Re: A Spy, A Dark Alliance and a Trial IC Thread 59

[Warpmind]

[Chantry Complex]

"I see no reason why divination would exist if we where just supposed to sit with our hands in our lap and say oh to bad that is meant to be. Fuck no I do what I can to prevent bad things I see."
Martha replied firmly.
"What can be hard is when I see things completely out of my control, but it is never a question for me whatever I should just sit back and wait to learn what I should do. I should do my best to prevent bad things happening, it will not always work but not from lack of trying."

Colin shook his head, "Some times... bad things need to happen to someone, to open the door to a better future. That's not to say there's no softening the blow... or even taking it ourselves to protect another, but some times, the best we can do is to show up with the figurative first aid kit and help mend what we can. The hard part is not to beat ourselves up over what we cannot change or prevent... but we do indeed have to do our best to negate harm."

Julianna just nodded. You can identify the mark as being that of a Meajin Incarna but not much more, it is similar to the one Flavian had but not the same.

He nodded thoughtfully, "Yes, definitely a Meajin Incarna. Not sure which elements are specific to the patron, and which are specific to the... gift and the price, but I would hazard the spiky segments are related to Lord Steel."

The prisoners just looked at you and said nothing.

"Classic Villain. Thinks he's so much cooler than he actually is." Serge said chuckling curious to hear the prisoners answers to the question.

Julianna smiled, the kind of smile a an adult give a small child who said something delightfully childish then turned back to Colin waiting for the next question.

He sighed softly, shaking his head, "Different kind of villain, I'm afraid - he's the genius who has started believing his own propaganda; he may be a fair bit cleverer than me, but he's not as clever as he believes himself to be. Coolness doesn't play into it, from his perspective."
He leaned closer to Julianna, staring into her eyes, "You've met Jace, haven't you? You know what happened to the last three Labyrinths he worked with, right? Abigail's Chicago base, Lisa Larson's hijacked polyp in Boston, and most recently the Labyrinth that was... adopted. Every Labyrinth Jace has worked with has just been a bloody sacrifice in the name of his personal pursuit of power... Not the Malfean ideal of nothingness, not the unmaking of Creation, just... a petty power grab for himself, no greater purpose than his own lust for power... Go on, ask your own Avatar if my words ring true; neither your cause nor mine are served by that bastard."

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Chantry Complex]

Colin shook his head, "Some times... bad things need to happen to someone, to open the door to a better future. That's not to say there's no softening the blow... or even taking it ourselves to protect another, but some times, the best we can do is to show up with the figurative first aid kit and help mend what we can. The hard part is not to beat ourselves up over what we cannot change or prevent... but we do indeed have to do our best to negate harm."

"Yeah no just no I mean no disrespect Mr Wainwright but that is bullshit. I am the slave of no one and not the future either. If someone is in danger I will help them no matter what fate wants."
Martha replied with a scowl.
"To do otherwise is just cruel."

e nodded thoughtfully, "Yes, definitely a Meajin Incarna. Not sure which elements are specific to the patron, and which are specific to the... gift and the price, but I would hazard the spiky segments are related to Lord Steel."

Julianna said nothing she just looked at you.

He sighed softly, shaking his head, "Different kind of villain, I'm afraid - he's the genius who has started believing his own propaganda; he may be a fair bit cleverer than me, but he's not as clever as he believes himself to be. Coolness doesn't play into it, from his perspective."
He leaned closer to Julianna, staring into her eyes, "You've met Jace, haven't you? You know what happened to the last three Labyrinths he worked with, right? Abigail's Chicago base, Lisa Larson's hijacked polyp in Boston, and most recently the Labyrinth that was... adopted. Every Labyrinth Jace has worked with has just been a bloody sacrifice in the name of his personal pursuit of power... Not the Malfean ideal of nothingness, not the unmaking of Creation, just... a petty power grab for himself, no greater purpose than his own lust for power... Go on, ask your own Avatar if my words ring true; neither your cause nor mine are served by that bastard."

"Oh yeah I meet him all the time during our Nephandi socials."
Julianna said sarcastically.
"Do you really expect me to answer any of these questions Mr Wainwright?"

[Jeremy Silverstein]

[Chantry Complex]

He sighed softly, shaking his head, "Different kind of villain, I'm afraid - he's the genius who has started believing his own propaganda; he may be a fair bit cleverer than me, but he's not as clever as he believes himself to be. Coolness doesn't play into it, from his perspective."
He leaned closer to Julianna, staring into her eyes, "You've met Jace, haven't you? You know what happened to the last three Labyrinths he worked with, right? Abigail's Chicago base, Lisa Larson's hijacked polyp in Boston, and most recently the Labyrinth that was... adopted. Every Labyrinth Jace has worked with has just been a bloody sacrifice in the name of his personal pursuit of power... Not the Malfean ideal of nothingness, not the unmaking of Creation, just... a petty power grab for himself, no greater purpose than his own lust for power... Go on, ask your own Avatar if my words ring true; neither your cause nor mine are served by that bastard."

"Oh yeah I meet him all the time during our Nephandi socials."
Julianna said sarcastically.
"Do you really expect me to answer any of these questions Mr Wainwright?"

Serge stayed silent as Colin continued his questioning, feeling as if his own glib comment didn't really do much to progress the interrogation and at worst made it more difficult for his cabal leader.

He tried to think of some alternative angle to attack from but without magick to aid them he wasn't really sure how to get information from the prisoners. Angering them would just make them clam up more and without knowing who they were as people it would be difficult to entice or bait them with rewards.

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

Chantry Complex]

Serge stayed silent as Colin continued his questioning, feeling as if his own glib comment didn't really do much to progress the interrogation and at worst made it more difficult for his cabal leader.

He tried to think of some alternative angle to attack from but without magick to aid them he wasn't really sure how to get information from the prisoners. Angering them would just make them clam up more and without knowing who they were as people it would be difficult to entice or bait them with rewards.

Your Mentor had once told you that if you did not want to risk spilling the beans about something to not be baited into saying anything, if someone was goading you for information say nothing, do no respond to taunts or threats and just shrug and be silent, these prisoners seamed to be doing the same thing, they seldom responded much to any question, including taunts. Getting them to talk would probably involve getting to know them more to learn what motivated them. It also made things worse that these three was doomed and there was little that could be offered to make their sentence lighter, they could be offered comforts during their captivity but there was little else which made it harder to get them willing to talk.

[Warpmind]

[Chantry Complex]

"Yeah no just no I mean no disrespect Mr Wainwright but that is bullshit. I am the slave of no one and not the future either. If someone is in danger I will help them no matter what fate wants."
Martha replied with a scowl.
"To do otherwise is just cruel."

Colin shook his head, "I'm not saying not to help, I am saying it can be hard to tell how much you'll be able to help... A crucial distinction."

"Oh yeah I meet him all the time during our Nephandi socials."
Julianna said sarcastically.
"Do you really expect me to answer any of these questions Mr Wainwright?"

Serge stayed silent as Colin continued his questioning, feeling as if his own glib comment didn't really do much to progress the interrogation and at worst made it more difficult for his cabal leader.

He tried to think of some alternative angle to attack from but without magick to aid them he wasn't really sure how to get information from the prisoners. Angering them would just make them clam up more and without knowing who they were as people it would be difficult to entice or bait them with rewards.

Your Mentor had once told you that if you did not want to risk spilling the beans about something to not be baited into saying anything, if someone was goading you for information say nothing, do no respond to taunts or threats and just shrug and be silent, these prisoners seamed to be doing the same thing, they seldom responded much to any question, including taunts. Getting them to talk would probably involve getting to know them more to learn what motivated them. It also made things worse that these three was doomed and there was little that could be offered to make their sentence lighter, they could be offered comforts during their captivity but there was little else which made it harder to get them willing to talk.

He smiled thinly, "Hope springs eternal, but no, I don't really expect a verbal answer. But it wasn't really vocal responses I was fishing for, merely... gauging your expressions for now. It doesn't matter, in the long run. When the end comes, I will likely be there to consume what remains of your Avatars, and I can question them then... No final oblivion, just me. Now, I believe my young companion had something he was eager to ask you?"

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Chantry Complex]

Colin shook his head, "I'm not saying not to help, I am saying it can be hard to tell how much you'll be able to help... A crucial distinction."

"Yes if it is something you are not able to stop because those you try to help will not listen to warnings or what is coming is beyond your ability to affect then sure, but to not try to stop it because you think it is fate that what terrible thing you have seen happen, no just no.

He smiled thinly, "Hope springs eternal, but no, I don't really expect a verbal answer. But it wasn't really vocal responses I was fishing for, merely... gauging your expressions for now. It doesn't matter, in the long run. When the end comes, I will likely be there to consume what remains of your Avatars, and I can question them then... No final oblivion, just me. Now, I believe my young companion had something he was eager to ask you?"

Julianna shivered at that.
"Well a danger of the calling I guess."
She muttered and turned towards Serge.
"Ask your question kid."

[Nicole Bouchard]

[Concordia]

Anja's Post:

Silently, Nicole picked up her phone, searched for the radar app and fired it up, wondering if it would work here...

Anja's Post:

'Why? Most Mystics have little to no clout in the Mundie world. In fact, as far as I can tell most of 'em don't even really care about it.'

Anja's Post:

'Working n the shadows also means you can be killed in the shadows.'

Anja's Post:

'At least our folks are a bit more protected than others; they are already aware the world don't operate how it's "supposed to". Perhaps the best bet is to simply like, increase the "there's shit out there you don't have a clue about" rating and to advise them to be on their toes.' Nicole replied, clearly at a loss on how to progress on this. 'But one thing I have decided that I am gonna fill in my Uncle a bit more, and ask him to be like, my eyes. Y'know, if any shit does go down I'll be able to call in a favour to look at it or something.'

Anja's Post:

'Nah, just know what to look for, me. One, nobody came in here for just coffee. Two, there's a busy coffee place 'bout three stores down. Three, it's either decent booze or coffee, not both. Though occasionally neither.'

[For the times it's not a 'spelling error'? What if this misunderstanding happened in a critical discussion and it pissed off an NPC?]

[Jeremy Silverstein]

[Chantry Complex]

Your Mentor had once told you that if you did not want to risk spilling the beans about something to not be baited into saying anything, if someone was goading you for information say nothing, do no respond to taunts or threats and just shrug and be silent, these prisoners seamed to be doing the same thing, they seldom responded much to any question, including taunts. Getting them to talk would probably involve getting to know them more to learn what motivated them. It also made things worse that these three was doomed and there was little that could be offered to make their sentence lighter, they could be offered comforts during their captivity but there was little else which made it harder to get them willing to talk.

He smiled thinly, "Hope springs eternal, but no, I don't really expect a verbal answer. But it wasn't really vocal responses I was fishing for, merely... gauging your expressions for now. It doesn't matter, in the long run. When the end comes, I will likely be there to consume what remains of your Avatars, and I can question them then... No final oblivion, just me. Now, I believe my young companion had something he was eager to ask you?"

Julianna shivered at that.
"Well a danger of the calling I guess."
She muttered and turned towards Serge.
"Ask your question kid."

"Hmmmm....I did have a question for you. Although you've shown that you won't answer any serious questions. Sooo..." Serge said looking up at the ceiling as he remembered his mentor's words. It may be too late to try and be friendly with the prisoners, but their was no harm in trying.

"Let's try a fun question. What's your favorite animal?" he asked completely seriously. "It's not fair that we only ever ask kids that question. I'm certain everyone's got a pretty good answer to it as well. Birds, Fish, Sub Saharan African wildcats. So many choices out there. Come on floors open to everyone."

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Concordia]

Silently, Nicole picked up her phone, searched for the radar app and fired it up, wondering if it would work here...

It worked but there was so many dots as to make it all but useless, mages hedge wizards, the dragons, spirits various supernatural beings of all sort of shape and form was everywhere, your screen filled with dots.

Why? Most Mystics have little to no clout in the Mundie world. In fact, as far as I can tell most of 'em don't even really care about it.'

"That is fair, that is the biggest leg up the Union have on the Traditions, they have established themselves among the Sleepers we have not, not even the Etherites have."
Carlos replied with a frown.

'At least our folks are a bit more protected than others; they are already aware the world don't operate how it's "supposed to". Perhaps the best bet is to simply like, increase the "there's shit out there you don't have a clue about" rating and to advise them to be on their toes.' Nicole replied, clearly at a loss on how to progress on this. 'But one thing I have decided that I am gonna fill in my Uncle a bit more, and ask him to be like, my eyes. Y'know, if any shit does go down I'll be able to call in a favour to look at it or something.'

"Good luck with that. Hopefully it will lead to you at least getting closer to your uncle...as for my family yeah I might take your advice on that just indicate it might be some freaky shit out there and advice them to be careful."
The other Ethrite replied.

'Nah, just know what to look for, me. One, nobody came in here for just coffee. Two, there's a busy coffee place 'bout three stores down. Three, it's either decent booze or coffee, not both. Though occasionally neither.'

"It seams we have Sherlock Holmes on our hands here."
Carlos said with a chuckle.
"Well I will make a point to pick up a decent cup of coffee before returning to the conference then."

[Chantry Complex]

Hmmmm....I did have a question for you. Although you've shown that you won't answer any serious questions. Sooo..." Serge said looking up at the ceiling as he remembered his mentor's words. It may be too late to try and be friendly with the prisoners, but their was no harm in trying.

"Let's try a fun question. What's your favorite animal?" he asked completely seriously. "It's not fair that we only ever ask kids that question. I'm certain everyone's got a pretty good answer to it as well. Birds, Fish, Sub Saharan African wildcats. So many choices out there. Come on floors open to everyone."

Julianna just looked at Serge as if he had gone insane but Show muttered.
"Hottentotta tamulus, the Eastern Indian Scorpion I have one as a pet."

[Jeremy Silverstein]

[Chantry Complex]

Julianna just looked at Serge as if he had gone insane but Show muttered.
"Hottentotta tamulus, the Eastern Indian Scorpion I have one as a pet."

"That's a good one! Scorpion's are awesome. The look cool and their chock full of symbolism and potential. There's so many direction you can take with them with art and stories." Serge said excitedly, "Me personally, I've always found it hard to choose just one. But lately I'm becoming a fan of spiders. Anyone else want to share their preference?"

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Chantry Complex]

"That's a good one! Scorpion's are awesome. The look cool and their chock full of symbolism and potential. There's so many direction you can take with them with art and stories." Serge said excitedly, "Me personally, I've always found it hard to choose just one. But lately I'm becoming a fan of spiders. Anyone else want to share their preference?"

"They are pretty fun. Mostly I choose her because I wanted a easy to keep pet and I did not want to make the time commitment that comes with a tarantula."
Snow said the other two just looked at Serge without saying anything other than Julianna muttering.
"That bloody little slime shit."

[Nicole Bouchard]

[Concordia]

Anja's Post:

After trying to find a zoom which was clearest to see what it actually did - and wondering if she could spot any stranger entities as dots - she slid the screen over to Carlos. 'Each dot is something not a Mundie or animal. Imagine that, being done with a huge antenna in a van, or p'haps flying as a drone, scanning a whole town. Recording every dot; how many of each type and where. Do it again and again, different towns, bits of cities. Look for patterns, ratios and shit.' a pause, as she gave a little nasty grin.

'I am sick and fucking tired of folks talking like there's a werewolf behind anything larger than a bush, a vampire at every interstate junction and a Mirrorshade in every Dunkins' corner booth. I actually want to know where the hell they are.'

Anja's Post:

'That's different. There ain't many of us who wouldn't take some Mundie clout if offered; what, you think Baynes would not like to be on the cover of PopSci [Popular Science], showing off the limbs on the TV with Bill Nye, get offered tenure and stuff? He literally, has a signed photo of Jonas Salk on the wall of his office, mon.'

Anja's Post:

'Well, better push off, then. I ain't gonna catch nobody's eye if they're there and I ain't.' looking around to see if the server was visible.

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Concordia]

After trying to find a zoom which was clearest to see what it actually did - and wondering if she could spot any stranger entities as dots - she slid the screen over to Carlos. 'Each dot is something not a Mundie or animal. Imagine that, being done with a huge antenna in a van, or p'haps flying as a drone, scanning a whole town. Recording every dot; how many of each type and where. Do it again and again, different towns, bits of cities. Look for patterns, ratios and shit.' a pause, as she gave a little nasty grin.

It was so much information here on Horizon it was hard to make sense of it but the dots was colored according to mages, spirits, other supernatural beings and sleepers with something extra.
"That is not a bad idea."
Carlos said looking at the screen.
"It could give some valuable data."

'I am sick and fucking tired of folks talking like there's a werewolf behind anything larger than a bush, a vampire at every interstate junction and a Mirrorshade in every Dunkins' corner booth. I actually want to know where the hell they are.'

"Out just living their lives I suspect."
Carlos commented.
"But yes more data would be useful, and knowing numbers and how often one can expect to encounter them."

'That's different. There ain't many of us who wouldn't take some Mundie clout if offered; what, you think Baynes would not like to be on the cover of PopSci [Popular Science], showing off the limbs on the TV with Bill Nye, get offered tenure and stuff? He literally, has a signed photo of Jonas Salk on the wall of his office, mon.'

"Well yes but I suspect it is the same for the mystics if they could get recognition I suspect many would what it but Times Magazine is not going to run an article about who can pull the biggest fireball out of their ass, with us it is a bit easier sine our Paradigm is closer to the commonly accepted one, which lead me to thinking there should be a way to scientifically qualify what we call magick and make it accessible to everyone, even if it is in the form of tech, well to a greater degree than the Union do."

Well, better push off, then. I ain't gonna catch nobody's eye if they're there and I ain't.' looking around to see if the server was visible.

Carlos nodded and pulled out his wallet.
"I can cover the tab and you can pay next time."
He offered.

[Nicole Bouchard]

[Concordia]

Anja's Post:

'Also has other uses. Don't see why this can't like, be rigged into a proximity alarm and we've used it in combat missions. Still don't know how accurate it is, yet...'

Anja's Post:

'Exactly. Too many folks are so fucking paranoid with no actual evidence 'part from some "friend of a friend heard" stories. But another reason I need to make some contacts - to see if this ain't already been done.'

Anja's Post:

'No, not the same. Baynes wants to improve the world. Fireball Hermetic only wants folks to massage their wand. You agreed, remember that most Mystics don't really give a damn about the Mundie world?' giving a little frown, then flexed out her artifical arm again. 'You've heard the spiel; replacement limbs for all at five grand and a family doc, not fifty grand and a team of surgeons. I never, ever hear plans like that from Mystics... part from, p'haps Choristers.' the last bit almost through gritted teeth.

Anja's Post:

'Can't remember; didn't you pay last time?' giving a frown.

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Concordia]

'Also has other uses. Don't see why this can't like, be rigged into a proximity alarm and we've used it in combat missions. Still don't know how accurate it is, yet...'

"A proximity alarm would be nice and I mean testing for accuracy should not be hard, just ask some verious critters to stand around and see if they are picked up."
Carlos replied.

'Exactly. Too many folks are so fucking paranoid with no actual evidence 'part from some "friend of a friend heard" stories. But another reason I need to make some contacts - to see if this ain't already been done.'

"I mean it is not that paranoid, if you are told that there are magic and vampires and werewolves then being a bit suspicious that those you meet might be supernatural is not that far fetched,t hat tend to fix itself once the new recruit get more used to our society. I do not really see this as a problem that need to be corrected, if a baby mage is a bit more careful in the start that do not really constitute a bad thing. What I see as a big benefit to getting numbers on what supernaturals is out there is so we can get a better idea of our tactical situation."

'No, not the same. Baynes wants to improve the world. Fireball Hermetic only wants folks to massage their wand. You agreed, remember that most Mystics don't really give a damn about the Mundie world?' giving a little frown, then flexed out her artifical arm again. 'You've heard the spiel; replacement limbs for all at five grand and a family doc, not fifty grand and a team of surgeons. I never, ever hear plans like that from Mystics... part from, p'haps Choristers.' the last bit almost through gritted teeth.

"I can not agree with that Nicole and no disrespect but I think that it is a tad arrogant to think we who are Technomavers are some great saviors and all mystics are just arrogant assholes out for power. I said that most mystics I know would not care about recognition in Sleeper publications, among other things because it would do them no good. I know plenty of Verbena who work their asses of at free clinics dripping their Healing magic into their work as much as they can, I know plenty of Cultists who want to help everyone Awaken so everyone can have these abilities, the list go on. I do not think there are any more common among Technomancrs to want to help the world than mystics or that arrogance is any more common among mystics than technomancers. However it is easier for us to make an effort since our Paradigms are usually closer to the Consensus and so it is less of a stretch for the Sleepers to believe some new drug or treatment was found to make their broken leg heal faster than it is for them to believe someone can channel the powers of an ancient god through their own blood to heal a broken bone."
Carlos said shaking his head.
"The reason why you do not hear the kind of spiels as you talk about from Mystics is that they can't really offer it, not without exploding from Paradox while a bit better and cheaper to make prosthetics are pretty easy to get the Consensus to accept."

Can't remember; didn't you pay last time?' giving a frown.

"That was the burger place? No Lou paid then. I paid for the beers we had after we managed to get those missing Hermetics out of the Union clutches...you remember that the look on their faces you swear they would have preferred to stay prisoners rather than be rescued by someone from another Tradition."
Carlos said with chuckle.

[Jeremy Silverstein]

[Chantry Complex]

"They are pretty fun. Mostly I choose her because I wanted a easy to keep pet and I did not want to make the time commitment that comes with a tarantula."
Snow said the other two just looked at Serge without saying anything other than Julianna muttering.
"That bloody little slime shit."

"Never could get a pet despite having all the time in the world to take care of one. Had plenty of imagined ones though. Parrots, Monkeys, Lions. One time I imagined insanely large magpie that just watched me while I slept." Serge said walking around the flipping his pencil between his finger as he talked.

"Oh and don't refer to her Scorpion that way. A person's pets are quite precious to them." he added hearing what Julianna muttered under her breath. In truth he wasn't sure exactly what she was referring too. But he figured if he was wrong Julianna might snap and correct him, perhaps revealing some information in the process.

Turning his attention back to Snow he asked, "Did your scorpion have a name? Any unique traits or characteristics? All pets seem to have them."

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Chantry Complex]

"Never could get a pet despite having all the time in the world to take care of one. Had plenty of imagined ones though. Parrots, Monkeys, Lions. One time I imagined insanely large magpie that just watched me while I slept." Serge said walking around the flipping his pencil between his finger as he talked.

"Ehm....ok that is nice I guess."
Snow said giving Serge a bit of a strange look.

"Oh and don't refer to her Scorpion that way. A person's pets are quite precious to them." he added hearing what Julianna muttered under her breath. In truth he wasn't sure exactly what she was referring too. But he figured if he was wrong Julianna might snap and correct him, perhaps revealing some information in the process.

"I referred to the thing you sent against me to try to stop my magic not Crackle."
Julianna replied with a sigh.

Turning his attention back to Snow he asked, "Did your scorpion have a name? Any unique traits or characteristics? All pets seem to have them."

"I mean she is a scorpion, she walks around in her substrate and eat crickets but yeah her name is Crackle."
Snow replied.

[Nicole Bouchard]

[Concordia]

Anja's Post:

'Don't have big enough sample pools. Also suspect some of the samples will beat me to death with my own arm if I ask them to be samples.' giving a smirk.

Anja's Post:

'Except I've heard it from folks who ain't newbies too. But no evidence to back it up. This thing might tell us of all sorts... of fresh newbies, independent groups and so on. It also raises the question of how far the Union have developed their system.'

Anja's Post:

Nicole shook her head to this. 'Wrong directon, mon. Not the individual, but like, the organisation. Y'know, like you can find cops or Mirrorshades who seem decent enough but the organisation they're in are total a-holes. That's what I mean; that from what I've seen and heard so far, most of the Traditions ain't interested in building up clout in the Mundie world, helping them out or whatever. But however much we might blow at actually doing much to help the Mundies, it's at least like, written into our DNA that we should aim to do stuff to help everyone, not just ourselves.' a short pause before giving a snarky smirk.

'Plus, "total assholes who trust science" are a better fit for the Union than us.'

Anja's Post:

'I give them no stars. I wasn't like expecting them to go down on me or nothing but a thanks would have been nice.' she replied sulkily, looking to get the waiter's attention so they could pay.

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Concordia]

Don't have big enough sample pools. Also suspect some of the samples will beat me to death with my own arm if I ask them to be samples.' giving a smirk.

"I can get us at least four or five friendly vampires that we can check and some shifters and we have plenty of mages here, more than enough to get a good indication whatever or not the program works."
Carlos replied.
"Once we have such a initial study done we can see about further testing."

Except I've heard it from folks who ain't newbies too. But no evidence to back it up. This thing might tell us of all sorts... of fresh newbies, independent groups and so on. It also raises the question of how far the Union have developed their system.'

"I personally know quite a few vampires and shapeshifters, some spirits and live in a society of mages so I would not say that being a bit suspicious when you go outside is that far fetched, there might not be a supernatural behind every bush but there are quite a few. I ahve not really seen a huge tendency of over caution among the Traditions."

Nicole shook her head to this. 'Wrong directon, mon. Not the individual, but like, the organisation. Y'know, like you can find cops or Mirrorshades who seem decent enough but the organisation they're in are total a-holes. That's what I mean; that from what I've seen and heard so far, most of the Traditions ain't interested in building up clout in the Mundie world, helping them out or whatever. But however much we might blow at actually doing much to help the Mundies, it's at least like, written into our DNA that we should aim to do stuff to help everyone, not just ourselves.' a short pause before giving a snarky smirk.

"I just can not agree with that the Sons of Ethers are no more or less interested in helping Sleepers than everyone else. All of the Traditions have members who work for the community and those who work only for themselves. Now granted I have done no studies about his but if I was to guess the Tradition who help others the most it is probably the Cult of Ecstasy, and the least interested in Sleepers are probably the order of Hermes but that is only guesses. To say Etherites have is more in our DNA to help others than any other Tradition there are simply no basis for the claim."
Carlos said shaking his head.

I give them no stars. I wasn't like expecting them to go down on me or nothing but a thanks would have been nice.' she replied sulkily, looking to get the waiter's attention so they could pay.

"I guess life is not always that easy when they got a stick up their asses."
The other Etherite said as the waiter headed over.
"Can I get you anything?"
The young man asked.

[Jeremy Silverstein]

[Chantry Complex]

"Ehm....ok that is nice I guess."
Snow said giving Serge a bit of a strange look.

Serge also glanced at the other two to see if they had any sort of reaction when he mentioned a 'large magpie'. The same thing he had seen in the memories.

"I referred to the thing you sent against me to try to stop my magic not Crackle."
Julianna replied with a sigh.

"I mean she is a scorpion, she walks around in her substrate and eat crickets but yeah her name is Crackle."
Snow replied.

"Crackle. That's a nice name. So have all of you guys all met Crackle?" Serge asked looking at the group as a whole. "Can I meet Crackle? Where is she right now?"

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Chantry Complex]

Serge also glanced at the other two to see if they had any sort of reaction when he mentioned a 'large magpie'. The same thing he had seen in the memories.

You did not notice much reaction from the three prisoners.

"Crackle. That's a nice name. So have all of you guys all met Crackle?" Serge asked looking at the group as a whole. "Can I meet Crackle? Where is she right now?"

Two of the prisoners just ignored you. Snow replied though.
"Yeah I named her from the sound she make as she walks around her enclosure, it woulds like crackling candy wrappings or tinfoil sort of."
She replied then she sigh.
"You can have her if you can give her a good home. I mean once I am sentenced I will not be able to care for her anymore, she is in my apartment on Earth."

[Nicole Bouchard]

[Concordia]

Anja's Post:

'Eh, I ain't even drawn up an outline for it yet, let alone wondering 'bout accuracy and shit.' she replied lazily. 'Just doing the usual "does this sound stupid and/or nuts?" check.'

Anja's Post:

'Look, I'm all in favour of being like, cautious. But lots of folks act like their own city or whatever is like an island surrounded by sea monsters. Sometimes, the fear of something is way out of line of the actual threat for it. Example; most moral panics.'

Anja's Post:

A sigh to this. 'You ain't listening, mon. Ignore what individual members do, look to the messaging within the group. From what I've seen, most of the Traditions don't have the messaging that puts "help the Mundies" are a major part. We do; didn't you get the training vid with that French guy in it which explained that part of advancing Science is to get the Mundies to want it too, and the best way to do that is to show them how it improves their lives?'

Anja's Post:

'Their riding club must be in constant agony.' she quipped, then turning to the waiter. 'Yeah, just the bill, s'pose.'

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Concordia]

'Eh, I ain't even drawn up an outline for it yet, let alone wondering 'bout accuracy and shit.' she replied lazily. 'Just doing the usual "does this sound stupid and/or nuts?" check.'

"Well getting tactical information is always good and getting a good idea on the number of Awakened could be rather useful."
Carlos replied.

'Look, I'm all in favour of being like, cautious. But lots of folks act like their own city or whatever is like an island surrounded by sea monsters. Sometimes, the fear of something is way out of line of the actual threat for it. Example; most moral panics.'

"Who do this Nicole? It might be different in Boston but I can not really think of a single example of anyone I know who are so afraid of other supernatural they take unreasonable caution."
Carlos said raising an eyebrow.
"Can you give me some actual examples of this?"

A sigh to this. 'You ain't listening, mon. Ignore what individual members do, look to the messaging within the group. From what I've seen, most of the Traditions don't have the messaging that puts "help the Mundies" are a major part. We do; didn't you get the training vid with that French guy in it which explained that part of advancing Science is to get the Mundies to want it too, and the best way to do that is to show them how it improves their lives?'

"I was not talking about individual members Nicole, every single Traditions have these lofty ideals, and few including our own actually adhere to them. And no there is no more talk of helping Sleepers among Etherites than among anyone else either officially or not, there just is not, if it is one things mages have it is lofty ideals but those ideals soon become corrupted when power gets into the picture, it is the same way for everyone. Yes we want to share our Science the Verbena want to share their healing arts, the Virtual Adepts want to free information so everyone can have the power that bring, the Cultists want everyone to Awaken the Euthanatoi want to make sure nothing gets in the way of the world and want to remove those elements who prey on the innocents and disrupt their precious cycle, the list go on all of them have the same lofty ideals of that video with the French guy. However with no Tradition including out own is following those ideals a priority, it is for individuals of any Tradition but for the organizations as whole no."

Their riding club must be in constant agony.' she quipped, then turning to the waiter. 'Yeah, just the bill, s'pose.'

"Maybe Verbena crashed their brooms up their behinds."
Carhos said with a chuckle as he reached for his wallet to pay for the meals one the waiter gave him the bill.
"Now for some coffee to go before we return to to conference or did you have other plans Nick?"

[Warpmind]

[Chantry Complex]

"Yes if it is something you are not able to stop because those you try to help will not listen to warnings or what is coming is beyond your ability to affect then sure, but to not try to stop it because you think it is fate that what terrible thing you have seen happen, no just no.

Colin nodded, "Knowing you're going to be ambushed, it's not necessarily going to help to try to avoid the ambush entirely; a better outcome can be achieved by reversing it on the would-be assailants... Even if an incident must happen, you can greatly alter the outcome by being forewarned."

Julianna shivered at that.
"Well a danger of the calling I guess."
She muttered and turned towards Serge.
"Ask your question kid."

"Hmmmm....I did have a question for you. Although you've shown that you won't answer any serious questions. Sooo..." Serge said looking up at the ceiling as he remembered his mentor's words. It may be too late to try and be friendly with the prisoners, but their was no harm in trying.

"Let's try a fun question. What's your favorite animal?" he asked completely seriously. "It's not fair that we only ever ask kids that question. I'm certain everyone's got a pretty good answer to it as well. Birds, Fish, Sub Saharan African wildcats. So many choices out there. Come on floors open to everyone."

Julianna just looked at Serge as if he had gone insane but Show muttered.
"Hottentotta tamulus, the Eastern Indian Scorpion I have one as a pet."

"That's a good one! Scorpion's are awesome. The look cool and their chock full of symbolism and potential. There's so many direction you can take with them with art and stories." Serge said excitedly, "Me personally, I've always found it hard to choose just one. But lately I'm becoming a fan of spiders. Anyone else want to share their preference?"

"They are pretty fun. Mostly I choose her because I wanted a easy to keep pet and I did not want to make the time commitment that comes with a tarantula."
Snow said the other two just looked at Serge without saying anything other than Julianna muttering.
"That bloody little slime shit."

"Never could get a pet despite having all the time in the world to take care of one. Had plenty of imagined ones though. Parrots, Monkeys, Lions. One time I imagined insanely large magpie that just watched me while I slept." Serge said walking around the flipping his pencil between his finger as he talked.

"Ehm....ok that is nice I guess."
Snow said giving Serge a bit of a strange look.

"Oh and don't refer to her Scorpion that way. A person's pets are quite precious to them." he added hearing what Julianna muttered under her breath. In truth he wasn't sure exactly what she was referring too. But he figured if he was wrong Julianna might snap and correct him, perhaps revealing some information in the process.

"I referred to the thing you sent against me to try to stop my magic not Crackle."
Julianna replied with a sigh.

Turning his attention back to Snow he asked, "Did your scorpion have a name? Any unique traits or characteristics? All pets seem to have them."

"I mean she is a scorpion, she walks around in her substrate and eat crickets but yeah her name is Crackle."
Snow replied.

"Crackle. That's a nice name. So have all of you guys all met Crackle?" Serge asked looking at the group as a whole. "Can I meet Crackle? Where is she right now?"

Two of the prisoners just ignored you. Snow replied though.
"Yeah I named her from the sound she make as she walks around her enclosure, it woulds like crackling candy wrappings or tinfoil sort of."
She replied then she sigh.
"You can have her if you can give her a good home. I mean once I am sentenced I will not be able to care for her anymore, she is in my apartment on Earth."

He followed the conversation, watching the Nephandi for reactions, "We can see to it that Crackle is cared for... we would have to make sure she's not a Familiar, of course, and we'd need to know if she has medically significant venom, but I see no harm in ensuring the well-being of the pet of an enemy... Hum, I've been considering getting dogs, myself. Perhaps a sibling pair of bulldogs, might name them Vittoria and Dominic... I'd have to get them fixed, of course..."

((OOC: Last week was a *week*, and a gruesome injury on Friday rendered me incapable of typing all weekend... Okay, my office chair chomped a chunk of my left ring finger pad, making typing remarkably painful. But I have the time and energy now.))

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

[Chantry Complex]

Colin nodded, "Knowing you're going to be ambushed, it's not necessarily going to help to try to avoid the ambush entirely; a better outcome can be achieved by reversing it on the would-be assailants... Even if an incident must happen, you can greatly alter the outcome by being forewarned."

"That is not my point, every situation would need a different approach to try to protect someone you have seen bad things happening to. My point is that you do try to prevent it you do not just sit back with a oh but that is meant to happen attitude."
Martha replied.

He followed the conversation, watching the Nephandi for reactions, "We can see to it that Crackle is cared for... we would have to make sure she's not a Familiar, of course, and we'd need to know if she has medically significant venom, but I see no harm in ensuring the well-being of the pet of an enemy... Hum, I've been considering getting dogs, myself. Perhaps a sibling pair of bulldogs, might name them Vittoria and Dominic... I'd have to get them fixed, of course..."

"Crackle is not a familiar but that should be easy to check. As for venom yes being stung by her would meant a trip to a healer or the emergency room and it can be lethal but are not likely to be in a healthy adult, she is not a pet one should handle. But thank you I appreciate it, she do not need much just some crickets now and again and fresh water."
Snow said.
"Depending on the type of bulldog that is not a good idea really, several nations have put some bulldog breeds on no breeding lists or are considering it, they are not known to be healthy."
Snow continued but Julianna raised an eyebrow though she said nothing.

(OOC: Poor finger.)

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