'No ball-games, no fly-posts, no ball-games. It doesn't matter what pictures spout from the big blue ball. Always there's a war. There was a war before time start, there was the war of Pepper-Pots and Handle-Bar-Men, there was the war of Cleaners, there is the war of Fists now, and there's the war of Goannas coming. If we use all tick-tocks getting ready-steady for war, then all we have is war, and no tick-tocks for fun or life or anything.'

'Before we put Paradise Towers to rights, Cleaners made people unalive and took them to the Basement to be a minced and mushed and recycle-binned. Rezzies were tricky and ate Kangs and did not 'ware the Cleaners and waste disposal shoots when they got sucked down. Caretakers had tools but were dumb-dumbs and helped the Cleaners. Kangs are brave and bold but our arrowguns couldn't hurt the Cleaners. So the Cleaners took us all to the cleaners and to the Basement, to wipe-out all the peoples of Paradise Towers.'

'But we got together at the Great Pool in the Sky, and we worked together with no to-do. The Rezzies knitted nets to bundle-up Cleaners, the Caretakers put splosives on Kang arrowguns to break Cleaners. Caretakers and Rezzies tricked the Cleaners and bundled-them up, and Kangs fired splosive arrows to break them. So Kangs and Caretakers and Rezzies worked together, in all different ways, stronger and braver and bolder together than in parts.'

'What if you make us all the same, make us all Fists, all eggheads in red with fists and foots and dizzy-plans? Then we can only upstand to this army of goannas in one way, your way, and that mayhaps is no way or a wrong way. Mayhaps the Goannas will wipe-out the Fists and make them unalive, easy-peasy? Then we all outgo to the cleaners together, are made unalive together, are wiped out together. Game over.'

'But if we are all different, but all together, we can upstand to the goannas in all ways: right ways, left ways, inways and outways, finding best ways to break the goannas and not be taken to the cleaners. That is how we put all the towers to rights.'

'And your Fists can't catch a Kang, can't catch me if they can. I run in circles around them, jump over them and slime them. So how can they catch a goanna? They move with all speed, have scales and claws and fangs and they're mean lizard-wizards...'

OOC:

Stanley can roll Ingenuity + Medicine + Sonic, plus whatever else, if he wants to scan Warlock.  This is a difficulty 15 check.  The old readings that Trav had stored on Phillipe from way back when are still in the device for comparison.

Trav, you can make your response to Warlock's latest riposte, but you still need to make a reaction (Convince + Resolve -2 for second action, plus anything else you believe works) to Warlock's total of 12, post 389.  Doubtful you'll end up losing Resolve to it, but if you do I suggest that might guide how Trav feels things are going.

Then someone can try their own convince roll.  Depending on how that comes out might affect who Warlock chooses to "target" with his next persuasion action.  Note that you've all been supporting each other, particularly Smoke, Sereth and Trav, so you can get +2 bonuses for each extra person.

OOC: I'll wait for Trav to roll; then unless Trav has a huge objection to it; I'll probably go with the Convince. Convince + Resolve is +7; ignoring any other relevant modifiers. Voice of Authority count for this?

If it doesn't; I think that's +11 for me including the extra people. Is that right? +13 if it does. I -think- if it can be pushed that Sereth is the one who can roll, he has the best chance.

OOC: My Presence + Convince, apply as you like: 12
13:01, Today: Smoke Alarm rolled 12 using 2d6+2 with rolls of 6,4. presence + convince.

OOC: Sereth, Voice of Authority is valid; you're speaking on matters of moral policy and that is squarely in your background.

It is legitimate, by the way, for you all to make separate rolls, so you could make a roll in addition to Smoke if you wanted.  Warlock gets to apply one roll to all of them, same as if a bunch of people were all shooting at you, but in theory that could resolve this more quickly.

In terms of the stakes here, if you "lose the argument" that doesn't mean that your mind is changed -- it will mean that Warlock stops talking and moves on to another type of conflict.

OOC: Okay, I'm actually going to use a story point as well; because I figure Draconians, whether through warfare or diplomacy, like bold opening gambits rather than rearguard actions.

So if my other calculations are correct,  that'll be 4d6 + 14. (5 for presence, 3 for convince, +2 for smoke and +2 traveller's help (I wasn't sure if Stanley or Amanda had pressed the case enough for them to count), +2 for VoA.

Here we go.


22:36, Today: Sereth rolled 25 using 4d6+13 with rolls of 1,1,5,5. Presence + Convince + VOA + SP + helpers. Should be 26 though. (+14 not +13)

"Don't dance around the subject, Warlock. That's your device. Take responsibility for what you're doing with it. I'll get to you later, but I think we really need to get some important people in this conversation. Also - I trust my TARDIS implicitly - a Time Lord and their TARDIS are one. Do you trust your TAROT?" She pauses. "I'm willing to trust you with it, so far."

She turns to Erysk. "But I have to apologize. Fist Erysk, I'm the Traveller. I'm from the planet Gallifrey in the constellation of Kasterborous. I'm the Last of the Time Lords. I'd like to see very much what Warlock has shown you, and understand why you feel that you need to harm and coerce others when it seems deep down that you know such actions are wrong. You certainly have seen what Smoke Alarm has demonstrated to you, and why your actions are chaotic and will only lead to suffering. Please, show me what Warlock has shown you, and explain to me how you understand the situation. Hopefully, I can share some facts with you, and we can come to a compromise. If this continues, this will escalate, and the Draconians will not allow you to conquer them. There is a peaceable solution to this crisis. Let's talk."

The Traveller rolled 22 using 4d6+9 with rolls of 1,1,6,5. Trav makes the case with Erysk. 2d6+Presence+Convince+VOA+Assist+SP.
This message was last edited by the GM at 02:12, Fri 23 May 2014.

Stanley points the sonic at Warlock and scans him, using setting 964 as suggested by Trav.

OOC:
I am going to spend a Story Point, because why not :)
21:07, Today: Stanley Newton rolled 31 using 4d6+10 with rolls of 4,6,5,6. Ingenuity(4) + Medicine (4) +Sonic(2)+ SP(+2d6).

This message was last edited by the player at 19:10, Thu 22 May 2014.

Trav:

The Guardian, for the NPC Erysk, rolled 13 using 2d6+10 with rolls of 1,2. Against Trav's case: Convince(4) + Resolve(4) + Empathic(2).

Erysk listens carefully and seriously to the Traveller.  She nods as Trav concludes.  "I saw fleets of warships encircling worlds of a billion souls," she says.  "I saw thousand-ton projectiles dropped from orbit, to annihilate defiant cities.  I saw factories and fields worked by slaves held and gunpoint."  Her voice softens.  "I saw a young man being pushed to master knowledge that his captors did not themselves understand, and put into terrible agony when he failed.  I am not proud of all the things that the people in my Order have done, Traveller, and I do not ask to be forgiven my part in them.  I am willing to work with you to find another way.  But I am only a minor officer of the Order, and I can speak only for myself."

Sereth:

The Guardian, for the NPC Warlock, rolled 19 using 4d6+9 with rolls of 6,2,1,1. Against Sereth's speech: Convince(3) + Resolve(4) + Brave(2) + Story Point.

You beat him by 7, so your full Presence(5) gets applied to his Resolve(4), and he capitulates.

It seems to Sereth as if Warlock must have been nursing a grudge against the Traveller for a long, long time -- long enough, perhaps, that he had a well-rehearsed argument and a well-prepared facade of confidence to hold up against her.  But against the case that Sereth presents, that mask seems to crack.  The change in Warlock is not profound: it's a hair-thin loss of bravado, a slight slump in the shoulders.  But Sereth suddenly sees how young the man is at heart, and how tired he must be of always pretending to more strength and wisdom that he has.

"I've really not said a word that wasn't true, Legate," Warlock says.  "I really do not want to be this thing that the Gehennans wanted to make me.  Maybe that was the problem all along.  Maybe they showed that to me to make me willing to fight so hard, to do go to such lengths, to make sure that I walked right down the very path that would lead me there."

He looks at Trav.  There's still pain when he does that.  "I also did not lie when I told you, I am really not the leader of the Fists -- Lucin is the one who had the vision; he is the one who set the strategy.  So I'm not sure that my yelling stop! is going to be all that effective.  Unless I, we, really did do something to alter peoples' minds.  Ironically enough."  He shakes his head.  "I'm sorry, Traveller.  I've just been doing what I thought was right."

Warlock bows his head.  "If you can -- if you would -- help me.  Please."
This message was last edited by the GM at 02:17, Fri 23 May 2014.

Sereth merely nods, and regards Traveller for a long moment. However ill-conceived Warlock's methods were, there was a grudge there; and the reason why would need to be examined at some point.

"As I said, I had no doubt of this army, and the size of it. I also have no doubt that you feel your grudge against the Traveller is legitimate, and I'm not even going to question that for right now."

He then regarded everyone for a moment.

"Where to from here? I can -talk- to people; but we can't move quickly enough to stop this with mere words? Any tricks?"


And then, he strode directly to Warlock, and grasped his arm.

"You did what you thought was right. It may have been wrong, but you did not do it out of malice; and you listened. YOu are a good man."

Stanley:

Okay, that was a crazily high roll, more than twice the difficulty I set.  So I'm going to take this all off the rails a bit.

What you see here takes place semi-simultaneously with Warlock's conversation with the others.

As Stanley starts running the scan, he starts seeing the expected metabolic and DNA signatures that he remembers going over with Trav and with Phillipe, not long after he first met the two of them.  The sonic starts analyzing the data, and running mathematical transformations to try to match it up with the historical data on Phillipe.

Then, something quite unexpected happens.

In front of Stanley's eyes, the air seems momentarily to split up in a sight-rending interference pattern.  The others don't seem to notice, but Warlock reacts to it -- in a moment of surprise and shock, as if it was nothing that he expected either.  Stanley feels a moment of vertigo when it ends.  There's a purple afterimage hanging in his vision that clears only slowly.  Stanley is almost unsurprised when he realizes that the afterimage is made up of words:


When he manages to focus on the readings from the sonic again, Stanley sees the bio-signature transforming over and over into new shapes, mutating as it goes.  He sees the readout briefly flash MATCH: EVERS and later MATCH: FORTUNA.

After it runs through multiple sequences, he sees the pattern start to unfold.  He can't track what all of the pieces of it mean -- but at the end, the pattern has whole vast stretches that bear no relation to anything in the original, "Phillipe" pattern, nor the "Warlock" scan.  It needs real work to analyze properly, and Stanley knows that he'd have to learn a lot more than he knows now to understand it.

But even with his present level of knowledge, he can only see what has grown out of the bio-signature as something monstrous.
This message was last edited by the GM at 02:16, Fri 23 May 2014.

The other Order technicians in the room are looking uneasily at Warlock and at Traveller's group.

Trav smiles, as she steps back, letting Sereth take the lead. She takes off her hat. "I'm *so sorry* I lost track of you. I can understand if you can't forgive me, Warlock, but I never meant to hurt you. Thank you, Thank you for listening. And no, it's OK, it's only the method, not the intent."

She decides to take a risk, and places her hands on his wrists. "We may not be entirely good, but I'll do everything I can make things right by you. We'll work together to deal with the Gehennans. Maybe you can let me show you some things about your partner there, the TAROT."  She pauses, considering something, and then says something she's been considering for a long time. "Maybe, if you would want to, I can pass onto you the legacy of what was good in Gallifrey - how we stood and defended the Time Vortex. The work of the Doctor. I can pass onto you the legacy of being a Time Lord, and you can help defend this crazy beautiful universe and help people stay free and safe, once I'm gone. Hm. Hm?" Yes, every one of them, she finds herself falling in love with.




"Oh, baby. Anything I have and can do, you've got it."



Since Trav is looking straight at Warlock, she probably notices Stanley and Warlock startle. "Stan? What's wrong?"

"Fist Erysk, Thank you so much for listening. We all need to know what you've experienced. I don't deny the reality of the threat that Warlock and all of you are preparing for. However, free people working together can overcome any tyrant - I've seen it over and over across time and space. All of us here - " She motions to her companions - "are working to form a Parliament of Time." Others across history have also seen this vision, but it's not a fixed point in time. If you and Warlock can help us meet your leader Lucin, maybe we can all work together to face this threat. I don't think you're as alone as you might think. And as for forgiveness... Well, let's say that I was much like this evil you were fighting, once, before destiny decided to take mercy on me, and I found my way back. Now, I have a lot to pay back, and so I continue the Doctor's work."
This message was last edited by the player at 02:29, Fri 23 May 2014.

Trav smiles and nods in agreement.

For once, Smoke Alarm didn't have anything to add to the discussion. She could tell they'd made Wall Lock unbold about his dizzy-plans. Mayhaps he would start playing nice. But would the rest of the Fists? Or would they want to keep being caretakers? 'Oh, Erysk, this is Traveller. And Stanley and Sereth and Amanda. You can how-you-do later.' she made belated introductions. 'And talking for yourself is enough.'

Then Stanley went all sleepy and Smoke outlooked in concern.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:02, Fri 23 May 2014.

"Sereth - we need to see their vision first. We need to see what is so god awful frightening that the Fists have mobilized like this. Then, we meet their leader, and plead their case. I'd like to see the Fists return governance of their captured worlds to their inhabitants, and hopefully introduce them to our growing alliance."

The US and UNIT of the 35th century. The Splintered Sisterhood. The Chamber of Time Unwrought. Now, hopefully, the Fists of the 31 Suns...

And potentially, The Cyberiad.

Oh yeah. The folks at Arden would love her to death.

Stanley takes a step back and shakes his head. "I...I don't know. The scan turned...it... it is hard to describe what happened. I have a bad feeling about this. A really bad feeling.... The sonic was busy analysing and all of a sudden I saw something, a message: Sin.Tragedy falls. " Stan repeats himself." Sin. Tragedy falls."

"But that is not the worst part. The bio-signature also changed, during the analysis." He looks at Warlock. "There were matches for Evers and Fortuna, but the pattern kept changing and changing. I don't know who or what the end result describes, but it is not Phillipe or Warlock. Compared to the scans of Phillipe and Warlock, there are long sequences in the pattern that are completely different. I don't know where they came from or what they imply, but I don't like it."

Stanley takes another step back, back towards the Tardis. "Don't trust him Trav! Don't trust him. There is obviously something going on. We need to analyse this data first."

OOC: Yeah, that was a good roll. That shows how powerful even a single Story Point can be :).
This message was last edited by the player at 19:01, Fri 23 May 2014.

Trav holds up her hands. "Stan, relax. It'll be OK. We're not doing anything until we check the data. Let me see the sonic."

Presuming that Stan hands over the sonic, Trav pulls out her I pad.  She immediately locks down the sonic, starts diagnostics, and dumps the data. "Mandy, I'm making sure my sonic isn't dangerous to anyone. Can you please check Stan out medically? Smoke sweety, please go into the TARDIS and get both my backup sonic and the big mauve box right next to the door. My backup is over on the left hand side of the main console, away from the door."
This message was last edited by the player at 03:05, Sat 24 May 2014.

Stanley quickly gives Trav the sonic, his hand shaking slightly. "Thanks, but that won't be necessary, Amanda. Really, I am fine. I was just caught of guard by the whole thing."
This message was last edited by the player at 20:36, Fri 23 May 2014.

'Okay.' Smoke Alarm glared fiercely at the Wall Lock before turning and rushing into the talkiphone box, briefly pausing at the door and raising both hands to decide which was left.

Dashing across the console room, she soon lost-and-found the back-up sonic, just like the one Traveller was now playing with. She had more trouble with the box. Sticking her blue head out the door, she asked 'What's a "mauve"?' There was only one box, but she wanted to be sure. If it was like a moving box, it might have moved away.

"What's that they say about a doctor who treats himself?"

Amanda takes hold of Stanley's chin.  She holds up one clawed finger and moves it back and forth, watching how Stanley's eyes track, and then takes out a pen light to examine them.

"But in fact, I think you are all right.  We can check a couple of other things later in the TARDIS -- that's where I keep my lollipops, in any event."  She winks.

Warlock stares wildly at Stanley.  "What?  No, you're wrong -- I mean, I know my biology's not quite like yours, but I swear I'm on the level!"

Fire doors on the far side of the auditorium crash open, and half a dozen Fists burst through them.  These aren't like Warlock's assistants: they're young and athletic and determined-looking.

Smoke recalls how, before the TARDIS arrived and the ensuing not-quite how-you-do, Warlock had called for these reinforcements.
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:00, Sat 24 May 2014.

Trav purses her lips as she extends her hand to Amanda, urging her to toss her one of her pistols. "Smoke - Mauve is purple. Yeah, that box!" She takes her back up sonic from Smoke - something smaller looking.

Then the new Fists burst in.

"Warlock - I believe you, but I think you've been compromised. Are you coming with me?" She says this from behind the TARDIS force field - invisible, but certainly present. She says this as she takes aims her backup sonic back at the TARDIS. The sensors activate, and are conducting a full spectrum scan of the blue sphere, with all defenses fully activated.

She stands by the door. "I won't leave you behind again, Phillipe."

OOC: Can we assume that Trav's backup sonic has zero story points and essentially an extension of the TARDIS equipment?
This message was last edited by the player at 02:58, Sat 24 May 2014.