Another Brick In The Wall?

Thomas nods, content in convincing his cousin. It's one obstacle less to overcome on their way to the top. Graham's answer, curt and cryptic, took him by surprise, however.

"You care to elaborate?"

The Malkovian awaited an answer from the young Firebrand.

We seem to be winding down - unless you have something else to discuss, we could wrap the Scene up in the next round or two if you'd like?

Coaxing an artificial sigh, he bobbed his head from side to side, mulling something over as though he were weighing pros and cons. After a few moments, he seemed to come to an intellectual conclusion.

"I owe you that much, given how elaborate you've been yourself. You have given me a lot of clay to sculpt tonight, so I'll give you an idea of what I've done with raw material in the past. Maybe telling you will even give you the impression that approaching me, even as a king to a pawn, was the right move to make. I hope you'll forgive me for a lengthy train of thought."

"Neither of us were born yesterday, the first or the second time. That being said, it is painfully obvious that I'm arguably the youngest Kindred who's made themselves known to the Domain. What I lack in years, in...potency, I guess I should say, I have more than enough contemporary world experience to compensate for. I've been all over this damn country and I have seen the heart of it, ugly as it is.
And it is ugly. I have worked on both sides of American party lines in the name of self-education, but I think we both know that I tend towards the radical left. Well, what America considers radical, anyway. Organizing groups of people is such an acquired skill. Few have really mastered it even among our extended relations in spite -maybe even because of- of the crown we associate our names with.
I think...I know this comes down to one simple, lethal weakness - Overextension."

"What I mean by that is that people who try to stay two or three moves ahead rarely have the mental capacity to do so for long enough to stay ahead. To me its like sprinting in the beginning of a marathon. You're dooming yourself when you do it, no matter how hard you've trained. Granted some of us have survived decade upon decade, and have the advantages that longevity brings, but as we've seen with the Harpy, the Herald, and the Prince, age does not equal wisdom.
Pedigree doesn't equal quality."

"They will undoubtedly end their last nights as so much ash and all of their achievements will follow suit. The fact that our memories can't even be trusted after so long...It makes me laugh, literally, to see our kind plot and scheme and...try to anticipate their peers plots and schemes with the knowledge, in lieu of understanding, that the posturing and the titles are all so entirely pointless.
Our pre-Kindred condition hypothesized that, and our Unlives prove it. Don't mistake that for nihilism, because it isn't. Its absurdism, our fucking existence is absurd."

Pausing, Graham stood up and paced.

"So, take your example scenario, one I happen to be intimate with:
We're hunted, forced to go to ground and there are others who are looking for our leadership through said crisis. Conventional protectors are now our enemies. Maybe simple escape from the city is cut off. The way we'd survive -and we would - shouldn't come down to some masterclass contingency. That isn't realistic."

So, hypothetically I'm running this show for whatever reason. I would have established ties with a small coterie. We'd have already assumed this worst case scenario was inevitable, not the opposite. Between now and then, we planned to stay abreast, not ahead, and remained flexible. Traveling light without moving. Our investments would have been our beliefs and in well known people, not resources. The beauty of sentiment is that it doesn't have to be fragile. The historical examples of the poor -half starved, armed with sticks, stones, knives and torches alone- overthrowing the rich time and time again provide apt illustrations of that point.
This prevented our enemies from having anything to leverage against us or our chosen allies. We'd have kept our plans simple, with few moving parts. That prevented sabotage. So really it comes down to them wielding...what, brute force? Against a small, tightly knit unit with a righteous cause? And likely relying on proxies to do it?"

"They wouldn't dare, because if everything I said had gone down, it would cost them far more to stamp us out than to leave us alone.
The fearful are the easiest to lead, and loyalty is the force multiplier. The Invictus in their excess, in their egos, in their arrogance?
They want to indulge. The fearful want to survive."

"So. What would I do? I would encourage that desire, I would make them believe it was possible. And if even one of us did, the rest slain to the man, I won. Because in time they'd have to do it all over again, but with the scars and memories and empty seats at their sumptuous table reminding them how it went down the last time."

He locked his eyes on Thomas. Heated, convicted of it all, finished. He had meant to sound inspiring, but he may have simply sounded suicidal. It was obvious that history had put him shoulder to shoulder with oppression and it had left indelible mental wounds that may never fully heal.

failure

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2019-06-21 16:57:33		Graham rolls 5 to Flying his Carthian Flag (10 Again)		4, 5, 5, 7, 3		failure

"Does that track for you?"

I'm good with that!

Thomas leans back in his chair, making himself comfortable for what the Carthian warned would be a 'lengthy train of thought'. Not only does he stay completely silent and motionless throughout the entire speech, eyes laser-focused on the other Ventrue's form the entire time, the lack of sound (or, as Simon and Garfunkel would say, the sound of silence) persists for several seconds. Thomas thinks, hard, on everything Graham spoke about.

"If I had any doubt in you ability, consider it vanished. It does track for me indeed, and I look forward to our partnership"

It was not even the detailed plan, or the obvious first-hand experience that stood behind it. It was the conviction, the sheer force ofwill that differentiated them from the Succubi. Graham radiated it, even if his words could come off as a bit of a ramble to the uninitiated.

"I have but two more questions and then we'll adjourn. First: do you have someone specific in mind when you say that we should tie ourselves to a coterie? And second: when mortal proxies are concerned, have you thought of a niche for yourself? Me, I have been trying to control those that shape the minds of the masses - academics, religious leaders and journalists. They keep me fed, informed, armed with vectors of propaganda. What about you?"

He will patiently listen to whatever Graham decides to share with him.

"I will register my debt to you with the Harpy - or, if I can't get a hold of her, with the Seneschal. Now, do you feel like sealing this thing of ours with some food? A little bird shared with me the contact information with some" He scoffs "hipsters. I'm sure they won't mind waking up a bit spent in the morning in exchange for our enlightened company"

Devising complex machinations always made him hungry.

I'll close the Scene after Graham's response!

Not bothering to hide the fact that he had been painfully self aware during and after his little tirade, he returned to the previously occupied chair and rolled his head in a circle, his neck neck cracking loudly. He ran one of his hands through his hair and glanced upwards, the gravity of Boyle's words seeming to dawn on him. The Haruspex was willing to take this risk by openly associating him? He wondered what the Domain's specifications were for the formation of such bands. In San Franciso and in Los Angeles, he knew that the First Estate has a way of officiating coteries but Sacramento's domain was rather unique. He'd just have to wait and see.

"No, I haven't had the chance to connect with anyone else yet. I have begun to take the newcomer Art, a haunt, under my wing, such as it is. I had my eye on him for potential recruitment into the Movement, but he actually seems like he could very well benefit from a visit from you, instead. He's very spiritual but it seems like he has yet to have found a belief system he can reconcile with his condition.
On top of that, he's understandably skiddish now, most likely unwilling to cross any of the city's kindred yet. The terrain is unfamiliar to him, after all. But my gut tells me he has a foundation of loyalty when he is treated with compassion. My eyes are definitely on him as an ally, if not a member of our inner circle."

"Everything you've said about the Bishop makes him sound ideal, though. And he's kin to us which...isn't the most important thing, but it helps. That way we're not competing with the possibility of another clan's hostile priscus. But if I am being honest, it is simply too soon for me to recommend anyone I'd trust as much as I now trust you. But this converstion has given me a clear idea of what you're looking for when it comes to developmental information in the city, and since you're taking a chance with me, an even clearer idea of who to look for when it comes to coterie."

As for his own network of information -

"Yes, I have a niche of my own. I can't exactly compete with the Prince's own web, but I am a bit of an urban spider myself. I have an Irish answer to her Italian ranks by way of the Peckerwoods, although I am not 'in' with them well enough to ask them to come running if I needed a gun at my back...Though they'd be happy to sell me one.
And I have spent more than my fair share of time around dealers of all stripes. Designer, street, you name it, I can probably find it, given time. Its a good way to liquidate large amounts of money quickly, and vice versa. Beyond all that, The Movement is very generous when it comes to sharing mortal contacts between domains, and I had already begun to put feelers out even before the gathering of lords some months back. I'll double down and hit the pavement in the coming nights, see who I can either glad hand or shake down to start assembling some muscle."

Graham smiled when Thomas had brought up dinner.

"Ah, pseudo-boheme. My favorite. I would be more than happy to dine with you, Haruspex. Thank you for the hospitality. I look forward to returning the favor - a shared habit I'm happy to pick up."

This was the start of a hideous friendship.

Thank you very much for the scene! I really dig Thomas.

Thank you too! Closing