus groups. If we could strike them with force when they are licking their wounds and disorganiced, more so if there's no other labyrinth but just individuals around, that would be awesome.

It would have been... easier to get home, I suppose, if you had simply hurried out as you were told to.

If the place was a piece of corrupted spirit with the strenght to do any harm, it would have been very irresponsible to leave if, having the power to get back and the allies needed to take it out, i wouldn't. My mission is to watch over this town at large. One angry spirit like that could come back and spit us any kind of lesser spirit, eat etherite's crafts or who knows what.

other factions close.

They see us as another race altogether, and we are. They also see us all secret and magick and want to preserve theirs secret as long as possible.

I was allowed to share in its senses, in short glimpses.

A, i see. Well, i was not in berserker rage or anything like that, i disobeyed simply because i saw a weak command and that nephanda was hard as nails.

((Ok then!))

[Tane] (Steelhaven at 8 30 in the evening)

though being chased around the airport by a crazy bitch Nephanda might be less standard

That airport used to be a fair neutral point. Now it's just scene to a new kind of aggression. Regretable.

I hate that she was hurt like that.

Well, we're taking care of it and it will never happen again, so for now we can just focus on rebuilding

(Talking with an old shaman.)

And even then it will be far from safe.

Well, now i need to reach it and study it so that i can get an idea of how to use it...

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Adley] (Steelhaven at 9 in the evening)

(Library)

"You helped, without what you found out, well...but at any rate, yes she has been through a lot."

"I only found a record of precedent Sodalis you got th needed documents and I hope your Cabalmate will recover though, poor girl."
Antonio said and frowned.

(Kyle's room)

"I'd like that, but only if you want some."

"I do want some as well."
Kyle said as he went to the kitchen and started finding cocoa powder, sugar and milk from the fridge and cupboards.
"How sweet do you like it Adley?"
He asked.

"I suppose it would have been hard to explain, when you were younger. But as you got stronger you fought it. and got better at figuring out how to deal with it, too. Right?"

"Yeah I suppose I have not had a really bad episode in a while."
Kyle muttered.

"There are many reasons why people seem to have Fallen, as many as there are Fallen avatars, maybe. Sometimes, they didn't know what would happen, they were ignorant. They didn't understand that it would affect someone else, or didn't believe in avatars, or that they could reincarnate. They were naive of all of that and were exploited. Some felt it was the only way to achieve something, save another person, or they were blackmailed, or put in some other bad situation by the Nephandi. Or the Nephandi offered them a way out of a bad situation, at a cost they should not have paid or did not fully understand. And some perhaps yes, they did want it and truly believed in the Fallen's ways and wanted to become a Nephandi. So, it is complicated. For your avatar, we don't yet know why the person who went through the caul, did what they did. But we do know that you did a lot of very brave things, and have struggled with the urges, and tried to do good and you chose to do all of that regardless. And you have done good, even if you were born with an avatar that went through that caul. You helped saved the world, Kyle. You really did, and it was at no small cost to you either."

"I would like to learn who the one who entered the Caul was an why he did it."
Kyle said after he had listened to what you said then he frowned.
"I try to...keep myself in check and surrendering was worth it to help everyone...even if...the worst should happen but Adley what would happen if I die? Will the one who get my Avatar after I am dead be a complete monster?"
He asked and looked down at his hands.
"For I would not want to be a monster."

"It would still be very sad to me for your avatar to be unmade, I would rather it be able to rejoin others again and not as a widderslainte. It's still a lost to us, it's like watching the stars go out in the sky one by one."

"I guess that to me unmaking is not a loss it is not death or destruction it is returning to the source of what everything was with endless possibility that will never come to be."
Your brother said softly.
"I do not know how to explain it."

"That is what Fallen magick does...or should I say undoes. Hermetics call it Qlippothic, after the shells or husks. Aramaic writes it as 'Other Side'...the Qlipothic forces are the shadow of creation, the shadow of the Tree of Life. What is without the glory of creation, the divine spark. Some of this will make more sense later, once you start studying."

Kyle nodded and seamed to be considering what you where saying for a while,
"Do my magick do allot of damage to the world around me Adley if it do not create but rather destroy do I harm the world when working magick?"

"The caul, from what I have seen - and granted it may not be the only way of it - was once a baby. Those that I know of were birthed by the creator of the caul, and were ritually destroyed, its Name taken away and it's body and spirit twisted to form into a portal, an unbirthing chamber, outside our reality. Where we should not look. Nonexistance, perhaps yes. People with avatars go in there, and they either go crazy or Fall. Or are occasionally spat out." He frowned, looking very uncomfortable.

"The Caul...is a baby that is just horrible who would do that to a baby?"
Kyle exclaimed then he nodded.
"What you say makes sense though, horrible sense but sense non the less."

"When you are born, you become the flesh and the spirit together and if you are lucky you awaken someday. The caul takes that process and makes it an anathema, it's opposite. It unbirths you, it pulls an avatar apart and then the person goes back to the material realm. So yes, once Fallen the experience is that, and that is why she is the way she is...she is hurt, traumatized and torn from the Tellurian that was her home, she remembers that and has forgotten some other things. I'm not an expert, but from speaking with many people and what I have seen recently, that is what I believe right now. As for becoming a normal mage, if there ever is such a thing, ..most will tell you no. I would have told you know a few weeks ago. But, right now I think it is possible. I am not exactly sure how, yet. We will have to work on it together."

"My Avatar was ripped apart in the Caul, poor ghost lady, it must have hurt allot."
Kyle said and looked down.
"It is no wonder that she is destructive and angry, and I do want to help her, if it is even possible to become a normal mage, I want to do that."
The young widderslainte whispered.

"It is what it remembers from the caul. But maybe you can help her remember things too. Things that you love about the universe, even small things are good."

"I can try I mean I like my family and I like magick and computer games and candy and allot of things."
Your brother said and smiled.

He sighed and added more cold water to the basin. "I don't want to overwhelm you, but I don't think that this memory is from after you Fell..." He sighed and leaned against the counter. "But imagine that if an avatar can reincarnate, again and again and it has memories, would it not be possible for avatars to sometimes meet again, in a new host? Under completely different circumstances? Once they fought one another, or were friends, or hated one another...all of those things. Now, I've also heard that avatars were a bit different, or mages related to them differently, they were less personable back in the day than they became in later years, as well. So things have changed. Hopefully it is a sign for you as well, that there is hope."

Kyle nodded at that as he held his hands under water.
"It sounds like you knew one of my former incernations then Adley or perhaps that one of your former incarnations knew one of mine, perhaps the one who was hurt by a riverside?"
He asked and looked at you.
"Did you know him?"

[Colin] (Steelhaven at 9 in the evening)

(Rosa's apartment)

Colin grinned, "I was actually thinking of just aiming a regular old rabbit ear antenna at 1960s London and thereabouts, to pick up the original transmissions. I think I can pull it off, but I might have to be a bit cautious with selling the lost episodes to the BBC..."

Yu Die nodded.
"I have heard that such Time magick is quite dangerous Sir."
The young Akashic commented.
"And difficult to do as well."

He grimaced, "Yes, well, I was rather at a loss for good options then and there... and I was in something of a rush to save Tian's daughter, and her mother. I'm glad you made it, though. At least I didn't have Primium ammunition; that would have been, well... worse."

"It is okey Mentor we where enemies then so I do not blame you."
Anna said and she gave you a warm smile.

He nodded, "I'm afraid they're going to be quite insufferable with pestering me for treats in the future, now that they know I can see them... and they are indeed cute enough to get away with it."

"Aww that sounds so cute Mentor I want to pet them."
Your apprentice said and grinned.

He gave Anna a slightly sideways look, "Well, you're not wrong about that, Sweetie..."

Anna nodded at that and smiled she did not seam to understand that there could be anything wrong with her comment.

He nodded, "Precisely. Some day, I hope to establish a House of my own, to help bind the Traditions closer together, but until then, I will simply have to stand alone between the ten Traditions. Well, nine and the Hollow Ones, depending on who you ask."

"Yeah you told me about that Mentor."
Anna said and smiled a little.
"The Hollow Ones they are the Goth mages right?"

He smiled thinly, "I would apologise, but it is so rare that I am given such a perfect straightline..."

The young Cultist gave you a slight smile.
"That is quite okey Mr Wainwright."

(Hallway)

He nodded, "Inevitability, or seeming inevitability often helps give a strange calm... often, one might want a last, pleasant memory when going to one's last journey. A meal is a common last wish, as such..."

"I guess that might be so Mentor there is a strange calm when you have come to accept what you are afraid of will happen, but even so I think I would have been to scared to eat."
Anna said and frowned.

He hesitated, "In 1470, one of the brightest and most capable Mages in the Traditions, Heylel Teomim, committed a terrible crime; they betrayed their Cabal to the Order of Reason, in a desperate attempt to unite the Traditions against a common enemy... It was a necessary evil, to prevent them from becoming something worse, a being called Moloch. The plan... sort of worked, and the Traditions survived the immediate crisis. But the scars of what they did still linger, and now... perhaps it is time to let old wounds heal at long last, and face the new crisis as we should have all those years ago. But Heylel Teomim earned that punishment - in their case, it was necessary for that to happen. A... few others have committed similarly horrible crimes deserving of the punishment, but it happens far too often..."

Anna considered that then she sigh.
"I guess that if the ritual is done for prevention to stop this Moloch you describe or so then I guess that is one thing but I do not think it should be used as a punishment, just as a last resort to save people or the world."
The young mage said and shuddered.

He grinned, "You're a little jewel, did you know that?"

"A Fallen creepy jewel perhaps."
Anna said and grinned.
"Now I should probably go to bed I hid it with Mr Yager and Miss Olsen not to worry them but my chest really hurt and I am a bit woozy so I think perhaps I should rest and you should go and have some fun, there will be more to do in following days."
The young mage said and hugged you again.
"Remember to eat something before bed dad so you do not get so bad a headache."
She reminded you gently.

(OOC: I need to do a few things so I will write more later.)

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Serge] (Steelhaven at 9 in the evening)

"Everone tends to leap into lecture mode whenever I open my mouth. I wanna be the one doing the lecturing one day." Serge said in a hopeful tone.

"That will come with experience Cousin and you can lecture about art, I think perhaps that the others are more just to actual reality than you for the moment though."
Rosa said and smiled.

"This Lars guy sounds like our ticket in." Serge said with a smile.

"I will ask him."
Yu Die said.
"He is a pretty nice guy I am sure he will help us out."

" Could be an interesting game to witness. Seeing how having certain spirits present affects play." Serge said with a smile.

"Well yes it could be interesting at least if it was lesser spirits so it was not so dangerous."
Anna agreed.

"Got it. No spirit of vengeance." Serge said not looking too disturbed by what Anna said, although he did wonder if Anna forgot her promise to not be morbid so quickly.

The young Orphan just gave you a bit of a smile at that.

As Serge placed the trapped drawing onto the wall, he rmemebered Mr. Bergens words about renewing the enchantment. He walked over to his art supplies and pulled out a higher quality pencils and began retracing the words and the runic symbols. Darkening and bolding them so they stood out.

He imagined his the effect that he wished to achieve, the victims he wanted to ensnare, what would happen to them and what they would see, all while softly chanting to himself, "The end is never the end is never the end is never the end is never the end is....

The finished drawing had an hypnotic effect you could completely see how someone caught unnaware might be trapped, entranced by your drawing until the intruder could be found, the design felt magickal like something to be found on a wizard's wall and that usually meant it had worked for you.

[Tane] (Steelhaven at 8 30 in the evening)

That airport used to be a fair neutral point. Now it's just scene to a new kind of aggression. Regretable.

"I think the airport is mostly okey still, not that I have been her long it just happened to have a bloody Nephanda there who was after Rosa, fucking bitch that woman but I hear that we got her so that is good."
Bianca said an frowned.

Well, we're taking care of it and it will never happen again, so for now we can just focus on rebuilding

"Yeah they say Bee is born wrong or something but she is one of the kindest pepole I know so yeah I am not buying that."
The Verbena hedge wizard scoffed.
"But we will help her back on her feet.

(Talking with an old shaman)

Well, now i need to reach it and study it so that i can get an idea of how to use it...

You do not seam to understand child, this realm is change itself it can not be studied, by the time you have observed it then it will have changed, that would be the whole point of why it may work, it can change everything because it is change manifested."
The old werewolf woman said and she sipped her tea.
"But perhaps when you are able to reach it you will also have enough understanding to find a way to use it."

(OOC: sorry for the late reply.)

[Nicole Bouchard]

Anja's Post:

A silence as Nicole smoked a bit of her cigarette, though Theodora may notice the Etherite's eyes had narrowed a little. 'Now that's an odd question to ask... when you've not got no evidence to assume that I have one.' half-suspicious, half-confused.

Anja's Post:

'The ones in red-blue-gold. Bet they'd be a goal ahead by the end of second period, but Moen's equalised with only four mins left on the clock. What... that's hardly counts as "Roughing!".' the last part said louder, staring at the screen.

Anja's Post:

'Like Fran's guess most, allows for a better story.' Nicole quipped. 'But she's got it.' gesturing towards Helga with a little smile.

'They'd were a little crew of travelling Choristers, y'know holding meetings with miracles, "moving with the spirit" and all that jazz.' taking a sip of her beer. 'Seemed to have noticed me in the last town I'd been in, then ran into me in New Mexico. Of course, they saw this not as an example of why Chrysler can't do electrics, but of the "work of the Lord".' the derision on this obvious.

'Was with them for three fucking days, in an old RV slowly boating West. Worked some mind-screw on me, I'm sure of it; thought what they were spouting was a complete crock but I didn't want to leave. Or couldn't. Sat through a couple of their "meetings", long talks with Prayathon and Preacher. Well, I say "talk" - Prayathon just lectured. Think their brainwashing would have worked, if I'd not refused to accept God was real point-blank. Which was a sort of block on accepting the rest of the program. Think that's how they got Wholesome Guy.'

'My theory is that I got out of that 'cos they were too nice. Or at least not that nasty. That the only way they'd get me to "see the light" would take serious force and they weren't willing to do that. So, they gave up, dropped me off at a base in Phoenix and went on their way.' A pause as Nicole took a deep sip of her drink, ending with an 'any questions?' look to the other three.

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Nicole] (Out with the girls at 9 30 in the evening)

A silence as Nicole smoked a bit of her cigarette, though Theodora may notice the Etherite's eyes had narrowed a little. 'Now that's an odd question to ask... when you've not got no evidence to assume that I have one.' half-suspicious, half-confused.

"Observation and guessing I have noticed how you use your arm and learned how to recognize cybernetics, a useful skill to have to avoid the Union's goons."
Theodora said and shrugged.
"You do not have to answer if it is a touchy subject."

'The ones in red-blue-gold. Bet they'd be a goal ahead by the end of second period, but Moen's equalised with only four mins left on the clock. What... that's hardly counts as "Roughing!".' the last part said louder, staring at the screen.

Fran listened to what you where saying and nodded but she did not have allot to add.
"So their chances f winning is not good then?"
She asked.

Like Fran's guess most, allows for a better story.' Nicole quipped. 'But she's got it.' gesturing towards Helga with a little smile.

'They'd were a little crew of travelling Choristers, y'know holding meetings with miracles, "moving with the spirit" and all that jazz.' taking a sip of her beer. 'Seemed to have noticed me in the last town I'd been in, then ran into me in New Mexico. Of course, they saw this not as an example of why Chrysler can't do electrics, but of the "work of the Lord".' the derision on this obvious.

'Was with them for three fucking days, in an old RV slowly boating West. Worked some mind-screw on me, I'm sure of it; thought what they were spouting was a complete crock but I didn't want to leave. Or couldn't. Sat through a couple of their "meetings", long talks with Prayathon and Preacher. Well, I say "talk" - Prayathon just lectured. Think their brainwashing would have worked, if I'd not refused to accept God was real point-blank. Which was a sort of block on accepting the rest of the program. Think that's how they got Wholesome Guy.'

'My theory is that I got out of that 'cos they were too nice. Or at least not that nasty. That the only way they'd get me to "see the light" would take serious force and they weren't willing to do that. So, they gave up, dropped me off at a base in Phoenix and went on their way.' A pause as Nicole took a deep sip of her drink, ending with an 'any questions?' look to the other three.

The others gave you a well shit look and Helga looked at you darkly.
"Where you a member of the Sons of Ether at this time Nicole? And if so did you rapport their ases to the Enforcers we have the Protocols we are not allowed to just kidnap memembers of another Tradition willy nilly."
The Cultist commented.
"Yeah I mean you where not injured but if they used magick on you and held you against your will they could get a pretty good scrape for that at a Tribunal."
Theodora agreed.
"That is my problem with some religions really, I mean believe whatever you like but when they try to force it on others that is simply wrong."
Fran commented.
"So did you ever see them again?"

[Jeremy Silverstein]

"That will come with experience Cousin and you can lecture about art, I think perhaps that the others are more just to actual reality than you for the moment though."
Rosa said and smiled.

"Lecture about art? Sounds pretentious. What would that even be like?" Serge said. Then putting on a snooty rich folks voice said, "Ummmm well you see, most people tend to believe that post-modernistic recreations of Da Vinci are the raging trend, but me personally? I'm more of a neo-cubism man myself."

"Well yes it could be interesting at least if it was lesser spirits so it was not so dangerous."
Anna agreed.

"Yeah I had lesser spirits in mind. Summoning the bug boss spirit is probably a poor idea." he said with a grin.

The finished drawing had an hypnotic effect you could completely see how someone caught unnaware might be trapped, entranced by your drawing until the intruder could be found, the design felt magickal like something to be found on a wizard's wall and that usually meant it had worked for you.

"Yes! Yes! YES! That's what I'm talking about. This is awesome." Serge said with increasing enthusiasm as he glanced at his work, carefully to avoid being affected himself.

"Now my enemies will think twice before entering my room unexpectedly. You know...all of my many enemies...all...of them....that choose to come into my room for whatever reason." Serge said his voice trailing off as the realization that the trap was less likely to hit an enemy of the traditions and more likely to hit an unsuspecting ally.

"Nononono. Don't let cold hard reality set in. This is cool. And nothing will change that." Serge said as he quickly busied himself with unpacking the rest of his bags.

[Adley]

[Library]

"I only found a record of precedent Sodalis you got th needed documents and I hope your Cabalmate will recover though, poor girl."
Antonio said and frowned.

"Sodalis, that is like saying that you only found which keys we needed in a pile of keys, but I went to get it. You were quite instrumental, so thank you."

[Kyle's room]

"I do want some as well."
Kyle said as he went to the kitchen and started finding cocoa powder, sugar and milk from the fridge and cupboards.
"How sweet do you like it Adley?"
He asked.

"Usually not very sweet, more like dark chocolate. But this time maybe moderate, I've had enough bitterness..."

"I would like to learn who the one who entered the Caul was an why he did it." Kyle said after he had listened to what you said then he frowned.
"I try to...keep myself in check and surrendering was worth it to help everyone...even if...the worst should happen but Adley what would happen if I die? Will the one who get my Avatar after I am dead be a complete monster?" He asked and looked down at his hands. "For I would not want to be a monster."

"If you died...your avatar would reincarnate into someone else and assuming it is still the way it is now, they would be a widderslainte. If they awakened, they would have the struggle you do. Perhaps whatever you achieved in life would also be passed on; perhaps they too might have a chance like you do, but I do not know for sure. We will have to try our best in this lifetime."

"I guess that to me unmaking is not a loss it is not death or destruction it is returning to the source of what everything was with endless possibility that will never come to be."
Your brother said softly.
"I do not know how to explain it."

He tipped his head. "The problem is that the wish never allows anything else to manifest, ever. If, say, the urge is to remerge with what became before the primordial waters, the universe as we know it, then that's it...there's no wish for the cycle to continue. As I said before, normally the cycle would be that what is destroyed is used to make something new. A fire destroys the undergrowth, the new trees can grow. A flood washes away a town, and horrible as it is for those at the time, eventually there is another town built on a new harbor. What is the point of removing possibilities that anything may manifest ever again? It is to steal the universe's natural unfolding and refolding."

Kyle nodded and seamed to be considering what you where saying for a while, "Do my magick do allot of damage to the world around me Adley if it do not create but rather destroy do I harm the world when working magick?"

"It is likely that it can, so you'll have to be careful in what you say and do with it. All mages should but for you there is another consideration."

"The Caul...is a baby that is just horrible who would do that to a baby?" Kyle exclaimed then he nodded. "What you say makes sense though, horrible sense but sense non the less."

"Yes...it is...it is horrible. That is what it takes to make this happen, Kyle so...it is not natural for the avatars in our universe to wish to be nothing, or to unmake the universe. There are primordial avatars, and there are entropic mages, and there are many who wield destructive forces, but what happens to an avatar in such a chamber...and how such a thing may even come to be..." He shook his head, looking away.

"My Avatar was ripped apart in the Caul, poor ghost lady, it must have hurt allot."
Kyle said and looked down.
"It is no wonder that she is destructive and angry, and I do want to help her, if it is even possible to become a normal mage, I want to do that."
The young widderslainte whispered.

"From all accounts, it is an agony beyond most. We'll see what we can figure out, alright?"

"I can try I mean I like my family and I like magick and computer games and candy and allot of things."
Your brother said and smiled.

"Good," he said with a nod.

Kyle nodded at that as he held his hands under water. "It sounds like you knew one of my former incernations then Adley or perhaps that one of your former incarnations knew one of mine, perhaps the one who was hurt by a riverside?" He asked and looked at you. "Did you know him?"

He sighed. It was hard not to answer a direct line of questioning. "I didn't mean to open this up right now, you already have a lot to process and I didn't want to push what your avatar wanted to show you. But...yes, sometimes it happens like that, where former incarnations knew one another and come back together again later. A long time ago, we were allies, but something happened to make my group think you were an enemy and we fought against one another. I feel regret for what happened to you then and sorrow." He frowned a little. "I didn't find out any of that until after we already had set set our course here, so you are here entirely on your own actions - but there is something in that story that seems important and connects us."

[Nicole Bouchard]

Anja's Post:

Another silence, a longer, heavier one before Nicole replied. 'Last mission. Did my job; buying time for the others. The guy who stood beside me ended up as steaming goo.' tone flat, quiet.

Anja's Post:

'The Stars? Barely any. They've been stuck in a hole of averageness for 'least a decade.'

Anja's Post:

'I wasn't a member of anything; just fresh meat who was in the "wtf?!" stage, me. Which Prayathon confirmed at the Diner. Don't tell me that there's not some out there on our side which would try to press "their way of doing things" on the newbie who's not got a clue.' Nicole replied, giving a raised eyebrow.

'They didn't break no rules. Prayathon and Preacher would argue they'd simply saved me from being picked up by Something Worse, that the head-fucks they did was to stop me from running or smacking them in the head. Could argue that they'd gone about it wrong, but who'd push that for some random newbie... 'specially if other Choristers back Prayathon and Preacher?' giving a "you know how this shit runs" look. A short pause, the alcohol was starting to have a visible effect on Nicole.

'Thing is... can now see their point, me. A running newbie is a target for all. I'd have been spotted soon enough. And of all the "opening pitches" I know of, I would have bought the Mirrorshade's easiest of all. Though Prayathon and Preacher didn't know that bit.' a worried, almost scared look crossing Nicole's face for a moment.

'I never saw them lot again. Not surprising, our worlds don't meet and all that.'

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Adley] (Steelhaven at 9 in the evening)

(Library)

"Sodalis, that is like saying that you only found which keys we needed in a pile of keys, but I went to get it. You were quite instrumental, so thank you."

Antonio smiled a little.
"Well then I can accept that Sodalis, I am glad I could help."

(Kyle's room)

"Usually not very sweet, more like dark chocolate. But this time maybe moderate, I've had enough bitterness..."

"Okey one medium sweetness cocoa coming up."
Kyle said as he poured milk into a cooking pan.
"Master Morgan said he like unsweetened 90 percent chocolate how can anyone eat something that bitter?"
The young mage asked sounding amused.

"If you died...your avatar would reincarnate into someone else and assuming it is still the way it is now, they would be a widderslainte. If they awakened, they would have the struggle you do. Perhaps whatever you achieved in life would also be passed on; perhaps they too might have a chance like you do, but I do not know for sure. We will have to try our best in this lifetime."

"Is that why they want my Avatar dead...the Traditions I mean?"
Your brother said softly.
"I guess I can't really blame them. I will do what I can in this life to be a good person though I do not know what else to try that is the only thing I can control what I do in this life."

He tipped his head. "The problem is that the wish never allows anything else to manifest, ever. If, say, the urge is to remerge with what became before the primordial waters, the universe as we know it, then that's it...there's no wish for the cycle to continue. As I said before, normally the cycle would be that what is destroyed is used to make something new. A fire destroys the undergrowth, the new trees can grow. A flood washes away a town, and horrible as it is for those at the time, eventually there is another town built on a new harbor. What is the point of removing possibilities that anything may manifest ever again? It is to steal the universe's natural unfolding and refolding."

Kyle thought for a moment then he nodded.
"That is true then again I might ask the same question back at you Adley, what is the point of new trees growing just to get old burn away so more new trees can arrive, what is the point of continuous renewal if we are not going anywhere, i we are just going through this cycle for the point of going through it, would not then the primordial waters and nothing else be a better existence?"
The young widderslainte asked.

"It is likely that it can, so you'll have to be careful in what you say and do with it. All mages should but for you there is another consideration."

Kyle nodded at that.
"Master Morgan told me to only do sensory magick on my own without his or your or a senior member of the Chantry's permission first, that feels strange since I am used to using my magick as I please but I will do what he asks."
The young mage commented and frowned he clearly did not like the order.
"Could you use magick as you pleased when you where an apprentice Adley?"

"Yes...it is...it is horrible. That is what it takes to make this happen, Kyle so...it is not natural for the avatars in our universe to wish to be nothing, or to unmake the universe. There are primordial avatars, and there are entropic mages, and there are many who wield destructive forces, but what happens to an avatar in such a chamber...and how such a thing may even come to be..." He shook his head, looking away.

"It is hard for me to reconcile the peace and attraction of wanting nothingness with the horror you describe, everything you say that a Caul is, that is just so wrong it should not be, and yet I can not just turn of those desires inside of me you know."
The widderslainte said and sigh clearly struggling with this.

"From all accounts, it is an agony beyond most. We'll see what we can figure out, alright?"

"That must have sucked, I am really glad I do not remember that."
Kyle said then he nodded.
"Yeah I guess all I can do is hope."

"Good," he said with a nod.

Kyle smiled a little at that.

He sighed. It was hard not to answer a direct line of questioning. "I didn't mean to open this up right now, you already have a lot to process and I didn't want to push what your avatar wanted to show you. But...yes, sometimes it happens like that, where former incarnations knew one another and come back together again later. A long time ago, we were allies, but something happened to make my group think you were an enemy and we fought against one another. I feel regret for what happened to you then and sorrow." He frowned a little. "I didn't find out any of that until after we already had set set our course here, so you are here entirely on your own actions - but there is something in that story that seems important and connects us."

"If you do not think we should talk about it now that is okey I trust that you will tell me when it is time."
Kyle said and nodded.
"And there is no need for you to feel regret for something your former incarnation did and if this was some sort of infighting civil war thing then the situation would suck anyway. But if it ok to talk about is this why my hands ache at times? I mean doctors have examined them and I have taken tons of xrays and such, I hate that to have them examined but I have and they find nothing wrong, the most abnormal thing they ever found was that the top joint of the little fingers are ever so slightly crooked, which apparently is common, so since there is nothing wrong is there something from an earlier lie or something that make them ache and make me not like to have them touched?"
The young mage asked and looked at you.

[Serge] (Steelhaven at 9 in the evening)

"Lecture about art? Sounds pretentious. What would that even be like?" Serge said. Then putting on a snooty rich folks voice said, "Ummmm well you see, most people tend to believe that post-modernistic recreations of Da Vinci are the raging trend, but me personally? I'm more of a neo-cubism man myself."

"There you go, see you can do lecture mode as well."
Rosa said and grinned. Both Yu Die and Anna looked at you.
"I have no idea what you just said Sir but it sounded impressive."
Yu Die said and smiled.

"Yeah I had lesser spirits in mind. Summoning the bug boss spirit is probably a poor idea." he said with a grin.

"I think that keeping it to smaller spirits will keep things from getting to interesting."
Anna said sounding amused.

"Yes! Yes! YES! That's what I'm talking about. This is awesome." Serge said with increasing enthusiasm as he glanced at his work, carefully to avoid being affected himself.

"Now my enemies will think twice before entering my room unexpectedly. You know...all of my many enemies...all...of them....that choose to come into my room for whatever reason." Serge said his voice trailing off as the realization that the trap was less likely to hit an enemy of the traditions and more likely to hit an unsuspecting ally.

"Nononono. Don't let cold hard reality set in. This is cool. And nothing will change that." Serge said as he quickly busied himself with unpacking the rest of his bags.

You managed to dispell the cold, hard fingers of reality and revel in the fact that your room now had a magickal trap to take down your enemies just like a real RPG dungeon, and it was even a cool looking trap at that, reality had nothing to do here and could go home for now as you unpacked your stuff.

(OOC: Hum...the spirit bug boss that might be the ghost of Blair my former tarantula )

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