Granite Park: The River through Bell

[Ruby]

In a stroke of good luck, it seems like their slightly disharmonious approach to the problem seems to be working in their favor. Aurum's dismissal actually seemed to lend a measure of credulity to Ruby's shot-in-the-dark grade-A baloney.

It sounds like they know about Bell. Just enough to know something happened but not quite what. Not such a bad thing to send them chasing after a monster that's long since been swept under the rug.

But... explosions? When was that, a year ago? And then six months again? Why are they here now?

"Well," Ruby begins, half expecting to be interrupted, half hoping to be. "We can't say anything for sure, but we think that..."

'I really need to ask you guys something. You know, about,' Akroma shaked her mobile, as if that would make the answer clear, 'Henry. Some problems, as always...it is actually not as good as I said it was.'

Akroma took a step back, gesturing the others to come closer. And then she looked to the man: 'One minute, an emergency.'

Oh, what could it be now? They'd been toeing the line of discretion with steel clogs already, are they throwing cleats on too? "Emergency emergency? Or just emergency, dear? I'm sorry. I know, just one moment. Just one moment." Ruby asks and apologizes as she tucks away with Akroma. She doesn't pull far, stopping the girl before she tries to pull them off into the trees. After all, this isn't a Shakespearean aside, you can't call timeout and pretend people are going to ignore you while you conduct a secret powwow.

'We need a plan. We're not really working together now.'

Ruby looks to Akroma with a slow headshake and shrug, a communication of resignation, impatience, and 'what's there to do about it now?'

"So, not an emergency then?" Ruby asks Akroma with a sigh.

[Yog-Sothoth]

Looking to the others in her group she made a big show of rolling her eyes for the benefit of the strange man and woman. "They can be so dramatic at times. Give me a second and I'll be right back."

Aurum followed Ruby to Akroma while keeping an eye on the couple as they went about their business. "This is going well isn't it?" Aurum said quietly with a smile.

[Ruby]

" Think it's goin better than it looks." Ruby sighs, as that isn't much reassuring.

"Considering how it started, anyhow. So, what do we want to tell them? I know you don't want me to tell 'em government. Have you got a better explanation for all this? I cain't think if much else could be cause for it, outside the impossible,'f course." The impossible being the Supernal, and thus wholly out of the question to reveal.

[Dark Passenger]

'It all depends on what we want to do. We don't have to explain ourselves, because we can rudely go away if we want. The question is, what do we want to know about them? Perhaps they know a few things they shouldn't know, but what can we do about that?' Akroma is silent for a moment. And looks to Rosh.

'The actual reason we're here is Rosh who needed to investigate the ley lines. Well, the longer we talk now, the more he can do. I don't know how long it would take, but I think he is making some progress already. So I think we can get rid of the humans, if we want, maybe it's time to use some mind magic after all. Unless you want something from them?'

[tsameti]

They can hear us. Unless they're being dumb.

[Dark Passenger]

Well, I actually counted on it we walked away far enough, and I said I was whispering. So they should at least come closer to hear us. And if we see that, things will change.

[ParanoidAndroid]

"Yeah, sure," the man responds to their remarks, almost dismissively, letting the Mages go to talk amongst themselves. He stays rather close, but leaves them their privacy. At least it looks that way.

A few moments later, the woman rejoins him, and the two start talking, quietly. The man points out in a few directions, giving instructions. Something about 'Starting that way, then moving on there', or something such. First towards the bridge, then towards the 'sinkhole'. The woman assents, and an item or two changes hands between them.

They separate again, the man staying close, the woman getting to business, and camera flashes start to illuminate the park, briefly, frequently. None of them are aimed at the mages, but otherwise they do seem to capture a good part of the park.

So long as voices stay low, the odds of being heard are somewhat low (assuming nothing supernatural, of course). Notice I didn't writ out their whole conversation, but rather enough snippets to make sense of it. That's what they would be hearing if the Mages keep their voices low at the current distance.

[Ruby]

Ruby winces painfully as Akroma draws a ragged red line between the 'humans' and herself. What an awful distinction, like building a throne of Fool's Gold.

She wants to respond, a gentle trajectory nudge back onto the high Path, but it's not the time. Instead, she simply extends her hand out low but close to her body and pumps her palm slowly down twice.

Just keep it down, the hand says.

"Right, we're just waitin' on Rosh. These folks... might be good to keep them talkin', long as we're here. Aurum, what's your figure on 'em? After all, he's lit. You sure they're sleepin'? "

[Yog-Sothoth]

"You ask the lowly moros councilor to speak? I feel honored," Aurum finished with quiet sarcasm.

The moros considered ignoring the question and pretending to busy herself with something trivial. However, not even Aurum was to that point or that petty at the moment.

"The girl felt sleeping. The man not quite sleeping not awake. Maybe he is a sleepwalker or something else."

Oh! Do I get a scratch behind the ear or a snausage perhaps?!

[Ruby]

There's this vein in your temple that just - I don't know why - it pulses, throbs sometimes. You're just so ANGRY.

Ignore it, Ruby dear. Lay it down at the Cross.

"Well, alright then. Someone had to knit it if it wasn't him who lit his'self. We'll just have to worry 'bout it later and come back to it in the right mindset. We might have to set someone else to it." She sighs, rubs her lip against a lower incisor and glances out a sweep of the park. "Long as Rosh finishes up and certain folks keep out his business, we've done less damage than we could have."

"Would anyone like some gum?" Ruby asks wearily, offering a foil sectioned rectangular gumlet to the others while the watch and wait.