PDA

View Full Version : Vanguard of the Fourth Age (IC)



Rarkasha
2012-10-10, 03:18 AM
Bring strength to the weak, riches to the poor, wisdom to the foolish
Let no one bar your path, and shape this world, as is your right
Be my vanguard, the return of the true Sun to this world

***

1423 Hrs, Feb 22nd,
Washinton D.C. 17th St. NW

A bright red van speeds south-bound on 17th street, weaving through traffic. In the back are three Sidereals. One of the passengers, an Asian male in his early twenties, is trying to light a withered cigarette butt in vain, repeatedly striking his lighter. Watching him from the opposite side of the van, an older blonde woman says “Leave it alone, Mac. We should be checking our gear anyways.” She seems somewhat exasperated but at least a little sympathetic to his situation.
Mac sighs, letting the cigarette butt fall to the floor. “Sorry, Sydney,” he says rubbing his face with his hands, “Man, we’re boned, aren’t we? We are so boned.”
Next to Mac, an African-American man loading a pistol magazine chuckles. “First time saving a politician, Mac?”
“First time I was told they needed saving, Pope.” Mac shot back tiredly. He said it mainly to be a smart ass, but he half meant it. Pope simply chuckles again, while Sydney rolls her eyes.
“It surprised me too Mac, but the Weave shows a massive tangle beginning from when the Speaker of the House gets shot,” says Pope.
“I hate to be the one to point this out, but the snag stems from when Speaker Wade is shot fatally through the heart but then lives. The political fallout is itself damaging to fate. It’s a raw deal but if we want to carry out our mission we may have to finish the job.” Says Sydney, shifting uncomfortably. In her old life she would have kept quiet, as her frankness had gotten her in trouble before. But her teammates depended on her bringing up these points.
Pope nods, and hands Mac the fully loaded magazine. “Mac, we’ll do what we have to, okay?”
“Yeah,” says Mac, loading the magazine into an M9 pistol. “Let’s go save the world, I guess.”

***
1425 Hrs, Feb 22nd

The Speaker of the House, Casey Wakeman, stood on top of a hastily constructed stage. It barely got his head above the crowd, but it was enough. It's hard to hear him over the yelling of a dissatisfied audience. A small number towards the edge of the crowd seem neutrally disposed to the speech, but the majority seem to be members of the press shouting questions or activists shouting demands or shouting their own, desperate questions about their family. The air seems charged, heavy with the emotions of the people present. It's difficult to tell why Wakeman even set this up in the first place, certainly, his security detail seems to be thinking this as they keep the people a safe distance away. Still, he continues on, unhindered

"This executive order was signed by the president for a reason! This is not like any event we've had in the past. This... affliction can affect nearly anyone, at any time, as far as we can tell. There are currently 48 cases where a person or even a group of people have been injured due to the afflicted. Yes, I will admit, this is an abnormal use of the presidency's power. But given our abnormal situation-" the rest of the words are cut off by another surge of yelling from the crowd.

sun_tzu
2012-10-10, 03:49 AM
Another day in the life of Serena Smith, UN diplomat, would-be peacemaker...and chosen of the Sun, apparently.
"Yeah, dad, I'm at the speech right now," she spoke into her cell phone. "No, I'm not with the VIPs, my position isn't that important." Only convinced China not to invade Taiwan, after all. "Still, you know my position. Imprisoning these guys is unamerican, not to mention stupid. Frankly, I think it's downright comic-book stupidity and...OK, look, the speech is about to start, gotta go. Love you, love mom, love you all."

Justyn
2012-10-10, 04:17 AM
"Yes, yelling over the man is exactly how you get a politician to answer your questions." Justyn said under his breath as he fiddled with his tie. The knot was making his neck itch. "...'affliction'? Wow, you're really out of the loop, aren't you buddy? Get your facts wrong, all in a day's work."

Kaworu
2012-10-10, 06:37 AM
In a corner of the room, unseen by auditory, sat a guy with white overcoat, striking keyboard of his netbook fastly, but in perfectly controled manners. Solon was writing a statement, which would be read by IVONA software. In the mess only speakers of computer would have a chance to be listened.

"Excuse me, sir, but I do not understand. Maybe for you and the Bible belt's electorat the decision is logical and necessary, but I really don't understand. In XIX century there was a conception of female hysteria, treated by forced orgasm. If a woman will be next President, should we bed her by force, because she don't know her place? And what about black population in USA? If Michael was white, why don't make all African-American white? In your logic, sir, it's appropriate solution of a racism issue?" - asked calmly the computer voice of Eric.

"Perhaps we should interpret the thing in true concept and look at Guantanamo, not at "pure" equality problems? How would you like, sir?"- he countinued, as Solon looked straight into eyes of Casey.

"But, if human right are too boring for you and you cannot (or don't want) do something to protect the rights, tell me only one more thing. If some people wants a medical assurance, it is the return of communism and punch in the heart of American Dream. If some other people are arrested without commiting crimes, "healed" with no permission, is it okay? In America, there is a freedom from paying surgery bills of poor ones, but we all must pay for "therapy" that humiliate our own brothers?"

DukeGod
2012-10-10, 09:05 AM
Ideal Sword was trying to hide among the crowd. He had taken some Hell Angels biker clothes to conceal his chainmail, even though it still clinked a bit. He continuously looks around, after the man from whatever organization had took him.

At the same time, he starts looking for clues on where he was. How long had he been kept in cryostasis? No one in this place seemed to carry any jade whatsoever, so he guessed neither of them were Dragon-Blooded. He hadn't seen any Soulsteel, Moonsilver, Starmetal or Adamant either. It was, compared to the First Age less developed. He could understand that the lack of Solar imagery meant the Dragon-Blooded's "Usurpation" had success. But if not even they were in control...

And the alien language. It was nothing similar to (Old) Realm. He couldn't understand waht the man was saying, but once everyone started to yell, he also yelled. Better not to draw too much attention

Maugan Ra
2012-10-10, 12:30 PM
Henry Jones stood, perfectly still, at the back of the stage and considered shooting the Speaker in the back. It would be so incredibly easy. He'd always been good at going unnoticed when the job required it, and after the mysterious incidents... Calibration, he corrected himself... He'd only grown better at that.

If he wanted to, people just seemed to overlook him now. He blended in here, and despite the alert nature of the guards, no of them had been able to see him as he'd calmly walked past the work crews setting up the stage earlier and taken position at the rear corner of the stage. Far away from the steps and the access points, so that no one could accidentally bump into him and realize he was there, he'd become little more than a statue as he waited patiently for the speech to begin.

No one here could see him. The lack of gunshots was proof of that. So, he just concentrated on staying entirely motionless, and waited to see what was going to happen. Because one way or another, he was quite sure this was not going to end peacefully.

Respectively, Easily Overlooked Presence method and Invisible Statue Spirit. I'm working on the assumption it's been long enough since the stage was set up for my motes to regenerate, save the five committed to Statue Spirit.

So yeah. He's standing at the back of the stage, completely undetectable unless someone should bump into him. I love stealth charms...

Rarkasha
2012-10-15, 03:07 AM
Solon's unusual method of address seems to get through to Wakeman. For a moment he looks about ready to respond, but the crowd cuts him off.

Over towards 17th street, a plain looking red van pulls up on the curb across from the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial. Two men in gray jumpsuits exit, chatting casually. Despite their odd arrival, no one seems to be paying them much attention. The only other notable thing about them at this point, is that, despite looking somewhat dirty and wearing old clothing, both have rather nice bluetooth headsets. They walk purposefully towards the crowd, managing to slip past the people packed shoulder to shoulder.

Link to OOC post (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=14052945#post14052945)

sun_tzu
2012-10-15, 03:12 AM
Serena Smith was somewhat surprised by Solon's approach. Huh. Is he mute? Well, that's one way to make an impression. Would have been more effective if he hadn't thrown together a bunch of unrelated material, though.
She then noticed the jumpsuited men. Huh. What's with the headsets? Are they security, or...?

sun_tzu
2012-10-15, 03:40 AM
((Following some PMed explanations from Rarkasha))

Serena eventually reaches the two men in gray.
Well...If they're security, maybe there's a way I can help. If there's trouble...then they might be less inclined to cause trouble if they know someone's got their eyes on them.
"Excuse me, gentlemen, is there a problem?"

Kaworu
2012-10-15, 04:20 AM
Solon did not pay too much attention to the crowd – there was always yelling, emotionful masses. He stayed relaxed on his chair, waiting for Wakeman's asnwers... though he believed he won't like them.

Maugan Ra
2012-10-15, 04:23 AM
Henry, for his part, didn't move at all. His eyes shifted as they followed the new arrivals momentarilly, but then discarded them as they moved into the crowd. He'd find out if they were trying anything soon enough, but until then, he couldn't so much as move his head around. The technique was a little annoying in its limitations, but he was perfectly willing to put up with it for now.

DukeGod
2012-10-15, 09:11 AM
Ideal Sword sees the new arrivals. Were they with that organization? Could they take him? He doubted it, he still wasn't really sure as to how they first managed to take him down. He remembered feeling drowsy...like the sedative? But how did they got it into him? No time to think about this

He approaches the two and sees a woman talking to them. What to do? Bringing his weapons should be unnecessary, they were distracted after all

He waits until the conversation is over and doens't act yet, but stays close to them

Justyn
2012-10-16, 08:49 PM
Justyn's eyes had long ago been torn away from the overwhelmed Speaker, there were only so many muttered jokes one can make at a man's expence before they lose their appeal. Now this was more interesting: two people trying to remain inconspicuous was something conspicuous all by itself; these guys were a lot more interesting than that blathering imbicile. He studied them as they walked towards the crowd, and then into and through the crowd like they were walking into a wheat field. They were trying to vanish... But it was for naught; the commanding presence of these men left trails in their wake like a ship cutting through ice, how could anyone fail to notice them?

Did they hope to escape his sagacious eyes before he noticed them? How did they expect to hide from his gaze, when he had already seen them?

Awareness + Wits (4d10)[3][6][10][4](23) +1 Success from Willpower (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=14058325&postcount=93) 3 successes.

Rarkasha
2012-10-20, 06:56 AM
Awareness results:

Justyn, Duke God, Kaworu, Sun Tzu
You able to track the two men, one african american and one asian male adult, as they weave through the crowd. The black male seems to be listening in on his headset, while the asian male in the lead is searching through the crowd. From Serena's angle, it's not possible to really make out their faces, but they seem pretty stressed or agitated based on how quickly they're trying to move through the crowd.

Maugan Ra
Henry Jones is only able to determine that the two men have entered the crowd and seem to be combing the area for something, but loses track of them after a little while.

As Serena begins to speak, the younger one of the pair, "Mac" simply pushes past the crowd. It's difficult to tell if he is ignoring her or is unable to hear. "Pope" however, turns around to face her. His expression is slightly tense, as if ready for something, but he smiles warmly. Upon closer inspection, you can tell this man is much older than his partner. He looks approximately to be in 50's, with worn facial features and graying hair. Compared to the sharp, focused look of Mac, who has now gotten much further into the crowd, Pope seems much more calm.

"Hello there! And erm, yes, you could say we have a bit of an issue. Nothing to worry about though, this will just take a mo-" Pope pauses a moment, then taps at his earpiece. Serena is just close enough to make out the conversation.

"Pope! I got something!" It's difficult to make out the speaker but presumably it's Mac, who slipped into the crowd. Pope starts to look a little worried as he turns a bit to talk into his headset.

"Mac, I'm a little behind you, continue observing, okay?"

"Your traffic is breaking up! I've spotted a probable. WMA, five six, blue hooded jacket, blue track pants, white sneakers. I'm making contact."

"Mac! Dammit. Maya, get eyes on this, " says Pope, turning back to Serena, smile now wiped from his face," Miss, we may have a possible security issue here. I haven't been told to clear the area, but I'd suggest you leave anyways."

sun_tzu
2012-10-20, 08:26 AM
As Serena begins to speak, the younger one of the pair, "Mac" simply pushes past the crowd. It's difficult to tell if he is ignoring her or is unable to hear. "Pope" however, turns around to face her. His expression is slightly tense, as if ready for something, but he smiles warmly. Upon closer inspection, you can tell this man is much older than his partner. He looks approximately to be in 50's, with worn facial features and graying hair. Compared to the sharp, focused look of Mac, who has now gotten much further into the crowd, Pope seems much more calm.

"Hello there! And erm, yes, you could say we have a bit of an issue. Nothing to worry about though, this will just take a mo-" Pope pauses a moment, then taps at his earpiece. Serena is just close enough to make out the conversation.

"Pope! I got something!" It's difficult to make out the speaker but presumably it's Mac, who slipped into the crowd. Pope starts to look a little worried as he turns a bit to talk into his headset.

"Mac, I'm a little behind you, continue observing, okay?"

"Your traffic is breaking up! I've spotted a probable. WMA, five six, blue hooded jacket, blue track pants, white sneakers. I'm making contact."

"Mac! Dammit. Maya, get eyes on this, " says Pope, turning back to Serena, smile now wiped from his face," Miss, we may have a possible security issue here. I haven't been told to clear the area, but I'd suggest you leave anyways."

Serena maintained her smile while he spoke, but did her best to read his tone and body language. Blinking rate? Increasing nervousness? Any telling glances? What's his angle? As she did, she could feel some of her essence coming to life...

Using personal essence to activate Sagacious Reading of Intent on Pope's statements.

DukeGod
2012-10-21, 09:54 PM
Ideal Sword was trying to think. Sadly, hiding and escaping weren't the kinds of things he ever did while hunting, and becoming a Solar didn't change that.

As he sees the pair of man get separated, he considers which one to follow. Choosing the most active one "Mac" who was pushing his way through the crowd, he goes after him, also pushing his way

If there weren't some many people around he'd have just attacked. But since he didn't know who was with the enemy, and apparently they could sedate him somehow, it was best to take them out silently. Guerilla was his specialty after all

Rarkasha
2012-10-23, 03:34 AM
Sun-Tzu
Serena's enhanced sense's can read an overall air of urgency from Pope. As he speaks into his headset, Serena can tell his intention is to quickly assess the situation and take action from there, in other words he's playing it conservatively. From his words to Serena herself she can tell he's trying to get her out of the area for two reasons: if possible he wants civilians to clear the area, and also he doesn't want people around who are smart or perceptive enough to ask questions why he's here.


Despite the strange clothing and mannerisms of these people, Ideal Sword manages to slip through the crowd without too much trouble. Just as he thinks he's getting close, several things happening at once catch everyone's attention. The sound of a gunshot goes off in the middle of the crowd, and several security guards swarm the Speaker. Someone falls off the stage, disappearing into the now trampling crowd. The party can see Mac grappling with an armed man, pistol still smoking. The unknown man's features are obscured by a heavy parka. Mac is struggling with the assailant's gun, trying to throw the man to the ground. The man then seems to decide to make his escape, letting go of his gun and making a break for the crowd. Mac stares dumbfounded at the gun before dropping it in alarm, realizing he might be holding a murder weapon.

Pope whirls around and reacts immediately. "Mac, get to the van, now!" he yells, pushing past Serena before breaking into a jog heading for the van he arrived in. No one seems to be paying the stage much attention, other than the Speaker's security detail.

sun_tzu
2012-10-23, 03:39 AM
Oh no.
Serena rushed toward the stage. This was not the result of much rational thought - she was no medical expert, after all - but someone was hurt, and might need help. That was the core thought running through her head at the moment.

Kaworu
2012-10-23, 07:46 AM
Solon acted immediatelly, but with no unecessary rush. Within him was the glorious wisdom of Athene, her compassionate longing to bringing peace, her frightful stance against detrimenting ones.

He did not stand up, he jump high, simultaneously closing his notebook and putting the device under his arm, reaching by second hand to his golden revolver, whirling as petals of cherry blossom, touched by eastern, gentle winds. He did not forced his way through the crowd, he swam in it as delphin, perfectly aware of surrounding people. He moved gracefully, fastly and determinated, seeking in the cloud of fish the only one, with poisonous spices.


4 motes of peripheral essence = 2 automative success for Awareness roll.
Stunt?

Justyn
2012-10-23, 12:22 PM
Oh, ****. Justyn's eyes were bugging out of his head, he just witnessed a damned political assassination!

He had always thought that in this situation he could really prove his mettle, to show the world he was a man... no, he was nothing more than a scared little boy frozen in his spot, not even breathing.

He turned to run, when a glint of sunlight caught his eye. Was this what the Sun chosen him for? To run from adversity the first time he was truly tested? Even the madman who's memories occasionally intruded into Justyn's mind would have done something besides run like a coward.

No, he wouldn't be the shining bastion the situation needed, not yet at least, but he could do something, he could help. The Arrow of Heaven marched forward.

Rolling Perception + Awareness to see who was shot: [roll0]
Stunt dice, if applicable: [roll1]

What could he do? He continued watching as the critical moment unfirled around him, the younger of those men in black was wrestling with what looked to be the shooter... and then watched at the man in the parka started getting away... He had an idea and made a cone around his mouth with one hand and pointed at the assailant as he turned to the older of the two:

"HEY! AGENT K!" He yelled. "THE SHOOTER'S GETTING AWAY, FOLLOW HIM OR SOMETHING!"

No magic backed his words, but hopefully the message would be enough...
Going to roll Charisma + Presence for this, unless you object:[roll2] And stunt dice if applicable [roll3]

DukeGod
2012-10-23, 02:51 PM
As everything happens, Ideal Sword, unsure of what to do, looks at the person he was following chasing after someone

Without hesitation, he dives for the gun that was just dropped and points it in their direction

"DIINK"(Stop)

Maugan Ra
2012-10-23, 03:11 PM
When you kill people for money, one of the very first skills you develop is the ability to improvise rapidly. No matter how carefully you plan the job, how cautious you are in it's execution, or how paranoid your defenses... sometimes, the unexpected happens, and you have to adapt quickly.

In this case, Henry had never really considered the possibility of someone just pulling a gun in the middle of the speech and firing wildly. Even so, it didn't take him more than a heart beat to realize what had happened... and a heartbeat more to decide what to do about it. If you wanted to make a statement, well, the best way to do that would be to do it publically.

From the perspective of the dozens of startled onlookers, it must have seemed that the well dressed man who suddenly appeared on the stage had materialized from out of nowhere. One moment he was not there, and the next he was. Jones took three steps forwards, one hand already reaching inside his jacket, and leapt into the air. A secondary kick off of one of the microphone stands propelled him into the air, sailing gracefully over the crowd and directly towards the fleeing gunman.

He landed gracefully, as light as a shadow, spinning on the spot to confront the man in the parka. One hand rose up to aim a weapon at the surprised gunman, a ornate pistol of forged gold that almost seemed to gleam like the sun overhead. And on Jones' brow, the hollow ring of the Night Caste burned a furious gold, announcing his affiliation to the world.

"Stop right there, or I will kill you." he said in a level voice, somehow still easily audible over the tumult.

Rarkasha
2012-10-25, 01:53 AM
The figure in the parka stops, holding up his hands. He raises his face slowly, and you can see him swallow nervously. He looks somewhat ill, with sweating, pale skin, and glassy eyes. He keeps looking at Henry's caste mark, then away again, giggling.

Meanwhile, Pope has caught up to the assailant. Spotting Henry, he says "Whoa whoa whoa... a Solar... let's stay calm now... I am going to explain what is going on here, but I need you to put down the gun, okay sir? We need him alive, alright?"

At this point Solon also arrives on the scene, seeing the three way confrontation between Pope, the would-be assassin, and Henry.

Over at the stage with Justyn and Serena, they find a wounded security guard lying on the ground. At first glance, it doesn't seem too bad, there's only a small exit wound, but the rapidly pooling blood suggests that an artery may have been hit. A security guard runs up to them, looking to Serena. "Ma'am, I hope you're a doctor, cause otherwise I need to get this guy to the hospital, fast."

Ideal Sword, holding the strange firepiece in his hand, begins to think maybe the two men who ran away aren't even aware of his presence. The few people who are left definitely do though. A few civilians, unarmed and unarmored, back up slowly, fear in their eyes. A handful of security guards not escorting the Speaker have their weapons drawn but are strangely not firing. They were trained for nearly anything. Anything except an assassin discharging a weapon and having the weapon change hands to a completely unknown stranger who points it at the first assassin. They shout in their alien language, incomprehensible to Ideal Sword, although they sound rather distressed.

sun_tzu
2012-10-25, 02:08 AM
Over at the stage with Justyn and Serena, they find a wounded security guard lying on the ground. At first glance, it doesn't seem too bad, there's only a small exit wound, but the rapidly pooling blood suggests that an artery may have been hit. A security guard runs up to them, looking to Serena. "Ma'am, I hope you're a doctor, cause otherwise I need to get this guy to the hospital, fast."

"You need to get him to a hospital anyway!" said Serena. "All I can do is administer first aid for now."
Acting quickly, she set out to bandage the wound as well as she could. She ripped a piece of the guard's clothing, then duct-taped it to the injury. Dad said to always keep duct tape around, but I don't think this is what he meant. Still, any temporary measure to keep lethal amounts of blood from leaking out.

I'm guessing, Intelligence+Medicine? Regardless, Serena's channeling Compassion on this roll.

Kaworu
2012-10-25, 02:42 AM
- Ok, in case you want to do something stupid, you are not the only one with a gun – said Solon to man in a parka, pulling his revolver and aiming at terrorist. When he looked at Henry, he opened his mouth wide in a expression of astonishment – Oh, you too! – whispered. Due to his actions, his own caste mark also shined slightly.

- And who you are?- asked, looking at Pope – We are around as long as Dragon-blooded and we should be surprise for anybody. I remember from past incarnations animalistic heroes of the Moon, but you don't seem to be one of them.

Maugan Ra
2012-10-25, 04:42 AM
Henry considers this, then nods sharply. The gun in his hand almost seems to vanish into the air, like a card trick.

"We should probably get going, then. I don't think we want to be around here for too much longer." he says levelly, before nodding to Solon.

"If I had to guess, I'd say... Sidereals. Five Days Darkness mentioned them, but was a little sketchy on the details."

He looks around once more, always scanning the environment, and spots the strange man in the biker jacket. His eyes narrow at the leveled gun.

DukeGod
2012-10-25, 07:10 AM
Ideal Sword pays no mind to the guards shouting at him. Just like in the First Age he disregarded the mortals. Most important of all, not one but two of his brothers from the Solar Host had shown themselves

So, without doing so much as to look at any of the guards or showing any sign that he did so much as consider they existed, he throws the firepiece away at some random mortal and runs towards the group. He talks to the one looking at him. He was of the Night caste.

"Mitta sattuu taala, yo veli? Onko, tamaa neuvotelevaa alue? (What happens here Night brother? Are we in the Deliberative's territory?)"

Rarkasha
2012-10-27, 02:48 AM
Stress visibly drains from Pope's wrinkled face. He looks at Solon and Ideal Sword and raises his eyebrows. Perhaps he wasn't expecting this many Solars present, or at least not as many with guns.

"Right. I'm part of a Sidereal team. I can explain more but we need to get moving. Maya, can you prep our guest? Let me know if he can pull out any surprises," says Pope.

A moment later a woman seemingly materializes out of thin air and grabs one of the assassins arms, putting it behind his back into a hammerlock. She then brings him down to the ground and handcuffs him. Brushing back her auburn hair, you can see a headset on her, same as the others. Her clothing, however, is more civilian, wearing a black jacket and slacks.

"I have him, Pope. Ninety percent chance he's the 'Puppeteer' type I mentioned from my research. Intel from Nara-O was good," says Maya.

Pope assists her in lifting the man up and carrying him. The crowd seems too panicked to notice what is going on, and most people have fled the area. In the background you can hear Senator Wakeman arguing with his security detail as they stuff him into a car. A few remain behind but seem to be waiting on local law enforcement to sort out detaining anyone, since there are no active shooters.

"That confirms it then. We have a single individual, probably inexperienced, attempting an assassination. He's most likely still in the area, waiting on a report from his... minion. Let's make that meeting happen," says Pope, dragging the assassin to the van, now backed up a bit on the lawn.

Pope looks back at the three Solars who approached him. "My Sifu told me, 'Where there's one meddling Solar, there's probably at least 4 more in the rafters.' The police are on their way, and this van here is specially camouflaged to normal eyes. If you got anyone else out there, can you call them back in with your caste mark?"

Maugan Ra
2012-10-27, 09:42 AM
Henry raises his eyebrows in surprise at the strange language coming from the newcomer's mouth. He'd heard a lot of different tongues before, but this one was entirely new.

"Sorry, I don't speak that language." he said calmly, though the look of visible frustration on his face and the strange language alone should hopefully get the intended message across. He tapped his own caste mark, indicated Pope and then sketched out a quick symbol or two in the air - what he could remember seeing of the Sidereal caste symbols - before nodding in the direction of the van. The Sidereal will explain.

He looks back at Pope for a moment. "I don't have any other Solars around. Hell, I didn't realise I wasn't the only one here until about ten seconds ago. Still, there might be more around."

For the briefest of moments, the Night caste is surrounded by a pillar of brilliant golden energy, the faintest impression of a rearing golden snake just about visible in it's depths. Haloed by the anima banner, and quite visible to just about everyone nearby, Jones makes an exaggerated beckoning gesture, grateful that his own features were somewhat obscured by the blaze. The light shuts off again a moment later.

"If they have any curiosity or sense, that'll draw them in. Let's get going."

Justyn
2012-10-28, 06:45 AM
The ammonia-and-eucalyptus scented concoction worked just like the book said it would; the antihemorrhagic-soaked cloth he had given to Serena when he saw her starting to tear apart the guard's uniform had stopped the bleeding wound faster than even cauterizing it would.

"Bleeding's stopped, but he still needs to get to the hospital, but this will make sure he actually gets there at..."

The brilliant light that came from that group of people had stopped him from speaking. It was unquestionably the anima of another Solar, and it would be well worth revealing himself to meet another.

He went towards it, after finishing with the wounded man.

sun_tzu
2012-11-03, 09:28 AM
Pope looks back at the three Solars who approached him. "My Sifu told me, 'Where there's one meddling Solar, there's probably at least 4 more in the rafters.' The police are on their way, and this van here is specially camouflaged to normal eyes. If you got anyone else out there, can you call them back in with your caste mark?"

"Solars? Caste Marks?" Serena cocked her eyebrow, making it clear she was not familiar with the terminology. "And honestly, I was not unaware of any other 'empowered' individuals being present. I mean, it seemed safe enough to assume that some of the 'elementals' would be attending this kind of event, but..."

Maugan Ra
2012-11-03, 10:47 AM
Henry looks over at the woman. "You presumably noticed the massive outpouring of golden light when you... changed? Maybe had a vision? That's how you know if you're a Solar." he shrugs. "Apparently, anyway. I got something of a crash course from a... well, a god, named Five Days Darkness. That's really all I know."

sun_tzu
2012-11-03, 11:01 AM
Henry looks over at the woman. "You presumably noticed the massive outpouring of golden light when you... changed? Maybe had a vision? That's how you know if you're a Solar." he shrugs. "Apparently, anyway. I got something of a crash course from a... well, a god, named Five Days Darkness. That's really all I know."

"A god." Serena blinked. "When you say 'a' god, should I be thinking Greek Mythology, Christian Trinity, Chinese Celestial Bureaucracy, or what?"

Maugan Ra
2012-11-03, 11:08 AM
"Bureaucracy. Lots of different gods, each with a tightly defined role in a grander organisation. Apparently, being Exalted means being chosen by the guy right at the top to act as... I don't know, personal agents or something."

He smiles, ever so slightly. "I admit, my first instinct was to assume I was either drugged or hallucinating. But it's been a fair while now, and everything seems to have stayed internally consistent."

sun_tzu
2012-11-03, 11:15 AM
"I...see," Serena said hesitatingly. "I didn't have any mystical visions when I first changed, but I was in the middle of some pretty tense negotiations. I think I might have prevented a war. Or at least delayed it."

Maugan Ra
2012-11-03, 11:19 AM
"That would probably fit. As I understand it, the guy in charge looks for particular kinds of people for his agents. Folks he can be sure will do great things with the power." Henry shrugs. "So yeah, stopping a war seems suitably grand. No idea why I got chosen - I'm an assassin. There's nothing even remotely heroic or valorous about what I do."

Kaworu
2012-11-03, 12:25 PM
- Hmmm... - geek added his voice to the discussion – I am Solon, Twilight Caste. I also don't know why I was Chosen, but I think it's because I have my own dream and I want it to come true. Maybe more importanty, why somebody would want to kill spokeman? Why not President, General or any of Ministers? I don't know anything about work of assassin – Solon looked at Henry with strange sight – but I can tell it was really unprofessional. Even if we would not be around, it would be only fiasco. And... is there a way to „out” the demon and prison in some kind of storage without killing the poor guy? - Solon asked Sidereals.

Maugan Ra
2012-11-03, 05:54 PM
Henry nods. "Yeah, whoever did this really didn't expect it to succeed. I'm guessing it was a message. If the speaker is any good at his job, he'll be able to spin this into evidence that we're all clearly dangerous and should be locked up."

He pauses for a moment. "In some ways, he'd probably be right. I was considering killing him myself, though I wanted to at least hear him out first."

Kaworu
2012-11-03, 08:51 PM
- KILLING him?!- Solon was really shocked - How could you THINK about it, he was only defenceless person doing his work! What would you achieve by that behavior? Peace? Political stability? Maybe "Robin Hood" feeling? We are Solars, we must protect weak ones, educate empty-headed and direct undecided. Definitely NOT kill them.

Maugan Ra
2012-11-03, 08:59 PM
Henry raises an eyebrow. "Tell me, what part of 'assassin' do you not understand?" he asks, the faintest of smiles tugging at his lips. "If I kill someone, it is because I stand to gain from the situation. Usually, that means I'm being paid to do it. In this case, it was fairly personal - he was championing a cause that would essentially see me arrested and possibly experimented on. So I considered killing him."

There is a mocking tone to his voice now. "Or did you assume that I meant I only killed bad people and other criminals?"

Justyn
2012-11-04, 01:40 AM
- KILLING him?!- Solon was really shocked - How could you THINK about it, he was only defenceless person doing his work! What would you achieve by that behavior? Peace? Political stability? Maybe "Robin Hood" feeling? We are Solars, we must protect weak ones, educate empty-headed and direct undecided. Definitely NOT kill them.

Justyn finally spoke up after a few minutes of silence. "To play Devil's advocate, sir, we "must" do nothing." He said, with fingerquotes. "When the Sun... I believe the term is "Exalted", when the Sun Exalted me, he told me to use the powers he gave me to do great things, he said nothing about helping anyone but myself with them."

"If you wish to use your power to protect and educate, then it's your choice, but not a one of us has any obligation to do that beyond our own moral ones."

"Also, the fact is, this guy has already backed an order that allows them to arrest Exalted for no other reason beyond being Exalted; considering we fit that criteria, I'd say defending yourself from unlawful imprisonment and potentially becoming a human guinea pig is a decent enough reason to take the life of the one who so ordered it to happen. There are certainly better solutions, but I'd hardly say that that one is unjustified if it's the only one readily open to you."

sun_tzu
2012-11-04, 03:45 AM
"Snuffing out a man's life will do little to convince people you're not a threat," said Serena. "And...you can do better with your life than act as an assassin." Her tone didn't convey reproach - rather, she sounded sad on Henry's behalf, as if he was the victim of his own career.

Kaworu
2012-11-04, 07:58 AM
- Well, when Sun Exalted me, he gave me a silent guardian to look after me. There she is! – said Solon pathetically, flaring his anima. The small space of van was filled with golden light and high figure of Athene.

- He would gave me Ares, the god of war, or Aphrodite, the hedonist, but he didn't. His gift wasn't even Hephaestus who worked hard on his success. He gave me Athene, mother of Athens, protector of heroes, the beloved daughter of Zeus. He gave me the most noble and glorious of all gods. Why would Sun do that, if I could do whatever I like?

- Moral values are not some gloves, you cannot change them depending on weather and trends in fashion. They are universal, existing beyond individual persons, even beyond cultures. If I will kick you in your ass, this will be painfully and I will cause exactly the same pain if I kick someone in Europe, Asia or Africa. We can have super powers and be almost unconquered, but it has nothing to do with morality. Normal humans aren't inferior to us, they just don't have our capabilities to change the world. It would be shameful act of egoism, if we would think only about ourselves. The desire of Sun is Earth, where we are guardians, kings and teachers, not... ekhem... assasins „I have killed for money, not only bad guys”. We are now independent, and we can set people free from cultural, financial or sociological repressions. How we can do it, if our morality is shaped by our wallets?

Rarkasha
2012-11-04, 11:10 AM
"Guys, I hate to interrupt, but the police are here!" yells Mac, waving the group to the van. The female Sidereal, Maya is dragging the handcuffed body of the would be assassin into the van, with this assistance of Pope. You can all hear Pope ask, "You said this thing is a Puppeteer, right? Is it dangerous like this?"

Maya grunts as she pushes the demon host by his feet further into van. She leans on the doors of the van as she explains, "No, it's only moderately stronger than the average human like this. Unlike myths of body snatchers in common lore, the Pupeteer can't take a body immediately. It takes several days to obtain a new host, although it can switch between already converted hosts. So, we're safe for now."

"Good, let's wrap this up then," says Pope, climbing into the van.

If you enter the van, you'ff find the interior rather cramped, with so many people inside, plus of course the body on the floor. Pope and Maya sit up front near the driver, with Mac at the door holding it open for the Solars. The body of the demon lies still, with only his rattling breathing any indication he still lives.

sun_tzu
2012-11-04, 11:16 AM
"And why exactly is the presence of the police a problem?" said Serena. I imagine a hitman has things to hide, but do you?

Kaworu
2012-11-04, 11:42 AM
- Innocent guy haunted by a demonic presence?- Solon asked rhetorically, smiling - Listen Lady, we know the truth, our friends know the truth, but police will arrest the poor boy. He can be judged as a dangerous fanatic or be send to some kind of asylum for a lifetime. Sidereals are the only ones who can help him and fast ecsape in much better than potentially fight with police. As a police officer, would you let group of eccentric people take care of armed men because they say they know what to do? Because they are demigods?

DukeGod
2012-11-04, 12:29 PM
Having disapperead for some time and returned with a cat on his arms, Ideal Sword enters the van. It seemed a good idea, at least these people didn't have interest in sedating him and locking him up. Yet.

Only then it occurs to him that it might be a good idea to show them his Caste mark as they all were just flashing theirs. Solars of wherever he was seemed quite weird. So he lets some power flow and lights up the mark of Dawn on his forehead

1m of Personal to willingly flare his Caste Mark

Personal: 13/14
Peripheral: 18/34 (16 Commited)

Maugan Ra
2012-11-04, 01:06 PM
"You might think morality is absolute. I, clearly, do not." Henry says, from his slightly cramped position in the back of the van. "You might have gotten a goddess-like anima... mine is a snake."

He glances towards Serena, and looks momentarily uncomfortable. "That said, you might be right. I... was certainly considering what else I wanted my life to be when calibration happened. Haven't come up with much of an answer yet, though."

sun_tzu
2012-11-04, 01:11 PM
"You might think morality is absolute. I, clearly, do not." Henry says, from his slightly cramped position in the back of the van. "You might have gotten a goddess-like anima... mine is a snake."

He glances towards Serena, and looks momentarily uncomfortable. "That said, you might be right. I... was certainly considering what else I wanted my life to be when calibration happened. Haven't come up with much of an answer yet, though."

Serena gave him a small smile. "Well, they do say poachers make for the best gamekeepers..."

Maugan Ra
2012-11-04, 03:08 PM
Henry chuckles slightly. "Maybe. That's what the Night Caste is supposed to do, as far as I can tell. Defend the great works of others from the shadows." he pauses, considering. "Of course, I'd need to find a cause to defend, first. Probably won't be too long in coming - I get the distinct feeling that the Exalted weren't the only things to return to the world in Calibration. You don't make champions without enemies to pit them against."

Kaworu
2012-11-04, 04:01 PM
- I doubt if there must be a particular reason for the return of Exalted. Dragon-blooded returned in big number, but with no known „presentation”. Maybe we are back because of reality shift and Sun has nothing to do with that? My own presentation was... cold and... kind of massive, if you know what I mean. I have felt like a part of crowd, not as an individuality. What if it is just a returning of magic, not Exalted? And I believe there is no necessity of „big evil” for Solars to exist. Holy Sun would like to create a better world, with no complitated reasons.

- Returning to „animas”, I'm still with my statement. Exalted are independent and can shape directly the fate of themselves. Snake is not only a symbol of death and traitors. In ancient, Aztec's culture, Quetzalcoatl, the winged snake, was a symbol of mercy, white magic and a patron of humanity. Cleopatra, on second hand, was the greatest Pharaoh of her dynasty. Althrough she probably commited suicide by drinking mixture of opium and herbs, her death is in nowadays related to egyptian asp, one of many holy animals of Pharaoh. Therefore, asp of Cleopatra is a symbol of sacrifice and fighting to the very end for own's dreams.

- Why I am telling you this? Well, I don't want you to live in some kind of illusion, where you think you must be an assassin. Past doesn't matter, you possess a power to decide, what kind of symbol will be your own snake.

Maugan Ra
2012-11-04, 04:33 PM
Henry's gaze is calm and level now, as is his voice. "I am perfectly aware of the different possible meanings of the snake. And I appreciate that you evidently care somewhat about whatever it might mean. But there are a few... mistakes, there."

"The past does matter. And I have always known that I do not neccessarily have to remain an assassin. Indeed, with the payment for a few of the different tasks I've undertaken... I could have retired years ago. Never picked up a weapon again." he continues, his voice icy. "I did not. I have my reasons. And I am not going to abandon my work now just because some people find it distasteful. "

sun_tzu
2012-11-04, 05:18 PM
Serena held her chin thoughtfully. "You're talking about a return of...'exalted'. What do you mean by it? My History lessons never exactly mentioned people with our powers running around in any era."

Maugan Ra
2012-11-04, 05:27 PM
"It is rather odd, now that you mention it. I know Five Days Darkness spoke of this is terms of a return, but I never considered what that might mean regarding the past." Henry says slowly, an intrigued expression on his face.

"Then again, it might be a case of obscured details, or everything being written off as a legend. I tested some of my own abilities - I can run straight up the side of a building if I need to. And I'm fairly sure I could pick up this van and throw it through the air." he says with a slight smile. "If no one could duplicate the feats in centuries, it would make sense for them to become mythological."

sun_tzu
2012-11-04, 05:34 PM
"It is rather odd, now that you mention it. I know Five Days Darkness spoke of this is terms of a return, but I never considered what that might mean regarding the past." Henry says slowly, an intrigued expression on his face.

"Then again, it might be a case of obscured details, or everything being written off as a legend. I tested some of my own abilities - I can run straight up the side of a building if I need to. And I'm fairly sure I could pick up this van and throw it through the air." he says with a slight smile. "If no one could duplicate the feats in centuries, it would make sense for them to become mythological."

Serena shook her head. "I think you are underestimating the effects a genuine superman would have had on the course of History. Consider how influential one exceptional individual can get, whether a Hitler, a Napoleon or a Gandhi. Now imagine someone with genuinely superhuman charisma. What about a superintelligent Edison, or Da Vinci? What of an Audie Murphy with the combat prowess of an exalt? They'd have changed the world to an extent I have trouble picturing."

Kaworu
2012-11-04, 06:23 PM
The question wasn't directed to Solon, but as person who brung the topic, he felt in duty to answer:

- I don't know, I just... remember, I'm trying to „catch” the „taste” of old times. It's something like... bear and seasons. I am the bear, and there is spring full of life, summer with the Sun high above my head, autumn with odor of decadence... and winter, long, lonely dream about new day and new chances. I am not fully aware how long the dream could last, but it would be even before the known history. In order to refresh my memory, I have spent many nights in libraries and museums, searching for familiar images and tales. The oldest was something similar, but it was not the same. For example, I think I could live in „ancient” Egypt, but I don't remember Nile, only architecture and sands. Of course, it's crazy, Egyptian civilization without Nile, but according to my memory, it's a truth. So, I believe ancient cultures did not write about real Heracles and gods, it were splices of older and more... intensive times. Only memory of wonders, changed by centuries and human's imagination into mythologies.

First time in his Exalted life, he was considering the end of his new potential. He also could throw cars, if he would like to spend some time and train his body?

Rarkasha
2012-11-06, 05:59 AM
The van, now loaded with everybody inside, pulls away just as the police arrive. They seem to be aware of the van but are surprisingly uninterested in it. It's hard to make out who your driver is, outside of his short, almost white hair and scarf covering his face. He drives casually, as perhaps the nature of the van only works while he drives like a normal civilian.

Pope listens to the conversation, his face hardening slightly. Mac seems to notice this and speaks up.

"Listen, lady... I want to do the right thing too, but we can't exactly work with the police. See, we're called Sidereals. We're a little different from you. And the big thing is, after the new year? All of us just stopped existing to the rest of the world. I showed up to work one day and I find my boss has forgotten me. I'm not even on the schedule. I go home and everyone doesn't even remember I had a job. Over a week, my friends and family forgot who I was. All of the paperwork and records that showed who I was disappeared. I guess normally a new Sidereal is supposed to be approached by a senior Sidereal who explains all this, but I didn't get that. None of us did. Just little whispers from the Maiden of Secrets got me to the Heavenly City. Anyways, point is, none of us have concrete identities. We didn't have enough time to forge anything that could get us to work with law enforcement or the military. We've been so swamped that we got notice of the attack on Wakeman like two days ago," Mac sighs, and ruffles his hair, looking down at the floor. He looks at Serena again, looking embarrassed, and says "Jeez, I'm sorry. I'm going on about all this crap and I haven't even said who I am huh? Guess I'm getting used to it... anyways, my old name was Hyun Su Mackenzie. That's why they call me Mac when we're out on a mission. The old man over there is Pope, the lady across from him is Maya, and our silent but skilled driver is Slate. Also, we got assigned names from our bosses at the Bureau of Destiny. That's why we work together actually, they're-"

"No," says Maya, sternly cutting him off. Mac turns to her, looking a little put down but also with a small smile at the corner of his mouth.

"But-" begins Mac before another glare from Maya causes him to reconsider.

Pope takes this moment to clear his throat and speak,"We'll have more time to explain later. While we may be different in many ways, we're all still in the same boat. We were given an extraordinary power, by a group of beings we don't fully understand yet. I think it'd benefit us to work together and piece together what we know, since it seems we all hold a piece of this puzzle. But first," he says, nudging the prone form of the Puppeteer, " We need to try and find the summoner of this... demon. He's not very talented pulling something like this but that can make more dangerous, in a way. He clearly isn't concerned about the fallout from this event. I'm sure he has a way of contacting this demon for instructions. We just need to figure out where."

The Puppeteer host giggles, his face down body shaking on the floor. Pope looks at it disinterestedly, while Mac and Maya look slightly disgusted with it.

Between the interjection in Mac's introduction and the rest of the conversation, Maya has been staring at Ideal Sword. Finally she speaks up, in heavily accented Old Realm.

"Excuse me, but I couldn't help but notice you've only been speaking in this language. Have you forgotten your native tongue?" she says, trying her best to be discreet.

sun_tzu
2012-11-06, 06:56 AM
Serena blanched at Mac's tale. "That's...Oh God. I'm so sorry. That's like something out of a horror story. There...There's got to be a way to fix that." She paused. "What about us? Are we going to forget you exist?"

DukeGod
2012-11-06, 08:33 PM
Ideal Sword doesn't try to be real discreet. Or sees any reason to

"Syntyperäinen kieleni? Tämä on se. Eikö se ole sinua? Uskoin Neuvottelevaa leviämistä se ohi Luovuus. Ei odota. ..Zil Dovahkiin... valloitti jotenkin. Ovatko ne muuttaneet sen?My native tongue? This is it. Is it not yours? I believed the Deliberative had spread it all over Creation. No wait. The Dragon-Blooded...they conquered us. Have they changed it?"

Kaworu
2012-11-07, 11:10 PM
- Wait, I do not understand – said Solon, looking at Sidereals – If you are „invinsible”, why other kinds of Exalted are so obvious? Everybody knows about Dragon blooded, Solars will be soon main force in fight of Exalted rights... why only Siderals are „nobody saw, nobody know”? I would understand sort of „magic” for spies, but even family and friends? There must be any explanation of the phenomena – stated, wondering about nature of Star-choosen.

Maugan Ra
2012-11-07, 11:47 PM
"Different intended roles, I'd guess." Henry says thoughtfully. "As an example... there are two types of bodyguards. The first is visible, threatening, so it can act as a deterrent to any potential threats. The second is discrete, so that attackers don't notice them until it's too late."

He rubs his jaw. "Solars to be big and flashy, Sidereals to take care of things behind the scenes. The Dragon-Blood... no idea. Intermediaries, maybe, or support staff. Would explain the relative numbers."

He shakes his head and looks back at the Sidereals. "Still, I'll help out against whoever's responsible for this, assuming we can find them. Payment in information - someone in your organisation clearly has a much better damn idea of what's going on here than I do. Sound fair?" he pauses, then adds. "You want the guy alive, come to think of it? Dead's cleaner, but I appreciate there might be questions to ask."

Justyn
2012-11-08, 01:53 AM
"They're not invisible, Solon;" Justyn nitpicked. "they said that people forget they exist after a while and that records of their existence vanish, not that they can't be seen."

He cleared his throat.

"Actually," He said, turning in the direction of the Sidereals. "speaking of that, the only people who've forgotten you have been regular humans, right? Do you think that whatever it is that's doing that also affects other Exalted? Do you remember any other Sidereals you've met besides one another?"

"Aaaand it just occurred to me that I haven't introduced myself. Hi, I'm Justyn."

Rarkasha
2012-11-09, 01:24 AM
Mac thinks awhile, then answers "I spoke to Black Puppet Mask... erm, he's basically my boss, a god in the Bureau of Destiny. I asked him about the Arcane Fate before... he called it 'A penance the new ones shouldn't have to pay.' He explained that it's like the world forgetting we exist. Anyways, he said that most Exalted, or anyone with a strong mind should be able to resist the effects of it. Pope said something about a plan to stay in contact, too. Speaking of which, hey Pope, any luck?"

Pope shakes his head, saying "Nothing. I don't have the first frame of reference for negotiating or interrogating with a demon. Naturally giving him more bodies is out, and I doubt that'd something he'd give up the meeting spot in exchange for anyways. We'll have to think of something else."

sun_tzu
2012-11-09, 01:33 AM
Serena nodded at Justyn. "Serena Smith. I work as a diplomat for the UN."
She turned her eyes to Mac. "What do demons want? That would be the first indication of how to negotiate with them, or anyone."

sun_tzu
2012-11-11, 04:00 AM
Serena then gazed at the demon. It's worth a shot, I guess. Her anima began flaring with golden light:
"My name is Serena Smith. I represent the United Nations, which represents the governments of the entire world. I am also a Solar Exalted, and I am most cross with you.
Less than an hour ago, you attempted to murder a human being - worse than that, an elected official representing the will of the people. Such behavior is entirely unacceptable. Why? What drove you to such action?"

Charisma+Presence. I imagine her specialization doesn't apply.
Using Excellency to buy five auto-successes. If the demon says anything, she'll use Sagacious Reading of Intent as a lie detector.
[rolllv]10d10[/rollv]

Rarkasha
2012-11-11, 10:44 AM
Maya looks concerned as she listens to Ideal Sword. "I don't know how to explain this exactly, but this world isn't the same as the one you know. For at least several thousand years there haven't been any Exalted, or Gods or demons. The language I'm speaking right now is known as 'English.' I'm sorry, this must be a shock to you. Everyone else here is from the same time as you. But we could use your help as well. None of us really know yet how this is all supposed to work out."

Meanwhile the Decanthrope makes a wheezing laugh. It looks at Serena, an odd mixture of fear and disgust."

"Hahhh... so close. This one is merely a single finger, a tool for a greater mind. Why do I act? Because I have been ordered to do so... no more, no less. Still, to see it happen would have been nice."

Sun Tzu
Sagacious Reading of Intent reveals that the demon intent is to goad you into going after his master, instead of focusing on him.

DukeGod
2012-11-12, 06:07 PM
"Eikö mahdoton. ..this voi olla tuhat vuosista aika. ..itistä kaikista katseistani niin. ..plain, niin ei-edistynyt? (Impossible...this cannot be thousands of years from my age...it all looks so...plain, so non-advanced?)""

He doesn't speak in anger. But he is pensative for some time

"Muistan vallankumouksen, että ajattelen. Dovahkiin kapinoi meitä, Coatlin vasten. Ne. ..verik? Kyllä ne tekivät. Kuinka? Meillä oli kaukana enemmän valta. Ne eivät voi imprisionia Auringon ja kuolema Ylentämisemme löytäisi yksinkertaisesti joku muu... (I remember the revolution I think. The Dragon-Blooded rebelled against us, Solars. They...succeded? Yes they did. How? We had far more power. They could not imprision us Solars and upon death our Exaltation would simply find someone else...)"

And then shock comes. Realization comes

"Hän pani minut tuohon koneeseen. Hän sanoi, että asuisin ja hän kuolisi... NE TAPPOIVAT HÄNET! NE SEHNEET...NE TAPPOIVAT HÄNET! (She put me in that machine. She said I'd live and she would die...THEY KILLED HER!THEY COULDN'T...THEY KILLED HER!)"

Maugan Ra
2012-11-13, 02:09 PM
Henry barely seems to move - one moment, he's reasonably relaxed in his position in the back of the van. The next, there's an ornate revolver of golden metal in his hand, leveled at the head of the shouting madman.

"Calm down. Right...now." he says steadily, his voice exceptionally cold.

"You say your name was Maya?" he says to the Sidereal, not taking his eyes off the Dawn. "Care to explain what's up with our ranting friend here?"

DukeGod
2012-11-16, 05:20 PM
The voice of Henry calls Ideal Swords attentions. There's a weapon pointed at him. Golden. Maybe it was made from Orichalcum? That merited more respect than the common gray ones everyone seemed to carry around

Of course, nothing that he finds worrying. Moving his arms a bit, and without so much as a whisper he lets go of a tiny amount of power that was holding something Elsewhere. Just as quick as the revolver showed up on his hands, Ideal Sword has his tower orichalcum shield strapped to his arm and protecting him

This isn't a battle the other man can win. But he won't start it so soon

Justyn
2012-11-16, 09:04 PM
The near-simultaneous sounds of orichalcum-alloyed steel impacting against Justyn's head, the ringing of the shield, and Justyn's resultant profanities filled the van at once.

Still clutching at the side of his head, Justyn started yelling. "What the hell was that for, jackass?!" He stopped quickly, realizing that Sword couldn't understand a word he said, paused for a minute, and continued in accented Old Realm.

"Hey, moron, what the hell are you thinking pulling that gigantic shield out in a tiny space like this? And for that matter, where were you keeping that thing?"

Maugan Ra
2012-11-17, 05:19 AM
The slightest of smiles tugs at the corners of Henry's lips.

"A shield? Really? We haven't used shields in combat for..." he pauses, blinks, and lowers the pistol. "For centuries, actually. Maybe even millenia. Holy. ****. How old are you?"

He glances at Justyn. "You speak his language? I've never heard it before... old, I take it?"

Justyn
2012-11-17, 08:18 AM
He glances at Justyn. "You speak his language? I've never heard it before... old, I take it?"

"I'm not completely sure, ow, I found a book on alchemy and a bunch of other magic... 'sciences'? Iuno, but it's written in the language and taught myself to read it. My spoken is probably crap; I've never heard it out loud before now. I don't know much about the language really, sorry."

Rarkasha
2012-11-17, 10:12 AM
As Maya begins to visibly panic, she looks at both Pope and Mac. The driver of the van, Slate, is either too focused on the road or does not care about the situation at the moment. Pope looks exasperated, while Mac looks wary, hunching up as if preparing himself.

"Stop, STOP!" Says Maya, "If what he's saying is true, he's either impossibly old, from another dimension, or completely insane. Either way, the gun's just going to aggravate him." She switches to Old Realm before continuing, looking Ideal Sword in the eye, although her gaze glances over to the tower shield once or twice.

"Okay, look, I realize everything seems different right now. But the rest of us have had our world turned upside down as well. Maybe... not quite as irrevocably, but anyways, we're still in this together. We want to figure out what's going on, and I'm sure you do too. So, let's put that shield down, and he can put his weapon down, and we can figure out what to do from here... okay?" She asks, holding out a hand.

DukeGod
2012-11-19, 02:52 PM
Ideal Sword tries to make out what Justyn is saying. But in the end Maya gets his attention beforehand

"I'm not worried about his weapon. No flamepiece would do much at this range, and not against a Dawn caste. I was however afraid he might hurt my cat"

Ideal Sword pets the cat in his lap. The animal was not et all startled by the shield appartion or anything else. Once Henry puts his gun down. With a wave of his hand he banishes his shield once more to Elsewhere

"Done. Oh, and I've gone too far without introduction now. I am the Conceptual Ideal Sword Of All Knights"

((I grew a bit bored of having to write it twice. Century Gothic is a different font which I will bge using for Old Realm...))

Kaworu
2012-11-20, 01:39 AM
- Eh – Solon sighed, staring with obviously disapprobation at Henry – I seriously don't know what do you wanted. Our friend is a „foreigner” and as a person from different culture is approved to do stupid things, as long, as he cannot hurt other people. You, hovewer, just putted your gun and aimed at him. Yes, magically appearing shields are something untypical, but we can say the same thing about teleportative pistols, right?

Maugan Ra
2012-11-20, 11:10 PM
"Is this going to be a frequent thing?" Henry asks, raising an eyebrow. "You attempting to sit in moral judgement over me? Because that will get very old, very fast."

Kaworu
2012-11-21, 03:24 AM
- Oh, now the problem is MY behaviour, right? If somebody else is putting a militaristic equipment from nowhere, it's bad and the person should know their place. If you are playing with some guns, it is just normal. If I tell you something about that, I am a overjudging, prejusticed, sick party-pooper. But YOU have a right to instruct our friend?! That's an inconsistency!

sun_tzu
2012-11-21, 03:36 AM
"People, please," said Serena. "We're all wound up tight right now - God knows I am - but getting into a shouting match is only going to get us in further trouble." She gave a weak smile: "Let's try to make a positive first impression on each other at least, shall we?"

Maugan Ra
2012-11-21, 03:37 AM
"I aimed a pistol at him because he was ranting and possibly insane. The shield has nothing to do with it." Henry says, slowly. "I have no intention of 'instructing' anybody. Shooting them, maybe."

He pauses, and glances at Serena. "That said, you do have a point. I'll try to avoid... trouble."

Rarkasha
2012-11-26, 06:27 AM
Mac looks between Henry and Solon nervously. "Look... uh, for what it's worth, you're both kinda right. I've seen what happens if you hesitate when things go south. But at the same time, I've done stuff without really thinking things through and made it worse," he shrugs and says," I guess it just depends on on what's happening. Although, just me, but using a weapon in a crowded van causes a lot of collateral damage... Not that I would know."

The van begins to pick up speed as you merge onto a highway. Looking at the road signs, you're now entering highway 295, northeast to Baltimore, Maryland. Pope, seeing that things have calmed down a little, is talking on a cell phone.

"This is Pope. No, I'm not using the stupid names they... no, don't be silly. Anyways, you said you tracked our guy? He isn't supposed to show up normally, right? Yeah, I didn't think of that. Okay, we're already on route to Baltimore. Text me the address," Pope puts away the smartphone, then begins to speak to Serena, although he looks at the rest of the group as he talks.

"Miss Smith, I believe we've found our man. Another team has tracked the summoner to a place in downtown Baltimore. At least, that's where he or she shows up the most. Now, this isn't your job. If you want, we'll drop you off at the stakeout point nearby. But I'd recommend that all of you stick together for now. There's a lot of people that'd be interested in taking advantage of a Exalt. And we're still waiting to see what other stuff we're up against. Demons are only the start of it, I think. In any case, we have some time before we arrive. If anyone has questions about our situation maybe we can pool together what we know. Maybe even figure out how to organize this mess."

Meanwhile, Maya is translating what Pope says to Ideal Sword, adding, "I don't know much about being an Exalt, but I've been told being in a group is important. I think you'll need their knowledge of our present as much as they'll need your knowledge of the past."

Justyn
2012-11-28, 08:15 PM
"Miss Smith, I believe we've found our man. Another team has tracked the summoner to a place in downtown Baltimore. At least, that's where he or she shows up the most. Now, this isn't your job. If you want, we'll drop you off at the stakeout point nearby. But I'd recommend that all of you stick together for now. There's a lot of people that'd be interested in taking advantage of a Exalt. And we're still waiting to see what other stuff we're up against. Demons are only the start of it, I think. In any case, we have some time before we arrive. If anyone has questions about our situation maybe we can pool together what we know. Maybe even figure out how to organize this mess."

Justyn crossed his arms over his chest.

"I'm going to help you get this guy. I don't remember the First Age in much detail, and what details I can remember I... don't really want to, it's not just because the mathematics involved in actually squaring the circle are physically painful to think about, but I know little a bit about demon summoning. I know that if you can summon one demon, you can summon a lot of demons given time... And political assassinations are rarely spur of the moment decisions, meaning planning, meaning taking time, meaning there'd be a lot of time to summon more demons. And who's to say there's only one summoner? There could be two or three or more, so that'd still be more than one Exalted person plus all the demons that any of them could summon."

"It's better to go in expecting to face demons and Exalted and only wind up fighting a small number of people than to go in expecting to fight some random idiot and wind up fighting a bunch of Exalted and a dozen or two demons, so you need all the help you can get. And here we are."

DukeGod
2012-11-28, 08:35 PM
"Groups? You mean....circles? Well, I guess they really were quite important in the Primordial War, but after that, in my time there wasn't really so much importance. We did live together but, there wasn't much to do as one really. But then again, these are new times. We don't have armies and advanced weapons do we?"

"I can't see how my knowledge will really help. But if you really want to, I rember a good deal of my time, and I remember everything about my past incarnation, and HE fought in the Primordial War"

sun_tzu
2012-11-29, 04:57 AM
"If I may say," Serena spoke, "I was able to...sense the demon's intent, earlier. He was trying to goad us into focusing on his master instead of him."

Kaworu
2012-11-29, 10:13 AM
- No doubt, Serena, it's pretty typical - added Solon - He is just weak, puppeter demon with no powerful abilities, surrounded by Exalted. It's like soldiers. While in a bettlefield, they can do cruelties to other people, even civilians. While in a internatonial court, they say "general, general, he gave us the order, we were only following". It's the same situation: say everything, so you will avoid punishment and responsibility for your own sins.

Maugan Ra
2012-11-29, 02:19 PM
"Yes, please, continue to impress us with your fine grasp of morality and human psychology. Though I get the oddest feeling you'll object if I just shoot the thing in the head." Henry says flatly.

"Still, I'll help out against the summoner. Call it professional pride - using this guy was an amateur tactic, and I'm more than a little offended by it. You want the guy alive, or is this one of those 'too dangerous to keep restrained' things?"

Rarkasha
2012-12-04, 10:25 AM
Pope looks out the front window. The van is beginning to get close to downtown Baltimore, judging by the skyscrapers in the distance. Looking back at the group, Pope replies to Henry first.

"I'd prefer to take him in alive, but we don't know what we're dealing with yet. All I can tell right now is he's most likely an amateur, given this simplistic plan of his. Ultimately our safety comes first: if it comes down to him or us, I'd rather it be him," he says. He looks pointedly at the decanthrope.

"Speaking of which, we need to decide what to do with this... thing. Maya, are you familiar at all with this demon's physiology? Can we remove it?"

Maya sighs and looks over at the host body as she says, "I've never read anything on a method to remove it. Based on what I've read the demon controls each host body individually by bonding with its body... it probably interfaces with the central nervous system somehow. Maybe some kind of magic could expel it, but I don't know. I think right now it's too late for whoever this man used to be."

Pope furrows his brow and pinches the bridge of his nose. "Mac?" he says, trailing off as Mac shakes his head, also out of ideas.

The decanthrope twists his hosts head, dull eyes wide. "What, already? But I can help you! We could make a deal! I just needed a little more time..." he whines.

Pope looks disdainfully at the decanthrope. "Even if I was willing to make a literal deal with a demon, you're too much of a security risk. There's no way to guarantee your cooperation, and you'd probably just lead us into a trap anyways. No, better to deal with you now," he says, then hesitates, looking back at the rest of you.

"Unless you all have a better idea?"

Justyn
Even without expertise in vehicle tailing, you begin seeing a pattern in the cars behind you. Every so often you spot the same black SUV. Just a little too often to be a coincidence... You estimate that it has remained on your tail since D.C. Your keen eyesight clearly picks out the driver, a white male with short brown hair, probably in his mid thirties. He isn't wearing any identifiable uniform or clothing of any affiliation you recognize.

Kaworu
You get an uneasy feeling. You can't place it specifically, but you're quite sure you're being watched somehow.

Kaworu
2012-12-04, 11:05 AM
Solon looked around, slowly moving his head. There was... something. Another demon? Wizard? Some kind of... otherworldy presence?

- Do not do silly things – asked his fellows softly – I think we have now bigger concerns than one demon. Don't you fell?- said, cluthing his fingers on golden revolver.


4 motes (personal pool) for 2 additional successes, second roll?

Justyn
2012-12-04, 01:33 PM
Justyn had been leering out of the back of the van for a few moments when he spoke. "Him again..." He turned, "Hey, guys, I think we're being followed."

"Decanthrope.... deca... Demon names aren't just random collections of noise, their names actually mean something? What does the fact that this thing has the word "ten" in its name mean?"

Rolling intelligence + Occult to see if I might remember anything; likely from First Age memories:

[roll0]

Also, committing six personal motes into Infinite Martial Arts Mastery in advance.

sun_tzu
2012-12-04, 02:53 PM
"Demon or not, I'm not comfortable with the idea of killing him," said Serena. "And that's before getting into the possibility of saving his host."

Maugan Ra
2012-12-04, 04:03 PM
"And before we start moralising, do you need this van clean? If so, we'll need to pull over." Henry asks the Sidereals. There isn't even a hint of emotion in his eyes.

Justyn
2012-12-04, 06:48 PM
Justyn smirked, looking the demon directly in the eyes. "Or we can just drive in front of a semi and throw him out the back. That way it'd be funny at least." He made a bouncing gesture with his right hand. "Boing-boing-SPLAT." He said, punctuating it with a stomp of his foot on the floor.

Maugan Ra
2012-12-04, 06:52 PM
"Messy, and somewhat uncertain. I have no idea how sturdy these things are. Gunshot to the head, heart, maybe the neck. Which is still rather messy." Henry replies, and though his expression remains stoic, there's still the impression that he's enjoying baiting certain of his companions with this. "Hence why I ask if the van needs to be clean. Explaining to the cops why there's a massive bloodstain in the back is... problematic, even if you can get rid of the body."

Justyn
2012-12-05, 12:56 AM
"We can always beat him to death; he's right there on the floor, it wouldn't be a problem and we wouldn't even need to get up."

Justyn reached over across the person sitting next to him, grabbing the latch to the door, opening the back of the van to the road. The black van was still there.

"Plus, we could throw him out the back after we're done, it'll be great." He looks back over at the demon and speaks more to it than the group. "Unless our friend here would like to give us a reason to keep him around?"

Presence + Manipulation [roll0] + 1 success from willpower
stunt dice[roll1]
Willpower: 8/10
Essence
Personal: 13/19 (6 Committed)
Peripheral: 39/41 (2 Committed)
Active charms:
Infinite Martial Arts Mastery (6m invested)

Rarkasha
2012-12-09, 11:10 AM
Maya looks a bit bothered by the talk of "disposing" of the demon, but the rest of the Sidereals seem ready to do what is needed. The decanthrope host looks around for a moment, thinking, then suddenly speaks.

"If... if I am killed, the summoner will know! My master will flee if he suspects Solars are after him. As much as it pains me to work with a Solar, there is a reason we can make a deal. If my master is dead, then I can go free. Surely he is worth more than a lowly demon like myself?"

"Letting a demon go free sounds... undesirable, but if the summoner can tell if his demon dies, I suppose that is the best outcome," says Pope.

Justyn
The name doesn't stir any relevant memories in your mind... still, it doesn't take long to make the connection that the decanthrope must have multiple host bodies, probably 10 of them judging by the name. It also makes sense considering how weak the demon seems individually, although it still probably wasn't intended for fighting.

sun_tzu
2012-12-09, 11:58 AM
Serena gazes at the demon, as if her eyes could pierce its soul.
Technically, she could at least do the next best thing.

Sagacious Reading of Intent, again.

Kaworu
2012-12-09, 03:11 PM
- There is a space for consensus... you can save your life, if you will let your host go freely. Personally, I won't talk to you unless you want to cooperate.

Rarkasha
2012-12-11, 08:15 AM
"Uh... can I close this?" says Mac, looking out the back of the van to see several drivers slam on their brakes,"... I'm closin' it."

Pope rolls his eyes "We already have one person tracking us, I suppose some more attention couldn't hurt."

"Not... possible..." mutters Slate, in the front. His voice is clear and smooth despite his slow paced speech. He doesn't look away from the road, continuing a fairly mundane driving pattern despite this new info. With the doors closed, traffic returns to normal, no one paying any more attention to the van than usual.

"It's possible, just unlikely. I'm guessing another Exalt," Says Pope, steepling his hands, his expression back to one lost in thought. "I imagine it's our friend from previous outings. I should tell you all now there are other Solars and Lunars like yourselves making their own moves out there, even other Sidereal teams with their own agendas. It's anybody's game right now, and nearly everyone can play the part of a pawn. In any case, now's not the time for a confrontation with him. We're on a time limit here, and if he's informing on us then all the more reason to hurry up."

Maya briefs Ideal Sword as bests she can "Um... the demon is trying to bargain with us. We want to find the one who summoned it, and it wants to make a deal with us to let it go free if it helps us. Are you familiar with demons like this at all? Did you ever summon any?

The demon, meanwhile, chuckles a little while looking Kowaru directly in the eye. A human eye, but one missing something something important, yet you can't quite place the cause.

"As if I could, any more than you could if you were asked to cut out your own entrails. You do not understand a demon, child. What I am is my nature, and my nature shaping me."

Sun Tzu

The demon seems to be playing both sides. This reading reveals that he intends to cooperate as long as it benefits him. You can't detect any intent to mislead with any of his words about the summoner knowing if he is killed, though you can't pinpoint exactly how still. Finally, in his comment to Kowaru, you can detect the overriding personal goal of the decanthrope: to obtain and hold the 10 best host bodies he can, for as long as he can.

Maugan Ra
2012-12-11, 10:39 AM
"Hmm. Pity. But you know what the really interesting thing is?" Henry says after a moment's consideration. "Your master sent you to gun down a politician at a rally, surrounded by all his guards. Your demise? Really shouldn't be a surprise. And since keeping a demon around just reeks of a bad idea..."

He levels the orichalcum revolver at the demon's eye, and without so much as flinching pulls the trigger.

"If you need a cleaner, I know a few guys. Failing that, just dump it."

DukeGod
2012-12-11, 02:20 PM
"I know a bit. For starters, no I can't summon a demon even if I wanted to. You need Sorcery. I'm guessing this little guy is a First Circle Demon. They are weak, but often have some weird abilities. We used to use them as slaves and servants in manses sometimes."

"You say this a Decanthrope? Well they have have up to ten hosts at the same time. They can exit one host's body at extremely high speed to try to reach another, so be careful. Oh, and it can't just make anyone a host at will, it needs to keep that person hanging for a tree for a couple of days. I remember that because it was useful information for a warrior.

Edit:I'm guessing at this point Henry already shot

"And it can surviv the host's death..."

Kaworu
2012-12-11, 06:30 PM
- I guess that was the only choise. Still, the execution was more like revenge than justice... or act of wrath, at least. We are young and were exalted a couple of monts ago. Look at our capabilities, potential, powers we have. Maybe if we would wait long enought, we would do something for this poor human... or convert the demon?- Solon asked gloomily - He said it was in his nature... but Exalted can change even the most basic laws of universe, could we also redeem a demon?

Maugan Ra
2012-12-11, 07:33 PM
"There was no wrath or vengeance involved there." Henry says to Solon, even as he returns his pistol to Elsewhere with a quick hand gesture. "Nor was there justice. If you're going to live long enough to enact those grand, sweeping changes you are apparently so keen on, you need to appreciate that people can kill, or steal, or do any number of other unsavory things because it is more convenient than the other alternatives."

Justyn
2012-12-11, 08:17 PM
Justyn was frozen against the side of the van, staring bug-eyed the dead body for more than a few moments. With a shuddering breath, he spoke.

"Y-you know, we p-probably couldcouldld have gotten sommmore inffformation out of 'im before you k-killed him... li-like who's in that bla-black van th-thatat's been following us."

Maugan Ra
2012-12-11, 09:45 PM
Henry frowns at Justyn for a moments, then sighs. "Oh. You weren't being serious about the whole 'beat him to death or throw him out the back' thing?"

Justyn
2012-12-11, 09:59 PM
Henry frowns at Justyn for a moments, then sighs. "Oh. You weren't being serious about the whole 'beat him to death or throw him out the back' thing?"

Justyn crossed his arms over his chest, like he was cold.

"I w-was lying; I was just trying to intimidate him so he would talk."

Kaworu
2012-12-11, 10:05 PM
- Guys, easy. I hate it, but the truth is simple: the man is dead. Perhaps we could not did something else, perhaps we could. He is dead and we cannot return him to life. No court would believe in the story of "demon possessing", he would spend a lifetime in prison, if his soul still was in the body. Done is done. As a memorial of this nameless person, we should do what we can to spare other people his fate. Calm down, remember the man and fight with demons, kepping him in your heart. The guy was not a victim, he was a lesson.

sun_tzu
2012-12-12, 07:38 AM
Serena shot a look at Henry - not of anger, but of sadness. "We cannot afford to rush decisions like that. We do not know enough to condemn people to death at this stage. Additionally..." she sighed, "...the decanthrope's goal is to possess 10 bodies. With one gone, that leaves him a spot open for another victim. Your rash action may well have condemned another innocent person."

Justyn
2012-12-15, 10:20 PM
"Sooooooo..." Justyn said, staring at the body, then pointing towards the back of the van with his thumb. "We're going to ignore the van that's following us then?"

Rarkasha
2012-12-16, 11:06 AM
"No," says Pope is response to Justyn, "Right now we're on a time limit, and drawing attention of local law enforcement again would make things worse. We'll deal with him when we arrive, if necessary. But I doubt he's connected to the summoner. Also, we need to figure our what to do with the body soon..." Says Pope, reaching out to the corpse. Maya reaches across the van and grabs his wrist.

"Don't. It's still alive. It can't take any bodies in this state, but it's probably waiting for a chance to escape," she says.

"Then, I suppose I'll have to apologize for desecrating a corpse. Leaving a demon alive is not something we can afford to do," he says, drawing a knife from within his uniform.

"Wait wait wait," a squealing, burbling voice oozes out of the corpse. A small green strip, like a diseased, misshapen tongue, crawls out from within the hood of the body. The decanthrope's true form is disgusting, but doesn't seem particularly deadly. Still, demons do have a habit of being misleading.

"If you kill me now, the other bodies will die! Not only that, but surely my master is with them awaiting my return. Kill me, and you lose both!" it hisses. Pope hesitates, but does not let go of the knife.

sun_tzu
2012-12-16, 12:50 PM
What does Sagacious Reading of Intent tell Serena here?

Rarkasha
2012-12-17, 10:17 AM
Sun Tzu
Sagacious reading of intent show that the demon is lying. Specifically, it is hiding that it does not know what will happen to the hosts, and hopes that the Exalted will keep it around long enough for an escape. It does seem rather confident that being killed would alert the summoner somehow though, so presumably something should happen to the hosts when it dies.

sun_tzu
2012-12-17, 10:23 AM
Serena crossed her arms. "He's not lying about this alerting his summoner, but he doesn't actually know what will happen to the hosts." She faced the demon. "Is there any way of rescuing the hosts? Do not lie to me. I'll know." She usually preferred gentler approaches, but this one called for steel.

Rarkasha
2012-12-19, 07:49 AM
"It..." the demon's form wriggles with uncertainty. Without its hosts, without even the defense of lies or deceit, this demon is broken. "I do not know. It is not my nature to give up hosts or die."

"Almost there," says Slate, his voice impassive. Whatever goes on in the back seems to be none of his concern, although he probably hasn't seen the blood yet. Pope looks over everyone else's shoulder out the back window and squints.

"I can't see that damned tail. Most likely some kind of Exalt, I can't really imagine a demon driving inconspicuously. I wish we knew more about the Exalt types. I've been briefed on the basics, but I'm sure we're being left in the dark. Some skeletons in their closet. No telling if this is one of them or not, but I'd rather chance it than miss out on our objective.

A Sagacious Reading of Intent would show that this is, as far as the demon knows, the complete truth.

Rarkasha
2012-12-25, 09:44 AM
From the back, Mac has been creeping up the van, a small briefcase in hand. Before the demon can react, he leaps over the hosts corpse, tossing the decanthrope into the case. As he does so, the serrated bits of flesh on the side of the demon grow sharp, cutting him as throws the demon. He slams the briefcase lid, closing the clasps with one hand while shaking his injured hand in the air. The demon squeals and thrashes within the briefcase, but is unable to cut through the metal frame. Mac angrily slams it against the ground, and it grows silent.

"We're here," is all Slate says, as the van pulls into a parking lot in the downtown area. There are a few people here and there, but this seems to be a poorer part of the neighborhood. Mac gets out first, followed by Pope, who immediately begins looking out over the area.

"I don't see our friend. He must be nearby though. We'll just have to deal with what happens. If he's an Exalt, like I think he is, he's likely to make contact with the rest of you first. In any case, we might get separated. We'd already had an idea what to do if we met any other people like us we could trust, so here," he says, offering a flip-phone. It looks fairly cheap, with a plain black cover and tiny display.

"This has instructions inside if you forget. There's nothing special about it though, so be careful with what you say. I doubt we're being tracked by any government or organization, but still..."

sun_tzu
2012-12-27, 05:28 AM
"What exactly are we trying to achieve, exactly?" said Serena. "Track down the demon's summoner? Do we have any leads to follow?"

Rarkasha
2012-12-28, 03:13 AM
Pope nods and pulls out his cell phone, checking on his message again. "We've gotten information from another team about the summoner. They last saw him outside this building," he says, gesturing to an apartment building across the street. "We're here to take him alive if at all possible. Needless to say though, our safety comes first. No one here would hesitate to take action if things go south."

Maya has explained to Ideal Sword the basics of what they are doing here, and the Sidereal's mission. "I have an idea," she says, speaking in Old Realm again," How about a trade of information? I find a way to teach you one of our languages, and you tell me a little about the Old Realm?"

Justyn
2012-12-29, 01:04 AM
"So," Justyn said, pulling on a particularly heavy looking padded glove, "We should probably have a plan about what we're going to do in there... unless we all want to just run in there screaming our names?"

Rarkasha
2012-12-30, 10:04 AM
"Originally our plan was to have Maya scout out the area. It's... a little hard to explain, but basically she can use an ability to go invisible for a while. After figuring out the situation we'd decide to capture immediately or track further. We'd greatly appreciate your help if you can give it, so if you have any suggestions or questions I'd like to hear them." says Pope. Meanwhile, Slate has closed the doors to the van, presumably to keep others from seeing the corpse. If you are nearby, you can hear him talking to Mac.

"Need... bag..." mutters Slate, trying to clean up the pooling blood. It seems to be a futile attempt. Mac is busy sitting on the metal briefcase holding the decanthrope's true body, and is loading and checking several firearms.

"Sorry bro, fresh out of medical grade body bags. Maybe if we have some time I can find something that'll work, some kind of waterproof bag..." Says Mac, pulling the slide of an M9 back to check the check the chamber. Mac looks over at Henry.

"I'm guessing you're not going to need a loner, huh?" he says.

Maugan Ra
2012-12-30, 10:17 AM
"No, I'm good." Henry says in a vaguely distracted fashion as he looks up at the apartment building. "Might want to loan some out to the others, though, if they're coming in. Don't know how much combat training any of them have, though."

He looks over at Maya. "Invisible, huh? Nice. I can do something similar, but it doesn't seem to work if I try moving. Best I can do on a scouting mission is just look really innocuous, but it probably won't work if our target's not willing to overlook anyone else passing nearby."

"I'll defer to you here, then. You scout, I'll move in once we have a better grasp of where this guy actually is. I can do non-lethal, I'm just not as practiced with it. "

sun_tzu
2012-12-30, 11:57 AM
"I...suspect I'm not really a fighter or an infiltrator on the same level as most of you," said Serena, "but if there are negotiations at any point - including with the authorities after the dust settle then I'd be in my element."

Justyn
2012-12-30, 06:34 PM
"You know, if this guy can summon one demon, he can probably summon more. It's worth considering there may be more demons in there... probably a lot, I want to say demons aren't terribly difficult to summon, but I have no idea how I know that."

DukeGod
2013-01-01, 01:43 PM
"That seems reasonable enough. If possible I'd like to learn a language that will help me communicate with my brothers. What is that you wish to learn of...my time?"

Seeing the others prepare for entering, he better notices what Maya had said to him. Invasion was it?

Ideal Sword takes off the leather jacket, revealing the gold-colored chainmail. Then summons his weapons. An axe, that should be too big to hold one-handed, and his towering shield

Kaworu
2013-01-04, 10:29 AM
- So, basically, we have to attack the demonologist before we will summon more monstrosities? I know nothing, virtually nothing about magic, but it seems to easy or to wrong, depending on one's point of view. They can be hordes of demons or just lonely weirdo in black robes. Can we... I dunno... "dispell" the magic? As in... D&D?- Solon expressed his doubt on this exotic matter.

Justyn
2013-01-05, 05:40 PM
- So, basically, we have to attack the demonologist before we will summon more monstrosities? I know nothing, virtually nothing about magic, but it seems to easy or to wrong, depending on one's point of view. They can be hordes of demons or just lonely weirdo in black robes. Can we... I dunno... "dispell" the magic? As in... D&D?- Solon expressed his doubt on this exotic matter.

Justyn looked down while "scratching" the back of his head ineffectively through his gloves.

"It's... possible?" He looks back up. "I have a vague enough idea to say it's not impossible, but I have next to no idea how to do it."

Rarkasha
2013-01-06, 11:05 AM
Maya shrugs and says, " Me neither. I've been looking up some of the basics of sorcery but apparently there some sort of trials to go through before you can really learn it." She turns to Ideal Sword, and says, in english, "I could- er, sorry," then, in Old Realm, "Sorry, I still have trouble switching on the fly. I'll get you something later so we can communicate. Something like a book you can read to learn the language. In any case, I need to get going."

As Maya walks off, something curious happens. She doesn't disappear as such, but she begins to blur around the edges, like and out of focus picture. As she walks off it becomes hard to tell exactly how far away she is. All her features become a single hazy spot, and then, nothing.

"She shouldn't take too long," says Pope. "If you have anything else you need to get ready, we'll make our plan as soon as she returns. If you need a weapon, ask Mac, he's prepping the rest of our gear."

Rarkasha
2013-01-12, 09:47 AM
You hear Maya before you see her. Stepping back in front of the Van as if out of thin air, it's as if she'd been there the whole time and merely been ignored.

"I've found it," she said, looking excited. "It's exactly what the other agent reported. Pale, with light brown hair, about... 170 centimeters? No, maybe a little on the short side. Looks to be in his late twenties, maybe. I couldn't get a close look at his body, but I think he might be armed. Looked like... a melee weapon, maybe a sword. Doesn't look very powerful, not like our friend's shield at all..." she says, spewing a stream of information. Most of it is relevant, although a bit disjointed, as if she's recounting anything and everything she thinks might help. "Let's see... the room he's in is small, up at the top of the apartment. Crowded for close quarters, but not a lot of furniture. A few windows, big enough to escape from. Oh, the bodies! The other bodies from the demon are here. They're still... active I guess, but they seem a lot less alive then the one the demon was controlling. Like zombies, almost. They're armed, at least three or four with firearms. If... if we can, I think we can keep them alive. Maybe kill the demon at the last minute to free them. Otherwise the summoner might know though."

Pope pats her on the back "Good, that should be enough. We'll do what we can. My proposition is this. Slate will remain behind with the car across the front entrance. Maya will cover the roof if he tries to escape out the window. The rest of us will go in through the front and try and take the summoner out non lethally. Mac will handle the demon once we enter. If there aren't any objections, we'll get moving right away."

The case rattles ominously, as Mac holds onto it. The party begins to travel, with a hidden Maya leading the way. At the top floor of the dilapidated apartment, you can hear a steady thumping sound. Impatient, perhaps someone pacing loudly or tapping something. Aside from that only the occasional loud cough or noise from a TV breaks the silence. It seems the apartment is mostly vacant.

sun_tzu
2013-01-15, 02:06 PM
"So...Ready when you are," said Serena, some uncertainty creeping into her voice.

Justyn
2013-01-15, 08:11 PM
"Right," Justyn nodded. "Anyone want to take point or should we just like, knock out a wall?"

DukeGod
2013-01-15, 09:18 PM
Ideal Sword could not speak the language Justyn and Serena did, but he could understand what was in ther voices. And eyes. Justyn's eyes could lead to the conclusion. As they looked at the door, he takes the lead, his shield in front of him. Warriors spoke some kind of universal unspoken language sometimes. Here there were shades of fear he could feel. No one wanted to be upfront and ready to meet their foe.

He didn't have a problem with that. From what Maya had told him, his new brothers were new to battles such as this. He wasn't. He was ready for this.

So, he gives them time. He doesn't know how they can count but he breathes three times then points at the door. Maybe that would get the message across. So he readies his shield agian
One breath...two breathes...
And with the last, he throws himself against the door with a KIAI!!
"GREEAAAAARRGH"
I'm guessing Strength + Athletics to knock the door down?
[roll0] - 4 sux
+ Stunt Dice(if any) [roll1] +1/2/3 sux