William: Last session, you were all planning stuff to do with the information you currently have; you are in the downstairs region of the Erath Stone and Tile Works at the moment, BA having hurried home to get to work on Xavier's order. William: ---------------- Game Start ------------------ Nicole: ducking off to grab my dinner, brb. Ellis: Wait a sec, GM... I'm gonna be afk for about half an hour. So... I just want to borrow the sword, I'm okay with whatever anyone else decides, and I'll bbiab. William: Ellis picks up the sword, carefully, and exits the room with it to speak to its owner. Nicole looks at everything. "We're getting ourselves into a right huge mess, aren't we?" Edward: "I think that's the wrong tense, but the gist is right..." Fearless: "We're *in* a right huge mess. Dragged in by Xav, and not sure who to trust but each other." Nicole: "So...we're gonna go with BA?" Fearless: "As a reporter, I usually deal with facts, but those are there to back up instinct..." Nicole: "Or what exactly is going on?" *** UpLink (pirch@dyn121.nas8.vegas.viawest.net) has joined channel #gurps Fearless: "I am. The rest of you..." William: HeyUL! UpLink: Baa *** UpLink is now known as BA Fearless: and speak of the devil. :) *** Mode change "+o BA" on #gurps by Fearless BA: No. The devil is who we're trying to thwart. :) Nicole: "The rest of us what?" Fearless sits down. "The rest of you are free to help out, if you want to." Fearless *sighs*. William: Ellis comes back in, sans sword. Nicole: "So, what exactly are we going to do?" Fearless: "I really do not want to see any of you get hurt." Fearless: "But... if Xav's setting us up for something, and it feels like he is..." Nicole nods. "You're gonna need all the help you can get, no?" Fearless: "Yeah... any luck, Ellis?" Edward looks thoughtful, drumming his fingers on the table in a nervous tattoo... "I tend to suck at reading people, in general. But I do know that Xavier flat-out lied *after* promising to 'give it to us straight'. So right now I'm more inclined to trust these guys." William: "Nope. He said it was a 'very personal weapon.' I may be hunting around outfitters for a battle-ready blade. Never really thought I'd have a possibility of actually *using* one...." BA: Is there a Swords and Staffs in the PennState area? William: Never heard of it. Is it a big enough chain to have one in Philly? BA: It should Nicole idly sings o/~ blessed are the sat upon, spat upon, ratted on o/~ Edward: philly isn't exactly an out-of-the-way hole in the ground... Fearless: prolly. BA: It's a big RennFair supplier Fearless: if not a Swords and Staffs, then something similar. BA: Yep William: Probably, yeah. Edward looks uncomfortable. "Bottom line is, what BA is planning to hand over is fairly illegal. We go with him and not interfere, we're accessories." Fearless: "The trick is to interfere in the right way." Nicole: "And what happens if Xav offers BA the world?" Edward looks at Fearless. "That sounds like you have a plan..." Edward glances at Nicole. "Then we get to see if BA is as humble as Jesus was, I suppose." Fearless: "There was a line I had to play BA back from his security tapes, scared him shitless." Edward: "At least then we'll know for sure who's on which side. Edward: " Fearless: "As for a plan... not yet. I'm just winging it right now." Nicole nods. "Well...I'll do what I can." *wry grin* Edward nods. "When angels and demons become real, 'You're going to hell' suddenly stops being a funny joke to use..." Nicole grins. "Since Xav would be oh so happy to oblige?" Edward: "Mmmm." Fearless pulls out his gun holding it by its barrel. "BA showed me how to use a gun. Anyone else know how to use one?" Edward: "Yeah, I do." William: 3d6 Dicesuke throws the bones for William (3d6) and gets 14. Nicole: "No clue, Johnny. Nor do I really want to know." Fearless: "Nor did I, until I got shot at the first time." Edward: "I prefer not to need one, but I know how to use it." BA: 3d6 Dicesuke throws the bones for BA (3d6) and gets 8. Nicole looks down. "Still. I think I'd prefer not to." Edward: "Good. Then at least you have the attitude right." Fearless: "Good. I'll loan you this one, then, Ed. BA's loaning me his." Edward: "I've got one, thanks. It's in the underseat compartment of my bike." BA: BBIAB. Phonage Fearless: "Okay." *puts the gun back* *** Signoff: BA (Read error: Connection reset by peer) Nicole nods. "As I said, I'll do what I can. No running, no jumping, no hollywood stunts. But I can take good film." *grin* Fearless: "I'll rent a camera for you, then." Nicole nods. Nicole looks around. "You pick up the pieces and you go on until you can find a safe spot to process....and this isn't a safe spot, not yet." Edward nods. Fearless: "Don't I know that..." William: Zeke comes in. Fearless gives a small smile. "Just my luck. I get dragged into the biggest news event in the world, and the only place it'd see print is the Weekly World News." Nicole attempts to stay stoic, and not let her conflicting emotions across her face. William: "This place is as safe as we can make it." He smiles and shrugs, then loses the smile. "Would you mind answering a few questions from someone else before you leave? It's less about you than about us." Fearless nods in Zeke's direction... Fearless eyebrowraises. Edward shrugs, then tilts his head. "I suppose not... who wants to know what?" Nicole nods, not trusting her voice at the moment. William: "You may address him as Isaiah. He'll be interested in what went on here tonight. Just tell him the complete truth and he'll be satisfied." William: He turns and addresses someone outside. "Most Holy?" Edward BITES HIS LIP. Nicole: *katster grins hugely. Edward then puts his knuckles between his teeth and bites down, trying NOT TO SAY IT. Fearless eyebrowraises even more... William: Into the room walks a tall, thin man in a black overcoat. He is followed by a woman in a simple long dress, and a short man in a suit. The three of them take seats at one side of the table. Edward 's flesh is weak. "I say, I say, I say, is this going to be a knock knock joke?" Edward: "... Sorry. I make bad puns when I'm nervous." William: Edward: The three of them look at you, quite seriously. Knock knock jokes, their expressions imply, may be grounds for conviction. Nicole forms an odd smile, of somebody who is suddenly on the spot and trying not to show they're nervous. William: The tall man speaks. "As Ezekiel said, you may call me Isaiah." William: "Since he called me 'Most Holy' in front of you, I see that at least one part of what he said is confirmed. You know why he did this?" *** UpLink (pirch@dyn71.nas7.vegas.viawest.net) has joined channel #gurps UpLink: re William: Re UL. *** UpLink is now known as BA Edward: "Perhaps because when your opponent is known as the 'Lord of Lies', truthfulness is the best weapon you'll have? Don't mind me, I'm just guessing..." Nicole looks at Ed and Johnny and Greg, willing one of them to speak, because she still doesn't trust her own voice. William: "While what you say is something I take as a deep article of faith, what I meant was: Why did Ezekiel call me Most Holy?" Edward answers slowly as if he's not too sure about the conclusion he's getting at, "Because... you are?" Fearless: "Isaiah... One of the three people ever to ascend without dying. Jesus and Moses were the other two. That is, if what I remember of my catechism(sp!) is accurate." BA: Wrong. That was Elijah BA: Not Isaiah BA: And Moses didn't BA: That was Enoch William: "I chose this name, because Isaiah is one of the few people in the Bible to have met one of those angels of whose order I am a part. The Seraphim. 'Most Holy' is an honorific for such." Nicole keeps the nervous smile on. Curiouser and curiouser. William: He turns to the woman beside him, questioning. The woman replies, "Not overly surprised, Most Holy. They seem to have prior knowledge." Edward: More precisely, falling down the rabbit hole and not in a kind of state to be surprised at anything anymore. Fearless: and Fearless doesn't *have* a Theology skill... William: Neither does Isaiah, so he didn't notice. ;^) Fearless: "Surprise is one thing I always try and hide." Fearless: "And after the past few days... I find nothing surprises me anymore." William: Isaiah nods. "I will be less circumspect. We sensed a certain kind of echo about one hour ago, and traced its source here. It indicates that actions were undertaken in violation of the natural order of the physical world. Such actions are not to be undertaken lightly. We question you to determine why these were done, and what effect they had, to see if they were justified." Edward glances at the woman for a moment, then starts to recite and debug fairly complicated C code in his head. William: "The effects were likely very obvious. Do you know what I am speaking of? Did... apparently unnatural things happen, recently, here?" Nicole: "Y...yah." Edward: "Recently as in what timeframe? There's been a few odd things going on for a week or so..." Fearless: "Yes." William: "Tonight. Within the past, say, two hours. Here." Edward: "Yes." Nicole nods again. Fearless: "Yes." William: "What were they? Why were they done? What is your response thereto?" Fearless: okay, I'm going to call my Eidetic Memory into play here to explain everything, in detail, as only a reporter can. Fearless: any rolls, or just consider the deed done? William: Okay. You start laying out an exhaustive list of the weird effects that Rath and his bunch pulled off? BA: No fair! In-head TelePrompTer! BA: :) Nicole rolls a little closer to Edward. William: It's an Advantage, not a skill. Innate; part of you. Rolls are only required for really tough stuff. Fearless: 'k... William: There's the "What"... Edward: .oO( pthread_mutex_lock(&timergonogolock);pthread_cond_wait(&timer_gonogo,&tim ergonogolock);pthread_mutex_unlock(&timergonogolock);, check the run code, repeat for storage thread, exit and err out on failure... Wait, also kill timer thread if storage fails; don't need to double-check sniffer since I'm calling pthread_join anyway. signal(SIGINT,sigHandler); ... } ) William: "Why did they do such things? To the best of your knowledge." William: 3d6 Dicesuke throws the bones for William (3d6) and gets 12. Nicole: o/~ but the rock cried out no hiding place... o/~ Fearless: "As for why, I don't know." Nicole nods. "We're in deep trouble I suspect." William: The woman speaks to you, conveying sympathy. "You are not the investigated here. Please, speak freely." Fearless: "I suspect, and I have my own opinions as to why, but I do not know." Edward: "Because we asked them to convince us, and we were sort of sceptical... And I guess they decided that convincing us of the veracity of their story was more important than keeping their cover..." Nicole: "And when you're in deep trouble, it's easier to get out of it when you know you're there. And to explain it in a way that we could understand what deep trouble we're into, they had to go there." William: "I see. And... what will you do about it, now that you know of such things?" Nicole: "Sort it out the best I can, sir, and try to get out of the deep trouble. And after that, really sort." Fearless: "I intend to help my friend, BA, deal with the curveball thrown to him by Xav." William: "Are you worried about our faith? Some people, it seems, lose faith as soon as they see real proof.... at the moment, I'm dealing with emotions. But the ones I'd associate with loss of faith aren't among them. Surprise. Confusion. Maybe even anger. But there's also hope in there. And possibly even joy." Edward shrugs. "In the immediate future: go home and spend a couple of hours hacking away at a pet project to clear my mind and let it sink in. Then figure out what to do about the situation." Nicole: "It seems that's about the only option I've got...but I needed reminding that God cares. And maybe they done wrong, but they done wrong for a good reason, sir." William: 4 3d6 Dicesuke throws the bones for William (4 3d6) and gets 13 10 12 9. Nicole looks down to her useless feet after that. William: Edward and Nicole catch the woman making a quick hand gesture to Isaiah. Nothing recognizeable. William: Wait, Johnny too -- acute vision. Fearless: "Past that... I don't know. I thought I'd lost my faith a long time ago. I don't know what I believe anymore. Facts, reporter's instincts... but, what is it that I search for? Truth?" William: Isaiah: "Whether they did anything wrong is not for us to judge. Our, and their, immediate superiors will do that. If you worry about penalties, it is unlikely, from what we have heard, that they will come to any harm." William: Okay, big question time: In reponses to the questions you just heard, did any of you lie? Or even stretch the truth? Edward: Nope. Nicole: No, sir. Fearless: Nope. William: Okay then. William: Isaiah stands. The other two follow him. "Then we are done here. Your cooperation is appreciated." Fearless: "You're welcome." Nicole nods. Edward: "No problem. Thanks for asking." William: He leaves without a further word. William: Rath, Wesley, and Zeke come in after him. William: Rath: "I trust it was not overly unpleasant." Nicole: "Who were those guys?" Edward waits until he judges Isaiah is out of earshot. "Are all angels that fun a bunch, or was that the equiv of a performance review board?" William: Rath: "There is room under Heaven for all wholesome purposes. Ours is to create community and watch the world. Theirs is see to the integrity of the angelic community, and watch the angels. Edward, your analysis is essentially correct; although 'Internal Security' would probably be a bit closer." William: 3d6 Dicesuke throws the bones for William (3d6) and gets 12. Edward: "Ouch, gotcha." Nicole: "Did you guys do wrong by showing us?" Edward glances at Nicole. "I'm betting they nominally aren't supposed to show mortals anything. *glances at Rath* Are you?" Fearless: "Remind me, who was it that said, and I hesitate to use this expression in present company, 'the road to hell is paved with good intentions'? I'm guessing they were making sure someone didn't Fall." William: "I didn't think so, and I told him so. Remember, I said that we are usually supposed to remain secret. Also, quiet. What we did tonight failed both standards, in a certain metaphysical sense. However, I felt it necessary. The decision is up to my overseer." He gets a wry look. "I have a reputation for being overly loud. Fortunately, it's not too serious an offense." William: "You are right, Mr. Ferrifous. The first Fall was not the only one." William: 3d6 Dicesuke throws the bones for William (3d6) and gets 8. Nicole nods. William: "Rep-" He snaps his fingers. "*That*'s what I've been trying to remember ever since I heard your name! Marmarath!" William: Rath bows to Ellis. William: "I am he." Nicole: "Huh?" Fearless: "Excuse me, Ellis?" William: "_The Testament of Solomon_, one of the Pseudepigrapha. An angel Marmarath is named in there." Edward: "... And for those of us who haven't spent years studying the bible *glances at Rath again* Or centuries living it.." William: http://www.esotericarchives.com/solomon/testamen.htm , and search for "Marmarath." :^) Edward: That's what Ed will be doing when he gets home, yes. William: Rath: "My name was known some time ago as a bane of demons who sought to disrupt wholesome communities. Someone must have spoken it to a sorceror, and somehow it ended up in the _Testament_." Fearless: "And what is Xav's real name? I know he's used aliases over time." Fearless: "I'm certain 'Xavier' is an alias as well." Edward: and a google search on "bible exavenos" as well.. William: Wesley answers this one. "His real name is in Helltongue, but the useful form is Exavenos." Edward: "And out of curiosity what was his name before he Fell?" William: "He did not Fall. He was, to the best of our knowledge, born in Hell." Edward: "Ah." Nicole nods. Nicole: "So much input." Fearless: "Yes." William: Ed: I made Exavenos up. Actually, I made Rath up too, but when I was doing research I found this passage and it was just too apropos *not* to use. %^) BA: heh William: "Given the probable provenance of the _Testament_, that would put you at -" Rath interrupts. "*Quite* old. Let's leave it at that, hmm?" Ellis nods. Nicole sings o/~ blessed is the land, and kingdom/ blessed is the man whose soul belongs to/ blessed are the meth drinkers, pot sellers, illusion dwellers o/~ William: Ellis rubs his neck. "Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but the action seems to have died down here for the moment. I vote we go process somewhere else, then do what we proposed earlier?" William: Nicole: Zeke winces, but says nothing. Fearless: "I agree." Edward: "Sounds good." Nicole: "I'm for that." William: Rath: "Very well." He signals Zeke to escort you all out. William: What do each of you do the rest of that evening, and the until you meet again? Fearless: Well, I'm certain I have articles to turn in, as well as send the photos to the Chief. Edward: Do a google for " Old Testament Marmarath", then spend a couple of hours either programming or playing music to let his subconscious absorb and analyse the data Nicole: Well...lesse, I'd do anything that they're doing that night, then prolly go home and study and attempt to work out some of this even more, and prolly write a song or two. BA makes illegal ammo and gets stuff ready for the next few Fearless also spends some time at the gun range, working on his accuracy. Fearless: 10 3d6 Dicesuke throws the bones for Fearless (10 3d6) and gets 16 8 12 8 10 7 9 13 10 7. Fearless: two blatant failures out of 10... not too bad. Edward winds up at the campus dojo, doing Katas Edward: 3d6 Dicesuke throws the bones for Edward (3d6) and gets 8. William: 3d6 Dicesuke throws the bones for William (3d6) and gets 7. Nicole attempts to focus on CS homework and put the current crisis towards the back of her mind. William: BA: The guy you saw Rath with is watching your house again, this time with a black guy. They're sitting further off in a different direction, but you still noticed them. William: This is next day, by the way. Edward: 3d6 Dicesuke throws the bones for Edward (3d6) and gets 6. BA pulls three beers out of the fridge and walks out to them. Ellis exists again, after a 1.5 hour hunt for cookie cutters William notices everybody rolling pretty well here. :^) BA: "Hey boys. Back again. Hey kid, who's the new face?" Edward spars with another practitioner and flattens him. William: The black guy answers, "Wesley. We met last night, briefly." Nicole reads through the chapter and then realizes she doesn't have a clue as to what it just said. BA: "Lemme guess. You're all feathery and ethereal, too." William: "When I need to be. I have a few more... edges... than Zeke, though." BA hands him and the kid a beer, then cracks his open William: Wesley looks over at the kid, who stops opening the beer, blushes, and puts it in the back seat. BA: . o O (Imagine this. Sucking suds with gloryboys.) BA: "So, what do you want this time?" Edward has day shifts for this week, so reports in at 8 and performs the changing of the guard with the graveyard shift sysops, double-checking the logs before signing William: "We were wondering what you were going to do next, or if Exavenos would visit again. We may have to just wait and see -- you've got a good eye for people watching you. Fortunately, we're good at waiting." William: "Want us to leave? We're not really bothering you, you know." Nicole slams the book shut when it's clear she's not getting anywhere. "Questions of faith in the middle of midterms. Brilliant." Edward fires up google, doing some more bible searches. Ellis looks around town to acquire a Real sword. William: Ed: You find the story of Isaiah and the Seraphim, the _Testament of Solomon_ with its reference to Marmarath, and quite a lot of angelology that doesn't look quite as much like nonsense as it used to.... BA: "Well, first I plan on doing some work with stuff, then getting in some practise at the gun range. After that... I really can't say without incriminating myself. You know how it is. Man, do I hate cloak and dagger crap." Edward: ... actually, I do 'apt-get install dict-bible' and search it on those terms. William: Ellis: It's probably pretty easy to find a place. What kind of sword, and what price range, were you looking at? William: BA: "Mmm." *beersip* Ellis: Enh, I have enough money... I'm looking for a heavy-end rapier with decent balance. Nicole looks at the pile of books in disgust and decides to go for a walk to clear her head. (Okay, not really a walk, but...) ;) Edward: 3d6 Dicesuke throws the bones for Edward (3d6) and gets 4. BA: "For the sake of convenience, let's just call what I plan on doing 'something I have to do' for 'reasons I can't explain'. Given everything I've every read or heard about angels, demons, and other supernatural stuff, we humans are already in deep enough trouble without you." William: Critical success! What were you looking for? Nicole rolls along the sidewalk, singing quietly o/~ I listened and I heard/ Music in a word/ and words when you play your guitar o/~ Edward: That was just doing my sysadminning job. William: Ah. Ellis: You get a raise! ;) William: Crits on job-related rolls usually result in something like a commendation in your file, or something of that nature. BA: "While you're here, answer something for me." William: "If I can." Edward notices a classmate of Nicole's trying to use the rootkit he tried to install earlier and watches it deposit him in the honeypot server set up for that purpose. Edward locks down the account and sends the log to the Dean. BA: "On the assumption that you actually are what you claim to be, just why the Hell were men created with nipples?" William: The kid *snrks*. William: 3d6 Dicesuke throws the bones for William (3d6) and gets 13. Fearless oocly *snrks* in RL. ;) William: You also notice Wesley trying to stifle a smirk. BA: :) BA: Did he blow beer out his nose? :) William: "The Y chromosome mostly just negates the activities of stuff on the X chromosome. It would actually probably be an *extra* gene to get rid of nipples in males. So... efficiency of basic design structure, I suppose? I wasn't around when the design specs were getting hashed out...." BA: "Finally, an answer from one of you that makes sense." Edward OOCly snrks William: "Glad I could help." BA finishes his beer and heads back inside Nicole just keeps rolling, trying to get her head clear enough to study. William: The car remains where it was; later, Wesley dutifully takes the open container to a nearby dumpster for recycling. Fearless finishes his shooting, then heads home, purchasing an extra box of ammo as he leaves. William: The days pass. BA finishes his smithing; none of you have heard word from Xavier or the Stone and Tile Works bunch since that night. There's always *someone* watching BA's place, although they're much more open about the shift changes now. Occasionally they'll wave to him from the car. Ellis buys a nice sword for $300, practices with it on the side BA gets the stuff together and waits for Fearless to show Fearless goes out, rents a video camera, and heads over to Fearless'. Edward re-enables the account after the Dean notifies him that the wrist-slap and admonishment have been delivered. Fearless: *cellphone call to the others* "Today's the day." William: Ellis: You have two weapons stat lists here (quite nice; thank you): Would you say your weapon is more rapier, or saber? Ellis: More rapier. Edward signs off for the day and drives over to BA's place. Nicole gets the phone call after having a couple miserable weeks in terms of studying. Catches the bus in the direction of BA's place. William: Eliis: Gotcha. Ellis: "Won-der-ful." BA walks over to the current watch on the car, and leans down to speak to the driver. Fearless pulls up in front of BA's place. William: The kid looks up at you. "Yes sir?" BA: "Hey, you guys do know that if you show up like this at where I'm going, you'll totally screw up everything ?" William: "Oh? Where ya going?" BA: "Places. Hither, thither, and yon. But not yonder. Not there yet. Things I have to do here, first." BA heads back inside and calls Fearless Ellis straps the sword to his back, puts on a helmet and a coat, and heads to BA's place on the motorcycle. Fearless: BA: I answer from your driveway. ;) Edward eyes Ellis. "Feeling like a heroic protagonist?" BA hangs up and waves you in Fearless leaves the gun in his coat pocket, and the video camera on the front seat of the car. Fearless: "How's it going, BA? You ready?" Nicole shows up, having wheeled herself up from the bus stop. Ellis takes off the helmet. "No, just like a stupid teenager. I hope I don't have to use this thing." BA offers Fearless a tumbler of scotch, takes one himself BA: *to Fearless* "Ready? Hell no. I think we have a complication, though." Fearless declines the scotch. "The MiBs." BA: "Yeah. Out there in the car across the street. They seem intent on following me, so I'll need you or one of the others to run interference. Oh, here." *hands Fearless his .44 Edward: I'm disappointed, Dwagin. I thought you'd read Snow Crash. Ellis: Read what? Edward: _Snow Crash_ by Neal Stephenson... The main character is named "Hiroaki Protagonist" Fearless: "Thanks. The others should be here shortly." Nicole: Y'know Shad, I've read that book and didn't catch the ref. ;) Ellis: I haven't read anything by Neal Stephenson. Fearless: "Think Xav knows what we're up to?" BA: "Right. You have the address to where I'm going?" Fearless: "Not yet." BA: "I hope not." Edward: "Depends. How omniscient are angels and demons? BA scribbles the address and hands it to Fearless Nicole amuses herself by jumping curbs. Ellis stretches, rubs his temples, mutters quiet prayers. BA: "Just so you know what's up, only three of the rounds are what the customer ordered. The rest are straight JHPs. Here's the gun I'm 'giving' Xav." *holds it up for Fearless' inspection, the holsters it under his arm* "I plan to demonstrate their effectiveness with the first two, then if necesssary, with the third. I won't discuss the target." Fearless: "So long as the target isn't human." BA: "I said we weren't discussing that." *slugs back the rest of his tumbler* Edward: "Drinking and shooting make a bad combination." Fearless: "BA..." Fearless: *stern voice* BA: "I've made copies of the tape with the conversation with Xav. One is in my private safe. You have the combination. Another is hidden elsewhere, and a third is in my safe deposit box. You know what to do if things get ugly." Nicole quits amusing herself, rolls up next to Greg. "Ready?" William: I don't know the intoxication rules, they're in a supplement I don't have. So don't get drunk, and we'll pretend you're in sober shape. ;^) Fearless: "That's what the camera in the front seat is for, among other precautions we're taking." Ellis: "Probably not. I don't relish going against a gun-armed demon with only a sword." Ellis: "Ah, well. Stranger things have happened, I suppose." Nicole: Will: which one are they in? BA goes over to the security recoeder and pulls out the current tape. "Here. This should finish what you need from me. It's the last hour to now." William: Callahan's Crosstime Saloon, so I am told. Nicole: Damn, I've been meaning to get that book. :P Fearless: "I can loan you my regular gun, just in case." BA hands Rumblestrip and a rigged out remote to Fearless. "Rumblestrip's topped off, and he'll start recording as soon as you start him up." Fearless: "*heh* I don't think we'll need him." BA: "Never hurts to have a back up." BA starts pouring himself another scotch, stops , and puts the bottle back in the pantry. "If I get killed, you can have the 1916 Claret in the fridge." Nicole nods. "At least you've got the sword, I've only got the video camera." Edward hands nicole a biro William: A what? BA: "We ready?" Ellis smiles. "Well, I'll try to stay out of the line-of-sight, but in between you and the nasties. How does that sound?" BA: Will: A decent vintage white wine Fearless: "That works." Edward: "I suppose." Edward: BBIAB Nicole thanks Edward, but refuses. Fearless: "Nicole, it's best if you stay completely out of sight the entire time." Nicole grins at Ellis. "You've got yourself a deal. And don't worry if they've got a good shot of my feet, that won't hurt." Ellis: "I'll keep that in mind. And yes, I suppose I'm ready." Nicole nods, 'twas what I was planning anyway, just making bad jokes. :) BA herds everyone outside, then locks up, activates his HSS, and starts the car Ellis gets back on the motorcycle, starts it Fearless starts his car, and opens up a door for Nicole. Nicole gets in Fearless's car, being very careful of the video camera. Edward: B William: The guys down the street start up their car. Fearless: "Excuse me for a moment." BA stops across from the MiBs. "Hey, kid." Fearless walks over to the other car. "Hi." William: "Going somewhere?" William: Fearless: Wesley looks up at you. BA gets out and walks over to them. "I think you have a flat." William: Wesley shoots you a glance. "You *punk*." Fearless: "No tricks, BA. They have an idea of what we're up to." BA snaps open his knife and spikes the front and rear driver side tires :) BA heads back to his car and drives off Ellis eyes BA's fast-disappearing car. "Nice." Fearless: "I apologize for his actions." Nicole shakes her head. . o O (We're *helping* that guy?) William: "He has his purpose." He looks up at you. "Do me a favor. Whether he wants it or not -- don't let him get killed." BA: I'm a *punk* :) Fearless: "Still, it is best if you stay back, out of sight." William: Wesley turns to Ellis. "Still want that sword of mine?" Fearless: "Need a ride?" William: "Really? Yes, that would be excellent." Ellis flips up his visor and blinks at Wes. "You're really offering?" Fearless: "Got room for more." William: The kid and Wesley get out of their car... "Perfectly good tires," the kid moans, "my dad's gonna kill me..." and into yours. Fearless: "I'll get BA to buy you some replacements... if he lives." Nicole nods to the other two getting into the car. William: Ellis: "Actually, to be perfectly honest, I can sense its position. Hence my sudden offer. But now that we're being offered a ride in your direction..." He shrugs, grins, and gets into Fearless' car. Fearless gets in the car, then follows BA. Fearless: brb Ellis snaps the visor down. "Figures." *takes off after Fearless* Edward follows. Fearless: b Nicole: brb William: In Fearless' car, Wesley turns to the kid. "Okay, Pete. Rath doesn't want you anywhere near a war zone, so when we get where we're going, you're staying in this back seat and not poking your head up. He'll tear this body a new orifice if you're damaged, understand?" William: Pete, angrily: "But, Wes, I can throw down just as well as - " William: Wes: "No buts. Remember that saying, 'I regret that I have but one life to give for my country?' It applies to you, not to me. Do as I say." Fearless: "Do as he says, Pete." William: "Yes, sir." BA: There. You have someone to operate Rumblestrip :) Nicole: b Fearless pulls up a block or so away from the address BA handed him. Nicole looks at Fearless. "So...what now?" BA pulls into the driveway at the address he was given and knocks on the dorr Fearless: "Spread out, and don't be *too* obvious." William: It's in the country -- the house is on the side of one of Pennsylvania's ridges, surrounded by trees currently wearing their fall colors. There is a long brick driveway coming off of a winding paved road. Edward halts a bit back, on the other side of the street, and kills his headlights. Nicole: Tree strand or anything that can conceal a person, but has a clear shot of the house? Ellis parks the bike back down the road a ways. Heads over to... whichever car Nicole got into. William: BA: You hear curtains opened at a window above you, looking down at the door. Xav looks at you, then back out towards the road. "Did you bring anyone?" Nicole: Fearless's. BA: "I'm alone." William: (The road is not visible from here.) William: Nicole: Hmm. Fearless walks towards the driveway, slowly. Nicole looks around for a good hiding spot. BA waits for Xav to leave the window, then thumbs on his wire Fearless: . o O (Never handled a gun this large before.) Fearless looks for a hiding spot as well William: Nicole: Your wheelchair can't negotiate the underbrush off the road; from the road, the house is only visible in fits and starts through the trees. William: 3d6 Dicesuke throws the bones for William (3d6) and gets 12. Edward removes his helmet to hear better William: Fearless: You're a city guy -- it's hard to say whether what you find, in view of the house, is really good cover or not. Ellis follows Edward's example William: You do at least have more options than Nicole... William: Ellis, Edward, both of you can hear what's going on through the wire in Fearless' car. William: BA: Xav calls out, "One second." Fearless keeps his eyes and ears open, and ducks behind a tree. William: He closes the curtains, and you hear someone coming downstairs. William: He opens the door. "Come in, come in. You bring it?" Nicole tries to do the best she can at getting BA in her sights, without being seen. Ellis stays with Nicole, close to the ground as he can manage. William: 3d6 Dicesuke throws the bones for William (3d6) and gets 7. Fearless: 2 3d6 Dicesuke throws the bones for Fearless (2 3d6) and gets 10 7. BA enters and shows Xav the surplus Army ammo box he's carrying, and pulls his jacket aside to display the gun Fearless: one for eyes, the other for ears. Nicole: "Argh. Hopefully they come back outside." BA: "Got everything right here." William: Nicole: You pass a Photography roll pretty well, and actually find a view, from the road, of a window with an interior shot. BA hopes his laptop is getting everything from his wire William: BA and Xav don't stay in view constantly, but they do pass by every now and then. Nicole: "Whoa. Got a shot." William: BA: "Okay. Okay.... Um. Cash." Ellis: "Good." William: "What are you looking for in the way of reimbursement?" BA: "I figure answers are out of the question, and I don't really need cash. Let's call this a favor you'll owe me later." William: BA: "Oh ye of little faith." He lights up a cigarette. "Answers I promised, and answers you shall have. Come here." BA follows Xav Edward reaches under his seat for his gun. William: He goes into a room further towards the back. Nicole, only occasional shadows are showing up from the front now. Fearless heads around towards the back Nicole looks at Greg. "They've gone somewhere I can't really pick them up. Do you want to move, or shall we stay here?" Ellis: "Do you think we'll find a better place where we can still run away fast?" William: BA: Xav leads you into a room with black draperies covering all of the walls. The carpet has been stripped from the floor, leaving a bare concrete space. A simple circle has been drawn in red chalk. Books, books everywhere; old, new, ragged paperbacks, giant leather tomes; they sit on shelves, on stands, on the floor, seemingly utterly disorganized. One has pride of place on an iron stand near the side of the room. Nicole: "Not with this." William: Xav uses the cigarette to light a few candles. BA: . o O (Great. Cultist Central.) William: Xav moves near the book on the stand, and stares out the window, smoking, for a few seconds. Ellis: "I don't think we should move, then... this is probably the best defensive position we have." William: Finally, he speaks. "I did not choose you at random, boy. Out of many, I saw the potential that you had. A glorious fate can be yours. What you have now, what I have offered -- cash, answers -- they are pittances next to what you can have. If you come work for us." BA: *to Xav* "Religious freedoms aside, do you think you could just tell me about this rather than giving me the full demonstration?" Edward mutters to Nicole. "Score one for your premonition." Nicole nods then. "Fair enough. Wonder what Xav's doing to BA?" William: "No, I can't. The ultimate Truth here is ultimately subjective. You must experience it." William: "There are certain terms I must lay out. Listen carefully, now." BA: "Ah.... sure. And here I always that truth was definitive by nature." Nicole blinks at Ed. "Premoniton?" Edward: "BA being offered all the kingdoms of the world..." Edward: Oh, wait. Nicole isn't listening in on BA's wire, is she? William: 3d6 Dicesuke throws the bones for William (3d6) and gets 13. Nicole: As far as I know, no. Fearless heads back to the car. "Anything on his mike? I know him, he wired himself." Nicole: "Whoa. I was joking." William: BA: "It's all real. Heaven. Hell. Demons. Angels. I'm one of the former, and I'm offering you a once-in-a-lifetime chance. You can be a *player*, Burgess. You can be one of the ones who *know*." Fearless: "Here it comes... the sales pitch." Nicole: "Least this time there's no mountaintops involved." BA: "What do you mean 'know'? I already 'know' all that crap. There's too much of it floating around for there not to be some funky spiritual aspect to everything. Or are you talking about specifics?" William: "Very, *very* specific. Listen: I chose you because you were already on the slippery slope. Working for us does two things: it guarantees your fate. If you accept our employ, you guarantee yourself Hell. It also gives you a special place there -- there's no need to suffer in fire. There are those who give the orders there. Those who *know*." William: "The benefits are *substantial*. Choose now, Burgess Altmeir. Will you swear your soul to the service of Hell?" Fearless heads back to the house, this time blatantly up the driveway. BA: "Ah... correct me if I'm wrong, but I think I read somewhere that you demon people haven't actually been sent there yet. That you're reservations are still being registered. How can you rule what you don't possesses?" William: "Even Heaven offers no guarantees -- believe, and you still may be damned. Take a favored place among the damned, though, and you are out of it, for *certain*." Edward murmurs, "Careful now..." and grips the accellerator and places his foot on the kickstart. Nicole trains the camera's focus on Fearless. William: "Of course I've been there! I was born there. The damned exist there, the demons rule. A few favored humans support them. It is far more real than *this* place." Nicole: "So...stay here, or go with them?" William: "Do you want to see? Accept my offer, and you will have firsthand experience." Edward: "You stay here. I go." Fearless gets right outside the window to that room, and places his ear against the wall under it Edward glances at Zeke and Wesley. "If everything goes you-know-where in a handbasket, get her the h--err, get her out of here." William: Pete speaks up: "I've heard about this. If your friend says 'yes,' he's got a one-way ticket Straight Down!" William: Pete: "There aren't any favored damned. They're in *Hell*, that's how much they're favored!" BA: "OK So far I haven't heard any specifics. Just promises that may or may not be kept. What assurances, exactly, do you offer that could prompt me to accept. Other than vague suggestions that I'd be 'favored'." Nicole sighs. "What do we do?" Ellis sighs. "I'm not sure what to do except stand here with my mighty sword." Fearless pulls out the .44 from the trenchcoat pocket. Edward: You get a *private* lake of pig vomit to be drowned in! Nicole: "At least you have the mighty sword. I've got a video camera. I'm sure Xav will be impressed." Edward pulls out his gun and walks over to where Fearless is standing. Ellis: "Mind if I act all macho and go pose over with Ed and John?" Nicole: "Sure. Have fun. I'll stay here, if you need me, yell." Ellis: "Sure thing." William: BA: "What could you possibly accept? I can't take you there -- you have to die first." Ellis follows Ed, stays away from the windows. William: "Shall I speak to you of what only the dead may know? How could you verify it?" Fearless: *whispered* "Stay alert." Ellis looks for signs of panic on John's face. Edward nods. Fearless: Ellis: I have a very good poker face. ;) BA: "You mean you can't show me the goods? If that's the case, then we're wasting eachothers' time. I mean, you're Satan, right? You showed Christ everything you'd give Him if He accepted your deal. Why not show me?" Nicole trains the camera back to the house. Ellis: Fearless: Hey, I'm not trying to make issues with your machismo, I'm trying to see if *I* should be worried. ;) William: "I am *not* Satan. I have never had the privilege to look upon the Dark One's face -- he is the Royalty of Hell." BA: "You mean his ass is burning hotter than yours?" Fearless: *ow* William: 3d6 Dicesuke throws the bones for William (3d6) and gets 7. Fearless hides a snicker on that comment. William: "You should be very, very careful about what you say about The Dark Lord. You might get answered." Ellis raises an eyebrow at the reporter *** Fearless has set the topic on channel #gurps to "You mean his ass is burning hotter than yours?" Fearless: *whispered* "I'd say BA's giving as good as he's getting." Edward: "*ditto* It takes a lot of guts for the rabbit to taunt the bear. Guts, and stupidity." Ellis: *whispered* "If the demon asks, I don't know him." BA: "Please. From everything I've ever seen, you demons are just a bunch of whiney boys trying to get everyone hooked on what you're selling. Just like a pimp or a pusher. If can't produce empirical evidence of what you promise, I'm out of here." William: Wesley leans against the car door and says bemusedly to Nicole, "You know, my own bosses will be pretty impressed if he pulls this out without me having to rush in there, sword blazing." William: BA: Xavier stares at you for a second. Nicole grins. "Yeah, BA's quite the character..." William: He walks over to a large cabinet, and opens it. Within it is a *very* old clock, a full-size grandfather clock, ticking away, the sound muffled by layer on layer of black matting. William: Xav mutters, "Toast if I fail, maybe toast if I call him..." and fires a glance in your direction. "Okay. Empirical f*cking evidence." BA: "And the purpose of the antique show would be...?" William: He closes his eyes and raises his hands to the clock, giving every appearance of concentrating intently. William: Wesley frowns for a moment. "Antique show?" Ellis: Y'know, I have the feeling we're gonna see fireworks in a second. BA slowly loosens the gun in his holster in case he needs it William: "Wait. ... Do you hear ticking?" Nicole: "Antique is usually an old piece of furniture. So Xav must be showing BA something...yeah." Ellis wipes his hands off, takes a better grip on the sword William: Wesley's eyes widen. "Mother of JESUS, he's invoking Kronos!" and he takes off toward the house, sword suddenly in hand. BA: "Nice clock. My dad has one in his attic." Nicole: "Kronos?" Nicole: "Who's he?" William: Let's see. Base 4, -2 penalty, +4 for the clock, two days and 2 Essence... hmm... Nicole watches Wes take off, wonders if the other guys are seeing this. Ellis catches the angel out of the corner of his eye, starts, and backpedals away from the house. Edward glances up at Wesley coming at them, looks quizically for a second in a 'You know what's going on, you call the shots but if you have a second to enlighten us it'd be nice.' kind of glance, steps back to let him through. Ellis: My characters all have a healthy survival instinct. ;P Fearless: "Get ready..." William: Nicole: Pete answers you. "Major bad guy. I've heard of him. Xav's boss's boss's boss, or something." Nicole: "Whoa, serious business." Edward chambers a round but doesn't flick the safety off yet William: Xav steps back. "I am *so* fucked...." Nicole pulls out her cellphone and tries to call Greg. Fearless: guys... I gotta crash. BA: Pick it up here next week? Fearless: do the combat next time? William: At this point, Wes slams into the front door of the house at full speed, crashing it open. William: Sure. Edward: Gotta love a cliffhanger Ellis feels his phone buzz, picks it up, recognizes the number. "Nicole? Why has Wes panicked?" BA: Dramatic pause :) *** BA is now known as UpLink Nicole: "Ummm...Xav's trying to call his boss's boss or something...." Edward flicks the safety off and enters the house right behind Wes. .oO( I have GOT to be crazy. ) Fearless follows, btw... Ellis Runs Away. Just because I have Weirdness Magnet doesn't mean I'm suicidal. ;) William: ---------------- Session End ----------------