Re: A Rescue, A Capture and Bad Choices IC Thread 13

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

I belive avatars are simply spirits of our own paradigms. They change with is and they través to is through lifes as they are the embodiment of what our souls actually already know to be our truth.

"Perhaps that is so...I have always seen them as something pure and perfect, that incarnate in us imperfect beings so that we might help them learn by seeing the world through the eyes of our imperfection."
Amadeus muttered.

And that shards you bring? It's a way of thinking that branches from your own paradigma, but doesn't quite go against it.

"Perhaps that is so...perhaps that is so..."
The old Verbena said and nodded.

Antonio slowly stood.
"I should go an tell Chief Morgan what I found out. If you will excuse me gentlemen."
He said and gave you a nod and bowed deeply for Amadeus and made to leave the Node chamber.

[Tane Karyak]

I can't think on a reson why it would be perfect. Shards are like child avatares, that means they are incompleta. Who says avatares doesn't grow? Tañe asked.

He nodded to the other man and asked Amadeus do you need something el se?

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

"Well at least there is a theory that the shards are child Avatars but who know if they are not born perfect, spirits are perfect, that is what separate them from us, at least if we are thinking natural spirits and not ghosts who have human flaws."
The old mage said.
"A fire elemental is perfectly a fire elemental, but that also mean they can not be anything but a fire elemental for they are perfect, one need imperfection to learn and grow."

Antonio nodded and left. Amadeus shook his head.
"No nothing else thank you for your aid Tane."

[Tane Karyak]

Ok then. I'll go and take Coawa to the water. Since there are more of his kind that can take caré of him i'll remain a little there and then i'll get here so you can sleep a little. Can you call me it she awakenda?

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

"Very well, I am sure his own will be able to take good care of Coawa."
Amadeus said and nodded.
"I will see you when you come back, go and be with your friend and do not worry about me I can stay up for a while. I will let you know when my student wakes up though."

[Tane Karyak]

Tane agreed and greeted Amadeus before going back to Coawa in the main hall.
How are you, brother?

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

You find Coawa in the common room, he is sitting by one of the table eating a hearty meal consisting of fried eggs, potatoes, beans and bread, there is no one else in the common room right now, the whereshark looks at you and nods.
"Allot better brother, the blond mage fixed my wounds...I will need rest and there are off course some spiritual consequences to silver that needs to be righted up in the sea, but for the most part I am fine..."
He said and showed more potato into his mouth and smiled with his jagged teeth.
"These mages can be a bit stuck up but they are ok."

[Tane Karyak]

The man knows what he's doing. Was it bad, though? tañe asked sitting beside him

[Warpmind]

((OOC: Bleh... Sorry I've been off for days. Just tired, nothing to point to, really... Long week and an exhilarating D&D game yesterday, but I've been sleeping a LOT this weekend. Might be coming down with something. On the bright side, though, I finally got to expose a party to an Autonomous Defenestrator in a game. And I'm sure at least some of you will see the funny in calling the place Castle Praag - a flying fortress - and the Autonomous Defenestrator in question being a clay golem... ))

Colin smiled wryly, "Well, I suppose Paradox could do that, but I would advise against using magic like that while operating an aircraft in any case."
He frowned, "Where on TV would you be able to find that sort of... nevermind, I don't really wish to know."

He nodded thoughtfully, "True, the girl is a Nephandus... And as Adley points out, a brainwashed child with little experience regarding the outside world. If given enough time, I think she stands a chance to be... reconditioned. Not that brainwashing is better in principle if it's done by our side."
He shook his head, "Brute forcing something does not necessarily mean directly applied violence, so much as simply dispensing with subtlety. If slipping anything under the fence can't be done, then tearing the wards apart, or even the walls themselves, might be the only option left to us. I... think we can work out something to dispose of Nephandic barriers, though; Adley and I seem to have figured out a method for unraveling that which is an abomination to Reality, at least. It would likely be highly noticeable to the people who set it up, but that likely boils down to timing more than anything else. I'd really hate sending anyone into a magical gauntlet like that if it can be at all avoided."
He sighed, "Quite, the girl is more like a lost tiger cub. Small, adorable and fuzzy now, perhaps, but in time she could be six hundred pounds of temperamental muscle, claws and teeth. Still, tigers can be tamed..."
He nodded, "Considering the boy's an infernalist whom his pacted demon seems to put enough value to personally assault the Labyrinth giving him trouble, I don't think keeping him around for long would be justifiable or safe. Still, if he's willing to cooperate, he could surely at least earn a swift and painful death... Sometimes, the best mercy one can offer is a sharp blade..."
He frowned at the implication of quoting Discworld's Death, "And now Terry Pratchett has me talking like the Euthanatos..."
He arched an eyebrow at the description of the Avatar as standing in a room of mirrors, "By the way, Anna said something strange before she was carried to the infirmary... She said I should never go into a Caul, because the sad lady like a broken glass doll in an egg would tear it apart. Adley, do you have any thoughts or insights into that?"
He examined the map carefully, "So, your contact delivers... where precisely would Carmon be lying around?"
He frowned, "Who remains with the Labyrinth indeed... With luck, the Union took out all the Masters in the Nephandi's backup team when they hit the post office... We can't trust that, though, and we can't just call the Union and ask. It seems likely to me, though, that Abigail could spare no more than one Awakened Nephandus, seeing as she's been though an attrition nightmare already... Probably a loyal Linear mage or two, though."

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

Tane:

Coawa shrugs.
"Silver is never fun, and it makes me feel weak, but I have been hurt before and will be again."
He muttered as he cleaned his plate.
"The important thing is that we got the bastard."

Colin:

Colin smiled wryly, "Well, I suppose Paradox could do that, but I would advise against using magic like that while operating an aircraft in any case."
He frowned, "Where on TV would you be able to find that sort of... nevermind, I don't really wish to know."

Anna just smiles to that.

He nodded thoughtfully, "True, the girl is a Nephandus... And as Adley points out, a brainwashed child with little experience regarding the outside world. If given enough time, I think she stands a chance to be... reconditioned. Not that brainwashing is better in principle if it's done by our side."

"Perhaps but then again her soul is corrupted, who knows what it will lead her to do."
Joakim said and he sounded rather skeptical.

He shook his head, "Brute forcing something does not necessarily mean directly applied violence, so much as simply dispensing with subtlety. If slipping anything under the fence can't be done, then tearing the wards apart, or even the walls themselves, might be the only option left to us. I... think we can work out something to dispose of Nephandic barriers, though; Adley and I seem to have figured out a method for unraveling that which is an abomination to Reality, at least. It would likely be highly noticeable to the people who set it up, but that likely boils down to timing more than anything else. I'd really hate sending anyone into a magical gauntlet like that if it can be at all avoided."

"The question is whatever or not the wards have some sort of built in defenses against tampering...and how damaging those defenses are, not to mention that if we spend time taking the wards down and it is noticed how are we going to avoid the Nephandi coming and shooting our people full of holes before the damned things are down?"
The old hedge wizard said as he regarded Colin.

He sighed, "Quite, the girl is more like a lost tiger cub. Small, adorable and fuzzy now, perhaps, but in time she could be six hundred pounds of temperamental muscle, claws and teeth. Still, tigers can be tamed..."

"Yes well tigers have generally rather simple desires, food, shelters, to get to run and hunt and mate, a Nephandus are a bit more complicated and allot more dangerous. Then again if there is a way to bring someone back from what the Caul do to someone then she might be a good candidate to try it on, but if not then while you might make her friendly, she will still be a plague upon reality."
Joakim warned.

He nodded, "Considering the boy's an infernalist whom his pacted demon seems to put enough value to personally assault the Labyrinth giving him trouble, I don't think keeping him around for long would be justifiable or safe. Still, if he's willing to cooperate, he could surely at least earn a swift and painful death... Sometimes, the best mercy one can offer is a sharp blade..."

"I doubt the strike team will go out of their way to make this person's end gruesome in either case, and if they do I will have a bit of a word with them but yes keeping him alive might be to dangerous. Now yes he might have some value to this demon, or the bloody thing is just annoyed that someone took it's toy, much like a kid that do not care about that old toy care until the neighbor's son scratch it and then all hell is loose. But we will have to see who this person is if we encounter him and decide then what to do with him."

He frowned at the implication of quoting Discworld's Death, "And now Terry Pratchett has me talking like the Euthanatos..."

"Hum...that is an author right? Writes humorous fantasy books?"
The Security Chief asked.

He arched an eyebrow at the description of the Avatar as standing in a room of mirrors, "By the way, Anna said something strange before she was carried to the infirmary... She said I should never go into a Caul, because the sad lady like a broken glass doll in an egg would tear it apart. Adley, do you have any thoughts or insights into that?"

Joakim gave you an odd look but he did not comment yet but instead looked at Adley as well to see what the younger Hermetic might have to say about the matter.

He examined the map carefully, "So, your contact delivers... where precisely would Carmon be lying around?"

"Well these small rooms drawn here and here looks to be cells so I would assume in one of those."
The old Hermetic said and pointed.

He frowned, "Who remains with the Labyrinth indeed... With luck, the Union took out all the Masters in the Nephandi's backup team when they hit the post office... We can't trust that, though, and we can't just call the Union and ask. It seems likely to me, though, that Abigail could spare no more than one Awakened Nephandus, seeing as she's been though an attrition nightmare already... Probably a loyal Linear mage or two, though."

"Yes we have hit them pretty hard...it could be one of their servants though, one with demonic contracts giving him or her some power, but one such as I are likely, then again that kind of magic might be more familiar to the Tremere scout, that she did not recognize it at all indicate that it is more likely to be an Awakened mage that have set the wards up, then again that do not have to mean that the ward maker is still there now unless the rotes needs to be maintained."
Joakim pondered.

(OOC: Not a problem and I hope you do not get sick.)

[Tane Karyak]

At least you got the spirit. WOuld you like to return to the sea? OR you prefer staying here for a time?

[Adley]

"Master Ir, a member of House Tytalus now and an Archmage of Spirit."

Adley looked a bit surprised again but what would be better, the man going off on his own? Finding a realm, possibly becoming a Marauder...a Nephandic Marauder?

"Well you could ask Mrs Knox for a rare stone of some kind and then have them deposit that with the vampire that should allow Master Harris to scan for the mineral in question or at least I think that should be possible." The linear mage suggested.

"That's an interesting idea..."

"I should be able to arrange for some magickal weapons and some mundane ones we have some at the Chantry and I have gotten an approval from the Deacon Council to share that with you and your team as needed to deal with this Nephandi situation."
The Security Chief confirmed.

"That is welcome news, thank you. What about that contested node?"

He shook his head, "Brute forcing something does not necessarily mean directly applied violence, so much as simply dispensing with subtlety. If slipping anything under the fence can't be done, then tearing the wards apart, or even the walls themselves, might be the only option left to us. I... think we can work out something to dispose of Nephandic barriers, though; Adley and I seem to have figured out a method for unraveling that which is an abomination to Reality, at least. It would likely be highly noticeable to the people who set it up, but that likely boils down to timing more than anything else. I'd really hate sending anyone into a magical gauntlet like that if it can be at all avoided."

"True but we'll be in a residential location, so some subtlety might be needed. Or at least a likely enough cover. And as for that method...I think of it more like re-ravelling Reality with potential...but I would also like to add that they might be expecting us to act in ways that we've already employed."

"The question is whatever or not the wards have some sort of built in defenses against tampering...and how damaging those defenses are, not to mention that if we spend time taking the wards down and it is noticed how are we going to avoid the Nephandi coming and shooting our people full of holes before the damned things are down?"

"We've tried distractions to varying success, part of the trick seems to be what they find distracting is not what we consider distracting. Pain is not distracting. I think that we were considering setting some kinds of traps, but they are rather dependent...such as putting them in a loop. Adjan described one that used spirit as well, though I would not necessarily wish to put one up if we are using our spirit friends...but essentially it stuck them between planes, if I recall his explanation."

He sighed, "Quite, the girl is more like a lost tiger cub. Small, adorable and fuzzy now, perhaps, but in time she could be six hundred pounds of temperamental muscle, claws and teeth. Still, tigers can be tamed..."

"Can they?" he asked, wondering. "Well humans re not tigers, at any rate as my sodalis says...we're much more dangerous."

He arched an eyebrow at the description of the Avatar as standing in a room of mirrors, "By the way, Anna said something strange before she was carried to the infirmary... She said I should never go into a Caul, because the sad lady like a broken glass doll in an egg would tear it apart. Adley, do you have any thoughts or insights into that?"

"Anna, is that her Name?" he asked, then his brows knit together. "A broken glass doll in an egg? I really don't want to test that hypothesis of you breaking a caul. But...I was speaking with the Earth spirits and they had some interesting things to say about it." He glanced at Joakim and then back to Colin. "They can perceive something of avatars though they cannot touch them as avatars have a higher nature. However, those two are remarkably insightful and were able to relate some of how they interpreted what they sensed. They compared our avatars, in their own way, saying yours was scarred and splintered. They saw a shard of mirror with the reflection of a weeping woman at your center and around her a million stars, shards of the lost. A galaxy of pain and hope as they poetically described it and as I best translate it. I didn't mean to come by this knowledge, they asked if you were healed and they related thus. I did ask them perhaps you might speak together at some point later, about it...how did Anna come to that conclusion?"

He examined the map carefully, "So, your contact delivers... where precisely would Carmon be lying around?"

"I don't know that we ever were told exactly, were we? Though it was one of the cells," he said, gesturing to that area of the map.

It seems likely to me, though, that Abigail could spare no more than one Awakened Nephandus, seeing as she's been though an attrition nightmare already... Probably a loyal Linear mage or two, though."

"Tian gave us a run down on who was in there, approximately...I'm asking so we might know what their capabilities would be."

// No worries Warp, sometimes work week just is a total joysuck, hope you're not getting sick. And also sometimes everyone needs a break from a thing. Also, lol re: defenestrator

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

Tane:

"I would like to return to the sea for a little while, but I should not have to stay for that long, that mage managed to fix me up so I should be fine with a day or so in the sea and I will be as good as new."
Coawa said and nodded.

Adley:

"That's an interesting idea..."

"It should work."
Joakim said and gave you a brief smile.

"That is welcome news, thank you. What about that contested node?"

"Oh the Deacons sans Master Harris are still in there debating, hopefully they will be done soon."
The Security Chief said and sounded a bit irritated at the leaders of his own Chantry.

"True but we'll be in a residential location, so some subtlety might be needed. Or at least a likely enough cover. And as for that method...I think of it more like re-ravelling Reality with potential...but I would also like to add that they might be expecting us to act in ways that we've already employed."

"Hum...that is true, they might expect it, then again perhaps it is better to use a method we know works or have worked in the past than to come up with something new on the fly? Or is that the hedge wizard in me talking?"
Joakim said with a wry smile.

"We've tried distractions to varying success, part of the trick seems to be what they find distracting is not what we consider distracting. Pain is not distracting. I think that we were considering setting some kinds of traps, but they are rather dependent...such as putting them in a loop. Adjan described one that used spirit as well, though I would not necessarily wish to put one up if we are using our spirit friends...but essentially it stuck them between planes, if I recall his explanation."

"An Gauntlet prison well while I am not able to cast that spell, probably it can be aimed as well not not put into a trap, it is an effective way of getting someone or something out of the way if you have the ability to manipulate the Gauntlet itself and make a cage out of it."

He glanced at Joakim and then back to Colin. "They can perceive something of avatars though they cannot touch them as avatars have a higher nature. However, those two are remarkably insightful and were able to relate some of how they interpreted what they sensed.

"I have noticed that the Brothers have been curious about Avatars and seam to be able to sense at least some of them, some Awakened mages have been rather creeped out by their commented but yes they can be insightful at times."
The Security Chief said he raised an eyebrow as Adley explained what the spirits had said.

"I don't know that we ever were told exactly, were we? Though it was one of the cells," he said, gesturing to that area of the map.

"Hum...I think she said it was in one of the cells I doubt she would know which one, but it stands to reason a prisoner would be kept in a cell."

"Tian gave us a run down on who was in there, approximately...I'm asking so we might know what their capabilities would be."

"Did not Mr Silverberg say that it was someone Abigail trusted? I can not remember that he said anything about their capabilities."
Joakim said as he looked over some of the pages of his notebook.
"Unless I missed something."
He muttered sounding tired before he took a swing of his coffee.

[Warpmind]

Colin shrugged, "I don't think her soul is any more corrupted than that of a widderslainte... though it will likely continue to decay if not kept in check. But there is, obviously, precedent for keeping that progression in check."
He smiled, "Well, if we dismantle the wards from underground, outside the cellars, I'm fairly sure the people in the house would find it difficult to aim properly at us. But we will have to examine any defenses a little more closely before we can say for certain. As for expecting us to do something we did before... I don't really think they would recognize our little shenanigans from the Post Office. We left no survivors, after all, and I doubt the reinforcements would have much time to meticulously examine the air wall before the place started exploding around them."
He sighed, "True, and even a tamed tiger can be dangerous - I believe even Sigfried and Roy had an accident a while back."
He nodded, "A razor-sharp satiricist and social commentator, actually; the man, rest his soul, was brilliant and angry, and channeled it into a brilliantly sarcastic wit."
He looked over some of his notes with a frown, "Let's see, we know there are a couple of Outsider Things at the back door, and there are some of miss Jerkins' little darlings roaming around the place, apparently... Those are going to be a problem, what with their unsavoury diet, though Prime and Spirit magic is supposed to work, and mundane weapons if they are fully manifested... They used to have thirty-six Awakened and ten Pawns, as well as a pair of shapeshifters - big, nasty werebears, apparently... Minus twelve Awakened sent to Boston, as well as the... three, I think, at Nicolai's apartment, and the unfortunate fellow in the bathtub was likely counted among the twelve sent to Boston... They definitively lost six at the Post Office; possibly up to six more when the Union came in to mop the place up, but we don't have any way to check that... We know that they have an extremely skilled Spirit specialist called Cotta at the Labyrinth; more refined and less aggressive than her, um, significant other, Warden... She could very well succeed where Warden failed; I've no desire to put that to the test... So, probably nine to fifteen Nephandi at the Labyrinth, one of whom is possibly a bit out of it after healing his partner, and probably something in the range of five or so Infernalists among the Pawns; not all of them were pacted, it seems, and one is incarcerated there..."
He nodded to Adley, "The girl would like to be called Anna; it's a nice enough name, and we can't pronounce her Nephandic name. She claims not to remember her birth name, being taken from her mother very early on, so... I agree, I don't particularly want to dive into, er, that thing either, but the description... hmm, it rather does lend some weight to my outrageous hypothesis, if nothing else. I should like a chat with the brothers Knight. As for how Anna could tell - it appears her Avatar is a bit of a chatterbox. She herself did not see my Avatar, but her glass dragon, as she described it, apparently could, and thought I was scary."

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

Colin shrugged, "I don't think her soul is any more corrupted than that of a widderslainte... though it will likely continue to decay if not kept in check. But there is, obviously, precedent for keeping that progression in check."

"Well the child have given herself to the Caul, though at such a young age it is doubtful she would know what such a decision would entail."
Joakim said and sigh.
"I hope she can be saved Mr Wainwright but I am not holding out much hope, such is the tragedy of the Nephandi, what have been done is hard to undo."

He smiled, "Well, if we dismantle the wards from underground, outside the cellars, I'm fairly sure the people in the house would find it difficult to aim properly at us. But we will have to examine any defenses a little more closely before we can say for certain. As for expecting us to do something we did before... I don't really think they would recognize our little shenanigans from the Post Office. We left no survivors, after all, and I doubt the reinforcements would have much time to meticulously examine the air wall before the place started exploding around them."

"Hum yes that is true, though that all depend on how close to the house the wards are and how fast you can dismantle it for it will generally not take that long to run out of the house itself and shoot at you once tampering are discovered, not to mention that there might be some nasty features of the wards themselves set to go of if they are tempered with.."
The old hedge wizard said and refilled his cup from the coffee pot and looked at his two guests to ask if they wanted any more.
"But yes, we have to do something, we need to be cautious but not so much so that we do not act when we need to."

He sighed, "True, and even a tamed tiger can be dangerous - I believe even Sigfried and Roy had an accident a while back."

"And this particular tiger can cast magick and have a desire to destroy reality."
Joakim said in a warning tone of voice.

He looked over some of his notes with a frown, "Let's see, we know there are a couple of Outsider Things at the back door, and there are some of miss Jerkins' little darlings roaming around the place, apparently... Those are going to be a problem, what with their unsavoury diet, though Prime and Spirit magic is supposed to work, and mundane weapons if they are fully manifested...

"Yes those critters and the Outsider Things needs to be dealt with, and as soon as possible, it would be unfortunate if they managed to flee the raid on the Labyrinth and started causing trouble in the city itself."
Morningstar's Security Chief sat back down in his chair and warmed his hands on his coffee cup.

They used to have thirty-six Awakened and ten Pawns, as well as a pair of shapeshifters - big, nasty werebears, apparently... Minus twelve Awakened sent to Boston, as well as the... three, I think, at Nicolai's apartment, and the unfortunate fellow in the bathtub was likely counted among the twelve sent to Boston... They definitively lost six at the Post Office; possibly up to six more when the Union came in to mop the place up, but we don't have any way to check that... We know that they have an extremely skilled Spirit specialist called Cotta at the Labyrinth; more refined and less aggressive than her, um, significant other, Warden... She could very well succeed where Warden failed; I've no desire to put that to the test...

"Two Nephandi Spirit Masters having a relationship with one another...now is it just me or is that a rather disturbing concept?"
Joakim muttered.
"Well the membership of the Labyrinth are significantly reduced but we do not know anything about the capabilities of who are left...I guess we can count minus one more for the infernalist in the dungeon though they might let him out when trouble starts. I am also concerned about the werebears, those can be nasty and shapeshifters tend to be fast, terrifyingly fast and tend to have the ability to tear a mage limb from limb before he or she can even think about working magick, those needs to be dealt with."
He tapped the side of his cup.
"But yes let us try to keep anyone else from pawing on your Gift Mr Wainwright."

So, probably nine to fifteen Nephandi at the Labyrinth, one of whom is possibly a bit out of it after healing his partner, and probably something in the range of five or so Infernalists among the Pawns; not all of them were pacted, it seems, and one is incarcerated there..."

"This incarcerated infernalist was a mage was he not?"
The hedge wizard asked.
"But yes that do seam like a good ballpark as to the numbers we might meet in the Labyrinth."

hmm, it rather does lend some weight to my outrageous hypothesis, if nothing else. I should like a chat with the brothers Knight.

"I assume you can help your Cabalmate with such a conversation when time allows Mr Roth Hicks?"
Joakim asked before he turned to Colin.
"Unless you have the ability yourself to summon and communicate with Umbroods?"

As for how Anna could tell - it appears her Avatar is a bit of a chatterbox. She herself did not see my Avatar, but her glass dragon, as she described it, apparently could, and thought I was scary."

"So a Fallen soul think your Avatar is scary Mr Wainwright, I am not sure if I should think that is encouraging...or worrisome."
The old linear mage said and frowned.

(OOC: I have been trying to find what Ghural BBDs are called but none seam to know, not on the Werewolf forum either but someone suggested Fear Bears. )

[Tane Karyak]

Great. I was worried you'd have some permanent damage: getting the lungs harmed can fuck your breathing for life. For humans, at least. Tane said, now more relaxed Well, wenever you want to go...

[Warpmind]

Colin nodded, "I have little expectation she'll live to cast another spell, to be truthful... but I promised Mr. Silverberg I would at least hold her hand, after all. Hm, I think some manner lockable accessory to suppress her magical ability like the cuffs do would be useful - preferably not something like the serum, but perhaps an irremovable collar or wristband?"
He smiled wryly, "Well, there's little use in just speculating on how to deal with the wards except in extremely general terms before we actually see the nature of the bleeding things."
He sighed, "And this particular tiger can cast magic and wants to end the world. Still, restraints can be arranged. Not quite a de-clawing, but the same practical effect, perhaps..."
He leaned back in the chair, "The Outsider Things might be the hardest thing to deal with, what with miss Jerkins' dagger - it stands to reason that whoever the things recognize as their mum would have some... protection against them, and possibly even some control; at least enough to hold them in check until someone can send them home to daddy dearest."
He shrugged, "The Nephandi are people. Even the most nihilistic of people need to love, I suppose; at least those two sound more normal than, say, Abigail's relationship with her mind-broken little puppet... As for the werebears, I would expect they have the normal allergy to silver. Not that that helps much without silver weaponry, but it's something to keep in mind - I would wager Abigail has some equipment of that sort in the Labyrinth, in case her guests decide to become obstreperous."
He nodded, "I believe the incarcerated boy is Awakened, yes. At least, Anna did indicate he has an Avatar, as yet uncorrupted. I'm uncertain as to where in the count he would fit, though - with the Nephandi or with the Pawns."
He smiled thinly, "I'm afraid the extent of my ability to communicate with Umbroods is limited to watching Adley talk to a brick wall. Well, or chat with one fully manifested in our layer of Reality. I might be able to provide a suitable offering with which to bribe said Umbrood to show itself, though, like with Shimmer earlier tonight."
He grinned boyishly, "Why don't we just go for the more neutral intriguing? There is an amusing aspect to having the Fallen deem a humble Traditionalist Orphan as the new boogeyman, but the other implications are... concerning in many ways."

((OOC: I would have thought Scare Bears to be more appropriate. ))

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

Tane:

Great. I was worried you'd have some permanent damage: getting the lungs harmed can fuck your breathing for life. For humans, at least. Tane said, now more relaxed Well, wenever you want to go...

"Yeah well my lungs work a little different as a shark but there are some parts of that system which are rather sensitive."
Coawa said and got up and paced a bit back and forth, his kind never sat still for long.
"But no, there is not even a scar there, just some pink skin and I feel fine, a little sore and I still need to balance myself and communicate with the spirits but fine, that blond guy are a good healer, is he one of their elders or chiefs or whatever the hell mages call their leaders?"
He asked.

Colin:

Colin nodded, "I have little expectation she'll live to cast another spell, to be truthful... but I promised Mr. Silverberg I would at least hold her hand, after all. Hm, I think some manner lockable accessory to suppress her magical ability like the cuffs do would be useful - preferably not something like the serum, but perhaps an irremovable collar or wristband?"

"I do not have anything like that but I guess such a collar or wrist band could be constructed, you could always speak with the Verditius and see what they can make for you though talismans always cost. One little tip is to speak with their linear mages first, often they can create an talistman for a fraction of the cost of what an Awakened mage can, but what they can make will be more limited. It is however easier to create permanent magic for static magic universe than for ehm...true mages."
Joakim said and he made a face that said that he did not like term true mage very much.

He smiled wryly, "Well, there's little use in just speculating on how to deal with the wards except in extremely general terms before we actually see the nature of the bleeding things."

"Very true Mr Wainwright, very true..."

He sighed, "And this particular tiger can cast magic and wants to end the world. Still, restraints can be arranged. Not quite a de-clawing, but the same practical effect, perhaps..."

"There is always a chance to get out of restraints, through some like that bloody serum is perhaps harder to get out of."

He leaned back in the chair, "The Outsider Things might be the hardest thing to deal with, what with miss Jerkins' dagger - it stands to reason that whoever the things recognize as their mum would have some... protection against them, and possibly even some control; at least enough to hold them in check until someone can send them home to daddy dearest."

"I agree and the most dangerous."
The old third degree said sourly.
"Yes let us hope that dagger can give us a leg up on those critters, I am not sure I want to know who their daddy is though."

He shrugged, "The Nephandi are people. Even the most nihilistic of people need to love, I suppose; at least those two sound more normal than, say, Abigail's relationship with her mind-broken little puppet...

"True even so I am not sure I want to know what two Nephandi Masters of the Art decide to do for a fun night, but yes I guess everyone need to make some sort of connection, even if it is an unhealthy one."
Joakim said and shook his head.

As for the werebears, I would expect they have the normal allergy to silver. Not that that helps much without silver weaponry, but it's something to keep in mind - I would wager Abigail has some equipment of that sort in the Labyrinth, in case her guests decide to become obstreperous."

"The woman probably do at that, that being said making some silver weapons should not be that hard, there are several at this Chantry that can change one metal to another, the question is if these werebears have that sensitivity to silver or not."

He nodded, "I believe the incarcerated boy is Awakened, yes. At least, Anna did indicate he has an Avatar, as yet uncorrupted. I'm uncertain as to where in the count he would fit, though - with the Nephandi or with the Pawns."

"My guess he would be counted with the Nephandi, the way I understand it pawns are Unawakened servants and allies, similar to our Custos, which anyone but the Order would mark me as also but that is beside the point, Pawn is just the Nephandi word for Custos as far as I know."
The hedge wizard said and sipped his coffee.

He smiled thinly, "I'm afraid the extent of my ability to communicate with Umbroods is limited to watching Adley talk to a brick wall. Well, or chat with one fully manifested in our layer of Reality. I might be able to provide a suitable offering with which to bribe said Umbrood to show itself, though, like with Shimmer earlier tonight."

"Hum...well hopefully your Cabalmate can help you if not I will see what I can do or one of my apprentices but it is a rather private question so I am sure you would be more comfortable with Mr Roth Hicks' help."

He grinned boyishly, "Why don't we just go for the more neutral intriguing? There is an amusing aspect to having the Fallen deem a humble Traditionalist Orphan as the new boogeyman, but the other implications are... concerning in many ways."

"Oh I think many Nephandi see us as the bogyman considering what we do to them if we catch them alive, we are worse to them than any of the other factions however here a Fallen Avatar have declared your soul as scary and that is quite...something."
Joakim said sounding half worried half amused.

[Adley]

"Oh the Deacons sans Master Harris are still in there debating, hopefully they will be done soon." The Security Chief said and sounded a bit irritated at the leaders of his own Chantry.

He nodded. "I see, well hopefully that will be good news as well."

"Hum...that is true, they might expect it, then again perhaps it is better to use a method we know works or have worked in the past than to come up with something new on the fly? Or is that the hedge wizard in me talking?" Joakim said with a wry smile

"Both. Make a plan, adapt it as needed and be ready to toss it out completely if need be. I like to have something to start from though."

"An Gauntlet prison well while I am not able to cast that spell, probably it can be aimed as well not not put into a trap, it is an effective way of getting someone or something out of the way if you have the ability to manipulate the Gauntlet itself and make a cage out of it."

"I don't think I could do it on my own but I can speak with Adjan about how he did it, see if someone can."

"I have noticed that the Brothers have been curious about Avatars and seam to be able to sense at least some of them, some Awakened mages have been rather creeped out by their commented but yes they can be insightful at times."

"I don't find it creepy, uncanny perhaps. They said it was due to working with mages so much, though it's not as if they have the concept of before or after...

Colin shrugged, "I don't think her soul is any more corrupted than that of a widderslainte... though it will likely continue to decay if not kept in check. But there is, obviously, precedent for keeping that progression in check."

"But she is a Nephandus, through the caul in this life. Though I do wonder if it's not a combination of the events where she first went in and also reinforcement over time. I imagine it depends...at any rate it's no use speculating at this moment."

He smiled, "Well, if we dismantle the wards from underground, outside the cellars, I'm fairly sure the people in the house would find it difficult to aim properly at us. But we will have to examine any defenses a little more closely before we can say for certain. As for expecting us to do something we did before... I don't really think they would recognize our little shenanigans from the Post Office. We left no survivors, after all, and I doubt the reinforcements would have much time to meticulously examine the air wall before the place started exploding around them."

"Hum yes that is true, though that all depend on how close to the house the wards are and how fast you can dismantle it for it will generally not take that long to run out of the house itself and shoot at you once tampering are discovered, not to mention that there might be some nasty features of the wards themselves set to go of if they are tempered with.."

He smiled wryly, "Well, there's little use in just speculating on how to deal with the wards except in extremely general terms before we actually see the nature of the bleeding things."

"Hm, so we will need time to get the protective spells taken down and some magii strong enough to penetrate them relatively quickly," he said thoughtfully.

He looked over some of his notes with a frown, "Let's see, we know there are a couple of Outsider Things at the back door, and there are some of miss Jerkins' little darlings roaming around the place, apparently... Those are going to be a problem, what with their unsavoury diet, though Prime and Spirit magic is supposed to work, and mundane weapons if they are fully manifested... They used to have thirty-six Awakened and ten Pawns, as well as a pair of shapeshifters - big, nasty werebears, apparently... Minus twelve Awakened sent to Boston, as well as the... three, I think, at Nicolai's apartment, and the unfortunate fellow in the bathtub was likely counted among the twelve sent to Boston... They definitively lost six at the Post Office; possibly up to six more when the Union came in to mop the place up, but we don't have any way to check that... We know that they have an extremely skilled Spirit specialist called Cotta at the Labyrinth; more refined and less aggressive than her, um, significant other, Warden... She could very well succeed where Warden failed; I've no desire to put that to the test... So, probably nine to fifteen Nephandi at the Labyrinth, one of whom is possibly a bit out of it after healing his partner, and probably something in the range of five or so Infernalists among the Pawns; not all of them were pacted, it seems, and one is incarcerated there..."

"It might be wise to consider there will be spirits or even a demon lurking as part of the protections...though that might as you said seem somewhat familiar to a Tremere. Ah yes, Cotta..." He frowned as he recalled. "Tender of the Labyrinth. Well, that still leaves enough to cause us trouble."

"Two Nephandi Spirit Masters having a relationship with one another...now is it just me or is that a rather disturbing concept?"
Joakim muttered.

"It is, considering my week started with a child sacrifice between another pair of Nephandi..."

He shrugged, "The Nephandi are people. Even the most nihilistic of people need to love, I suppose; at least those two sound more normal than, say, Abigail's relationship with her mind-broken little puppet...

"True even so I am not sure I want to know what two Nephandi Masters of the Art decide to do for a fun night, but yes I guess everyone need to make some sort of connection, even if it is an unhealthy one."

He looked at Colin for a long moment and then frowned thoughtfully to himself.

He nodded to Adley, "The girl would like to be called Anna; it's a nice enough name, and we can't pronounce her Nephandic name. She claims not to remember her birth name, being taken from her mother very early on, so... I agree, I don't particularly want to dive into, er, that thing either, but the description... hmm, it rather does lend some weight to my outrageous hypothesis, if nothing else. I should like a chat with the brothers Knight. As for how Anna could tell - it appears her Avatar is a bit of a chatterbox. She herself did not see my Avatar, but her glass dragon, as she described it, apparently could, and thought I was scary."

"No, and you would not wish to...her given name may have been destroyed. I have a theory about that as well, still nascent. Remind me to try to explain later. It's more of a feeling right now. Glass dragon...the Nephandi woman that...met her end at the Post Office, I saw her avatar. It looked like a dragon as well. Dragons have many meanings, depending on their couloration...for a moment, though I swore I saw hers turn green. Just for a second, as if I was seeing what it was before it Fell. At any rate, your avatar appears to be rather unique Colin, and if that affords you some protections then that for the good. Which hypothesis are you talking about?"

"I assume you can help your Cabalmate with such a conversation when time allows Mr Roth Hicks?" Joakim asked before he turned to Colin. "Unless you have the ability yourself to summon and communicate with Umbroods?"

"Yes, they said that they could use some of our common languages but found it limiting, it would be much harder for them to get their points across. I said that I would help facilitate. Though they also would like a job to do, if summoned, not just an idle conversation. I'm sure we can find something suitable."

He smiled thinly, "I'm afraid the extent of my ability to communicate with Umbroods is limited to watching Adley talk to a brick wall. Well, or chat with one fully manifested in our layer of Reality. I might be able to provide a suitable offering with which to bribe said Umbrood to show itself, though, like with Shimmer earlier tonight."

"For these particular umbrood, bribe might not be the word I would use. Think of it...as payment or a gift. You are asking them to come down to a different plane of existence at the cost of their own energies and spend time with us, rather then them doing their natural activities. Contextually, it depends on the spirit...and your relationship to them, and the one you wish to cultivate."

He grinned boyishly, "Why don't we just go for the more neutral intriguing? There is an amusing aspect to having the Fallen deem a humble Traditionalist Orphan as the new boogeyman, but the other implications are... concerning in many ways."

"Intriguing, yes let's go with that," he laughed.

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

He nodded. "I see, well hopefully that will be good news as well."

"I hope the same Mr Roth Hicks, we could use that Node for these coming assaults on the Nephandi to make sure we drive them out of our city."
Joakim said and nodded in agreement.

"Both. Make a plan, adapt it as needed and be ready to toss it out completely if need be. I like to have something to start from though."

"Hum...well that is a good way to go about it Mr Roth Hicks, so our plan then is try try the same rote you and Mr Wainwright worked at the post office? Or should it be something else? We need to get through those wards one way or another."

"I don't think I could do it on my own but I can speak with Adjan about how he did it, see if someone can."

"Very well speak with your Chantrymate about it and if he can not perform such a working I can see if anyone else at Morningstar can."

"I don't find it creepy, uncanny perhaps. They said it was due to working with mages so much, though it's not as if they have the concept of before or after...

"No they live in an eternal now."
Joakim said.
"I doubt they understand the concept of before they met any mages and after but they might very well see working with mages as the cause of their sensitivity to your Avatars non the less."

"Hm, so we will need time to get the protective spells taken down and some magii strong enough to penetrate them relatively quickly," he said thoughtfully.

"Agreed, I could as one of the Adepts or Masters at this Chantry to go with you when you are trying to rescue this vampire elder to see if he or she can take the wards down quickly, then again they are not likely to know the rotes used at the Post Office..."

"It might be wise to consider there will be spirits or even a demon lurking as part of the protections...though that might as you said seem somewhat familiar to a Tremere. Ah yes, Cotta..." He frowned as he recalled. "Tender of the Labyrinth. Well, that still leaves enough to cause us trouble."

"Yes there might be any number of defenses but spirits or a demon are likely not to feel so alien to the Tremere scout."
The third degree than then he nodded.
"Enough to cause trouble indeed and it is important not to get to cocky even if quite a few of the Fallen have bitten the dust do not mean they are not still dangerous."

"It is, considering my week started with a child sacrifice between another pair of Nephandi..."

"Ah well that is a wonderful way to start the week."
Joakim muttered sarcastically.

"For these particular umbrood, bribe might not be the word I would use. Think of it...as payment or a gift. You are asking them to come down to a different plane of existence at the cost of their own energies and spend time with us, rather then them doing their natural activities. Contextually, it depends on the spirit...and your relationship to them, and the one you wish to cultivate."

The old hedge wizard nodded approvingly at this.

[Ashan101]

(OOC sorry been caught up with a few things last couple of days ( funeral is tomorrow) last i remember i asked Mara if she needed anything further?.. and i apologise for not keeping you updated)

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

(OOC: Do not think about that worry about yourself and your family right now. Mara's response was rather cryptic as most what she say is, let me see if I can find the post. Hum...I could not find it, if I have missed your post, which is possible then I am terribly sorry and will write it up here.)

Mara just smiles to you.
"In time yes there is something you can do for me Mr Miles...for now though I suspect another will soon ask for your aid."
The old maga said and smiled as her eyes again wandered to something you could not fully see.
"Indeed I think that will be the case."

[Adley]

"Hum...well that is a good way to go about it Mr Roth Hicks, so our plan then is try try the same rote you and Mr Wainwright worked at the post office? Or should it be something else? We need to get through those wards one way or another."

"I just don't know yet. Wards of a certain type could fry us if we so much as looked at it wrong but we have to figure out something of its nature in order to dismantle or negate its effects. The way that we worked together, to my mind was actually quite simple in retrospect. Please excuse the heavy use of negatives. If the Nephandi exile a ward within an area so that there was no potential for there to be nothing else but said ward there, then returning potential for there to be something else, based on the threads that already existed and I imagine used to exist previously, though my grasp on that is limited to basic understanding, was a matter of weaving potential back into the system that should have had it anyway. This is backed by all of creation's continued existence and in fact the continued existence of Nephandi themselves only work against them. Even if they are Fallen, they still exist, though their avatars seek ultimate negation and their works destroy reality. That is why destroying destruction still means that they have an advantage of sorts...so much harder is it to build once they've put a hole in the universe, however that it is also their disadvantage.

"The potential for existence is strong and the energies involved, as related to prime, fate, correspondence, and time then worked to make the wind wall what it used to be before they destroyed it, or more likely something new and viable at least, malleable to new forms. The Tellurian pulled the threads taut through the force of itself to be what is natural to it within our current consensus. Perhaps this is not unlike what the Technocracy or other groups do, when removing our dynamic energies but in this case, Colin dumped a bunch of potential into the area and disrupted it, a chaotic nascent flash of insight that had been removed or excised. I took that and linked it to the threads that had been destroyed, as best as I was able. I might as yet be a clumsy tailor of the universe but together we managed to get the wall down. This new venture depends on what spells they have used around the place."

"Very well speak with your Chantrymate about it and if he can not perform such a working I can see if anyone else at Morningstar can."

"I will do so."

"Agreed, I could as one of the Adepts or Masters at this Chantry to go with you when you are trying to rescue this vampire elder to see if he or she can take the wards down quickly, then again they are not likely to know the rotes used at the Post Office..."

"With all due respect to your abilities,s station and person, I think it might be wiser to stay here given what's come to light. And yes, I expect you'll be telling me the same thing any moment now."

The old hedge wizard nodded approvingly at this.

"It is something of the nature of being hospitable to a guest you've invited to your house. Of course, that largely depends on the spirit's nature as well."

[Tane Karyak]

Yes, he's a master of the art, you can call him an elder. He remembers a couple dozen of lives so i bet he's "old" by any standards

[Anja Rebekka Schultze]

Adley:

"I just don't know yet. Wards of a certain type could fry us if we so much as looked at it wrong but we have to figure out something of its nature in order to dismantle or negate its effects.

"Indeed they could, however knowing the nature of the wards in question is hard to do before they have been examined so it is hard to come up with a plan in my office..."
Joakim said and sigh.

The way that we worked together, to my mind was actually quite simple in retrospect. Please excuse the heavy use of negatives. If the Nephandi exile a ward within an area so that there was no potential for there to be nothing else but said ward there, then returning potential for there to be something else, based on the threads that already existed and I imagine used to exist previously, though my grasp on that is limited to basic understanding, was a matter of weaving potential back into the system that should have had it anyway. This is backed by all of creation's continued existence and in fact the continued existence of Nephandi themselves only work against them. Even if they are Fallen, they still exist, though their avatars seek ultimate negation and their works destroy reality. That is why destroying destruction still means that they have an advantage of sorts...so much harder is it to build once they've put a hole in the universe, however that it is also their disadvantage.

"Hum...I never thought about it that way but it do make sense, existence itself is the enemy of the Nephandi, to the point that they are hurt worse by Paradox than other magi due to the very nature of their magick, returning potential to what their powers have destroyed is actually...quite brilliant."
The hedge wizard muttered.

"The potential for existence is strong and the energies involved, as related to prime, fate, correspondence, and time then worked to make the wind wall what it used to be before they destroyed it, or more likely something new and viable at least, malleable to new forms. The Tellurian pulled the threads taut through the force of itself to be what is natural to it within our current consensus. Perhaps this is not unlike what the Technocracy or other groups do, when removing our dynamic energies but in this case, Colin dumped a bunch of potential into the area and disrupted it, a chaotic nascent flash of insight that had been removed or excised. I took that and linked it to the threads that had been destroyed, as best as I was able. I might as yet be a clumsy tailor of the universe but together we managed to get the wall down. This new venture depends on what spells they have used around the place."

"Well it is an inventive way to do it Mr Roth Hicks the problem is that this method to will probably trigger any traps built into the wards, at least unless you manage to banish those parts of it quickly enough to take the looming effect down before it could activate."
Joakim said and tapped at the side of his coffee mug.
"You need some agile spellcasters for this I think, or someone that can help put your rote into hanging spells that can be activated at an instant...but even so the wards must be examined before any action is taken and unfortunately even examining the protective wards might end up triggering them which might lead to well...unfortunate things for us."

"I will do so."

Joakim nodded at that.

"With all due respect to your abilities,s station and person, I think it might be wiser to stay here given what's come to light. And yes, I expect you'll be telling me the same thing any moment now."

"Yes you know this about glass houses Mr Roth Hicks?"
The old war mage said with a bit of humor in his voice.
"I do see your point, however I am the Chief of Security for this Chantry and nothing threaten it's security more than this Labyrinth at the moment, I will do my part...where that part is to be played might be yet to be determined but I will not shy away from combat if that is where I will serve Morningstar best."
He said proudly.

"It is something of the nature of being hospitable to a guest you've invited to your house. Of course, that largely depends on the spirit's nature as well."

"Very true, there are spirits that want a transaction to take place, and there are those that will get angry if there are no task for them, others like to interact with humans and do not mind being summoned as long as they are done so with respect. Learning to work with spirits is to learn each individual entity's likes and dislikes and how to deal with them as they are."

Tane:

"Hum...do mages usually remember things from former lives? I mean sometimes we do, it is rare but sometimes we remember former lives or at least bits of them, do mages do the same?"
Coawa asked as he stopped pacing and looked at you curiously.

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