Re: Wrapping up in Chicago, New Trouble at Home and Angry Magi IC Thread 20

by **Anja Rebekka Schultze** Fri Sep 22, 2017 9:53 pm

Morningstar Cafeteria:

"It would be better if we can keep Master Nassa where he is and bring others to him if we can, they are definitely after something or someone. And that could be those in that room, the safe, or any of the other guests."

He nodded, "Depends on the situation - if there's a patient bleeding out on the floor, moving them is generally less advisable than getting the healer there."

"If possible yes, we should take someone to see Master Nassa and not the other way around but as Mr Roth Hicks are saying if they are bleeding out on the floor we might not have much of a choice."
Francesca said and frowned.

"Thank you, ma'am, we'll need it."

The old lich gave you a nod at that there was nothing more to say though.

He nodded sagely, "I believe that sounds very much like what my apprentice would say about them... She is wise for her years, though her... choices in descriptors will require some work."

"Ah this apprentice of yours sounds like my kind of girl."
Harmony said and she sounded amused.

He smiled, "Well, I suppose the House thrives on having missives, but even so, I'm sure they're no more keen on extra make-work than anyone else."

"Well they need work to put Quintessence in their talismans but yes let us keep it to phone and email it is simpler unless the message is sensitive."
The Cultist agreed.

He shook his head, "Godspeed, miss, and hopefully, I'll be back fairly soon."

"Ok...well good luck with whatever you are doing Sir."
Codee said she still looked confused but she did not ask any more questions and headed of to Min's office.

He grinned, "I don't have the necessary magic for that, so you've got an edge over me there."

"I have seen you play around with luck Mr Wainwright...you should be able to do it, I can show you how when there is time, you just find the one tiny spot that are the most entropic and aim for it, the result can be spectacular."
Francesca commented and grinned.

Chaos in Steelhaven's Basement:

It was an utter shitshow in the basement, people he didn't know that he didn't know if were friend or foe, fearful, hungry, panicking vampires, a Nephandi holding Andrew hostage, there was a lot going on. Somehow having been chucked around the universe enough times into firefights was starting to become easier to cope with, but all said the situation was not good. He began to form the spell to diminish and extinguish the fire, the source that was making the vampires panic.

Your Mentor had taught you how to quell a flame, Perdo Ignem...I destroy fire. The flame was not to large and while your spellcasting where pretty sketchy, you just could not get it to work exactly as you wanted to, it did the job and the fire that had been started in some papers and and old mattress died down into a smoking pile, it was not elegantly done but it did quell the fire.

He shrugged, "I find that the likes of the Jade Demon are quite tolerable. If there were more of you with his particular outlook, you'd be less of a pain in the neck, really. Of course, when your lot is so unruly that someone like him decides to personally intervene, that does say something about how like a petulant, spoiled child you are acting..."

The Nephandus paled and he staggered a little he looked just like a Traditionalist might if someone had told them Master Porthos had personally had it with one of your allies Chantries and had decided to do something about it.
"The...Jade Demon did what but...but he cant!"
He exclaimed.

He gave Serge an approving nod, "Well, that makes two of us, at least. Well, three, I expect the kid would prefer not to be injured, as well."

"It would be better if he left..."
The Nephandus grumbled.
"Things are going to get unpleasant and soon."

He grinned ferally, "My scars were unpleasant to acquire... a bit of modern rocketry to the face. But that was several years ago, and unrelated. No, what I was referring to is that I eat Nephandi for breakfast... in a rather literal manner, in fact. Go ahead, ask your Avatar.

The man seamed rather unfazed he did not react like other Fallen had reacted to you since Mia shed her image as the Mirror Man.
"I have seen cannibalism before, it is creepy but will not deter me."
He said as if well cannibalism was the most common thing in the world he was clearly not getting your reference.
"I did not remember it being common in the Traditions though."

And keep in mind... I'm quite adept at taking your lot alive; be it that idiot Diego, or Gilledian Abigail and her Labyrinth Keeper. Drop the blade, and I promise I will not hurt you. But spill a single drop of the boy's blood... and I will promise quite the opposite."

"The Traditions will hurt me so it really will not matter, no the boy stay with me, and I will have one of your leaders here to listen to my demands."
The Nephandus hissed at you.
"And even if I am taken alive my situation would not be any worse than if I surrender, your laws means you have nothing to offer."

He frowned, then carefully released a mote of his own Quintessence, muttering softly, "Take this; as I am permitted, my essence should extend access to you."

You felt Engrave's presence next to you and words where being scraped into the stone wall.
"I am here...I will fulfill my promise, what will you have me do my friend..."
The elegantly engraved writing on the wall said.

He glanced at Lenoe, voice softening, "Close your eyes and, er, breathe slowly. There's no fire that will reach you, just meditate and find your calm; put the Beast to sleep. You're among friends here."

Mr Lenoe looked at you terror in his eyes, one of his arms where badly burned, he had been sliced open in several places to make him bleed and his chest was all but caved in.
"I...I...it hurts...don't want to be here...I hit her...so sorry...I...I."
He said desperately still teetering on the edge of a panic, blood tears started rolling down his cheeks.
"I want to...get away...get away I..."

"Yes please....I would very much prefer that." Serge said returning the nod and continuing with his spellwork.

"Then do not get in the way Serge..."
Siege grubbed and he gave you a quick glance.

Serge was breathing heavily, not necessarily from the magick but from the utter chaos within the room. He had managed to calm down one of the vampires briefly but the other one was still panicking. He continued to weave his magick, this time solely focusing on Karl. On his sketchbook, more and more details began to form in his drawings and his connection between the vampires grew stronger.

You shifted your magick to Karl who was fighting with the man you had heard others refer to as Ty, it took some effort but the creature's attacks did seam to become less vicious, and as the fire died down he crawled back into a corner...he seamed to be more in control of himself now, yes he was still very scared and he to had been cut and burned but at least he was not raging around though he was curled into a defensive position in the corner and staring wide eyed at everything that was going on.

(OOC: Usually a new target would be a new spell however Serge started with both of them as targets for his magick so I think he con just continue.)

(OOC 2: I do not think Tane would appreciate Colin Wind of Mundane Silencing his ancestral sword. Razz

)

(OOC: Dinner and cake seam like very valid reasons to hold off on posting for. Smile

)

by Nicole Bouchard Fri Sep 22, 2017 10:35 pm

Anja's Post:

Nicole stared at the cryptid impassively, body tensed up as though ready to attack. 'Go through the group-' gesturing to the newcomers '-and we will find a safe place.' A slight pause, and a nod. 'If you behave, I won't do nothing more.'

[Attempting to Intimidate vampire into behaving]

by Jeremy Silverstein Fri Sep 22, 2017 10:37 pm

Mr Lenoe looked at you terror in his eyes, one of his arms where badly burned, he had been sliced open in several places to make him bleed and his chest was all but caved in.
"I...I...it hurts...don't want to be here...I hit her...so sorry...I...I."
He said desperately still teetering on the edge of a panic, blood tears started rolling down his cheeks.
"I want to...get away...get away I..."

Nicole wrote:Nicole stared at the cryptid impassively, body tensed up as though ready to attack. 'Go through the group-' gesturing to the newcomers '-and we will find a safe place.' A slight pause, and a nod. 'If you behave, I won't do nothing more.'

"I know it hurts but your strong. I know you are." Serge said in a soft voice, carefully spoken as to not agitate the vampire any further.

"Don't worry, we forgive you and think no less of you. Your a good man. You don't have to be here any longer. Please close your eyes and breathe deeply. Listen to the women. Focus on healing your wounds. We'll protect you and make sure that nothing will harm you." Serge said slowly, making sure that none of his words could be seen as hostile or aggressive.

"The Traditions will hurt me so it really will not matter, no the boy stay with me, and I will have one of your leaders here to listen to my demands."
The Nephandus hissed at you.
"And even if I am taken alive my situation would not be any worse than if I surrender, your laws means you have nothing to offer."

"Then do not get in the way Serge..."
Siege grubbed and he gave you a quick glance.

"Sorry if this counts as getting in the way but I was wondering....how exactly did you escape from your binds?" Serge said curiously trying to distract Siege as well as to get answers to his own questions.

(((OOC: Rolling Manipulation+Expression to try and calm Mr. Lenoe down even further and let him know that everything is going to be OK.

Roll: 3, 8, 2, 9, 7, 6, 9)))

(((OOC2: Do I still need to roll calm down the vampires or are they ok for now?)))

by Warpmind Fri Sep 22, 2017 10:39 pm

"Ah this apprentice of yours sounds like my kind of girl."
Harmony said and she sounded amused.

Colin smiled, "I could spend all day praising her skills and cleverness, but there's no time for that, I'm afraid. Suffice to say, she's made me proud over the years to come."

"Well they need work to put Quintessence in their talismans but yes let us keep it to phone and email it is simpler unless the message is sensitive."
The Cultist agreed.

He nodded, "Well, sensitive or parcels. I'd hardly be able to e-mail physical items, and I'd hate to bother a Virtual Adept for that when the Mercere have a perfectly excellent service for it."

"Ok...well good luck with whatever you are doing Sir."
Codee said she still looked confused but she did not ask any more questions and headed of to Min's office.

He sighed, "Oh, just taking down another Labyrinth, which happens to be a downed Nephandi Battlecruiser this time. Nothing out of the ordinary."

"I have seen you play around with luck Mr Wainwright...you should be able to do it, I can show you how when there is time, you just find the one tiny spot that are the most entropic and aim for it, the result can be spectacular."
Francesca commented and grinned.

He nodded, "Of course, that could work... I was thinking purely in ballistic terms - kinetic energy and physical mass."

The Nephandus paled and he staggered a little he looked just like a Traditionalist might if someone had told them Master Porthos had personally had it with one of your allies Chantries and had decided to do something about it.
"The...Jade Demon did what but...but he cant!"
He exclaimed.

He arched an eyebrow, "Abigail and Larson have been kicking over every hornet's nest in Boston and Chicago, and mightily irritating every bloody Chantry and Construct in both cities, risking exposure and kicking the whole bloody war into high gear. Who the hell do you think you are, trying to dictate what the Jade Demon can and cannot do to protect his Household?"

The man seamed rather unfazed he did not react like other Fallen had reacted to you since Mia shed her image as the Mirror Man.
"I have seen cannibalism before, it is creepy but will not deter me."
He said as if well cannibalism was the most common thing in the world he was clearly not getting your reference.
"I did not remember it being common in the Traditions though."

The grin turned darker, "Who said I eat your flesh? Keeper Cotta's Avatar was bittersweet with love."

"The Traditions will hurt me so it really will not matter, no the boy stay with me, and I will have one of your leaders here to listen to my demands."
The Nephandus hissed at you.
"And even if I am taken alive my situation would not be any worse than if I surrender, your laws means you have nothing to offer."

His voice took a hard tone, "The Traditions can yet show you the mercy of a quick and painless death... or you could be sentenced to extended life post-Gilgul. So I would say there's quite a lot I can yet offer. Have you ever seen a Gilgul victim a few years after the fact?"

You felt Engrave's presence next to you and words where being scraped into the stone wall.
"I am here...I will fulfill my promise, what will you have me do my friend..."
The elegantly engraved writing on the wall said.

He muttered, "Turn the knife, protect the boy... but try not to spill blood."

Mr Lenoe looked at you terror in his eyes, one of his arms where badly burned, he had been sliced open in several places to make him bleed and his chest was all but caved in.
"I...I...it hurts...don't want to be here...I hit her...so sorry...I...I."
He said desperately still teetering on the edge of a panic, blood tears started rolling down his cheeks.
"I want to...get away...get away I..."

He nodded, "I'm sure you'll be forgiven. Could you sit down and meditate, think of academia, something safe..."

((OOC: Another Manipulation+Intimidate roll, I guess... 1,2,4,7,8. *Sigh* Just not making any progress with this guy... Razz

))

((OOC2: You really think Colin would do that himself, instead of letting Morgan know right away? Wink

))

by **Anja Rebekka Schultze** Fri Sep 22, 2017 11:19 pm

Morningstar's cafeteria:

Colin smiled, "I could spend all day praising her skills and cleverness, but there's no time for that, I'm afraid. Suffice to say, she's made me proud over the years to come."

"I guess that is what we can hope for most with an apprentice, that we can make an impact on them in a positive way and be proud of them, I at least hope that will be the case when i take an apprentice."
Harmony said and smiled.
"But I will not keep you further Mr Wainwright."

He nodded, "Well, sensitive or parcels. I'd hardly be able to e-mail physical items, and I'd hate to bother a Virtual Adept for that when the Mercere have a perfectly excellent service for it."

"Well there is a regular postal service in this nation, but yes I do see your point, House Mercere can be most useful."
She said and nodded.

He sighed, "Oh, just taking down another Labyrinth, which happens to be a downed Nephandi Battlecruiser this time. Nothing out of the ordinary."

"Oh well nothing major then...what the hell do all these Nephandi get off on peeing in our cereal for Sir?"
Codee muttered sounding frustrated.

He nodded, "Of course, that could work... I was thinking purely in ballistic terms - kinetic energy and physical mass."

"No I can't do that either, but every thing...or person have weak points and finding them one can do allot of damage."
Francesca said and smiled.
"I have found that trick useful myself many a time."

Chaos in Steelhaven's basement:

He arched an eyebrow, "Abigail and Larson have been kicking over every hornet's nest in Boston and Chicago, and mightily irritating every bloody Chantry and Construct in both cities, risking exposure and kicking the whole bloody war into high gear. Who the hell do you think you are, trying to dictate what the Jade Demon can and cannot do to protect his Household?"

The Nephandus still looked rather nervous but he was not about to roll over.
"I em...are sure the Ladies have it all well in hand...I mean they have to right, and the Jade Demon he...he...fuck!"
He muttered.
"You have to be lying to me Traditionalist!"
He said in a tone of voice that said he was trying to convince himself.

he grin turned darker, "Who said I eat your flesh? Keeper Cotta's Avatar was bittersweet with love."

"Yeah well you might find my Avatar to be a bit to crunchy for your tastes then, how do you think I avoided being affected by that bloody serum they injected me with? I have a phylactery."
The Nephandus said and grinned triumphantly at that.

His voice took a hard tone, "The Traditions can yet show you the mercy of a quick and painless death... or you could be sentenced to extended life post-Gilgul. So I would say there's quite a lot I can yet offer. Have you ever seen a Gilgul victim a few years after the fact?"

"I...I...no I have not but...there are always ways to kill oneself always..."
He muttered fearfully.
"You are not talking me into anything Traditionalist I have a job to do!"
He said but he looked rather unsure now.

He muttered, "Turn the knife, protect the boy... but try not to spill blood."

"I will try...but the man is protected by magick...he might try to stop me."
Engrave said as he begun to inch closer to the Nephandus who glanced in that direction.
"Call of your Umbrood!"
He ordered.
"And I will not hurt it."

He nodded, "I'm sure you'll be forgiven. Could you sit down and meditate, think of academia, something safe..."

"But there is still danger there...there, awoke to pain...more pain...fear...I hurt people...I can't...I..."
Lenoe said and pulled nervously at his fingers.
"Karl...my nephew he where is..."
He said and begun to look around fearfully shaking as he did so.

(OOC: Well saying that to Jeffry Morgan might raise the temperature.)

(OOC 2: Well one success let you scare the Nephandus a little but not enough.)

by Warpmind Fri Sep 22, 2017 11:54 pm

Morningstar:

"Well there is a regular postal service in this nation, but yes I do see your point, House Mercere can be most useful."
She said and nodded.

Colin smiled wryly, "For items of both mundane and magical value, I think I will put my faith in the Mercere over the USPS."

"Oh well nothing major then...what the hell do all these Nephandi get off on peeing in our cereal for Sir?"
Codee muttered sounding frustrated.

He sighed, "They want to make sure the world is broken beyond repair, because they believe it is. They're bastards, really."

"No I can't do that either, but every thing...or person have weak points and finding them one can do allot of damage."
Francesca said and smiled.
"I have found that trick useful myself many a time."

He grimaced, "In this case, we would want to not do a lot of damage."

Steelhaven:

The Nephandus still looked rather nervous but he was not about to roll over.
"I em...are sure the Ladies have it all well in hand...I mean they have to right, and the Jade Demon he...he...fuck!"
He muttered.
"You have to be lying to me Traditionalist!"
He said in a tone of voice that said he was trying to convince himself.

He shook his head, "I don't lie. The Jade Demon is a polite gentleman whose first priority is the safety of his household; I've spoken with the fellow, and so long as there's a momentary armistice, he's not unpleasant to be around. Of course, the tension dropped greatly when he and his left the battlefield. As for Abigail, well, she managed to shoot herself into a coma before we could stop her... but she's alive and taken prisoner, along with several of her senior underlings."

"Yeah well you might find my Avatar to be a bit to crunchy for your tastes then, how do you think I avoided being affected by that bloody serum they injected me with? I have a phylactery."
The Nephandus said and grinned triumphantly at that.

He arched an eyebrow, "Lucky you. That means you'll get away with just the Primium build-up in the brain. That'll lead to a stroke, you know. Will the phylactery protect you from brain damage? For that matter, did you bring the phylactery with you, or are you daft enough to entrust it to Lisa Larson? The woman is entirely bonkers, you know, and won't think twice to throw someone expendable under the bridge."

"I...I...no I have not but...there are always ways to kill oneself always..."
He muttered fearfully.
"You are not talking me into anything Traditionalist I have a job to do!"
He said but he looked rather unsure now.

He shook his head, "If you're sentenced to life, you won't be allowed to commit suicide. No quick escape then. And I know you have a job to do; if you're really sent to demand terms, Larson is an idiot as well as crazy, and if you are, as I suspect, merely a piece of loud bait... well, that does not bode well for you, does it?"

"I will try...but the man is protected by magick...he might try to stop me."
Engrave said as he begun to inch closer to the Nephandus who glanced in that direction.
"Call of your Umbrood!"
He ordered.
"And I will not hurt it."

He frowned, "Ah, I should have known; if you can make yourself a phylactery, you can cope with spirits as well... He is not mine, though; Abigail had destroyed his name, and I just gave him a new one, as a gift. He's his own, entirely."
He sighed, "Alright, my friend, step back. I don't want you hurt, either."

"But there is still danger there...there, awoke to pain...more pain...fear...I hurt people...I can't...I..."
Lenoe said and pulled nervously at his fingers.
"Karl...my nephew he where is..."
He said and begun to look around fearfully shaking as he did so.

He frowned, "I think he's as safe as could be expected... None of us wish either of you harmed."

by **Anja Rebekka Schultze** Sat Sep 23, 2017 7:48 am

Morningstar's cafeteria:

Colin smiled wryly, "For items of both mundane and magical value, I think I will put my faith in the Mercere over the USPS."

"Yes they certainly are quite reliable."
Harmony agreed.

He sighed, "They want to make sure the world is broken beyond repair, because they believe it is. They're bastards, really."

Codee frowned at that.
"Well give them a good kick where it hurts for me then Sir if you would."
She said before she left.

He grimaced, "In this case, we would want to not do a lot of damage."

"True enough unless we actually did want to shoot through Andrew to get to the hostage taker."
Fran said but she gave you a concerned look.

Chaos in Steelhaven's basement:

He shook his head, "I don't lie. The Jade Demon is a polite gentleman whose first priority is the safety of his household; I've spoken with the fellow, and so long as there's a momentary armistice, he's not unpleasant to be around. Of course, the tension dropped greatly when he and his left the battlefield.

There where several skeptical expressions on the faces of Steelhaven's mages when you said you had spoken to the Jade Demon. The Nephandus looked rather shocked but still tried to convince yourself that you where lying and shook his head slowly.

As for Abigail, well, she managed to shoot herself into a coma before we could stop her... but she's alive and taken prisoner, along with several of her senior underlings."

"No...you have to be lying I am sure of it how could something like that be true, you would never be able to take the Labyrinth."
The man said desperate for it to be true.

He arched an eyebrow, "Lucky you. That means you'll get away with just the Primium build-up in the brain. That'll lead to a stroke, you know. Will the phylactery protect you from brain damage?

"No...probably not but chances are I will be dead by then and we do have good healers in the Labyrinth if I am not."
He muttered and shrugged.

For that matter, did you bring the phylactery with you, or are you daft enough to entrust it to Lisa Larson?

"Off course I did how else would I be able to work magick? Unless I have my phylactery with me it feels like I have been separated from my soul and I am as helpless as a sleeper."
He said and shuddered.

The woman is entirely bonkers, you know, and won't think twice to throw someone expendable under the bridge."

The Nephandus hesitated then he nodded at that with a slight smile.
"Yeah...she sort of is insane is she not...and what she did to the widderslaintes...well she is still the boss you know so we all have to do what she says."

He shook his head, "If you're sentenced to life, you won't be allowed to commit suicide. No quick escape then. And I know you have a job to do; if you're really sent to demand terms, Larson is an idiot as well as crazy, and if you are, as I suspect, merely a piece of loud bait... well, that does not bode well for you, does it?"

"No...no...one can always find a way to kill oneself...one can stop eating or...bang one's head on the wall or anything..."
The Nephandus said but he looked rather terrified his vampire as pinball balls trap where walling apart and thing where not looking to good.
"I ehm...well guess you are right, thing do not bode well for me Sir but I am expendable, we all are."

He frowned, "Ah, I should have known; if you can make yourself a phylactery, you can cope with spirits as well...

"I did not make it I was born this way, I have always had a Phylactery it is how my Avatar decided to be incarnated."
The Nephandus protested.
"But yes I can deal with spirits."

He is not mine, though; Abigail had destroyed his name, and I just gave him a new one, as a gift. He's his own, entirely."

"Well that is a pretty cruel thing to do to a spirit."
The Nephandus muttered.

He sighed, "Alright, my friend, step back. I don't want you hurt, either."

"It is not my purpose to fight...but I can...and you are my friend."
Engrave carved into the stone wall.

He frowned, "I think he's as safe as could be expected... None of us wish either of you harmed."

Mr Lenoe finally calmed down, he sank down to his knees and then onto his butt and pulled his knees up to his chest, he looked completely miserable and tears where streaming down his face, well droplets of blood but they did seam to be tears but at least he was calm now.

by **Anja Rebekka Schultze** Sat Sep 23, 2017 8:03 am

Nicole:

Nicole stared at the cryptid impassively, body tensed up as though ready to attack. 'Go through the group-' gesturing to the newcomers '-and we will find a safe place.' A slight pause, and a nod. 'If you behave, I won't do nothing more.'

Kristina nodded she and Adjan moved to get a wounded woman with dyed black hair, a frilly black dress and several large pieces of pewter jewelry off the ground and carry her out of the room, she had a nasty bruise on her head but she was breathing.

The vampire shuddered fearfully as you spoke to him and hissed he was calmer now but remembers well that you hurt him and he was becoming more upset again it was pretty clear that trying to frighten a being that had just gone berserk out of fear was not working to well, or rather it was working to getting him worked up again.

(Roll: 2, 1, 8, 8 )

Siege:

"I know it hurts but your strong. I know you are." Serge said in a soft voice, carefully spoken as to not agitate the vampire any further.

The vampire turned from Nicole to Serge and looked at the boy, cocking his head to the side, he was overwhelmed but seamed to be calming down at least.

"Don't worry, we forgive you and think no less of you. Your a good man. You don't have to be here any longer. Please close your eyes and breathe deeply. Listen to the women. Focus on healing your wounds. We'll protect you and make sure that nothing will harm you." Serge said slowly, making sure that none of his words could be seen as hostile or aggressive.

Well Nicole trying to scare the terrified vampire did seam rather hostile.
"I do not need to breathe...and my chest is hurt."
He muttered after a while though he glanced guiltily at the goth girl's still form in Adjan's arms.
"Healing yes I should...should...do that..."
He muttered and looked fearfully at Nicole and hissed at her again before he sat still, the cuts and the damaged ribs sort of pulling itself back together and healing though the burns remained as bad as ever.

"Sorry if this counts as getting in the way but I was wondering....how exactly did you escape from your binds?" Serge said curiously trying to distract Siege as well as to get answers to his own questions.

"I have a Phylactery...my Avatar is a physical object and are immune to most forms of magickal tampering including the method they used to restrain my abilities, the rest was simply working some magick of my own kid."
Siege said and he offered you a bit of a smile.

(OOC: Your magick do seam to have gotten them out of their berserk stage they are still terrified and in a fragile state of mind and can probably snap again but yes for now your magick worked.)

(OOC 2: Sorry I missed you and Nicole's posts last night I was tired and just wanted to get one more post in before bed sorry.)

by Jeremy Silverstein Sat Sep 23, 2017 8:28 am

Nicole wrote:Nicole stared at the cryptid impassively, body tensed up as though ready to attack. 'Go through the group-' gesturing to the newcomers '-and we will find a safe place.' A slight pause, and a nod. 'If you behave, I won't do nothing more.'

The vampire shuddered fearfully as you spoke to him and hissed he was calmer now but remembers well that you hurt him and he was becoming more upset again it was pretty clear that trying to frighten a being that had just gone berserk out of fear was not working to well, or rather it was working to getting him worked up again.

Serge looked at Nicole and said, "Yo, back off. He's been through enough."

"I have a Phylactery...my Avatar is a physical object and are immune to most forms of magickal tampering including the method they used to restrain my abilities, the rest was simply working some magick of my own kid."
Siege said and he offered you a bit of a smile.

"Ahh good old luck magick..." Serge said remembering his conversation with Siege. "Or did you make yourself stronger with Life Magick? Or do you just have a specialized 'get out of bindings' spell. Actually it doesn't really matter how you got out does it. Still....I can't help but be curious." Serge said with a smile, trying to alert his allies as to what Siege was capable of.

The Nephandus said but he looked rather terrified his vampire as pinball balls trap where walling apart and thing where not looking to good.
"I ehm...well guess you are right, thing do not bode well for me Sir but I am expendable, we all are."

"You may think that, but you don't exactly agree with that statement do you? You told me that you think it's a waste of resources, just sacrificing mages willy-nilly. And aren't their still things that you want to do before you die?" Serge said referring back to their original talk.

(((OOC2: No problem Anja. Get all the rest you need Smile

)))

by Warpmind Sat Sep 23, 2017 8:56 am

Morningstar:

Codee frowned at that.
"Well give them a good kick where it hurts for me then Sir if you would."
She said before she left.

Colin grinned, "Probably more gunfire than kicking, but I shall see what I can deliver."

"True enough unless we actually did want to shoot through Andrew to get to the hostage taker."
Fran said but she gave you a concerned look.

He shook his head, "No, especially not if we wanted to shoot through Andrew. I rather like the kid, you know."

Steelhaven:

"No...you have to be lying I am sure of it how could something like that be true, you would never be able to take the Labyrinth."
The man said desperate for it to be true.

Colin slowly reached into his pocket and drew out the steel bolt he had taken from the rack, "This is the last remains of Abigail's main Node. I burned that out myself. I'm not pretending the assault was a simple thing, but we had maps of the place, intel on the residents, the prior attrition of Abigail's underlings was immense, in part thanks to Larson, and we just coincidentally happened to attack at the same time as the Jade Demon. Adding that we had the Quintessence reserves to simply overpower the Aegis... Abigail's Labyrinth is no more."
He slowly pocketed the bolt again, "The bolt... will be used for a memorial for those sacrificed to the Node; perhaps over time it will be cleansed..."

"No...probably not but chances are I will be dead by then and we do have good healers in the Labyrinth if I am not."
He muttered and shrugged.

He smiled wryly, "Good enough to pluck Primium clumps from your brain? But yes, your future will probably not be so long as to make that a concern."

"Off course I did how else would I be able to work magick? Unless I have my phylactery with me it feels like I have been separated from my soul and I am as helpless as a sleeper."
He said and shuddered.

He frowned, "Interesting... That does make me wonder what form it takes; presumably not an item of clothing, which implies that whoever searched you made a mistake."

The Nephandus hesitated then he nodded at that with a slight smile.
"Yeah...she sort of is insane is she not...and what she did to the widderslaintes...well she is still the boss you know so we all have to do what she says."

He frowned, "Ah, the Nuremberg Defense, is it? That didn't work out so well in '45 and '46 either, you know..."

"No...no...one can always find a way to kill oneself...one can stop eating or...bang one's head on the wall or anything..."
The Nephandus said but he looked rather terrified his vampire as pinball balls trap where walling apart and thing where not looking to good.
"I ehm...well guess you are right, thing do not bode well for me Sir but I am expendable, we all are."

He shook his head, "Hitting your head until you pass out is exceedingly difficult to render lethal, and as for starving yourself... there's always intravenous feeding. No easy escape for you..."

"I did not make it I was born this way, I have always had a Phylactery it is how my Avatar decided to be incarnated."
The Nephandus protested.
"But yes I can deal with spirits."

He nodded thoughtfully, "You'll have to forgive my curiosity, then; I find the subject interesting. But this is hardly the time and place to debate the intricacies of phylacteries. Unless, of course, you would like to show it off, that is, but that would be rather reckless of you, wouldn't it?"

"Well that is a pretty cruel thing to do to a spirit."
The Nephandus muttered.

He cast a glance at Engrave, "Seems par for the course for Abigail and her inner circle, really, but yes."

"It is not my purpose to fight...but I can...and you are my friend."
Engrave carved into the stone wall.

He smiled, "You preserve by recording history... protecting people is not the same, but not so far removed as harming others."

((OOC: Well, today's Adventurers' League day. Off to run a D&D game. Today, Allosaurus-Idiotarod. Because if you decide to have allosauruses pull wagons instead of dogs pulling sleds, you're kind of an idiot... Wink

))

by **Anja Rebekka Schultze** Sat Sep 23, 2017 10:36 am

Morningstar's cafeteria:

Colin grinned, "Probably more gunfire than kicking, but I shall see what I can deliver."

"I have never fired a gun in my life but I hear they are terribly effective so that will do."
Codee said and smiled.

He shook his head, "No, especially not if we wanted to shoot through Andrew. I rather like the kid, you know."

"Yeah I do not want to hurt the kid either he is such a sweet young man."
Francesca agreed.
"So let us try to avoid that."

Steelhaven's basement:

"Ahh good old luck magick..." Serge said remembering his conversation with Siege. "Or did you make yourself stronger with Life Magick? Or do you just have a specialized 'get out of bindings' spell. Actually it doesn't really matter how you got out does it. Still....I can't help but be curious." Serge said with a smile, trying to alert his allies as to what Siege was capable of.

"I decayed the bindings until they fell off me...but really it do not matter..."
The Nephandus said and sigh.
"It really is not that hard for a mage to get out of a cell you know."
He said and smiled a little, he still held a good grip on Andrew as he spoke, the young hostage looked rather terrified.

"You may think that, but you don't exactly agree with that statement do you? You told me that you think it's a waste of resources, just sacrificing mages willy-nilly. And aren't their still things that you want to do before you die?" Serge said referring back to their original talk.

"This is not willy nilly, not as with the poor widderslaintes who where just...thrown away as if they where garbage."
Siege said angrily.
"Yeah sure there are things I want to do but...being a captive of the Traditions that is not going to happen now is it..."

Colin slowly reached into his pocket and drew out the steel bolt he had taken from the rack, "This is the last remains of Abigail's main Node. I burned that out myself. I'm not pretending the assault was a simple thing, but we had maps of the place, intel on the residents, the prior attrition of Abigail's underlings was immense, in part thanks to Larson, and we just coincidentally happened to attack at the same time as the Jade Demon. Adding that we had the Quintessence reserves to simply overpower the Aegis... Abigail's Labyrinth is no more."
He slowly pocketed the bolt again, "The bolt... will be used for a memorial for those sacrificed to the Node; perhaps over time it will be cleansed..."

The Nephandu's eyes went wide as he looked at the bolt and he sort of slumped a bit and seamed to loose some of his confidence.
"But...how I...I...if we have lost one of the Labyrinths...that..."
He muttered then he looked up.
"What happened to the residents of the Labyrinth? Dead or captured I assume..."
He asked sadly.

He smiled wryly, "Good enough to pluck Primium clumps from your brain? But yes, your future will probably not be so long as to make that a concern."

Siege grimaced.
"Brain damage is not the way I would like to go but...well it is what it is, I always knew this mission where likely a one way trip."

He frowned, "Interesting... That does make me wonder what form it takes; presumably not an item of clothing, which implies that whoever searched you made a mistake."

The Nephandus grinned.
"Well that is for me to know and you to wonder about."

He frowned, "Ah, the Nuremberg Defense, is it? That didn't work out so well in '45 and '46 either, you know..."

"I am not defending or excusing anything I am what I am and I am proud to be with the Nephandi...I do not agree with all the Lady of the Labyrinth do but that do not mean I will betray her."
He said proudly and glared at you.

He shook his head, "Hitting your head until you pass out is exceedingly difficult to render lethal, and as for starving yourself... there's always intravenous feeding. No easy escape for you..."

The Nephandus looked at you and tried not to appear as terrified as he was.
"I ehm...well ehm..."
He muttered.

He nodded thoughtfully, "You'll have to forgive my curiosity, then; I find the subject interesting. But this is hardly the time and place to debate the intricacies of phylacteries. Unless, of course, you would like to show it off, that is, but that would be rather reckless of you, wouldn't it?"

"I will try to avoid that, showing off such an item would not be wise and yes it is a interesting topic but no this is not really the time or place..."

He cast a glance at Engrave, "Seems par for the course for Abigail and her inner circle, really, but yes."

Siege glanced at Engrave and nodded.
"Many Nephandi makes being a dick into an art."
He muttered softly.
"It is not a part of our Faction that I agree with."

He smiled, "You preserve by recording history... protecting people is not the same, but not so far removed as harming others."

"Yes..."
Engrave wrote on the wall as he regarded the Nephandus and Andrew looking for an opening moving around like a shadowy presence slowly.
"Humans get distracted I can distract..."
He offered this time he spoke, softly in your mind while clicking his claws together.

by Nicole Bouchard Sat Sep 23, 2017 1:34 pm

Warp's Post:

The large woman shot Serge a glance. 'Fine. We'll leave him here, amongst us, instead of getting them out of the way. Good idea.' dripping sarcasm, said partly for the idiot who objected to getting the vampire somewhere safe to sit this out. There was going to be words with them later on...

With this she turned to face the Fallen again, though at such an angle she could still keep half an eye on the vampire.

by **Anja Rebekka Schultze** Sat Sep 23, 2017 2:24 pm

The vampire sat curled up on the floor he was clearly rather miserable still but at least he was not running around like a maniac.
"There are not that many ways to get him out of the way unless we are going to bring him back in there or into the corridor with the ritual rooms and the Node and we might not want to have a vampire in there, the sun is up so we can not take him up stairs or we will kill him."
A short woman in a clearly borrowed tshirt and long curly hair said.
"And as this is more or less a guest we do not want to hurt him not now that he have calmed down."
She explained.

The Fallen looked far more uncertain now after a few of the things Colin had said to him but he was still holding a hostage, with the vampires calmed down his trap had sort of fallen apart though and while he could end up harming the young mage that was the only threat he had left, that and whatever magick he might be able to hustle up.

by Jeremy Silverstein Sat Sep 23, 2017 4:09 pm

Nicole wrote:The large woman shot Serge a glance. 'Fine. We'll leave him here, amongst us, instead of getting them out of the way. Good idea.' dripping sarcasm, said partly for the idiot who objected to getting the vampire somewhere safe to sit this out.

"That's not what I meant..." Serge objected. "I already asked him to listen to you. I agree with you completely, this isn't the best place for him to stay. But you weren't exactly nice with the way you phrased your request. He's teetering over the edge of sanity and you already hurt him once. Threatening to do it again is just going to make him madder."

Serge sighed and then said, "But you were here before I was. You have a better grasp of the situation. You don't have to listen to me if you don't want to."

"I decayed the bindings until they fell off me...but really it do not matter..."
The Nephandus said and sigh.
"It really is not that hard for a mage to get out of a cell you know."
He said and smiled a little, he still held a good grip on Andrew as he spoke, the young hostage looked rather terrified.

"You decayed the binding? Damn isn't that some high-level shit?" Serge said in impressed sort of voice.

"I guess it isn't that hard for a mage to get out of a prison cell. You could just turn the iron bars into snakes. Still weren't you being guarded. How'd you slip past them?"

"This is not willy nilly, not as with the poor widderslaintes who where just...thrown away as if they where garbage."
Siege said angrily.

"It makes you wonder doesn't it?" Serge said in a curious. "If Lisa needs a widdersalinte....why'd she murder all of the widderslainte's?

(((OOC: Can Serge draw a picture and make a Dex+Art roll to try and lower the difficulty of the his next arete roll using that picture?)))

(((OOC2: On a similar note can Serge start an extended arete roll as he's drawing a picture, trying to garner enough successes for whatever effect he wishes and having that effect happen when he finishes the picture?)))

by **Anja Rebekka Schultze** Sat Sep 23, 2017 4:23 pm

"You decayed the binding? Damn isn't that some high-level shit?" Serge said in impressed sort of voice.

"Matter is far easier to decay than living things so no it is not really that hard."
Siege said and shrugged.
"All you need do is increase the natural flow of entropy, everything will eventually decay I just give it a nudge."

"I guess it isn't that hard for a mage to get out of a prison cell. You could just turn the iron bars into snakes. Still weren't you being guarded. How'd you slip past them?"

"That would be far harder, to turn dead metal into living snakes but I guess it can be done, and yes I was being guarded on the outside of the room, no one expected me to work magick I just stepped out into the Umbra and went over to the room the vampires where being kept it, it really where not that hard."
He said and shrugged again.

"It makes you wonder doesn't it?" Serge said in a curious. "If Lisa needs a widdersalinte....why'd she murder all of the widderslainte's?

"Larson is not a widderslainte what I know, the one leading the Labyrinth we are working with...well were working with now I guess..."
Siege said and shot Colin an accusing look.
"Where a widderslainte...Larson have her reason but nor do I think the reasons are good nor am I at liberty to discuss them, as for why she sacrificed the widderslaintes when she needed one, she did not think she would at the time, and we seam to be missing a shipment of enforcements from Chicago meaning we need to find one someplace else and so happens your Chantry here have two, and you will give me one of them..."
He said but he did not manage to sound very confident.
"You will also give me Larson's daughter..."

(OOC: Yes I think working extra on your foci should be able to earn you a lower diff yes.)

(OOC 2: Yes.)

by Adley Sat Sep 23, 2017 7:32 pm

Colin grinned, "Ever watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer? Giles almost always wore tweed in that series. It seems to be the go-to style for portraying academics in TV shows and movies; especially British ones..."

"No, but I'm beginning to think I should have," he said.

Your Mentor had taught you how to quell a flame, Perdo Ignem...I destroy fire. The flame was not to large and while your spellcasting where pretty sketchy, you just could not get it to work exactly as you wanted to, it did the job and the fire that had been started in some papers and and old mattress died down into a smoking pile, it was not elegantly done but it did quell the fire.

One target down. His spellcasting was to be desired but it did it, if by much more than force of will alone. He scanned around for what next to handle, the vampires or the Nephandi that Colin had chatting like a fishwife. Then at the woman he didn't know talking to Serge, seemed to be not an enemy, and the vampires...well, at least they seemed calmer for the moment. He felt and saw Engrave appear and hover through the wards and then appear close by Colin as he asked for help but what caught his ear was that the guy said he had his phylactary on him. He started to scan him for anything that had a high magicakal spiritual and primal resonance, or a suspiciously 'empty' area, as if something were being hidden. Something that he was born with, the avatar incarnated into a thing and not him.

///

Lol, Serge is going to have a lot of fun with artifacts and rotes, finding similarities to fictions.

ooc 2: sorry for lag, trying to catch up

ooc3: 'vampires as pinballs trap' xD LOL

ooc4: Have fun Warp, that sounds like an awesome game, dinosaur racing? Lol!

ooc5: What should I roll for a magickal scan of Siege? Per+Awareness? Basically while everyone is chatting, he's looking for some kind of weakness to use to remove the leverage that the guy has on them

by **Anja Rebekka Schultze** Sat Sep 23, 2017 8:42 pm

Siege's attention was definitively on Serge and Colin right now though he did keep an eye on Engrave, for now he ignored you though. Karl where in a corner curled up in a ball and terrified but he was at least not panicking and Dennis Lenoe was on the floor, also curled up, overwhelmed. Henrietta was hurt but Adjan and Kristina was helping her out of the room.

(OOC: Not a problem do you need a summary of what have happened.)
(OOC 2: Well when a vampire is in any kind of frenzy they are not in conscious control a little Entropy magick and you have yourself a pinball trap.)
(OOC 3: Per plus Awareness works yes, that or doing a straight up Prime scan.)

by Warpmind Sat Sep 23, 2017 8:56 pm

"I decayed the bindings until they fell off me...but really it do not matter..."
The Nephandus said and sigh.
"It really is not that hard for a mage to get out of a cell you know."
He said and smiled a little, he still held a good grip on Andrew as he spoke, the young hostage looked rather terrified.

"You decayed the binding? Damn isn't that some high-level shit?" Serge said in impressed sort of voice.

"Matter is far easier to decay than living things so no it is not really that hard."
Siege said and shrugged.
"All you need do is increase the natural flow of entropy, everything will eventually decay I just give it a nudge."

Colin glanced with amusement at Serge, "Oh, kid, your enthusiasm is going to be a delight around here. Our friendly neighbourhood hostage taker is right, though - accelerating the natural process of decay is a fairly simple trick. I personally prefer to use the same sort of magic to counteract said deterioration instead, but on the whole, it's just a little power and a bit of patience that's needed."

The Nephandu's eyes went wide as he looked at the bolt and he sort of slumped a bit and seamed to loose some of his confidence.
"But...how I...I...if we have lost one of the Labyrinths...that..."
He muttered then he looked up.
"What happened to the residents of the Labyrinth? Dead or captured I assume..."
He asked sadly.

He nodded, "A few lower-ranking members made their escape. They may, however, have little time left as free men and women; the security chief's safe contained everyone's blood samples. Those were quickly secured. And... there are a couple of individuals who are not beyond saving, as it happens."

Siege grimaced.
"Brain damage is not the way I would like to go but...well it is what it is, I always knew this mission where likely a one way trip."

He frowned, "So, you were captured on purpose... who captured you, though?"

The Nephandus grinned.
"Well that is for me to know and you to wonder about."

He shrugged, "One thing I do wonder about, though... if you were born with a phylactery, how did that interact with the Caul? Or were you born a widderslainte?"

"I am not defending or excusing anything I am what I am and I am proud to be with the Nephandi...I do not agree with all the Lady of the Labyrinth do but that do not mean I will betray her."
He said proudly and glared at you.

He shrugged, "I can't help but wonder, though, how deep that loyalty truly runs. It's fairly obvious she hasn't earned that loyalty by virtue of leading from the front, or by showing that she cares for her household like the Jade Demon. I'm inclined to suspect it's a combination of fear and twisted fascination at what the woman is willing and ready to do."

"I will try to avoid that, showing off such an item would not be wise and yes it is a interesting topic but no this is not really the time or place..."

He smiled thinly, "On the other hand, keeping the discussion going while we wait for someone senior would scarcely go much amiss, either."

Siege glanced at Engrave and nodded.
"Many Nephandi makes being a dick into an art."
He muttered softly.
"It is not a part of our Faction that I agree with."

He nodded sagely, "I'm sure some would consider your wall decor an inspiration to that end. And still, there are a few who retain some proper decency in spite of it all. Hell, somehow an utter and inexcusable ass like Diego managed to end up with a couple of quite kindly and compassionate apprentices."

"Yes..."
Engrave wrote on the wall as he regarded the Nephandus and Andrew looking for an opening moving around like a shadowy presence slowly.
"Humans get distracted I can distract..."
He offered this time he spoke, softly in your mind while clicking his claws together.

He frowned, whispering softly, "Can you find his name and write it on the wall?"

"Larson is not a widderslainte what I know, the one leading the Labyrinth we are working with...well were working with now I guess..."
Siege said and shot Colin an accusing look.
"Where a widderslainte...Larson have her reason but nor do I think the reasons are good nor am I at liberty to discuss them, as for why she sacrificed the widderslaintes when she needed one, she did not think she would at the time, and we seam to be missing a shipment of enforcements from Chicago meaning we need to find one someplace else and so happens your Chantry here have two, and you will give me one of them..."
He said but he did not manage to sound very confident.
"You will also give me Larson's daughter..."

He shrugged, "What can I say? We needed to cut away Larson's supports first, just in case. As for giving you one of our resident widderslaintes... I really don't think that's going to be deemed acceptable; we're quite fond of them. And Larson's daughter was offered sanctuary, I doubt that will be renegotiated on... I don't suppose we could persuade you to take Diego instead? What with his opera, I think he'll be more valuable to us in Larson's hands than here. Of course, that'd be the Security Chief's call..."

((OOC: Game went well; basically Cannonball Run meets Iditarod, with allosaurus-pulled wagons instead of husky-pulled sleds. Razz

))

by Jeremy Silverstein Sat Sep 23, 2017 9:12 pm

"I decayed the bindings until they fell off me...but really it do not matter..."
The Nephandus said and sigh.
"It really is not that hard for a mage to get out of a cell you know."
He said and smiled a little, he still held a good grip on Andrew as he spoke, the young hostage looked rather terrified.

Colin wrote:Colin glanced with amusement at Serge, "Oh, kid, your enthusiasm is going to be a delight around here. Our friendly neighbourhood hostage taker is right, though - accelerating the natural process of decay is a fairly simple trick. I personally prefer to use the same sort of magic to counteract said deterioration instead, but on the whole, it's just a little power and a bit of patience that's needed."

"Dammit, the most I can do is see the natural chaos in the world. Randomness, flaws, and stuff like that. I would ask you guys to teach me more but...we're currently in a Mexican stand-off." Serge said with a smile.

"That would be far harder, to turn dead metal into living snakes but I guess it can be done, and yes I was being guarded on the outside of the room, no one expected me to work magick I just stepped out into the Umbra and went over to the room the vampires where being kept it, it really where not that hard."
He said and shrugged again.

"Hard sure, but not impossible. Anything can happen when your a mage. I think it'd be a really stylish way to get out. Come out looking like a boss with your army of snakes." Serge said reminding Siege of the fact that anything was possible in a mage chantry. Serge needed Siege to believe anything was possible for some of his most potent magick to work on him.

Thankfully Siege was currently in a standoff within a mage chantry, surrounded by mages, discussing his weird reality-bending magick, just after releasing two enraged vampires, so making him believe that his knife was turned into a snake or worse wasn't going to be a challenge.

"Also your escape sounds like a heist movie. Did you plan this or did the pieces just fall into place and you took the opportunity when it arose?" Serge asked still a little curious.

"Larson is not a widderslainte what I know, the one leading the Labyrinth we are working with...well were working with now I guess..."
Siege said and shot Colin an accusing look.
"Where a widderslainte...Larson have her reason but nor do I think the reasons are good nor am I at liberty to discuss them, as for why she sacrificed the widderslaintes when she needed one, she did not think she would at the time, and we seam to be missing a shipment of enforcements from Chicago meaning we need to find one someplace else and so happens your Chantry here have two, and you will give me one of them..."
He said but he did not manage to sound very confident.
"You will also give me Larson's daughter..."

"Are those the demands that you mentioned before? The ones you wanted our leader to hear?" Serge asked carefully inching behind Adley and his shield, and drawing a new picture within his sketchbook, carefully envisioning Siege within his mind and recreating him in his sketchbook.

(((OOC1: Yeah Serge already loves Adley's classic 'mage shield'.)))

(((OOC2: Dex+Art roll to try and draw a picture of Siege for use in future magick attempts involving the picture.

Roll: 2, 8, 4, 7, 3, 7 According to the book If the difficulty is 6 then that should be a -3 difficulty on arete rolls using this picture right?)))

by Adley Sat Sep 23, 2017 10:13 pm

// I think I know about what's going on, atm, with that mini-summary, thanks. Per+Awareness (since he already had a spirit and prime scan up, though now he's looking specifically. I can roll that too, if needed - 8, 5, 9, 1, 6, any joy?

ooc2: That sounds like a good time had by all, Warp
ooc3: lol, Flambeau/Hermetics have a good number of 'classic' moves

by **Anja Rebekka Schultze** Sat Sep 23, 2017 10:26 pm

He nodded, "A few lower-ranking members made their escape. They may, however, have little time left as free men and women; the security chief's safe contained everyone's blood samples. Those were quickly secured. And... there are a couple of individuals who are not beyond saving, as it happens."

"I see..."
Siege muttered and she did not look pleased to hear those news.
"And the rest?"

He frowned, "So, you were captured on purpose... who captured you, though?"

"A short guy, Indonesian perhaps with allot of tattoos and a nasty sword I do not remember his name, my hand bloody well remembers that sword though."
The Nephandus grumbled.
"Yeah it was on purpose."

He shrugged, "One thing I do wonder about, though... if you were born with a phylactery, how did that interact with the Caul? Or were you born a widderslainte?"

He frowned deeply.
"Don't ask me, I stepped in regularly and was really to busy screaming to...know exactly what happened. I was not born a widderslainte, but really your guess is as good as mine."

He shrugged, "I can't help but wonder, though, how deep that loyalty truly runs. It's fairly obvious she hasn't earned that loyalty by virtue of leading from the front, or by showing that she cares for her household like the Jade Demon. I'm inclined to suspect it's a combination of fear and twisted fascination at what the woman is willing and ready to do."

"Fear...mostly fear...but if she can pull of what she is planning to do...putting up with her crazy would have been worth it...and if she can not pull it off, well let us say that both her and the Traditions would be pushed down the ladder of what I am afraid of."
Siege muttered.
"No the Lady of the Labyrinth have not earned loyalty but she have enough power to demand it."

He smiled thinly, "On the other hand, keeping the discussion going while we wait for someone senior would scarcely go much amiss, either."

"True enough..."
The man agreed.
"But do not think for a second I will lower my guard Traditionalist!"
He warned darkly.

He nodded sagely, "I'm sure some would consider your wall decor an inspiration to that end. And still, there are a few who retain some proper decency in spite of it all. Hell, somehow an utter and inexcusable ass like Diego managed to end up with a couple of quite kindly and compassionate apprentices."

"Yeah Diego's apprentices are pretty nice...I guess they are captured or dead as well?"
He muttered.
"As for the wall decor, well it is what it is but it is not my favorite but hey with our Labyrinth we sort of have to put up with it, the organic parts make up the entire place."
The Nephandus said and shrugged.

He frowned, whispering softly, "Can you find his name and write it on the wall?"

"No but I can write some of his story."
Engrave said, his voice a soft whisper in your head.

He shrugged, "What can I say? We needed to cut away Larson's supports first, just in case. As for giving you one of our resident widderslaintes... I really don't think that's going to be deemed acceptable; we're quite fond of them.

Siege raised an eyebrow when you said that your Chantry where fond of the two widderslaintes.
"That them...surprise me, do not the Traditions usually...end widderslaintes in the most horrible of ways?"

And Larson's daughter was offered sanctuary, I doubt that will be renegotiated on... I don't suppose we could persuade you to take Diego instead? What with his opera, I think he'll be more valuable to us in Larson's hands than here. Of course, that'd be the Security Chief's call..."

"Ehm...what if we get Cadence Clearwater back and you can keep Diego?"
He asked and frowned then he turned serious and said in a threatening tone of voice.
"However if you want the boy back safe you will give me one of the widderslaintes and Larson's daughter..."
The Nephandus brought the knife a little closer to Andrew's throat just to prove a point and the young apprentice whimpered a little though he shouted.
"Don't mind me, I am a Hermetic I will not be a burden to this Chantry, do not give him what he wants...please..."
The teenager shouted though he was on the brink of tears.

"Dammit, the most I can do is see the natural chaos in the world. Randomness, flaws, and stuff like that. I would ask you guys to teach me more but...we're currently in a Mexican stand-off." Serge said with a smile.

"Yeah...this would not be the time kid..."
Siege agreed though he smiled a little at your enthusiasm.

"Hard sure, but not impossible. Anything can happen when your a mage. I think it'd be a really stylish way to get out. Come out looking like a boss with your army of snakes." Serge said reminding Siege of the fact that anything was possible in a mage chantry. Serge needed Siege to believe anything was possible for some of his most potent magick to work on him.

"Off course it is possible, but it is not magick I possess the knowledge of how to work and also it is most impractical, first of all nine times out of then you do not want anyone to notice you escaping and secondly if just stepping out into the Umbra will get the job done, the easy solution is always best."
The Nephandus said patiently.

Thankfully Siege was currently in a standoff within a mage chantry, surrounded by mages, discussing his weird reality-bending magick, just after releasing two enraged vampires, so making him believe that his knife was turned into a snake or worse wasn't going to be a challenge.

"Also your escape sounds like a heist movie. Did you plan this or did the pieces just fall into place and you took the opportunity when it arose?" Serge asked still a little curious.

"I planned the general outline yes, however one can never plan to closely as circumstances change why where you wondering?"

"Are those the demands that you mentioned before? The ones you wanted our leader to hear?" Serge asked carefully inching behind Adley and his shield, and drawing a new picture within his sketchbook, carefully envisioning Siege within his mind and recreating him in his sketchbook.

"Yes they are..."
Siege said as he glanced over at you then he grinned and looked down at his hand for a moment.
"Claver trick kid but the first thing you do going into a fight would be to protect your mind, and while I might see an illusion if it is one you have been going on about for some time before you cast the spell seeing it as such is not to hard...but still...cleaver...."

You looked over Siege he had two powerful wards up one against spirits and spiritual attacks and one against mental ones, probably a good idea when dealing with massassa. You do see something though, a little fleck of light that shone with all the wrong colors, in his gut. You get a nagging suspicion that prior to letting himself get captured he had swallowed his phylactery and it was now in his guts, not perhaps the most dignified thing to do with one's Avatar but it was undoubtedly effective.

(OOC: Using a focus if one do not need it are a minus 1 making extra effort are a minus 2...I have also completely forgotten about the nearby Node so that is another minus 1 in differ for everyone so yes all in all minus 3 for Siege right now yes. but the drawing alone would give hum minus 2.)

by Warpmind Sat Sep 23, 2017 11:19 pm

"Dammit, the most I can do is see the natural chaos in the world. Randomness, flaws, and stuff like that. I would ask you guys to teach me more but...we're currently in a Mexican stand-off." Serge said with a smile.

Colin grinned, "Patience, grasshopper."

"I see..."
Siege muttered and she did not look pleased to hear those news.
"And the rest?"

He nodded, "As you guessed... one out of two. And for what it's worth, I am sorry for that."

"A short guy, Indonesian perhaps with allot of tattoos and a nasty sword I do not remember his name, my hand bloody well remembers that sword though."
The Nephandus grumbled.
"Yeah it was on purpose."

He sighed, "I am going to give that man such a scolding... No matter; what's done is done."

He frowned deeply.
"Don't ask me, I stepped in regularly and was really to busy screaming to...know exactly what happened. I was not born a widderslainte, but really your guess is as good as mine."

He nodded, "Some seem to remember more of that than others... poor bastards. One might wonder why you would drag your deepest and dearest friend through that, though."

"Fear...mostly fear...but if she can pull of what she is planning to do...putting up with her crazy would have been worth it...and if she can not pull it off, well let us say that both her and the Traditions would be pushed down the ladder of what I am afraid of."
Siege muttered.
"No the Lady of the Labyrinth have not earned loyalty but she have enough power to demand it."

He arched an eyebrow, "Well, if you don't already fear the Aswadim, I'd say you're a braver man or bigger fool than me. And an angry one, well, it should be fairly obvious why we want to stop her."

"True enough..."
The man agreed.
"But do not think for a second I will lower my guard Traditionalist!"
He warned darkly.

He smiled thinly, "Of course not."

"Yeah Diego's apprentices are pretty nice...I guess they are captured or dead as well?"
He muttered.
"As for the wall decor, well it is what it is but it is not my favorite but hey with our Labyrinth we sort of have to put up with it, the organic parts make up the entire place."
The Nephandus said and shrugged.

He shook his head, "No, they managed to slip away; one buggered off through the Umbra, so I couldn't get a clear shot, the other escaped through a back door while the capture team were held up. Left us a phone, though, so we got some good intel; they saw where things were headed and decided Abigail and Larson were not the ones they wanted to side with."
He smiled slyly, "Speaking of the structure, is Larson's Labyrinth crippled, or is it liable to fly again? I mean, I understand Dalisse and Larson aren't quite on speaking terms, but on the whole, will the polyp ever be able to move?"

"No but I can write some of his story."
Engrave said, his voice a soft whisper in your head.

He nodded.

Siege raised an eyebrow when you said that your Chantry where fond of the two widderslaintes.
"That them...surprise me, do not the Traditions usually...end widderslaintes in the most horrible of ways?"

He frowned and nodded, "Usually, yes... but there are exceptions. Not all of them are horrible, murderous monsters. And ones who can get a Master to take them in can get, well, I suppose you could call it an indefinitely suspended sentence."

"Ehm...what if we get Cadence Clearwater back and you can keep Diego?"
He asked and frowned then he turned serious and said in a threatening tone of voice.
"However if you want the boy back safe you will give me one of the widderslaintes and Larson's daughter..."
The Nephandus brought the knife a little closer to Andrew's throat just to prove a point and the young apprentice whimpered a little though he shouted.
"Don't mind me, I am a Hermetic I will not be a burden to this Chantry, do not give him what he wants...please..."
The teenager shouted though he was on the brink of tears.

He arched an eyebrow, "Who's Cadence Clearwater? Ah... wait, don't tell me, let me guess, she's the other one Captain Shark Sword captured? That's going to be a bit difficult, I'm afraid; I understand there are people who want to keep her, while, quite frankly, Diego is as popular as a red-headed stepchild wherever he goes."
He nodded to Andrew, "So long as you're alive, he's got a bargaining chip... You're still an asset to this Chantry, and besides, your Mentor would never let me hear the end of it."
He frowned, "Out of curiosity, what happened to your hand, and which hand was it?"

by Jeremy Silverstein Sat Sep 23, 2017 11:26 pm

"A short guy, Indonesian perhaps with allot of tattoos and a nasty sword I do not remember his name, my hand bloody well remembers that sword though."
The Nephandus grumbled.

"You know after I talked to you I actually met Mr. Shark Sword. Managed to get a good look at that sword as well. It was a cool-looking sword!" Serge said remembering his time in Tane's room.

"Yeah it was on purpose."

"You mentioned that Lisa had been overly aggressive with her plans. Is that why? She wanted you to get captured on purpose?" Serge said remembering one of the theories he had made when trying to get insight into the prophetic drawing.

"Off course it is possible, but it is not magick I possess the knowledge of how to work and also it is most impractical, first of all nine times out of then you do not want anyone to notice you escaping and secondly if just stepping out into the Umbra will get the job done, the easy solution is always best."
The Nephandus said patiently.

"You know everytime I talk to you, your skillset just seems to get larger. First it was Luck magick, then Life, and now stepping into the Umbra? Isn't that some Spirit Shenanigans? Next thing I know you'll be transmuting Matter and going back in time." Serge said.

"I planned the general outline yes, however one can never plan to closely as circumstances change why where you wondering?"

"Man you broke out of magical prison, of course I'm wondering how you did it! I always thought that if you broke out it'd be with the help of one of your buddies. Never imagined that you'd do it on your own."

"Yes they are..."
Siege said as he glanced over at you then he grinned and looked down at his hand for a moment.
"Claver trick kid but the first thing you do going into a fight would be to protect your mind, and while I might see an illusion if it is one you have been going on about for some time before you cast the spell seeing it as such is not to hard...but still...clever...."

Serge gritted his teeth in mild frustration. He might've be able to fight through Siege's protection if he put a little effort into his magick but the Nephandus had a hostage and any failure on his part would likely put the teenager at risk.

"Well...learn something new everyday. That'll be good to know for future fights. At least it's a nice drawing." Serge said with a fake smile that hid his displeasure. He could do other tricks with the picture but for the most part that shield rendered Serge's main trick useless. Serge stood there, trying to think of another angle of attack and silently hoping that the other mages were working on a better plan.

(((OOC: Do all of the spells that Serge's uses with that drawing get the -2 difficulty or is it only good for one effect?)))

by Nicole Bouchard Sun Sep 24, 2017 8:17 am

Anja's Post:

'The idea of just getting them to the back of the crowd and out of the fucking way seems to be all too much for you, dear?' Nicole snarled softly, under her breath. Stupid woman. It being here increased it's chances of being destroyed; she didn't discount the Fallen being able to pull out a trick to get it to attack again - in the middle of them. She didn't respond to Serge; she was too busy watching both the vampire and the Fallen.

As the talk was going on, Nicole started rating their chances. Of restraining the pair of vampires if blood fell to the floor. Of taking down the Fallen before the neck damage to the kid was critical. Possible casualties; while she knew that you couldn't judge an Awakened's power on their appearance, she couldn't help it when they looked like the type who'd call three teenagers "a gang", lock the windows and call the cops while cowering behind the couch... And how did the bastard get in?

by **Anja Rebekka Schultze** Sun Sep 24, 2017 9:57 am

He nodded, "As you guessed... one out of two. And for what it's worth, I am sorry for that."

Siege glanced at your sourly but said nothing.

He sighed, "I am going to give that man such a scolding... No matter; what's done is done."

The Nephandus raised an eyebrow at that.
"He should not have been out there capturing Nephandi? Not that I disagree with that stance but it is a little surprising."
He muttered.

He nodded, "Some seem to remember more of that than others... poor bastards. One might wonder why you would drag your deepest and dearest friend through that, though."

"This is not something I want to talk about...I...do not want to talk about it!"
Siege hissed and he took on a more threatening stance.

He arched an eyebrow, "Well, if you don't already fear the Aswadim, I'd say you're a braver man or bigger fool than me. And an angry one, well, it should be fairly obvious why we want to stop her."

"Yeah I can't blame you for that the plan is utter madness and have made us a pariah among other Labyrinths who think it is heresy, but if it works...if it work it will be glorious."
The man said and gave a bright smile.

He smiled thinly, "Of course not."

Siege just glared at you.

He shook his head, "No, they managed to slip away; one buggered off through the Umbra, so I couldn't get a clear shot, the other escaped through a back door while the capture team were held up. Left us a phone, though, so we got some good intel; they saw where things were headed and decided Abigail and Larson were not the ones they wanted to side with."

"That is good...I am glad they are not captured they...are such sweet kids and I can understand turning against Lady Larson I guess we all have thought...well anyway not important...they are free for now at least."
Siege muttered.

He smiled slyly, "Speaking of the structure, is Larson's Labyrinth crippled, or is it liable to fly again? I mean, I understand Dalisse and Larson aren't quite on speaking terms, but on the whole, will the polyp ever be able to move?"

The Nephandus eyes widened at what knowledge you had then he sigh.
"Larson keep having her best spirit mage being the creature to keep it in the Penumbra and Dalisse keeps undoing those bindings. If Larson could she would have killed the Handler long ago but doing so would mean she lost control over the ship, even punishing the Handler upsets the creature and she is getting so frail I am not sure she can take allot of punishing anyway...some of us mutate you know..."
He muttered and it was clear this was concerning him allot.

He nodded.

Engrave started writing, first it was of a boy child with religious parents who could not quite settle down in Church, he believed in god but not the way that organized religion presented it. The story spoke of siblings, friends and a girlfriend who moved away, about a child who loved to sing, a kind boy who wanted to please is parents, protect his younger siblings and who heard the voice of the creator in music...It seamed the writing this story would take some time though as the letters appeared on the wall.

He frowned and nodded, "Usually, yes... but there are exceptions. Not all of them are horrible, murderous monsters. And ones who can get a Master to take them in can get, well, I suppose you could call it an indefinitely suspended sentence."

"Hum...Larson will not be pleased to hear that...so these widderslainte are full members of this Chantry then?"
He asked and frowned as he saw that his demand would be harder to get fulfilled now.
"Ok...ok I will settle for Larson's daughter then but we must have her back we must."

He arched an eyebrow, "Who's Cadence Clearwater? Ah... wait, don't tell me, let me guess, she's the other one Captain Shark Sword captured?

"I do not know who captured her but it would not surprise me he seams like a really active little asshole, she is a member of my Labyrinth though and while my mission do not require it...I do not want to leave her in Traditionalist hands."
Siege muttered, his wounded hand where shaking now holding a knife, even though Serge's illusions was getting to be a problem and he was running out of time and was getting more desperate.

That's going to be a bit difficult, I'm afraid; I understand there are people who want to keep her, while, quite frankly, Diego is as popular as a red-headed stepchild wherever he goes."

"Diego is a foul mounted imbecile he tried to rape my apprentice I have no intention of saving him he can rot for all I care!"
Siege grumbled.

He nodded to Andrew, "So long as you're alive, he's got a bargaining chip... You're still an asset to this Chantry, and besides, your Mentor would never let me hear the end of it."

"My Mentor would not be pleased Sir but do not let him have that bargaining chip the ehm massassa have calmed down if I bleed I only risk death, and we have good healers please take him out."
Andrew muttered he was crying now but trying to be brave. The Nephandus looked down at the kid and frowned.

He frowned, "Out of curiosity, what happened to your hand, and which hand was it?"

"The Indonesian guy stabbed his bloody sword right through it...some blond hippie dude healed me but the hand do still hurt."
He muttered but he did not say which had it was, the one he was holding the knife with was pink with freshly healed skin though.

"You know after I talked to you I actually met Mr. Shark Sword. Managed to get a good look at that sword as well. It was a cool-looking sword!" Serge said remembering his time in Tane's room.

"It is not so cool lodged in your bloody hand kid!"
Siege grumbled.

"You mentioned that Lisa had been overly aggressive with her plans. Is that why? She wanted you to get captured on purpose?" Serge said remembering one of the theories he had made when trying to get insight into the prophetic drawing.

"She have several plans that are quite aggressive but yes she ordered me to get captured on purpose and make it look good, it was a gamble the restraining cuffs would block off my abilities as well as they do not interact with my Avatar but anything that did I would be immune to so there was a chance I would be free to...act when the time was right."

"You know everytime I talk to you, your skillset just seems to get larger. First it was Luck magick, then Life, and now stepping into the Umbra? Isn't that some Spirit Shenanigans? Next thing I know you'll be transmuting Matter and going back in time." Serge said.

"I did not feel like telling you everything I can do, but no I can not transmute matter I am quite good at working with spirits though, which should have been obvious since I was harvesting Avatar shards."
He said and gave you a friendly smile.

"Man you broke out of magical prison, of course I'm wondering how you did it! I always thought that if you broke out it'd be with the help of one of your buddies. Never imagined that you'd do it on your own."

"Getting my buddies part the wards is not that easy you know..."

"Well...learn something new everyday. That'll be good to know for future fights. At least it's a nice drawing." Serge said with a fake smile that hid his displeasure. He could do other tricks with the picture but for the most part that shield rendered Serge's main trick useless. Serge stood there, trying to think of another angle of attack and silently hoping that the other mages were working on a better plan.

"You should learn to do the same kid, shield your mind."
Siege said and nodded.
"It is not to hard and spend a little time on it you will be protected."

'The idea of just getting them to the back of the crowd and out of the fucking way seems to be all too much for you, dear?' Nicole snarled softly, under her breath. Stupid woman. It being here increased it's chances of being destroyed; she didn't discount the Fallen being able to pull out a trick to get it to attack again - in the middle of them. She didn't respond to Serge; she was too busy watching both the vampire and the Fallen.

"Well if you would prefer to have a vampire on the verge of loosing control behind us where we can not keep an eye on him do be my guest and see if you can escort him to the back of the group."
The girl with the curls said with sugar sweetness in her voice.
"But I will be standing in front of you then..."

As the talk was going on, Nicole started rating their chances. Of restraining the pair of vampires if blood fell to the floor. Of taking down the Fallen before the neck damage to the kid was critical. Possible casualties; while she knew that you couldn't judge an Awakened's power on their appearance, she couldn't help it when they looked like the type who'd call three teenagers "a gang", lock the windows and call the cops while cowering behind the couch... And how did the bastard get in?

You notice hat the Nephandus do not appear to be casting any spells of his own, he had protections and had cast them before he took a hostage but now he did nothing it might be he needed his hands to work magick since having one of his hands damaged was what had stopped him earlier. You had heard Recca, that was the only name she ever gave, at your former Chantry, the one who gave you a bit of a 101 on how to stay the fuck away from vampires, mention that stakes though the heart functioned like the pause button on a video game to them, froze them in place, and while they did not like it, it did not seam to actually do lasting damage so you might be able to restrain them with that...shooting them in the head would knock them out for a little while to she said, but not for long. Recca really did not like vampires. For what you where told a group of them had showed up on the doorsteps to the Chantry one night with Recca just dumping her on the front porch, whatever they had done had upset the teenager enough to Awaken her, she never spoke about it though at times you could hear her start awake screaming in her room.

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