(1609) Black Swan, Avis, et al...

[Avis]

"See, that's why I'm not interested in politics anymore," Avis said, gesturing at nothing in particular. "The restriction of rights isn't something I agree with, but it was put in place by the last Hierarch, and it would have taken an unacceptable conflict to make him back down. That's the thing, there's only so much of our selves that we can devote to anything. I'd rather devote myself to something greater than squabbling with idiots. Something like, yes, fixing reality. The Exarchs, or their minions, are mucking about with things on a grand scale. A universal, cross dimensional, cross temporal scale, like something out of Star Trek. I'd rather focus on that.

"Oh, and I'm Avis, by the way," she added, holding out a hand for Campanella. "Half Master of Pandemonium, Tip of the Dragon's Talons. Former Councilor."

[Wod.Infant]

”A Cabal…” The prospect of living and sharing the same space with two strangers was slightly scaring, she understood the need to have everyone checking out for one another among the community but that didn’t mean she was OK with it for herself or even prepared.

She remains pensive for a moment carefully considering the proposal.

”I understand what you mean, I confess I’m a bit conflicted with this Cabal deal. Let’s say I agree, but before anything is settled I would prefer to meet both of you.” She wouldn’t feel pressured by time constrains. She preferred prudence and taking her steps after serious deliberation.

”I just need to make sure you are not Libertines or Apostates… that would make my daily life a hell of an ordeal. You know… irreconcilable differences!" She says looking to the sides wondering if anyone could be listening. She just didn’t want to put up with that drama on her daily life.

Her hazel eyes move again once Avis expands upon her motives and she finds herself nodding in agreement. ”Fixing the reality sounds just right! In fact it sounds so right that we could devote our Cabal to it, maybe?” She raises an inquisitive eyebrow at her fellow Mystagogue. Maybe?

[Campanella]

"Avis... I see..." Campanella politely received the Warlock's greeting with a handshake of his own. Burn out, he surmised. But as the Warlock explained the precarious position the Awakened were in his view quickly changed to something more positive: someone who wants to get things done. Brash and Brusque - something to note for later.

He turns his attention once more to Black Swan.

"Of course. I would expect nothing less. Brother Rat is conversing over there; he is a Thearch on the Path of Ecstasy as far as I can make out. And yes, fixing reality could easily be our stated mission - everything is up for negotiation at this point; we simply wish to aggregate our interests in a Cabal of our own."

He let a hand slip into his pocket once more while he retrieved a business card for his fellow Mystogogue.

Turning his attention back to Avis (he has to respond to her, somehow). "That is... A lot for a small Consilium to bear. I was never able to sort through the rumour mill - does this Consilium have no allies? Surely a... Conflict on this scale requires the help of the regional Order's themselves?" The Seers of D.C. had plotted and schemed for who knows how long before they struck - feeding of the local Consilium's own divisions and complacency; and when they struck they had struck hard at the very keystone of the Consilium. But this? This was something else entirely.

A thrill of fear pulsed from the far reaches of the Alchemist's mind.

[Avis]

"We've always been pretty isolated," Avis confessed, withdrawing from the handshake and recrossing her arms.

"Our closest neighbors, the Golden Consilium of San Francisco, have made overtly hostile actions against us. They even set up a puppet Hierarch to destabilize our Consilium for a few years. Of course, with the shifting sands we're standing on, it's sort of hard to cite history and expect it to mean the same thing that it used to. That's probably a pretty damn terrifying thought for people in the Mysterium, isn't it?"

It was really a smirk that formed on Avis' lips when she said that, though there was some amusement riding on the curve of her mouth. Morbid amusement. It was one of those situations where you either laughed, or you cried, and she was curious how the two Mystagogues were taking the situation.

[Campanella]

"For some, yes I believe it would." Campanella bobbed his head lightly in agreement. "But I would rather view it as a challenge and a problem to solve. If what remains when the dust settles can be solved."

The news of the regional relationships did generally fit with what the Moros remembered, which gave him hope that the focus of the Seer's scheme was with Sacramento itself and not the established timeline more generally.

"So. What has actually happened so far. If I may ask?"

[Wod.Infant]

The words of the First Talon didn’t fall into deaf ears. Black Swan notices the smirk but decides to remain quiet. Campanella’s answer was adequate but it didn’t address the point. Mysterium Mages relied their decision making on three pillars: Tradition, Rationality and Gnosis.

If the past was changed and tampered with it could force one of those pillars to have to be reassessed. Who is to say that maybe the entire history of the Diamond and the days of Atlantis wasn’t actually a ruse created by the Seers or their Masters? A part of the prison for the present and future that relied in the past?!

For her part she would continue to work her way, the Mysterium way, but a crack in the otherwise adamant rhetoric had presented itself.

Fudge! Time travel makes my head hurt!

[Avis]

"Jesus christ," the mage in the Priest's collar swore. "That's kind of hard to explain."

She huffed out a sigh, weight shifting from foot to foot before centering again.

"Essentially, reality got hacked. Everyone who was in this city before about a month ago has memories of realities that never happened. Whole lifetimes of shit that never came to pass, or maybe did, or something. Plus there's memories of smaller differences. I mean, shit, I met a woman who I knew, who I had argued with in this very Consilium, except now she wasn't awake. She was a sleepwalker.

"And..." Avis sighed again, "then there was the titanic. There's an artifact built into the floor of the Cathedral. A portal across time and space that links only to specific places and events. The first one was the Titanic. Had to make sure it got sunk. Don't ask for more details, though, I can't give them."

[Campanella]

In a walled off part of his mind, Campanella screams and runs out the doors, runs far far away, keeps running....

He cannot help but turn his attention to the floor.

Tongue stilled, his teeth clench and a pulse appears, visibly throbbing, at his jaw.

[Wod.Infant]

Apparently funding a cabal that was focused in undoing the changes that the Seers’ messing around was causing didn’t seem such a bad idea. It was the implementation that required perhaps a bit more of focus and thought. She herself was a Reclaimator, reclaiming Seer’s artifacts that could be involved with these changes seemed to be a priority for her now.

In the meanwhile Campanella’s reaction merited a raised eyebrow. If he was not a member of the Mysterium is would probably have merited a question as well… but he was probably the Mage with the most in common with her in this room. Black Swan decided to cut in and grab Avis’ attention to her and let her Mystagogue mate off the hook.

”Oi! So it means they can actually erase Awakened from existence?! Both past, present and future!? Is that how they are going to terminate us? By making sure we never awaken?!” Dire proposition.

”Fucking maggots!” She finally mutters between teeth.

[Avis]

Despite the gravity of what was being discussed, Avis' attention was dragged away by something she'd caught out of the corner of her eye. Something almost infinitesimal, something that she barely caught at this distance, something that was perhaps even imagined, but it still tugged at something inside the Warlock's chest. It was a fleeting expression on Varyx's face, and the expressions of the women she was talking to...

Avis scowled, staring at the chatting group of Magi, and the muscles in her shoulders grew tense before she looked back to the two Mystagogues.

"Look, like I said, I don't have all the answers. Reality shifting isn't something that I understand, but it's dangerous, obviously. That's about all I can say. Maybe talk with some of the other people in the Consilium. See what their experiences were like and compare it with what you heard from me. I've got something I have to do now."

And then the Warlock was no longer standing there...

  1 dox backlash, pot 4 teleport

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2016-09-26 23:08:39		Avis rolls 7 to Teleport! (gnos3+space5-1dox) (10 Again)		1, 4, 9, 10, 8, 10, 2, 3, 7		4 successes
2016-09-26 23:08:10		Avis rolls 4 to fucking paradox (base 2+spell2) (10 Again)		6, 2, 3, 9		1 success

Avis is joining This Thead!!!