Re: Meido (Play Thread)

[LightOfDawn]

Builder shrugged. “There are more forces in Heaven than Kejak, Cathak.”

[CodexGigas]

"But they all try to make us dance like puppets, don't they." Meneras turned to look at Flipper.

"Does he pull your strings the way his masters try to manipulate the Realm? Does he show up unannounced, whispering secrets in your ear and claiming dire events are coming, and that only he knows how to save Creation? Does he make you dance?"

Meneras's gaze flickered to meet Hider's, and Shadow's, and Glass's.

"Do you wonder why he knows our names? Or how many pots he's stirring across the East? Do you know his name, or intentions, or loyalties? We search for the one who saved Creation once and can save it again. The star-demon puts on a puppet-show for an unseen audience, with you as his marionettes," Meneras's voice rose as she stepped closer to the door.

"Cut yourselves free! Help us save Creation from the invaders at the gates!"

[LightOfDawn]

Builder smiled at Meneras, then made eye contact with Flipper. "You know my name." He looked to Glass. "You know what I am. And most importantly-" he eyed anyone else who had turned to look at him- "you all know I am not currently piloting an airship-" he turned to look Meneras in the eyes- "filled with invaders at the gates of Creation."

OOC:

[The_GM]

The member 'LightOfDawn' has done the following action : Dice roll

'd10' :

[CodexGigas]

"We're from the heart of Creation, tasked with protecting it! Is a king an invader in his own kingdom?" Bobo said hotly.

"Indeed," Meneras said, "but more importantly, were you going to let your companions answer me themselves, or does a peddler in Secrets fear the truth coming out? Afraid that your puppets will see their strings? Be careful not let them speak too much or they may begin to unravel your lies."

[AlaskanWyvern]

Flipper raised an eyebrow. Meneras proposed some interesting things, with which he would have to discuss with Builder... but only sometime later.

"Strong words, dragon. You're right. I may not know exactly what all of his plans are, and it doesn't matter. I also don't know what he had for breakfast last week. We are working towards a common goal for now, and if he goes his own way after that, I don't care. All I know is that one side of this door lay tyrants, and on the other are allies."

He turned to Bobo and spat. Quite a temper on that one...
"I don't give a fluke about your supposed ownership of this kingdom, and the citizenry, I'm sure, would disagree as well. The entire Realm is built on a glorified wench's delusions of grandeur - as well as, I'm sure, more than its fair share of 'star-demon puppetry.' Your beloved Empress is probably, in the grand scheme of things, even more of a prawn than you are."

Flipper inwardly kicked himself for reverting to Seatongue in the heat of the moment, but he was pretty sure his tone got the message across.

[Ji]

"I know not of my friend's prowess at the strings, but my dancing comes from within, I assure you. Have you tried stringing a snake puppet? More difficult than you'd think, never flexes realistically" Glass said, laughing a bit, before turning back to face their leader.

"I do however know, that for the time being, this is creation, and unless you intend to kill all the citizens to spite us, and make it a shadowland, I fail to see the point in your attacking here to 'defend creation'. You want to save it?Pilot this into a shadowland, there's plenty. Find a gate to Malfeas, I'm sure Bonobo over there can figure out where one is if you ask her. You don't even have to bother though, pick a direction and keep going, you'll find the Wyld, there also lies enemies at the less literal gates of creation. Here though? Here is pretty well within creation limits, it still obeys all of creation's natural laws, in so far as I have noticed. I would love to hear your protests otherwise, for I see no reason for anyone to attack here for any nonselfish reason."

[CodexGigas]

"I'm all too aware of how the star-demons vex the Realm. Just ask your friend. His kind were responsible for the Empress's disappearance, after she refused to play Kejak's game. Just one of the treasons we discovered in the course of...questioning a wolf we found in our midst.

Hence our presence here. We've been preparing Meido for over a year. We must strike here, now, to be ready in time for Calibration."

[LightOfDawn]

Rolling his eyes at Meneras’s accusations, Builder did his best to keep the smirk off his face when the Lunars proved themselves to be perfectly string-free. He waited, carefully analyzing what each Exalt said. And then, he relied on that which had always been his greatest weapon: his thirst for knowledge.

"I find it amusing that you continue calling them – and me – ‘demons,’ Cathak. You reject Kekak for lying, for manipulating, for making pawns of the dragons, and yet, you steadfastly continue using Immaculate terminology. Don’t you know that the Immaculate Faith is one of Kejak’s greatest lies ever? Don’t you know that the entire thing was concocted to ensure that the Solars he overthrew would not return to rule Creation again, as they did in the time before the Usurpation?

"Clearly, whatever you think of your Eternal Empress, she is less than you think. If she has not told you because you do not need to know, then you are the same pawns you claim my companions are, that you claim I am, and you are a hypocrite! Or does your Eternal Empress fear that if you knew the truth, you might judge the matter and try to decide for yourself whether the right thing had been done? Has she not told you because she simply does not know? If so, how is she even qualified to act as ruler of Creation, when she barely knows half of its history—and only the half that has been manipulated, no, BUTCHERED by Kejak?

"Or is it, perhaps, that you already know what it is that we star-chosen truly do, and spit in our faces? Do you know how every single mote of essence you use must be accounted for, either by the great weavers above or by the Chosen of the Maidens below? Do you know how, EVERY SINGLE DAY, we work to ensure Creation goes on without demons entering from Malfeas? Do you take full responsibility for every life your attack on this city will end, every thread that will be cut before its time because of your essence expenditures, MONSTER?”

OOC:

Though his caste mark didn’t flare any brighter, though he didn’t move a muscle, the young Sidereal seemed to grow taller, and his voice rose. "They call me Builder! I am no puppetmaster. I am no demon! I AM AN ORACLE, AN EYE OF HEAVEN! AND YOU, DRAGON, SPEAK OF THINGS YOU DO NOT UNDERSTAND!

"NOW SURRENDER, OR MY COMPANIONS SHALL DESTROY YOU!"

OOC:

[The_GM]

The member 'LightOfDawn' has done the following action : Dice roll

'd10' :

[CodexGigas]

"Is this the way Kejak taught you to parley? Bluffs, yelling, ultimatums? We attempt to reason, and you threaten destruction?," Meneras said with strained civility. The other Dragon-Blooded without masks were livid with anger.

"Not a single citizen has died in Meido, nor shall they, if they cooperate. No one murdered in their beds--or at a feasting table. No, that's the domain of the star-demons.

Did you think that killing the greatest heroes of Creation would keep the demons in Malfeas, or the Fae in the Wyld, or the ghosts quiet in their tombs?

We call your kind demons not because the Immaculate scriptures--indeed, Kejak left his kind out of those passages--but because of what you all did, and continue to do to anyone who doesn't fall in line with your plans.

The rulers of the First Age ignored your counsel, so you killed them. Fate witnessed your crimes, so you blinded it. Our mother wouldn't offer you the Realm on a silver platter, so you abducted her. We won't surrender without a just reason, and you threaten to destroy us.

You are prideful, Builder. You and all of your kind. Your hubris will lead to the end of Creation if left unchecked, and that is why we will continue to call you star-demons."

[Ji]

"Perhaps then, it may be wise to tell us what you seek to force them to cooperate with." said Glass, trying to take on a more stoic quality. The time for laughter, for jokes, for jabs, that had passed. Mouse had made sure of that just now, by being more than a little too boastful, and making some comments Glass made sure to mentally file away to bring up later. Still, this situation had to be settled first.

"It is clear to you, I hope, that two of the more stalwart entities in creation stand before you, we can either work parallel to you, or at cross purposes, seeing as how I doubt you would be willing to fully cooperate with us. Better this not end in wasteful bloodshed of either group of people trying to protect all life as we know it, than to let us throw ourselves against each other fruitlessly until one of our darker foes lays waste here. So I ask you, for the good of everything we both hope to accomplish now, and later, tell us what's going on here so that we might better judge your actions."

He knew now was not the time to be conservative, and his best bet right now was to tap into the sheer level of motes he'd retained where his companions had not. With a simple motion, his body coiled reflexively as his words wound to a close, soft energy making him shimmer in an all too pleasing way, as he stared back at those opposite him, and did the best smile his face could at present manage.

---

WP:9/10
Personal: 12/24

Peripheral: 38/39

Mutations: Thick skin, Serpentine body, Enhanced sense: Sight, Serpent's tongue

((Spending nine personal motes. Four for Manipulation second excellency, five for first appearance.))

[AlaskanWyvern]

Flipper mulled all this over. He knew there was a shadowland with a demense in it under the Wok. Since Bobo had capped it, it must have been important somehow. And they were coming for Calibration, so they were probably counting on the normal laws of Creation lapsing... There was also the network of defensive manses, but the likelihood of them coming into play was fairly low...

[The_GM]

The member 'AlaskanWyvern' has done the following action : Dice roll

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[AlaskanWyvern]

big money big money

[The_GM]

The member 'AlaskanWyvern' has done the following action : Dice roll

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[Ji]

((Mani-Performance))

[The_GM]

The member 'Ji' has done the following action : Dice roll

'd10' :

[CodexGigas]

"We can't reveal our plans in front of one of Kejak's cat's-paws," Meneras said with shake of her head, "however, if one of you wishes to judge the merits of our plans, he must be sworn to secrecy before we tell him anything."

[LightOfDawn]

This was not the Bronze faction plot. Not unless Kejak knew of the whole thing and planned to turn it to his advantage. Builder felt a slow trickle of power, and realized that he could finally call for reinforcements again.

But were they enemies of Creation? It was still too uncertain for him to release the bowstring.

In fact, he realized, that very uncertainty was the key to his problem of what to do next. He would have to give away a little more information, but he’d already been reckless about that anyway. He was sure he’d get a slap upside the head from his sifu when she heard about it.

Multiple times.

But, at least his chances of survival would be better. "I serve the gold stars," Builder interrupted quietly, bluster slipping away like the facade it was. "And you have finally told me what I needed to know. My business here is at an end."

He turned on his heel and walked away toward the exit iris, calling over his shoulder, "Keep your secret, dragon. I trust you to ensure you are not playing into Kejak’s hands."

[AlaskanWyvern]

As the other spoke, Flipper mused, throwing out a mountain of poor ideas before finally coming up with a possibility.
"Bonobo, part of your sorcerous expertise wouldn't include summoning, would it? At least, I assume we probably have you to thank for those zombies." he broke in. He knew they wouldn't tell him outright with Builder there, but if Builder heard, he might have the tools to find out specifics Flipper couldn't. A shadowland manse, Calibration... both of those possibly meant they were trying to reach out and call in something well beyond their ken.

[CodexGigas]

Bonobo rolled her eyes. "It's impossible to learn both sorcery and necromancy."

[LightOfDawn]

Builder smiled to himself a little as he walked over to the iris; Flipper definitely had the right idea. The Lunar and his circlemates would probably be upset with Builder for leaving – or would at least have questions about all the different names and things he’d mentioned – but they knew as well as Builder did that now was not the time for disunity.

The iris cycled open, and he jumped out.

[AlaskanWyvern]

"Oh? My apologies, I hadn't realized you were so... ah... limited. I'm going to take that as a yes to you being a summoner, then. I may not like where this plan is going, but now that our friend there is gone, I'll let you speak your piece."

[CodexGigas]

"We can only bind one of you to secrecy. You should pick one from among your number."

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