008: Reunion at Collace

[Tiglath]

Kit Ghoshal now next to Walt Bona Dzofin & Tourmaline - with Arkar about to arrive!

Kit, together with everyone else, can't fail to notice the two striking Zhodani women who walk in hand in hand and dressed in distinctive style: their evening gowns contrast their hair colour and the pair are over six feet tall in their heels. Both have the long on top short at the back hairstyles favoured by those who wear flight helmets but while the argent hair of one is contrasted by her "uberblack" gown her companion's short sable hair is in turn contrasted with her silver dress.

The silver haired woman scans the room and then the bar giving a yelp of joy as she spots Kit and races across the room to embrace him"Ankit Ghoshal, you had me worried. I thought your position in the Valley of Tears might be overrun! At least just now you were checking your six..."

OOC: Pilot Officers Nsobiepr "Nsobi" (silver hair) and Briakqraiepr "Bria" (black hair).

And: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rM_nGN_du84

Kit leans into the hug, but turns a bright shade of red when he realizes that everyone in the bar is looking at him and the scene that the three are making. He replies, "While we were greatly outnumbered at the Valley of Tears - superior firepower, sound tactics and not to mention overwhelming (cough) support kept us alive and well. Barkeep, can we please get these two exceptional pilots a drink."

Nsobi and Bria order cocktails which the bar staff are happy to mix while avoiding the "rowdy" section of the bar.

Just as Kit thinks he's in the quiet/classy section a soldier in a grey uniform sporting a blond flat top sweeps Bria into an embrace against the bar. Bria squeals but her alarm turns to acquiescence as she melts into the soldier's arms. Nsobi starts and nearly inhales her cocktail's olive as she colours and chides "Bria! Oversharing! Again!" The soldier, apparently concerned that parts of Bria may have fallen off executes a tactile check mid embrace to confirm everything's still there and, having obtained that reassurance, eventually comes up for air. Kit now recognizes the female Sword World officer from the SEMC Regimental dinner. Clearly rather more than delighted to have found Bria she smiles a warm greeting to Nsobi and re-introduces herself to Kit "Kirsten Vitt, Monoc Securities". There are three more Monoc soldiers at the bar in their grey uniform with the face of a bearded one eyed man as their unit insignia. A female more thickly set but just as "Amazonian" as Vitt hands her a shot glass which she sinks with a cry of "Skol!" to then take up a stein of beer. Vitt introduces her people "This is Rolf, Vanja and Einar".

Kit can see a group of four veteran Marines and another of the "investors" coming to join the throng.

(OOC: * Kit remembers Vitt from the dinner. He can't recall everything but he's pretty sure she wore a dark green "Jaeger" Swordy uniform to dinner, had officer rank tabs... pink branch colour - from their logistics corps... and the Swordy close combat clasp - in gold).

[Tiglath]

Walt and Dzofin - in the "Bar Crowd" (see above).

Walt grins, admiring the confidence: “”And if I asked SEMC or the Twilight, might I not hear the same statement?”

"If I'm there then you'll hear the same!" She gives a predatory grin as the Sword World lilt creeps back into her accent "None of them will want to fight me - the Aslan refuse because they say I am a "war witch". She laughs and there's something dissonant in her laughter. Maybe a tone from a Chooser of the Slain eyeing the battlefield - or one of the sídhe riding the wind...

...and now Dzofin's heard the Deathwalker laugh - and lived!

[Thumper]

Walt and Dzofin - in the "Bar Crowd" (see above).

Walt grins, admiring the confidence: “”And if I asked SEMC or the Twilight, might I not hear the same statement?”

"If I'm there then you'll hear the same!" She gives a predatory grin as the Sword World lilt creeps back into her accent "None of them will want to fight me - the Aslan refuse because they say I am a "war witch". She laughs and there's something dissonant in her laughter. Maybe a tone from a Chooser of the Slain eyeing the battlefield - or one of the sídhe riding the wind...

...and now Dzofin's heard the Deathwalker laugh - and lived!

Growler-
”Ooh Bona, I do like your choice of friends. To friendship.” With one arm still draped around Bona, he raises his glass to toast Tourmelane, Dzofin, and Bona.

While doing so, he reaches out to Deathwalker Telepatathically to read surface thoughts:

[terrymixon]

Walt and Dzofin - in the "Bar Crowd" (see above).

Walt grins, admiring the confidence: “”And if I asked SEMC or the Twilight, might I not hear the same statement?”

"If I'm there then you'll hear the same!" She gives a predatory grin as the Sword World lilt creeps back into her accent "None of them will want to fight me - the Aslan refuse because they say I am a "war witch". She laughs and there's something dissonant in her laughter. Maybe a tone from a Chooser of the Slain eyeing the battlefield - or one of the sídhe riding the wind...

...and now Dzofin's heard the Deathwalker laugh - and lived!

Growler-
”Ooh Bona, I do like your choice of friends. To friendship.” as he raises his glass to toast.

While doing so, he reaches out to Deathwalker Telepatathically to read surface thoughts:

Read Surface Thoughts: [2d6]=8 raw score

And that's how the fight started, Your Honor.

[Thumper]

And that's how the fight started, Your Honor.

Too funny. Not quite the statement intended. Revised my last to be a more inclusive toast.

[terrymixon]

And that's how the fight started, Your Honor.

Too funny. Not quite the statement intended. Revised my last to be a more inclusive toast.

I was actually talking about the psionic probe. I mean, really, what could go wrong?

[Thumper]

You’re right. I’m assuming the “Witch”reference was to psi, and I wanted to verify the assumption by looking for a shield. Forgot about Read Surface Thoughts being known by the recipients (remember, Walt was previously read by Aster and didn’t know it). But re-reading the book text again, that isn’t possible:

Only
active and current thoughts are read by this ability, with the subject (if themselves not a telepath) unaware of the activity. Individuals with telepathic ability cannot be read due to the presence of their natural shields, unless they willingly lower their shielding.

So, you are absolutely right this would be detected and, therefore, destroy the genuine attempt of friendship. I therefore strike that.

Sorry for forgetting all the ramifications, and thanks for the pointer, Terry.

[terrymixon]

You’re right. I’m assuming the “Witch”reference was to psi, and I wanted to verify the assumption by looking for a shield. Forgot about Read Surface Thoughts being known by the recipients (remember, Walt was previously read by Aster and didn’t know it). But re-reading the book text again, that isn’t possible:

Only
active and current thoughts are read by this ability, with the subject (if themselves not a telepath) unaware of the activity. Individuals with telepathic ability cannot be read due to the presence of their natural shields, unless they willingly lower their shielding.

So, you are absolutely right this would be detected and, therefore, destroy the genuine attempt of friendship. I therefore strike that.

Sorry for forgetting all the ramifications, and thanks for the pointer, Terry.

You might have missed it, but life detection with sufficient effect will give you that information in a house rule we’ve decided to use. Roscoe did it earlier, and even though his effort was detected, it wasn’t taken as intrusive.

[Tiglath]

And that's how the fight started, Your Honor.

Too funny. Not quite the statement intended. Revised my last to be a more inclusive toast.

At least there were no red flags / contra indications to rummaging about in the mind of "Mild Mannered Pete"...

Oh, wait... so, exactly whose mind did you choose to invade again...???

[Tiglath]

You’re right. I’m assuming the “Witch”reference was to psi, and I wanted to verify the assumption by looking for a shield. Forgot about Read Surface Thoughts being known by the recipients (remember, Walt was previously read by Aster and didn’t know it). But re-reading the book text again, that isn’t possible:

Only
active and current thoughts are read by this ability, with the subject (if themselves not a telepath) unaware of the activity. Individuals with telepathic ability cannot be read due to the presence of their natural shields, unless they willingly lower their shielding.

So, you are absolutely right this would be detected and, therefore, destroy the genuine attempt of friendship. I therefore strike that.

Sorry for forgetting all the ramifications, and thanks for the pointer, Terry.

Duly noted - so no harm no foul as per your (retracted intent).


However, I've just written (and researched and amended) the response - so your getting it anyway!

As you'll discover below Bar Room Brawl averted. No diplomatic gaffes... er... gaffed... or clangers dropped. All good IC and OOC and no negative narrative effects. In fact you may have learned some things...

[Tiglath]

Walt and Tourmaline plus Dzofin and the "Bar Crowd" (see above).

Growler-
”Ooh Bona, I do like your choice of friends. To friendship.” With one arm still draped around Bona, he raises his glass to toast Tourmelane, Dzofin, and Bona.

While doing so, he reaches out to Deathwalker Telepatathically to read surface thoughts life detect:

Read Surface Thoughts: [2d6]=8 raw score

NB My Edit

To his surprise Walt successfully enters Tourmaline's thoughts. Even the act of touching his mind cautiously around hers seems to precipitate an unintended effect. Even the passive Psi energy she possesses is... powerful indeed and apparently wielded unconsciously. She's recalling fighting a group of Avastan Portway infantry on the slopes of the "Drachenfels berm" at Avastan downport. She recalls that the SEMC officer called Jakob who she can see across the room was there... the man WaltGrowler is there stood on the berm's slope. The API infantry are sluggish and slow. Her mind reaches out and now they can barely bring their rifles to bear. She triggers their grenadier's RPG and his weapon discharges into his comrades while another screams tearing at his webbing, frantically trying to ditch his gear before... too late - the grenade explodes. She charges in among the squad screaming her war cry and calling on the All Father. Her axe savages an arm, then its spike impales a torso while a ferocious back handed slash leaves an API trooper coughing blood through his respirator. Two run but the Vargrwolves pursue and will soon have them. Three remain. One holds back clearing his weapon but is shot down so just now two with bayonets. She attacks turning a bayonet thrust to embed her axe halfway through her assailant's torso. Her axe sticks there and she screams at the last man to come on and die. He makes to ready his lunge but her mind reaches out across the gap between them and shatters his rib cage. As the blood eagle flies everything turns red.

She extends a hand to her axe. It twitches towards her but remains in the body it last claimed. She laughs and staggers over and rips her blade free from the corpse's embrace. Jakob and her lover wait downhill. She is so tired now. Stay awake to hear Lannigan speak. She looks across the deadmen she just made on the slope to the man WaltGrowler "Af hverju ertu hér? Spyrðu hvort þú viljir vita hvað mér finnst!"

Walt finds his gaze locked with Tourmaline.

In the bar Walt blurts out "Will you tell me what you are thinking?" He doesn't feel that he's making his own decisions anymore. Tourmaline's lips draw back from her teeth in a feral smile.

On the battlefield of Avastan downport the soldier of dark mien stood with "Jakob" and Col Skeet calmly announces with absolute saturnine certainty “I see Lady Nemain, herself – The Morrigan”.

In the next instant the telepathic link ends. Walt is immediately his own man again but his psionic talents are unaccessible - perhaps not gone but surely "not there".

Tourmaline's mind changes in the exact same instant. Apparently forgetting any issue she had with Walt's apparently accidental mental intrusion she beams a joyous smile at the dark haired dark eyed merc who has just joined the company. "Lannigan!" in a very "un-Deathwalker" display of pure happiness she greets the new arrival with a long kiss. The bright blond and (Walt realizes) the same saturnine soldier from Avastan almost seem perfect opposites yet are clearly lovers.

Anyone else with a Psi rating within a few meters of Walt and Tourmaline find that their Psionics talents are "offline".

(OOC: Well, wasn't that odd?


Swordy Trans service: "Why are you here? Ask if you want to know my thoughts!"

[Tiglath]

Please note my edit above (as per your correction).

As stated above we're all good.

Diplomacy is maintained and discoveries are made!

I'd trawled back to dig out this passage of play and didn't want to discard the narrative / pass up the opportunity to discover more IC.

Ref: viewtopic.php?p=617250#p617250

[Tiglath]

You’re right. I’m assuming the “Witch”reference was to psi, and I wanted to verify the assumption by looking for a shield. Forgot about Read Surface Thoughts being known by the recipients (remember, Walt was previously read by Aster and didn’t know it). But re-reading the book text again, that isn’t possible:

Only
active and current thoughts are read by this ability, with the subject (if themselves not a telepath) unaware of the activity. Individuals with telepathic ability cannot be read due to the presence of their natural shields, unless they willingly lower their shielding.

So, you are absolutely right this would be detected and, therefore, destroy the genuine attempt of friendship. I therefore strike that.

Sorry for forgetting all the ramifications, and thanks for the pointer, Terry.

You might have missed it, but life detection with sufficient effect will give you that information in a house rule we’ve decided to use.

I think you can only have a shield if you have Telepathy (see pg 231 Core rules). Tourmaline hasn't (technically) got a shield so you might have had to use a "non invasive Read Surface Thoughts"(???) to achieve your objective in any event...

You might have missed it, but life detection with sufficient effect will give you that information in a house rule we’ve decided to use. Roscoe did it earlier, and even though his effort was detected, it wasn’t taken as intrusive.

Just to free up your appreciation of what happened he wasn't detected. He was overtaken by other people's actions... If ever there was a place full of spies...

[terrymixon]

You might have missed it, but life detection with sufficient effect will give you that information in a house rule we’ve decided to use.

I think you can only have a shield if you have Telepathy. Tourmaline hasn't (technically) got a shield so you might have had to use a non invasive Read Surface Thoughts to achieve your objective in any event...

You are correct, so Roscoe would have missed her if it was the shield he was detecting. It didn't sound like it, though. It sounded like a power meter of psionic talent.

As for mental shields, that is true for the normally psionically gifted. The Ancients characters however developed mental shields before they manifested powers at all. It seems to be part of their new condition.

You might have missed it, but life detection with sufficient effect will give you that information in a house rule we’ve decided to use. Roscoe did it earlier, and even though his effort was detected, it wasn’t taken as intrusive.

Just to free up your appreciation of what happened he wasn't detected. He was overtaken by other people's actions... If ever there was a place full of spies...

Sam Axe: You know spies. Bunch of bitchy little girls.

Yet he thinks he was detected and will now have that mistaken assumption until he eventually figures out that it isn't true.

[Thumper]

Swordy Trans service: "Why are you here? Ask if you want to know my thoughts!"

Growler-
”You let me in. Surprising. I

Just searching for someone.

When I heard you were called a witch, I assumed you were psi. Problem with me is a lifetime spent in the Imperium. I need a teacher. I figured you were shielded, Wanted to verify. Searching is all I’m doing…for a kickass teacher. I found kickass…looking for the rest of that title?

You surprised the hell out of me.”

is this in Tourmaline’s vision or out in the open?

[gurusql]

Kit

"Nsobi, I still owe you that dinner, but tonight cannot be that night, but soon, I hope very soon." He does not let the two ladies pay for their drinks.

"Kristín Vitt, it is nice to see you again. I never did have to chance to thank you for that ride on Avastan. Can I get you a drink?"

Kit listens to Growler, wondering if everyone in this room is a Psi?

[Tiglath]

Kit / Everyone in the scrum at the bar

"Nsobi, I still owe you that dinner, but tonight cannot be that night, but soon, I hope very soon." He does not let the two ladies pay for their drinks.

Nsobi smiles and then blushes again and says shyly "Ankit Ghoshal, would it have been very "forward" of me to have arranged a table for two here? I asked for the indulgence of the Ambassadorial staff and received a personal reply from the Ambassador himself. He said he would be delighted if the Consulate's Diplomatic Mission here could devote any resource to honouring the victor of Spion Kop. He also asked your permission to use the action as a military teaching aid. He would appreciate it if you could deliver a personal account of the action. But... I would understand... if you were busy... or had important duties this evening...".

"Kristín Vitt, it is nice to see you again. I never did have to chance to thank you for that ride on Avastan. Can I get you a drink?"

Vitt laughs "Já alltaf!"* she smiles as she says "Four steins of winter ale, takk"*. She continues (switching accents flawlessly to Marches accented Imperial) "I had to give up my job with Avastan's Department of Tranquillity and Decency". She grins "I really felt I had no business policing public morality and besides Monoc has a health plan and dental!" She turns to shout "Incoming!" at her comrades who roar approval. Through the press at the bar Kit receives handshakes (actually "warrior's grips") and where that's impractical hefty shoulder slaps from Vitt's now "sleekly groomed" team. He recalls they were much more of a "hair bear bunch" on Avastan - now they're all "high sides" and Imperial grooming... Maybe "When in Rome..." applies...

Kit listens to Growler, wondering if everyone in this room is a Psi?

Shush - they can even hear you wondering about that!!!

(OOC: Swordy Trans Service: Yes always! / Thanks).

[joertexas]

Roscoe-Jaelah / T'lia-Prerna

"Two billion in direct transfer it is." Roscoe will get her information and make the transfer. "We can work out the fine details as we proceed. And what about a demonstration of the new technology so that we can discuss the fee for its protection and minimizing as many negative impacts as we can? I understand tonight is overtaken by other business, but scheduling a time would allow me to work around meeting Jaelah's family."

"Speaking of, we are supposed to meet them in an hour. I sort of hate to miss the festivities here, but I think my companions can handle it before it reaches riot proportions."

Prerna nods. "We brought back a huge haul of fresh meat and vegetables from our colonel's family on Tarsus. They also gave us a family recipe for grilled flank steak strips, along with something called charcoal and a portable grill to use. I want to try it, but the problem is where to set it up so we don't trigger the fire suppression system."

[terrymixon]

Roscoe-Jaelah / T'lia-Prerna

"Two billion in direct transfer it is." Roscoe will get her information and make the transfer. "We can work out the fine details as we proceed. And what about a demonstration of the new technology so that we can discuss the fee for its protection and minimizing as many negative impacts as we can? I understand tonight is overtaken by other business, but scheduling a time would allow me to work around meeting Jaelah's family."

"Speaking of, we are supposed to meet them in an hour. I sort of hate to miss the festivities here, but I think my companions can handle it before it reaches riot proportions."

Prerna nods. "We brought back a huge haul of fresh meat and vegetables from our colonel's family on Tarsus. They also gave us a family recipe for grilled flank steak strips, along with something called charcoal and a portable grill to use. I want to try it, but the problem is where to set it up so we don't trigger the fire suppression system."

"We should go," Roscoe agreed, "but can we meet at our ship tomorrow? The time is up to you, but I need to show you the technology we will be introdicing here--which might be of use to the mercenary companies as well--and need to know when to be there."

[Tiglath]

Growler

is this in Tourmaline’s vision or out in the open?[/dialog]

The below definitively occurs in real time in the restaurant bar immediately after the "vision" (actually real visceral memory recollection ) because it (helpfully re possible psionic alternative explanations/realities) surely must do because now all your psionic powers are not accessible.

”You let me in. Surprising. I

Just searching for someone.

When I heard you were called a witch, I assumed you were psi. Problem with me is a lifetime spent in the Imperium. I need a teacher. I figured you were shielded, Wanted to verify. Searching is all I’m doing…for a kickass teacher. I found kickass…looking for the rest of that title?

You surprised the hell out of me.”

Tourmaline gives a lazy mellow smile "I didn't let you in... you just became trapped. I am told I am a powerful psionic but I was never taught or any use at it until I found my focus. It was much after that the Zhodani instructed me... because they owed us a favour. So, I am a Consular Guard trained and rated "Scrambler" - a combat Telekinetic but that was a little while ago when... Skeet and I were... pushing limits". Her lips twitch a smile as she talks whilst languidly draping herself over her beau - the laconic and rangey, dark haired, dark eyed Lannigan. (Apparently a "Ranger" affiliated to SEMC). He just clearly gives her "peace". She continues "The Zhodani couldn't measure my... other ability and shied away from it. Zhodani nobles are much more fearful than Jarls should be... after all domination* is a game adults can play or not... it's not frightening".

(OOC: * Oh, but Walt just got a taste of how it might be by just accidentally going near her mind... Aannnd she (seemingly unconscious of the full potential) may have not pronounced the capital "D" ["Wild" Psi Talent: Special much?] Whoa, now that might utterly mess with the Zhodani psyche! )