Well, this promises to be either enlightening or hilarious. Maybe both.
Fabri: “Buh….?”
Tluthal: “Uh. Crap.”
Fabri: “Mnuh.”
Tluthal: “Shitshitshit look at me you’re gonna be fine just- keep looking at me okay?”
Fabri: “Vluh?”
Tluthal: Chin is grabbed. “Look. At. Me. You… fell from really high up and I think you cracked your head and you are bleeding and just-” Deeeep breath through the nose. “You’re gonna be fine but…”
Fabri: The vision is going in and out of focus.
Tluthal: Shiiiit. She mumbles under her breath. She’s already called for an ambulance but… there are times she wishes they didn’t live in the ass end of nowhere. She didn’t even know this person she’d just seen them fall from the cliff…
Fabri: He slowly reaches up, touches, feels wet. No pain, though.
Tluthal: “Yeah. You smacked your head a good ‘un. Try not to move too much, the last thing you need is to choke on your own spew.” She’d be pretty if she wasn’t freaking out, with a shock of dark purple hair covering her left eye and the rest pulled back to curl on the same side, freaky-pale skin, and eyes hidden by the moonlight reflecting on her glasses. “Uh… fuck… What’s today? D’you remember?” Sirens… but distant. They’ll have to take the winding path and they’re kinda far back from the road, but there’s a flashlight pointing towards it…
Fabri: The air takes a cold snap. “December third.”
Fabri: … That is almost exactly as wrong as you can get without it not actually being a day.
Tluthal: “…” She holds up three fingers. “How many fingers?”
Tluthal: They’re getting closer…
Fabri: He holds up three in return, after squinting for a time.
Tluthal: “Okay. What’s your name kiddo?” Pffft kiddo his ass she’s barely his age.
Fabri: “Adept.”
Tluthal: Blink. Eyebrow raise. Not just a sleeper? Hmm. “Hi Adept, I’m Lemure.” She winces as the sirens finally get there. “And I think I’d better make sure your brains don’t get any more rattled than they already are.”
Fabri: He winces at the loud noise.
Tluthal: Luckily that’s when the paramedics find them! Cue twenty minutes of utter chaos, an uncomfortable ride, and doctors with needles. It’s about an hour later when they let her in to see him.
Fabri: Coincidental Life and Coincidental Time is your friend! “Say I was lucky.”
Tluthal: “Lucky my right ear.” She perches on the edge of the visitor’s chair, folds her legs, rests her elbows on her knees, folds her hands, and rests her chin on them.
Fabri: A cast around, who the hell else might be listening!? “Good fall, that’s all.”
Fabri: “Bleeding from the head always looks worse than it is.”
Tluthal: “Yeah. Y’scared the crap outta me, but you were conscious so I figured you’d be alright.”
Tluthal: Doesn’t seem like anyone is for the moment!
Fabri: “So… Lemures, was your name?” He missed having that little bit of handy gadgetry, but he’d been trying to stay the fuck off the radar.
Tluthal: “Lemure. Singular, and no, not like the monkey.” She smiles. “An’ you said you’re Adept?”
Fabri: “Guess I did. Still sort of hazy.”
Tluthal: “Yeah. Rock hard noggin’ on ya.” Headtilt.
Fabri: “Should have known I’d run into someone. It’s…” Hm. What was that name he usually used again? It had been such a long time since he’d been with anyone else in the community…
Tluthal: “Your timin’s impeccable even. I just moved back here a week ago.” She’s… new.
Fabri: He groans. A newbie!?
Tluthal: And an unusually… not chipper, but certainly not your standard Moros. She arches an eyebrow at the groan.
Fabri: “Thank you for visiting, maybe i could come see you some time over tea? And it’s David.”
Tluthal: “Yeah, sure. Sounds fun. We’re kinda night owls though so afternoon’s’re better.” She digs around in her jacket pockets and produces a metal-cased notepad. An address is scribbled down, then a phone number as an afterthought. “Nice t’meetcha David.”
Fabri: He takes the script, and knows that he’ll be released within seventy two hours once they’re sure the stitches will hold and the scar will heal and that there’s no apparent brain damage (which there isn’t, natch. That was a REALLY lucky fall. Not out of the bounds of the ordinary, but still very lucky. Obviously.)
Fabri: “And you as well, Lemure.”
Tluthal: She waves. “Get t’feelin’ better!” And heads out.
Tluthal: The house is in the middle of assfuck nowhere, miles out of town on a gravel countyline road, then up a long driveway [also gravel]. It’s a two story lightly victorian-looking affair, halfway through a repaint [from an ugly brown to a cheerful light green]. A car, a jeep, and an SUV are parked in front, and the garage stands open. There’s a large knocker on the door.
Fabri: “….So I okayed it, and we killed off the Eclipse in the next battle, which caused the player of the Lunar to freak out at me over killing off his character’s mate, because I ruined the character forever.” ]
Fabri: The old Volvo chugs up the drive- well, not really, aside from a carbourator problem it’s run like a champ for nearly a decade. He just keeps it well maintained and it hasn’t let him down yet, for well over… What, three hundred thousand miles so far, last he checked?
Fabri: He made sure to call ahead. Good old ‘66 volvo. It even had air conditioning.
Fabri: David got out and opened the trunk. Time to give it another once-over before heading in.
Tluthal: They’re ready for him, and a girl who looks nothing at all like Lemure pokes her head out, waves, and heads back inside, leaving the door open. Le shows up a moment later. “Yo!” … Black clothes, check, but in tanktop and shorts. It’s the middle of summer after all. “C’mon in.”
Fabri: “Hi!” David looked up from checking the oil and tire pressure- and after all, a stitch in Time… “So, who was that answering the door?”
Tluthal: “That was Anna.” She grabs a pair of sunglasses - the kind they give out for cataract surgery - and comes out. “We’ve known each other since highschool.”
Fabri: “She know?” Ah, that’s good. There’s a lot of spare car parts in that trunk oof his.
Fabri: Of course he called up a friend and they got the car to him at the hospital. Technically he wasn’t cleared to drive it until a follow up visit.
Tluthal: “Yeah. We used to scare the crap outta ourselves an’ a whole group.” Shrug. “She bought the house an’ invited me to move back up here with ‘er and I did.”
Fabri: He closed up the hood, and closed up the trunk. “Well, that’s one load off, anyway.”
Tluthal: “Yeah.” She nods and heads inside. It’s much cooler in there, though a window unit chugs away in the kitchen.
Fabri: “Well, means I can at least talk freely. I’m David. Ever since a bad run-in with a Paradox blow… I don’t remember when, actually… I’ve specialized in makin’ shit a coincidence.”
Tluthal: “Fair enough.” She takes a seat at the table and motions for him to sit too. Again with the crossed legs! “Ouch.” She does the hand foldy thing again, and her eyes lock on his. “Sounds… interesting?”
Fabri: “Survival skill, more like. I know it seems all flashbangs and rainbows right now…”
Tluthal: “Like about everybody else, yeah.”
Fabri: “People don’t like being reminded the world is far stranger and more terrifying than they thought. It’s what I mean by Paradox- something that shouldn’t happen, did happen.”
Tluthal: She nods. “I know that much! Got to know a few people down in Georgia before I moved back up here.”
Fabri: “Said you moved up here last week, thought that was a move to separate yourself from sleepers.”
Tluthal: “Partly that, yeah. That and it just kinda coincided. Was supposed to have a contact or three up here but they’ve gone and disappeared.”
Fabri: “… That’s not good.”
Tluthal: “No it is not.”
Fabri: “Hm. Any leads?”
Tluthal: “Lots of excitement, then lots and lots of paranoia. I’d suspect they’re just watchin’ me but there’s been some fear mixed in there.”
Fabri: “Excitement as in me?”
Tluthal: “Hmm.” She frowns a little and closes one eye, squinting the other. “Ssssome of it, yeah?”
Fabri: He pulls out a small set of major arcana, and lays down his three main paths- custom cards all. Judgment, an odd emphasis on an hourglass. The Magician- obviously Prime. … The World?
Fabri: Now he looks concerned. He flips over another card. Strength!? “… That’s… Not what I remember…”
Tluthal: She shifts to cup her chin and give her wrists a rest. “It isn’t?”
Fabri: “No, no it isn’t.” He flips over another card. Inverted Death isn’t a surprise.
Tluthal: She raises an eyebrow now.
Fabri: “… So what does Technocracy think of this new bastion? You know yet?”
Tluthal: “… Th’fuck is the Technocracy?”
Fabri: “… You know, those guys who have a vested interest in making sure mortal society goes on as it does, occasionally introducing new bits of power to the masses to give them advancement in technology? Those guys?”
Tluthal: “Never heard of ‘em.” She shook her head. “An’ I’m pretty sure that woulda come up.”
Fabri: “… Hold on. Should have done this ages ago.” His eyes get distant for a long moment. “… The fuck are these throne guys?”
Tluthal: “The exarches? The dudes tryin’a keep sleepers from awakening?”
Fabri: “… Okay, that’s the same sort of role, but completely different MO and org structure, holy crap. What happened to time while I was out?”
Fabri: “Those Qlippoths win or something? Holy fuck!”
Tluthal: “The what?”
Tluthal: “I don’t even know how long you’ve been out?”
Fabri: “Inverted mages. Bad news. Seek the destruction of the universe. Forget I said anything about them.”
Tluthal: “… Yeah not likely but puttin’ that inna box for now.”
Fabri: “Just like most normal mages seek Ascension?” … Dude, whatever you’re smoking…
Tluthal: “… You sure your head’s okay?”
Fabri: “… Ugh, of coourse I’m a time disturbance. Thank you, that’s so informative. Damn it, something must have come unstuck in time and I’m the result. Either that or I’m so nuts that I think the world has an entirely different history from the one I remember.
Fabri: “… There are still hints of other kinds of creatures hanging around in the shadows, right?”
Tluthal: “… Y’mean like vampires and werewolves? Yeah.”
Fabri: “Oh thank Source.” He chuckled a little.
Tluthal: “Yeaaah… I think yer theory about time disturbances might be right. You thought it was December 3rd when ya bonked yer head, December 3rd of what year?”
Fabri: “Two thousand two.”
Tluthal: “… It’s twenty twelve.”
Fabri: “… Fuuuuck.”
Tluthal: “Yeaaaaah…”
Fabri: “Okay. So it’s been ten years. Somehow, my old 1966 volvo is still around, and yet everything else has…” He blinked again. “Yeah, pretty much the whole history of the universe changed to produce a similar result- awakened Avatars either squabbling over what the proper path of the sleepers is, or wanting to shove them down, all the while seeking more knowledge and power for themselves.
Fabri: “Right. Got it.”
Tluthal: “Sounds about right, yeah.” There’s a sudden ‘fweeet!’ from the kitchen. “… Aaaand that would be the tea. We have iced if you’d rather?”
Fabri: “Hot tea is fine.”
Tluthal: “‘Kay. You might want to come pick it out, we’ve got a dozen kinds.” She heads to the kitchen. It would seem she has a proper tea set.
Fabri: “How about the mint tea? My stomach’s still kind of unsettled.”
Tluthal: “Sure. Package or fresh?”
Tluthal: She indicates a bowl of fresh mint leaves. Huh. Must be a garden out back.
Fabri: “Fresh, by all means.”
Tluthal: He gets a thumbs up at that, and tea is poured. She brings the set back to the table, giving it time to steep.
Fabri: “So… The sphere of Correspondence- distance, separation, things like that- Oh, no, it’s still there! Okay. Good.”
Tluthal: “Yeah?” Blink blink.
Fabri: “Sorry. Used to calling it Correspondence instead of just Space.”
Tluthal: “Ooooh.”
Tluthal: “Yeah Space stuff can be fun.”
Fabri: “Ohhh, man. There’s actually ten full spheres now, no wonder history changed.”
Tluthal: She blinks at him. Not sure if she’s impressed or just baffled.
Tluthal: “You mean the Arcana?”
Fabri: “Yeah… Huh. Yeah. I. I guess that fits.” The tenth sphere… Death.
Tluthal: One of the ones she’s especially proficient at! “Yeah?”
Fabri: “The tenth sphere.” He taps inverted Death. “All the other nine are acccounted for, so this one didn’t replace any of the others. So much time looking for that spphere, to ascend beyond humanity…”
Tluthal: “… What? Death? That’s new?” Blink blink. “So you didn’t have necromancers back in ‘02?”
Fabri: “Well, yeah, but mostly they used Life and Time, or Mind if they wanted to get into a dead guy’s head.” He shuddered at the last time some idiot in his vicinity thought it’d be funny to take over a local vampire. The Camilla came down on him HARD.
Fabri: “And obviously, it’s not YOUR ‘02.”
Tluthal: “Huh. Yeah, I guess not.” She pours the tea, puts far too much sugar in hers, and sips it contemplatively.
Fabri: “Some lamer hasn’t tried to take over a bloodsucker lately, have they? It’d just make my day complete to have to deal with a Camilla pogrom.”
Tluthal: “Not that I’ve heard of, an’ I sure as hell ain’t that stupid.”
Fabri: “Sorry, remembering what hoops you had to jump through for necromancy made me remember that BS.”
Tluthal: “S’fine.” Shrug. “Just statin’ for the record.”
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