Nobilis: A Game of Powers

[Cannonball]

Roy's perception shifted instantly from the Prosiac to the Mythic world as he spun around and scanned the room for any sign of the vanished Cammorean: "Bastard~! When I get my hands on..." Roy took a deep breath and seemingly regained his composure; though seething edies of rage twisted and circled just underneath his skin.

[JMobius]

The moment Roy switches to miraculous sight, he spots Vinncent, cowering against the back wall, watching him intently. His form resonates with miraculous power, bearing a distinctive, definite signature that Roy intuitively comprehends: The man bears a gift from the Power of Windows.

[Cannonball]

"Windows...I wonder, Vinncent if your gift is merely to become transparent, 'see through', or if it has other properties. Tell me, can you open yourself and let bullets pass through yourself? Can miraculous power slide past you like a breeze goes in and out a window flung wide open. Tell me what your reward allows you to do, Vinncent and you will not find me unkind."

"Abis~"Ataraxia's Realm Heart flickered as the tempest force that dwelt there spoke a measured, though urgent, tone. The Duke of Limits had been contacted in the fastest and most silent way possible. "Please, might you indulge your brother and hurry to the meeting room? Your considerable power is needed to restrict a very slippery eel."

[JMobius]

Vinncent gulps, letting the gift fade. He does his best to put on an undaunted expression. "Almaria's gift to me is quite a nice one, isn't it? A pity it is so futile against your kind. But let's not be foolish. You'll leave me be, or your Lord Entropy will have your head. Besides..." he pauses, as a hail of bullets burst through the door. "I'm more dangerous than I appear."

[Jibar]

Spoiler

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Because those bullets are my fault and Cannonball wanted the rest of us to post a bit, you get treated to this:
God bless you Aspect 0: Anything a normal human could do.

"DIE YOU FUR COVERED WALL FURNISHING!"

Mike brought the axe crashing down, dealing one last blow to the moose. He had got the guards to bring him an axe, and decided to be nice to Chaos for once and treat the guy to some gourmet moose. He was about half a mile out now, and several wasted cigarettes down. But now at his feet lay a particularly large specimen.
Suddenly in the distance, bangs ring through the air. Mike listened and frowned for a section. This was not going to go well. A moral problem now lay behind him. Go back and help his brothers, or stay here and skin his moose. Conflicted, there was only one thing he could do.
A couple minutes later, a couple gate guards found themselves being bludgeoned to death with a dead moose.

[Krrth]

Get Mike and bring him back. Gotcha. Have fun playing with your food, ok?

[TakeV]

Absentmindedly, Abis is performing a divination on each person he comes across, to find out information such as the upper limit that their power could reach. At the same time, he discusses secrets with Wealth:

"This proposal is a simple deal, dear sister. I have a personal project, large in scale, yet hidden from everyone. Progress on this task has been regrettably slow. However, I have reached the final step in my plan. I require the services of various master craftsmen and engineers, and to a point, I have their service.

They have no tools or materials to work with. This is problematic, as the equipment needed can only be obtained from outside the chancel, yet can not be acquired without proper funding.

I simply ask for a small investment, enough wealth to procure all necessary goods to complete this project. Once done, the return shall be grand. I estimate the total wealth (that is not created by you) and technology in our chancel shall increase one hundred times over. "

Hmm, this is interesting. This solder over here looks to be quite... potent. However, before anything can be done, Abis hears the faint call of Roy:

"Abis! Please, might you indulge your brother and hurry to the meeting room? Your considerable power is needed to restrict a very slippery eel."

Stopping in his tracks, Abis gives an annoyed sigh.

"It seems, that I have overestimated Roy von Cale's tact in diplomatic meetings. He requires my help."

With that, Abis heads back over to the building where Roy, David, and Vinncent had been speaking.

[JMobius]

Only moments after Abis departs, he hears the sound of rapid gunfire. Swiftly rounding corners, he arrives to find a soldier with a large assault rifle blazing through the door into the room the negotiation was taking place. He does not appear to have noticed the Power.

[TakeV]

This will not do.

Without breaking stride, Abis limited the base's perception of him. They wouldn't know what hit them. Each step he takes toward the guard, he becomes more transparent, more misty, a natural result of becoming a cloud of knock out gas. The gas drifted to the guard, covering his face.

The guard, of course, was now attempting to run. This is hard to do when a god has limited your ability to run. A low voice spoke in his ear:

"Sleep now. There is more at stake here than the sanctity of your outpost."

As the guard finally slumped to his knees, and finally landed face first in the snow, enjoying a dreamless nap in the snow, Abis shifted back to human form.

"I shall forgive you for that."

Before heading inside, Abis limited the base's perception of the guard.

He walks inside, and sees...

[JMobius]

...That a new soldier has taken the place of the old one, firing through the doorway into the negotiation room. The door is in splinters now, and inside Roy and the Cammorean can be seen..

[TakeV]

Abis walks right in the middle of the two.

"I find such extremes tiresome. Both of you explain. Now."

There should be time. The solders can't really enter. Not unless Abis wills it.

Spoiler

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His glorious gift should help him distract the two.

[JMobius]

The Cammorean does his best to look away, though he clearly finds his eyes inexorably drawn to Abis. He growls, "Leave me be! Think what you will of the Cammorea, but you're all damn fools if you think you can get away with assaulting us. We answer to Entropy and him alone!"

[Maerok]

BOOM! Anna fires the elephant gun into the air. "How long have we been here and you're all shooting at each other? If the agent wishes to speak, maybe we should see some courtesy and refrain from sullying our future plans. A Cammora here or there is nothing compared to having his foot in our... Hmmph! So what do you offer and what is the price? If we like it, we may be so inclined to take it. If not, and we are not insulted by the proposal, then perhaps we may all go forth without the general ruckus stirring up here." She steps up to the new guard at the door, with hands held in a way to suggest a cease fire.

[Krrth]

*watches the gunfire for a moment*What the hell is going on here? I get asked to find Mike, and less then five minutes later, we've got gunfire? Either I missed something, or bossman here needs to work on his diplomacy skills a little.

[JMobius]

The soldier at the door stands down, and then drops his weapon, bearing an expression of horror. He collapses on all fours, seemingly in a state of partial shock, apologetic eyes transfixed on Roy.

"THANK YOU!" Vinncent says to Anne, before straightening his tie and surveying the rest of the family with a look of disgust. "Are the rest of you that new? Do you think you can get away with just playing the bully, using your powers with impunity?" His voice changes to a slight hiss. "What do you think your kind need us for?"

He calms down a bit, and addresses Anne while pointing to Roy. "I am told that this one is in need of strengthening his domain. I must admit that the concept he represents is somewhat... alien, to me, but it is the sort of thing we could do well. As for our price," he pauses, an amused smile spreading across his face as matters return to business. "Why don't you tell me what your little family has to offer mine."

[puppyavenger]

[Out of curiosity, do we have any agents in the base? anyway..]

hearing the gunshots finally William got up, pulled his assault rifle out of the back back, and proceeded to the meeting room. Gathering any soldiers who ask him whats going on or anything smiler.

Walking into the room, Told you we should have done it in the open. Anyway, what's the little worm want?

[TakeV]

"Before any further negotiations take place, I am to know exactly what happened."

[Jibar]

Meanwhile, outside, sitting on top of a pile of now three dead guards and a rather large moose Mike lounges, absent mindedly smoking. The gun fire from inside has stopped now, and Mike's need to save his family has died down. Especially now he found a box of very nice cigars upon one of the men.
"Huh..."
He patted the moose.
"Life is good my hairy friend. Life is good."

[JMobius]

Your cult has no agents at the base. While their numbers are significant, there simply is just not enough of them to be ubiquitous.

[puppyavenger]

[ah well, so wens the strike team getting to the base? it did seem like a good idea at the time...]

[JMobius]

puppyavenger: ETA of about twenty minutes.

Vinncent glances at Abis with a bored expression: "This one here seems to be of the mind that he is lord of all mortals. While he is... decidedly impressive, I am not sure he quite grasps the... independent nature of the Cammorea."

[puppyavenger]

laughing, Independent? your Entropies cronies! and one of the most corrupt organizations on the Tree too.

[JMobius]

"Perhaps so, but we can get away with things under his watchful eye that you never could. Who is really more free?"

[puppyavenger]

Your a bunch of paranoid peddlers with delusions of grandeur. For, lets take an example, immunity to bullets, what would you have to do? start a civil war? 20 killings? stop the development of energy weapons? Millions of dollars of money, several lives, and quite possible some other gifts, wasted. Because than a rival pays off a spirit of stone, and next thing you know your heads crushed in. Your nothing more than a magical mob with a few favors. and I feel quite safe in guessing that you don't have an immunity to bullets, or at least the bullets we use.

[JMobius]

"So then, we are what? Just like your kind, save we do not have our talents simply given to us by great beings who have very strange and alien concepts of worth." He turns to Anne. "Speaking of which, my time is valuable, and while these charming holier-than-thou lectures are oh so enjoyable, if they are going to continue my price is going up. Is there anything your family wants, or shall I be off?"

[puppyavenger]

as I said delusions of grandeur

[TakeV]

"Leave now, Roy von Cale. The damage you have caused here is repairable, but your continued presence will only harm this situation. Go, I found a man who seems to have a great upper limit to his power, which need encouragement to grow. I believe his name is Corporal Wulfenbach.

David Alexander Walker and William Cameron, please accompany your brother, I believe he may require your aid to speak with Corporal Wulfenbach."

[puppyavenger]

David, is there a Corporal Wulfenbach?

[Krrth]

*ChucklesThat depends, I guess. Is his first name Klaus or Gilgamesh?*shakes head*I swear, if he turns out to be an inventor....

Spoiler

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minor divination to find out if there is indeed the person in question, and if so where he can be found

[JMobius]

There is indeed a Klaus Wulfenbach present on the base, currently in one of the barracks on the opposite side from the current location of the family.