Ripped apart, you fall, plunge, each and everyone of you.  There are dozens, no hundreds of other you's dropping through a rainbow colored sky.  Some are cartoon versions, one is a Starfleet version, one is dressed in a Hawaiian tourist get-up, one has a spacesuit on, and one is you as a punk rocker with a blue and orange mohawk.

They all wave cheerfully back and forth at each other as you plunge down to a planet.

Once there, you feel weight upon you. Heavy weight.  Which you realize is real.

You're laying stomach down in something muddy/sticky, and it feels like something is pressing down hard on you.

The air is thick with the smell of a fragrant perfume, a thick, heavy tropical scent.

A sing-song murmur of voices comes to your ear.

PT

Realization comes slowly.

:Oh, NO!  I must have botched, and died, and ended up in... another universe.:

:But what will become of the Marcus Caine, and the mission?:

:Dear LORD, give me strength.:

I pause, taking a slow, quiet, deep breath, or as deep and soothing as I can with something pressing on me so much.  Was something really on top of me?  Or was the ship's gravity less than I was aware of?  Or is this planet's gravity heavier?

:Dear LORD, thank you for the assurance that I was there where and when I needed to be for your good purposes.  Thank you that you are Sovereign, and therefore if I am now here instead of there, it is again by your will.:

:Help me to leave loss and grief behind, and trust in you, and serve you however you want me to in this place.  Please give me your strength, and your wisdom.:

:I pray in Jesus' name...  Amen.:

With another slow deep breath, still with eyes closed, I quietly attempt to send my awareness out via clairvoyance, and see what can be seen of my current surroundings, and what presses upon me, and what the sources of the voices are...
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:47, Wed 20 Dec 2006.

You pray, and feel calm drift like a wind through your soul.

You send out your clairvoyance, and it seems easier a bit.

You're laying facedown on the mud road edge of a rice paddy.  One paddy over, you see a number of Caucasian males in loin cloths that are working slowly in their rice paddy.

They are all thin, but their muscles bulge out of their bodies like wires.

There is something odd about how they move.

There is nothing on your back.

The planet does seem heavier.

About a half mile away, you can see a small hill with odd, short trees, and thatch buildings that form a village.

In the sky, you see two enormous planets,one yellow-orange and taking up a fifth of the sky, and one bright green, and taking a twentieth of the sky.

There is also a bright star overhead.

PT

:Wow.  Another planet.  With heavy gravity, it would seem.  And with humans.:

Still motionless, I gently send my clairvoyant perceptions over to the group of nearby rice paddy workers, observing them.

Do they speak English, and if so, what are they saying?  What causes them to move oddly, the gravity or something else?  What are their respective moods and personalities?  Such are the questions with which I approach them, even while my body lays still...

OOC: Is the illumination more like day or night?  How much light is coming from the star and planets overhead?
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:10, Wed 20 Dec 2006.

The language is not English.  Its more liquid and flowing than English.

It seems they very carefully place their feet to make sure they have good footing as they move.  You can see their muscles jump about like cords when they do move.

Each one might be a max one-hundred forty pounds, but of that maybe three percent is body fat.

As a group they seem enduring, and chatty, but with frequent pauses to catch their breath.

The light seems dim, like twilight.  You can't see a sun in the sky, but the planets are throwing much light to the surface.

PT

:Dear LORD, please guide me...:

Without sending my own thoughts, I attempt to make telepathic contact with the most pleasant looking of the workers, in order to tap into the language center of his brain.

With that, hopefully, I will be able to understand their conversation, and gain some insight into their language and culture and world...

You try a couple of times, but with no success.

PT

:Uh oh...  This could be harder than I thought...:

I clairvoyantly regard the others, and repeat my attempt with the most intelligent looking one...

OOC: Well the dice weren't liking you.  You almost botched your first skill roll here.  Now you have 1@1 Tap Language Center.

IC: "Eh, Carl, get that weed."
"My daughter Lisa's getting old enough to marry."
"Take her to Froston Town."
"Ah, but the Stationers go there."
"Ummm."
"Found me a snake. Redwhite. Last night."
"Good. Mebbe I can get an egg now from my flock."
"Flock?! You have one hen, Joe."
"Buy the snake leather off you, I would."
"How much."
"A tamgres of corn meal, and a handful of Froston wheat."
"Hmmmm."
"Thats a good offer."
"It is, but I was thinking my wife might like a belt."
"I won't get my wife a belt."
"Why not?"
"She'd use it to wake me up from my nap."
A general bubble of laughter greets this jibe.

PT

I ponder their conversation, taking comfort in the familiarity of a relatively simple life with simple needs, and familiar family structures, and familiar humor.  The language may be different, but at least the culture is not immediately incomprehensible.  Although, I reflect ruefully, it is often the cultures that seem similar on the surface that can trip you up the most with unexpected twists when your guard is lowered...

But one part of their conversation stands out...

:'Take her to Froston Town.'  'Ah, but the Stationers go there.'  'Ummm.':

An unknown element, these "Stationers".  A feeling of "we" versus "they", as far as the nearby workers are concerned.  And having just been on a space ship in another universe, and now finding myself on a strange planet, such a "station" could be on the planet, or could even be in orbit.

And if these simple workers feel wary of "Stationers", how will they perceive me, were I to suddenly appear among them?

:'Ummm.':

I ponder, and pray.

Then I use the already-established telepathic link to the most intelligent worker to start reading his memories, looking for what he knows about "Stationers", and how he feels about them, and why...
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:29, Wed 20 Dec 2006.

The rice farmer is very intelligent, but you can see his potential is largely unused.  He's aware of that, but doesn't particularly mind.

Searching his memory, you find a clear image of a tall, sturdy man in a black uniform of something that looks synthetic to you, and he knows it as sera-silk.  At the man's waist is some sort of odd sword, and heavy bracelets adorn his wrists.

He's clearly taller, and stronger than the native.

Your view flashes to a bar in Froston Town. The same man walks in, orders a meal and a beer, and complains about its quality after eating it, and walks out without paying.  The owner complains, and ...fast forward..later that night, you see the bar burning as you walk back out of town, heading back to your village, and away from the Stationers who come in their silver flying cars from another sun.

He hates them, but not strongly.  More, he recognizes their power, and sees it from their point of view.  They are stronger, and so they don't see anything wrong with taking what they want.  Your host doesn't agree with that philosophy, but he understands it.

Much later, there's another memory. A Stationer, evidently the same man. He's found dead by a road with his throat slit.  Your guy is frightened, and with his friends rather desperately buries the man-thing so that none of the others of him will know of this, although he fears that their strange witchery might let them know anyways.

PT

I take in this information thoughtfully.

:'...away from the Stationers who come in their silver flying cars from another sun...'

Perhaps this "station" is further away than simply on the planet, or even in orbit.  Some type of starbase in this general region of space, perhaps?

After pondering this a bit, I follow the threads of interconnected memories to Froston Town, seeking information about how far away it is, and how often the Stationers visit there, and how many.

And from there, I seek other threads of interconnected memories to the local geography in general, and what else is nearby, and what is in the nearby village...

OOC: BTW, I already successfully tapped into Maggie's language center aboard the Marcus Caine, when practicing face to face with her.  This time, I did so via clairvoyance.  Does that count as a new skill use, and therefore an extra little boost to my skill level???  :D
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:35, Wed 20 Dec 2006.

Its two days walk away.  You only get images of one Stationer, the guy you already met, although sometimes he has on different uniforms.  He has no real idea how often they visit other than 'sometimes they are there, sometimes they are not.'  However, he has visited it 22 times, and seen Stationers there 7 times.

His cousins on his wife's side are in the next village, plus they have some good fishing in the river.

You're in the middle of a great flatland with swamp to the south.  There are numerous slow rivers, and one great river, the ahem, Great River.  He's heard rumors of something called an ocean.  He's not sure if thats a matter of confusion on the teller's part, and what they really mean is space.

PT

From thoughts of local geography and Stationers, I follow the threads of interconnected memories, trying to glean whatever knowledge he has of civilization.

What are his duties?  Whom does he serve?  What is today's date, and what is the calendar like?  What history does he know of?  What technology does he know of?  What stories has he heard, of events here and/or elsewhere, and now and/or elsewhen?  What religious knowledge and belief system does he have?

And... how is he likely to react to a stranger like me?

He's a rice farmer, and being groomed to be on the council of elders.  He rules his thatched hut with more confidence that the woman and his seven children will do what he says than your typical American male, although he does have to keep an eye on his wife who likes to play tricks on him when she's mad at him.

He's a loyal supporter of the High Evapt of Tamiglieu which comprises the settled area of the Planet Oleander, except for some barbarians.  He is civilization.

His ancestors in the far past, the tenth generation, were brought from....

And the link fades.  You feel like your mind is tired, like you've just done a hard coding problem.

PT

As the contact fades, I give a weary sigh.

I have conserved my physical strength as much as possible, knowing that my stamina and muscles will not last very long under this strong gravity.  In time, LORD willing, my muscles will slowly start looking like these rice farmers.  For now, I'm not sure if I'll even be able to walk to the nearby village.

But now my mental strength is depleted, and I must rest from my psionic exertions.

I have gathered a reasonable amount of information.  But perhaps I can try to do more, particularly if I am unable to tap into anyone's language centers for awhile.

I stretch out my thoughts to sense where my belongings are, and also check to see if I detect any other versers.

Then I open my eyes, and gently push myself up to a crawling position.

Assuming that my primary small comp unit is nearby (since it was in my quarters with me aboard the Marcus Caine when I versed out), I quietly retrieve it, and quietly enter instructions:

Computer.

No audio output.  Output via holographic display, oriented on a horizontal plane just above ground level, just below me.

Record and analyze audio from nearby conversation.  Cross reference foreign language data banks.  Identify foreign language.  Provide a continuous written translation.

Analyze visible stars and planets, including star spectra and current planet's gravity if possible.  Identify current location on galatic map, relative to Earth.  Identify current date, based upon star positions.

Your belongings are right next to you since you were in your cabin when you versed out.

You sweat from the movement, but its not too much of a strain.  The gravity feels to be about fifty percent more than you are used to.

The computer listens for a good twenty minutes as the farmers move further away.

"Out of range of audio. Current confidence is 85%. Language derivative: Vietnamese 60%; French 10%; English 5%; Uncertain 10%; Unknown 15%."

The men keep talking about farming and village related issues, and you did read one say..."Next set of five rows, rest break."

"This star is Rigel with high probability, 97%, due to the landmark the Rigel Coronosphere Storm. Others unknown at current time.  To complete computation should take Two Days, Four Hours, and Twenty-Seven Minutes.  However, given Earth atmospheric conditions for star magnitude comparison, we can be no more than eight hundred lightyears from Earth.  Do you wish me to complete this calculation, and at what priority level?"

No, discontinue calculation.

Computer, I am lost, and wish to make peaceful contact with these men.

What is current confidence probability that a sufficient language sample has been obtained to enable two-way audio translation between their language and English, so that I may establish simple communications with them, and successfully signal my peaceful intentions?

95%

PT

Computer.  Scan for detectable electronic communications.  Record and analyze, and identify language(s).  Provide a continuous written translation.

As the computer carries out this task, I take the opportunity to pack up my loose odds and ends into my suitcase, rest my tired psionic resources a bit longer, and let the men approach the time of their rest break.

Then I attempt to reestablish contact with the intelligent one, tapping into his language center and his surface thoughts.

If I am successful, I try to maintain the link as I prepare to approach them.  Either way, when they take their rest break...

Computer.  I am now approaching the men.  Please provide two-way audio translation for our conversation.  Record conversation as well.  Discontinue holographic display.

Then, keeping my primary small comp unit in my hand, a dazzle stick in one pocket, and some glow balls in the other, I quietly and non-threateningly approach the group of men resting.

"Hello.  I mean no harm.  I am friendly.  I am lost.  Can you help me?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:05, Fri 22 Dec 2006.

They gasp, and then they look at each other in shock and terror.

"He knows."
"The body.  I knew we should have burned it."
"Do we...?"
"No real choice."  The smart guy says.  "We'll have to make it look like a wild animal, a wolf got him."

With fear inscribed on their faces, they pull up their hoes, and one pulls out a bent curved knife.  They begin to spread out so they can attack you from all sides.

PT
OOC: Heh-heh. Well, I'm enjoying this.  That is a botch on your friendliness skill.

OOC: Questions:

(Q1) Any detectable electronic communications?
(Q2) If so, form and content?
(Q3) Do I currently have a telepathic link to the intelligent guy?
(Q4) When are you going to thaw out those frozen botch dice???  :p

There is a detectable location finder system from orbit.  There is also a conversation between two people or perhaps one who is monologuing.  However its in a language the computer is searching for right now.

Radio waves.

No contact I believe.  Besides, even if you did want to talk to him, mind-to-mind, that would be a new skill.

Santa said it was either lots of botch dice or a coal for Christmas...:)  Personally, I think you'll be able to get out of this, but maybe not.  As to dice, well, if they get too bad, I can fudge a bit when I think the dice are being inaccurate.  Lets say, I did play with one guy who could not seem to roll a decent dice roll--the gm for that game overrode the dice a bit because otherwise the character would not have accomplished all that much, and with decent plans too.

PT

OOC: Well, you know what "Santa" is an anagram for...  :o

OK, I'll try to survive somehow...  :P

Ack!  I forgot one other very important question:

(Q5) Did I detect any other versers???
This message was last edited by the GM at 05:42, Sat 23 Dec 2006.

No versers detected.

PT
OOC: And yes, I do.

I quietly draw my dazzle stick, slowly backing away.

"I am not defenseless.  And I can go where you cannot follow."

"I know you do not want to attack me.  You do have a choice.  'Depart from evil, and do good.'"

"Please do not make me use my weapon."

"Even now, you can choose to help me, and I can reward you in return.  Think of your families.  Let us be friends."

And I silently pray as I await their answer.

Then, remembering my stay in Haston, I start quietly singing...

^{'Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths...'}

If they do not turn back from stalking me, then I will wait until their enclosing circle is of nine foot radius, or until someone moves closer to attack.  Then I will quickly move the dazzle stick above my head (and out of my own view), and activate it.
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:21, Fri 29 Dec 2006.

The smart guy nods.

"Look friend, we don't want to hurt you, but you have us in a difficult place.  We let you go, you talk, we get in a lot of trouble, probably get rocks dropped on our village from orbit.  So how are you going to prove you're not going to turn us in?  And less you get the wrong idea, you don't have to believe me, but I didn't do anything, but stumble on a situation.  Now other people might not see it like that, might prefer to drop rocks first, and sift the ashes for answers, and so if it comes to protecting my family, or you....well...."

He shrugs.

PT

I nod thoughtfully in return, and regard them openly and honestly.

"You already know that I'm not going to turn you in, because I haven't already done so, but came to you instead."

"For I know that you did not slay that Stationer.  I read your thoughts before I ever approached you, and I saw it all within your mind.  I know that he was found dead by a road with his throat slit.  I know that you were frightened, and with your friends rather desperately buried the Stationer so that none of the other Stationers would know of this, although you feared that their strange witchery might let them know anyways."

"After I knew this, I could have communicated with the Stationers if I had wished.  But I am not a Stationer.  I come from much, much farther away, and am lost here."

"And so when I found myself stranded here, I knew I had a choice."

"I could choose to contact the Stationers for help.  The same Stationers that you want to avoid bringing your daughters near.  The same Stationers that do things like burn down a bar in Froston Town when the owner complains about an unpaid bill.  The same Stationers that take what they want because they are stronger."

"Or... I could choose to contact you for help instead."

"You, not a murderer, but a rice farmer, being groomed to be on the council of elders.  You, not a murderer, but a loyal supporter of the High Evapt of Tamiglieu on the Planet Oleander.  You, not a murderer, and your wife, and your seven children, who are indeed worth protecting."

"And so... I chose to seek help from you."

"So you know that I am not a threat to you because I approached you.  And you also know that I am not a threat to you because I do not ask you to help me by bringing me to the Stationers at this time."

"Rather, I ask you to help me by allowing me to stay among you."

"I know many things, and would be honored to be a teacher to you and yours, and thus earn my living.  And, if you wish, you may keep me under your watchful eyes until you know in your hearts that I am trustworthy, and do not seek your harm."

"I have seen within your mind, and I see you have much potential.  Would you not profit from a man of learning among you?"

"Or, if this is not pleasing to you, then teach me to work as you do, and you will have an extra pair of hands to labor beside you, still under your watchful eyes."

I slowly lower my dazzle stick.

"I had to choose between you and the Stationers.  And I chose you.  Did I choose well?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 06:16, Tue 02 Jan 2007.

They stare at you, and several turn and stare at the smart guy for confirmation.  His stunned look tells all, and suddenly the whole group is diving for the ground.

They put their faces to the dirt, and toss aside their weapons as if they were filthy things.  You see one weapon plonk on a neighbour's back to no harm.

"Master, we're sorry, please don't strike us down.  Have mercy, don't write our names among the Brigands and Pirates who infest the Outer Dark."

The last phrase has the sound of ritual.

PT

I quietly put my dazzle stick back into my pocket.

"'Peace be unto you.'"

"'Stand up; I myself also am a man.'"

I gently go to each of them, and tenderly raise each of them back up.

"Yes, I too am just a man."

"And the LORD God Almighty whom I serve, the Sovereign Creator of all things, is 'merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin...', through the redeeming blood of Jesus Christ."

I regard them gently.

"I would not be a Master above you, for the LORD God Almighty whom I serve, he alone is Master."

"But if you would have me, I would be honored to dwell with you for a time, and teach you and yours of what I know, and learn from you of what you know."

"Yea, if you would have me, I would be honored to work along side of you in the fields... and to call you 'friend'."

They accept your offer of being a teacher, and working in the fields.

After that, they take you back to their village which is a difficult trek for you, and then let you lie down on a mat-chair with a cup of water in a coconut shell mug.  While you're recovering, they begin to prepare a feast.

Once in the modestly walled village on the hill, you can smell the heavy odor of a large, white flower on some twice man tall bushes.  This seems to be a part of the food supply as well since you see a young girl grinding up with a pestle and stone faded petals and tossing them into the community rice and other pot.

People bustle about, but with frequent rest stops, and you see that stepping stones are everywhere.  No one, not even the children run.

PT

As we depart for the village, I retrieve (thankfully accepting their help if offered) my other belongings, so that they will be in the village with me.

:Dearest LORD, thank you for your mercies.  Guide me now, I pray...:

I thank them for their kind hospitality, and lie back wearily, sipping my cup of water and watching the preparations.

<sup><sub>Computer.  What is the status of the electronic communication analysis?  Have you been able to identify the language and content of the transmissions?

Cross-reference organic databases.  Please analyze and identify that large white flower, and its properties.

Continue recording conversations, both within audio range and within electronic communication range, with continuous written translation logged.  Display written logs to date, via inconspicuous holographic projection.</sub></sup>

I scan through the information quietly as I sip my water.

After this, I turn off the holographic display, and ponder the events that have brought me here, and my mind lingers for a moment upon Haston.

Karl's world was the first where I was able to use psionics, particularly within the Dreamworld.

In the world of the Marcus Caine, I was also able to use psionics.

And this world, Oleander, also seems to support psionics.  In fact, it seems a bit easier than in the last world.

But Haston was different.  Singing seemed to be a means of successfully invoking power, not from myself, but from the LORD.  And yet, though the LORD has stayed with me, that power of song has not.

Could this world be different?

I reflect upon the weariness from my recent exertions (both physical and mental), and gather my breath, and then start quietly singing.

^{_{'Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!
Wounded and weary, help me, I pray!
Power, all power, surely is Thine!
Touch me and heal me, Savior divine.'}}
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:18, Wed 03 Jan 2007.

"90% is machine to machine, and currently undecipherable.  5% is apparently flight communications in coded/jargon-heavy communication terms.  4% is open text, .75% is uncertain, and .25% is other system basis."

The computer states that it appears to be "Oleander" and it has two references to it in its database.  One as a perfume source, and the other for oils in its petals as a spice, however this requires processing possibly to avoid toxicity.

One thing jumps out at you in the Stationer's communication which is in Spanglish; they have extremely terse word style.  They seem to know what the other one is saying without many words, and to be rarely wrong in their understanding of each other.

You sing, and pain and weariness drift away.  There's not a blast of light, or anything, but you undeniably feel like you've taken a turn for the better after the song.

PT

:Thank you for hearing and healing me, my LORD and my God...:

I reflect upon this success with thanksgiving, before my mind turns back to the information the computer has provided me.

<sup><sub>Computer.  Are the petals of this flower toxic?  If so, what kind of processing is required to avoid toxicity?  Are the observable actions being taken by the natives sufficient?  What are the effects of insufficiently processed ingestion?

Do you believe that the electronic communications indicate navigation in space, in orbit, in the atmosphere, or some combination thereof?

Can you locate any source of electronically communicating humanoids?  If so, please display holographically, relative to our current position.</sub></sup>

I ponder attempting to send out my senses clairvoyantly to locate and read the thoughts of any nearby Stationers, but I am aware of potential risk.

Therefore, instead I quietly pray, and focus, and try to cast my perceptions into the shifting sands of the future, attempting to sense possible dangers and their sources...

"Unknown."

Pause.

It spews out a Solar System map with Earth.  Using that as a model, in Earth's atmosphere, geosynchronous orbit around Earth, and somewhere from Saturn to Pluto is another source.  It gives you confidence numbers from 40 to 70%.

After studying the model used, you can see that you really need to be able to triangulate and precisely position the computer to get a high degree of accuracy.  Minimum reccommended distance is twenty miles.

It also highlights a number of what it considers questionable assumptions... the primary one is that this planet has an identical circumference to Earth.

You look into the future, and see a Stationer in a black uniform with a weapon in his hand.  Smoke fills the air.

"Burn the city. It will make a proper example to the rest of these degenerate breeders."

The vision fades quickly with no more that that flash.

PT

I quietly shake my head as the vision clears, and I pray for wisdom.

Then I quietly turn over the various trains of thought in my mind.

:Acceptance by the village...  Oleander flowers...  Songs of power that work here...  Locations of the electronic communications...  Hostile Stationers...:

I keep my eyes open for any of the villagers that wander near and/or make eye contact with me.

If and when someone does, I smile and ask them gently, “Excuse me, what kind of flower is that?  And what are its uses?”

The young boy who's bringing you another ladle of water smiles shyly, and sits down.

"Its Oleander, Teacher.  We use it in rice to make it taste good.  When food is small, we make flour of it.  My older sisters like to make perfumes of it. Some we ...squeeze down to take to market."  He rolls back and forth with his fingers around his eyes.  "The girls want the boys to make ox eyes at them." He laughs. "Girls are stupid. Oops." He says as an older adult female comes in.

"Is Misha bothering you? He's very bad boy, always lazy."

"Sorry Auntie." Misha says as she swats him with a light frond.

PT

I smile at the woman and shake my head gently.

"No, Misha isn't bothering me at all.  He came to bring me water, and kindly stayed to talk at my request, and help teach the Teacher.  For I am a stranger here, and there is much that I do not know."

I reach out gently to give his hair a fond rumple.

"I was just asking about that flower, the Oleander.  For in the land I came from, we had a similar plant, but I had heard that it could be poisonous.  So I was surprised to see that you use it in your food."

"Do you know if it is dangerous?  Or is it that you know how to prepare it to render it harmless?  Or is it simply different from the plant I know, and already harmless?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:10, Fri 05 Jan 2007.

"It causes no illness in us, Teacher." She thinks, and then puts up a hand in a gesture you're not familiar with.  She leaves, and ten minutes later comes back with a very old woman.

"Grandmother Miller is the oldest woman in the village.  I am her granddaughter."

The old woman sits down on a stand provided by Misha.

"I hear strange things about you, teacher-man.  Some say you have the same powers as the Stationers, but of course, you look different.  I tell you of Oleander, too, what my great-grandmother told me since I am a Memory. We be friends."

She reaches out to pat your knee.

"'Long time ago, when the flame died, and great makers came forth to give life to the soil, they saw no reason to plant anything that might be ill to man, and to plant all things that might be useful to Man.' You understand, teacher-man?"

PT

Despite my lingering weariness, I rise respectfully to help the old woman get settled, before settling again to listen to her words with keen interest.  My thoughts race as I listen to her speak.

:'Some say you have the same powers as the Stationers'...  psionics?  'But of course, you look different'... and in the vision, the Stationer described the planet dwellers as 'degenerate breeders'...  They don't breed, and look the same?  With advanced technology?  Clones, perhaps?:

:'I am a Memory'... an oral historian of her people, perhaps?  And she sounds like she is indeed reciting a history...:

:'When the flame died, and great makers came forth to give life to the soil'... Sol burning itself out, perhaps, and colonists terraforming the Planet Oleander?  But then just how many years have passed???:

I smile warmly as she pats my knee, and nod at her query.

"I believe that I understand some things, Honorable Grandmother.  Yet your answers multiply the questions within me, for a Teacher thirsts for knowledge, and I perceive that you must be a Great River of knowledge indeed."

"Please, Honorable Grandmother, tell me of the dying of the flame, and those who came to give life to the soil, and where they came from, and their history.  Do you know how long ago these things took place?"

"And please, tell me of those who dwell on Planet Oleander, and where they came from, and how long they have been here, and their history."

"And please, tell me of those who are Stationers, and where they came from, and how long they have been here, and their history, and what their powers are."

"Out of the great lights we came from far off, and the great makers knew all the secrets of time so that what they willed, they could accomplish.  They came to live in peace and quiet, not desirous of noise and of subtle and blatant machines, but in so doing they desired to give Gifts to their descendants to make blessed the Path.  To the Royal Family they give Magnificence, and to the Common Folk who are the Life of the World they gave Soundness of Body, and the Planet itself they blessed with every kindly fruit and wise plant they could.  And then there was distress for they saw they must add predators to the land, but they made them few, and such that Man would be able to control them."

She turns to the side and spits up some gunk, and takes a drink of water.

"It has been five Memories since these events, since the Maker Froston, my ancestor walked from the ship.  The others count by generations, and for us it is ten gens, and the village nearby it is eleven gens."

"It is in my own living Memory that I saw the evil star of the Stationers appear.  I was but a child.  They may speak without moving their mouths.  They may look through each other's eyes.  Even the greatest of them may bend another to his will, or so it is said, cause one to sicken, and some even say that their great ones can kill with a look.  They are stronger when they are together.  Before they came, we lived in harmony under the Evapt.  But now, they opress us, and push us, in small ways, and then larger ways. We beg for peace for the Evapt is wise and desires not war, but their hearts are not so."

PT

"Please, Honorable Grandmother, what more has been passed down from Memory to Memory?  What knowledge has been deemed worthy of being preserved?"

I listen intently, and nod thoughtfully.

"It is true that I have some, but not all, of the powers that you describe... and also some that the Stationers do not.  But I am not one of them.  I come from much, much further away -- yea, probably from further away than the great makers."

"I perceive that though my heart is also for peace, yet the Stationers would be likely to see me as a threat.  Do you believe that the Stationers will hear of my arrival?  Do you believe that my presence here could endanger the village?  What is your desire, and what would you have me do to help your people?"

"The Memory of the Village Woman is Finger-deep, Ten by Ten by Ten by Ten Lines.  For the Memory Royal it is another Ten."  She stops quoting, and smiles.  "It takes many years to memorize the whole of the Memory.  And we also try to remember other facts, weave them into the Great Memory.  It is in the Memory that at one time it was only Ten by Ten by Ten."

"I do not think any of this village would say of it.  But eventually in many moons or a cycle it would be known for secrets are like seeds planted. I can only advise you.  My place as a Memory gives me no power to command.  However, it was better days before the Stationers came.  If you could give us back those days of peace, then that would be a great gift.  But I know of no way to turn the Stationers back from their will. And you do not seem to be as the Shadow."

Which brings up whole other questions.  You find out there is a secret resistance movement in the villages.  Some young men go out at night, and ambush Stationers.  They are called the Shadow.
PT

I regard her with a thoughtful expression.

"No, I am not as the Shadow.  I worship the LORD God Almighty, the Creator of all things, through the perfect sacrifice of Jesus Christ the Redeemer.  Do you know of Him?"

"I 'seek peace, and pursue it'.  I do not know if my powers are sufficient, or yet sufficient, to defeat the Stationers.  It is even possible that, LORD willing, I could find strength and wisdom enough to destroy their evil star.  But that would also destroy many lives, and is therefore not a path I would desire to walk, unless there was no other way to save many more lives."

"Better still if the Stationers could be turned back from their will, somehow.  The LORD has granted me some power over hearts before.  Perhaps He would do so again.  I must pray and consider these things."

"Or perhaps the Royal Family has other powers of Magnificence, or deeper knowledge within the Memory Royal, that could show us how to proceed.  Or perhaps even some of the technology of the great makers is in their keeping, needing only someone with my knowledge to be made use of."

"Do you think I should journey to see them?  How far away are they from here?"

I consider her answer, and absorb the information I've received thus far.

"Honorable Grandmother, it is true that, in my own humble way, I am also a Memory.  And my gifts include both the power to read the thoughts and memories of others, and the power to remember."

"If you were willing, I could use these gifts now, and you could share the whole of the Memory with me.  And then you and I would both remember it."

"But I know that thoughts and memories are a personal thing, and that I am a stranger."

"Would you be willing to allow me to use my gifts now, and to share the Memory with me?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:28, Sat 06 Jan 2007.

"No, I worship the Emperor of the Stars, and pay respects to his emmissaries."  She says.  "The Evapt is reached every tenyear by sending a messenger to Froston who boards a boat down the Great River, and travels for sometime under a month, it depends on the rains, and the travails of travel and there they meet the Evapt at the Golden Dock to give him the report of all significant events of the last tenyear.  Unfortunately, this is still two years away."

She looks thoughtful.

"I do not know, Teacher. I am not sure of the wisdom of letting you do this you have asked of me.  I fear you may harm me.  I fear you may harm yourself like a man eating too many rich delicacies.  Many years ago, I saw a man get rich by finding a gold nugget.  He bought himself much fancy food and drink.  He died in the night from an overfull stomach."

PT

I nod thoughtfully.

"I understand your concerns, and respect them."

"When I first arrived here, I did read the thoughts of one of you without harm.  But it is always possible that some mishap could occur."

"And that was done without leave, for I did not know if your people were dangerous, and it was potentally a matter of survival, and therefore necessary.  But it is not my desire to do so without permission, save in extreme need."

"If at some point you decide that you do feel comfortable in proceeding, please let me know.  I would be honored to learn as much of the Memory as possible."

I consider thoughtfully.

"How long does it take to recite the Memory?  For even though hearing it would be slower than reading it from within your mind, yet I have only to hear it once, and I would be able to recall it again.  And if I could hear it, perhaps I could find some clue that would give us wisdom in dealing with the Stationers."

"The Memory is ten by ten by ten by ten lines long.  Each line is a ten by ten sounds long."

PT
OOC: Please don't count my previous lines. I'm sure they're not a hundred syllables long, exactly or even close.  :)  Merci, merci, monsieur...

OOC: No worries -- obviously, it only fulfills those specifications in the original language, rather than in the English translation you've so kindly provided me... :p

"Would you be willing to recite some of it now, and some of it in later sessions, as and when you have time and strength and inclination?"

She begins.

"This is the Great Memory of the People of Tamigleu who left from Pro-t-con Four for fear of the Great Noise and the Uplifting that was prophesied to occur, but did not.  However, even so, the People were happy because they set behind them the Little Noises.  And so when the time was accomplished, they set foot on the world they had paid for, and owned, and were very glad, and the flame went out, and all was at peace as the makers rose from their sleep."

She pauses for some water.

"But let us not forget the names that were past.  Hero, Talcinus, Pierre's World, the Steam Planet, Taxux, Cleo and Clio, Dover's World...."  She continues on for a list of over a thousand planetary system names.  Not one of them is Earth or Sol System.  "All these were born of the Great Emmigration which our most distant fathers accomplished. And now we have done as they did, and gone far beyond the worlds settled by Man to make our lives as we see fit.  And now our story may begin her on the Planet we name Oleander for the flowers the makers turned to good grow most wondrously here."

She stops.

"I smell good stew."

PT

I glance at my small comp unit, thankful not only for the two-way audio translation, but also that it was recording all of this.

The rhythm of the Memory in the original language, the cadence of the unknown syllables, is mesmerizing, even though I depend upon the comp unit's undertone of translation to make sense of it.

When she pauses in her narrative, I take the opportunity to interject.

"Please excuse me, Honorable Grandmother, for I do not wish to interrupt the recitation, but I am curious.  What do you know of the Great Emigration, and the most distant fathers?"

"Only tales told to children.  In the days gone by, when Man had one world, and the gods walked freely upon the holy soil of the First Planet, it came to pass that some men wanted free land for their families and their herds and their gardens, and so these men went to the gods, and the gods gave them many secrets for the men of the First Planet were well loved.  But some men when they went far from the first planet, they forgot the gods, they thought they were not seen, and so did evil.  Great war rose in the Stars, until finally it was not known if Man would live.  And so the Great Emmigration began.  They fled from the wrath of evil men, and found themselves a new home, and in the new home, they found the gods of the first planet were there as well, already, waiting for them, and so began the Saga of the Thousand Planets which has been lost to history."

She smiles.

And the others come in and take you to feast.  Its rice and fish and strange vegetable stew.

PT

I nod thoughtfully.

"Thank you, Honorable Grandmother.  I look forward to hearing more, whenever you may wish."

I allow myself to be lead to the feast, keeping my eyes open for opportunities to talk with folks, and get to know them...

You spend the next couple hours chatting with everyone, and getting to know all the adults and a good number of the children by name in the village.  Its clear that without TV or radio, this is their entertainment, and with the added problem of high gravity few people want to get up and run around to play games.

So sitting at feast and talking is greatly looked forward too.  These people are gracious conversationalists, and its not very long at all before you feel yourself soothed by the warmth of their friendship so different from the cold suspicion of the Marcus Caine.

Once night falls, everyone makes their way back to their huts, and you are shown to the guest hut, and given a mat of tied together reeds, and two thin blankets, and a highly polished and slightly concave or U shaped chunk of wood that you are given to understand is meant as your pillow.

PT

I thank the person who guided me here, and look around the hut thoughtfully, taking it in.

Then I move my suitcase to the corner of the hut, and open it, and carefully extract the second comp unit that I bought in those last hours aboard the Marcus Caine, thankful for what I was able to purchase there while I had the opportunity.

I allocate half of my extra memory modules to the second comp unit, and activate it.

^{_{Computer.  Your designation is now "CU2".}}

And to my first comp unit:

^{_{Computer.  Your designation is now "CU1".}}

And to both:

<sup><sub>CU1 and CU2.  Please copy all data from CU1 to CU2.  After this, establish a continuous synchronization protocol.  CU1 shall be the unit I bring with me in the field.  CU2 shall be the backup unit, preserving all data gathered by CU1 in case CU1 is damaged or lost.  Initiate data transfer now.

CU1, continue recording of audio and electronic communications, with continuous written logs.</sub></sup>

After having set them to work, I lay back, pondering all that I have experienced this day.

<sup><sub>:...'It is in my own living Memory that I saw the evil star of the Stationers appear.  I was but a child.  They may speak without moving their mouths.  They may look through each other's eyes.  Even the greatest of them may bend another to his will, or so it is said, cause one to sicken, and some even say that their great ones can kill with a look.  They are stronger when they are together.  Before they came, we lived in harmony under the Evapt.  But now, they oppress us, and push us, in small ways, and then larger ways. We beg for peace for the Evapt is wise and desires not war, but their hearts are not so.'...:

:...'However, it was better days before the Stationers came.  If you could give us back those days of peace, then that would be a great gift.  But I know of no way to turn the Stationers back from their will. And you do not seem to be as the Shadow.'...:

:...'No, I worship the Emperor of the Stars, and pay respects to his emissaries.'...:</sub></sup>

:Dearest LORD, please guide me.  For I know that you have brought me here by your Sovereign hand, for your good purpose and pleasure.:

:Please guide me how to deliver this people from darkness, both the darkness of an eternity without you, and the darkness of a life oppressed by these Stationers.  And please guide me how also to deliver these Stationers from darkness, both the darkness of an eternity without you, and the darkness of a life oppressing the people here.:

:Please move their hearts, as you moved the hearts of the creatures of Haston, and as you moved the hearts of those from Vespucia, that they would turn from strife, and towards you.  And please guide me how to be an instrument to bring this about.:

:I pray in the name of Jesus Christ... Amen.:

I open my eyes, pondering quietly.  Thinking about the People.  Thinking about the Stationers.

And then I start to quietly sing.

<sup><sub>'Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see.

’Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed!

Through many dangers, toils and snares,
I have already come;
’Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.

The Lord has promised good to me,
His Word my hope secures;
He will my Shield and Portion be,
As long as life endures.

Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
And mortal life shall cease,
I shall possess, within the veil,
A life of joy and peace.

The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,
The sun forbear to shine;
But God, Who called me here below,
Will be forever mine.

When we’ve been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise
Than when we’d first begun.'</sub></sup>

And I ponder further, for I know that the will of the Stationers may or may not eventually be turned in this way.

So it is that I get out some of the glo balls, and close my eyes, and start clairvoyantly practicing my telekinesis.  And then start practicing with heavier objects.

For if Yoda was right... perhaps I could push the evil star away.

Or, if there was no other choice, I could tinker with a critical piece of station technology, and disable or destroy the station.

If there was no other choice.  But I must be prepared... just in case...
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:51, Mon 08 Jan 2007.

For some reason an childhood depiction of Moses climbing up Mount Sinai to receive the Ten Commandments comes back to your memory, and the phrase (possibly paraphrased) from Judges 'every man did that which was right in his own eyes' also comes to your mind.  And then your attention shifts, and you notice when thinking in retrospect that the villagers had a tendency to follow the moral guidelines of the elders more than you are used too seeing.  Perhaps it was just a cultural thing, a greater ingrained respect for elders, but there seemed to be more than that.

You practise with your telekinesis, and find it goes well.

Soon sleep overwhelms you, and you find yourself dreaming.
"Let my people go!" You/Moses are shouting into the bland face of a Stationer.
"I will do what pleases honor, and this does not. So do not come against us, or you will shatter like a clay jug against steel sword.  You are one, and we are many in one, and your God cannot prevail against the Spirit of our Nation."

You wake gasping in the early dawn light.

PT

OOC: How heavy was I able to handle with last night's telekinesis practice?  My full suitcase?  My full suitcase with me sitting on top?  My full suitcase with a space station sitting on top?  :)

I open my eyes, pondering this dream, as my breathing slowly returns to normal.

:Am I in the place of Moses here, then?  And the People, God's chosen?  And the Stationers, the Egyptians?  O LORD, please give me the wisdom and strength that I lack...:

Then I arise, and read the Bible, and pray.  Then...

^{_{CU1.  Display full lyrics for all verses to the following hymn...}}

And, thinking of both the People and the Stationers, I quietly yet fervently raise my voice in song.

<sup><sub>'Jesus shall reign where’er the sun
Does his successive journeys run;
His kingdom stretch from shore to shore,
Till moons shall wax and wane no more.

Behold the islands with their kings,
And Europe her best tribute brings;
From north to south the princes meet,
To pay their homage at His feet.

There Persia, glorious to behold,
There India shines in eastern gold;
And barb’rous nations at His word
Submit, and bow, and own their Lord.

To Him shall endless prayer be made,
And praises throng to crown His head;
His Name like sweet perfume shall rise
With every morning sacrifice.

People and realms of every tongue
Dwell on His love with sweetest song;
And infant voices shall proclaim
Their early blessings on His Name.

Blessings abound wherever He reigns;
The prisoner leaps to lose his chains;
The weary find eternal rest,
And all the sons of want are blessed.

Where He displays His healing power,
Death and the curse are known no more:
In Him the tribes of Adam boast
More blessings than their father lost.

Let every creature rise and bring
Peculiar honors to our King;
Angels descend with songs again,
And earth repeat the loud amen!

Great God, whose universal sway
The known and unknown worlds obey,
Now give the kingdom to Thy Son,
Extend His power, exalt His throne.

The scepter well becomes His hands;
All Heav’n submits to His commands;
His justice shall avenge the poor,
And pride and rage prevail no more.

With power He vindicates the just,
And treads th’oppressor in the dust:
His worship and His fear shall last
Till hours, and years, and time be past.

As rain on meadows newly mown,
So shall He send his influence down:
His grace on fainting souls distills,
Like heav’nly dew on thirsty hills.

The heathen lands, that lie beneath
The shades of overspreading death,
Revive at His first dawning light;
And deserts blossom at the sight.

The saints shall flourish in His days,
Dressed in the robes of joy and praise;
Peace, like a river, from His throne
Shall flow to nations yet unknown.'</sub></sup>

As the last notes fade away, I catch my breath, and silently pray.

And after this...

^{_{CU1.  Display approximate current positions of electronic communication sources.}}

I take note of the location of the source in geosynchronous orbit, which I assume to be the station.

Then I lay down, and close my eyes.

And I stretch my clairvoyant senses... floating up and away from me... through the roof of my hut... up and over and away from the village... reaching higher... higher... higher by far than I have ever stretched before -- save for when I botched and versed out from the universe of the Marcus Caine.

Up and up, toward the Station.  To see what can be seen...
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:24, Mon 08 Jan 2007.

OOC: Suitcase.  I'll have to ask MJ for the rules on moving space stations......unfortunately, said the GM, I think you can do it.  I might need some modifiers.  Drat, now I know how MJ felt when I decided to drag an asteroid into Earth orbit with TK.  Really, tho' this could be cool.


You feel assured after you pray that it can be done.  God sets no task before you that is impossible.  Of course, sometimes that task is to through faith, calmly accept getting chopped in half, but ...

As you sing the song you feel...resistance, like something in the air dislikes it like someone is staring at you with unkind eyes and making you uncomfortable.

You fling your mind skyward, and suddenly you feel yourself tear free, its another botch, you're rocketing skyward, faster and faster, and ...slam.  You're looking down at neatly manicured fingers in one hand, and are holding a squirming bug in your right hand.

PT
OOC: Yes, thats a botch, but one of Kyler Sohshe' ideas, I believe was to give a very minor chance of having a 'good' botch.  Congrats, you now have 1@1 Possession.  Invade a person's mind, and shove them away from the controls, and make them your new temporary 'car'.

OOC:
*open Multiverser rulebook*
*flip pages*
*read Heavy Object TK description*

Yup, it sure does look that way, doesn't it?  :p

If this is a playtest-detected glitch, does that mean that I get extra brownie points???  :)

If my tossing the Station into Rigel using Heavy Object TK wasn't really your preference for this scenario, and I give you a suggestion on how to patch the scenario to help prevent that sort of solution, does that mean that I get yet more extra brownie points???  :D


OOC: Cool!  Question: since I have taken possession via a botch, but it is a "good" botch, does that mean that I have control on how long I keep Possessing?  Or am I stuck doing this for awhile, like when I had the Project Thought botch?  :p

Not exactly a glitch, but more like a valid, but not thought of path which earns you a brownie point.

For this gameworld, I have a setting, antagonists, what their problem is that drives them to be bad, and a general idea of what happens in the future.  I have some ideas of a path or two to victory, but mostly its up to the player, as it should be. (This is the 'Antagonists' approach to scenario design that MJ described in a Games Unlimited article by the same name which I'm not sure you can access, but (: it was a very good description of how to make an adventure based on the bad guy's plans, and then let the player do as he will in response.)

Its one of those GM things that a good GM generally allows his player to find his own path, and if they come up with something clever, then he should congratulate the player, and move on.  A bad GM says "I didn't think of that, and therefore you can't do that."  Now 1)I may be tempted by the bad GM route on occasion, but I really try to resist. 2)Granted this is a playtest, and that imposes special conditions, but such limits are not neccessary in this world.  You have added another branch to the tree, and exposed more clearly one of the design questions I still haven't totally decided on--just how much psi does this universe have--I think allowing Heavy TK and clairsentience is clearly in the mix, but I don't want to allow all the way up the line to a 15@10 situation like Alexis and Misty face in Northgate City.

Feel free to suggest a blocking method for 'tossing the station into Rigel', although I have about a half-dozen different ways to make that difficult.

Also, if I remember right, Heavy TK is at walking speed.  The local sun is at a minimum months away at that speed, and Rigel--well, be glad you're immortal.

You can stop this possession at will.  This is a skill under your control.  But perhaps  I ought to think about your next world since you're coming close to versing out of Planet Oleander's verse?

PT

OOC: Well, I'm certainly in no hurry to leave yet, although recent developments may hasten my departure against my wishes...  :o

The benevolent solution which immediately comes to my mind is that the Stationers also have Heavy Object TK, and many are more powerful than one, so they would have little problem correcting their orbit despite my own singleton efforts.  Since they are definitely a psi-oriented bunch, that certainly seems to be a logical solution.

The nastier solution is that they also have Detect Psionics, so that any such efforts tip them off to the PC's presence.  Depending on how good their detection is, they then either start actively tracking down the PC (which could risk not only the PC's life, but also the PC's *possessions*!), or retaliate against the People.

From the PC point of view, my preference is definitely to fly below the radar for awhile.  Your choice of "good" botch is quite interesting that way, since I had intended to only observe passively, or at most try to passively read someone's thoughts, and hope fervently that my activities wouldn't be detected.  Now, however, they are bound to know that *something* is going on, and be more on guard.

Of course, my solutions still don't guard against using TK to tinker with the most critical Station machinery in an attempt to blow things up.  But that may well be harder than anticipated.

For other players, that could well be enough.  But for me, the TK-destruction-of-Station scenarios already have a built-in inhibitor, since destruction of the Stationers is for me only a partial victory.  My goal is to save them, not destroy them, which is bound to be quite a bit harder.  By the time I'm trying to kill off the Stationers, I'm already settling for half a loaf.

Of course, my PC also has personal motivation to stay, since psi seems a bit easier here, and songs of power also function.  Where better to try to further develop my powers?

As far as language drift is concerned, here is one suggestion.  Suppose that the supertech that made voyages between the stars possible was built very early on, and subsequent generations have simply made use of it?  And suppose that the supertech made use of this relatively undrifted language?  Then subsequent generations making use of the supertech would have to stay fluent.  In fact, perhaps different people groups with their own languages develop, but still have to come together to use the supertech later when it is time to move on again, and therefore it is only the supertech's undrifted language that serves as the common language between them (kind of like Latin).  That could explain why the new arrivals would actually speak that language, and why that language would be the one passed down to new generations.  What do you think?  :)

---

I mentally do a double-take, my mind instantly leaping back to when Tomas followed me from the Dreamworld and into my own mind.

:Uh oh.  So much for staying below the radar.  Please help me, dearest LORD..:

I quietly and unobtrusively glance up to take in my surroundings, particularly noting whether or not I'm alone, and whether or not I am being directly observed.

Then I stretch out my thoughts, attempting to read the mind of my host...

OOC: I have to be quick so I'll deal with this later.

IC: You're sitting at a desk within a cubicle, but the noise of others is nearby although no one is looking at you.

You stretch out to touch the mind, and find its panicked, not at all sure whats happening to it, but its commands to its body seem to be not working. Right now, the guy is thinking that maybe he is having some 'fit', and that he might have to be recycled as defective.

PT

:I've got to get out of here, fast.  But I need more information, if possible.  Dearest LORD, please give me wisdom and strength..:

I attempt to withdraw from the possession while still maintaining the mind reading linkage...

You withdraw, and find yourself opening your eyes in your body.

But you can still hear the surface thoughts of the Stationer.

*Phew. That was strange.  Almost like I had too much drink and dream dust.  Better not mention it to anyone.  The others in the office are just looking to find a way to get me.*

There is a nasty, suspicious, and amoral tone to his thoughts.

PT

:Thank you, dearest LORD.  Please guide me now...:

I attempt to expand my contact, in order to access his memories.

Then I start with the thread of his latest surface thought 'The others in the office are just looking to find a way to get me', and attempt follow it to related threads, seeking more information about their society, beliefs, mission, psionic capabilities, skills, knowledge, technology, history, etc., etc...
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:23, Tue 09 Jan 2007.

He's a low-level clerk in the Navy Group, and promotions to a warrior position are coming up, and he, like any self-respecting Psyclone wants to be a warrior blood especially with the opportunities the Youngbloods are offering with their plans to win great honor.  Of course, that means that the others in his Area are trying to sabotage him, and to create alliances against him even as he does the same to them.  And like them, some of the Oldbloods are counselling caution, but the honor of the TrueBlood of Pscyclone Station must be satisfied.

It was so humourous the way Oldblood B-11 had looked with Oldblood B-23's body discovered in four pieces, and packed up in food packages as if to say that in death he could be of service to the People whereas in life he had not been.  And so fast had B-11 changed his weakling...

The contact fades...

PT

I sit quietly, absorbing this information.

And I consider last night's dream.

:Dearest LORD, it is written, 'I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion'.:

:Am I to be as Moses here?  And Oleander's People as Israel?  And the Stationers as the Egyptians?:

:Please guide and strengthen me, I pray.  And please change the hearts of those you want changed.:

Prepared for the unwelcoming eye I received before, I once again sing "Jesus Shall Reign" quietly yet fervently.

Then I exit the hut to meet with the villagers, getting to know them, breaking bread with them, learning how to work the fields, hearing more of the Memory.  Understanding them as best I can.

If opportunity presents itself, I will gently inquire about who has traveled to see the Evapt before, and try to find out whatever details I can about the specifics of the journey, and of the Evapt himself -- how to recognize him, etc.

And if opportunity presents itself, I will gently inquire whether or not any are willing to help me practice telepathy with them (and if it turns out to be someone who has been to see the Evapt before, so very much the better).

For I have not yet successfully both sent and received via full telepathy with anyone yet... but I have a feeling that for what I now have in mind, I will need to have that particular skill, and soon.
This message was last edited by the GM at 07:17, Wed 10 Jan 2007.

A memory of first-year Intro to History comes back to you.

"Folks, I know you're sleepy, and you think History is unimportant.  But wake up! History matters.  It is one of the few ways we have to guess the Future.  And not in the crude way of 'History repeats', but more that 'History rhymes'."

There is a deepening sense of hostility in the air as you sing, and suddenly the smart guy steps into your hut as you sing.  He looks puzzled, and he looks about the hut.

"I don't know. I feel as if someone were stalking me in the night."

===============================

The smart guy is the one that went.  He has a very clear memory of the whole thing.  One recognizes the Evapt by the molded gold, and ruby-studded Crown which has more than a passing resemblance to a helmet.  He fills you in on the difficulties, and on the fact that you're supposed to bring five coins.  One for the boatman, and the rest are to be spent in the Evapt's city as bribes.  He sees nothing wrong with bribery.

The village is uncertain about letting you practise telepathy.  They are afraid that someone might be injured. But the smart guy is willing to do it, provided you offer a bond sufficient to take care of his family if you get him killed.

PT

I give him a welcoming smile, then a somber nod at his observation.

"Indeed, you speak truth.  Someone is."

"For I worship the LORD God Almighty, the One True God, the Creator of all things.  The most distant fathers' most distant ancestors, the very first man and woman on the very first world that man lived, knew Him and worshipped Him.  And men and women still knew Him and worshipped Him back when man first traveled into space from that very first world."

"But many years have passed, and so His Holy and Righteous Name is not known or acknowledged or glorified here.  And that pleases the evil adversary, Satan, very well, for this enemy knows he is under just sentence of death for his rebellion against the LORD, and desires to hide the knowledge of the One True God, in order to drag as many others down to everlasting destruction with him as he can."

"This evil one knows that I sing praises to the One True Creator God, and proclaim in song the only way to find everlasting life, and escape the just sentence of death for all who are in rebellion against the Creator.  And the evil one is very displeased.  It is this displeasure that you can sense."


Assuming that I have resources that are deemed sufficient for the bond, I agree.

Thus it is that I get together with him, and pray, and focus, and focus more deeply, then attempt to open two-way full telepathic communication with him...

OOC: I use In the Groove first to decrease the risk, then Telepathy.  Questions:

(*) What is the smart guy's name?
(*) What options do I have for resources that are sufficient for the bond?  What do these people value?

"You speak of the Emperor of the Stars?" Jerome, the smart guy, asks, but doubtfully, and then he adds, "But no, you say this Creator is not known here."

You practise your telepathy with Jerome.  He finds it fascinating, and amusing, although he is not enthused about it.  To him, its an interesting trick which gives him something to study, but could be set aside without pain.

He is a quick study with it, and soon enough you have two-way telepathy going.  He allows that this could be useful, one could talk to one's wife while you were in the field, and coordinate things better.

You look through your stuff, and find that some of your small change is regarded as sufficient.  They are deeply impressed by your nickels and pennies.

PT

:Thank you, dearest LORD...:

::OK, Jerome, so far, so good.  I can see the details of the journey you took, and the route you followed, and what the Evapt looks like, and where you found him, in your mind.  And we can converse about it together with telepathy.  And language is not a barrier between us -- we can converse even without my device translating for us.::

::Next I'll need to practice with you at a greater distance.  Let us break contact now, and I will wait until you are out in the fields.  Then I will attempt to contact you from afar...::

OOC: Questions:

(Q1): I was trying to obtain "Telepathy to Humans 1@3" skill, rather than teach Jerome how to use telepathy.  Am I correct in assuming that I was successful?
(Q2): From my experiences aboard the Marcus Caine, did I develop "Remote Mind Reading 3@9" skill?
(Q3): What skill(s) do I still need in order to do "Remote Telepathy"?  Did I already kinda do that with the Stationer just now?  My current goal is to be able to use clairsentience to seek the Evapt, then Remote Telepathy to converse with him...  :p

Yes, yes, and you can try it now.

You throw out your clairsentience, and catch a weak glimpse of Jerome.  You try to contact him, but the additional concentration plus the weak look is making it hard.  So you bear down, and try again.

You get a quick contact, and then the whole thing fades.

PT

I relax, get up, stretch, and walk around for a bit.

Then I pray, and focus, and focus again, attempting once again...

OOC: This time, attempting Clairsentience, then In The Groove, then Remote Telepathy.  I won't proceed with the latter two unless I first get a solid lock via Clairsentience...  :)
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:18, Thu 11 Jan 2007.

This time, you get a much more solid lock, and read his mind and talk to him for about five minutes before it fades.

PT

:Thank you, dearest LORD...:

I go out to join them in the fields, learning how to do their work by their sides, as I turn over in my mind how best to proceed next.

"When I talked to Grandmother Miller, I asked her if there was any way I could help your people.  She said that as a Memory she can only advise, and has no power to command."

"Among your people, who has power to command?  Whom do you turn to between the tenyears of your visits to the High Evapt?"

I continue to work with them, and talk with them, and get to know them, and silently pray for them.

And I wonder how long it will be before my muscles resemble theirs... if ever.

As I do my work, I periodically sing a hymn of praise unto the LORD... and happily allow my small comp unit to continue translating the words for them...

Over the next two weeks, you lose fifteen pounds, and start to see some wiriness in your muscles(not a lot, but some).  The people have fully accepted you by now, and call you Teacher.

The authority in the village is the Council of Elders which is all-male. But they are pretty laissez-faire since custom and law are well-established and simple in the village, and the villagers seem to need little governing.  The Elders meet once a week on Fridays for a couple hours, and then every month have a Feast of the Tribe where they hear complaints, and pass what judgements need to be passed.

Occasionally, you see an Elder making a quiet comment to someone to direct them to a more appropriate choice, but thats rare.

And you feel as if the evil presence has left the village.  Jerome is most curious about this Creator, and has tons of questions.  Others are less enthused, but also interested.

PT

Throughout those two weeks, and in the days following, I continue practicing my psionic skills.

I don't wish to risk a botch with any of the villagers, so I content myself with having already achieved success with the Remote Telepathy.

However, I continue carefully practicing Clairsentience (figuring that with my recent botches, I need more practice), exploring the surrounding areas, including Froston Town.  And if I feel I am making enough progress, I again venture to do so with the Station in orbit as well.

If I find any Stationers in Froston Town, I attempt to Read Thoughts, sifting through their memories in order to get additional information about their current plans, intentions, powers, technology, culture, etc.  And if I feel I am making enough progress, I again venture to do so with Stationers in orbit as well.

I continue working on developing my Heavy Object Telekinesis, working my way up to heavier and heavier objects, but with safe and isolated choices that won't endanger anyone if I drop it or if I botch.

I also try to expand and/or improve my telekinetic abilities into related areas --Single Telekinetic Pulse, Out-of-Sight Telekinesis, High-Velocity Telekinesis, Delicate Telekinesis, Marionette Telekinesis, Telekinesis of Multiple Objects, and eventually Levitation and Telekinetic Flight (very low altitude, and only if I feel I am making enough progress).

And every so often, I focus, attempting to send my perceptions into the future...

I try to develop and expand my skill set slowly and carefully, having a healthy respect for how unpleasant botches can be.  If I hurt myself (Brain Burn, etc.), I try to heal by singing.

I continue monitoring electronic communications, trying to glean whatever information can be obtained.

I start trying to learn their language, so that I can converse with them even without the comp unit translations or psionics.

I continue working in the fields, talking with my fellow laborers, answering questions freely, and singing hymns as I work.  If I have any extra time and physical energy left over, I resume Lobo's strength and endurance training exercises, and Simon's martial arts training exercises.

During the times when the villagers gather together to eat and chat, I contribute as appropriate to the entertainment with songs and stories, not unlike a bard.  Through them, I tell them of the LORD and of His Son Jesus Christ, and of other major figures from the Bible.  And for those interested, I give more details of the Gospel.

I also listen to their songs and stories, and to the Memory, recording everything with my comp unit.  And if they happen to have any musical instruments around (a celtic harp relative would be nice), I try to learn from those who know how to play it.

I get to know the children of the village, and share yet more songs and stories with them.

And of course, I read the Bible, and pray...

OOC: Questions:
(Q1) With this latest fast forward, how long have I been here?
(Q2) How long will it be until the next Feast of the Tribe?
(Q3) Any info about the Stationers?
(Q4) Any info via precognition?
(Q5) Any progress on skill development?
(Q6) Any progress on strength conditioning?
(Q7) Any progress on evangelization?
(Q8) Any interesting songs or stories to give me insight into the People?
(Q9) Any interesting musical instruments?
(Q10) Any interesting developing friendships (Jerome/Grandmother Miller/Misha/etc.)?
(Q11) BTW, what does the Station look like?  How big?  Etc.?

This message was last edited by the GM at 22:57, Fri 12 Jan 2007.

OOC: Whine. You added to the list of questions.

Q1: Two weeks plus a day or so.
Q2: One week.
Q3: The Stationers are 'bound' here since they don't have control of the Jumpgate at the edge of the System.  Yes, they are clones.  Yes, they have serious prejudgices against 'breeders' regarding them as ill-mannered, stupid, unsubtle, and chaotic along with a decided bent toward criminality.  The degree of dislike ranges from "don't like them, they stink" to "I really wish we could wipe the lot of them out."  Morality is determined by honor in their culture.
Q4: You have excellent success in your practise getting to the point where you can lift a five ton rock up and down like a yo-yo.  This rock is about a mile from the village.
 You begin work on the other forms of TK, and continue with mild success until you reach a cold wall with Marionnette.
Q5: No.
Q6: As already described. :)
Q7: Jerome studies the idea from all the angles he can think of, and then one day says. "I've chosen to become a Christian.  My family has as well. What's next?"
Q8: You listen to a number of teaching songs which remind people of various dangers, and foods.  You also listen to the whole of the Great Memory.  But it is a massive amount of information, and much is obscured by its poetic nature.
Q9: There is a flute-like device, and there is a massive, four foot long flute, with separate breath intakes for up to three players.
Q10: Smile. While there are a few people in the village who don't get along with each other all that well, you haven't had any such problem.  You feel like you've entered a large family where everyone is your friend.  They are a warm, accepting people.  The only thing you've seen at all not so is when they were afriad your tk could hurt them, and when they thought you were going to reveal them to the Stationers.
Q11:  Its hard to get exact without a scale, but there is at least five thousand Stationers on board, and its not all that crowded (although finding a room without another person or more would be difficult.)

PT

I continue the various activities above as appropriate.

For telekinesis, I carefully practice combining High Velocity TK and Heavy Object TK.  I also carefully practice being able to use all my telekinetic skills via clairsentience.

For Jerome, I praise the LORD, but carefully verify that they have indeed counted the cost, and that they desire to acknowledge and turn away from sin and rebellion, and to follow Jesus Christ as both Lord and Savior, and that they understand well what these things mean.  If so, I pray with them, and instruct them from the Word of God, with the assistance from the materials I downloaded onto CU1.

I also try to teach Jerome and his family how to do Photographic Memory.  If successful, I start downloading the Scriptures into their minds, with the most relevant books for new Christians first, so that they will have the information to keep and to pass on, no matter what may happen to me...

Your TK practise continues.

Jerome says, "I was in rebellion against the True King and did not know it, and so I asked for his mercy for not accepting his right to rule.  Now that I have turned from unknowing unbelief, I am accepted as it says in your Book.  Now, I need to learn how to become a good subject of the King, and what duties that includes."

You're having a hard time teaching Jerome Photographic Memory.  There seems to be some block in his head against what you are teaching.  The information slides in, and slides off like water off a duck's back.

PT

I continue the various activities above as appropriate.

For the Stationers, I try to find out more information about their powers and technology, and about the Station itself -- specifically, what parts of the station are most vulnerable to telekinetic sabotage, whether by pressing the wrong buttons, or by getting hit with a heavy and/or high-velocity projectile.  For though I do not wish to harm them, I am aware that it may become necessary at some point.

For Jerome and his family, I attempt to assist them in acquiring photographic memory by praying for them, and by singing songs appropriate to retaining memories of the LORD's ways.  Regardless of success, I have them start memorizing key passages of Scripture, so that they will retain the essentials if and when I leave this world.

I assign CU1 the task of translating the Scripture into their language.  I also attempt to have CU1 translate the Psalter into their language, preserving rhyme and meter, so that the people can be taught of the LORD through song in their language, and so that they can better retain the words.

I also assign CU1 the task of translating key passages of the Scripture into their language, using the meter of the Memory, so that the knowledge of the LORD through the Bible can be incorporated into the Memory.  Then I memorize it, and recite it for Grandmother Miller.  If she is willing, I teach it to her.

I also teach everything I can -- the songs and stories and psalms and Scriptures and proposed Memories -- to the children who may be interested.

And more monitoring of the Stationer's intentions... more practice of skills... more working in the fields... more bardic stories and singing of songs... more friendships formed and built upon... and more Bible study and prayer.

The most vulnerable area of the station would be its solar panels.  These are literally mile square, and thinner than a cheap garbage bag.  Any type of rock would shred them, although they do have some form of defense.

The other power source is a fusion reactor.  They also have shuttles which dock next to a fuel tank sub-space station nearby, and personell take a monorail through space to the main station.

Jerome and his family work on it, but its hard for them.  However, Jerome is going great guns on his study of the Bible.  Finally, he's met something that requires the full force of his considerable intelligence, and he's greatly enjoying it.

You can also see a new kindness and tenderness in the family.  They are rapidly going from a good family to an exemplary family.

You find yourself spending much time with CU1, helping it out, and this is increasing your own knowledge.

Grandmother Miller memorizes what you offer very quickly, and then one day, you come back to see her manipulating CU1 so that she can memorize from the beginning.  She's halfway through Genesis before you catch her.  She looks a bit embarrassed.

PT

I continue the various activities above as appropriate.

For the Stationers, I carefully investigate and inventory exactly which psionic powers they are capable of, and use their knowledge and example to carefully practice and acquire any powers they have that I currently don't.

I also look for insights into their culture and hooks for the Gospel (their rebellion dishonors the Creator, etc.).

I also look for insights into their purpose here.  Why is there a Station here?  Why is there a Jumpgate here?  What is their mission, and their intentions with the planet's inhabitants?

For the Station, I carefully investigate exactly what options I have for sabotage (with a range of lethality and quickness), and exactly what I would need to do to carry them out.  For example, what defenses the solar panels have and what kinds of objects might be nearby (space junk, loose Station parts, etc) to use as projectiles; what kinds of objects within the Station could be used with High Velocity TK to knock holes in the walls for explosive decompression; what exact vulnerabilities there are with the fusion reactor (which buttons have to be pressed, or which gear has to be jammed, or which rod needs to be moved, etc.) that my TK would be able to manipulate; etc.

I regard Grandmother Miller with a kind smile and a twinkle in my eye.

"You thirst for true knowledge of the LORD, and the earliest history of Creation, and what that implies for us.  It is well.  Let me set up the unit so it will be safer to use..."

"CU1.  Security protocol.  Grant full access to me.  Grant read access of existing files to the people of this village, and full access to any files they themselves wish to create.  Deny access to anyone else, but notify me if anyone else requests access.  You can contact me via CU2."

"Enable both audio and text output, within power saver parameters.  Continue logs as background process, no output."

I nod, and smile at her.

"Perhaps I'll leave this here for awhile.  You are all free to use it.  Keep it safe from harm, for it might be damaged from rough handling, or from a blow, or from getting wet..."

I depart, and retrieve CU2 from my luggage to carry with me, allowing CU1 to be used by the People for the time being.

"CU2.  Security protocol.  Grant full access to me.  Grant read access of existing files to the people of this village, and full access to any files they themselves wish to create.  Deny access to anyone else, but notify me if anyone else requests access."

For the People, I note that they seem to be a culture with an oral history.  So I start teaching interested parties how to read and write by copying Scripture.  If this avenue looks promising, I print Scripture for them.

I monitor how the rest of the villagers are relating to the Gospel.  And I start considering how best to spread it to Froston Town... and to the High Evapt... and to the Stationers.  And I ask Jerome about his society -- more specifically, whether or not his culture already includes those who travel from place to place -- for example, like a bard.

And to those ends, among others, I sing, and fervently pray -- both alone, and with Jerome and family...

OOC:
(Q1) Skill progress?
(Q2) Stationer culture hooks?
(Q3) Stationer purpose and intentions here?
(Q4) Station vulnerability specifics?
(Q5) Grandmother Miller interactions?
(Q6) Interest/aptitude in reading and writing of the People?
(Q7) Writing/printing resources -- are my comp units able to print hardcopy?  Do I have some limited amount of paper/ink/etc. before I run out?  If so, how much stuff can be printed out before I can't print anymore?
(Q8) Does Jerome's culture include wandering bard types?
(Q9) Impressions of Gospel prospects in the village?  In Froston Town?  With the High Evapt?  With the Stationers?
(Q10)Whine -- I didn't add enough questions...  :p
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:55, Mon 15 Jan 2007.

Q1: Over the next month, you add a mark to all your skills.
Q2: They are an honor-bound, all-male society of clones with the singular goal of bringing honor to the Nation, and to their own group, and lastly to their own selves.
Q3: The Stationers need air and minerals from the Planet, and their intentions are not totally clear although there is a great deal of irritation at the Stationers, more so among the younger ones who seem inclined to force.
Q4: You find the fusion control room.
Q5: She's in the midst of memorizing Deuteronomy currently.  She points out to you that 'its not seemly for the others to do too much memorizing as that is the job of the Memories.'
Q6: There is very little paper in the computers, but Jerome points out you can draw in sand just as well.  The kids are more interested than the adults who consider it an amusing pastime.
Q7: see #6.
Q8: Not really.
Q9: Good, a bit slow; Less; ??; Well, they have a lot of mental issues in the way.
Q10. And now that we've been here another month, lets slow it down a bit.  Perhaps, week by week with one question related to each day of the week, and we can assume you're continuing apace with your teaching, psi practise, and field work.

PT

OOC: Oops, I forgot to include this in the question summary...

(Q1a) What powers do the Stationers have?
(Q1b) Do they have any that I don't?
(Q1c) If so, have I been able to acquire them?

The next day I recall the incident where Jerome and company buried the slain Stationer, and examine my own mind for the details, and compare that to what I know of the Stationers and their ways and their standard equipment and their technology.

And if there seems to be a prospect of any useful technology buried with the Stationer, I go to investigate...

OOC: I suppose that I am content to keep on as I have been, until the status quo changes.

The longer I can keep at it, the more progress (hopefully) there will be in:

(*) spreading the Gospel in the village
(*) discipling Jerome's family
(*) Grandmother Miller's memorization
(*) my skill progress
(*) my strength conditioning
(*) my knowledge of the Stationers
(*) my knowledge and ability to take successful action against the Station, if necessary

So I'll happily take as lengthy a calm before the storm as you'll give me...  :p

I'm happy to either roleplay out day-to-day interactions with the villagers, or to move on into more action-oriented portions of the timeline, according to your inclinations...  :D
This message was last edited by the GM at 02:30, Mon 15 Jan 2007.

OOC: OK, but the biggest limit is you learning new psi powers, and possibly versing yourself out doing this.  Tell me in when you try a new power, and I'll see how it goes.  Otherwise, yah, we can let you spend some time here depending on the GE dice roll.

Q1a: Hard to say without deep-diving in their memory, or spending a lot of time with them.  However, you do see one fellow use some sort of Empathic Coercion on another.
Q1b: Yes.
Q1c: See above note.

I'll try to do a data dump before you start your visit to the Evapt or your attack on the Stationers.  Not quite sure how to work this, truthfully, but I do need to learn more on how to run a game over  a long time period--ya'll may have noticed that my games tend to compress a lot of action in a short time span.

PT

OOC Questions:
(Q1) Does the Stationer example of Empathic Coercion seem to be generally usable as Project Emotion, or too tainted with "evil" to be useful for me?
(Q2) Is there any interesting tech that can be scrounged from slain Stationer(s)?

OOC Comments:
Well, I'm here to help the Playtester playtest, even through the most perilous and uncertain playtesting waters...  :p

I'm interested in new powers, but not "evil" ones.  So if Empathic Coercion could be used to Project Emotions like calm, peace, benevolence, friendliness, etc., I might consider it, but not for the ways the Stationers probably use it.

I'm interested in any new tech that can be scrounged up, such as from any of the Shadow casualties.

If you want to do day-by-day adventures on the smaller village stage, that's fine -- I enjoy the way you bring characters and everyday interactions to life.

If you want to do any fast forwarding, that is probably relatively straightforward -- figure out how much time passes before action takes place, then figure out which action is taking place, then figure out how much progress in my various goals and projects has taken place and how the setting has changed, then update my stats, then off we go...  :p

I think that the determining factor should be what is going to be the most useful to you for playtesting, and what your inclinations are.  If you see that village life needs to be fleshed out, go for it.  If you think the action parts need testing more, feel free to fast forward.  If the way this world has been shaping up isn't working out, and it would be more value added to verse me out sooner, we can finish off the action fast and furious, and expedite versing out to whatever world I may be more needed for playtesting.  :D

This message was last edited by the GM at 08:44, Mon 15 Jan 2007.

It looks like it could be used as Project Emotion, but you'd have to untie some of the mental work with it, and substitute other mental structures.  It depends on creating an attitude of "I own you", and projecting the feeling of an impulse to viciously beat the other as part of a "Create Fear to Make the Other Obey".

You go and dig up the Stationer. You find the uniform is still intact.  Also, he carries a solar charged communicator.  Also, he has a belt with a long knife still on him.  In his right pocket is a small crystal in a tiny box.  When you see the crystal, you can hear a singing noise inside your head.

PT
OOC: Thank you for your thoughts.  I think its going well, as a game and a playtest.  I'm just struggling a bit with the proper speed to run the game at.

And the GE roll for the Stationer was 6, so the dice liked you.

I regard the body sadly, grieved for the murder... grieved for the provocations that caused it... and grieved most of all for the forever-damned soul that used to inhabit it.

I speak softly over the opened grave.

"Dearest LORD...  Please guide me now.  Show me how to faithfully proclaim you, even to these hard-hearted Stationers, as well as to the People below, even these Shadow members.  And please show me what you would have me do if the Stationers indeed attack the People of this planet, as you let me glimpse in that vision.  And whether or not you have created them for salvation or destruction, I pray that you would be glorified, and that I would follow you faithfully.  I pray in Jesus' name...  Amen."

I regard the slain Stationer's possessions thoughtfully.

:Should I take them?  Found in my possession, the Stationers would think me guilty, so there is a risk.  But if things go badly and the Stationers attack the People, they may be needed.  Or they may be needed in a future world.  And truly, they aren't doing any good lying here in the ground...:

I gather everything -- uniform, communicator, belt, knife, tiny box, and crystal, then carefully rebury the body, and disguise the mound to make it less obvious.

Then I return to my hut.

And as I resume my investigations of the Stationer's memories, seeking information about possible hooks for the Gospel, and about their powers and technology, and about their Station's vulnerabilities and how specifically to exploit them... I also seek information about these items, particularly about the crystal.

You reach clairvoyantly into space, and make weak contact with a Stationer's mind.  You then start diving into his brain.

He identifies the long knife readily enough as a sacred Killing Blade, and it has some special customs to properly handle it unless you wish to offend the Spirit of the Nation.  In the midst of this, you almost miss the off-hand remembrance of a boobytrap that each blade has, each blade being different.

And then your contact with him fades although you still have your presence in the station.

PT

I move onto a different Stationer, and pray, and focus, and focus again...

OOC: In The Groove, then Read Memories...

A double success, and a solid lock, and you start dumpster-diving in his memories.  He's one who hopes to 'take the planet away from the breeders by force since such simple creatures won't understand any other means, besides to talk to them is to require ritual purification.'

As you look through his culture, you notice a strong sense of conformity to the group's aims.  The group decides morality, and morality is decided by honor, and honor is decided by popularity with the group.  And if the group's aims change, then so does morality.  He doesn't express it in those terms, in fact, he like a number of them is more than a bit mentally confused about what words mean, but this seems to be what he means.  Perhaps you're getting it wrong, but....it may be because they don't really have a term for morality.  There is 'honor', and there is 'harmony'.

One factoid that comes clearly across is that the more Stationers in the view of each other, the stronger they are psionically.  Each Stationer by himself is rather weak, but they believe the cloning process with similar brains made psi possible, and that psi is proof of their innate superiority since the 'mudfeet breeders' don't have it.

The crystal is a meditation aid.  It reflects one's thoughts back onto oneself, and aids in calming the soul.

PT

While inside his memories, I dig for information regarding Killing Blades, and what powers the blades have, and what types of booby traps he has heard of before.

I also dig for information regarding the Spirit of the Nation, and the specific rituals regarding handling of the blade, and regarding purification after talking to a "breeder", and any other rituals.  I seek information for hooks to the Gospel, and for knowledge of any supernatural enemies if they exist, and for knowledge of the rituals themselves -- are they just forms for carrying out tech-based actions (disinfection after talking to a "breeder", for example), or are they rituals that invoke supernatural power?

I also dig for information regarding Station vulnerabilities -- exactly what actions would sabotage the reactor, what type of specific defenses the Station has and how to get around them, etc.

And I also go through his memories of the Station, so that the floor plan I am able to perceive via clairvoyance is matched with his knowledge of the purpose of each room, each control panel, etc.

After I eventually withdraw, I regard the Killing Blade, still undisturbed within the belt that holds it.

And I pray, and focus, attempting both through prayer and through psionics to perceive the nature of the danger regarding the blade, and whatever booby traps it may have...
This message was last edited by the GM at 08:04, Wed 17 Jan 2007.

He doesn't know all the powers a Killing Blade has but he knows of three, the first and third official, the second rumor. 1)Killing someone with such a blade in proper ceremony, or blessed by the Battlelords makes of their spirit a slave to one in the afterworld.  2)It is said that you can curse someone by pointing the blade at someone and with your spirit willing their death which will then follow in seven days. 3)If used with honor, it will ease the passage into the afterworld of a True Blooded Warrior.  Thus using it to assasinate another pscyclone stationer is an honorable death for the victim.

He's heard of poison on the blade and pop-out injectors in the hilt.

The blade is to be bathed in pure water from an asteroid, never used by man before when it is to be consecrated.  It is not to be touched by unworthy hands.  It is to be displayed proudly in one's room, or worn, never hidden.

To be purified after meeting a breeder one is sprayed antiseptically.  Then one bathes in hot steam with a short prayer.  Then one purifies the mind by reading histories of the great warriors of the Pscyclone and closes with another ritual chant describing the glory of the Nation, and the Spirit which upholds it.  After this, one dresses in new clothes, and goes forth to eat with others of the Station.

He doesn't know about such defenses other than he is aware of short-range rapidfire anti-missile lasers, and the Weather Generator Program which he is in, and which is almost complete.

The Station is very big, and not layed out in a pattern you have discerned yet.  However, you spend more time familiarizing yourself with its passages and nooks and rooms.  However, you have yet to see even half of the Station.

You pray, but the blade seems to resist you.

PT

:That blade is evil.  It doesn't belong here.:

I pray and focus over the other Stationer items as well to try to sense any danger or malevolence associated with them.

OOC: ...and insert additional actions I may take based upon the results here... :p

And I ponder over the latest memory information I have gleaned.

:Perhaps I've been going about this the wrong way...:

:Reading memories of random Stationers is just getting me random cross sections of information from a very big Station.  I just managed to blunder into information about a Weather Generator Program.  Who knows what other overall weapons and defenses and intentions they have, and how to overcome them?  Who even knows the overall layout of the Station?:

:If I want the big picture, I need to find the leaders who would know it all...:

:Dearest LORD, give me wisdom and strength, I pray...:

Thus it is that I stretch out my clairsentience to the Station once again, this time seeking the highest-ranking leader I can find to sift the memories of...

OOC: Clairsentience, then In The Groove, then Read Memories...
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:34, Wed 17 Jan 2007.

The other items seem to be neutral, even the meditation crystal.  But the blade's influence can be felt.  You find yourself daydreaming of stabbing someone in the chest, and suddenly you shake your head, horrified at where your thoughts have wandered off too when you weren't paying attention.

You search, and find no one in the first ten minute try.  Next time, you bear down a bit harder, and focus more, and get a more solid search in.  After fifteen minutes, you spot a man who all the others step out of his way.  He is noticeably older than many of the others.

Before you can make contact, he steps into a room, a gym, and strips into a t-shirt and short pants.  You make contact, and start to look for weapons systems.

1. Weather generator.
2. Short range lasers.
3. Gauss cannons focused outsystem.
4. Particle spray....

Suddenly you're outside.  He's practising a fighting technique with a practise blade, shadow-knifing really, and the focus serves as a wall to push you out.

PT

:Dearest LORD, please forgive me, and protect me from that unholy blade, I pray...:

I carefully take hold of the belt to ensure that the blade is securely held, and won't slip out, but avoid any direct contact with it.

Then I return to the grave site, and rebury the blade, again very carefully ensuring that it doesn't slip out of the belt and doesn't come in direct contact with me.

Then I return to begin my clairvoyant search for a Station leader...


Cast out of his mind, I nonetheless linger via clairsentience, observing his fighting technique, and patiently waiting for his workout to end.

When he departs, I follow him.  And when he is more stationary but less focused, then I focus, and focus again, and attempt to gain further knowledge if I am able...

You watch him work out, and then the door opens.  Two younger clones in full black (his uniform was gray) step into the room.

"Hail Navy." One says, and both bow deeply to him.  He draws himself up, and steps back.

"Army. Hail." He says shortly.

"What is the meaning of this?"  He says.

"Sir, you know very well what is the meaning of this.  You have failed in your leadership.  Your spirit has been too long distant from the Spirit of the Nation, and you know not what it wishes."

"Ah, I see. And you represent the Spirit of the Nation, come to tell me this?"

PT

I pray for guidance, while continuing to monitor these interesting interactions.

Then I prepare for action by focusing, then focusing again...

OOC: In The Groove, then Telepathy, without sending any thoughts... yet.  :)

You hear the exerciser's thoughts.

*Well, they got D14, and now it comes to me.  I shall not disgrace myself by begging, and they have me cut off so I cannot run.  Perhaps I can take one of them with me to be my slave.  If so, I shall whip him sore in the afterlife.*

There is a bloody-minded streak to the man that surprises you with the sheer intensity of its rising fury.

"We come to offer you a chance to bend to the Nation."

"Bend to you next gen clones who want war to make your names."

"You made yours already, how can you deny...."  The less self-controlled of the assassins vents.  And the exerciser marks him in his mind as the first target for this weakness.

"Easily, the mudfeet far outnumber us."

"If not that, then you can fall on your own blade."

"And if I refuse?"

Its almost like a competition to see who can be calmest in the face of a potential life and death struggle.  The fury the exerciser is holding in check beats at you, and you feel a bit dizzy from the intensity of it.

PT

I grit my teeth at the direct exposure to the waves of violent emotion, and pray silently.

Then I send my thoughts up to him.

::You do not want war.  This is honorable.  Do you need assistance against these assassins?  Think your reply, and I shall hear you...::

OOC: BTW, I've spent some time researching what powers the Stationers have.  Would you please give me a list, at least of what I've discovered thus far?  You did mention already a power they have that I don't, but I am also interested in knowing any powers that I have that they don't...  :)
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:12, Fri 19 Jan 2007.

*Well, Spirit, I do need assistance for otherwise I think I shall shortly be dead.*

OOC: Lets see: 1)Empathic Coercion 2)Intuitive Awareness of what another will do--uncertain whether this applies to non-clones.  3)Psi powers strengthened when within a group.  4)Dominance 5)Clairvoyance through the eyes of another clone 6)Send Thought  7)Precognitive Flashes 8)Cause Pain 9) Mental Shield--Fortress Defense 10)Mental Shield--Offer No Resistance and No Contact  11)Create Consensus which is a group power  12)Sense approval or disapproval

There is certain to be others, and most don't have more than a fraction of these.

PT

::Very well.  Be ready... and give thanks to the LORD God Almighty, Sovereign Creator of all, whom I serve, for your deliverance.::

I focus my thoughts, and then attempt to pick up the more self-controlled assassin using telekinesis, and yo-yo him repeatedly into the less self-controlled assassin...

OOC: Does using TK here require me to drop the Telepathic link first?

You grab the calmer assassin even as you hear a startled *huh?* in your brain.  And you start beating them both by slamming the one into the other.

Two strikes bruise them, and then the less calm assassin who is shrieking about devil spirits starts to dodge, and dodge, and dodge again.  You realize that with this awkward and squirming and struggling club, you just don't have the skill to hit a decent fighter who is fully focused on dodging.

OOC: No, but each additional psi skill makes the next one harder.

After my initial successes bouncing the assassins off of each other, the free guy seems to have gotten better at dodging.  But no matter.  Fully focused on dodging means not focused on assassinating, so that works for me and Gray Leader.

::You may not know the LORD God Almighty... yet.  But He knows you, and has brought me to your aid.::

::Your would-be assassins seem preoccupied at the moment.  What now?::

*I shall flee*

He bolts from the room, and one of the assassins gets a grip on his pants leg, but there is no open bottom to his slacks since they tightly close about the ankle, and evidently sara-silk is quite slippery.  You remember this from your exhumation.

The Gray Leader kicks free, and runs into the corridor.  The door shuts behind him.
PT

::You again avoid unnecessary violence.  It is well.::

::How long do you need them to remain preoccupied?  For I too prefer avoiding unnecessary violence...::
This message had punctuation tweaked by the GM at 18:51, Sat 20 Jan 2007.

*I am fine now.  I stand in a crowd, and assassins seek dark corners for their deeds. Voice in my mind, I too do not seek unneccesary violence.  But why have you come to me?*

There is something that strikes you, an observation.  The minds you have contacted here do not seem much for logic.  The people of Tamigleu live a simple, and direct life without much reflection.  The clones of the Station seem to find truth in intuition and in honor.  They are more emotional, and while intelligent, they are perhaps more mystical than logical.

PT

::I serve the LORD God Almighty, Sovereign Creator of all, who has sent me to this place from far, far away.::

::And I have seen the dwellers on the planet below, and how they seek not needless war.  This is honorable, and pleases me.::

::And I have seen the dwellers on the Station above, and how some at least seek needless war.  This is not honorable, and pleases me not.::

::So I came to observe the Station more closely, pondering if I must destroy it, but desiring not needless violence.::

::And lo, the Sovereign LORD has lead me to someone aboard possessing both honor and leadership, and has given me hope, that needless violence may yet be avoided, and an honorable path followed.::

::But is there indeed hope, Honorable Gray Leader?  Have you the power to restrain those who thirst for war?::

*How would you destroy the Pscyclone Station?  It is great in power.  It is true that I desire not war because it is too risky, and we get what we need already from the mudfeet without need of provoking them to open war. A demonstration of power here and there, and they give us tribute without war. The younger generations of clones desire war to prove themselves and make their names. And already many of those who stand in leadership in the Army and the Navy and Government House are falling to the blades of the assassins.  And the people proclaim this as honor, even our own generation is too afraid to not call this honorable. And so, it is, I suppose.*

He wanders from incredulity to coldly calculated 'its better to cruelly exploit than to risk war' to fear for himself and his people to doubt as to whether he is right since he is going against his people, and that is the essence of dishonor.  He doesn't seem to have principles.  Agrressive war to steal a planet's resources isn't wrong; its just too risky.

PT

::Great in power?  Short range lasers, gauss cannons, particle spray,  weather generator, and so on...  Yes, you have power to oppress the dwellers below.  But this is dishonoring to them, and therefore pleases me not.::

::And for all the power this Station may boast of, did it suffice to keep your would-be assassins safe from me?  Violence gives me no pleasure, but if forced to act in order to prevent dishonorable oppression or dishonorable war, none would be safe from me.  I can kill as easily as I can subdue or distract, and can toss about a Station as easily as an individual... if I must.  But it would grieve me to do so.::

::Gray Leader, you truly perceive that open war is too risky.  But I tell you that needless oppression is just as risky as open war, for both please me not.  When you chose an honorable path, my hand was with you.  But if you choose a dishonorable path, even one dishonorable to the dwellers below, then my hand will be against you.  And how then will your people survive?::

::Harken to my voice, Gray Leader.  Act in a manner honorable to the planet dwellers as well as the Station dwellers.  It is the only hope for saving your Station from certain destruction.::

He pauses in his mind, rapidly considering things, and then slams shut a set of formidable mental shields so that you can only see his surface thoughts.

"Great Voice, I do not mean to offend your divine Master, nor you, but how am I to know you are as great as you say?  And what message shall I take to my fellows.  It is true, they would see this as an ominous portent, but I doubt the others would be willing to turn aside from their goal due to merely a portent.  They would merely pray the louder to the Spirit of the Nation for protection.  I request a sign to show your greatness."

PT

I pray, then focus, then attempt to move the entire Station with telekinesis, not enough to damage, but enough to feel a noticeable shake...
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:25, Mon 22 Jan 2007.

Your first try produces nothing as the whole of the station is too much for you to visualize.  But then you go on  back over the psionic matrixes in your head, and Push.

The Station jolts.  First it goes one way, and then another.

The Gray Leader bows, after he regains his feet.

"Mighty One, my apologies for doubting you. I beg your leave to go and discuss this with the other leaders.  Perhaps the span of two days, and I will return to this room to discuss this with you?"

PT

::I am but a servant of the LORD God Almighty, and my power, great as it is, is nothing compared to His.::

::Make your brethren see wisdom, Gray Leader.  Neither your mental shields nor your Station weapons can save you from destruction.  Only if you turn aside from dishonor, and follow a path honorable to the planet dwellers as well as to the Station dwellers, have you hope of surviving.::

::It is written, 'As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die?'::

::So too I would be grieved if forced to act against you.::

::Therefore, harken to my voice, Gray Leader.  And make your brethren harken.  It is the only hope for saving your Station from certain destruction.::

::In two days, I shall return to this room.  And in the meanwhile, see to it that no further oppression and no further provocations are inflicted upon the dwellers below, lest wrath be kindled against you.::

::Until then... farewell.::

I cease transmitting my thoughts to him.

However, I continue to monitor his thoughts, and to follow him around via clairvoyance...

*Aieeee. Why does this evil tidings come to me?  Surely many of the Council of Thirty will not believe, or will profess not to believe since they will think I will bear the full weight of this spirit's rage.  But even of those who do, the younger generation of clones will not believe.  They will call me liar, and hunt for my blood again.*

He turns into another tunnel, and passes a guard at a doorway.  The decor is still plain, but in an elegant way now.

*Still perhaps its not as bad as all that.  I know why the station shook.  And I can certainly tell them that his master, the ah, Creator, is greater than him.  Perhaps they will listen.*

He comes to a door, and presses a secret code into the keypad at the door.

*Although perhaps instead our espers can find this Voice, and extinguish it.  I know some of the younger who would say, strike the planet with our fury, and let this Voice fear for the ones he protects.*

He bows at a shrine in his room, and begins to pray to the Spirit of the Nation.

PT

I continue monitoring his surface thoughts passively, not attempting to actively search memories while he prays.

And while he prays, I pray to the LORD fervently, asking for His strength and wisdom, and that He would be glorified through the overthrow of the "Spirit of the Nation" and the breaking of its demonic power.  And I pray for the protection of the planet dwellers, and for their salvation.  And I pray for either the salvation or the destruction of the Stationers, as the LORD sees fit.

And when Gray Leader eventually finishes praying, I continue to monitor and follow...
This message had punctuation tweaked by the GM at 15:44, Tue 23 Jan 2007.

As you pray, you feel a rising sense of malice, hatred, and rage filling the room.  It seems to be focused on the shrine, but permeates the air.  You can feel its desire for your destruction.

And then you feel pain lance through you.  And the room seems to be filled with a continual screaming which wraps itself about you, and feels like it has begun to abrade your skin like you're being dragged across a carpet.

It seems the Spirit of the Nation has decided to resolve its difficulties with you.

PT

Gasping, I drop all psionic links to the Station and the Gray Leader, praying fervently to the LORD for protection and deliverance, and rebuking the evil spirit in the name of Jesus Christ.

Then I begin to sing.

'A mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing;
Our helper He, amid the flood of mortal ills prevailing:
For still our ancient foe doth seek to work us woe;
His craft and power are great, and, armed with cruel hate,
On earth is not his equal.

Did we in our own strength confide, our striving would be losing;
Were not the right Man on our side, the Man of God’s own choosing:
Dost ask who that may be? Christ Jesus, it is He;
Lord Sabaoth, His Name, from age to age the same,
And He must win the battle.

And though this world, with devils filled, should threaten to undo us,
We will not fear, for God hath willed His truth to triumph through us:
The Prince of Darkness grim, we tremble not for him;
His rage we can endure, for lo, his doom is sure,
One little word shall fell him.

That word above all earthly powers, no thanks to them, abideth;
The Spirit and the gifts are ours through Him Who with us sideth:
Let goods and kindred go, this mortal life also;
The body they may kill: God’s truth abideth still,
His kingdom is forever.'

You rebuke it, and it startles back giving you the time and space to flee.  With your links cut, you find yourself jolted back into your body, and your voice breaks into song.

You're still nerved up after the song, but the Nation Spirit does not seem to have come after you for whatever reason.

PT

I continue to pray fervently against it, rebuking it once again in the name of the LORD Jesus Christ, and in His name casting it out of this solar system.

Then I send out my mind once again, attempting to glimpse the shifting sands of the future...

You've had some effect on it.  What exactly you're not certain, although you're pretty sure it wasn't everything you desired.

You look for the future, and it eludes you.  Rubbing your temples, you try again,pushing harder, and nothing comes to you.  It occurs to you that the future may have so many possibilities right now that its hard to see through the conflicting information.

PT

I rub my temples wearily.

:I need more wisdom and strength for this.  But thankfully, it is 'not by might, nor by power'...:

:Dearest LORD, have mercy upon me, and upon the people of this planet, and even upon the people above this planet.:

:In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray that you would break the power of this demonic spirit, and cast him out from this place, and these people.:

:And I pray that you would save these people.:

:Dear LORD, please save those whom you will, and destroy those whom you will, to your glory -- the former by your gracious mercy, the latter by your righteous judgment, for all of us are rebels and sinners, and deserve nothing but death.:

:Please give me the wisdom and strength I need now, as I again face this adversary.:

:I pray in Jesus' name -- Amen.:

I then sing a song of healing, and stretch, and take a deep breath, readying myself as best as I can for the coming conflict.

And then... I stretch out my clairvoyant senses to the Station once again, seeking the Gray Leader...

You feel a bit more relaxed after you pray, and then you reach out to the Station.  It takes you a full fifteen minutes to find him this time, and the contact is fading by that time.

Wiping sweat from your face, you go after the contact again.  This time you're in the room with the Gray Leader.

He's standing in the middle of a circular room with chairs and a table around the outer rim which are filled with people who's faces shout "Power".

"Brothers, you know me.  You've raised good points, and I think we should investigate some of them, but this spirit was very angry.  I fear provoking its wrath more than we already have." The Gray Leader says.

"You'd be better to fear the young hotheads seeking a name.  They hardly listen to us these days."

"Truly, I know this for as I said I was rescued from an assassin team, but...."

The very polite arguement goes on with several identifiable factions you have figured out, and more to come:
1. WAR NOW!!
2. Placate everyone with promises, do nothing differently than now
3. Search for you.

And then as one of the #3 speaks...

"Friends, we can set our best espers to search for a psi presence on the planet.  Or send out spies asking for news of strange things...we can....Halt."  He holds up his own hand.  "There is someone here.  A presence."

PT

:Dearest LORD, give me wisdom and strength, I pray...:

I attempt to Possess the #3 faction's current speaker...

He fights back, groaning out loud, and flailing at his head, and you press inward.  Then he grows calm, and tries to throw up a shield, but by then its too late.  It would have saved him earlier, but you're in the driver's seat now.  And he's sitting on the edge of his brain shouting at you all kinds of horrible plans for pain and suffering starring you as the chief entertainment.

To say he's mad would be an understatement.

PT

OOC: Since I understand my host's threats, I assume that I am able to read his thoughts and language center?  If possible, I start searching through his memories for information about the espers, and their capabilities, and how to elude them.

I straighten up solemnly, and address the assembly with my host's voice.

"I serve the LORD God Almighty, Sovereign Creator of all, who has sent me to this place from far, far away."

"And I have seen the dwellers on the planet below, and how they seek not needless war.  This is honorable, and pleases me."

"And I have seen the dwellers on the Station above, and how some at least seek needless war.  This is not honorable, and pleases me not."

"So I came to observe the Station more closely, pondering if I must destroy it, but desiring not needless violence."

"And lo, the Sovereign LORD lead me to someone aboard possessing both honor and leadership, and gave me hope, that needless violence may yet be avoided, and an honorable path followed."

"But is there indeed hope, Gray Leaders?"

"For even now, you oppress the dwellers below.  This is dishonoring to them, and pleases me not."

"And even now, you speak not of turning from dishonor.  You speak not of saving yourselves from wrath and destruction."

"Rather, you speak of open war, or of empty words, or of seeking me."

"You seek me?  I am here.  But why?  Do you think to find, or harm, or slay one such as I?  And if so, to what end?"

"For even if you could raise your hand against the Servant, what hope would you have when the Master comes?"

"You have seen but a glimpse of my power, yet neither your bodies nor your minds nor your Station have been able to resist.  And my power is utterly insignificant compared to that of the LORD God Almighty."

"Therefore, harken to my words, Gray Leaders, and learn honor and wisdom to save yourselves."

"For you all are currently in rebellion against the LORD God Almighty, and therefore under just sentence of death."

"And the false god you worship, the so-called 'Spirit of the Nation', is in rebellion against the LORD God Almighty, and seeks to drag you all into destruction and everlasting death with him."

"But those who turn away from this rebellion, and follow the Sovereign LORD faithfully, can be pardoned, and receive everlasting life."

I pause, regarding them quietly, while continue to search through the memories of my host.

"Choose an honorable path for your people, and for the people below."

"For I would be grieved to have to destroy you.  But your initial response to this gracious warning does not bode well for you."

"And should you persist in dishonorable paths... I will know.  And there will be no further warnings."

"Choose ye death, or choose ye life?   Be wise and honorable, Gray Leaders, while you can.  And for now... farewell."

I withdraw from the possession, but still maintain my mind reading link to my current host.

You hear a ringing noise behind you just as you are about to withdraw, and then a sharp pain pierces you.  And then you seem to be flying and spinning across the council chambers.

You and your host have a moment of shared horror as you look to see the body your current head is attached to begin to topple onto its desk without the head.  Next to him is one of the others with a Killing Blade out, and dripping blood.

You feel like you're getting sucked down, things are getting vague at the edges, and the other in your head is screaming in terror about how he doesn't want to die.  And in the midst of the room, you can see a giantesque figure made of shimmering heat, and stacks of bones.  No one else but your host seems to see him, and your host is terrified of him.

It laughs, the sound shaking space and time.

"You thought you could beat me, Worldwalker?"  It roars out its derision.

PT

:Dearest LORD, remember me now, to Your glory alone, I pray...:

::I?  'Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts'.::

::In the Holy Name of Jesus Christ, I rebuke thee, and command thee to depart this Station, and this planet, and never return.::

::I shall live, here or elsewhere, or I shall die, as the LORD wills.::

::But do you think that you can triumph against the LORD God Almighty?::

::Those who rebel against Him shall face His judgment.  You cannot beat Him.::

It screams in pain as its body is wracked by an invisible wind.

"You have bought ten years of peace with your life, Worldwalker, but I shall be back.  Will you?"

It howls as it tries to cling to the tables and to the men before the wind blows it clean out of the Station.

And then things go dark for you....

----------------------------------------------------------------

As things go dark within, I inwardly smile as the darkness flees without.

:Thank you...  LORD...:

:Please let them... keep your... Word...  I give... them... ^{_{C...  U...  one......}}: