(2208) Edward and Aiko

[Edward Heinrich]

Continued from (2208) Formal Court...

"Perhaps you mistake me for Invictus, Madame Hamura? Sadly, no longer shall my name appear in any role call of that esteemed institution. I am Edward Heinrich, of Clan Daeva, Unaligned." It was odd to use covenant titles at a Domain event, but he would follow her preference.
Given that he was a failed knight, the usage of 'sir' might have bothered him, but that was in the ever-increasing past. He smiled at the acceptance of his company.

"I do indeed play." Edward sat, smoothly unbuttoning his jacket while surveying the board. Looking for tell-tale signs of piece coordination that might give a rough indication of skill. "I fear the anecdote is sprung from a myth, the usual star of which is Emmanuel Lasker. Have you heard the story?"

Edward did not move to clear the board.
Aiko Hamura

[Aiko Hamura]

"I don't mistake you for Invictus, Mr. Heinrich... but I don't find that that requires I refuse to speak respectfully, nor that I request my own title be used, however foreign it may be." Besides, she found it was a good way to get a quick read on how a person looked at etiquette. Edward had behaved in a way that Aiko regarded very well. It was proof that he was trustworthy per se, but it was a good start.

The state of the board shows Aiko has played, probably many times, but isn't necessarily good, depending on one's metric. She had clearly spent a lot of time on either side building up defenses for both sides, so not hungry for trades or quick captures like many amateurs are, but the board itself was a mess. She didn't weight the center of the board as in any way special judging from where the bulk of skirmishes occurred. More than that, she was perhaps a bit too defensive... she had set up knights into positions where they couldn't actually do anything other than protect pawns that were probably better off traded just to let the more valuable horses move. Both kings had been castled early, before threats against them had even been levied... she could have spent the time developing all her pieces and leaving open the possibility to castle to either side in response to the opponent's development.

Perhaps most telling of all is that despite black queen having no opposition, she was being used conservatively. Still taking pieces, still winning the game... but far more slowly than needed.

"Yes, I believe Lasker was the name. As I recall, the story was that he was walking in a park and decided to play a game against a stranger who did not recognize him. Lasker pretended to be no one of renown, and in response the stranger offered to play without his queen. Amused, Lasker agreed, played his best, and was both surprised and intrigued to find that he'd actually lost. He then offered to remove his own queen and return the strangers for a second game, and this cycle repeated until both agreed that the hypothesis I recited earlier must be true. It's rather disappointing to hear the tale is apocryphal."

Aiko clears the board herself, replacing the pieces as swiftly as she had taken them, no more thought put into the half-completed game. After all, the ending was clear; White had lost. It was simply ten to twenty moves out. "If you'd care for a game, I'll be your opponent. Otherwise... I'd be pleased to simply be your conversation partner, for a time."

[Edward Heinrich]

Aiko wasn't wrong in her take about titles, but it still did feel strange. Strange like calling a karate instructor "sensei" while in the Senate.

The pieces told something of a story, with multiple defenders per piece, but little thought put into where the lines of attack would converge.

"It would be my pleasure to play you while we converse, Madame." He almost reached forward to help her reset the board, but she was quick, and some Kindred did not appreciate proximity.
"Might I ask after the identity of your Sponsor? Are they in Sacramento?"

While he asked his question, Edward picked up one white and one black pawn, hiding one in each hand and switching their positions behind his back. Once suitably shuffled, he presented two closed fists to Aiko, so that she might select a piece blind.

OOC: feel free to narrate selecting whichever colour pawn you prefer.

[Aiko Hamura]

"I only just arrived in Sacramento a short time ago, with no contacts to speak of at all," Aiko replied, deflecting the first question as she points towards Edward's left hand. He opens it to reveal a white pawn. Darn... Aiko preferred to play black and let the opponent open, but it was a only a slight preference. Taking her seat, Aiko wastes no time in her opening, nothing more than moving the pawn in front of her king-side knight a single square forward, no doubt getting ready to move the adjacent bishop into the pawn's former spot.

Aiko was loathe to talk about her past i almost any capacity... and this line of questioning opened up a lot of others she didn't want to answer at all, particularly about her sire, who was no longer in any esteem within the Invictus, even if Heinrich might have heard his name. And so she looked to change topics swiftly. She dearly wants to ask whether Edward's departure from the Invictus was by choice or otherwise, but there really was no polite way to phrase that question, was there? "And what about yourself? Are you a long-time native of the city?"

OOC: And you are free to narrate the course of the game itself, if you wish to. Aiko will play very defensively, but besides that who wins, loses, and how close the game is is up to you.

[Edward Heinrich]

"I see," Edward smiles at the deflection but raises an eyebrow at the opening. "How very... modern of an opening choice, Madame." A hint of disapproval, as any member of the Invictus, would realize through Edward's use of "modern."

The opening was an artifact of the Modern Era of chess. To Edward's mind, everything from that era was inelegant. Edward began with his Queenside pawn, two spaces forward.

"I have been blessed to remain in her Grace's Domain for a touch past three years. And I apologize; I perhaps misunderstand your first question. Were you asking after the name of my Sponsor?" He couldn't imagine any other meaning for 'what of yourself,' but it would be surprising for her to ask, given she had just dodged the question.

OOC: I don't mind narrating, but to give me some fuel lets go with the contest rules

2 successes

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2022-08-26 20:07:31	Edward Heinrich rolls 6 to Plays Chess (Intelligence + Resolve) (10 Again)	3, 1, 7, 10, 7, 8, 6	2 successes

[Aiko Hamura]

It was the very first time Aiko had been called "modern" since she was a human. The slight irritation at Edward's disapproving tone is almost washed out by the notes of surprise. Aiko's mouth bends into a slight, crooked smile as she retorts, "I suppose you don't mean that I'm ahead of the curve, though, do you?" As she had expected, Heinrich actually understands chess, whereas she simply knows what the rules are and can plan ahead.

2 successes

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2022-08-28 10:03:58	Aiko Hamura rolls 6 to Play Chess (Intelligence 4 + Resolve 2) (10 Again)	2, 6, 1, 5, 8, 8	2 successes

In spite of what could be considered a hint from Edward, given his comment, Aiko still continues to set up her perfect king-side castle, placing the bishop behind a small fortress of pawns and leaving the center wide open for her opponent.


"No, I meant in regards to how long you had been in Sacramento. Establishing a timeline of arrivals has always helped me immensely when I find myself in a new domain." At collecting information, that is. "Three years is hardly more than three months to us Kindred... such a recent move!"

Aiko almost asks, 'And what prompted you to move?' before she stops herself. There was a good chance that the answer was Edward's expulsion from Invictus. Not worth the risk of insulting him to even bother with. "But I'm certain you still remember what it was like to be a fresh migrant. Any advice for your junior?"

[Edward Heinrich]

Edward laughed, "Ahead of the curve indeed, Madame. The King's Indian is not called a hypermodern opening without reason." It was not his place to lecture of a Madame of the First Estate on refinement.

Aiko's move order was fine but irregular, indicating a degree of natural talent without formal training. As Aiko suspected, Edward was the reverse, having learned the "refined" way from an Invictus tutor.

Edward took the center fully, pausing his pawn advances only to develop a knight before Aiko castled, and Edward replied "correctly" with e4. Putting the question to the Knight, "where will you run?" with the single correct but unintuitive answer of e1. Then again, for one so defensively minded, maybe that kind of precise retreating play would come naturally, and it would be fun to find out. Edward smiled. What an excellent game chess is.

3 successes

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2022-08-28 14:19:54	Edward Heinrich rolls 6 to Plays Chess (Intelligence + Resolve) (10 Again)	7, 9, 9, 8, 6, 7	3 successes

"I understand," Edward replied, mildly relieved he had misunderstood the nature of Aiko's earlier question, "recent indeed! Although, I do dearly hope to go the full mile. This is a wonderful city upon which to carve an unlife."

"Advice?" Edward thought for a moment, "I fear it too bold to offer instruction on the method by which one could grasp success, but to avoid disaster, I do have some thoughts. First, go out of your way to offer service to the Domain. It so happens I am currently engaged in a project to suppress a lingering source of potential endangerment to the First Tradition. If you so happened to wish to apply your talents to the cause, you'd be more than welcome. You're quite clearly intelligent," Edward gestured at the board, "and so I have no plausible reason to doubt you'd be of great help. But I don't mean to put forth undue pressure upon you; there are, naturally, other issues to be handled. Any official could easily offer ideas upon a request."

"Second, socialize with those who have remained in the Domain for a length of time totalling a minimum of half a year. There is great churn in the Domain, those most new, are those most like to depart within the year. To have your friends and allies depart for other new horizons is a troublesome thing worth insulating oneself against."

"Third, Elysium, while an excellent gathering place, has an element of substantive formality which, while a beautiful thing, can have the impact of interfering with growing camaraderie. It is very much worth engaging in idle entertainment with citizens in good standing of the Domain outside of these walls. As the saying goes, deals are negotiated on the golf course and ratified in the board room."

"I hope it not too presumptuous of me to go on like that," Edward held a gentle countenance; he had no desire to see others fail. "I do wish you success."