William (#2330) has changed the GM of this room to William (#2330).

fadethecat swings into the room on a bit of rigging.

fadethecat has made fadethecat's local name Draco

Jesdyn materializes out of thin air.

StevenE materializes in a burst of blackness as he teleports in from 
elsewhere in the MOO.

Jesdyn has made Jesdyn's local name Neil

StevenE has made StevenE's local name Ekur

The GM says, "As usual, editing and uploading logs has taken a back seat 
to minor activities like writing lesson plans and parsing HR 
documentation, so, a quick recap:"

The GM says, "You've returned to Civis.  Last we saw Ekur, he was heading 
off to debrief and leaving Draco alone with Hanniel.  In that scene we 
learned of the next arc: your old Knight Mephibosheth has reared his ugly 
head in some Domain associated to Civis, possibly Selkirk and Roxburgh, 
where you left Jane and Yazz as newly-installed Masters."

The GM says, "We also ran an individual scene with Jesdyn, debriefing and 
handling the geas to Chastity."

The GM says, "We'll run Ekur's tonight, and then start the next arc.  All 
good?"

Draco says, "Fine by me."

Neil says, "Certainly."

William [to Ekur]: And here's the notes on what you recall:

Ekur would rather just jump to the arc, personally.  But if you want to 
do it that way . . .

Neil crunches popcorn. No! Make him act it out! We want pathos!

The GM says, "What do you remember?  You remember everything *up to* 
finding that the shards in Utgard werre "stuck" against a third Ethereal 
Domain.  You remember entering it, followed by a foggy series of events, 
then leaving it with a Lilim guide with whom you had apparently made 
agreement to be your guide on retrieving the relic you later found.  You 
remember the events in Mariel's shard, including the deals you made, and 
Chastity bailing, ending with bringing the crystal back to the Domain, 
along with the Discordant Watcher.  Things get foggy again, and you left 
to face Beleth's interest in the matter.  Events came to a head, and you 
and the Nightmares demons went home.  What the Tsayadim did with 
themselves or what happened to the Watcher are unknown to you."

The GM says, "No, that's fine.  I can dig that you'd rather skip that.  I 
do want to do the one thing I've been waiting for months to do, though, 
and tell you what you end up with after the debrief."

Ekur creeps cautiously to the edge of his seat . . .

William [to Ekur]: There's a letter on your desk, signed by Blandine and 
holding the reference number for an item in the Library.  It's a copy of 
a Memory Pearl, authored within the last 2 days by Princess Beleth.  In 
Blandine's flowing hand, there is the notation, 'In the end, this was 
Mariel's futility: we serve One who sees and does not forget.  
--Blandine.'

Ekur stops himself from jumping up and down, riotously cheering.  He 
holds himself to a small but definite smile, and nods his head.  "Very 
satisfactory."

The GM says, "Each of your various plots takes about a day.  By next 
dawn, Neil is back in town and Draco gets his news.  Draco, take it 
away."

[ snip msg'ing ]

Draco has handwritten handy little reports for each of Ekur and Neil, and 
comes scurrying by to hand them out. "It sounds like it's time to check 
Selkirk and Roxburgh for infernal infestations. I haven't been there 
myself, but I'm told that we have a good ally in charge of the place, so 
it shouldn't be that difficult to look into the matter."

Ekur <OOCly> tries to recall the names of the Domain-Masters.

The GM says, "Some names you may wish to recall from the relevant arc: 
Yazz; Jane; the swordsman Xiao Li, under Jane; Dorotea, the sorceress; 
Rick, the dirigible-piloting dream-pirate, and his crew."

Neil says, "I'm sure they'll be happy to see us."

Neil pauses. He sure couldn't've said that in Heaven.

The GM says, "It has been about 10 years since Rick was sentenced, which 
means his first parole hearing is any day now.  His crew got 5 to 10 and 
may already have been released."

Jesdyn [to William]: Ten years forward -- what's the corporeal date?

The GM says, "Mid, late 90s.  Let's call it '97."

Ekur nods.  "Hmm.  At a first guess, I'd be more worried about Yazz than 
Jane.  He is certainly intelligent enough, but he has a certain 
directness that might not have served him as well.  He'd be more 
vulnerable to some of Hell's more subtle tactics."

Neil says, "On the other side of it, Jane *is* Hell's more subtle 
tactic."

Neil says, "Either way, we should check on the stronger of the two before 
the weaker, just so we don't leave any loose ends behind us."

Neil says, "We might get wrapped up in solving a minor problem when we 
overlooked a major one, otherwise."

Draco spreads his paws. "I don't know anyone involved personally--the 
demon aside--so I'm quite willing to go with whatever you two believe is 
best."

Ekur nods.  "Of course, the big problem might well be Dorotea messing 
around with demons again.  That didn't work out so well the first time 
she tried it.  Perhaps we should talk to her Cherub before we do anything 
else?"

Jesdyn [to William]: I'd assume Neil has seen Dorotea off and on through 
the intervening decade. How's she been?

roll 3d6

On 3d6, you rolled 11.

William [to Neil]: She threw herself into the work with a will and became 
close -- though not romantically, fortunately -- with Aaron.  She has 
indeed managed to present a couple of papers on 'fads and the reification 
of cliche', which she dutifully got approved before submitting.  This 
made her happy.  She was a bit bummed when menopause hit and she remained 
childless, on the other hand.  Recently, she's been thinking about taking 
an apprentice, but this is an unformed notion as of yet.

Neil says, "Wouldn't hurt, but I think she's stable right now."

Jesdyn [to fadethecat]: Remind me -- how urgent is the situation? We've 
just got rumblings of a Big Bad Wolf right now, right?

fadethecat [to Jesdyn]: Fairly rumbling-like, yes. We don't even know for 
sure where he is; only that he's out making trouble.

The GM says, "Oh, and re: demons, no relationships.  Aaron reports that 
Fate's attempts in her direction have largely been by sending other 
Sorcerers her way.  Attractive male ones, occasionally."

Jesdyn [to William]: What's the policy with Soldiers and Fate/Destiny? 
Are they revealed to the Soldier?

Ekur nods to Neil.  "Well, if the reports are good, let's go straight to 
the Domains.  If we don't find anything obvious there, we can check up on 
Dorotea later."

William [to Neil]: Gad no.

William [to Neil]: They're actively kept concealed.  "This is your 
Destiny, hop to it."?  Just saying that would probably alter it to 
something else.

Draco [to Neil]: That would, I believe, get into the 'excessive 
interference' thing and invalidate free will enough to--yeah.

William [to Neil]: You, personally (on a critical Resonance success) have 
the pretty firm idea that her work exploring human psychology is related 
to her destiny.  No idea on her fate.  (If you want more specifics, you 
could get an angel with Divine Destiny; Civis has one on staff you used 
during the Anaba arc.)

Jesdyn [to William]: Better Neil doesn't know.

Jesdyn [to William]: Well, in specific, I mean.

The GM says, "Probably."

The GM says, "Gotta run to the laundry room; hang fire, back in 2 
shakes."

The GM says, "And fire away."

Ekur says, "So, Neil, you think we should check on Jane first?"

Neil says, "Yes. I don't imagine there's much going on in *her* Domain 
she doesn't know about, and between the three of us we can ferret out -- 
err, sorry Draco -- discern anything she's hiding."

The GM says, "Off to Selkirk, then?"

Ekur nods.  "You going to drive, or should we walk?"

Jesdyn [to William]: Sounds good. I'll "make what prepartions are 
appropriate" -- it's in quotes because Neil has probably spent some arc 
XP on social advantages. 

William [to Neil]: Noted.  (What kind?)

Neil says, "I'll drive, yes."

William [to Neil]: Area Knowledge (Marches) roll, to navigate to the 
Domain.

Jesdyn [to William]: I've been there, and the Judgmentmobile has itself 
*Mastered* Selkirk. Any effective bonus?

The GM says, "Yes, but also some situational modifiers.  Roll it straight 
for now."

Neil rolled 7 versus 17 and succeeded by 10.

Jesdyn [to William]: (Re XP, Neil's been saving for OoJ, but he's holding 
25% of his XP out for political gain in Heaven. Considering he'd just 
left Heaven (well, just ten years ago -- didn't expect that far a jump 
forward), I was considering Allies, Contacts, or a reliever (Dependent) 
Ally Group -- recruits for the Civis PD.

The GM says, "An odd trip.  It seems like you get lost around noon, but, 
no, intuition tells you you remain on course the entire time.  You arrive 
around mid-afternoon, and see why -- the Domain has changed 
considerably."

The GM says, "When last we saw Selkirk and Roxburgh, they were open hills 
and fields with ruined fortifications, surrounded by bloody swamp.  Now, 
the visible portion of the Domain from the outside is a bayou town, with 
weeping willows and trees filled with Spanish moss hanging over short, 
casual-looking buildings with open patios.  A few canals run through the 
city under arcing footbridges, and a backdoor dock is not uncommon."

The GM says, "The whole place has a warm, slow-paced feel."

The GM says, "The Marches become cobblestones under the Judgmentmobile's 
tires as you roll in.  Ethereals eye you from storefronts as you pass 
by."

Neil considers to himself. A distinctly New Orleans feel to it -- quite 
comfortable to the loa...

Draco shifts from ferret to snake, with a pair of shades to replace his 
usual spectacles. "I like the place," he says. "Never would have thought 
Selkirk and Roxburgh could turn into a place like this, a few decades 
back."

Jesdyn [to William]: Getting the emotional feel of a town isn't my niche, 
but I'd like to try to get a feel for the social network of the Domain -- 
healthy? Stunted? Dense?

The GM says, "There are taverns, gambling halls, and tattoo parlors; 
there is a riot of churches, stretches of park, and all manner of unusual 
denizens, considerably less human than many of Civis' residents.  There 
are also dreamscapes floating around the streets -- nearly as many as 
Civis."

William [to Neil]: Sure.  Res roll on the inhabitants as a group?

Neil turns with surprise. "You knew about this place? I didn't think 
anybody did, until Wrinth stumbled on to it."

Jesdyn [to fadethecat]: Remind me, when was your Redemption?

Neil rolled 7 versus 18 and succeeded by 11.

Draco [to William]: Bah, I may be OOCing the knowledge. I thought that 
Selkirk and Roxburgh were at least /rumored/ to be around, even if the 
location wasn't known by anyone for a while. Have I misremembered?

William [to Neil]: You're pretty perceptive today.  The residents are not 
all that communal of a group; they're easygoing in the sense of 
personality, but also in the sense of fairly loose moral standards.  It's 
a live and let live sort of town.  There is definitely Jane at the center 
of the web of relationships, as Mistress of the Domain; there is also a 
large group of relationships that fade off into a shadowy bunch, as near 
to the center of such a thing as she is.

William [to Draco]: Without digging up the logs, I believe that's correct 
-- the general rumor being that the Domains existed, but had had 
Something Nasty happen that ate anybody who went looking.

Draco [to William]: Okay, thanks. Was working on the 'vast knowledge of 
Marches' assumption that he'd at least have heard the rumors.

fadethecat [to Jesdyn]: However long it's been since the last arc, plus 
about six years.

Ekur says, "Quite a change from the old look, certainly."

"Knew about, vaguely," Draco says, manifesting wings to have something to 
gesture with. "I'd never been here. It was said to eat anyone who came 
by, so I wasn't about to go looking."

Neil leans back in the seat and enjoys the view. "It wasn't a pretty 
place, no. A lot of very old pain."

Neil says, "There's two powers in this town. Jane, and another. I can't 
tell if they're competing or in parallel. I've never met the second."

Draco coils up towards the dashboard. "Any sort of feel for the second? 
Name, power level, anything like that? Maybe it's who we're looking for."


Neil says, "Nothing yet. I was lucky to notice that much; resonating 
people I've never met is difficult."

Neil coasts through town at a sedate pace.

Ekur says, "Let's go and talk to Jane; a few questions and the three-note 
choir probably can dig up a few leads."

The GM says, "Coasting along with the top down, you get calls to purchase 
various goods and services, or to stop in and have one or another kind of 
good time.  Several places cater to those carrying 'day passes.'"

"There is no lack of people nearby to talk to...

The GM says, "There is no lack of people nearby to talk to..."

Neil . o O ( Ridin' along in the Judgementmobile / My hands on my head 
and my feet on the wheel ... )

Neil asks someone where he can get a 'day pass'.

Draco resonates, on principle.

Draco rolled 12 versus 22 and succeeded by 10.

The GM says, "The tattoo enchanter you've asked stares at you 
incredulously.  Several Ethereals near by break in to laughter."

Ekur auto-resonates a few from the automobile, with the CD 5 "How would 
they react" being "if I asked about who the unofficial power in town 
was."

William [to Neil]: "Well, first you gonna have to get arrested, then you 
gonna have to convince 'em to let you out fo' a day."

William [to Ekur]: The response would be varying degrees of confusion as 
to what you would be referring to.

Neil deliberately turns red and slinks down into his seat. Might as well 
take his licks like a Friend of Man.

Ekur . o O ( Okay, so no nervousness or fear.  So it's either benign or 
really secret. )

<TattooArtist> "A day pass be what furloughs you from the Prison.  Sign 
says a business serves day passers, that means yo' favors be good there.  
The boss of the place trust you enough to take yo' credit, see?  Not 
everyone does, day passers bein' convicted criminals and all."

<TattooArtist> "How you come here you don' know about the Prison?"

Neil says, "It's been a while since I was here last."

Ekur monitors for reactions to /that/.

Neil eyes Ekur, and wonders if he should hurry them on his way before he 
finally finds the time to get the objectively-useful tatoos he's been 
mulling for the past 30 years.

William [to Ekur]: The statement appears to be taken calmly.  Most people 
nearby don't seem to be aware of the place's history much if at all.

William [to Draco]: The speaker was not attempting to be unkind, though 
he was a little surprised.  The prison is the central employer of this 
Domain, so he expected everyone would know about it.

Ekur says, "Just out of curiosity, what happens if someone's credit turns 
out not to be any good?"

William [to Ekur]: Frowns and general sense of ire all about.  Not at 
you, at the concept.

<TattooArtist> "T'ieves get put back in fo' longer.  Unless they refuse 
to behave, and then they just a welcher like any other in the Marches.  
And welchers got no friends when the people dey owe come around, you 
know?"

Neil resonates the Tattoo Artist -- let's see how many friends HE's got.

Ekur nods, endeavoring to look grim as he does so.

Neil rolled 10 versus 18 and succeeded by 8.

William [to Draco]: You might want to file that resonance info away, 
since it bears directly on your mission of learning about the Marches 
economy.  :)

Draco scribbles away at his notepad, then tucks it away again. It's 
possibly best not to look too closely at how he's doing this with neither 
pockets nor hands.

William [to Neil]: Neither humble nor particularly full of himself.  He 
has business acquaintances with several other Ethereals and a couple of 
regular customers; no strong emotional ties.  He regards himself as a 
citizen of Selkirk, though he isn't formally invested as part of the 
Domain.

Jesdyn [to William]: Unremarkable MDA?

William [to Neil]: Occasionally misrepresents the extent of his Writing 
skills when attempting to sell a tattoo Talisman thereof.

Jesdyn [to William]: A -- tattooed *Talisman*?

The tattooist banishes the ugly mood.  "Y'all don' need to worry about 
that, though.  If you ain't here fo' the Prison, you here to see the 
sights or something?  I can cut ya a good deal on some Image decoration.  
Permanent identity enhancement."

Jesdyn [to William]: Interesting.

Neil smiles. "Thanks for the offer, but we're good."

The GM says, "The crowd that has been listening moves on, apparently 
sensing that the fun is over."

Neil . o O ( We, in fact, are *professionally* Good.  )

The artist shrugs.  "Okay.  You lookin' for something else, head downtown 
--" he waves his hand vaguely down a nearby street "--they got City Hall 
and all that, they help you find anything.  Don't stray onto th' Prison 
grounds, they hit first and ask questions if you get outta Trauma."

"Nice place for a prison, I suppose," Draco comments. "I wonder if they 
have an alligator supply."

"They do *now*", Neil replies with some asperity. "You might not have 
heard about it -- we had an alligator infestation about six years back."

Neil says, "It took us *ages* to get them out of the so-very-handy 
tunnels people keep burrowing everywhere. God help us all when Matthias 
finally gets around to simulating sewers."

Neil says, "Mind, I thought we were imprisoning them. I didn't realize 
Jane was taking them for local flavor."

The GM says, "You pass a restaurant offering grilled gator, next to a 
small shrine to Sobek, crocodile-headed Egyptian god of fertility."

Jesdyn [to William]: Am busy rewriting your universe. Cheerfully rescind 
my edits if you like. (:

Ekur notes the juxtaposition dispassionately.

The GM says, "Jane is, presumably, at City Hall."

The GM says, "Alternatively, you could take advice in the usual PC 
fashion and head directly for the Prison.  ;^)"

Neil says, "Nah, we'll see Jane first."

Neil says, "Shouldn't be any problem getting authorization for a field 
trip to the Prison. Seeing as how it's apparently my fault."

The GM says, "Downtown is a bit more buttoned-down, with taller buildings 
and a more modern look to them.  There is a main square, with an acre or 
so of green in the middle, and a nice fountain.  A long road on the side 
opposite City Hall dwindles into the shade of some thick trees in a 
direction where the city peters out.  There is an official Santeria 
temple here dominating another side of the square, and a variety of 
businesses along the remaining edge, such as a favor exchange.  There is 
also, you notice, an embassy from Yume-Tokyo, domain of the kami."

Draco says, "As things to feel guilty about go, creating a well-kept 
prison is probably low on the list."

The GM says, "Inside City Hall, one of several receptionists greets you 
at the front desk. 'Welcome to Selkirk,' she says.  'Do you have an 
appointment, or can I direct you to a particular department?'"

Neil resonates her.

Neil rolled 6 versus 18 and critically succeeded by 12.

Ekur zaps 'er, too.  Reaction to me asking to see Jane.

Draco rolled 11 versus 22 and succeeded by 11.

Neil . o O ( Alright, that's four-in-a-row at ten or better. I'd better 
stop rolling soon. )

fadethecat [to William]: Er, just in case my old resonance roll wore off.


Draco . o O ( I was feeling left out of the chorus. )

The GM says, "Surprise!  You have attempted to resonate an exceptionally 
well-'programmed' figment, the holographic equivalent of a telephone 
maze.  Somebody was a good crafter that day."

The GM says, "She smiles chirpily at you."

Neil ponders. Are phone trees evidence of demonic incursion?

Neil says, "Jane, please."

The GM says, "*blink*  There is currently a significant wait time on the 
Mistress' appointment schedule.  Are you certain another department might 
not be able to serve your purposes better?"

The GM says, "From behind the desk comes Jane's voice."

Jane walks out of the back offices.  "Clear my immediate appointments for 
an hour and send in that party."  She comes up.  "Neil, Ekur.  Good to 
see you again.  And...?"

Neil will wait a beat, since Ekur's got seniority; otherwise...

Ekur says, "Draco, meet Jane.  Jane, meet Draco."

Draco waves a wing. "Pleased to meet you."

The GM says, "She walks you back in to a luxuriously appointed suite.  
'The constellation?  It's an honor.  News had it the position hadn't been 
refilled by a worthy candidate yet.'  She pulls out a carafe of something 
and three goblets.  'Nectar?'"

"Not the constellation personally," Draco says, "though I'm flattered to 
be mistaken for such. Only a colleague of these two."

Neil says, "Please," and takes the glass -- resonating during the brief 
moment of contact.

Jesdyn [to William]: Can I claim a full or partial touch bonus?

William [to Neil]: Full.

Neil rolled 7 versus 20 and critically succeeded by 13.

Jane says, "Ah, an angel."  She takes another goblet and pours four, 
passing them out.

Neil . o O ( CD5 AGAIN? Now I know what it's like to be Ekur. )

William [to Neil]: Jane has become well established here; her position is 
secure, as long as she keeps up the elbow grease, and she knows it.  Her 
primary business and friendly relationships are with Yazz as the warden 
of the prison, but her abilities to make contacts and negotiate contracts 
for the outsourcing of corrections duties from other Domains definitely 
makes her the face of the operation.  This net is cast wider than Civis, 
and is growing steadily.

Ekur zaps Jane.  How would she react if I were to ask about possible 
demonic infestation?

Jane settles in to a chair, and invites the rest of you to do the same.  
"I've been expecting an inspection call."

William [to Ekur]: Eager to get down to addressing a nagging worry.  
Relieved that you showed up without her having to expose weakness by 
calling for assistance.  She would very much like this visit to be an 
inspection call that occurred independently of any report of trouble.

Neil settles down and sips his nectar.

William [to Draco]: In other words, she's more been *hoping* for an 
inspection call, and would like you all to suggest that as your reason 
for arriving, even if that's not true.

William [to Neil]: A bit cloying, but acceptable.  Each of you regain 
another Essence at the first sip.  (That Marches luxury again.)

Draco flicks a tongue into his cup, and waits for someone who knows Jane 
better to take point. He does, however, pull out his notebook for notes, 
just in case.

Jesdyn [to William]: I'll assume it tops me out?

Ekur sits down into a nice, convenient chair.  "Well, it was about time 
we came down for one, no?  Oh, what finally got it on to our schedule was 
a shadow of a rumor that something untoward might be happening, but we're 
sure you've got it in hand.  We do need to stick our noses into various 
things, however."

William [to Neil]: Err?  You were out at the end of the last arc, and 
it's been a couple of days plus this, unless I misremember something?

Jesdyn [to William]: OH! Right.

Jesdyn [to William]: I was thinking it was ten years since the end of the 
LAST arc.

Jesdyn [to William]: My timeframes were off. Sorry.

Jesdyn [to William]: Call it... three, then?

William [to Neil]: Yah.

Jane says, "I'm sure that regular maintenance of one's relationships is a 
natural priority for any good contractor," she replies diplomatically.  
"Yazz will be just as pleased to see you, naturally."  (Draco: i.e., 
pleased in the same way.)  "We have certainly been able to keep the 
increasing turbulence in the prisoner population under control so far, 
and some external verification of our methodology and success would be 
most welcome."  (Draco: please go handle this.)

Jesdyn [to William]: I don't suppose the shadowed second power is Yazz?

roll 3d6

On 3d6, you rolled 13.

William [to Neil]: Actually, he's involved with it.  That was a group of 
relationships that basically led out of the town you were resonating, and 
into the Prison as a separate group.  He's a part of the 'knot' there.  
But he's not as in charge as he'd like to be.

Neil hmms to himself. "We took the long way through here, and spoke with 
a few people. You've got a problem, all right, but it looks like it's 
centered in the Prison proper."

Neil says, "All the social relationships here are healthy, if loose. 
There aren't any knots in Selkirk there shouldn't be -- at least, none 
that I caught.""

Neil spares a glance for Draco. Always a good habit to get into, seeing 
if your analysis makes a Seraph wince.

Jane sips her drink.  "It's Selkirk's primary industry at the moment.  
Most of the other businesses service either the government, the guard or 
the prisoner population.  So naturally, if someone wanted to make trouble 
that would be the place to do it."

Draco will look appropriately pained if anyone lies too egregiously.

Ekur looks over at Neil.  "Having even a minor tap into Omniscience is 
useful, isn't it?"

Jane says, "Why someone would want to make trouble..." she shrugs.  "I 
haven't had any ransom demands, no declarations of open war.  We provide 
a service to other Domains.  If it's an elaborate escape attempt, it's 
certainly taking its time about the affair."

Neil says, "Meant to ask about that. I'm very surprised other Domains are 
interested in the prison."

Neil says, "We had to go to some serious trouble to establish it -- did 
these other domains just not know they needed it?"

Ekur says, "Well, the explanation we usually start with is that Hell is 
making trouble.  And they usually want to get established and strong 
before Heaven notices anything untoward."

Jane nods firmly.  "In which case it would definitely be your demesne.  
We have policies in place at the Prison to detect non-Ethereals -- Yazz 
can elaborate on those when you see him -- but we lack any of those 
ever-so-useful resonances to suss out lies or someone's true name.

Jane says to Neil, "Well, they took care of their own behavior problems, 
of course.  We simply offer a centralized outsourcing service that takes 
their convicts further away, and comes with at least the halo of Heaven's 
assent.  Private correctional facilities are a growing business on Earth, 
you know, especially for communities with few resources to begin with."

Draco scribbles notes. Incarceration as a form of trade between 
communities. Fascinating!

Ekur looks over at Neil.

William [to Draco]: All true.  And she's *quite* on the cutting edge as 
concerns the very real phenomenon of private jails.

Neil smiles. "Sounds like a good business you've got going."

William [to Draco]: There /is/ more trouble than just the turbulence in 
the prisoner population.  But she'd rather let Yazz show you that close 
up.

Neil says, "I don't seem to recall any of the prisoner records crossing 
anyone's desk in Civis, though."

Ekur mutters something along the lines of, "If I could only resonate 
Dominic when he hears about this . . ."

Draco glances up from his notebook. "Was there anything else concerning 
you recently outside of the prison?" he asks.

Jane toasts Neil, then pauses.  "I beg your pardon?  You sent us our 
first crew, and more since."

Neil says, "Can you tell me more about your appeal and review process?"

Neil says, "No, not ours. We're responsible for ours, after all. I'm just 
curious about the other prisoners. What are *they* in for?"

Jane says, "That's the business of the governments that send prisoners 
here.  We either keep them for a fixed period of time, or start parole 
hearings when we're told to.  The crimes... oh, there's all kinds.  Theft 
and assault of all kinds, treason or espionage in various conflicts, 
lese-majeste, minor blasphemies against this or that pantheon..."  She 
indicates a broad range with a spread of her hands.  "Range of sentences, 
too.  We execute, we don't adjudicate."

Jane says, "We reserve the right to refuse prisoners for terribly unjust 
convictions, of course.  Purely mine or Yazz' decision.  Politically, of 
course, anything we think is likely to anger Civis, we also don't take 
those.  Yume-Tokyo has it a crime to belittle the Media.  Obviously, 
we're not holding any of those offenders."

Jesdyn has pulled his sourcebook and doublechecked his dissonance 
conditions.

Jesdyn [to William]: Is this as big a problem as I suspect it is? If you 
say "no", I can ignore it and move on.

Ekur says, "Hmmm.  The big thing that gets me is that sets things up for 
infiltration.  It'd be rather easy for a domain to put agents in among 
the prison population with an appropriate cover story."

William [to Neil]: If you feel that someone at the Prison is being 
punished unfairly, then you have the power to do something about it and 
ought to.  If you feel that Yume-Tokyo is unfairly convicting and 
punishing people for something that is almost by definition not wrong, 
then that's something to deal with on the strategic level, not here and 
now.

Jesdyn [to William]: So "accepting people for pinuishment without review" 
isn't by itself unjust.

Jane nods at Ekur.  "I'm sure several have.  We do our best to maintain 
discipline inside the Prison, though, so there's as little opportunity as 
possible.  Of course," she eyes Neil, "a handy Mercurian, or a Malakite 
or Seraph, would be a great resource to us in this matter."

William [to Jesdyn]: I would say that's very much a matter of your 
personal interpretation of justice.  Is a prison warden responsible for 
executing an unfair conviction?  If so, how much resistance should he 
properly exercise?

Jesdyn [to William]: Hmm. All true.

Jesdyn [to William]: 'Kay, that's okay then.

Ekur says, "Well, then, perhaps I should take a handy Mercurian and 
Seraph over to the prison?"

Jane says, "That would be excellent.  I can get you immediately, openly 
or sub rosa.  Or we could wait until late night; we order all the 
prisoners to disperse at that time, so you could walk around a little 
more freely.  Your call."

Ekur looks over at Neil.  "I've never dealt with prisoners, really.  Ur 
generally had other means of disposing of criminals.  You have a 
preference?"

Neil says, "Getting in as criminals would require notifying too many 
people. We could get in as staff, maybe."

Draco says, "If we're going in as anything other than ourselves, I'll 
need a role where I don't have to say too much."

Neil says, "Either ethereal staff if there's a good way not to get 
scanned, Outcast celestial staff if there's not, or just get transferred 
in as Civis' ineffective attempt to contorl those no-good ethereals."

Neil says, "Just what *are* you doing to detect Celestials, anyways?"

Neil says, "Maybe we can spoof it."

Ekur looks over at the Seraph, for a reaction to the suggestion /we/ 
spoof a test.

Jane says, "Ordering the ethereals to disperse daily from midnight to 
dawn.  Celestials can't do it."  She peers at you.  "I don't think I've 
ever mentioned how much that creeps me out, by the way.  Even dreams can 
dream."

Draco looks perfectly fine with this suggestion. Spoofing a test to find 
out if someone is an ethereal isn't that different from taking a vessel 
and Role as a human.

Neil says, "So if we got there after dawn, and disappeared shortly before 
midnight..."

Jane says, "The guards and staff are invested in the Domain by Yazz, 
which again you can't do to celestials.  If he says you're invested, 
everyone will take his word for it."

Neil says, "Hmm. Staff is sounding more and more like an option."

Neil says, "I figure Yazz knows what vacancies he's got."

Neil says, "Or would like to have."

Ekur nods to Neil.

Jane nods.  "Allright then.  I'll put the call through."  She goes over 
to her desk to do this.  "Social workers, chaplain's assistants, and 
teachers could gain confidences.  Guards have a pretty high turnover rate 
-- higher recently -- so that would be easy, and give you a lot of 
freedom to move around, but then there's the trust issue."

Jane calls up the prison and gets Yazz after a few minutes.  They briefly 
discuss your arrival, and the notion of placing you as staff.

William [to Draco]: Gimme a rez roll for your current CD.

Draco rolled 10 versus 22 and succeeded by 12.

William [to Draco]: All the bald statements are on the up and up, but 
again you get the sense that Jane is dancing around something she'd 
rather you learn from someone else, about trouble at the Prison that is 
almost certainly *not* inspired by demons (though they're quite likely 
helping).

Jane looks up from the mouthpiece.  "Immediately, or during curfew 
tonight?"

Ekur looks over at Neil.

Draco says, "Later, I think. We'll want more information before we jump 
right in."

Jane nods, and sets it up for Xiao Li to escort you over shortly after 
midnight tonight.

Jane hangs up.  "Yazz will meet you when you get in, and you can go from 
there."  She takes a deep breath.  "Until then, I have work and I suppose 
from your phrasing that you have plans?"

Draco scritches one wing with another, and says, politely, "Actually, I 
was hoping to get some more information from you, first. Anything going 
on in the prison that we should know about that you don't think comes 
from infernal influence?"

Ekur monitors Jane's reaction.

Neil monitors the rate at which Draco does not become Jane's favorite 
person. 

Jane winces slightly, which is exactly the way she really feels.  "This 
is not my fault."  Which is to say, Draco, that she feels it's very 
important to her continued good standing with Heaven that you take this 
the right way, and don't get the impression she sought it.

Draco nods pleasantly, and waits for more.

Jane says, "The Prison has a human population too.  Some humans dream of 
imprisonment.  They're not pleasant dreams, but they're strong, and 
they're attracted to a Domain in the form of a prison."

Jane says, "We don't shake them down for Essence, but they provide it 
ambiently.  However, in doing so, they reshape the Domain.  And dreams of 
imprisonment are dreams of things people fear."

Jane says, "We don't take lifers or condemned men.  But the humans have 
produced a death row.  And the dreams there are even worse."

Neil says, "Just... which side of the Marches are we on right now?"

Ekur says, "Ahem.  Setting aside any moral implications," and the way 
Ekur says this it is clear that they are still on the table, just set 
aside, "you realize you might as well have sent Nightmares an engraved 
invitation by housing them?""

Jane spread her hands.  "We can no more herd human dreams than you can.  
Unless you would like to send us an army of Vassals of Dreams.  Or we 
could enter their dreams and try to force them awake... I can't imagine 
you'd like that either."

"From my own experience, I'd call that an occupational hazard of running 
a prison in a strong Domain," Draco says. "Like calls to like, in the 
Marches."

Jane nods.  "This didn't start happening until well after we were 
established -- with your prisoners as well as others', I must point out.  
The only alternative is to reshape the Domain -- and that's very hard for 
Yazz, who is part of it."

Jane says, "To make it not a prison is something he can hardly even 
visualize.  To make it a different kind of prison... he can vaguely 
comprehend not having a death row, but the subtle sort of control 
required for the rest... well.  You really have to go see him and the 
Prison for yourselves.  Talk to him.  Get a sense of the issues in play.  
It's complicated."

Neil says, "We can call that a last resort. It's better than some 
alternatives -- but not by much."

Ekur says, "I grant that herding them would be difficult.  There's only 
so much effort that can practically be done.  But Angels of Dream have 
experience in making humans' dreamscapes less unpleasant by means short 
of the Vassal distinction.  I hate the idea that there were a number of 
nightmares sitting here, festering."

Jane says, "I'm no friend of the idea either.  You're of Dreams... maybe 
you can see how we might be able to guide this into a better status quo."


Ekur . o O ( A cold, clinical, dispassionately-expressed hate, yes . . . 
he's an Elohite. )

Jesdyn [to William]: Is there an actual moral objection to the concept of 
little-n nightmares?

William [to Jesdyn]: Angel of Fear

William  :^)

Jesdyn [to William]: In In Nomine, I mean.

The GM says, "Prison is *supposed* to be a deterrent, after all.  You're 
deterred by things you don't like.  You *should* fear the legal 
consequences of breaking the law.  Shouldn't you?"

William  <OOC> Ladies and gents, my theme for this arc.  ^_^_v

Jesdyn [to William]: The problem isn't that there's nightmares, but the 
effect the nightmares are having on this tactical aspect of the War. Is 
it really *appropriate* to intervene in any but the worst nightmares, the 
ones causing damage or inspired by Hell?

Draco [to William]: Well, depending on whether the prison system is 
supposed to be rehabilitative, vengeance, confinement, deterrent, or some 
combination of the above...

William  <OOC> I think I will let you three mull all of that for the next 
two weeks, while I go get ready to start a semester of teaching calculus 
tomorrow.

The GM says, "We'll pick up next time with heading over to the Prison, 
ya?"

Neil says, "Sounds good."

------------------------ Session End -------------------------

All local names and descriptions have been cleared.

StevenE is approaching the question as an old Angel of Fear turned Angel 
of Dreams would -- nightmares themselves are not inherently 
objectionable, but letting them *fester*, instead of working through hem 
to a psychologically healthy conclusion?  Ewww.  And tactically unsound, 
too.

The GM says, "Maybe I should spend several months between all our arcs.  
I was looking for a thematic intersection of law, money, and 
dreams/fears, and finally hit on 'conditions in privately run prisons,' 
which is nice and topical."

fadethecat nods!

fadethecat says, "...well, to it being topical, rather than the 
hiatus..."

Jesdyn says, "Promises to be interesting."

The GM says, "Heh heh."

The GM says, "Okay, I'm off.  See ya'll later!"

StevenE goes home.

Jesdyn says, "See you!"

fadethecat waves at William! William is waved at!

Jesdyn goes home.

fadethecat saunters off the edge of the plank.