Re: Bigger On The Inside, The Tzimisce and Hidden Doors IC Thread 44

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Basement]

Colin pondered, "It could... but I find that implausible. Avatars are not prone to, hm, saying things without reason; even shard clusters like mine, while chatty, don't necessarily speak unless there's some advice or information they feel a need to offer - and even less so when speaking in a language their host doesn't speak. I suspect the message is important, but it's not you nor I who is the intended recipient. I will ask a Hermetic."

"You might be right."
Tauge said.
"Well I have tried to convey her message at least."

[Casa Wainwright]

He bit back a chuckle, putting on a serious expression, "Sweetie, you're growing up. Over the next few years, there are many things about your body that will feel awkward and embarrassing, and for most of those things, Freddy will be a better advisor than I. The sand, though... honestly, I don't think anyone will notice unless they touch you; you'll want to try to collect any sand that comes off on seats and the like, since it has some odd properties, and could fathomably be an arcane link to you... but it will likely only be as embarrassing as you allow it to be."

"I know about all the stuff that will happen as I grow up dad...but not all start to sprout sand."
Anna said sourly.
"That just is not normal...people will think I am weird!"

He shook his head, "She's got a tube in her arm to feed her those painkillers - so long as those are properly administered, she's not in pain, and she'll heal just fine. Your future self told Dr. Acevedo as much - though I'm still a little disappointed you don't come look up your old man when you come visiting this time again. I understand why you might not want to, though, so don't worry too much about it."

"Perhaps...I did not want to mess up the time line or something."
The young mage said and she looked up at you.
"She have a tube in her arm? Do that hurt?"
She asked sounding nervous.
"I had one when I woke up after I was shot and I ripped it out that hurt..."

He frowned, "Oh, rightl Dr. Lee left a pack of those... Yes, that will do just fine. I'll only need a drop of my blood, after all."

"Yeah he did leave a pack of them. I will get them dad."
Anna said and she ran to the bathroom to get the scalpels, band aids and a sterile swab from the medicine cabinet.
"Is this good dad?"

[Nico's room]

After deliberating, he said in a musing tone, "Possibly...something to do with a second entry, entrance? And breaking through five obsidian hands. The rest..." he shook his head, bewildered, glancing at his sodalis to see if they had any input.

"I get the same, something about a second entrance and something about five obsidian hands...I can try to cast a spell to get to the intention behind the words though that might get more."
Crexia offered. Darrian shook his head.
"I only started learning Enocian when the Children of Knowledge joined the Order of Hermes so I have no idea."
Nico just shook their head that they did not know either.

He placed a bookmark on the page so that his voice would not blow the correct pages away in the middle of his incantations. He gave Darrian a solemn nod of his head, and then started with the basics, calling quarters, the signs of the cross, and the greater pentagram, and calling the appropriate holy Names that corresponded to the planes as well as the correct permutation cycle's Name. Then, he proceeded to the next section, where he would follow the workings for each person's talisman one then the other, before closing up the circle at the very end. This middle of the working was as he had described within his notes, with a detailed explanation of what sort of forces they would be protected against, and to whom the protection was requested for - it was at this point, during the second intonation, that he had stepped back to allow Darrian to imbue the talisman and offer the Name as he felt most comfortable. During the first, he had used Thomas Griffith's Name, and kept a firm image of the young man he had known if briefly - what his adopted parents had bestowed upon him, as well as the dram of quintessence.

Crexia and Darrian followed your lead through the rituals, words and gestures. You felt the enormous power that came from the Masters, power that now flowed into you, power you could wield as the leader of the ritual. You felt like a glowing, golden form going through each ritual, radiating with power and purpose. As you worked Nico engraved the seals, but you hardly heard the slight scraping of the bit on glass for your mind was on the ritual, you where the ritual as you guided the massive amount of power and will through the hole motions and words.

It was important not to hurry, but to speak it all as clearly as he could: 'May these holy Names deliver and sanctify (here, the correct Name of the person was used), safeguarding them from evil, all harms and injuries of mind, body and spirit whether personal or their higher spiritual aspects, against their Self, let not the evil eye see them, nor demons, fiends and malicious spirits touch them in any way, nor any malignant intent touch them, nor curses or ailments of the body, whether it is day, at night, in dreams, in waking, in thoughts; let these Names rebuke and dismiss them, whether these evils be near or far, or on other planes. Especially we ask that they be protected from the one who we know as Wallace Jace and all his agents, allies, minions and forces, let them be protected from the Nephandi, dark ghosts and the undead, those tainted by dark Spirit, from those dark Forces that we can Name and those UnNamable. By these holy Names do we give the strength of Keter the crown that is reflected in Malkuth...let them and that which cannot be touched that walks with them in their unique path for this permutation, be sealed against evil, let it pass them, unharmed, unmarked, and unsullied.' He gestured for prime and corpus, at appropriate points and with Crexia, Darrian and Nico's help, shunted the quintessence through the works.

The glass discs Nico was making no longer looked like amber colored glass, they looked like drops of light. You felt the Quintessence flow through you, it all flowed together into one working. You know what you saw was just with your inner eye but it was no less real as the glass was imbued, stopped being mundane and they where now tools of protection. You knew that your will was done, that Thomas and Cava was protected, no one could inhabit their physical forms, they where protected. Your Avatar vibrated with the energies of the room and you felt her stand there protectively with her sword in hand, a sword that was now made of singing crystal. The workings was complete and they where perfect.

(OOC: You get minus minus three diff for various factors, the well written ritual and a Node near by. In addition there is the Quintessence so yes with the rolls I made for the others, including the Craft rolls for Nico those are some solid talismans, they will last for about two months and Cava and Thomas can not be used as hosts for anything other than their own Avatars during that time. Also that was a beautifully written working. Yes all the ritualists will be rather tired after this.)

[Warpmind]

[Basement]

"You might be right."
Tauge said.
"Well I have tried to convey her message at least."

Colin nodded, "Well, someone might come back for clarification - neither you nor I speak Enochian well, so there's bound to be something lost..."

[Nico's Room]

After deliberating, he said in a musing tone, "Possibly...something to do with a second entry, entrance? And breaking through five obsidian hands. The rest..." he shook his head, bewildered, glancing at his sodalis to see if they had any input.

"I get the same, something about a second entrance and something about five obsidian hands...I can try to cast a spell to get to the intention behind the words though that might get more."
Crexia offered. Darrian shook his head.
"I only started learning Enocian when the Children of Knowledge joined the Order of Hermes so I have no idea."
Nico just shook their head that they did not know either.

He frowned, "Well, damn... Tauge is unwilling to betray his Labyrinth, but it just might be that his Avatar gave us information about a back door... and sneakily so, as she spoke in a language he couldn't understand. Well, might wish to ask him after you're done, then."

[Casa Wainwright]

"I know about all the stuff that will happen as I grow up dad...but not all start to sprout sand."
Anna said sourly.
"That just is not normal...people will think I am weird!"

He chuckled, "Sweetie, you're my adopted daughter, and bits of my reputation precede me as it is. A possibly undeserved repute for weirdness is probably going to be part and parcel of life in any case."

"Perhaps...I did not want to mess up the time line or something."
The young mage said and she looked up at you.
"She have a tube in her arm? Do that hurt?"
She asked sounding nervous.
"I had one when I woke up after I was shot and I ripped it out that hurt..."

He shook his head, "In my experience, the tube in the arm doesn't hurt, but it's quite unpleasant to rip it out, rather than let a skilled nurse ease it out normally."

"Yeah he did leave a pack of them. I will get them dad."
Anna said and she ran to the bathroom to get the scalpels, band aids and a sterile swab from the medicine cabinet.
"Is this good dad?"

He nodded, "Perfect. Now, if you'll sit down here, and I'll remove the old collar..."

He swiftly and precisely swapped the collars, reaffirming the 'contract' with Anna as he sealed the collar with a drop of blood from his left pinky, and wrapped the band aid over the tiny puncture before he could leak anywhere else, settling down to begin cleaning the Cultists' collar so they could get it back.

((OOC: Yep, that was a nice, verbose working. ))

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Basement]

Colin nodded, "Well, someone might come back for clarification - neither you nor I speak Enochian well, so there's bound to be something lost..."

"I do not speak Enochian at all as I was an Orphan who was trained by a Verbena Barabbus, so sure someone can asl for clarification but I am not sure how much help I will be able to offer as I don't understand it myself."
The prisoner said with a shrug.

[Nico's Room]

He frowned, "Well, damn... Tauge is unwilling to betray his Labyrinth, but it just might be that his Avatar gave us information about a back door... and sneakily so, as she spoke in a language he couldn't understand. Well, might wish to ask him after you're done, then."

"Well Avatars do not always agree with their hosts so it is possible. I will have a talk with the man once we are done here Mr Wainwright...is this the gentleman in the laundry room?"
Crexia asked.

[Casa Wainwright]

He chuckled, "Sweetie, you're my adopted daughter, and bits of my reputation precede me as it is. A possibly undeserved repute for weirdness is probably going to be part and parcel of life in any case."

"I guess so, but sweating sand...that is pretty odd."
Anna said with a sigh.

He shook his head, "In my experience, the tube in the arm doesn't hurt, but it's quite unpleasant to rip it out, rather than let a skilled nurse ease it out normally."

"Well they did not want to take it out and put one back in when I ripped it out...against my will, so I kicked them...but it did not help."
Anna said bitterly she had not gotten over that experience yet.

He nodded, "Perfect. Now, if you'll sit down here, and I'll remove the old collar..."

The apprentice nodded and sat down where indicated.

He swiftly and precisely swapped the collars, reaffirming the 'contract' with Anna as he sealed the collar with a drop of blood from his left pinky, and wrapped the band aid over the tiny puncture before he could leak anywhere else, settling down to begin cleaning the Cultists' collar so they could get it back.

You changed the collars and Anna agreed to the new one being placed on her and agreed to the contract again, once done she ran to the bathroom to check how it looked in the mirror.
"Oh very nice...."
She said then she returned to the living room.
"Thank you dad."
She said as she cleaned up the equipment and pointed at your finger.
"You should wash that as well dad."
She said as she put the band aid and knives back into the medicine cabinet then she put the cap back on the used scalpel.
"And this should be burned as it have your blood on it."
She said as she put it back down on the table.

[Jeremy Silverstein]

[Common Room]

"Indeed it do not make sense that she is just resting out there."
Ange said as she looked out the window again.
"Hum...perhaps I should go and talk with her...see what she says..."
She added more to herself than anyone else.

"Yeah, please don't do that." Serge said back. "It's too risky. I know you can defend yourself better than most but there's always a chance she could injure you. Or make an illusion to make it seem like your being injured to lure me out. Plus she doesn't know about you yet. It's better to keep it that way for the plan to work tomorrow. We know Wilda will make it through the day thanks to your future sight."

"I would never pressure you to talk about it Serge, I respect your decision but remember that helping yourself is the key to being able to help others, so taking a little while to take care of your own health might benefit everyone."
Your Mentor said and she gave you a warm smile.
"It is up to you but I am here if you need me."

"One day..." he said, it sounding more like a promise to himself. "But right now I need to go show Kyle some fun teleporting tricks. He needs all the distraction that he can get right now."

(OOC: Nice spell Strife!)

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Common Room]

Yeah, please don't do that." Serge said back. "It's too risky. I know you can defend yourself better than most but there's always a chance she could injure you. Or make an illusion to make it seem like your being injured to lure me out. Plus she doesn't know about you yet. It's better to keep it that way for the plan to work tomorrow. We know Wilda will make it through the day thanks to your future sight."

"I can take care of myself dear one so I should be fine, and yes Wilda will make it to tomorrow is is less her I am concerned about and more what she is plotting, which might not be good for anyone."
Your Mentor said with a frown.
"I doubt it will matter much if she sees me either she probably know there are older and more experienced magi at this location."
She said as she glanced out the window again.
"The question is more what use talking to her will have, if she will tell me anything."

"One day..." he said, it sounding more like a promise to himself. "But right now I need to go show Kyle some fun teleporting tricks. He needs all the distraction that he can get right now."

"Very well if you are sure Serge."
Ange said but she still looked very concerned for your well being.
"Any time you do need me then, you know where to find me. Now if you excuse me I have to find Miss Mar and tell her about our new tree outside, she is acting Security Chief of Steelhaven after all while Master Morgan is out."

[Adley]

[Nico's Rooms]

I get the same, something about a second entrance and something about five obsidian hands...I can try to cast a spell to get to the intention behind the words though that might get more."
Crexia offered. Darrian shook his head.
"I only started learning Enocian when the Children of Knowledge joined the Order of Hermes so I have no idea."
Nico just shook their head that they did not know either.

He frowned, "Well, damn... Tauge is unwilling to betray his Labyrinth, but it just might be that his Avatar gave us information about a back door... and sneakily so, as she spoke in a language he couldn't understand. Well, might wish to ask him after you're done, then."

"Well Avatars do not always agree with their hosts so it is possible. I will have a talk with the man once we are done here Mr Wainwright...is this the gentleman in the laundry room?"
Crexia asked.

He nodded to Colin. "There is more to this working, but yes...it does seem important." He wasn't sure which prisoner Tauge was, but assumed there was something important that had transpired.

Once the talismans were ready, and the ritual was closed he took a deep breath and stood back. He felt like a conduit, as if he'd been holding onto something electrical almost but not, and it had made a circuit of energy all around and into the small glasswork talismans. But he knew the feeling was going to fade, and when it did he was going to be exhausted. The prickle of adrenaline and focus would fade, and he was going to need something again to ground himself. Yet this was only the first part of it all. He looked at the others and nodded. "There, that seems to have worked well, thank you my sodalis. And the next part, we shall do for each person. Who shall be first, or shall we keep the same order?"

// I can't take the credit for what's not mine, so here is the footnote addendum : ) I researched and came up with a real kamea in translation from a reputable author (Book of Seals and Amulets if you are all curious, by J. Swart) and used that as a base and then added/adjusted it. His whole book series so far that I've looked at are good.

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Nico's Rooms]

Once the talismans were ready, and the ritual was closed he took a deep breath and stood back. He felt like a conduit, as if he'd been holding onto something electrical almost but not, and it had made a circuit of energy all around and into the small glasswork talismans. But he knew the feeling was going to fade, and when it did he was going to be exhausted. The prickle of adrenaline and focus would fade, and he was going to need something again to ground himself. Yet this was only the first part of it all. He looked at the others and nodded. "There, that seems to have worked well, thank you my sodalis. And the next part, we shall do for each person. Who shall be first, or shall we keep the same order?"

"I believe it best to keep the same order to keep the symmetry going."
Crexia said with a nod.
"Yes let us continue, do we need to be where the targets physically are for the next part of the working or do we do that here? For if we do need to be where they are I should send a text to Hildegard to get her to wake Cava up gently so we do not scare her while we go to the basement to work on the young Technocrat you brought in Mr Roth Hicks."
Darrian asked.
"Should I put the protective coating on the discs now? Or should I wait, with the coating they can be worn against skin, without it that is not advisable."
Nico asked.

(OOC: Ohh I think I might have that book, it is one of the books I have picked up but not read yet...I think i have to check my list. It is still nicely adapted to the game and you did allot of work adjusting it so well done.)

[Warpmind]

[Basement]

"I do not speak Enochian at all as I was an Orphan who was trained by a Verbena Barabbus, so sure someone can asl for clarification but I am not sure how much help I will be able to offer as I don't understand it myself."
The prisoner said with a shrug.

Colin shrugged, "You might be surprised at how much intent can be gleaned from a message..."

[Nico's Room]

"Well Avatars do not always agree with their hosts so it is possible. I will have a talk with the man once we are done here Mr Wainwright...is this the gentleman in the laundry room?"
Crexia asked.

He nodded to Colin. "There is more to this working, but yes...it does seem important." He wasn't sure which prisoner Tauge was, but assumed there was something important that had transpired.

He nodded, "The very same, Milady. The chap who arrived in disguise. He's... accepted his fate, as his Avatar is old and tired. He's willing to help us against Jace, but not against his Labyrinth. If his Avatar is of a different mind than he in the latter case, I don't think force will help us any."

[Casa Wainwright]

"I guess so, but sweating sand...that is pretty odd."
Anna said with a sigh.

He smiled thinly, "There are people who spit little rocks - calcified saliva - and that's quite odd, too. And there are other conditions that create similar materials in a human body, too, none of which are pleasant. So I guess a little oddness is a small price for not being physically discomforted by it all?"

"Well they did not want to take it out and put one back in when I ripped it out...against my will, so I kicked them...but it did not help."
Anna said bitterly she had not gotten over that experience yet.

He nodded, "A lot of things happen against our wills; some times, we just have to accept that they happen and deal with the consequences, other times, we can prevent them from happening. The little tube back then was a case of the former; it's one of the things that we can't change, but there were so many other things we managed to change back then - getting you those gloves for the ride home, for example, spared you a crucial moment's hesitation, and a great deal of panicked hand-washing later, and the collar ensured we could avoid the whole issue of the serum. Just keep in mind that every little change we can affect on time has consequences rippling outward, like throwing rocks in the water, so a few discomforts are... inevitable. And kicking doesn't always work, either..."
He smiled thinly, "Not every painful experience is to be avoided or changed; you'll understand this as you master the finer points of temporal magic - it takes a bit of discipline and patience to see which ones are worth the cost and risk of meddling."

You changed the collars and Anna agreed to the new one being placed on her and agreed to the contract again, once done she ran to the bathroom to check how it looked in the mirror.
"Oh very nice...."
She said then she returned to the living room.
"Thank you dad."
She said as she cleaned up the equipment and pointed at your finger.
"You should wash that as well dad."
She said as she put the band aid and knives back into the medicine cabinet then she put the cap back on the used scalpel.
"And this should be burned as it have your blood on it."
She said as she put it back down on the table.

He smiled wryly, "It was a small prick, and I disinfected the finger first... It will be fine, unless it somehow refuses to stop bleeding. But the band aid will suffice, I think. As for the scalpel, yes, that must be taken care of. I'll bring it up to Dr. Lee for proper disposal as soon as I've cleaned the collar."
He paused, then grinned, "Unless you want to ward the apartment with me first, of course."

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Basement]

Colin shrugged, "You might be surprised at how much intent can be gleaned from a message..."

"Hum...yes I guess you are right about that, we will see."
Tauge replied.

[Nico's Room]

He nodded, "The very same, Milady. The chap who arrived in disguise. He's... accepted his fate, as his Avatar is old and tired. He's willing to help us against Jace, but not against his Labyrinth. If his Avatar is of a different mind than he in the latter case, I don't think force will help us any."

"I guess there are some comfort to having accepted what will happen to him, some small comfort at least. But yes it may be his Avatar want to say something it do not want the host to know. I will see what I can find out, and no if it is the Avatar that wish to communicate with us, the harming the host will do nothing to achieve the goal of getting this information."
Crexia replied with a nod.

[Casa Wainwright]

He smiled thinly, "There are people who spit little rocks - calcified saliva - and that's quite odd, too. And there are other conditions that create similar materials in a human body, too, none of which are pleasant. So I guess a little oddness is a small price for not being physically discomforted by it all?"

"Are there really people who spit little rocks?"
Anna asked her eyes growing wide.
"Yeah I guess so but it is still embarrassing."
She complained with a sigh.

He nodded, "A lot of things happen against our wills; some times, we just have to accept that they happen and deal with the consequences, other times, we can prevent them from happening. The little tube back then was a case of the former; it's one of the things that we can't change, but there were so many other things we managed to change back then - getting you those gloves for the ride home, for example, spared you a crucial moment's hesitation, and a great deal of panicked hand-washing later, and the collar ensured we could avoid the whole issue of the serum. Just keep in mind that every little change we can affect on time has consequences rippling outward, like throwing rocks in the water, so a few discomforts are... inevitable. And kicking doesn't always work, either..."

"Yeah those gloves helped me get that dart out of Master Adimari's arm, and I am very grateful not to be put on the serum."
Your apprentice said and she touched the collar and shivered a little.
"I am not saying you should go back in time and change things at the hospital or anything, but those nurses was assholes and I did not like it."
She muttered sadly.
"I did not like it at all...and kicking usually helps."

He smiled thinly, "Not every painful experience is to be avoided or changed; you'll understand this as you master the finer points of temporal magic - it takes a bit of discipline and patience to see which ones are worth the cost and risk of meddling."

"Well I mean I would not go back in time and change everything I don't like I did not mean that only that I do not like what they did, they should not have done that to me!"
Anna muttered sourly.

He smiled wryly, "It was a small prick, and I disinfected the finger first... It will be fine, unless it somehow refuses to stop bleeding. But the band aid will suffice, I think. As for the scalpel, yes, that must be taken care of. I'll bring it up to Dr. Lee for proper disposal as soon as I've cleaned the collar."

"Ok as long as you are fine dad."
The young Orphan said with a nod.

He paused, then grinned, "Unless you want to ward the apartment with me first, of course."

Anna's eyes lit up at that.
"Ohh...ohh I want to ward the apartment with you."
She said eagerly and she jumped up and down excitedly.

[Warpmind]

[Casa Wainwright]

"Are there really people who spit little rocks?"
Anna asked her eyes growing wide.
"Yeah I guess so but it is still embarrassing."
She complained with a sigh.

Colin shrugged, "Well, spitting might be a little optimistic. I believe they usually have to be operated out if they're found."

"Yeah those gloves helped me get that dart out of Master Adimari's arm, and I am very grateful not to be put on the serum."
Your apprentice said and she touched the collar and shivered a little.
"I am not saying you should go back in time and change things at the hospital or anything, but those nurses was assholes and I did not like it."
She muttered sadly.
"I did not like it at all...and kicking usually helps."

He smiled thinly, "Well, hopefully, none of the nurses were unable to save other lives after your kicks... I would say you kick like a mule, but I'm not sure mules are as good at it as you."

"Well I mean I would not go back in time and change everything I don't like I did not mean that only that I do not like what they did, they should not have done that to me!"
Anna muttered sourly.

He nodded, "The first tube was with good reason, while they were busy saving your life. The replacement... perhaps not so much, no. But then, they are sleepers, and not well acquainted with magical healing..."

Anna's eyes lit up at that.
"Ohh...ohh I want to ward the apartment with you."
She said eagerly and she jumped up and down excitedly.

He grinned as he went to the kitchen and mixed a baking soda and vinegar solution, "Very good, I'll clean the collar, then we ward the apartment. Why don't you check on Yu Die in the meantime? If she's to sleep in another apartment tonight, she might not want to sleep too much here first..."

[Adley]

[Nico's rooms]

"Yes let us continue, do we need to be where the targets physically are for the next part of the working or do we do that here? For if we do need to be where they are I should send a text to Hildegard to get her to wake Cava up gently so we do not scare her while we go to the basement to work on the young Technocrat you brought in Mr Roth Hicks."

"At least on my end, yes I need to be in their presence directly. So that course of action seems wise, sir."

"Should I put the protective coating on the discs now? Or should I wait, with the coating they can be worn against skin, without it that is not advisable."
Nico asked.

"Yes, as they will need to wear them once we conclude the next part of the ritual, the coating will be necessary. Perhaps it would be timewise to work on that while we do the next working?"

//   so tired...please people, stop panic shopping

[Nicole Bouchard]

[Waltham]

Anja's Post:

'One more thing; possibility of traps in the road. Our plan depends on the cars not getting like blown up before we get to the building. Plus, any perimeter alarms and shit.'

Anja's Post:

'Depends where you surprise 'em.' Nicole replied, a cigarette jammed in her mouth as she checked the action of her carbine again. 'Most of our bases and shit already have like pre-prepared defences, plans and stuff - the fact the Fallen keep on failing to take us out is 'cos they don't plan the attack, simply throws some bodies at us and hopes it all works out.'

'Anyhows, this ain't like some alley scrap or shit. The enemy has a most sweet defensive position, like; give me some kit and a few days and I could make it a fucking fortress.'

[Forumotion's servers are much better than they used to be; back in say '14 it was around 15% chance you'd fail to post 'cos the servers were overloaded. Though a bit before your time.]

[Good news; people can't panic-buy forever. After all, they'll either run out of cash, storage space or things to buy. Or they'll be sick.]

[Here in Blighty; supermarkets looking more like East Germany by the day. Staples so short half the country would be forced onto an Atkins diet. Freezer sections around 30% capacity, tinned perhaps at 20%. We're not at 'total panic' stations yet; there's still supplies of tea and biscuits *smirks*. I'm okay for now as I've always tried to keep a week's worth of everything on-hand, but I'm going to need some more toilet paper and painkillers by Tuesday...]

[Thing is, I don't really blame them. Much. Shops etc operate on 'Just in Time' ordering; meaning they don't have huge depots of stuff waiting to be put on the shelves. If just one part of the chain breaks - say, too many delivery drivers are sick / the plant shuts down / can't get in precursors - we'd have empty shelves within 1-2 days even from 'normal levels' of purchasing. British industry sweats it's plant to the maximum too, meaning there isn't *any* spare capacity to ramp up production if needed.]

[Worst thing is; I'm sick. No, not with pangolin - no temperature or cough. But still... *rolls eyes*]

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Waltham]

One more thing; possibility of traps in the road. Our plan depends on the cars not getting like blown up before we get to the building. Plus, any perimeter alarms and shit.'

"It is possible, we are going to have to keep our eyes open as we go."
Jeffry said with a nod.

Depends where you surprise 'em.' Nicole replied, a cigarette jammed in her mouth as she checked the action of her carbine again. 'Most of our bases and shit already have like pre-prepared defences, plans and stuff - the fact the Fallen keep on failing to take us out is 'cos they don't plan the attack, simply throws some bodies at us and hopes it all works out.'

"Hum...that is true I guess, what if it was out on the street, you are just out to catch a movie and someone jump you boom, what then?"
Gerda asked as Jeffry went to check on the cars and finish his work on them. Once he was done he signaled for everyone to get in, it was time to go.

[Nico's Room]

"At least on my end, yes I need to be in their presence directly. So that course of action seems wise, sir."

Darrian nodded and he started typing up a message on his phone.
"Should I ask Hildegard to bring her here or to my room?"
He asked.

"Yes, as they will need to wear them once we conclude the next part of the ritual, the coating will be necessary. Perhaps it would be timewise to work on that while we do the next working?"

"That works for me."
Nico said with a nod.
"I will do the coating while the rest of you go to do the working on Cava and the prisoner?"

[Casa Wainwright]

Colin shrugged, "Well, spitting might be a little optimistic. I believe they usually have to be operated out if they're found."

"Ohh...well that would suck."
Anna said and she chewed on her lower lip.

He smiled thinly, "Well, hopefully, none of the nurses were unable to save other lives after your kicks... I would say you kick like a mule, but I'm not sure mules are as good at it as you."

"I guess...I hope they where not injured."
Your apprentice muttered and she looked down and sigh.
"But they should not have held me down and stuck me with a needle."

He nodded, "The first tube was with good reason, while they were busy saving your life. The replacement... perhaps not so much, no. But then, they are sleepers, and not well acquainted with magical healing..."

"I don't remember when they placed the first one for I was out. But when I removed it and they held me down to place another one was the first time anyone ever stuck me with a needle after all that time watching Gabriel...magickal healing had always been used on me and when they had to remove that tail I drunk something and was again out...I was scared."
She muttered and she rubbed her arms.

He grinned as he went to the kitchen and mixed a baking soda and vinegar solution, "Very good, I'll clean the collar, then we ward the apartment. Why don't you check on Yu Die in the meantime? If she's to sleep in another apartment tonight, she might not want to sleep too much here first..."

"Ok I can do that dad, but she is really tired after all that have happened today."
Your apprentice said as she headed over to the sofa to wake up Yu Die.
"She really need a rest."

(OOC: It is good to have about a week worth of supplies absolutely and if people had gotten that not a problem but pepole get supplies for many months when at least here there is not a supply shortage.)

(OOC 2: Get well Nicole.)

[Nicole Bouchard]

[Waltham]

Anja's Post:

'Oh... goodie.' Nicole replied sardonically. 'Now, to quickly form into two teams. Ideally, each will have a medic and one who can disarm traps and shit.'

Anja's Post:

'Depends on who and where. Last time that happened to me ended up in a dumpster getting riddled with rounds, me. I'll say this; they ain't as bulletproof as they are on TV.'

[Norway's population demographics might have something to do with the lack of panic. After all, my very-humdrum town by Norwegian standards would be the tenth biggest settlement in the country and has a density only slightly lower than Oslo's. While I've never been to Norway, I suspect many people have more 'reserves' as they can't shop so much 'at will' as we can (saw this when I lived in Wales) and the lower densities mean 'social distancing' is much easier to achieve.]

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Waltham]

'Oh... goodie.' Nicole replied sardonically. 'Now, to quickly form into two teams. Ideally, each will have a medic and one who can disarm traps and shit.'

"Agreed, if you would handle the splitting into teams then Miss Bouchard and I will see to the enchantments."
Jeffry said.
"And yes both teams should be able to identify traps."'He agreed.

'Depends on who and where. Last time that happened to me ended up in a dumpster getting riddled with rounds, me. I'll say this; they ain't as bulletproof as they are on TV.'

Gerda gave a bit of a chuckle at that.
"Well I guess it would depend on who decided to jump you eh?"
She asked with a grin.
"Well we should all get ready for the task at hand rather than playing the what if game I guess."

(OOC: There are some smaller places that do not have the biggest shops, but the majority of Norway's population live in towns and villages where we can get just about anything we want, at least with a short drive. I grew up in a small town, you could get all you wanted of groceries and a a few other things but with a 15 min bus ride I could go in to a nearby city that had most anything I would want so most of us do not live in the sticks, even the tiny town where we borrowed my grand uncle's cabin to vacation in for several years when I was a kid had a nearby store where you ould get supplies. There are a few very remote towns and communities but not allot. I live in a large suburb, there is a large mall ten minutes walk from me and 25 minute buss ride will get me to Norway's second largest city. My mother always have a food storage though but that is because she do not have allot of money and by stocking up when it is cheap, trading alternative treatments, which is what she do, for meat with her hunter friends and going over to Sweden to get food cheaply she can eat well and healthy allot cheaper.)

[Nicole Bouchard]

[Waltham]

Anja's Post:

'You heard the guy.' Nicole quipped turning to the group. 'Who here knows how to deal with traps and the like we'll run into here?'

Anja's Post:

'That it does. But each has their own plans and shit. Some make themselves unkillable, others make themselves unnoticeable.'

[True; but bear in mind Norway's lack of big settlements means your small towns have *not* been nuked of smaller retail units like they have in the UK/USA by the 'Meglomarts' of the world (not economic to do so due to lack of population density). And from what I've heard, the USA is in even worse situation than the UK; I remember trying to explain the concept of a 'corner shop' to an American and their reply was 'sounds stupid, I'll just get in the car and drive to the Meglomart.']

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Waltham]

'You heard the guy.' Nicole quipped turning to the group. 'Who here knows how to deal with traps and the like we'll run into here?'

"It depend on the traps. I can increase our luck that might help."
Marian said.
"It really depends if you are talking about dealing with something made from Ether or rendering a mechanism harmless, I can do the latter but not the former. I am a decent medic though."
Axel replied.
"I can disenchant a magickal trap."
Antonio chimed in.
"As can I."
The pretty Goth kid who had spoken earlier replied.

'That it does. But each has their own plans and shit. Some make themselves unkillable, others make themselves unnoticeable.'

"Both seam to be fairly good strategies. I prefer the unnoticeable myself but unkillable would be good as well."
Gerda said with an approving nod.

(OOC: Well we have a handful of grocery store chains and most grocery stores are one of these, there are a few corner stores left, but most have been either taken over by or driven out by the chain stores, off course our chain stores are not quite as big as the American ones.

[Warpmind]

[Casa Wainwright]

"I guess...I hope they where not injured."
Your apprentice muttered and she looked down and sigh.
"But they should not have held me down and stuck me with a needle."

Colin nodded, "No, they should not have. But, they work under immense pressure, and it can be hard to discern disorientation from phobia under such circumstances, so I can understand why they made the error in judgment, even if I don't approve of it. But let us hope they didn't suffer lasting injury, and that it won't happen again - on in American terms, let us hope it hurt, and that they learned their lesson..."

"I don't remember when they placed the first one for I was out. But when I removed it and they held me down to place another one was the first time anyone ever stuck me with a needle after all that time watching Gabriel...magickal healing had always been used on me and when they had to remove that tail I drunk something and was again out...I was scared."
She muttered and she rubbed her arms.

He smiled thinly, "Well, some day, you'll be able to deal with the presence of needles. Baby steps, Sweetie, baby steps."

"Ok I can do that dad, but she is really tired after all that have happened today."
Your apprentice said as she headed over to the sofa to wake up Yu Die.
"She really need a rest."

He nodded, "Very well, I can try to carry her over without waking her up instead, then... No need to wake her up, though she might end up a little disoriented when she wakes up."

((OOC: The big distinction here is that even in most of the larger chains in Norway, you can't get everything from food to consumer electronics to furniture to power tools et cetera. We've still mostly got specialty chains, rather than the bloated horror that is Walmart and their ilk. Corner shops of sorts still live and thrive in Norway, even if they've joined up with various chains; there's still quite a bit of independence for them left - I know of a few shops that have switched their allegiance a few times over the past decade, for example. Even in central Bergen, there are tiny shops that, independent or not, seem to do quite well, thanks to the absence of the town-eating shoggoths that have popped up in other countries. For reference, see Terry Pratchett's Reaper Man. ))

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Casa Wainwright]

Colin nodded, "No, they should not have. But, they work under immense pressure, and it can be hard to discern disorientation from phobia under such circumstances, so I can understand why they made the error in judgment, even if I don't approve of it. But let us hope they didn't suffer lasting injury, and that it won't happen again - on in American terms, let us hope it hurt, and that they learned their lesson..."

"I guess they where trying to help but they held me down."
Anna muttered then she sigh.
"But I did make an apology letter like you asked me to that could be sent anonymously to the hospital and I hope those nurses was not hurt."
She said a bit reluctantly.

He smiled thinly, "Well, some day, you'll be able to deal with the presence of needles. Baby steps, Sweetie, baby steps."

"I don't think I ever will."
Your apprentice declared.
"Well perhaps I could be around while Yu Die sews...maybe...possibly but nothing else, well perhaps...I could do one of those wards that Miss Blackwell told me about that is made in jars...maybe!"

He nodded, "Very well, I can try to carry her over without waking her up instead, then... No need to wake her up, though she might end up a little disoriented when she wakes up."

"I think it will be okey if you carry her over to Jane's she will catch on where she is pretty quickly."
Anna said with a nod then she looked concerned.
"With what happened with her Mentor she really need the rest, and I mean she have been watching over me when she should have slept herself."
She said with a sigh.
"And you know she really miss her Mentor...but she don't know how to trust him again."

[Jeremy Silverstein]

[Common Room]

"I can take care of myself dear one so I should be fine, and yes Wilda will make it to tomorrow is is less her I am concerned about and more what she is plotting, which might not be good for anyone."
Your Mentor said with a frown.
"I doubt it will matter much if she sees me either she probably know there are older and more experienced magi at this location."
She said as she glanced out the window again.
"The question is more what use talking to her will have, if she will tell me anything."

"That's what the mentor always says before she goes off into danger, never to return." Serge said, sounding incredulous. "But I do believe you. Though unless you force it out of her she probably won't tell you anything. Not unless you have something to offer her....which we do but its doubtful she'll believe us."

"Very well if you are sure Serge."
Ange said but she still looked very concerned for your well being.
"Any time you do need me then, you know where to find me. Now if you excuse me I have to find Miss Mar and tell her about our new tree outside, she is acting Security Chief of Steelhaven after all while Master Morgan is out."

"I understand. You don't have to worry Ange. It was just a small return of bad memories. And as long as your nearby I can get through anything." he said with a smile. "And I guess I'm off to teach Kyle about Hammerspace."

He watched his mentor leave to find Miss Mar and when she was gone, Serge took another look through the glass at the tree outside. Just to confirmed that it was in face doing nothing of note.

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Common Room]

"That's what the mentor always says before she goes off into danger, never to return." Serge said, sounding incredulous. "But I do believe you. Though unless you force it out of her she probably won't tell you anything. Not unless you have something to offer her....which we do but its doubtful she'll believe us."

"Oh I am not quite ready to leave this world quite yet Serge, you do not have to worry about me. However before I do anything I will discuss the matter with Miss Mar, as you say it is doubtful the banshee will tell us anything and I am not about to take a risk for no possibility of a reward so to speak, we will see."
Ange said with a frown.

"I understand. You don't have to worry Ange. It was just a small return of bad memories. And as long as your nearby I can get through anything." he said with a smile. "And I guess I'm off to teach Kyle about Hammerspace."

Ange gave you a warm smile and she nodded.
"I am glad to hear that, even so, you know where to find me and I always have time for you my magickal son."
She said.
"Very well, off you go then, see if you can help the young Hermetic."
The Cultist added with a smile.

He watched his mentor leave to find Miss Mar and when she was gone, Serge took another look through the glass at the tree outside. Just to confirmed that it was in face doing nothing of note.

The older Cultist limped of on her crutches. The decrepit old, and yet alluring as it looked like something from a child's story book, tree still stood outside, doing absolutely nothing what you could see, it was just there, for some reason.

[Warpmind]

[Casa Wainwright]

"I guess they where trying to help but they held me down."
Anna muttered then she sigh.
"But I did make an apology letter like you asked me to that could be sent anonymously to the hospital and I hope those nurses was not hurt."
She said a bit reluctantly.

Colin smiled, "So you did. And we were rather expedient in getting you out of there, even if we didn't know how important you were at that point."

"I don't think I ever will."
Your apprentice declared.
"Well perhaps I could be around while Yu Die sews...maybe...possibly but nothing else, well perhaps...I could do one of those wards that Miss Blackwell told me about that is made in jars...maybe!"

He grimaced, "Those wards are usually quite Linear, and I should rather hope you would do some more Dynamic work. However, I have reason to believe you'll be able to handle the presence of needles eventually. You might never become a master darts player or seamstress, but you'll be able to keep calm in their presence. Hum. We'll get Master Morgan to teach you a ward to repel small objects, though - he's offered to do so."

"I think it will be okey if you carry her over to Jane's she will catch on where she is pretty quickly."
Anna said with a nod then she looked concerned.
"With what happened with her Mentor she really need the rest, and I mean she have been watching over me when she should have slept herself."
She said with a sigh.
"And you know she really miss her Mentor...but she don't know how to trust him again."

He sighed, "I don't know if she ever will fully forgive him, but I don't think it was his fault. He was either duped or compelled to give her that shot against her will, by someone working for the Nephandi. It's blatantly obvious, really, when you look at how quickly Dahl found her after she'd run off - he would not have been able to corner her so quickly, had they not been planning for that moment of betrayal..."

He frowned and sat down with all the necessary cleaning implements to clean the leather and metal of the collar properly, and got to work. He could've done this with magic, but it didn't feel right to do so; this was the sort of thing that required manual care...

((OOC: Mmm, today's sleepy. So nice and lazy and snoozey. ))

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Casa Wainwright]

Colin smiled, "So you did. And we were rather expedient in getting you out of there, even if we didn't know how important you were at that point."

"Yeah you did and I appreciate that, and I appreciate you taking me in dad and not just handing me over to Horizon for...well you know."
Anna said and she shuddered again.

He grimaced, "Those wards are usually quite Linear, and I should rather hope you would do some more Dynamic work. However, I have reason to believe you'll be able to handle the presence of needles eventually. You might never become a master darts player or seamstress, but you'll be able to keep calm in their presence. Hum. We'll get Master Morgan to teach you a ward to repel small objects, though - he's offered to do so."

"Miss Blackwell are an Awakened mage I think it really depend more on whatever or not you are Awakened rather than what methods you use, those Hermetic hedge wizards who visited here when I came to live at Steelhaven use the same methods as Master Morgan or Mr Roth Hicks and yet their magic is linear."
Anna replied then she nodded.
"A ward against small objects would be very reassuring. Well I don't want to consider how...comfortable I might get I have agreed to taking part in therapy that will have to be enough for now."
Your apprentice muttered sourly.

He sighed, "I don't know if she ever will fully forgive him, but I don't think it was his fault. He was either duped or compelled to give her that shot against her will, by someone working for the Nephandi. It's blatantly obvious, really, when you look at how quickly Dahl found her after she'd run off - he would not have been able to corner her so quickly, had they not been planning for that moment of betrayal..."

"Yeah...Yu Die said that...Riverside had decided to check everyone for that cyber plague and Dr Wang could not talk them out of also testing Yu Die so he had some of the others old her while he did it, saying he could do it easier and cleaner than someone who is not trained but it still is not right! I am glad the Nephandus did not get her through, or we would have had to go to the Labyrinth to get her back!"
Anna declared.
"And tear the place apart until we found her!"

He frowned and sat down with all the necessary cleaning implements to clean the leather and metal of the collar properly, and got to work. He could've done this with magic, but it didn't feel right to do so; this was the sort of thing that required manual care...

There was no leather part, all of it was metal, it looked like silver or chrome but might be neither material, it was cold and smooth and well worked with no inscriptions or other markings than the lock and the hinge. You got the collar cleaned as Anna went back to her book while she waited for you.

(OOC: Vervain agree with you.)

[Adley]

[Nico's rooms]

Darrian nodded and he started typing up a message on his phone.
"Should I ask Hildegard to bring her here or to my room?"
He asked.

"That works for me."
Nico said with a nod.
"I will do the coating while the rest of you go to do the working on Cava and the prisoner?"

"If it is alright with you," he said to Nico, "We could save time if she is brought here. The circle is already made and we can use that and then directly give her the talisman afterward. Unless it will interrupt finishing your work?"


// Or there will literally be nothing left for them to buy, as the warehouses, producers cannot keep up. Several stores around me are reducing hours just to be able to clean up and restock what we do have left. Getting extra stuff, up to a month's supply is recommended but people are buying so much in excess that it is causing the shortages and service interruptions already, which if things do get worse later due to call outs and such and there are reduced deliveries means that some people are gonna be SOL. Anyways, please be kind to your shop workers today lol it's been like Black Friday/Boxing day for over a week but with added fear of death.

Feel better soon Nic-p, it sucks to have regular colds and allergies right now. Everyone thinks you got 'the thing' even if you don't have symtpoms that fit.

[Warpmind]

[Casa Wainwright]

"Yeah you did and I appreciate that, and I appreciate you taking me in dad and not just handing me over to Horizon for...well you know."
Anna said and she shuddered again.

Colin sighed softly, "I don't know that I could've done that anyway, to be honest..."

"Miss Blackwell are an Awakened mage I think it really depend more on whatever or not you are Awakened rather than what methods you use, those Hermetic hedge wizards who visited here when I came to live at Steelhaven use the same methods as Master Morgan or Mr Roth Hicks and yet their magic is linear."
Anna replied then she nodded.
"A ward against small objects would be very reassuring. Well I don't want to consider how...comfortable I might get I have agreed to taking part in therapy that will have to be enough for now."
Your apprentice muttered sourly.

He nodded, "Touché. And yes, that is enough for now. Baby steps, as I said. We've got years ahead."

"Yeah...Yu Die said that...Riverside had decided to check everyone for that cyber plague and Dr Wang could not talk them out of also testing Yu Die so he had some of the others old her while he did it, saying he could do it easier and cleaner than someone who is not trained but it still is not right! I am glad the Nephandus did not get her through, or we would have had to go to the Labyrinth to get her back!"
Anna declared.
"And tear the place apart until we found her!"

He smiled thinly, "Yes, we would. Well, we're still going there, we just don't have to look for her, too."

There was no leather part, all of it was metal, it looked like silver or chrome but might be neither material, it was cold and smooth and well worked with no inscriptions or other markings than the lock and the hinge. You got the collar cleaned as Anna went back to her book while she waited for you.

He finished the polish, and put the collar in a case he'd long since prepared for this, then fished out his Chaos wand, brandishing it with the Prime ring on the same hand, "Alright, Sweetie, are you ready to make the apartment disappear again?"

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