Time Stretched Thin
19th of November 2006 A.D.
Between you and Iris' data banks it is resonably easy to get Thomas up to date on the Fivefold Courts with a focus on the City of Endings, home of the Amethyst Hand and likely the first agents you will be bringing over to earth. "Cyborrgs...
spider cyborgs... not where I thought this was going," he mutters under his breath a time or two, but he seems for the most part unshaped by the the fact that he is talking to the queen of an alien world which is really nice to be honest, all the more so as he is not faking it. For Thomas Raith you realize nothing you could do or be could ever match the act of taming his Hunger. Not to say that he does not have questions, he does from local cultures, norms and laws, aptitude with language. Among other things these questions lead to learning about the traffic laws in the Five Cities with even the most stringent, the City of Law being considerably laxer than the US traffic code. After all fatal accidents
aren't.
Certain forms of property crime are more harshly punished than murder, but not nearly as much so as abuse in all its forms. A skilled medic can regrow your hand or replace it, but trauma lingers though the turns of the Wheel. Abuse of children in one's care while not unknown is viewed as one of the most horrifying crimes imaginable under both secular law and the doctrine of the Covenant which in Iris' words 'recognized the neuro-plasticity of the young.' Two verses from the Canticle of Sorrows, a thousand year old book of religious and legal commentary, linger in the mind:
Let one who would twist minds not yet grown into themselves be twisted in flesh
Let one who would rot still tender hearts be shown to all the world rotten in flesh
While systematic breaking of bones and allowing them to heal wrong and the use of slow narcotizing poisons to induce a state akin to leprosy are not a part of modern legal practice in the Five Cities for the same reason people are not stoned to death or hanged anymore the moral outrage against those who perpetrate mental and spiritual harm children is bone deep. Not that you can blame your subjects for it it, but it is a good thing Thomas brought up cultural norms
now and not when an agent's discipline cracks at the sight of some asshole slapping their kids around in a Walmart and tasers them into a coma.
When it comes to IDs Thomas is confident he can get a dozen or so that will stand up to decent scrutiny on relatively short notice, but after that you will need your own forging operation, including on the digital side.
"Digital," Iris does not scoff, but you can hear the contempt in the way she stretches out the assailable.
"As soon call the run-off of a broken pipe a river as this sloshing mess of dead data a no-sphere. It shall not be a concern soon."
With that boastful, but you suspect not inaccurate statement you bit farewell from new friends and old and head out to meet a very much 'unfriend'. Broken Seeker had your number and he must have had another phone from somewhere but he is unfortunately not willing to do serious planning over the phone so a meeting it will have to do, but you are not about to let him choose where.
"The old US Steel lot, by the river."
Chosen with aforethought and no small amount of malice the place where you had fought and killed the Will of Kakuri. But you had not killed him alone, you well recall.
But dad would probably find it very hard to deal peacefully with a Naagloshii, temporary though the alliance might be and Harry has enough on his plate right now, you reason
Turns out you did not know the half of it, just as you are getting in the car to head over there you get a call, it says 'Burny' on the screen, but it's not Mouse on the line.
"The Merlin of the White Council is in town," he sounds about as enthusiastic about the fact as a man heralding a convention of dentists, clowns or dentist clowns. "He is looking for whoever caused every seer in the Midwest get bad dreams yesterday. I tried to cover for you, but you are not hard to spot with magical senses so I had to confirm that it was you in the context of being the one who helped Ebeneezer this summer."
"What else did you tell him about me?" you ask confused that he would jump right to that.
"Nothing, no reason for the Senior Council to come knocking on your door," he proclaims proudly.
He was protecting me. The realization sinks in slowly.
Marry Mother of God he was protecting me by not reporting anything about me since this summer to the organization he is part of "
The desire to protect another person past the bounds of sense, 'wrap one in bubblewrap' I think the term is'might be a sign of romantic interest Majesty," Usum offers very much ill timed encouragement.
"I tried to reassure him that it was all good here in Chicago, but he didn't buy it, he wants to talk to you..."
"
Now?" You try not to sound testy, you really do.
"He's planning to just go look for you... Like I said you aren't hard to trace for a Senior Council member and a team of Wardens."
"Harry just give him the phone," you sigh.
"The phone with the
you-know-what in it?" he asks still with excessive emphasis.
What do you do?
[] Put off the meeting with Broken Seeker, go see what the Merlin wants
-[] Write in stunt (Optional)
[] Just talk on the phone, demon in it or no, it is not going to make a worse first impression than you will
-[] Write in stunt (Optional)
[] Write in
OOC: Harry did his best to distract Langtry and he rolled well enough that said Senior Council member is still at Harry's place and not already off looking for you though the city.