The doctor appears to be professionally attending to Miton's need to do his job as Milton checks the photo. It appears to be the local assistant chief of police, the second in line in police rank.
Dr. Duncan replies "We always seem to get some technical bug when we change something. I do enjoy that we enjoy new technology every couple of years as the budget allows, but I do try and keep paper trails. I can't trust the computers to keep accurate count..."
The doctor appears to be entering a trance as Milton's family Gift is carried out. The doctor rises and closes the door and then returns to his seat. Milton feels that the doctor is a smidge slow in his alacity to tend to Milton's commands.
Milton
In terms of 'already rolled' rolls, we take off resistance from the right. -3 shall remove 2, 9 and 1 from Milton's successes, leaving him 1 suxx. He does get some ability to Dominate Dr Duncan.
For the future, if we see Dr. Cesmat and Dr. Duncan again, these two are twins as per stats.
Milton loves nothing more than to be obeyed. It provides him a glimpse of a well-ordered world. One in which everything happens in its proper mode, unfolds along a pre-determined path, with no accidents, no mistakes, and no messes. Of course, the order of that world is the one Milton would impose. That's obvious. So obvious he doesn't even see the megalomaniacal implications.
Once the doctor sits, Milton locks eyes with the poor man again. He is smiling: the smug smile of the all-powerful administrator. He folds his hands in front of himself on the desk and begins.
"I am going to tell you a story, Dr. Duncan. It is a story about the events of this evening. It will begin at the moment you saw me talking to Samantha Ward in the waiting room. This story will be very similar to what occurred, but with a few changes that you must remember. When I am finished telling you this story, it will be the truth. It will be the only way you recall the events of the evening following meeting myself and the two other men who were in the waiting room."
He pauses, just long enough to consider his next step. This is a careful procedure, one that requires all of his faculties, both natural and unnatural. Further, this is a particularly delicate instance, as Milton will not be wiping the doctor's memory completely. Rather, he will be selectively adding to, subtracting from, and manipulating the events of this night.
"In the course of your normal routine, you and Dr. Cesmat happened upon three men speaking with Samantha Ward in the waiting room. You approached and asked after their identities. One told you that his name was Milton Northbridge, a consultant with the City of Sacramento's Budget, Policy, and Strategic Planning division. He was visiting to ask you a few questions about expenses originating in your lab during fiscal year 2020. At first, you did not remember that he had been trying to reach you by telephone, but then you recalled that several messages had been left for you concerning this matter."
"The other two men in the room speaking with Samantha were also introduced, but you cannot recall their names. They were not in any way affiliated with Mr. Northbridge. Their arrival at the same time as Mr. Northbridge was just a coincidence. In fact, the two men had come to discuss a case with Dr. Cesmat, though you cannot recall which one. You believe they were members of a forensic research consortium based out of a local university, and are wholly convinced of the authenticity of their credentials, though you are not sure you were ever told which institution."
"After Dr. Cesmat escorted her visitors away, you dismissed Samantha for the evening and brought Mr. Northbridge to your office where, after closing the door and taking your seat, you discussed the purchase of an electron microscope by your lab in fiscal year 2020. After looking into the matter, which took a good bit of time, somewhere between 30 minutes and an hour, you found a similar purchase in fiscal year 2019. Mr. Northbridge realized that this was the cause of the confusion: something about a problem with the city's financial system causing purchases from prior years to appear as if they had been made in the current fiscal year. Of course, you are not an accountant and cannot remember the exact details. In any event, you found this explanation satisfactory and, in fact, were quite relieved that the problem had been resolved."
"Finally: you will remember thatthis is the evening when you first began to feel that Dr. Cesmat's focus on the case of Royce Riggan was no longer warranted. While you agree that the circumstances are odd, there does not appear to be any further cause for investigating his death. In your opinion, it is becoming a drain on the resources of your office and the time of your colleagues. This feeling is not something you would freely admit to Dr. Cesmat, but it will start to color your perceptions of her investigation. Thinking things over after Mr. Northbridge's departure from your office, you resolved to find a way to subtly dissuade her from continuing looking into the Riggan case, to redirect her efforts to more pressing matters."
"When I stop talking, I will inform you that everything is in order and bid you good evening. You will bid me the same with a feeling of relief that my inquiry has been resolved with no further issues. You will remain in your office for the next hour, thinking over Dr. Cesmat's focus on the Riggan case and how to redirect her attention."
For the first time in a long while, Milton breaks eye contact with Dr. Duncan, looking down at his hands and back up to the doctor, feeling the power of his Blood dissipate.
"Well, I believe that accounts for everything, doctor. Thank you for your time. I will mark this issue as resolved upon my return to the office."
Milton stands and offers Dr. Duncan a bland smile, waiting for the doctor to respond before departing.
As noted in the text of the post, Milton is attempting to modify details of Dr. Duncan's memories from the evening, not fully restructure them. The pertinent additions or changes are noted by bold font in the story told above. Per VtR core, each roll accounts for 5 minutes, so the total time spent on memory reconstruction is 40 minutes.
The room seems Milton's arena as he focusses upon Dr. Duncan. As he sits back, his power of the Blood dissipating, the doctor across from him blinks. Dr. Duncan glances over to the computer, checking the display of the purchase records. A moment passes as Dr. Duncan mirrors Milton's movement, standing and extending his hand.
"Yes, glad we ironed this out, Mr. Northbridge. I hope you can resolve these issues with the other companies as quickly as this one." Dr. Duncan gives an affable smile. Natural.
As Milton departs, the good doctor sits and closes out the fiancial records. He opens up the records for the recent cases, scrolling to Mr. Riggan. He carefully marks a nuetral and thoughtful response that can't be seen as a criticism in the notes seen by the other doctors checking the file.
'This case has been thoughly examined, and I believe we have determined the cause of death to my satisfaction. The care and time spent over this case is admirable. It is time to release Mr. Riggan to his family...'
The doctor saves and closes the file, then continues to check on the other active cases for anything else he needs to get involved with.
Draft this Post
Presence
Intelligence
Status, Allies
