Libertines Assemble!

[Falstaff]

"Falstaff," Falstaff introduces. "But you can call me Falstaff. I'm pretty much Ermie's go-to right-hand guy, second boss so to speak. We're besties. My specialties are fun and foolishness, and also fun. And, before you ask, yes, I've tried Rogaine, and it only worked on my toes--I guess the water washed it down there from my head. I don't know. I suppose it could have gone worse, could of gave me sasquatch balls--then I'd need a nose-hair trimmer every time I wanted to take a piss. Not that I piss too regular; on the contrary, I piss quite normally . . . except when I take multivitamins. I like the little-kid gummy bear ones, but sometimes I eat too many. Thus the abnormal, albeit not-often, strange piss." He smiles, nods, meets everyone's eyes in turn. "Nice to meetcha."

[Crowley]

Crowley appears from the bushes, brushing twigs and leaves from his coat as he makes his way casually over to the Gazebo. Today he is waring a dark bandana in addition to his trench coat and steel capped boots. And he looks happily demented about it.

"Well, good day to you all. I think we are... no. Some are missing..." He speaks up, loud enough to advertise his presence but in such a way that he could be speaking to any of the assembled party. Turning his attention to Ermac, he nods out of respect. "Syndic. How goes?"

By then, of course, is among the gathering. "Hey. Yes. I made it. Crowley and Herald." He flashed a grin. Nonchalantly fishing for his cigarettes, he inquired: "So. Whats this bash for? Talking shop of partying?"

[Emrys]

Emrys nodded and smiled to each Libtertine as they made their introduction. Einstein was the most forthcoming, but when Ermac dropped his true name? He trusted the counsel with his name but not his skill set? Okay....

Then there was Hope, who's choppy speech pattern left Emrys a bit confused. Then Falstaff. Oh boy Falstaff. The river of verbal diarrhea that flowed from his mouth was enough to wash away any signs of joy from the Enchanter. If Falstaff was being funny, Emrys didn't get it. In fact, it seemed to irritate him.

Before anything could be said though Crowley made his way over. "Why not both?" The new Voter asked. A small smile formed as Emrys forced thoughts of Falstaff out of mind to continue to more important matters."I wanted to see who we had and what their skill sets are. I was hoping to find a bit more of a Column for defense, but there's no shame in leaning on the Arrow if they are a dependable sort."

The Enchanter shrugged. "Help yourself to grub and drink Crowley, but we did our rounds of intros already and I think it's time to talk a bit of shop." He points with his beer to the sandwiches and beverages while scanning the group. "When I first arrived I scheduled a meeting with Ermac then Crowley and we had a quick talk. Both mentioned that the Concilium is in a state of transition and growth. While I admit I didn't think to ask, neither commented on the state of the Assembly, and the only one with official responsibilities that I am aware of within the Order is Ermac in his capacity as Syndic."

Emrys paused for a moment and took a sip of his beer. "Heirarchy fosters the Lie, each of us were told this before joining the Counsel. That doesn't mean we have to be disorganized. I asked you for skill sets and intros because I think we have plenty of positions to fill. There should be more then one Syndic to present a fair debate, there are supposed to be more then one anyway so that a well informed argument can be raised for the Voters to make informed decisions. Crowley could easily be filling the role of Emissary to the Concilium if he isn't already, and I was wondering if we had any volunteers for the Minutemen to get a Column going for the Assemblies defense."

Organization and Heirarchy were different things, and the lack of the former didn't really have a bearing on the presence of the latter. Time for the FC to organize and show why they were a serious Order.

[Einstein]

Einstein noted Ermac's using his real name again -apparently he did it with everyone. Kind of a strange mannerism, seeing what a Mage with the will could do with someone's name, but hey, it was his choice. She took special note of how the experiences people were behaving around Falstaff. She couldn't quite figure out why, but their smiles faded and they looked angry when he spoke. As far as she could tell, he seemed to be a fun guy, not one that should provoke that kind of reaction. He did seem a tad foolish, but that might just be the first impression. In any case, she shrugged and turned her attention back to Emrys as he started giving his speech. He was looking for volunteers? She raised her hand. "I'm pretty new, and I don't think I'd do too well as a Minuteman -those are the Assemblies guard-fighter-people, right-? But if you need volunteers for that, I can put a little effort into learning it." She shrugged. "I mean, I guess we can rely on the Arrow until we get a decent number of them to do that work. It's their job to protect the Consilium, right? We're still part of it, whether they like it or not."

[Crowley]

Crowley simply listed and purloined for himself a drink. Finding a place to lean comfortably, he waited to see how this particular vote would go.

[Falstaff]

Falstaff looks at Emrys, and then Ermac, and then Emrys again--soul twins. He's wary of anyone with ambition. Even if it's innocent, it rarely stays that way. Good intentions go awry. Still . . . movement. Forward movement. That's the way of the future, the way of the Free Council. The way of Falstaff, then, however much it may steal him from his sofa. "Censorship, when there are no ears but ours to hear? I hope I never see the day a Libertine doesn't speak their mind in a meeting of the same." The act brings out the serious side of the Fool, none too intimidating at four-eight, but height was a part of the Lie.

Column? He doesn't see any hands. And then he sees Hope's. He places an arm on her shoulder. "That kind of declaration,"--he tips his head at her raised hand--"is the essence of productivity." Standing beside her, he raises his free hand. "I can fight." He would let Time be the measure of the understatement. No use, now, to mince words with Ermac or his clone. Necessary? Sure. But Falstaff will make sure neither the word "Silver" nor the word "Ladder" finds its way into "Free Council." "I'll add that there's more to fighting than just fighting. Even if you don't fancy yourself a fighter but you have the will to tear at the Lie with action, don't discount yourself--every Column has auxiliary needs. And, if you want it bad enough, this Fool will put in the Time to make a toughie out of you." Hearing himself break role bites at his inner actor, but he had been the one to speak of breaking pretense in private company . . . Best not to be both a Fool and hypocrite.

[Emrys]

The smile the Enchanter wore widened at Einstein's choice to volunteer. It was however diminished by Hope's opinion of the Arrow and Ermac's response. And then suddenly Falstaff isn't bug fuck nuts? What the hell was happening?

"As a Libertine you are entitled to your opinion. Not even a Syndic or Strategos can rob you of your will." His hand tightened around the beer, and he clenched his jaw for a second before continuing. "Here's the thing though. The Pentacle? It's the Orders too. The Diamond is an archaic establishment, but that is part of the Counsel's purpose. We bring vitality and reformation to what would otherwise be a stagnant institution. When the five Orders work in unison the Supernal's the limit."

It sounded a bit optimistic, even to Emrys. When every duck was in line you could work like a well oiled machine, but when one steps out? Someone should ask DC's Epopt about that.

"So that's myself, Falstaff, Hope, and Einstein for the Column? Excellent." His grip loosened, and Emrys took a sip. One. Long. Sip. "We should look for somewhere to train, and we can deal with Strategos and Citizen Agents once we build a bit more trust and get skill sets detailed out. In the meantime, we need a second Syndic. They function as statesmen and present the issues to inform Voters and empower them to make informed and well thought out decisions. Ermac is supposed to be functioning in that capacity now, but we are supposed to have at least two to present different perspectives on an argument. I volunteer myself for the position with Ermac, but if any others would like to volunteer speak up and tell us why you are interested."

Eyes scanned the crowd, wondering who if any would want the job.