(1610) Formal 1

**Star** · Oct 18th, 2016 01:33 PM

"What?"

Whoops. Just slipped out. But still? Crowley dead? They'd just had barbecue. Talked about skating. Fingers dug into the stack of robes and eyes slowly closed. That's right, Alfred. The fever. The rage. The desire to yell at/to Avis that they should have just burned down that Abyss-damned frat house the first night they'd found it instead of... Just, instead of.

"Sorry."

Vague impressions of words fell like rain drops on a fire until flames had ficker-died to ember and cinder. Athanaeum? That's a weird question, yo. Given, you know, how Secret Squirrel the Mysterium is. Lips parted to deliver a response scathing enough to come from his other half; fueled by a death and a memory of a Curator, but he fed them to the rain.

"Uh. Well. There was also a Blinded running around? We put the kibosh on that silliness, just, like, wanted to mention that. That we got some rando wacks out there. Not just, you know. Banishers and Seers and, uh. Spirits. And portal things. Anyway. Yeah. That's all."

**Star** · Oct 18th, 2016 02:38 PM

Sorry to double post. Had an inspiration. Consider it one looooong post

Long fingers snapped.

"Wait! Okay, I have an Idea." Spend long enough around the Illusionist and you can almost hear the capital 'I's. "Okay, okay."

A finger pointed at Avis .

"You want Order involvement. You," the finger moved to Truce , "Want Sentinels. Some of us," the finger turned inward, "Don't want assclowns like Aquaman with private armies."

Get out your forks people. Gonna have some pie and eat it, too.

"What about Banner Wardens?"

See where this is going?

"What if the Banner Wardens double down as Sentinels? Maybe they're auto-drafted, or the Hierarch can only choose from them, or they tag in order of Arrow seniority? Think about it. Then the cabals have one of their people, the Arrows have their people, and the Consilium gets Sentinels. And we make that official. Like, write it into the Charter."

Sure, some cabals may not have an Arrow. But that's a cabal problem, not a Consilium problem.

**Fisher** · Oct 18th, 2016 09:10 PM

Fisher frowned slightly as Truce talked. She had the idea of a Hierarch crammed down her throat and against her will so she was finding it a little difficult to empathize with him about losing Herald and Sentinels. After her short experience with the last Hierarch she really didn't want another power hungry tool in charge of things and attempting to seize control, not that she thought Truce was a power hungry tool. However, it sounded like he refused to give up the idea of a Herald and planed to shuffle the position off unofficially to someone else against the wishes of the council.

"There is simply sooo much work for a Hierarch to do with a city of ten people that we need a herald," Fisher muttered under her breath and rolled her eyes. "However will we manage?"

Fisher thought for a moment and wondered if Avus was rubbing off on her any. She pondered this as she dug out her bag of peanuts again and was digging her hand into the sack when news of Cowley froze her hand. She felt like a little kid with her hand stuck in the cookie jar and suddenly felt guilty and inappropriate. She had met Crowley and he seemed pretty bummed out, but seemed like a nice guy, one that she'd never get to know better now. She'd have to drink a cold one for him or something.

The thyrsus extracted her peanut-free hand from the bag and dusted it off on her pant leg before setting the bag aside, she'd have to wait a few minutes now out of respect for Crowley. She took comfort from the fact that it sounded like many would attend the memorial and planned to be there herself. Star's comments were disturbing, the city would have to worry about psychos too with everything else going on. His proposal did sound very intriguing because it would solve several of their problems, spread the positions out to be more objective than in the pocket of the Hierarch, and Truce would still get his traditions.

"I think that idea shows some promise," she said after a moment. "It would help the sentinels to remain objective and it would help people instantly recognize who the position would fall to with little confusion. My only concern is that in the future if the cabal structure changes and the position is given to someone with no ability to perform the duty or does not want to because of a cabal that doesn't care, then there should be something in place for that. Perhaps they would need to be approved before installed or a means to have a poorly performing one or security risk to the safety of the city removed from the position. Maybe a three-fourths majority vote of no confidence from the council?" Fisher asked looking around to see what the others thought.

"Futhermore, my other concern is that people don't seem to grasp the role that a sentinel plays. When we went to the Titanic and both sentinels went with us, how can they protect the circle from more than 100 years in the past? If we are going to have Sentinels we need to consider should they be allowed to abandon the circle and travel in the past?" Fisher asked curious how the others felt about this topic.

**Wayland** · Oct 19th, 2016 07:31 AM

Crowley died? What the....? I mean, sure, he'd only met Crowley a few times, but he'd had a chance to talk to the man one-on-one in a half remembered dream from a previous reality, and the dude seemed cool. Hopefully his soul had been released freely. He'd have to talk with Truce later about it, to make sure he didn't leave a ghost behind, preventing his soul from completing his journey.

There was a matter he wanted to bring up before the Council, but things had moved on to another topic, so Wayland decided to wait for it to run its course before he takes the floor. Star's proposal was interesting, and he grudgingly had to admit that the idea was kinda elegant. It would need legal clarification but, it could work. Fisher's comments though. Were those peanuts giving her a reaction?

"Cabals don't choose Banner Wardens Councillor, the Arrow does." He nods towards Avis, as she would be the one to appoint any of their Order as Banner Wardens. "I figured you'd know that right? Cause that like, means there won't be someone stuck in the job from cabal membership changes, cause Councillor Avis would have to approve the duty yeah?" Pretty basic stuff really. Mustn't have a very formal Arrow structure where Fisher started out he guessed.

"But like, as for the two Sentinels going to the Titanic and leavin' the Circle unprotected, i'm not sure 'bout you, but that was like my first time doin' time travel, ya know? Like, i'm not all that up on how Time works, so I kinda figured we were gonna pop back like an instant after we left. Didn't think we'd be gone from this time for a long.... ah, time."

Cause you know, Time.

**Fisher** · Oct 20th, 2016 07:13 AM

For a moment Fisher looked at Wayland with a look of confusion and disbelief. There were many feelings running through the petite mustelid and the first was disbelief that he would call out a fellow Arrow in such a way in public, in mixed company. There were many ways he could have been respectful about it, but he chose one that was not and given her recent vote she decided to grant him some slack on that front. However, there was also the fact that he was mistaken about a position once again in a city wide meeting.

Fisher wasn't angry, but was regretful as she gazed at the faces present, it was as if she did not look forward to speaking. When her scan was complete she closed her eyes took a deep breath and looked to Wayland, there was no subtle way to address this, and this is why she didn't relish her position as councilor. Her position would require her to speak up against another Arrow.

"I'm sorry Wayland, but you are not entirely correct. Banner Warden is an Arrow title, but its entire purpose is built on the cabal. For those that may not know," Fisher said eying those present, and hopefully it would deflect the fact that she was instructing an Arrow on an Arrow title. "It is essentially a doorwarden. Every respectable Arrow sees it as a part of their duty to protect their cabal, but some feel especially called to this role and want to make it a full time pursuit. If the Arrow performs well they might be granted the privilege to take the title of Banner Warden. It is a sacred position for one dedicated completely to the service of others. An arrow is basically released from their general duties so they can take up the role of doorwarden full time for their cabal,. This includes protecting the cabal and accepting challenges such as duels on behalf of their cabal. So yes a cabal does essentially choose them because you need a cabal's blessing before you can be petition for the title of Banner Warden. I proposed a check on the arrow's authority in this. If one is given the title Banner Warden, but situations change and they are a threat or ill-suited to the position, but the Arrows can't or won't remove them due to circumstances or politics then the council should be able to remove them from their duties outside of their cabals or order if an overwhelming majority of the council sees them as a threat to the security of the Consilium they would be protecting."

Fisher found it unpleasant to do what she did, but Wayland's outburst did help her explain the position to people who might not be familiar with Arrow titles and roles. So perhaps it did serve a purpose for the mages present, she hoped it did at least.

**Avis** · Oct 20th, 2016 11:48 AM

"There's something else about Banner Wardens that's important to consider," Avis mentioned, shifting forward in her seat.

"A Banner Warden's duty is to their Cabal first and foremost, that is a duty they are expected to always uphold. And I mean always. It's incredibly vulgar for a Banner Warden to try and achieve another rank within the Adamantine Arrow, so anyone claiming that role would essentially be forfeiting the chance for advancement. That's why not all Talons become Banner Wardens."

She leaned back in her chair then and brushed a hand through her hair, considering how strange things might have become if she hadn't lost that Duel to Asp so long ago...

Not that Asp had really cared about the Title that she'd won and claimed, as it had turned out, but that was all the more reason to make sure that others were aware of the tradition.

"Besides," she spoke up again, "I don't think we need a special position within the Orders to fill those roles, I just think we should use the Orders to fill these roles. If we need to set up patrols of the Circle, who better than the Arrow or the Guardians? Or even the Mysterium and the Free Council. Both have experience defending what they believe is important, such as things like the Athaneum that Magus Campanella mentioned. And I think the same goes for carrying messages, and handling acknowledgements, and those tasks. We can all share the burdens of these duties, I believe, and the flexibility of that might actually make us stronger."

**Strix** · Oct 20th, 2016 07:00 PM

Strix couldn't really comment on the way the Arrow run their things, it could be hard enough to remember everything that related to his own Order to have spend much time to contemplate the various titles other Orders had. Hearing that Wayland didn't get it all right made him sigh a little, but it was nice to actually hear the explanation about what Banner Wardens from the other Arrow members.

As before, he thought Wayland should probably think his words through before speaking up, but he supposed it was just part of his personality. Little to be done about this.

With Crowley gone, there was really only him left to represent the Libertines — which he wasn't particularly fond of, since he was well aware of his own faults. Unfortunately, someone should speak up in the Free Council's interests, and since he was the only one left...

"Since I'm currently the sole Libertine, I will speak for the Order until our numbers have grown in this city to hold an Assembly about my role and our stance as a whole," he spoke up when Avis was done, finding it very necessary to point this out, even if it should be obvious, "but since the floor already has been opened to all of us, I agree that Orders might very well take over roles that need to be covered and no special position should be required to act in the best of the Consilium's interest. Should the need arise, the Free Council will take up patrolling as much as defending the Consilium and Circle."

As would, surely, anyone else — this wasn't really a question of Orders to him. Of course, Strix's view is very Libertine — everyone was equal.

That didn't mean he was above trying to bring some Libertine thinking into this Consilium.

Strix folded his hands behind his back. "It has already been mentioned that we are few in numbers, some duties will fall onto all of us — like defending the Consilium and its members — but others can very well be shared among all of us, as long as it's been approved by the Council. I guess. Of course, not everyone within an Order might be capable to do everything, but overall does the idea sound good for the community as a whole."

Am I getting too close to Silver Ladder rhetoric? He wondered. I better say something very Libertine.

"So, he shrugged, why don't we all just cast a vote on whether we want to share duties between Orders or not?"

**Truce** · Oct 20th, 2016 09:44 PM

Truce appreciates Star's attempt at compromise, but it hardly seems like he has any say in how things are conducted. Whatever Veiled Threats votes on will be the majority, at least until the Silver Ladder is able to influence at least one of their points of view. The Moros Councillor stays silent for now, listening to see if there's any chance to sway the proposals away from foolishness. The Banner Warden was just another name and another name. The idea of allowing a Hierarch to select one is pointless since there already is no Hierarch position supported by the Charter.

Turns out it doesn't matter anyways as Avis and Fisher argue against Star's compromise. The thing is that Truce doesn't just want Sentinels, he wants a system ruled by the Wise. Between Fisher and Avis's regular mockery and hypocrisies, he doesn't see that happening.

After Strix, Truce says, "I don't see the need to give the Mysterium, Free Council, or Guardians any official duties. The Silver Ladder and Arrow are the only Orders capable of fulfilling the tasks of Herald and Sentinel right now. But these Orders should be expected to request help from the remaining Orders as needed. But the duty and responsibility should be those tasked with them, not something to be handed off for convenience. Unless someone can be held accountable there is risk of it being neglected."

Truce prepares to be ignored, folding his hands in his lap while waiting for the votes to be shared.

**Campanella** · Oct 21st, 2016 05:52 AM

Campanella had sat down once he had finished speaking. Now he raised his hand, rather than bobbing up and down like a cork on turbulent waters.

"I would like to register my support for Star's suggestion. I believe it demonstrates the importance of Cabals which the Charter attempts to promote. It behoves Cabals, then, to contribute in some way to the common defence. I am certain ad hoc arrangements can be worked out between the Council and... solitaries... such as myself." He added with a sigh. However much he liked the idea of a Cabal with Brother Rat, unless they found a third it would always be a pipe dream. It did not mean they could not work closely, however...

"While I firmly agree with Truce in principle, in practice our Consilium is simply too small for overly bureaucratic relationships. In such a small society as ours, all relationships are personal. Accountability is also personal. I believe we can hold each other to account - until this Consilium grows significantly in size, at least." As he spoke he inclined his head to his Councillor. He meant him no ill will.