The Element of One

[Winter]

He dribbles the ball, once, twice. "Now from the three point line", he thinks aloud. His leather shoes are not fit for play, and neither is his brown coat, but then the court was empty, and it's a chilly evening of January. Absolute solitude. You can't pass on such opportunities when they present themselves.
Aim, jump, shoot, cheer. Not perfect, he thinks as his shoes touch the concrete pavement, but it did the job.
"Yeah, yeah", he says with a sly smirk, still trying to catch his breath. "Still have it". The slowly rolling ball the only witness of his sportsmanship.

  3 successes

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2020-01-25 18:39:01		Winter rolls 6 to Basket (10 Again)		3, 10, 7, 5, 6, 9, 10, 2		3 successes

[Winter]

Bump

[Abacus]

Absolute? Not quite.

Abacus knew a single Death spell. He could mold a shadow like clay and step into the divot, becoming a shade himself. He didn't use it. But the thought did cross his mind as he stepped onto the concrete court. Another thought crosses his mind, as he stands behind the Guardian. What were the chances of wiping the floor with him? The Enchanter smirked. It was either going to go wonderfully right or terribly wrong.

Very rarely would manipulations like these lay askew in any grey waters.

Still, there was the ever looming question...shall we find out?

"Never seen a Guardian out of breath before. I didn't know you could breathe."

[Winter]

Startled for a second, he quickly regains his composure. What were the odds of this specific guy finding himself on this very specific court at this specific time, assuming the null hypothesis was correct?
He was an acanthus. Below 0.05, for sure. Rejected.

Barely a second in, and The Mystagogue is already threatening the Veil. Was that a slip of his tongue, or was he testing the waters? He looks around, the area is clear, but it's overconfidence that does you in.
"Guardians of the Galaxy? That's a good movie", he warns with a dead look, before passing the ball.

[Abacus]

"I preferred Doctor Strange. Wong reminded me of an old teacher from graduate school. Hit a soft spot."

Message received! Abacus tempered his amusement, set himself to thinking. Actively. He didn't have the instruments in his hands, but he could imagine the clicking of a puzzle cube's segments. The ticking clock. Measurements of what was and what could be. No magick. Not yet. Just...getting in the mood.

"I was thinking we could talk. I haven't poked my head in at...work, in a while. Wouldn't mind an update from the head of security."

[Winter]

"We are talking", he sets himself in the middle of the court, waiting for the Acanthus to shoot.
"What did you study? And the first update is that I'm not head of security anymore", the night was getting cold, perhaps the workout could keep the blood flowing.
"You playing?"

[Abacus]

"Sure. Just let me stretch."

That wasn't some Supernal euphemism. Abacus literally bent down to touch his toes. He rotated his arms; cracked a few fingers. He aimed his shot, released. It went wide, hitting the corner of the backboard. He trailed after it as soon as his follow-through. It only seemed fair given the abysmal shot.

An athlete, he was not. "Sorry about that...", he apologized as he passed the ball back.

"Combinatorics. Number theory. Algorithms. Y'know, statistics."

He considered this new development. Winter wasn't the Sentinel anymore?

"So...is the office on fire?"

  failure

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2020-01-28 14:09:32		Abacus rolls 3 to Shooting Hoops (10 Again)		7, 2, 3		failure

[Winter]

"Same", he replies, his hand firmly grasp the ball and with a quick jump, he lines another pointer.
Life was a series of missed shots, sometimes you were lucky and skillful enough to score. "It's fine"
"There's just not much to do, so whoever takes the job will do alright", he passes him the ball, "Your turn"

  1 success

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2020-01-28 14:25:54		Winter rolls 6 to Shooting Hoops (10 Again)		3, 2, 8, 6, 5, 1		1 success

[Abacus]

"Is there something on your mind? I'd love to lend a hand."

Life is a series of inputs and outputs. The trick is knowing which X produces the most desirable Y. If one were to factor in the time it takes to aim the shot, the angle at which one aims, the arc of a sphere in flight. If one were to simply consider.

The web glistens in the melting glow of a swollen Arcadian sun. The spider leaps with at just the right time. The fly is their's. The point is his.

Three steps back. One step forward. A half-step to the left. Release.

"Swish."

  4 successes

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2020-01-28 14:32:59		Abacus rolls 8 to Perfect Timing -- Rote (10 Again)		10, 9, 5, 9, 8, 5, 3, 2, 5		4 successes

[Winter]

The familiar tug on the drape of his neck is one peculiar aspect of his sixth sense. Unless there's somebody else lurking in the shadow, the man in front of him is the only suspect. Two faux passes in a row. The second against common courtesy.
"You're lucky", he says.