- Jachra -
Portland's a beautiful city, filled with color (when the sky isn't overcast, which it often is) and life. It's one of the most progressive cities in the union, famous for its liberal attitudes and attire.

At the most extreme eastern edge of the city, though...
Well, let's be honest here - even the bad parts of Portland are better than most cities, but it's not somewhere the young hipsters want to live if they can possibly avoid it.

For people like Kip, though, it's exactly where he wants to be... under his present circumstances.

The police presence on the corner is a bit unsettling as he carries his groceries back to his apartment. It's not that unusual, really, but in all honesty he has little to fear from them. He isn't their profile - he's just one face in a crowd.

They don't molest him as he pushes past the glass front door into the seedy lobby, past the equally seedy European property manager's office, and then up the stairs for three flights because the god-damned elevator has caution tape in front of it again.

It seems like everywhere he goes, everything he does in his life, is bounded by chains - limits, rules, obligations. He's never been more aware of it since his... incident. Even his apartment is starting to look more and more like a prison cell as he keys it open, jiggling the lock several times before it lets him in, and staring at its slightly battered walls and carpet.

And he was the one following the rules. He's not the one living it up on several million dollars. He's rotting.

At least the view is nice - there's a park behind the apartment, one that isn't total shit, that always has green things growing in it.

- Kip -
Kip places the groceries on the rickety table by the window. He sighs, looking longingly out at the park. He stares out at the people walking here and there in the park, before returning his attention to his next meal.

- Jachra -
If he looks hard enough - pretends, more like, it's a long way off - he can see Mt. Hood. Sometimes he can practically feel it beckoning to him, whispering his name on a particularly crisp morning wind that bites to the bone despite it being the middle of spring.

If only he could land a stable job, instead of a hodgepodge of small, under-the-table jobs. With no social security number. And no references. And no credit.
Well, it is Portland, but a lot of those jobs are snapped up by people younger, better educated, and better-connected than he is.

Everywhere he looks, there's just.. chains.

His phone buzzes as he gets started on another frozen meal. He doesn't have the skill for much more, which precludes pretty much every cooking job that isn't McDonalds.

- Kip -
Kip grumbles to himself, dropping the frozen meal on the counter with a soft thud, as the ice bounces off the packaging, creating a halo around his dinner. Taking a step over to the phone, he picks it up, pressing the 'on' button with his thumb, before bringing it up to his head, half expecting it to be a solicitor. "Hello?" he asks, an annoyed tinge to his voice.

- Jachra -
"Hey man," a Midwestern voice says. He's long since stopped having heart attacks at those tones - it's just Sam from down at the construction gig. Honestly, he might have preferred the soliciter. "I just got off at the bar - wanna get some drinks?"

- Kip -
"I..." he starts, hesitating as he looks at his frozen meal, then back at his wallet, carrying his meager belongings within. "Ah, I'd love to, Sam, really. Just can't tonight. Rain check?"

- Jachra -
"Ah - yeah, I guess."
Pause.
"Hey, look, man... Jamie tossed me out again, do you think I can crash on your couch for tonight? I'll be gone in the morning, swear."

He can practically feel him on the other end of the phone, standing just outside the bar down near the water.

- Jachra -
"Owe you a huge favor."

- Kip -
Kip sighs, heavily. "I should have guessed. Yeah... fine, Sam. Guess I can prepare two frozen meals tonight. Think I have a beer left in the fridge, too."

- Jachra -
"Great, awesome, you're a god-damned hero. See you in a bit."

- Kip -
"Yep..." he says, turning off the phone and putting it down. "Big damn hero," he repeats, rolling his eyes as he starts preparing the finest in frozen foods. He pauses for a moment to unlock his door to let Sam in when he arrives, before returning to his food preparations.

- Jachra -
Even the inside lock is nearly jammed. This life. Seriously.

Maybe ten minutes later, he hears a knock on the door.

- Kip -
"Door's open, Sam. Come on in," he says, popping the second meal in the microwave, banging it a few times to make sure the door latches properly and starts up.

- Jachra -
He hears it open behind him, and feet enter the room. Not heavy, tromping feet, either. He catches a slim figure in the reflection of the microwave.

"Hello, Rob," a woman says, her Chicago accent painfully familiar.

It doesn't take much to bring a man back - to send his mind flying across nearly two thousand miles to a nightclub under an investment bank, where a woman in black adjusted her drink on the underlit table, black skin, black hair.

- Kip -
Rob freezes for a moment, before blinking and rubbing his eyes. 'It's no way it's her, she couldn't possibly have found me..' he thinks to himself, turning to his door and expecting to see it closed, no one there.

- Jachra -
It isn't.

Not this time at least.

She's wearing a jacket this time. Black pants, a silver necklace that dangles from her neck between her breasts with a little diamond star. Hair up, eyes bright.

"It's been a long time," she says, taking a seat at his wet bar, one of those too-tall chairs he never uses that came with the place.

- Kip -
"I... ah, hi," he stammers, scratching his beard. "It has been, yeah, long time. Uhm, how... how did you find me?"

- Jachra -
She leans her elbows against the bar folds her hands, resting her chin against it.

What was her name again? God, how could he forget - Kendra.

"I started looking. How've you been?"

- Kip -
"Uhm, well, I've been better, I guess, Kendra," he says finally, having stalled long enough without saying her name. "How are you? You look good," he says, looking her over quickly, his eyes lingering on the necklace a moment longer than he should have, before returning to look at her eyes. "I don't get it, Kendra. Ah, why did you come all the way out to Portland looking for me?"

- Jachra -
She smiles.

"It's a bit of a story. Mind if I have one of those dinners? I'm famished."

- Kip -
"One of those...?" he asks, before looking back at the microwave. "Oh, yeah, sure. Sorry I can't offer you anything better. It was, erm... long day at work."

- Jachra -
"I'd imagine it was."
He practically forgot about it. No, he did forget about it, even the beeping hadn't alerted him in his daze.

As he serves her a plate, he remembers her drink - lime and strawberry dug into the class.

The classiest woman he's ever known personally cuts up his 99 cent store frozen dinner without complaint, eating and talking as she goes.

"I've been pretty busy on my end. You know me - I never was the type to sit on my laurels and relax. Turns out, the banking industry just wasn't working out for me."

- Kip -
"Yeah? That's a shame. Ah, moving on to other ventures, then?" he asks, sitting down with his own meal, picking at it, uninterested as he watches Kendra, trying to figure out just why she came to find him.

- Jachra -
"Mmhmm. I think the clearest signal was when I threw my monitor out the window and called the CEO a crook."

- Jachra -
"At that point it seemed like a good idea to get my resume out there."

- Jachra -
She looks up at him, fork spearing some moist green beans.

"And I found some. Good, engaging work - the kind that doesn't come on Monster.com."

- Jachra -
"The kind that makes me come out to Oregon to find the one person I know who happens to be able to, theoretically, break electronic security."

- Kip -
"Uhhhh.... what?"

- Jachra -
She takes a last sip of his beer - aside from water, it's all he had to offer, dabs at her cheek with a strip of paper towel to clean it, and rises to her feet.

"It's a job offer, Robert. You don't need to decide right now - in fact, I'd kinda prefer you didn't. You've been fucked pretty hard, let's be honest, and I came as much because I knew you had a shot at this as that I knew you needed it, even deserved it, more than most."

She takes a card from her jacket pocket, white, black wings, a sword piercing upwards.

- Jachra -
On the reverse is a number in white against black

- Kip -
He takes the card, looking at it. "Ah, a job... of course."

- Kip -
Glancing back at her, then glances back at his apartment. "Do I get details about this 'job'?"

- Jachra -
(Here we are)

- Kip -
(Yarr)

- Jachra -
(Roar)

- Jachra -
Kendra turns from the door, her smile a hint of the moon's curve. "Call the number and find out, Robert. A good Mystery isn't going to solve itself."

And with that, she's gone, breezing out of his life once more - leaving a whiff of sandalwood and lavender, and the card, to remind him that she was there at all, and not just a figment of his imagination.

- Kip -
He looks down at hte card, staring at it for a while as the remains of his meal rapidly cool on the table. "Maybe tomorrow," he says to himself as he wonders what happened to Sam.

- Jachra -
Paid off, most likely. For a couple beers, a fake call is probably the least of the things he'd do.

Tomorrow - tomorrow's another day. Kip doesn't work tomorrow, it's a Saturday and overtime is fiercely jockeyed over as it is.

East, he can just imagine the looming presence of Mt. Hood, imagines he can scent the mountain breeze - maybe the wind carried all the way from Chicago back to him.

Not damned likely, though. Rockies are in the way.

- Kip -
Robert grabs his fork and resumes picking at his meal. There was no way this job didn't pay better than the dredge he's been doing. But was it worth the risk? SIghing, he kept going over all the possibilities again, and again. The money he could make, over the likely chances of injury, death or being thrown in jail.
He already knew what his decision was going to be -- his curiosity and lack of desire to keep living in this shithole going to win out over his caution. But he couldn't, or at least, shouldn't, respond so soon.

- Jachra -
That's right - don't let them think you're desperate, that they've hooked you, that they can squeeze blood out of your stone.
Even though you are. Even though they have.
Even though they probably can.

More bindings, more knots tied around him. One day, one of them might snap around his neck and leave him dangling.

That night, Kendra's scent follows him into bed, and he remembers his house back in Chicago, his house, mortgaged with his own money. He remembers the scent of warm bread from his father's baking experiments as he quested for the perfect loaf, the scent of oils from his mother's studio, the sound of grunge from his kid sister's bedroom, the girl who was so sweet as a kid and just got... different as she became a teen.

So many memories. All of them live inside him now, because he doesn't know if he'll ever experience them again.

Morning. Sunlight. The sound of an alarm he forgot to change to weekdays only, unforgivably rousing him.

- Kip -
Kip grumbles as he rolls out of bed, sighing as he reaches into the rickety drawer and pulls out the one picture he has of his family. It's times like this that he misses them. He folds the picture back up and stuffs it back into its spot in the drawer, before standing and heading over to grab the only clean clothes he has left, putting them somewhere they won't get wrinkled as he prepares to take a quick, miserable shower and get ready for the day.

- Kip -
After cleaning himself up, he heads over to where he left the business card, sitting down and grabbing the phone as he stares at it.

- Jachra -
It's unchanged from yesterday, not that he expected it to. Notions of it burning up after a set amount of time come from late night spy television, not a sensible reality.

Even as he thinks, though, the phone rings for him - this time, it's a different Sam, a rather coincidentally named Samantha.

- Kip -
He jumps in surprise as the phone rings, before picking it up and clicking it on. "Hello?"

- Jachra -
The sight of her number is a lot more pleasant - somehow, she wheedled his out of him despite his misgivings and paranoia.
"Hey, Kip!" she says, chipper. "Hope I didn't wake you, totally lost track of time.

- Kip -
"Oh, hey Samantha," he says as he holds the business card in one hand. He flips it around in his hand and presses it against the table, having it slide up his hand before flipping it again as he talks. "No, not waking me, I decided to start early today. To what do I owe the pleasure?" he asks, liking the momentary distraction from the job looming over his head.

- Jachra -
"So I remembered something yesterday afternoon when I was meeting with some friends - you said you'd always wanted to go mountain climbing, is that right?"

- Kip -
He smiles wistfully -- it was something he'd always found fascinating. "Yeah, one day. When I have more free time." he says, trying to keep the disappointment out of his voice 'and money... and no warrants' he thinks to himself ruefully.

- Jachra -
"As it happens, my friends have just had to cancel a trip - but they can't cancel the rental on their gear or the lodge. They were going to go out to Mt. Hood next weekend."
A bit of a pause.
"I was wondering if you'd be free that weekend."

- Kip -
"Oh? I.. oh," he repeats more enthusiastically. He looks down at the business card. "I ah, I think so. I'd love to, Samantha. It's just, well, you know how work can be sometimes...." he pauses, looking at the business card for a bit, hesitating for a good minute before putting it down. "You know, I think I will be free that weekend. I'd love to go out to Mount Hood."

- Jachra -
"Great! Great," she says, a bit flushed. "I'll send you the details."
Another pause.
"Okay, well, take care!"

Hang-up.

Jesus Christ, what is with his life?

- Kip -
He looks down at the card, afraid to call because he knows... just knows the job will be that same weekend.

- Jachra -
It'd be just like the universe.

- Kip -
He sighs, figuring it'd be best to find out sooner rather than later. He flips over the card to the side with the phone number on it and calls. "Now to see how much the universe is laughing at me..." he murmurs to himself as he dials.

- Jachra -
Each digit feels oddly heavy, like he's pressing an old push-button phone.

Then it's just waiting for the dial tone. One ring. Two rings.

Three.

"Hello, Mr. Kipper," a man's voice says, the tone quiet and British

- Kip -
He knows he shouldn't be surprised the man knew who was calling, but it still throws him off guard. He doesn't reply for numerous long seconds as he tries to think of how he should reply. Clandestine dealings were never his strong suit. "Hello.... sir." he says, deciding on that finally. "I was informed that you might have some... work?"

- Jachra -
Outside his window, he can see a cop car pull up on the other side of the park out his second story window. Not unusual this time of year, but the sight bothers him.

"I understand you have what may be described as a checkered past, Mr. Kipper - a somewhat unearned one, I do believe."

- Kip -
Kip listens with a half hearted "mhm" every so often to signify he's still listening, but the majority of his attention is on the cop. He discreetly lowers his blinds, trying to watch while not being too obvious about it.

- Jachra -
"It's ironic, too, for as I understand it you did in fact have the means and opportunity to commit the crime for which you were unjustly pursued."
There's a shuffling of papers.
"Despite a somewhat average academic career, you were consistently highly reviewed in your chosen field of work - alarm services technician."

- Kip -
"Yeah, that's right..." he says, still keeping an eye on the cop.

- Jachra -
Still idly. What the hell are they doing?

"I can see I only have half your attention, so let me get to the chase, Mr. Kipper, and flush out the fox - would you be able to replicate the crime? Given a structure with a similar security system made by the same company, would you, with the help of a small team, be able to liberate certain items of import to my employer?"

- Kip -
"I... what? I mean, I suppose I could, but I'd have to figure out exactly what they did first, not to mention that this would be illegal."

- Jachra -
"Yes, rather to the point, Mr. Kipper. It is illegal - and if all goes well, your involvement with it will remain a secret. Before you hang up - let me clarify what it is my employer is offering in return."
He clears his throat, shuffling papers again.
"Your debts - which, I see, are considerable, with an unpaid mortgage, several credit cards, a student loan, and an auto loan - wiped clean.
He turns a page.
"Your criminal record with the Federal Bureau of Investigations, Interpol's financial crime division, and state and local police, eliminated - well, aside from this minor youth conviction. Resisting arrest during a war protest? A badge of honor, some might say.
Another page.
"Ah - and a hundred thousand dollars. Cash."

- Kip -
"...you know what they say about things too good to be true," he says, immediately keying in on anything he can use as an excuse to try and convince himself to back out of this. "Everything a man could hope for and then some?"

- Jachra -
"Temptation, Mr. Kipper, is alluring precisely because it is what we want."

- Jachra -
"And sacrifices are required to make them real."

- Jachra -
"Ideally, a very small one of your time and effort."

- Kip -
"So if you're able to just wipe away my police record... why do you need me to do this job?" he asks, imagining this to be some manner of hacking job to clear his name.

- Jachra -
"Money can open a great many doors, Mr. Kipper - but not this one. Some things are priceless, and so must be obtained by other means."

- Kip -
(brb)

- Jachra -
"You possess familiarity with the system in question and, dare I say, a certain trustworthiness born of necessity."

- Kip -
Then, finally, the question he's most dreading the answer to, "and when, Mr. British, is this job and er, team, supposed to meet and do this?"

- Jachra -
"Five days from today, come the 7th of July."

...was that the sound of the universe giving him a breather?

Outside, the cop car takes off down the street.

- Kip -
So trip after job?

- Jachra -
Two days after

- Jachra -
The idea that the universe is just out to get him is ridiculous, after all.

- Kip -
"Very well, I suppose I could fit this into my schedule," he says, gathering up some false bravado.

- Jachra -
"I suggest not entering it into your calendar, such things tend to be looked askance on."
That was probably a joke.

- Jachra -
"You'll receive a followup call Thursday giving you the time and place. I suggest you brush up on your material, Mr. Kipper."

- Jachra -
"Until then."

- Kip -
"Yeah, thanks..." he says, suddenly remembering he was trying to convince himself not to do this.

- Jachra -
Click. Gone.

- Jachra -
No threats. Real criminals probably don't bother.

- Kip -
He raps his knuckles on the table as he puts the phone down. "This had better work out..." he mutters, looking back out to the cop.

- Kip -
Time to get studying... queue Rocky Music

- Jachra -
Gone, too. Everything can feel so transient sometimes.

Finding his old books is a bit of a chore. He's surprised he even has them. He's got his notes on his laptop, too. Hours and hours and hours of it - not just the system he worked on, but dozens of them. Lines and wires and codes and procedures.

- Jachra -
It's no surprise they pegged the crime on him.

- Kip -
He plops himself down heavily on his seat, breaks open the first book and gets studying.
It's going to be a long week.

- Jachra -
Saturday. Sunday.
Can't focus, can barely sleep. Numbers swim, and his head aches. He finds some extra strength acetominephrine and powers through.

He can practically hear his parents. Are they all right? He's never seen anything in the news. Doesn't dare stalk them on Facebook after going through pains to cut himself off.

Monday. Tuesday. Work is awful. It feels so fake, the two little jobs he holds down. The construction work seems so transient - what is he putting up that others won't tear down? What's he doing? Sam - Samuel - is completely unabashed and seems to barely even remember Friday, let alone the call.

Wednesday. Calling in sick.

- Kip -
Even while working he's thinking about this job. It takes up his thoughts nearly every waking moment. Having been going for so long with so little hope and his dreams seeming so far away, he's clinging to this miracle job with every fiber of his being. Every moment not at this damned construction job is spent studying, and while on the job his thoughts are on procedures and code for the security systems. So much so that he's getting sloppy at work.

- Jachra -
Good thing, too, his supervisor yelled at him yesterday - both of them.

Wednesday night rolls around, and then passes... leaving him at dawn on Thursday, when his phone rings.

- Kip -
Groaning, he looks at the phone, bleary eyed. His stomach growls as he realizes he forgot to eat again. He grabs the phone, fumbling with it for a moment before clicking it on. "Hello?"

- Jachra -
"Hello, Robert."
Kendra's voice.

- Kip -
"Kendra, hello!" he says, perking up. "Ah, today's the day, right?"

- Jachra -
"Yes indeed. You sound chipper today, Kipper."

- Kip -
"You're calling me Kipper now too, Kendra?" he asks. "But yes, I'm eager to get this done. Ah, thank you, Kendra, for this."

- Jachra -
She laughs, and it doesn't sound forced. "I couldn't resist the alliteration - and you're welcome. The least I could do, really."

- Jachra -
She shifts the phone, the sound of air rushing through a car window.
"There's a garage near the riverfront. Make your way there around noon - maybe we'll get lunch."

- Kip -
He nods, forgetting for the moment that she can't see it. "Okay, I'll see you then, Kendra." He looks back down at all the books he's been studying.

- Jachra -
Tech manuals and operator's guides, stacked up on one side of the room. Funny - never thought he'd get out of this by committing the very crime he was framed for.
(Crossfade~)
Portland's a nice city. He doesn't get to go into it often. If you can bear its overweening hipsterism, it's a great city, and the waterfront is no exception.

- Kip -
Kip grumbles something about the 90s as he heads to the river front. As he approaches, he makes sure to pat himself down, trying to look presentable when Kendra shows up.

- Jachra -
Boots click against the pavement, and there she is - black and white, sandalwood and lavender. Smooth dark skin browned in the sunlight, dark hair about her head.

- Kip -
"Hello Kendra," he says, not turning around in some strange attempt to be suave and secret-agent...y. That's what secret agents do, right? ...what the hell is he doing here?

- Jachra -
"Well well - you clean up surprisingly well for a guy working construction and - what was the second one again?"

- Kip -
"Well, really just construction. Just, you know, different types."

- Jachra -
She smiles, white teeth.

"Care to grab a coffee?"

- Jachra -
He can see the garage. Vines growing up over its brown bricks to make it look a little more natural.

- Kip -
"Of course. Lead the way."

- Jachra -
They go down one, two stores, past an electronics place to a cafe with a back porch looking over the river. Hipster couples and businessmen on lunch take up most spots, but they find one.

It's weird meeting her in broad daylight. He'd only seen her for three weeks, just three weeks before his life turned upside-down. She has no less poise, even if this isn't a nice cocktail bar.

- Kip -
"I think this is the first time we've actually spent time together with the sun up," he says with a chuckle as he drinks his overpriced coffee.

- Jachra -
"I think you're right," she laughs lightly, sipping on a latte. "How have you been, really?"

- Kip -
"Well, it's been rough, but it's a living. Can't really complain. After all, once this is done things will definitely be looking up, right?" he says with a laugh, as he watches her carefully for her reaction.

- Jachra -
"That's the idea," she says. "A fresh start for everyone."

- Jachra -
She considers him thoughtfully.
"Somehow, I expected worse. A scraggly beard, a trailer in a field - most people who go to ground go to ground hard."

- Kip -
"I tried... it... doesn't grow all the way. Kinda patchy. Ugly affair. So I keep it short."

- Jachra -
She covers her mouth, grinning.

- Jachra -
"Good. You look better that way."

- Kip -
"Yeah. Thanks," he shrugs, "...so have you worked with these people before?"

- Jachra -
"Just once - it feels like forever ago, after I gave up my old life."

- Kip -
"Yeah? So, how have you been? You seem to have had a better time of leaving it all behind than I."

- Jachra -
"Less than you'd think."

- Jachra -
"But yes, I suppose I've made out better at the very least."

- Jachra -
She stirs with a little spoon.

- Jachra -
"Unlike you, I don't have much of a family to be getting back to."

- Jachra -
"Just one - one I haven't seen since I was a kid."

- Jachra -
"I've got all the money I'll ever need, but sometimes, you need a bit more than money."

- Kip -
He nods, "I know what you mean. So, who's the mysterious family member of the beautiful Kendra?" he asks, trying to give a charming smile.

- Jachra -
Just the slightest eyeroll, her smile widening a bit more.
"My kid sister. She disappeared, when we were young."

- Kip -
"Disappeared? Really? What happened?" he says, suddenly somber and concerned.

- Jachra -
"It was the sort of night you shut the window and shiver under two blankets. The kind of night where you pray to God a tree doesn't fall over in the howling gale."

- Jachra -
"Or if it does, that it doesn't fall on you."

- Jachra -
"I hear a scraping, and a thumping, and it felt like the whole blizzard came in."

- Jachra -
"And I hid under my blankets all night long - and when I finally dared to peek, the room was covered in snow, there were footprints in it, and my sister was gone."

- Kip -
"I... really?" he says incredulously, wondering if Kendra's just trying to spook him.

- Jachra -
She finishes her latte, leaving it on the table.
"Really."

- Jachra -
"Ready to go?"

- Kip -
He nods, putting the coffee down. "Yes, yes I am."

- Jachra -
Together, the two of them return to the garage. It's closed, the owner 'out fishing,' and opens a side door, leading him in.

- Kip -
He hesitates for a minute at the doorway, looking inside. He could still back out now, right? No hard feelings? Not like Kip doesn't now know of an illegal enterprise working out of this garage or anything...
He takes a deep breath and walks in.

- Jachra -
There's a couple cars in the bays, one of them being worked on, the others just parked. She takes him down the stairs, and in the basement where they work on cars from below he finds two men. One of them wears a vest, a dinner jacket on his chair as he types into a laptop. The other has a number of firearms disassembled on the table that he's cleaning, his head bald and with a stubbled beard.

- Jachra -
"Hello, gents."

- Kip -
He immediately looks apprehensive as he sees the firearms. "Hi..." he says, frowning at the weapons.

- Jachra -
That man looks up, while the other turns around in his seat.

"This is Kip, our man on the inside, so to speak."

"You're the one familiar with the security system, then," the fellow at the desk says, turning more fully around. He's young - college at most, clean-cut.

- Kip -
"Yeah... name's Kip." He's clearly more apprehensive now, the actual weapons implying that this is going to be much more than just slipping in and grabbing some stuff before high tailing it out of there.

- Jachra -
Kendra sits up on a table before a rack of tools. "This is Henri and Deacon."
Following his eyes, she notes his apprehension.

- Jachra -
"Oh - don't mind Henri. He's strictly here as a contingency."

- Jachra -
Somehow that doesn't make him feel much better

- Kip -
"So what's the plan, then?" he asks, now realizing how completely out of place he is here.

- Jachra -
Deacon takes a pair of glasses from the table, wiping them with a cloth.
"In short, Henri will drive us to the TecTronics corporate headquarters on the southside. I will enter by the front door using my fake ID," he says, indicating a badge and card. "Once inside, I will get cozy in the empo room for several hours."

He unfolds a map - blueprints, from the looks of it.
"You and our good luck charm - that's you, Kendra - " She rolls her eyes, smirking. " - are going to enter through this service entrance here. I will have dealt with the cameras by then. Kendra can get you through the number lock there, and once inside I will guide you past the guards."

- Jachra -
Tet

- Kip -
Yarr

- Jachra -
I can't see the previous stuff here, can you?

- Kip -
I can.

- Kip -
Is there a way to copy the log?

- Jachra -
Yeah just swipe your mouse across it

- Kip -
kk
*** Jachra has made the chat history visible to everyone. ***

- Kip -

- Jachra -
She considers him thoughtfully.
"Somehow, I expected worse. A scraggly beard, a trailer in a field - most people who go to ground go to ground hard."

- Kip -
"I tried... it... doesn't grow all the way. Kinda patchy. Ugly affair. So I keep it short."

- Jachra -
She covers her mouth, grinning.

- Jachra -
"Good. You look better that way."

- Kip -
"Yeah. Thanks," he shrugs, "...so have you worked with these people before?"

- Jachra -
"Just once - it feels like forever ago, after I gave up my old life."

- Kip -
"Yeah? So, how have you been? You seem to have had a better time of leaving it all behind than I."

- Jachra -
"Less than you'd think."

- Jachra -
"But yes, I suppose I've made out better at the very least."

- Jachra -
She stirs with a little spoon.

- Jachra -
"Unlike you, I don't have much of a family to be getting back to."

- Jachra -
"Just one - one I haven't seen since I was a kid."

- Jachra -
"I've got all the money I'll ever need, but sometimes, you need a bit more than money."

- Kip -
He nods, "I know what you mean. So, who's the mysterious family member of the beautiful Kendra?" he asks, trying to give a charming smile.

- Jachra -
Just the slightest eyeroll, her smile widening a bit more.
"My kid sister. She disappeared, when we were young."

- Kip -
"Disappeared? Really? What happened?" he says, suddenly somber and concerned.

- Jachra -
"It was the sort of night you shut the window and shiver under two blankets. The kind of night where you pray to God a tree doesn't fall over in the howling gale."

- Jachra -
"Or if it does, that it doesn't fall on you."

- Jachra -
"I hear a scraping, and a thumping, and it felt like the whole blizzard came in."

- Jachra -
"And I hid under my blankets all night long - and when I finally dared to peek, the room was covered in snow, there were footprints in it, and my sister was gone."

- Kip -
"I... really?" he says incredulously, wondering if Kendra's just trying to spook him.

- Jachra -
She finishes her latte, leaving it on the table.
"Really."

- Jachra -
"Ready to go?"

- Kip -
He nods, putting the coffee down. "Yes, yes I am."

- Jachra -
Together, the two of them return to the garage. It's closed, the owner 'out fishing,' and opens a side door, leading him in.

- Kip -
He hesitates for a minute at the doorway, looking inside. He could still back out now, right? No hard feelings? Not like Kip doesn't now know of an illegal enterprise working out of this garage or anything...
He takes a deep breath and walks in.

- Jachra -
There's a couple cars in the bays, one of them being worked on, the others just parked. She takes him down the stairs, and in the basement where they work on cars from below he finds two men. One of them wears a vest, a dinner jacket on his chair as he types into a laptop. The other has a number of firearms disassembled on the table that he's cleaning, his head bald and with a stubbled beard.

- Jachra -
"Hello, gents."

- Kip -
He immediately looks apprehensive as he sees the firearms. "Hi..." he says, frowning at the weapons.

- Jachra -
That man looks up, while the other turns around in his seat.

"This is Kip, our man on the inside, so to speak."

"You're the one familiar with the security system, then," the fellow at the desk says, turning more fully around. He's young - college at most, clean-cut.

- Kip -
"Yeah... name's Kip." He's clearly more apprehensive now, the actual weapons implying that this is going to be much more than just slipping in and grabbing some stuff before high tailing it out of there.

- Jachra -
Kendra sits up on a table before a rack of tools. "This is Henri and Deacon."
Following his eyes, she notes his apprehension.

- Jachra -
"Oh - don't mind Henri. He's strictly here as a contingency."

- Jachra -
Somehow that doesn't make him feel much better

- Kip -
"So what's the plan, then?" he asks, now realizing how completely out of place he is here.

- Jachra -
Deacon takes a pair of glasses from the table, wiping them with a cloth.
"In short, Henri will drive us to the TecTronics corporate headquarters on the southside. I will enter by the front door using my fake ID," he says, indicating a badge and card. "Once inside, I will get cozy in the empo room for several hours."

He unfolds a map - blueprints, from the looks of it.
"You and our good luck charm - that's you, Kendra - " She rolls her eyes, smirking. " - are going to enter through this service entrance here. I will have dealt with the cameras by then. Kendra can get you through the number lock there, and once inside I will guide you past the guards."

- Jachra -
Thanks!
*** Jachra has changed the conversation picture. ***

- Jachra -
------------------

- Jachra -
Kip reminds himself that it is not a hallucination - that he has in fact been found by Kendra, the last woman he dated, and is now in a car garage with what appears to be a white collar hacker and what may in fact be a hitman.

- Jachra -
And they're planning a heist of some major corporation using the knowledge he accumulated over his time at his last job.

- Jachra -
Essentially, committing a version of the very crime that he was falsely charged with and remains on the lam for to this day.

- Jachra -
All in return for getting said crime wiped for his record and a substantial sum of money. Apparently.

- Kip -
Kip scratches at his beard, taking slow, steady breaths to keep his calm. He knew it was ironic, committing the crime he was framed for to regain his innocence, but he doesn't really have a choice in the matter. This could get his life back on track, right? He looks over his two 'partners', sizing them up as he prays they are reliable. His mind pores over all the heist movies he's seen in his youth, with the double crossing and undercover cops abundant in such films worrying him almost as much as the heist itself.

- Jachra -
He can almost see the bonds between them, the tenuous bonds of desperate men and women. If one of them is a cop - well, Kip isn't qualified to tell.

"Once you and Kendra reach the vault, your job begins. We'll provide you any tools you require."

- Kip -
"Yeah, tools." He thinks back to the times he actually worked on these systems. He starts listing off supplies that would help him do this -- preferably all things easily acquired with cash, along with gloves, mask, maybe a voice modulator so they can't tell who he is...

- Jachra -
Kendra's smile widens at that. While he's talking, she goes over to a locker and starts pulling out packs of obscuring clothing.

- Jachra -
Deacon takes notes, and fetches tools from the garage, until there's a heavy cloth satchel set up for him.

- Jachra -
The sort a contractor might carry around, the kind he did for years.

- Kip -
Kip opens up the satchel, peering inside. "Thanks, Deacon," he says, not sure if he should be acting friendly or not, taking the cues from his... compatriot.

- Kip -
(Being Deacon in this case. If he smiles, Kip smiles bakc)

- Jachra -
Aye

- Jachra -
Deacon offers a small one.
"Henri will drive you to the site. When you're done, he'll drive you out and drop you off. Find your way back to wherever it is you come - our employer will take care of the rest. Any questions?"

- Kip -
He raises his hand, "Ah, yes. What if they find out we're trying to steal this stuff while we're doing it?"

- Jachra -
"It's very unlikely that they will," Kendra says, "but if they do, they will send in private security contractors. We anticipate it will take them five minutes to arrive from their operations site."

- Jachra -
"So it's not without risk."

- Kip -
"So... mall cops with tasers?"

- Jachra -
They glance at one another.

"Kip - I'm going to level with you. These will be men with guns. If it comes to it, we'll surrender and they'll turn us over to the cops. Back where we started, as it were."

- Kip -
"Yeah, I figured it was too much to hope for. I do understand what I'm doing here."

- Jachra -
The spotlight over their little meeting makes her skin almost seem darker by comparison, the shadows heavy about them. A smile plays about her lips.
"I knew you could handle it."

- Kip -
He smiles back, but tries not to look enthusiastic about it. He always did love her smile.

- Jachra -
Taking a black ski cap, she tucks her hair into it and passes him one. There are holes cut in it, but she doesn't cover up just yet. Then the concealing clothing, the gloves.

Once the three of them, Henri, Kendra, and he, are suited up, Deacon gives them a nod of acknowledgement.

"Good luck. Hope never to see you folks again - I think that's the best blessing we can ask for."

Henri grunts, going to start a car.

- Kip -
He nods, "fair enough. Here's to a smooth job," he says, raising a glass if he has one, or an imaginary one if he doesn't.

- Jachra -
Water bottles will have to do.

Laughing, Deacon taps his against hers, and Kendra against theirs. He returns to his station as Kendra leads Kip back up the stairs to the car.

- Jachra -
"Don't forget to turn your cell phone off, while you're at it."

- Kip -
"Right, right..." Kip says, reaching down, pulling out his cell phone and flips it over, removing the battery.

- Jachra -
The two of them settle into the back of the car. It's an old Honda, early 2000s probably. The doors creak open and they start out. Portland passes by, to be replaced by trees not far from the city. They go up into the hills and pull off into a side area to wait for the sun.

- Jachra -
In the fading light, he can't help but think of home. His kid sister, his parents. Chicago feels like a long god-damned away.

- Jachra -
"This is D, check in," a radio clicks.

"K here," Kendra answers.

- Jachra -
"All systems go. Start to the target site now."

- Kip -
Kip hesitates for a moment. What was his code name, again?

- Jachra -
Wordless as ever, Henri starts the car again, and they descend into an incorporated community just south of the city.

Kendra gives him an amused look. "R~."

- Kip -
"R, radio check," he says. Damn Kendra and her having a K.

- Jachra -
"H," the frenchman says reluctantly.

- Jachra -
The car drives down a main road, then a service road, then parks behind a dumpster near a McDonalds. A large, nondescript building stands across from it, out of direct sight of the car from street level.

- Kip -
Kip glances around, looking for the destination.

- Jachra -
Henri stops the car, keeping it idling. He sets a submachine gun on the seat next to him - not an entirely comforting gesture. Kendra, pulling the mask over her face, pops her side and steps out, a slim, dark figure that drinks in the light.

- Kip -
Kip does the same, donning his mask as he slips out of the car. He takes a deep breath as he checks his equipment, making sure it's all there.

- Jachra -
As secure as he'll ever be on a night like this. Beneath the moon and stars, he follows Kendra around the corner to the building, its grey walls presaging nothing of what might lie within. There's a camera - that Kendra waves to - and a side door. She passes the fake ID over a little panel by it and it hums for a second, then flashes green

- Jachra -
No turning back now

- Kip -
"Okay, I'm ready," he says, mostly to himself as he heads in, looking for the proper place to do his thing.

- Jachra -
The inside is - well, it's modern, at least. Corporate. TecTronics is splayed across a glass conference room wall.

No one is here. If there's a janitorial staff, they aren't in this room. Kendra guides him, following a memorized map. They pass several cameras, but the mask gives him a confidence he never thought he might have.

- Kip -
By the fourth camera, he's almost standing tall as he follows closely behind Kendra. He is, however, still too paranoid to talk right now.

- Kip -
For the umpteenth time, he goes over his equipment again.

- Jachra -
"Stop," Deacon's voice calls through, soft over the channel.

- Jachra -
Kendra puts an arm up to halt him and they back up a pace.

- Kip -
Kip immediately stops, looking at Kendra, wondering what's up.

- Jachra -
Around behind a door.

A man in paramilitary fatigues walks by the corridor, black with a black cap, shaved head. He looks bored - walking this route every night, a hundred times.

- Kip -
(Paramilitary fatigues. Like military fatigues but with extra bling)

- Jachra -
(:D)

- Jachra -
Kendra waits until he's gone, then silently gestures him on. It's the last turn, and they come to a large, heavy door with a passcode box.

- Jachra -
She stares at it for a moment, silent. For a moment, he's terrified she's forgotten the code. Then she presses keys rapidly.

- Kip -
As the code is pressed in, Kip exhales, releasing a breath he hadn't realized he was holding for so long.

- Jachra -
The door beeps and clicks, and she pulls it open.

Now this - this looks familiar.

- Jachra -
It's a large room, some sort of storage facility, lined with rows and rows of boxes in storage shelves.

- Jachra -
But apparently none of that is worth shit to whatever must be contained behind the giant vault door in the back.

- Jachra -
He's installed a hundred of these, or been involved with them anyway.

- Kip -
Kip hesitates, not approaching until Kendra gives the okay. Was there something else to do first? He can't remember.

- Jachra -
Kendra shuts the door behind her, and waits back.

Hesitation is good. He remembers that these models come with a complicated alarm system that's in three parts

- Jachra -
One, the infrared sensors that test for increases in temperature. Two, the lasers. Three, sensitive plates.

- Kip -
(Oh god, it's Mission Impossible!)

- Kip -
Kip takes a few deep breaths, glancing behind him before digging into his tool kit. Time to get started!

- Jachra -
(Wits + Larceny :D You may narrate for a bonus)

- Kip -
(kk, one sec... also, how am I rolling this?)

- Jachra -
(Oh right0

- Jachra -
(It's been a while!)

- Jachra -
rpgroller.com/nwod/

- Jachra -
(Willpower might be advised)

- Kip -
Kip closes his eyes for a few brief moments, going back to when this was his job. It's the same, really. Only... kinda in reverse. Instead of putting it in, he's just pulling it out! Right? Well, not entirely, totally different set of procedures once the system's actually in place, but he's had to do that before too. Just... now without permission, or real admin permissions... and with the threat of being shot bearing down on him.
No pressure. He breathes in as he realizes he stopped for a minute, and whips out the first set of tools, plugging himself in carefully, and getting started.

- Kip -
So 6 dice.

- Jachra -
It's only by the bredth of a hair that he stops himself from being totally and completely fucked.

- Jachra -
And that is meant literally

- Jachra -
He had pulled open a panel on the wall, a panel no one else would have noticed - it's even insulated against IR

- Jachra -
And started working on the wires there to reroute the alarms -

- Jachra -
and hello, new wire

- Jachra -
His pliers stopped just a moment before snapping it

- Jachra -
They've changed it - maybe in response to his leaving, maybe just in their regular updates.

- Jachra -
But that's cool. He's not sweating buckets or anything.

- Jachra -
Kendra checks her watch.

- Jachra -
"We're ten minutes in. Keep going."

- Kip -
"Yeah, yeah..." he whispers, wiping the sweat from his brow. He stretches his hands, clenching and unclenching them before reaching back into his satchel and grabbing more tools and gets back to work.

- Kip -
Kip gets to work again, reaching into the system and tries to pull one of the little tricks he figured out while on the job. Well, more of exploiting a flaw in the system, it really helped speed up a reset of the security system. Fortunately no one outside of him and maybe one or two other techs really knew about it. Hell, this exploit was probably used in the incident that got him fired. But, it'd save him some time in forcing a reset of the system if he did it right...
...and the company hadn't closed the loophole by now.

- Jachra -
There's a hum as the system powers down, then a louder one, rising sharply as it powers back up. The panel lights blink a few times and flash yellow - awesome. Now the alarms are disabled.

"We're 23 in," Kendra warns.

- Jachra -
"They check the place visually in another half hour."

- Kip -
Another half hour? More than enough time. Kip's getting back into the swing of things... just like riding a bike! A bike that'll shoot you dead if you fall.

- Jachra -
Now for the actual vault door.

- Jachra -
Which is on an independent circuit

- Jachra -
Great.

- Kip -
Not a problem, the security was the hard part! The giant, massive, almost deafeningly loud door won't be an issue at all!

- Kip -
He slowly approaches, still hesitant despite the fact that the security was disabled. Being paranoid had gotten him this far, surely it'll get him and Kendra through this.

- Kip -
Pulling out the next set of tools, he heads over to the access panel and gets to work.

- Jachra -
This one is more obvious. Why shouldn't it be if there's hidden alarms waiting to jump anyone who gets near?

Popping it open, he finds a series of interlocking controls, partially mechanical, partially electronic.

Normally, to open this door, two separate keys are needed, like a nuclear bomb.

- Jachra -
He'll just have to find a way around it.

- Kip -
Which is why he brought the long wire! He sets it up at one point, plugging them in where required, and heads over to the far side, and gets everything ready. Simple enough to trigger both at the same time! No problems at all.

- Jachra -
"Ready to go."

- Kip -
Well, maybe a few issues... he frowns as progress isn't quite as swift as he hoped.

- Jachra -
Kendra steps forward, nervous.
"We're getting close..."
She puts a hand on his shoulder. "Kip? I know you can do this."

- Jachra -
That makes him feel - strangely confident

- Kip -
He nods, his breathing less erratic now. He does have this. He increases his pace, his hands shaking less as he works on getting this job done.

- Jachra -
He's making progress. The god-damned mechanisms are the problem - if this were electronic he'd be through by now.

Kendra is tense, but she says nothing, not wanting to put him off his game.

- Kip -
Kip refuses to look at the watch. It'd only make him nervous. He has this, he can do it quickly, but he also needs to take his time. It was all in knowing when to take it quickly and when to take it easy. A switch here, lifting up a piece there, it's all just like the manuals have. There are. No. Issues.

- Jachra -
It's nearly an hour in, but finally, finally, he feeds the right sequence.

- Jachra -
There's a shuddering thud

- Jachra -
A series of interlocking clicks

- Jachra -
A hiss of air, gas escaping the vault door, as the lights in the room go red.

- Jachra -
It takes the door a while to open. Several tons of anodized steel, swinging on enormous hinges

- Jachra -
And within -

- Kip -
Kip is nearly bursting with anticipation now, he wants to see exactly what it is they came here to get.

- Jachra -
It's the standard containment room, a vault that could resist at least one indirect nuclear strike. Banks and governments alike use them for the very most secure of materials.

- Jachra -
When it finally finishes swinging open, and the lights flicker on, he expects to see deposit boxes, or documents, or a computer, or - something. Sacks of gold? Bars of silver?

- Jachra -
Instead, there's a single pedestal, with a book under glass.

- Kip -
Super secret documents?

- Jachra -
Not even, like, an especially modern book. Leather bound over wood.

- Kip -
He peers at it curiously. Is it a museum piece? He knows some of those can go for a lot of money, but... this much security? Even if it's worth millions, this seems excessive.

- Kip -
"This is an awful lot of trouble to go through for the fancies of an antiquities collector..."

- Kip -
He murmurs to himself as he looks around to see if there's something else in here that he missed.

- Jachra -
Temperature controlled case. No lock - anyone who got this far isn't going to be deterred by one lock.

All he has to do is swing it open.

Kendra grins, then her radio squawks.

- Jachra -
"You did it, Kip."

- Jachra -
"Knew you had it in you."

- Jachra -
She trails off, listening with a frown.

- Kip -
Kip glances back at Kendra for a moment, before looking back at the glass, making sure his gloves are on snugly. Slowly, so slowly, he reaches for it and opens the case...

- Jachra -
The book isn't even that large. He can carry it easily in one hand.

- Jachra -
And as soon as he does, he knows how Indiana Jones must have felt with that fucking fertility idol

- Jachra -
The lights on the case go red and bars slam down over the vault door, trapping them both in.

- Kip -
He frowns, that shouldn't have happened. All the security was disabled!

- Jachra -
"Fuck!" Kendra swears, tucking the radio away.
"Jamming!"

- Jachra -
She looks around, eyes wild.
"Fucking Christ!"

- Jachra -
Welp, this is it. Off to jail for the rest of his god-damned life as a serial corporate burglar.

- Kip -
"What happened?" he asks, looking at her. This was the easiest part. Everything was disabled! This alarm shouldn't have gone off, right?

- Jachra -
"Yes!" she says, chewing on her nail. "Damn it... I didn't foresee this."

- Jachra -
"We were supposed to walk out."

- Jachra -
"Can you do anything from inside? Disable the locks? Anything?'

- Kip -
Right! They're not helpless... ehm, if there's something on the inside. He looks around. Think. Think! He tries to find a panel, getting his tools ready. "Yeah, I think I can."

- Jachra -
She closes her eyes, gripping the silver necklace under her hat.

- Jachra -
'That one," she points, at a nondescript panel

- Kip -
He frowns, praying isn't going to -- huh? He looks at the panel, prodding at it. "Look, I'm sure there's a better way to do this than just randomly guessing, K..." he says, stopping himself before he accidentally says her name.

- Jachra -
"Shut the fuck up and open it!"

- Kip -
He pulls at the panel, trying to open it.

- Jachra -
Sure enough, it pops when he applies his hammer to the side, and lo and behold there's a panel of electronics there. One of out of about a hundred of these panels, and she picked the right one first try.

- Kip -
Kip is in no position to look a gift horse in the mouth, and takes the serendipitous turn of events in stride, getting to work swiftly. Questions and excitement over their good fortune later. Escaping now!

- Jachra -
This - makes no sense. Every time he makes a change, it's like it gets worse.

- Jachra -
It's like the puzzle changes every time he enters a solution

- Kip -
Kip growls in frustration. "How is this? I... argh! This isn't a computer system, there is no program working against me, the fuck is going on!?"

- Jachra -
Kendra looks to the door. On the verge of panic, she steps over and touches a hand to it.
"Try again - now. Rip those wires out here and press that contact."

- Kip -
The hairs on the back of Kip's neck stand on end. This made no sense... or did it? What did Kendra know that he didn't. Was she studying up on the vault layout or something? Was there some button she pressed that he just didn't see? While his mind raced with questions, he follows Kendra's instructions.

- Jachra -
It happens so fast he doesn't have time to feel it - a snap and then he's flying across the room, slammed into the other side.

"Kip!" she calls, horrified - but the lights go normal, the bars slide back into the ceiling.

Something starts slamming against the door.

Kendra runs to his side, her eyes wide. His vision is all blurry. Everything feels wrong.

- Jachra -
"...fuck."

- Jachra -
She picks up the book, looks to him. It's like looking at her through a tunnel

- Jachra -
"I'm sorry. This is the second time I fucked you over, and - I'm sorry. I gotta do this."

- Jachra -
There's gunshots, but she isn't afraid, she runs right out, into the gunfire, and not a single bullet hits her.

- Kip -
Kip tries to call out a warning, falling to his side as he tries to get to his feet and fails. Resting on one arm, he struggles to focus on Kendra, waiting for his vision to stop swimming.

- Kip -
He tries to stay focused.. he only wished he knew how best to deal with a concussion.

- Jachra -
No good.

It's no good.

- Jachra -
He feels himself falling back, his focus slipping further no matter how he holds on

- Jachra -
Like a tunnel

- Jachra -
Leading him down, down

- Kip -
No, he thinks. Don't go down... don't go into the light! ...oh god, it's not a concussion, he's dying! Did he split his skull open? He tries to bring a hand up and behind his head. Come on, focus! He tells himself. Focus!

- Jachra -
There's a weird - skip

- Jachra -
It feels like he lost time - lost forever

- Kip -
Hooray blackouts! Concussions are fun!

- Kip -
shakes fist

- Jachra -
and then his head slams back violently, and his eyes fly open - and he's in hell.

- Kip -
His hands fly back behind his head, clutching it as though that'd keep him together. He looks around, trying to find Kendra in this... where was he now?

- Jachra -
Dazed, he looks around with stars in his eyes. He's in a cell, an iron band clamped about his neck, two more about his arms and legs. A chain holds him to a dozen other people.

Outside the cell, fire gushes from crevices. The shadows are intense, casting nightmarish scenes of men and women screaming across the cavern walls

- Kip -
He looks at the manacles, then around himself. His mind barely able to comprehend what's going on. This... this makes no sense. This isn't a prison. But... Hell doesn't exist! But.. if this IS Hell, he's dead? He starts violently shaking the manacles, trying to escape them. This is just a horrid dream, and one that he'll be free of if he can just get out of this prison!

- Jachra -
The heavy cast iron clink of the chains echoes through the chamber, over the dim roar of the flames, the screams. He feels it yanked, and a huge figure steps into view, eyes ablaze with fire, claws holding the chain like it's nothing.

"Get up," he growls, yanking him so that he's suspended by his neck, filthy and covered in rags. The others groan, their eyes tired, sick and not all there.

- Kip -
"Fuck you!" he yells defiantly, impotently. He has no idea where he is, what is going on... the only thing he can do is try to lash out and scream at this figure.

- Jachra -
The demon takes a whip from his side and lets it uncoil. Flames run up along the tip, and before Kip can protest, he lashes it across him.

Pain - more than just the pain of a whip, blackout, awful pain that howls through him, sending every nerve fiber into a screaming fit.

"You were dreaming, weren't you?" the demon growls. "Dreaming that you belonged somewhere else. It was all in your head."

- Kip -
As he recovers some seconds, minutes or hours later, he couldn't really tell. Kip looks at the figure, shaking his head, "I'm dreaming now. Let me go!"

- Jachra -
He laughs again, yanking him along. The others get up, shuffling behind him as he's dragged out

- Jachra -
Oh, god, this is going to suck - he's sure a moment ago that the tunnel mouth was wider than that

- Jachra -
It was wide enough to accomodate a huge demon

- Jachra -
Yet as he's dragged to it, he can see that it isn't - it's tiny, barely enough to squeeze through

- Jachra -
He's going to lose skin, the gap is a crevice of hard, unyielding stone

- Kip -
Kip grits his teeth, wishing he were small enough to fit through. Hell, while he's at it, being small enough to fit through, he'd be small enough to slip out of those manacles too. It'd solve all his problems, he'd be able to bug out in a second! Hopefully before that... demon... realized what was happening.
Hell, he's in... er... Hell. That doesn't make sense, why should the shit he's bound to make sense either?

- Jachra -
...and then he is

- Jachra -
As he approaches the crevice

- Jachra -
he finds himself shrinking as he desperately wishes it, until he can easily slip through without harm

- Kip -
Kip blinks, surprised, and immediately pulls himself away from his bindings, and bolts for the hole.

- Jachra -
He's shrunk out of his bindings, too, and runs through the crevice. If the demon noticed, his back turned, he didn't say anything

- Jachra -
Now he finds himself in an enormous cavern. Wherever he looks, he sees demons, and people chained by them, on slabs, being torn open.

- Jachra -
They scream, but it isn't blood that comes out - well, there is blood - it's ... little orbs

- Jachra -
They pull them out, hammering them, and scenes play out

- Jachra -
Cascading into the flames to hiss and boil away

- Jachra -
Dreams, melting into steam

- Kip -
Kip frowns, watching the demons for but a moment before trying to find somewhere to flee to. He couldn't stop to figure out what was going on. That none of this made sense. He was in danger, and he wasn't going to stick around to find out what these... dreams, and losing them, would do to him.

- Jachra -
There's an iron bridge, up above. It goes right over the flaming pit, where the demons hold court

- Jachra -
Off to another, distant cavern mouth.

- Jachra -
Maybe up, to leave this hell

- Kip -
Kip takes a deep breath, trying to make himself his normal size before attempting to find a path up there. He's unsure how he'd know it's where they hold court, but... where else is he going to go?

- Jachra -
(Ahem)

- Kip -
(adjusts tie, gets into character)

- Jachra -
(Back to hell with you!

- Jachra -
We return to where Kip finds himself, which is to say in Hell itself.

Hell, where things change size and dreams are physical, kind of.

He was looking to get over the pit, where somehow he knows they hold court, and to reach a bridge high above the ground.

- Jachra -
The heat here is intense, a furnace that boils any moisture away immediately, yet he does not suffocate or die.

- Kip -
Kip peers about, looking for some better way than to simply scale the walls.

- Jachra -
Demons don't appear to have invented ladders. He's fairly sure they don't need them, most of them have wings and -

As he watches, one of them stretches, and black smoke envelops her. She reappears several hundred feet away, walking off into another tunnel.

- Kip -
Still no time to think, to ponder on the greater questions this place brings. Just escape, and how to do it.

- Kip -
That... could cause a problem, as he peers behind himself, paranoia setting in. He takes a deep breath and starts to climb, wishing he had his climbing gloves on him. Or... he peers at his hands, could he change his hands to be better at climbing?

- Jachra -
...even as he thinks of it, they change, the tips hardening, forming demon-like claws

- Jachra -
That dig into the soil and grip

- Kip -
With no further pondering of the issue, past a fleeting thought of what Kendra would think if she saw this. Maybe freak out, or be amused.. he starts climbing.

- Jachra -
He scales it with relatively little effort, since he can modify himself to climb up with a fairly solid grip. Soon he's at the top, and the bridge is before him.

- Kip -
He pulls himself up carefully, peering back and forth, trying to make sure there's nothing to see him. Just as he's about to cross, he freezes, remembering what he's facing. He starts looking up and around as well.

- Jachra -
When he does, he can see that the bridge in fact coils about in ways impossible to the eye. There are whole cities on it, strange vistas. The cavern wasn't this huge before, but now it's so big he can't see the other side.

"Little lost, honey?" a woman asks beside him.

- Kip -
He stops, not turning back just yet. If you look at them, that's when they strike! "No, not lost," he says, trying desperately to hide the fear he's feeling from his voice. he then slowly turns to look at the voice.

- Jachra -
It's the woman he saw earlier, the one who teleported. She has her hands on her hips, sharp, black-tipped fingernails, skin red and tattooed with black symbols that he almost feels he can read, like he should be able to read them, her hair in long dreadlocks down her back and her eyes red on black, slit like a cat's. She's beautiful in an alien way.

"Who are you? No, wait, don't bother - " She extends a finger and a thread comes from him, spooling into an idea before her.

"Robert - or 'Kip' to your friends, huh?"

- Kip -
He frowns, taking a step away from her. "Are you going to try to torture me, is that it? Do things to my dreams?"

- Jachra -
"Torture? Is that what you think this is?"
She turns her head at a scream.
"Well, okay, it is. But that's not the point."

- Kip -
"Never would have thought my mind was so messed up to dream up this..." he mutters to himself.

- Jachra -
"Hah - oh honey."

- Jachra -
"This isn't a dream. This is the real reality."

- Jachra -
"Where you think you're from? That's the dream."

- Jachra -
"That's the Lie."

- Jachra -
"Also, if you don't want people rummaging around in your head, learn to shield it - that's so cute! You collected action figures as a kid."

- Kip -
"Yeah, the place where I can do this," he lifts his hands up to show her, "is the reality. THe other place is the dream. Sounds likely."

- Jachra -
She holds her hand up.
There are infinite spaces within your mind.
They're back home. Chicago, morning, the sun pouring through the window.
You can go anywhere if you simply imagine it.
TecTronics, looking down on two masked figures breaking in.
All of human experience is seen through the mind - all of it is an illusion indicative of a greater reality.
They're atop Mt. Hood, the wind whipping around them, freezing.
"All without ever leaving the safety of the mind."

- Jachra -
"Maybe you could say this is just a dream - but everything you've ever experienced in your life is inside that head of yours."

- Jachra -
She taps it.

- Jachra -
Then draws a cut down his arm, forming a letter, a pictograph, a burning sign in his arm.

- Jachra -
"If you ever want to believe me though, you'll need to find the Iron Gauntlet and scribe your name."

- Kip -
"Agh!" he yelps, backing away. "Who, or what are you, then? Why are you... torturing people? Why torture them but talk to me?"

- Jachra -
She holds up a memory of a man killing his wife, stabbing her repeatedly, over and over again

- Jachra -
"Do you think you could go on to eternal rest, holding this in your heart?" she asks, pushing it at him, making him have to dodge back like she's trying to write on him with a marker

- Kip -
Kip recoils from it, growing ill.

- Jachra -
"I cleanse people."

- Jachra -
"I'm a healer."

- Jachra -
"I burn away impurities with fire."

- Jachra -
"You - you aren't done yet."

- Jachra -
"Not that we get many anymore, not with the Abyss cutting us off from the Fallen World."

- Jachra -
"Souls just butt up against it, howling to come home."

- Kip -
"... ... ...'kay."

- Kip -
"So... this is Hell, where you torture the bad memories out of people..."

- Kip -
"Reality's that Matrix movie, except in the 'real world' you can do things like this..." he says, changing his hands back to normal.

- Jachra -
"You absolutely can, if you know the secret for it."

- Jachra -
"If you have the will to do it."

- Jachra -
"You can move mountains - but msot people can't."

- Jachra -
"But really, it's up to you if you go back or not.'

- Jachra -
"To your whatever life, to figure out who fucked you, what you can do to change things or whatever. That's not my problem."

- Jachra -
"Of course, you could stay here. I can't promise you that you'll still quite be yourself after a while being here, but hey - the company is great down here," she grins toothily.

- Kip -
"Tch. If my mind is all I truly have, being 'myself' is, literally, everything. No?"

- Jachra -
"Oo, you're getting smart."

- Jachra -
"Also a smartass."

- Jachra -
"That joke's funny because you hear me talking in English."

- Kip -
"As opposed to, what, evil torture demon?"

- Kip -
He quips, remarkably growing a little more flippant as he grows slightly more comfortable, forgetting he's talking to some manner of cat demon.

- Jachra -
"The first language, silly human."

- Jachra -
"You used to speak it - well, time is kind of a meaningless concept, it's really more that once things weren't like this."

- Jachra -
"Once? Your world was so close, visiting was just a matter of getting there."

- Jachra -
"Now it's been torn away."

- Jachra -
"Now, magic barely exists there."

- Jachra -
"It's a shame, really. Things were easier then, I'm told. Made more sense."

- Jachra -
She gestures, and a shimmering, smoky portal appears before her.

- Jachra -
She steps through, gesturing him after.

- Kip -
He takes a deep breath. He remembers stories and sayings about never dealing with the devil... but... what choice did he have? Also, the curiosity compels him.

- Jachra -
"Just like a cat! Seriously, learn to defend your mind."

- Kip -
Kip steps through the portal, following the... what is she? He looks her over again as he goes.

- Jachra -
"I can even teach you, if you'd like. I won't ask much - just that you give me a call if you get back to earth."

- Jachra -
She smirks, flicking a spaded tail

- Kip -
"...what will you do once you get there?"

- Kip -
"And if that is the fake world, why the interest in it?"

- Jachra -
"Because it's the stage - all of this? Everything you see? It combines with other realms like it to make your world. Really, fake is the wrong word - "

- Jachra -
She taps her chin

- Jachra -
"More like - it's broken."

- Jachra -
"I won't even get into the whole thing about caves and shadows and whatever the fuck. I don't go in for philosophy."

- Jachra -
"So here's what you're going to do - focus your mind. Pay attention."
She holds her hand out.

- Kip -
He looks at her hand, every warning flag going up at this. A literal devil offering him a deal. But... he knows nothing about this, and she does.... he does want to know more about this.

- Kip -
He always knew his curiosity would be the death of him. He reaches out and takes her hand, focusing.

- Jachra -
When he focuses, when he really pays attention, he can see it - chains of something like iron.

A thin one connects her to him, but they're everywhere. They run off from her to other demons, to places, to things. From him, they run - mostly back into himself, into his mind.

He can see others, too - chains holding shapes in place. Space itself - he can pull it close or let it loose. Space is subject to thought.

Then she starts acting, and she can see her reach out with her mind, to touch his.

"See that? Block it. Imagine some way to defend yourself from intrusion."

- Kip -
Kip imagines what he knows best -- a security system, locked down to protect a room from all intruders. His mind being the only thing within, and the most vital piece to protect of all.

- Jachra -
"Oh, oh that's nice! I should have thought you'd do that."

- Kip -
Locks, keypads, sensors... everything he can think of.

- Jachra -
"See?" She bangs on it a couple times, like fists against the vault doors.
"It's not perfect - people can force through - but it's better than being wide open."

- Kip -
He smirks, glancing about, "I feel a little safer, at least."

- Jachra -
Around here - he can see they're in a vast vault, every weird little nook holding orbs of thought. They're resting with respect to gravity wherever it may lie. Fires flicker in the distance, and he sees something else - a glint of dark metal, almost black, a spire piercing the earth.

- Kip -
"Is that the great evil threatening the earth?"

- Kip -
He grumbles, figuring she's about to start on a prophecy soon.

- Jachra -
"Nah - that's the Iron Gauntlet."

- Jachra -
"It's a Watchtower. It holds back the evil of ignorance, beckoning to the poor souls back on Earth. Like you!"

- Kip -
"Oh. So... I write my name there and... what? Rite of passage or something?"

- Jachra -
"Kinda yeah."

- Jachra -
"It's up to you of course. Getting there's never easy."

- Kip -
"No, no. This I"ll do. This I can do. Long hike, trying to get somewhere? Yeah... piece of cake."

- Jachra -
"Ahaha the funny thing is you clearly know you're just saying that."

- Jachra -
"Good luck~ My name's Beleth! I'm your friendly neighborhood cat demon."

- Jachra -
"Also I marked my name in your arm, so it'll be hard to forget."

- Kip -
"Did you mark your name or did you mark me?"

- Jachra -
"I'm not sure I follow the distinction - but yeah, you want to go home? That gauntlet is the way."

- Kip -
"I mean marked, like a... ownership... like a pet."

- Jachra -
"Oh Dis."

- Jachra -
She laughs.

- Jachra -
"I mean, you're kinda cute and all, but I dunno. That's a big commitment!"

- Kip -
"...thanks..." he frowns. "Is this mark going to have you calling in 'favors I cannot refuse'?"

- Jachra -
"Maybe~ Only one way to find out, right?"

- Kip -
He takes a deep breath, looking at the surrounds. "Ah, for what it's worth, thanks. You know, provided you're not taking advantage of me."

- Jachra -
"Just remember what I said - I'm a healer. Like a surgeon, I'm not kind. I cut out necrotic flesh, and - "

- Jachra -
She purses her lips, and smiles

- Jachra -
"Only a little, promise."

- Jachra -
"Good luck, yeah?"

- Jachra -
"I'm not kind but that's not the same as lacking compassion."

- Jachra -
"I kinda want to see you succeed."

- Kip -
"I can handle a little..." he says, before starting to embark on his journey.

- Jachra -
She waves - and disappears in a puff of smoke once more

- Kip -
"Ah... now what's a fast two legged... thing?" he thinks as he goes, looking for ways to make the journey quicker.

- Kip -
"Or, can I..." he focuses on the Iron Gauntlet, trying to just.... be there? Poof there? He's not sure how to 'will' teleportation...

- Jachra -
She talked about how space is just a function of the mind

- Jachra -
How one can bring themselves back to favorite places just by remembering them

- Jachra -
He's felt that way before, but that's just metaphor, isn't it?

- Kip -
He focuses on the Iron Gauntlet, thinking about standing there, being able to touch it, see it close... put his name on it...

- Jachra -
Like, space is just an illusion, right? Maybe if he just imagines that the space here and the space there are the same and -

- Jachra -
It's never that easy, is it?

- Jachra -
He's moved. He's definitely moved

- Jachra -
The Iron Gauntlet is enormous, it's a horrible thing of welded black iron, infinitely long in either direction

- Kip -
It takes some time to think so... abstract, but he attempts to 'feel' things like he did just before with Beleth. He's not actually here, he's here, next to the Iron Gauntlet.

- Jachra -
Problem - he's upside down. He can't seem to land ON it.

- Jachra -
He's looking up at it

- Jachra -
Fire belches from within it

- Jachra -
Chains bind it to the cavern around it

- Kip -
Kip tries to clear his mind, to focus. Thinking about how all those chains bound him to others, presumably his relationships and memories to locations. He tries to form one, even a little one to the Iron Gauntlet, and to use that to orient himself, so that he can get his feet on the ground, and finish this task... to wake up... or fall asleep, or however this stupid stuff goes!

- Jachra -
A little chain, between him and it? Yeah - yeah he can do that.
It looms larger in his mind as a result, because it's closer to him in a metaphysical sense.

- Kip -
He tries to bring himself to it, or rather, bring it to him.

- Kip -
Kip can't help but think of how confusing all of this is.

- Jachra -
Like Futurama, move the universe around you

- Jachra -
He's close now. Flames billow out.

- Jachra -
He feels its heat

- Kip -
Kip picks a spot right next to the pillar, and he brings it to him, just beneath his feet.

- Jachra -
And there he is, facing a sput of metal. People have scraped, scratched really, their names into the gargoyles, the demons. Wherever he looks, it reminds him of some nightmare, a desire, a need, of guilt and shame. It burns him to see.

- Jachra -
His entire life exposed, the darkest parts

- Kip -
Kip shudders as he looks upon the mighty and terrible behemoth of a structure. He takes a final step up to it, and begins scrawling his name into the side, using his finger as a marker.

- Jachra -
It hurts. It can't do anything but hurt. He has to force it, to scratch his name into that iron edifice, to expose the white beneath the layer of black.

Fire washes over him, burning him, searing him, but it's okay.

"It's okay," Beleth whispers. "It hurts, but that's how you know you're alive."

And then he's falling. Falling back into the tunnel.

- Kip -
He grits his teeth and soldiers through it. There's nothing else he can do.

- Jachra -
Groaning, he finds himself... staring up at a light. A fluorescent light.

- Kip -
Worst. Trip. Ever. He thinks to himself as he tries to pick himself up. ...what was happening? The Heist! In a slight panic, he looks around. Were they captured? Imprisoned somewhere, or escaped? Where was Kendra?

- Jachra -
His head lolls, and he finds that he's in a metal chair, in a tiled room with a table bolded to the floor, the edges and corners smoothed and rounded.

He tries to move his arms and legs - yup.

- Jachra -
Handcuffed to the chair

- Jachra -
Which is also bolted

- Kip -
"Great..." he murmurs as he comes back to his senses. He looks down at the cuffs, sighing. Wishing he was back in that dream world, he focuses for a moment, willing those cuffs to come undone, as he laughs, wishing that his problems could be solved so easily.

- Jachra -
He can't seem to do that anymore - things feel... heavier here. Hard - but just as he thinks he's completely fucked, that he just had a long ass hallucination, he finds his hands simply - slip through them. As if they weren't solid at all.

- Jachra -
He can see a mark on his arm

- Jachra -
Freshly scared

- Jachra -
A circle with squiggly lines in it

- Jachra -
He doesn't need to be able to read it to know what it means

- Kip -
Awwww.... great. Now he owes people favors.
...and none of it was a dream. But... still, escaping. Also, finding Kendra! And the other two! As he slowly, quietly heads to the exit, he tries to focus on those chains... surely he has one leading to the three of them.

- Jachra -
There's a door, a locked door in front of him. Is that really a barrier anymore?

Still, as he focuses - (roll 4 dice)

- Kip -
(2, 4, 4, 4)

- Jachra -
...it's kind of hard to concentrate at first. It was so easy there, like breathing, but it's like he's forgotten how to ride a bike or something.

- Jachra -
Only that bike is apparently magic

- Kip -
He stops, focuses. This shit is apparently real, continuously doubting it isn't going to help. If he's insane, he's insane. But for now, this could very well save his life, and Kendra's. He focuses specifically on Kendra, remembering their time together, and all the bits and pieces that led up to this moment, to this heist, to this...
Oh my god the fucking bitch is magic too that's how she knew where the panel was.

- Kip -
That's how she found him, too! GOD DAMMIT!

- Jachra -
Magic as shit

- Kip -
Now, with a target to vent some frustration at, he redoubles his efforts to find her, likely the same method she used to find him.

- Jachra -
Okay, just - focus and try again (4 dice - Gnosis + Space)

- Jachra -
(You can resolve Steadfast to succeed if you fail this time~)

- Kip -
(What's gnosis?)

- Jachra -
(Deep personal knowledge of the true nature of the universe. It's 1 for you right now. +3 for your Space rating for 4 dice total. I've updated your sheet :D)

- Kip -
(Yes, I saw! Spaaaaaaaaaaaaace!)

- Jachra -
Oh shit - this time he's got it all right

- Jachra -
He can see, just like before, only instead of folding into him, they array outwardly.

- Jachra -
His parents are the first he feels

- Jachra -
They're the strongest bonds he has

- Jachra -
Two solid chains

- Jachra -
Next is his sister - that's a sort of medium-strength one, with affection ripe

- Jachra -
And with Kendra, about the same size - this one is kind of blended with frustration, guilt, and desire

- Kip -
He focuses on that final one -- the one with Kendra... and tries to follow it to its source -- through more conventional means for now.

- Jachra -
He slams into the door with his face. Oh right - interrogation cell.

- Kip -
Damn safety violations. Okay, focus up! And... there is no spoo-- DOOR! No DOOR!

- Jachra -
He's losing his cool - there's a focus here

- Jachra -
A sort of - examination.

- Jachra -
So far, at least, it doesn't seem like they're bothering with him.

- Jachra -
So that's time to experiment and test

- Jachra -
Could he fold himself through the door?

- Kip -
He looks at the door, checking to see if there's a gap. Maybe he could shrink himself down and regrow on the other side...? No, no. He'd end up getting eaten by a cockroach or something knowing his luck. Stick with what he knows "works". He tries to focus, and do exactly what he did with his bindings. Just... 'phase' through the door. Move the door through him. He's not moving, he's on the other side already! Right? RIGHT!

- Jachra -
Right.

- Jachra -
It's just - like the door doesn't exist as a barrier for a moment

- Kip -
As soon as he's through, Kip presses on, barely taking the time to figure out his surroundings. If Kendra actually knows what the fuck is going on, she can get them out of here.

- Kip -
Or, the thought occurs to him, he could probably easily get himself out of here if he just focuses on 'home', but... well, he owes Kendra. ...probably.

- Jachra -
They didn't even bother to put a guard, why would they, when he's locked down in a chair.

- Jachra -
They can come back to him at their leisure

- Jachra -
He runs through the white corridors, a little wobbly after his long unconsciousness, but still intact.

- Jachra -
And barely skips to a stop before he runs into a whole group of heavily armed men around what appears to be the lobby.

- Jachra -
They're on walkie talkies, receiving instructions

- Jachra -
While he lurks in one of the hallways before it.

- Kip -
Kip tries to listen in, while simultaneously trying to figure out where Kendra is in this damned facility.

- Jachra -
From the sounds of it, they have no idea. They got one burglar, but the other appears to have escaped somehow.

Of course, how the fuck will he escape.

..and then, almost as if cued, a memory opens up. Beleth's grin, her smile, her touch - she left him a memory for just this circumstance.

Remember that radio show your roommate in college listened to? The Shadow? He could cloud men's minds - to wrap himself in an idea of being unnoticeable.

- Kip -
Kip smirks, this one could be more straight forward. He wills himself to not be there, at least, in the minds of these guards, as he moves past them in the corridor. He strides confidently, like he belongs.. so JUST IN CASE the magic doesn't work, well, hopefully they just think he belongs here and ignore him.

- Jachra -
He wraps himself in the idea of not being there - and so he isn't.

- Jachra -
At least, not to them.

- Jachra -
He walks right up to one and the guy stares right through him

- Jachra -
He's got a USMC tattoo on one hand, clearly former affiliation

- Kip -
Kip files that away for future reference, in case this goes distopian government on them. One more entity filed under 'do not trust yet'.

- Kip -
dystopian*

- Jachra -
Yeah let's hope they're not actually with the government.

In any event, the door is there. Will his spell hold up for that?

- Jachra -
What else could he "veil" if he tried? Memories? Those chains? Thoughts? Maybe now's not the time to experiment.

- Kip -
Kip is confident. More so than he has any right to be. Hell, he's even getting kinda excited. This is figuratively a whole new world! Once he's out of here, well, the sky is the limit!

- Jachra -
Even if he is emotionally and physically exhausted as all fuck

- Kip -
Not exhausted, he's fine! if he's exhausted, he could fail. He's not exhausted, he's fine. Fine enough to get in, break Kendra out, smile at her swooning, then get out.
Well, maybe he's a little tired.

- Jachra -
"We got the cameras back!" one of them shouts from the station near the back.

- Jachra -
"No footage, though."

- Jachra -
"Is the woman in the building?"

- Jachra -
...oh fuck will this hide him from cameras too?

- Jachra -
"Negative, sergeant."

- Jachra -
"Fuck," the older man growls, putting a hand to his ear. "Valkyrie 1, this is 10 - the woman's escaped with the item."

- Kip -
Kip frowns, going through the door. But... wasn't he following her? Were they wrong? That could be good...

- Jachra -
Heading out, they don't seem to notice, not immediately anyway. Feeling at the chain, he finds that she's away.

It's a long trek, taking him through the light commercial areas.

- Kip -
Kip breathes deep of the real, fresh air. Feels good, time to find Kendra, close this chapter of his life.

- Jachra -
With the half moon overhead, he makes his way through misty side streets, and then the main road. He walks several miles - she must have gotten her getaway.

Beneath a light outside a bus stop he sees her, skin as cool and dark as the sea at night, hair pulled back, her eyes tired.

- Kip -
Kip walks up to her, not saying anything. He scratches at the mark on his arm, covering it up.

- Jachra -
Turning her head, she skitters back several feet, pulling a holdout from somewhere and holding it in a very professional grip.

"...holy fuck. Kip?"

- Jachra -
She lowers the tip.

- Kip -
He nods, looking at her. "Well... mind explaining what happened? Maybe what the book is too would help."

- Jachra -
"...I think that starts with you. How did you get out of there? How did you find me again?"

- Jachra -
"I mean - shit, I'm glad you made it out, but I thought you were fucked. I certainly couldn't carry your ass out."

- Kip -
He laughs, "I think you know exactly how. Same way you found me."

- Jachra -
"I randomly pointed at progressively smaller maps until I found you."

- Jachra -
"And some other tricks, just..."

- Jachra -
She frowns.

- Jachra -
"Did you go there? To the place with the silver thorns?"

- Kip -
"Silver thorns? That sounds... pleasant compared to what I saw."

- Jachra -
"Did you see anyone who looked like me?" she asks, a note of desperation entering her voice for the first time as she stands up

- Kip -
"Looked like you?" he asks, before thinking of Beleth. Trying to see if there was any resemblance.

- Jachra -
Not especially. They had some similarities in attitude, which may be just to say that he's kind of attracted to dangerous women.

- Kip -
"No... why?"

- Jachra -
She sighs, slumping back.
"I guess I do have a lot to tell you, especially now that you're - like me."

- Jachra -
She looks around the bus stop.

- Kip -
"So... silver thorns? No, ah, screaming... torturing demons..?"

- Jachra -
"Come on - there's a motel not far from here."

- Jachra -
"Yeah, no, definitely not.'

- Kip -
"Know anything about, er... cat-people-demon things?"

- Jachra -
"The place I went to... it was a nightmare, but... there were trees everywhere, and these strange guys who looked like people but definitely weren't. They lied to you, and tried to trap you. Some of them were made of fire, and others could look like animals I guess."

- Jachra -
"I went in... looking for someone. It was like a waking dream."

- Jachra -
"I tricked my way around them, but I couldn't find her."

- Jachra -
"I took shelter against this huge spire that - that literally pierced the sky. It was all made of silver that gleamed like the moon."

- Jachra -
"All carved with names."

- Jachra -
"And I thought - 'well, fuck. Might as well, right? Everyone's doing it.'"

- Kip -
"So the pillar is the same, well, similar... but the rest is different? Why?"

- Jachra -
"Not like I had a lot of choice. They were closing in with hounds and fucking sniper rifles..."

- Kip -
"Wait, sniper rifles? Really?"

- Jachra -
"Probably."
She glances back at him. "Was it, though? What did your tower look like?"

- Kip -
"Black. Ominous. Hurt like hell. ...kinda think I actually was in hell."

- Jachra -
"...might actually be a different tower then. Who knew?"

- Jachra -
"But yeah, when I came back - "

- Jachra -
"I've been able to do things with - I don't know."

- Jachra -
"Fate I guess. Luck, chance."

- Jachra -
"Destiny."

- Jachra -
"And time, too, though that's limited. I can kinda nudge time."

- Jachra -
"And - death. Decay. Ghosts."

- Kip -
He smirks, "so... no formal education or anything, could let me know if keeping a promise with something that looked like a devil will bring about the end of the world?"

- Jachra -
She looks back at him, lips pursed.

- Jachra -
"Maybe. They've got a lot of power, those - denizens or whatever."

- Kip -
"Well, I quite possibly might never have made it out of there without its help, so... I think I should keep my promise. Just a heads up, no idea what will happen."

- Jachra -
"Fair enough. Not everything I met there was fucking evil."

- Jachra -
"I don't know."

- Jachra -
She looks back at him consideringly again

- Jachra -
The two heading towards a Motel 6 parking lot, next to a KFC

- Kip -
"I both desperately need sleep, and am kinda terrified of it at the moment.." he murmurs, looking at the rooms.

- Jachra -
"I don't know how much I can teach you but maybe I owe you."

- Kip -
"Damn right you owe me... this is all your fault."

- Jachra -
"I dead dropped the book, for reference. Maybe we'll both come out of this stinking rich."

- Jachra -
Remember what she said? Beleth's voice says, another memory popping up, another thing she left for him.
This is the second time I've fucked you.

- Kip -
"...you knew this was going to happen, didn't you?"

- Jachra -
She hesitates.
"...I foresaw two possibilities, that you'd escape with me or be stuck there. It was muddled."

- Jachra -
"There was magic there, it made things hard to see."

- Kip -
"Geez..." he murmurs, paying for a room with two beds in it with what little money he has left.

- Jachra -
They quiet as they enter the office, getting a room. The guy at the counter gives them a look like 'Yeah, two beds? Sure.'

When he relaxes his vision... he can see it again, only this time it's like he's viewing the world through a filter.

He can see the guy's thoughts, read his doubting, but largely uncaring expression as he takes their IDs and puts them down for a room. He can measure distances, exact distances, and he bets if there was any spatial distortion he'd see that right out, too.

- Jachra -
He can only hold it for a couple minutse before it collapses

- Kip -
Kip blinks after the vision collapses, rubbing his eyes. Fascinating, but maybe he shouldn't push himself too hard. "So... how long has it been since, well, everything went belly up?"

- Jachra -
They walk to the door, passing a key through.
"You mean tonight or my whole life?"

- Kip -
"Both, I guess."

- Jachra -
"Since before we met."
She peels off her jacket, black leather draped on a chair, and examines the sheets and stuff for bed bugs.

"When I was just a kid - some thing took my sister."

- Kip -
Kip just falls onto the bed, poking at the mark on his arm. Wondering how he can even call his 'friend' as he listens to Kendra's story.

- Jachra -
"This freaky thing of ice and shadows that took her hand."

- Jachra -
"Walked off."

- Jachra -
"I ran after her but I couldn't find her. All I found was a - thing left behind. A copy of her, but it wasn't her."

- Jachra -
Her eyes were cold and she didn't care about me or anyone."

- Kip -
He frowns, "I'm so sorry... that's terrible."

- Jachra -
"...thanks."

- Jachra -
"The therapists convinced me I was crazy for a while. I accepted this not-sister for a long time."

- Jachra -
"But - I never really forgot. I got a job. Investment banking, like I said."

- Jachra -
"It just didn't fit. I was good, but I wanted to leave. I couldn't stop dreaming about finding her."

- Jachra -
"So I did. Threw my monitor out a window, flipped everyone off, and fucked out of there."

- Jachra -
"I kind of drifted for a long time, I guess? I wound up in this old house in Detroit, where I'm from, and there were those beings I talked about. I stepped through a door they left open and I was there. The faeries I talked to - that's what they called themselves, I don't know if they were gay or what - they said they could find her but I had to sign this or that fucking contract."

- Kip -
Kip nods solemnly. He wants to say he hopes she finds her, but... that could actually be her sister, just with the... guts... of her mind removed. Actually just a shell now, so he odesn't say anything. He thinks back to those demons extracting the dreams and shudders.

- Jachra -
"...anyway, the rest happened as I said, I signed the tower, woke up back in that old ass house - "

- Jachra -
"And the door wasn't there any more.'

- Kip -
"Did they find her?"

- Jachra -
"I didn't sign," she murmurs, guilt creeping in.

- Jachra -
"Didn't sign a thing until the tower."

- Kip -
He nods, "probably the better choice."

- Jachra -
She clicks the light on in the bathroom, pauses.

- Jachra -
Then seems to rethink it, going inside and shutting the door.

- Kip -
"Something wrong?" he calls as he notices her hesitate.

- Jachra -
"Nothing," she calls back. There's the twist of a shower knob.

- Kip -
He takes a deep breath, looking down at the mark on his arm. While Kendra showers, he tries to focus on it, on Beleth, see where the chain points to something in a different dimension... or world... or... whatever.

- Jachra -
It's a bit like - something was cut off. It's like she said - their worlds were severed apart. Could he still reach through though?

Maybe if there was a place that was - somehow closer to the other world. Whenever he does magic, it's like he's touching that place again.

- Jachra -
It's just - through a barrier, in the dark, blindly.

- Kip -
Perhaps that should be the first thing he does. Find a place like that, call on her. Hope she doesn't consume the world.

- Jachra -
It seems passingly unlikely, but one never knows.

- Jachra -
Kendra returns, wearing the same clothes but now cleaned, with her hair damp across her shoulders. She slides onto the bed, sitting, and dear god if she isn't beautiful, no matter what state she's in.

Beautiful things can be dangerous, maybe even beautiful because they're dangerous. A glass table, lit from below, her smoky eyes and smoky lips...

It's becoming very clear to him why he went to the place that he did, as much as he dwells on sense memories.

"So - I suppose I might as well give you an idea of what I've worked out so far."

- Jachra -
"I don't know how directly applicable it will be, but maybe we're similar in other ways."

- Jachra -
"Pick something you can do - if you had to give it one word, what would you say it works with? As like - a concept."

- Kip -
Kip thinks for a moment, to the changes to his body he made. "Well, change I guess would work."

- Jachra -
"Okay, so - there's different things you can do with your concept. Like - I can Know someone's destiny, or what's going to happen to them in the future (roughly), or figure out how a corpse died."

- Jachra -
"Or I can - kinda see things that you can't see with your normal senses if they're related to those concepts."

- Jachra -
"I can also give probabilities a nudge."

She pulls out a coin

- Jachra -
She flips it, letting it land on the table.

Each time she does he feels a weird little tingle, a sense of something

- Jachra -
and each time, it lands on its side

- Jachra -
"I can have perfect timing, or make something not decay."

- Kip -
So can it be something like find what's lost?

- Jachra -
This message has been removed.

- Kip -
(wait, is this IC? And is it a conscious decision by the character what the obsession is?)

- Jachra -
(Oh, you were asking me)

- Jachra -
(It can be yes, or it can be something you the player impose on them)

- Jachra -
(The Obsession is a need to prsue some mystical thing, to solve some magical concern)

- Jachra -
(To understand a potent mystery or an aspect of existence)

- Jachra -
"...it's a lot to take in," she admits

- Kip -
"That... is putting it lightly."

- Jachra -
"It'd help if I'd had someone to teach me, but aside from my experience in whateverthefuck-land, it's all been me."

- Kip -
Kip nods, "well, more than could be said for me. A second in there and someone took pity on me and tried to 'help'."

- Jachra -
"I don't even want to ask. I had all sorts of fucked up offers for 'help.'"
She leans back against the headboard.

- Jachra -
"Where are you going now? Once you get the payout?"

- Kip -
He looks at her, "well... I, I don't know. After all this. I kinda want to know what's in that book."

- Jachra -
This message has been removed.

- Kip -
(Wait, I thought she dead dropped it already)

- Jachra -
This message has been removed.

- Jachra -
YOU SAW NOTHING

- Kip -
peers

- Jachra -
"He's not the kinda guy you wanna fuck with," she says, looking at him. "Though I know what you mean."

- Jachra -
"Maybe we did a bad thing. I dunno."

- Jachra -
"But fuckit. I've been through hell the last few years."

- Kip -
"Can we go pick it up before they get it? I mean, not to keep.. but... I kinda have to know now."

- Jachra -
"We could probably."

- Jachra -
"If we hurry."

- Kip -
Kip jumps up, unable to contain his excitement.

- Jachra -
"Wow, I haven't seen you this excited in a while," she says, joining him at the door.

- Jachra -
They head back into the night.

- Kip -
Kip has to follow Kendra, as he doesn't quite know where the drop was.

- Jachra -
Street lights are their own real illumination. It makes the world feel alien and small as they walk the small roads.

- Jachra -
The drop point, as it turns out, is a dumpster

- Jachra -
Out behind a McDonalds that's still open

- Jachra -
Reminding him that he hasn't eaten anything since - a while.

- Kip -
"Damn... I am THAT hungry..." he murmurs.

- Jachra -
"You poor bastard. How long were you in demonland?"

- Kip -
"I... I don't know.

- Jachra -
Maybe forever, maybe no time at all.

She leans over, picking up the book. It's protected by a double plastic baggie

- Jachra -
"We can get some burgers and check it over."

- Kip -
"Yeah, sounds good," he says, heading in.

- Jachra -
It's fuck early. There's only two other people here, a homeless man in a corner and some kid in the back who might be equally homeless.

- Kip -
He takes a look at the homeless men, before getting a few small burgers.

- Jachra -
They go to a window booth, Kendra pulling the book out of the bags.

- Kip -
Kip takes two of the burgers, giving one to each of the homeless guys before joining Kendra at the booth.

- Kip -
"So you don't know anything about this thing?" he asks as he sits down.

- Jachra -
They look up, wary at first, but grateful, especially the boy with the long hair and heavy jacket.

"No, I do. It's a book of magic. Or a magic book? Might be both."

- Kip -
"There's a difference?"

- Jachra -
She starts to open it and light shines out onto the window. She snaps it shut, surprised.

- Kip -

"uhhh, what was that?" he says, surprised.

- Kip -
Kip blinks his eyes, grumbling.

- Jachra -
"...I think that confirms magical book."

- Kip -
"Perhaps we should take this somewhere less public..."

- Jachra -
She eases it just a little open again.

- Kip -
Kip leans forward on the table, wanting to see so very, very badly.

- Jachra -
"...okay, still glowing, I'm going to - eee!"

- Jachra -
It yanks itself open

- Jachra -
Flipping pages before them as if in a high wind

- Kip -
Kip's eyes are glued to the book. Even though he knows he probably shouldn't, he has to know what this thing is.

- Jachra -
It opens to a couple pages filled with strange illustrations

- Jachra -
of spires and pyramids and monsters fighting people and people throwing fire at one another, in a very stylized fashion

- Kip -
Kip gazes at it, a sly grin on his face, like he's getting into his father's belongings that he was told to leave alone.

- Jachra -
"...holy fuck," she murmurs, watching as the images begin to light up, and the monster images start to wriggle free.

- Jachra -
"Uhm.'

- Kip -
"... .... ..." Kip tries to plug one of the monsters in place with his thumb.

- Jachra -
It wriggles against it, the others continuing to pop out.

Kendra grabs the side of it and tries to crane it shut. She's struggling, even though she isn't a pixie.

- Kip -
Kip tries to plug as many monsters as he can with one hand, while helping Kendra with the other.

- Jachra -
Roll Str + Athletics!

- Kip -
(Link thingy please!)

- Jachra -
rpgroller.com/nwod/

- Kip -
2!

- Jachra -
They manage to get it part way, but something peels out just before they slam it shut, growing in an instant as it smashes into the window and takes off into the night, flapping wings and shrieking a piercing call.

- Jachra -
The other people in the room are cowering, hiding under tables or behind the counter.

- Kip -
Kip looks at Kendra, panicked. "... now what!?"

- Jachra -
"...get the fuck out."

- Jachra -
She shoves the book back into the bags and runs out. She has the presence of mind to grab one of the bags of burgers, too

- Kip -
Kip never needs to be told twice to gtfo, and he leaps out the window and tries to see where this fucker went!

- Jachra -
It's still glowing somewhat, though that's fading as it heads off - north?

- Jachra -
Towards the glow that indicates the greater Portland area.

- Kip -
Kip goes chasing off after the beastie, despite having no fucking idea what to do to stop this thing.

- Jachra -
On foot, he's soon getting himself lost in the trees and small businesses of this little exurb.

- Kip -
"Shit... shit... shit..." he curses to himself, trying to htink of how he can pursue this bastard.

- Jachra -
Kendra trots up, the two of them out behind a pawn store now, the back of a strip mall

- Jachra -
"...this thing is dangerous."

- Kip -
"Yeah, no kidding. So.. why did that guy want something with shit like that in there?"

- Jachra -
"I dunno. He could be like us."

- Jachra -
"Or a fucking vampire, I don't know."

- Jachra -
"Maybe he wants to unleash monsters, or there's some other shit in here."

- Kip -
He frowns, not sure if Kendra's joking or not. "Ah... so.... how do we stop it before it hurts someone?"

- Jachra -
"...you're asking me? I'm a criminal."

- Jachra -
She sighs

- Jachra -
"You don't even know how to use your magic."

- Kip -
"I, yeah, well... so? This is my fault, I can't just let it... rampage out there!"

- Kip -
he protests angrily.

- Jachra -
"Okay, so - I don't know, can you move us quickly?"

- Kip -
"I think I can, but I wouldn't want to risk you... I don't know what could happen!" He blurts out.

- Jachra -
She rolls her eyes and puts a hand over her eyes

- Jachra -
As if shaking them

- Jachra -
"...no, I'll be fine."

- Kip -
Kip takes a deep breath, clearly nervous as he walks over to her. He grabs her by the arms, quite awkwardly. "Uhm, I'm not sure how this will work, so ah..." he closes his eyes and focuses on bringing the beastie over to them. or, where it is to them. North in Portland?

- Jachra -
...nothing. It feels - like he's forgotten how to do that.

Maybe there's another trick, though? Like that portal Beleth showed him?
If he can only find a chain that connects him to Portland. Has he ever done anything there of note, something that might give him a strong memory to go off?

- Kip -
Kip closes his eyes and tries to focus on one of the memories of the city. While he's tempted to focus on one of the few times he allowed himself to have a good time, partying at a club, he instead thinks of something safer... one of the construction sites he worked at, just having an enjoyable, quiet lunch with his coworkers.

- Jachra -
Yeah that might do.

(So Co-Location is a Space 3 spell that blends two locations together. As you have Space 3, this means you have 1 free reach. It takes +1 reach to make it sensory range rather than touch/personal, +1 reach off Sympathetic connection to an unseen target, +1 reach for instant rather than lengthy ritual casting, +1 reach to make it usable to those without Space sight, and +1 to make a stable portal. That means I add a number of paradox dice based on your gnosis per extra reach - 4 in this case.)

Do you wish to contain it (I roll paradox, successes are soaked by your Wisdom score) or release it (paradox successes alter the spell/environment)

- Kip -
Contain it.

- Jachra -
2! Roll your Wisdom

- Kip -
Wisdom?

- Jachra -
Look under Willpower

- Kip -
3!

- Jachra -
~

- Jachra -
Kip feels something, like an attention or some vast darkness... no, like that infinite darkness that he passed through on his way to and from Hell - that tries to enter in as he grasps at a powerful spell he can barely contain, but he manages to hold it inside himself.

Painful twisting fills him (2 bashing damage), and he gets a chance to cast

(-2 to Gnosis + Space.)

- Jachra -
He feels absolutely exhausted, beat all to hell as, before him, a point of churning smoke appears.

With the power of his mind, he tears a hole in space itself, a smoke portal just like Beleth's, out to what is now a Holiday Inn's parking lot.

- Kip -
"Bllleeeargh..." Kip grunts, completely disoriented as they emerge in the parking lot.

- Jachra -
Kendra stares at it in something like awe before stepping through.

- Kip -
"That... is really weird," Kip says quietly, having stepped through, and checking himself, and Kendra, over to make sure they haven't grown a second head or their skin's inside out or something.

- Jachra -
She's fine. Space is a lie.

- Kip -
"So... did that help?" he asks, looking around for that damnable beastie.

- Jachra -
"We're closer than we were. It'll be coming from the south - the trick is spotting it."

- Jachra -
"Though if you're asking me to take it down with my holdout pistol, you're crazy."

- Jachra -
The hole snaps shut

- Jachra -
"...if you can tear it apart with space magic, that'd be great."

- Kip -
"Wasn't it glowing?" he murmurs. He then looks at his hands. Could he still change them? Then what? Claw at the thing? Even with claws, he'd be torn apart!
"Space magic? Really?" he asks, rolling his eyes at what he's assuming was a disparaging term for FUTURE STUFF! Despite it not making sense.

- Jachra -
So just spot a glowing thing in the sky, right. They spend a bit scanning before they see it - or maybe it's a plane? But it's cloudy, so it has to be flying below the cloud layer. A bright speck, coming closer.

- Kip -
Kip immediately points it out. "Okay, I see it! ...now what?" He wonders if he could bring places to him... he looks around, trying to find something large, solid and not containing people for him to 'bring' the thing to, to hopefully slam into and take care of itself for them.

- Jachra -
It's in sight range, so it should be even easier, if that's a thing. There's a now-empty donut shop across the street. He remembers getting a pack for the other guys there.

- Kip -
"Okay..." he focuses again, this time on the beast. Now, just to bring it to the right spot so its momentum sends it crashing intot he abandoned building and, hopefully, killing itself in the crash. Or, if not that lucky, disabling it long enough for them to do... something.

- Jachra -
(So reaches: +1 instant, +1 sensory range, +1 portal, +1 usable without space magic for 3 dice)
Contain or Release?

- Kip -
CONTAIN!

- Kip -
(brb)

- Jachra -
(No prox! You're free and clear)

- Kip -
(Woo!)

- Kip -
(So... space + gnosis?)

- Jachra -
Aye

- Kip -
2!

- Jachra -
You may describe

- Kip -
Kip closes his eyes for a moment, focusing on the beast as it flies off in the distance. He then looks to the donut shop, and through methods he still can't figure out, pulls it, along with himself, Kendra and, well, everything, up to the beast. The beast which was once flying hundreds if not thousands of feet in the air, now took a sudden and unexpected nose dive, ending with it mere feet from the concrete walls of the shop, flying at full speed.

- Jachra -
It slams into it hard enough that the concrete cracks, starring around its head.

- Jachra -
Kendra runs over to the dazed creature, puts her holdout to its head, and unloads her entire clip

- Kip -
Kip follows her, flinching at the loud bangs from the gun, and grabs something to bludgeon it with if necessary.

- Jachra -
It falls limp, and she stares at it.
"...I don't think it's dead. It feels - immortal," she says worriedly.

"...maybe we can shove it back into the book?"

- Kip -
"That would make as much sense as anything else here." (And, unfortunately, I do need to be going to sleep right about now)

- Kip -
"Just try to... shove it in? Or... I'm not sure if we should open the book again. HOpefully we won't need to."

- Jachra -
"...lets try."
Taking it in hand, she carefully opens it. It starts to try and force itself again, but they're ready for it

- Jachra -
True enough, as they push at the creature, it sinks right back in, shrinking

- Jachra -
and they shove it shut

- Kip -
"So, uhm, not curious about the book anymore. Maybe we should let this guy have it."

- Jachra -
She exhales, holding it close against her body

- Jachra -
"Yeah. It's just..."

- Jachra -
"...is it really okay, to let this thing go?

- Kip -
"I have no fucking idea!" Kip nearly shouts -- mentally and physically exhausted. The second wind from finding the book completely gone now.

- Jachra -
They stare at one another, thoroughly fucked up and weirded out

- Jachra -
and a difficult decision at their heels

- Jachra -
------------------------

- Jachra -
Kip can never shake the feeling that his world will never be quite the same again. He's still reeling from what happened - from his experience in that other place, to his escape through the facility, to his literally teleporting across the length and breadth of Greater Portland to chase a monster escaped from a book.

It's not just that, though.

Everything is subtly different now. He knows things just by thinking about them. By forming images in his mind, he can even change the world in subtle ways, by imagining space not as an immutable characteristic subject to gravity, but a condition of the mind.

He can almost, almost hear the whispers of others' thoughts without trying - and when he does try?

Even those books open for him.

- Jachra -
Kendra clutches the book to herself as they sit on a bus bench, her eyes uncertain, her heart beating fast under her rough clothes. She's still beautiful, and there are still depths to her that Kip has never been able to fathom.

- Jachra -
Normally so self-possessed, she's been shaken by what she's seen, by what she holds in her arms.

- Jachra -
Raindrops patter outside the bus stop, little flickering drops in the sodium lamps

- Kip -
"This is the right choice... right? We can't just give it to someone we don't know. They could do terrible things with it," he says, more trying to reassure himself than Kendra. "Right?"

- Jachra -
"I don't know, Kip," she answers. "Part of me thinks we should just do the drop and forget about it. Take the money and run."

- Kip -
Kip nods, "is there anyone we can talk to about it? Some, er... council of wizards or something?"

- Jachra -
"There are others like us. I've seen their signs in Portland."

- Jachra -
"They're obvious if you know how to look."

She probably means that weird third-eye thing he can do now.

- Kip -
"UGH!" he groans, putting his face in his hands, as he leans over. "Why couldn't this be simple?" he sighs, dropping his hands after a few moments. "Yeah, but can they be trusted? Maybe... maybe we can still do the drop, but don't do a dead drop. Meet with the guy?"

- Jachra -
Kendra looks over at him.
"What's going through your mind, KIp?"

- Kip -
"Well, you know. If we meet with the guy, maybe we can figure out if he's going to, you know, go megalomaniacal about it. Or maybe, if we're really, really lucky, he's got the same idea we do." He shrugs. "Or we can admit we're in way over our heads, do the drop and run. But that just doesn't.. feel right."

- Jachra -
Kendra lifts her head and closes her eyes. He can feel the subtle tingle against his skin that indicates the presence of magic.
"It doesn't look good. I can't really see anything, but it's a lot of warning signs. I could maybe look into what will happen with the book if we give it up."

- Kip -
Kip nods, "maybe that should be enough. Let's take the book to my place and see if we can't figure something out. Unless we should do it some place.. isolated?"

- Jachra -
"He knows where you live by now."

- Kip -
"What? How?"

- Jachra -
"He had your number."

- Kip -
"Shit. Okay, then, well, do we just walk out into the wilderness and see what we can do?"

- Jachra -
"We can start towards one of those signs I saw, for starters."

- Kip -
Kip nods, "yeah... yeah, let's do that." He stands, rubbing his face as he tries to focus. He takes several slow, deep breaths, trying to collect himself before turning back to Kendra. "Are you ready?"

- Jachra -
-----------------------------------

- Jachra -
Portland at night. It's honestly not hugely different from Portland during the day, just – harsher. People think the city is more open and tolerant than it often is. Oh, sure, the hippies are relentlessly nice, but it has its share of conservatives, criminals, and all-around assholes. Kip used to work with them on a daily basis after all. Blue-collar types who voted for Trump and think they're going to take the country back from the Mexicans and the gays and the liberals.

Now that his eyes have been opened? Kip can see it everywhere.

If he peels open his third eye, the world changes subtly. He can see the influence of Hell everywhere, and we don't just mean that in a Biblican sense. People are trapped, running in circles. The guy driving Uber, his car is a prison, hooked into a line that goes off into the infinite distance as he's forced to circle around and around with no where to go. The prostitutes on the street, they don't want to do this, but they're chained up to debts and drugs and kids and violence.

Everywhere he looks there are chains, bonds holding people down - they could break free if they tried, but they never do, because they're not tied down by physical bands, but locks on their minds.

Pain scourged him of those delusions. He knows the Lie of space, how distances are never what they seem to be, and the Lie of the Mind, to know that thought and reality are not separate, that his mind is connected to other minds, that everything he thinks and does is driven by forces deep within him - or outside him.

- Kip -
Kip shudders, a chill running down his spine as he looks at the poor bastards, imprisoned by what they can't see or perceive. Of course.. he's not sure being 'free' is better. Sure, now he "knows"... but, well, monsters, horrible eldritch powers and the like mean even more terrible things are out there, waiting. Lurking.

- Jachra -
They're all in blinders, but what can he see but nightmares? Ironic, really.

Kendra ignores the catcalls of men who are so blinded by their ignorance that Kip can scarcely see their eyes, and turns down a street that, in the day, is probably a nice place. Vine-covered storefronts, places for vendors and musicians. At night, more of the druggies come out, the guys strung out on heroin, sinking themselves in another cage to ignore the one they're already stuck in.

"Look at that," Kendra says, nodding to the bare brick wall of a coffee shop, the entrance to an alleyway trellised over with flowers closed into buds. There's an old sign there indicating a tea shop is back there, but he sees a boarded-up gate. "With your eye open, that is."

- Jachra -
When he does, symbols are burnt in there

- Jachra -
They seem to follow his gaze a bit, shifting in midair

- Jachra -
He doesn't understand them, but he almost feels as if he should, as if he learned how sometime but has since forgotten.

- Kip -
Kip gazes at the symbols, reacing his hand out to poke one of them.

- Kip -
*reaching

- Jachra -
It's a bit like trying to reach for a hologram - he touches the wall, making his eyes swim for a moment as they try to adjust to the sight. It's not that he puts his hand through them, it's more as if they're trying to pop around him

- Jachra -
It's an optical illusion that hurts about as much as putting on someone's glasses

- Kip -
"Heh," Kip laughs curtly, a smile barely creeping into his face as he looks at the first magical thing that wasn't reality-breaking or trying to kill him or both.

- Kip -
*magical thing he's seen

- Jachra -
Kendra goes over to the gate and pulls it open, heading into a sort of back courtyard to the coffee shop, with chairs folded up on top of tables, umbrellas folded in. The tea shop is across the way, closed up but otherwise intact. Before he lets his vision fade (though he could draw on some of his store of personal magic (mana) and keep it running), he sees one of the signs on the door - a pentacle.

- Jachra -
"Last chance to back out," Kendra says.

- Kip -
The absurdity of it all begins to get to Kip, as he smirks at the pentacle. He points at it briefly before heading to the door, "now I'm half expecting a cauldron and old crones inside." He shakes his head at Kendra, "no. No, let's do this."

- Jachra -
"Hah. You're going to win them over for sure."

Coming up to the door, she bangs on it with her fist. Quiet as the courtyard is, the sound hammers through. The light here is grey and wan, really just the ambient light of the nearby buildings, and the shadows long and dark.

- Jachra -
She bangs again, wondering aloud if anyone's even there at this time of night, before a light flicks on inside, sending a golden glow through the paned windows.

- Jachra -
A woman, slight, but built hard, opens the door, her dusky skin marked with military tattoos visible across her shoulders and arms with her tanktop and her head shaved with a close cut of black hair. A gun hangs loosely at her belt, but she doesn't reach for it - yet.

"There a reason you're banging away in the middle of the night?"

- Kip -
Kip stares at the woman, this not being what he expected to find at all. He recovers quickly enough, however, before his gaze drifts to her weapon, a frown crossing his face. "Hi. Uhm, we saw the sign out front. Thought there might be someone home to, well, talk."

- Jachra -
That gets her attention quickly enough. She shifts a little straighter.
"Well, you two sure as fuck aren't with any of the Orders yet."

- Jachra -
"Don't even know what that means," Kendra says

- Kip -
"Yeah, that's true," Kip says, before extending his hand, trying to put on his best friendly, exhausted smile, "I'm Kip, by the way."

- Jachra -
She studies him for a moment and he feels a tingle of magic out of her - nothing that really impacts him directly.

She takes it, hand rough and firm. "Kamala. Word of advice - don't give people your birth name."

- Jachra -
"If that's not your birthname, don't correct me."

- Jachra -
"I'm going to wake the others up - you two wait here, outside the threshold. Don't often get newbies wandering up, but we'll make do."

- Kip -
Kip whispers to Kendra, "what the fuck is she talking about?"

- Kip -
Kip also ponders if everyone having a name starting with 'K' is simply coincidence or weird magical mumbo-jumbo.

- Jachra -
She looks at Kendra meaningfully, who shifts on her heels.

"Kendra," she says, and that's the moment where he realizes that she's been operating under a pseudonym the entire time he's known her, all the way back to Chicago.

- Kip -
Kip frowns at that, peering at her.

- Jachra -
Kamala shuts the door on them, leaving the light open as she thumps back inside.

Kendra shrugs.
"In my case it was an abundance of caution."

- Jachra -
"Maybe there's a reason for it."

- Kip -
Kip nods, sighing as he leans against the wall next to the door, putting one foot on it. "So, what are these orders?"

- Jachra -
"Fuck if I know. Magic fraternities, maybe."

- Kip -
"Oh, a sorority then, maybe?" Kip says with a nervous laugh.

- Kip -
He peers back to the door, sighing. "So how... ah, open, should we be with this?"

- Jachra -
She smiles at that. "There's a surprising number of secret societies in the world. The really secret ones can be scary. And we should probably be guarded, but not dishonest."

- Jachra -
"The only other mage I knew could see lies."

- Jachra -
A tap comes from the frame, and the door opens again. Kip has to double-take as he looks inside - checking through the paned windows, he sees a closed-down stop, the tables forgotten and dusty. Looking inside, he sees a well kept-up living room.

- Kip -
Kip ponders if the... er... muggles..? would still see the dusty room if they were able to peer through the door.

- Jachra -
Kamala opened the door, and she gestures them in. Inside are another woman and a man, each an eclectic individual. Kamala is - faintly Central Asian, while the second woman is white and straight-laced, and the man is Asian, probably Japanese, but Kip isn't an expert. None of them wear robes or anything like that, but the man is carrying a gold-capped rod as he stands near one of the passages. With Kendra that makes for quite a rainbow of backgrounds. The woman, her blond hair braided, is the only one of them not to look remotely tired.

"Welcome," she says. "I'm Protea, and my friend with the rod is Hiruko. I know this is probably a bit strange to you, and we'll do the best we can to answer your questions and set you on your way in the morning. For now, consider yourselves to be under our hospitality."

- Jachra -
There's a certain wariness, which doesn't surprise him given that he can create portals with a thought.

- Kip -
Kip looks at the three of them, rubbing his shoulder awkwardly with his left hand as he waves with his right. "Uhm, thank you. I'm Kip," he offers his hand to each.

- Jachra -
They each shake. Hiruko in particular seems pleased with that, as if by touching him he allowed the man to weigh his soul in some fashion. Pleasant.

Kendra does not shake hands.

"How many people like us are there? I've seen a handful of signs like yours around town," she says.

- Jachra -
"Maybe a hundred odd in the whole greater Portland area," Prothea says, while Kamala shuts the door and goes to perch on one of the high stools at a small wetbar.

- Kip -
Kip listens for now, unsure of what to ask now that he actually has the opportunity to. He places his hands in his pockets and allows Kendra to take the lead for the moment.

- Jachra -
"I've never really heard a detailed census and some mages are known to move."

- Jachra -
"How long have you been Awakened?"

- Jachra -
Kendra shrugs. "A few years. Him? A few hours."

- Kip -
Kip nods in confirmation.

- Jachra -
"Do you mind telling us where you awoke to?" Hiruko asks. "There's no shame in your answer, it would help us educate you, however."

- Kip -
Kip immediately looks uncomfortable talking about it, and glances to Kendra. If he "awoke" somewhere "evil", are they going to assume he's the same and kill him? Or just anywhere different than their own?

- Jachra -
"Maybe we should start," Prothea says.

- Jachra -
"I Awoke to the Primal Wild, as we call it, though the names are a little arbitrary. It's a place of vibrant nature, where everything living is trying to consume everything else - even the ocean tries to devour the land, for all things have spirits, and spirits live."

- Jachra -
She looks to the Japanese fellow.
"I woke to the Aether. It's the root of all other realms, where storms rage endlessly, representative of all matter and energy in the universe. I was challenged by angels, and earned the right to scribe my name on the Tower of the Golden Key."

- Jachra -
"And I," Kamala says, unprompted, "didn't go anywhere. On a battlefield in Afghanistan I hallucinated an army of Alexander's ghosts, marching off into the distance, and walked into an ancient temple where a gold-wrapped corpse gave me a lead coin that I wrote my name on. We call that place Stygia."

- Jachra -
They look to Kendra and Kip expectantly. This is the most insane support circle he's ever been to.

- Kip -
Kip still looks unsure about how much he should reveal, but begins speaking. "I awoke in, well, the only way I can really describe it is Hell. Demons torturing people, stealing dreams. I managed to escape, cross some plains and reached that tower-thing."

- Jachra -
"Pandaemonium," Prothea says. Well that's a fucking relief, none of them seem all that surprised.

- Jachra -
Kendra shifts on her heels again, playing with the book's spine.

"A place of thorns and magic, where weird people tried to trap me in deals. I signed my name on a silver tower."

"Annnd Arcadia - wow, all 5 realms," Kamala says

- Jachra -
"That's not funny at all."

- Jachra -
"Every mage awakens to a realm - the towers guide us there, when we shake awake from the sleep of the Lie," Prothea says.

- Jachra -
"Through the Tower you draw magic back down into this broken world."

- Jachra -
"It's why certain magic will come easier to you - the magic associated with other realms is still open to you, but harder.'

- Jachra -
"Ultimately, what you do with it is your decision."

- Jachra -
"Though we have gathered in societies for mutual aid and support, as you see."

- Kip -
"What brought you three together?"

- Jachra -
She folds her hands. "Mortals - excuse me, normal people - can't bear the sight of magic, so we try to practice out of their view."

"I turned down another tour and got out of the Marines," Kamala says. "I kind of wandered around until the Adamantine Arrow snapped me up. They provided a lot of what I had in the military, with a dose more responsibility and knowledge, and I came to join these suckers as muscle."

Hiruko rolls his eyes. "Prothea and I are married. While Kamala is an Arrow, we're both members of the Mysterium. We work to find, study, and contain things of magical value, and we have the run of this part of Portland. You'd be surprised how much random magical shit gets sold in the markets around here."

- Kip -
Kip has to stop himself from jumping at the 'contain things' part of his explanation. He fights to keep his composure, "random magical shit? So... magic gizmos and scrolls are common?"

- Jachra -
"In a sense, yes," Prothea nods. "Leaving aside the myriad forms of natural magic, true magic - the divine power of the Realms we awoke to - is embedded in many things throughout our world. There are books of magic, magic weapons, magic lenses, magic animals... unfortunately, the Abyss is hungry, and it's always trying to devour magic wherever it is."

- Kip -
"The Abyss?" he asks, curiously. "and this Abyss is different than Pandaemonium?"

- Jachra -
"And once the Lie swallows a thing, it is lost, and all that made it truly precious is lost with it. By finding and protecting them, we make them available to other mages - or protect them from misuse."

- Jachra -
"Significantly," she nods. She has a very teacherly style, sort of an upper classwoman vibe

- Jachra -
"You passed the Abyss to get there."

- Jachra -
"It's a sort of - I suppose you'd say gap, or tear in the universe. We believe that in... let's call it another timeline, that the realms and the mundane world were much closer."

- Jachra -
"Beings from there could roam here, and humanity could Awaken and draw magic easily."

- Jachra -
"It's speculative, of course - all we know is that the Abyss exists, and that it cuts us off from the Supernal realm. It is negation, unreality, and it's the reason why normal people can't bear the sight of magic, for they all bear a shard of it."

- Jachra -
"Not, like, vampires or wolf-blooded or other things with a little magic in them," Kamala adds

- Jachra -
"For whatever reason!"

- Jachra -
"But yes, it's why magic is so damnably hard, and why it eats everything of divine truth that it can," Prothea goes on

- Kip -
Kip nods as he listens, trying to file all this away in his mind.

- Jachra -
It's a lot to take in, but he's got a very versatile mind, now

- Jachra -
He could probably memorize entire books if he chose

- Jachra -
Or recall the memories of them

- Jachra -
"Which brings us back around to you - nothing obliges you to join an Order, but they offer training and protection in a dangerous world."

- Jachra -
"If you wish, we can direct you to the Consilium tomorrow. Otherwise, we'll happily see you on your way."

- Kip -
"What is the Consilium, exactly? Where these Orders have their, what, offices?"

- Kip -
He glances at Kendra, trying to judge what she thinks of all this.

- Jachra -
Kendra's letting very little past her pokerface, but she's absorbing it. She glances at him, the word 'protection' popping up pretty clearly

- Jachra -
"It's the governing body of local Pentacle mages - members of the five Orders. They all have representatives there, and then chapter houses elsewhere."

- Jachra -
"What sort of things are expected on joining an Order?" Kendra asks

- Jachra -
"Strictly speaking? Nothing - it's not unheard of for mages to take the offered training and initial aid and then disappear. It behooves us to know who you are enough that we don't make a huge issue of it. If you want to be more involved, though, there's always work that needs to be done, and responsibility is rewarded with resources and additional support."

- Kip -
"Thank you for the offer -- if you could, we would like to see the Consilium... if only to see what they have to offer. Right, Kendra?" he says, glancing back to her.

- Jachra -
"I think that suits me right down to the bone."

- Jachra -
Hiruko has taken an instant dislike to her, if his slightly narrowed eyes are any indication.

- Jachra -
Still, he raises no objections

- Kip -
He looks at Hiruko, "is something the matter?" he asks, looking concerned.

- Jachra -
"I don't like your friend's attitude."

"Honey, don't be rude," Prothea says, brooking little argument.

- Jachra -
He inclines his head, and steps off deeper into the building.

- Kip -
"Sorry if we've offended him..."

- Jachra -
"We're all a bit on edge, if I'm to be honest. There was a mess a few days ago where one of the Mad, those lost to Wisdom entirely, rampaged through downtown."

Wasn't there an earthquake a few days ago? Bit odd in Portland - it did substantial damage to some of the downtown.

- Kip -
"So wasn't that, you know, seen? Isn't that bad?"

- Jachra -
"It is, and it was. That's one of the more insidious aspects of the Sleeping Curse - those under it forget details and rationalize away that which doesn't make sense as the shard within them attacks what they see. Sometimes, the dissonance is enough to stir them to a partial waking state where they can witness magic."

- Jachra -
"It's not the recommended method, though - it harms their soul, fighting with the Abyss like that."

- Jachra -
"Leaving them less able to cope with things that trouble them."

- Kip -
"Good to know, thanks..."

- Jachra -
"Short version," Kamala says, "yeah, it's bad."

- Jachra -
Kendra looks around.

- Jachra -
"So speaking of hospitality... all I've had today is a big mac and a bagel earlier..."

"Grub over here," Kamala waves

- Jachra -
Prothea looks up to Kip as Kendra goes to get situated. She nods towards one of the chairs, inviting him to sit.

- Jachra -
"If you have other questions, I could enlighten you - is there anything on your mind?"

- Kip -
"So many things... I don't even know where to begin. So, we're, ah, 'awakened'... exposed 'the lie'. Did we figure out the meaning of life?" Kip tries, as he sits down, staring at the bar.

- Jachra -
"I'm not sure life has meaning, even in the context of the Awakening," Prothea says. Kamala and Kendra have gotten to chatting - the latter asking the former about her war experience.

"Perhaps it's better to say that you've come to realize that the small pond of your existence is just one small drop in a much larger ocean of meaning."

- Jachra -
"You still must navigate that ocean, but now you know it's there. You can reach its islands."

- Jachra -
"I know some people who dedicate every moment of their lives to trying to get back to the Supernal planes, to Ascend and live forever there instead of here, on this Fallen World."

- Jachra -
"I know others who strive to bring more magic back down here, as if in hopes that will heal the rift."

- Jachra -
"And others still who just try to make their own lives and those of their loved ones better - like myself."

- Kip -
"So nothing's really changed, just there's more shit to deal with," Kip replies with a shrug. "Being a small drop in a giant ocean seems appropriate, though."

- Jachra -
"More or less, yes. You'll find that you have a lot more power to affect that world... at least, in the realm you once thought yourself powerless. You are a Mastigos, too, one who Awoke to Pandaemonium. You can travel the world in an eyeblink or even delve into the collective unconscious."

- Jachra -
"You can be a genius beyond any mortal man, or form a tiny world in your own space."

- Kip -
"What about those demons in Pandaemonium? Do we have to worry about them?" he asks.

- Jachra -
"They can't come here on their own - it takes the effort of magic like yours to do that. Even so, they aren't necessarily bad - they have a purpose, a job that they perform. In the myths of my Order, the dead would first descend to Stygia, there to shed their attachments to material possessions, and then travel to Pandaemonium. There, their minds are scourged, freed from their sins and emotional troubles. So cleansed, they continue on their journey through the other realms until, purified, they reunite with the beauty of Prime in the Aether, and what happens then is less clear - they could be reborn, or perhaps they go on."

- Jachra -
"But the demons are not necessarily evil - of course, that doesn't mean they're all safe, any more than an angel of judgement is 'safe.'"

- Jachra -
"Or a Beast from the Primal Wilds or a Spectre from Stygia or a Fae from Arcadia."

- Kip -
Kip nods, his shoulders slumping as he leans against the bar. "So why must I worry about giving my actual name out?"

- Jachra -
She smiles, amused.
"Ironically, you're the person I should be asking that question of, normally - the Arcanum of Space allows you to reach out across any distance to affect someone, so long as you have a sympathetic link."

- Jachra -
"Knowing their sympathetic name - the name they grew up with as a child - allows you to more effectively reach them."

- Jachra -
"Sometimes, close friends or lovers will share them, if they trust them enough."

- Jachra -
Distance is a lie. It's all in the mind, Beleth's voice whispers in silent reminder

- Jachra -
How many lessons did she embed in him?

- Kip -
Kip nods, "so it's all a matter of trust, then. Friends can help you more easily with knowledge of it, and foes can harm you more readily."

- Jachra -
"Exactly."

- Jachra -
She glances over at Kendra.

Memories flow up unbidden, the touch of lips against his in the cool darkness. He always remembers the lit table, the way it made their glasses glow in the club.

- Jachra -
Gods, he was preparing to be a Mastigos all his fucking life.

- Kip -
"Thank you, for all of this. Really. You provided a much needed port in a horrid, horrid storm."

- Jachra -
"I feel it's very important to offer hospitality - you never know when you'll need it in turn. Philosophy aside, though, you're welcome. I try to do whatever little things I can to make the world less awful than it is."

- Jachra -
"I broke with family tradition to become a doctor for that reason, a trade I still practice at the hospital - I use my powers on the sly to help people recover from things they shouldn't have."

- Kip -
"So... while you and yours seem nice and welcoming. Uhm, how many others in this city are, you know... not?" he asks. "Anyone we should be wary of?"

- Jachra -
"Anyone with a shingle out will provide at least basic hospitality, and generally speaking you can trust that they aren't traps - we root those out pretty viciously, as you can imagine," she says. "Learning what to avoid is a bit more subtle."

- Jachra -
"Generally speaking, if you see someone doing magic, it's a good idea to observe first before butting in, especially if you don't know who."

- Jachra -
"The Pentacle Orders have enemies, too - some cold, others hot."

- Jachra -
"Generally speaking we try not to interfere with vampires - yes, they exist - unless they're killing people in front of us."

- Jachra -
"Similarly with werewolves."

- Jachra -
"Some people befriend them, but that's also fraught."

- Jachra -
"The Seers, now... those are rival mages who you do not want to get involved with."

- Kip -
"Seers? They don't sound... horribly oppressive or anything. What's wrong with them?"

- Jachra -
"The Seers of the Throne serve dark gods who may or may not exist, who they claim are the just rulers of this world. These Exarchs, they say, are the ones responsible for the Abyss, and, essentially, the reason behind why everything in the world is terrible, and since their power is preeminent, eternal, and unchallengable, we should serve them rather than try to change things."

- Jachra -
"I honestly don't know whether to believe them or not, but they are quite serious and quite dangerous."

- Kip -
"So they don't use magic, then?"

- Jachra -
"Oh they do, in service to their own selfish needs."

- Jachra -
"In my experience, the kind of mage who joins the Seers is the kind who's tired of 'pretending' that mortals deserve basic rights, and that they should live as a king on this earth."

- Jachra -
"They have a lot of temporal power, mostly financial, though they do not completely control most governments."

- Jachra -
"Some, certainly, but we challenge them for influence in many arenas."

- Jachra -
"The DC Consilium is a very active one."

- Kip -
"So there is a lot of political maneuvering with the mortal world?"

- Jachra -
She nods.
"Yes, for those so-inclined."

- Jachra -
"No one person rules the world, at least not on a temporal level."

- Jachra -
"Nor even one group."

- Jachra -
"Generally speaking we manage to hold a detente on the most important affairs."

- Kip -
Kip rubs his eyes, "okay, I think if I take in any more my brain is going to explode. Again, truly, thank you. When we came up to this place I was honestly worried we'd be attacked or something. Is there any chance I can bother you for a cot?"

- Jachra -
"We have a guest room. I'll show you."

They pass by Kendra, who glances over at him briefly before he passes into the short hall with her. Past a little fou lion statue they enter a small room, where a queen-sized bed lies. She goes over to the closet.

"I'd assume you and Kendra will be sleeping separately?"

- Kip -
"Yes, that's right..." he says. "If you have a cot, that would be appreciated. If not, I can sleep on the floor."

- Jachra -
"Right in here - I'll bring you some sheets and you can get set up."

- Jachra -
She pulls one from the closet without help, maneuvering it into position.

- Jachra -
"I don't sleep much - too busy - so if you need anything, just politely knock on the door down the hall."

- Kip -
"Thank you," he says quietly, almost immediately falling asleep when he hits the cot.

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