Update! 7:26 am November 11, 1908
(If you are still trying to figure out what to write, check the previous update. If nothing else is necessary to actually RP out, then hop into the conversation thread. I'll be tallying up karma for this little endeavor after we get everyone into the wrap-up conversation thread.)

 Sil Silan:

 You feel much better after the recent foray with the magical assault and that cursed ship. The extra time for some R & R helps to get you back on your feet feeling rejuvenated. The rest of the morning passes uneventfully.
(OOC: I read you on the expenditure of karma for raising your endurance! Feel free to update your stats accordingly!)

 Nic:

 Nic attempts to reach out with his mind, to cast out his awareness and his words. He's almost ready to give up when he hears what sounds like a muffled cry. >>>...Nic, from the boat? They told me you'd all died...Thought I was going crazy when I could still hear you sometimes...Listen, these people are trying to follow you...and something's happened...it's weird but there's someone else they are trying to fight off...Sorry, I don't know how long I can keep up a charade, I'm Helen, and I'm so sorry to meet like this...so strangely it must seem...<<<

S nodded at the security man, and used her sonar to keep track of him and the waitor. She then went to join her collogues.

"I believe you should not be needed unless something untoward happens, Ms. Blankenship. Better to have you on hand and not be needed then be needed and not be on hand." Davin tenses at the mention of recruitment and actively begins to pay attention to the man's mind - and then trying to use anything he might hear from that to find the others of his 'team'. "I am of little note. A researcher and scientist. I quite understand why you would seek to recruit, Ms. Blankenship though."

Davin had been surprised at the explosion caused by the bomb and so decided to keep a careful watch on the canisters and their unknown contents until he was certain nothing unforeseen was going to happen.

When that was done, he politely asked to look at any of the stolen items of Mr. Marconi that might have been recovered.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:36, Tue 02 Mar 2021.

Nic is almost startled out of his meditative state when the voice finally responded, he had almost given up hope that there would be an answer at all. He sometimes wondered about his sanity but tried not to think about it.

He 'thought' back at the voice. You thought YOU were crazy...Wait - the boat? With the statue? He shoved that aside for the moment. Helen who? Who are you? WHERE are you? How are we talking?

By the time he returns to the train, James lands outside the dining car to see the resolution of things from that end, and finds everyone is taking the time to relax or even converse about the events amongst themselves, while Ms S handles things with security and the perpetrator, when he enquires of their whereabouts from a steward.  He decides to find out the particulars from her later, instead choosing to check on the others.
First he stops to check on Sil.  Seeing her strange, almost comatose state, he gently checks for her pulse at her carotid artery, nodding slightly when he finds it, slow but indicating there is still life within her.
Next, he checks on Nic.  He does not get close enough to startle the man, just enough to check that he seems okay.  In his own travels, he had learned a bit about meditation and had used it to help him control his powers.  He then turns to the duo he had left back in car where the body had been left in the lavatory and booby-traps set.
He enters from the end opposite where he had left, and he asks a question.
 Has anyone figured out anything about those canisters yet?

"I think a researcher and scientist could be more useful to international police than an ingenue," Rose said after Davin spoke, half joking and half intentionally disingenuous. "But all right, I'll try to keep an eye on things, to the extent I can." She wasn't sure if she would seem sane pointing out where Phoenix had gone, so she paused to think about it until he thankfully returned anyways. Rose made sure to keep a safe distance from him. "I haven't made any progress with them, at least. No idea what they are."

He gives Rose a small smile.  Fear not, Ms Blankenship.  I have my abilities under control.  I will not burn you, not even by accident.
I was actually pleased to see you aboard, he says.  The reason I asked your assistance was simple.  I am not a scientist, but I did learn in basic chemistry classes in school that extreme cold can slow down, or even stop, some chemical reactions.  Things, like dynamite, react less volatilely when frozen.  I also know that structurse begin to crumble when exposed to rapidly changing temperature conditions
He looks each of them in the eyes.  I am authorized to extend an offer of freelance employment to anyone I seem may be useful to our investigation.  The pay is quite generous, as well as food, travel, lodgings, medical expenses, etc.
If you agree, I guarantee you will see things you have never seen before.
If not, you can not speak of any of the situations you encountered on this train with anyone.  Ever.  I have not been told what the consequences of any discussions about anything or anyone you have seen on this trip, but I have been told that they are "quite... severe."
He pauses to let them mull what he said over a few moments.  No need to decide right at this moment.  I will be here for lunch, and supper both, or, you may come to our private car, to discuss matters and make your decision known.  But, I have to say, that while our investigation is dangerous in some ways, it will certainly be enlightening.

Update! 7:26 am November 11, 1908
(If you are still trying to figure out what to write, check the previous update. If nothing else is necessary to actually RP out, then hop into the conversation thread. I'll be tallying up karma for this little endeavor after we get everyone into the wrap-up conversation thread.)

Davin, Phoenix & Rose:

 The conductor nods to Davin's request and takes the trio to the front of the train. "Thank you for your assistance in this matter, it will be some hours yet before we get to Berlin."

 He gets to his office and unwraps the stolen effects supposedly taken from the waiter. Among them was a simple pocket watch of brass inscribed with his initials on the inside cover, a foldable pocket knife, a strange-looking ring with an ornate gold design, and a key with a number on it. The conductor also mentions that the key looks like Marconi's room key for this train, he's also insistent about keeping the canisters until they can be turned over to authorities in Berlin.
(OOC: If anyone wants to try to take any items into custody, you'll have to give me a popularity check of green or better(+1cs modifier: he likes you guys). Debate the finer points of investigation(Reason check at -1cs mod.: he doesn't like being grilled) If you want to pocket one item without being seen at the appropriate moment, agility check.)

Nic:

 Nic hears her reply across the airwaves in the eerie phonographic sound. >>>I'm a person, like you. I'm from Indiana of all places. I was traveling to meet relatives in Irkusk when it happened. I've also got one of those things in my head. That's how we're talking right now. I've learned to use the...the...sliver. I used to think it was shrapnel, it's not. I was out for three weeks after the explosion...came to with...abilities...<<<

"Good to know, thank you," Rose said to Phoenix on the subject of his abilities. "As for my own talents... I'll keep that in mind, but I wouldn't want to do further harm by using them uncertainly, if it can be helped."

His proposal sounded intriguing at first, but as it essentially gave way to a threat, her view of the situation shifted quite a lot. She frowned. "I see," she said. "Then it seems I'll need to talk things over with my lawyer when I return home. I intend to make that trip as soon as possible, so hopefully it won't be a long wait to give a more formal reply. Relatively speaking, at least - over supper is obviously out of the question."

Once they were given at least something of the run of the conductor's office, she looked around before giving the conductor a friendly smile. "Would you mind if I examined that ring? Perhaps I'll recognize the jeweler's mark - one never knows." She actually wondered if she might find some occult touch on it, but either way it seemed like she could find out with a fairly quick once-over.

Davin asks to examine every item in their possession though he pays particular attention to the watch - even going so far to attempt to partially disassemble it to view the workings of the watch. "I think this was what he most wanted to keep. I wonder if it was something of value or simply his attachment to it that made him feel the loss of it so keenly." Davin glances up at the offer of employment. "I can if necessary acquire my own food, travel swifter then most, have little need for lodgings, I would not trust a chirurgeon of this land to treat me for a scraped knee. So, the only lure is to see something that I have not seen before. That might tempt me, at least for a time. We have time enough to discuss it, unless you plan on leaving the train soon."

Ms Blankenship, you seem to have spent a great deal of your life lately avoiding your family, Phoenix says.
The Bureau offers many perks with employment.  Travel to interesting and exotic places.  Meeting new and interesting people.  Investigating anomalous situations.  Why, just the other day, we were involved in fighting strange frog-like men while assisting an Atlantean sorceror stop an ancient and evil artifact from taking over the oceans to destroy the world.  Until then,most of us thought that Atlantis was only a myth.  Amd, then, this happened.  Not a very dull job.
When she asks about the ring, he smiles.  And you even have an expertise that is useful to the situation at hand.
Plus, as we are headed for Siberia, your abilities may prove quite useful.
He turns to Davin.  Ah, useful abilities indeed.  Especially if you are able to extend them to encompass the rest if a team.  We never go on investigations alone.  It is always good to have others who can support and assist you, who bring skills and abilities to the table that you do not possess.

Nic frowned, still with his eyes closed, as he listened deeply. It was...strange, like hearing but not quite, a weird...quality to it as well. His frown deepened. Indiana?? he thought to himself.

He shook the thoughts away and focused once more as her words kept flowing. His blood went ice cold and his face paled. He...wasn't the only one. And...they could...communicate with one another?

"Um. Okay. Yes. The sliver. Are there...others...as well? I...I admit I didn't even think to...try and communicate."

He stopped himself before he said anything about the abilities he had. He didn't know this person. They could be a spy. Or he could be paranoid. He let out a small sigh.

Update! 7:27 am November 11, 1908
(If you are still trying to figure out what to write, check the previous update. If nothing else is necessary to RP out, then hop into the conversation thread. I'll be tallying up karma for this little endeavor after we get everyone into the wrap-up conversation thread.)

Davin, Phoenix & Rose:

 The Conductor humors her and hands the ring to Rose, he’d already heard and seen too many strange things today to say no. This was the sanest thing he could think of doing right now. The Conductor added, “he was riding alone on the trip, he was heading to St.Petersburg, apparently to head further east.”

 Rose’s keen examination of the ring yielded many interesting things. The jewel appeared to be a very tiny rose-colored lightbulb with tiny golden fingers held it in place, and the body of the ring seemed to be tiny coiled gold wire set very finely together, by a rather expert hand it appeared. The design appeared to outline the three points of a triangle and the tiny bulb appeared to be a partially lidded eye in the center. There appeared to be no controls per se, no way to turn it on, nothing stuck out as a knob or switch of any kind. Very interesting nonetheless. There was something about it, apart from the strange mechanism itself, she seemed to feel a tiny power within it, thrumming energy but almost undetectable and definitely magical.

 Davin began to disassemble the watch partially to see what that might uncover and was rewarded with a tiny scrap of paper within the outer casing of the watch. Davin pulled it close to his face so he could read the small English calligraphic writing:
 Isotope 8 could be the answer to our resource issues. - HH  “don’t let the illusion stop you!” PS: I’ll be in St.Petersburg by tomorrow. Meet me at the Hotel Astoria.

(OOC: Offer still stands -- If anyone wants to try to take any items into custody, you'll have to give me a popularity check of green or better(+1cs modifier: he likes you guys). Debate the finer points of investigation(Reason check at -1cs mod.: he doesn't like being grilled) If you want to pocket one item without being seen at the appropriate moment, agility check. )

Nic:

 The voice of Helen sounded tinny and occasionally accompanied by a strange echo, she sounded relieved though to talk to someone. >>>> Nic, I don’t know how many, but there are a few others I’ve communicated with. Not all good guys. The guy that helped me is a German doctor named Arnim Zola, he’s also got one in his head. They have me locked up till they need me. I was in a fancy sub before, but they’ve got me in some kind of blimp now. They’ve been forcing me to keep tabs on your team’s movement. I’m sorry… >sob<...I’m sorry...I haven’t told them anything about you talking to me though...<<<

Rose's smile quickly faded into sadness as Davin spoke about the man's attachment to his watch. Having not seen the man himself, it was easy to forget that these were a dead person's personal effects. That, in turn, gave way to puzzlement when Phoenix spoke about her distance from her family. Was he implying there was something more than physical distance there? "I'm on vacation, Agent Phoenix," she said plainly to him, clearly unsure of how to read his comment.

She thanked the conductor and then began her brief examination, and indeed the ring certainly proved interesting. The lidded eye was one of the most famous symbols in the occult, and even beyond that she could sense a more tangible pulse of magic within it. "This is definitely a significant item, Agent, though I'm not sure yet exactly how," she said to him in an undertone. "Maybe even dangerous to leave unattended."

OOC: It wouldn't really cross Rose's mind to try to take custody of it herself, she figures Phoenix would if anything as the agent here :)

Carefully examining the piece of paper for a moment he folds it back up and then re-examines the watch for a few moments before he nods to himself satisfied and puts the watch back together. "Thank you for letting me examine it. Agent." Davin holds out his hand to carefully hand Phoenix the slip of paper.

He was curious enough to let his mind slip into Phoenix's to see what the other man made of the note.

ay we take the ring as evidence?  My agency is going to want some proof of what happened here, he requests of the conductor. He looks down at the ring to see if he recognizes the symbol.
He then takes the offered piece of paper.  He makes sure it is properly folded before pocketting it without looking   I will check this out when we are under less stress and worry.

19:57, Today: Secret Roll: Phoenix rolled 26 using 1d100.  Gd Reason, +1 CS Detective/Espionage.

19:57, Today: Phoenix rolled 42 using 1d100.  Gd Popularity. 
Neither roll seems to be much help.

Nic frowned a bit more. The words kept flowing from the woman and the more she spoke, the more his brow furrowed and his lips pressed together. The fact there wasn't just one other person with a sliver like him, but were many others was...disturbing. Especially since they could apparently communicate...and spy on each other.

"What?? Damnit!" He paused and grudgingly said, "...thanks for letting me know. Be well."

He restrained a growl and then tried to focus on severing not only the mental communication but trying to see if he could...somehow shield his sliver from others, shroud it.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:25, Sat 06 Mar 2021.

Update! 7:28 am November 11, 1908


Davin, Phoenix & Rose:

 The Conductor responds with a scrunched face, "no one has shown me any papers regarding any agency yet. So I'm not inclined to give it up to just anybody. You understand, it's improper. I appreciate what you've done to help, but these effects should go to his family and the authorities..."

(OOC: Final option, offer a bribe, however, if you don't make it high enough he'll kick you out, or try to take you into custody. Which won't be pretty!)

######

Nic:

 The voice of Helen began to echo and distort more as he began to clench down on the connection. >>>> Nic, I didn't want to do it, but they threa...<<<

 Nic feels the connection seem to slip away as if it were a flame being snuffed out by suffocation.
This message was last edited by the GM at 05:03, Sat 06 Mar 2021.

Now that Rose had recognized the occult symbology involved here, she hated to just see the ring slip from her reach entirely if it might be relevant. "Excuse me, Mr. Conductor," she said politely. "I can definitely understand your concern, in fact I don't much care for handling a murder victim's effects, but knowing jewelry like I do... could you please take a closer look at this ring?" She held it up between the two of them. "It doesn't have a proper jewel as such, but it's so intricate. I'm worried it could be some other kind of item in disguise, maybe even some sort of key to unlock or activate the traps on board. With assassins already on board your train, I'd feel safer with someone keeping it safe on their own person rather than the obvious storage place, here." She gestured around the compartment. "Agent Phoenix seems capable. I could even do it myself, to attract less attention."

It wasn't like she was trying to fast-talk the man, this item being some kind of activator actually seemed to her to be a real possibility. It would just probably operate by magic rather than mechanics.

OOC: Hopefully Rose can make her own separate popularity roll :)
01:25, Today: Rose rolled 79 using 1d100.  Popularity. I'm not sure how rolling it works so I'm not sure as to the result.

As Rose goes into her spiel about the possible uses of the ring, Phoenix retrieves his identification papers, his real ones as opposed to his cover.  Monsieur, I am an Investigator with the multi-national Bureau of Investigation, just passing through on my way to another assignment.  Will that do?

 UPDATE! 7:29 am November 11, 1908

 The conductor looks at Phoenix and Rose with a sly side-look obviously suspecting some foul play, "Let me see, I see you've dotted your i's and crossed your t's. I don't recognize your agency but I suppose it's good enough to markdown for my superiors. A strange worthless ring might go unnoticed anyway, it's just a bit of metal and glass right?"

 After he marks down the info on Jame's paperwork, he mentions the penalties for lying on your paperwork in several countries.

OOC: The conductor lets Rose keep the ring.

Nic was a little shaken. And more than a little angry. And violated. He also felt like a naïve idiot. He hadn't suspected a thing. He would never have dreamed of others with slivers, being able to connect with them. Or using them to spy on them. He pushed down the sick feeling, pushed away the thought wandering how long he'd been spied on, what they had managed to see and hear.

He wanted to punch something or let out a frustrated scream, but took in a deep breath, held it, then let it out slowly. He repeated that, still with his eyes closed, several times. All the while he kept trying to mentally 'layer' the shroud of darkness, of fog, around the sliver, around him.

He would have to be more careful. While he didn't wish any ill upon the Helen person, he didn't know her. He didn't know where she was, who had threatened her and what they would do if she couldn't connect with him anymore. But that wasn't his problem right then. That was a problem for later on.

He went to go find the Ms. S and Phoenix, asking Sil to come along.

He shrugs.  While not well-known outside of international affairs, The Bureau actually works with national and local law enforcement agencies, acting as a liaison between different countries, and conducting investigations into matters that effect multiple nations.  We are kind of like an international police agency.  I am actually undercover on another assignment, and had no knowledge of Mr Marconi's presence here, or the threat against his life.
See what I did there?  Inter(national) Pol(ice).

OOC: Nice!

The conductor shrugs noncommittally, but smiles cheerfully, "You've either put a lot of time into crafting this elaborate forgery and backstory, or you are telling the truth. I'll leave it to my superiors to decide. We'll check in when we reach Berlin this afternoon."

Phoenix chuckles softly.  I assure you that I have not the knack for story telling  of Bram Stoker, Mary Shelley, Charles Dickens, or Edgar Allen Poe.
He holds up his left arm to show the healed but still raw stump where his hand used to be.  I have already suffered loss on this trip, so, believe me when I tell you that my story is  no fabrication.