1.2.2 - Getting Madavian and the Next Step
- Location
- Straya
Ulos looked around.
"Shit."
Abraham nodded miserably.
"Look, Abraham. Don't do anything, don't say anything, just stay there, ok? I'll be right back."
Ulos took off at a pace, running out of his dorm, climbing the stairs to the Parrot's Perch at a rate he'd never ever considered before.
(Running Roll - 76 + 10 (Phys) = 86 vs DC 80, Failure DC 20. Time used reduced!)
He opened the door, seeing Madavian inside, busily combing out his curls with a brush.
"Oh, hi Ulos, what-"
"Sorry, no time. Come with me. We need to help Abraham!"
(Roll not required - Madavian is a Friend, Madavian has Trait: Reckless.)
"Alright, let's go."
Ulos ran back down with Madavian, too out-of-breath to explain.
(Running Roll - 97 + 10 (Phys) = 107 vs DC 80, Failure DC 20. Critical success! Time used heavily reduced!)
The two pelted back, covering ground quickly, Madavian bursting into a huge smile on the way. What he thought was happening, Ulos wasn't sure, but he was glad he was alongside him. Ulos rarely ran, and the Curse left him short of breath more often than not, but it lay lightly on his shoulders today, and he was able to move without issue.
Back into the bathroom, where the blue-haired boy still lay on the floor, Abraham slouching against a wall, jumping as they came in.
Madavian looked down.
"Is that Senator Aleivas's son? Thomas?"
He looked shocked.
"What happening here. Ulos, quickly. Explain."
"Abraham, stop me if I'm wrong, but I think I understand. Basically, the Narubite students have been trying to get Abraham out of 'their' block, this guy is Abraham's roommate. He didn't turn up for the last few study groups, and the last time he did turn up he was really wet. Far as I can tell, they've been screwing with him to make him drop out. I heard.. Thomas corner him in the bathroom, and say some pretty horrible shit about Abraham and his family. Abraham hit him, and here we are."
Madavian looked down.
"Saint's tits on a pig, Ulos. When you get into trouble, you don't do things by halves, do you?"
He closed his eyes for a second, calculating.
"Ok. Way I see it, we have a couple of options. Firstly, I negotiate with Thomas for you. Quid quo pro, Abraham leaves the block and maybe I owe him a favour. You're a friend, but if I owe someone a favour because of you, you owe me a favour, and so would Abraham. Not sure it'd work, though. We could lie, which is a pretty good idea, unless Thomas finds out I was involved. If he did... well, you'd both owe me pretty big. Not saying we're not friends, but if Father writes and asks me why I spent so much political capital, I'd better have something to show for it. If he doesn't, though, it lets me wash my hands of the affair in public."
"Sunette's up at Abraham's room as well, if that helps."
"Yeah, it'd make a lie easier to spin. She's Kerek, I'm Junotrin. If we both say the same thing, well, there's a reason Father never gets invited to those fancy Kerek parties, and it has nothing to do with his manners. Unlikely we'd both say the same thing unless it was true, y'know? Lastly, we can threaten him with a lie. I don't owe him a favour, but he probably gets pretty pissed at us. Means we keep it out of the teacher's sight for now."
Due to your Extra Time, you are able to get Sunette without penalty.
Ulos dashed off.
"Sunette!"
She was standing at Abraham's door, looking in.
"Ulos... look at this."
They looked in. There were two beds in the room, not bunks like his and Madavian's. One cupboard had a broken lock, and the books in there (library books, no less!) were heavily defaced. The covers torn off, and random pages torn out. One of the beds had no blankets or sheets, and the mattress was soaking wet.
"I can't believe they did this to him."
Ulos smiled mirthlessly.
"I can. He's a flit, Sunette. You want to come help Abraham, or are you out?"
(Roll: Sunette Assistance. 4 + 30 (Friend) - 10 (Cautious) = 24 vs DC 50. Roll beneath 5 is an automatic critical failure! Sunette is no longer accessible during this Crisis)
"I... Ulos, I can't. What if they go for me next? Madavian doesn't have to worry about it, but it's not like Family Kerek is going to fight for me if it really comes to that. They'll just cut their losses, unenrol me, and send me home. I'm sorry."
Ulos looked at her, contempt clear on his face.
"Do what you have to, Sunette. I don't know why I thought you'd do anything else."
He turned and walked away, ignoring the apologies behind him.
"Hey, Madavian. Sunette's not helping. We're going to have to do this on our own. Abraham's room is trashed, though. They took his sheets, ruined his library books, dumped water on his bed..."
Madavian looked at him, suddenly calculating.
"We can bargain with that."
He reached down, rifling through Thomas's pockets.
"Got his keys. Given we all share the same two basic texts, we can steal his books, and use them as leverage. What do you think, Ulos?"
[ ] Commence Negotiations - You're going to need to bargain if you're going to get out of this one without a new enemy. Let Madavian wake Thomas up and work his magic. Madavian will owe Thomas a Favour. You and Abraham will both owe Madavian Favours. Abraham will be found another room eventually, but may need to sleep on your floor for awhile. Due to your discovery of the damage to Abraham's room, you can force Thomas to pay for replacement books.
+ Defuses the situation as best as you can, less future issues.
+ No Rival gained.
+ No book issues.
- Abraham will have to crash on your floor for awhile, making your study suffer.
- Madavian owing Thomas a Favour could end badly.
- Thomas gets away pretty much unscathed for what he's done.
[ ] Spin a Lie - Figure out what "really" happened here. Make a pretty good coherent lie you can all stick to, and Abraham probably gets away with moderate punishment due to Madavian using his status to shield him. No Favours owed. Due to involving the teachers, Abraham will get a new room quickly. Thomas becomes a Rival (Hatred). Due to your discovery of the books, you can use this to get the teachers to force Thomas to replace the books.
+ Nuclear option, no going back after this.
+ If it works, the teachers are on your side for any future issues with Thomas.
+ No Favours owed.
+ No need to pack three people into your tiny room.
- You now have a rich, politically connected Rival who has a lot of Narubite friends.
- You have all the political power of a flit from the Empire to oppose him with.
- Madavian now needs to not oppose Thomas in public to prevent his involvement coming out. You're probably gonna suffer.
- Seriously, do you want to piss off the extremely nationalistic equivalent of Draco Malfoy?
[ ] Threaten Thomas - Bargain? With this piece of crap? No, Ulos does not negotiate with terrorists. Firstly, make up a story. You have the room, the books, and Thomas's words as proof. If he doesn't comply, you take his stuff, go to the teachers. Take his stuff, and give him Abraham's shitty stuff in return. Textbook Chits are pretty interchangeable - Abraham can go return those books and borrow a new set of his textbooks. May as well loot the rest of his cupboard while you're at it, give him a taste of his own medicine. You and Abraham both owe Madavian Favours. No teacher involvement or agreement between the parties. Abraham will not get a new room. Thomas becomes a Rival (Hatred). Due to your discovery of the Books, you can loot Thomas's cupboard. Gain some quantity of Items, some quantity of Coins commensurate with the wealth of a Senator's Scion.
+ Maximum risk, maximum reward.
+ Favour owed, but not by Madavian.
+ Major item and wealth gain.
+ Weakens Thomas in terms of items and study ability when it comes to later confrontation.
+ Satisfying. Fuck that guy.
- You now have a rich, politically connected Rival who has a lot of Narubite friends, though Madavian is publically backing you.
- Abraham will now need to crash on your floor indefinitely, making your study suffer. (though you might have the money to remedy that...)
- Will require ongoing investment to ensure Abraham doesn't bring this up again and screw you.
- If the teachers find out you could be in all sorts of trouble.
Note - once a primary course of action has been decided, voting will be opened for a number of sub-options to modify it fully (you might be able to drop the Book issue, for instance in return for a concession elsewhere if negotiating).
There is also a second vote for Sunette's Relationship below.
"Shit."
Abraham nodded miserably.
"Look, Abraham. Don't do anything, don't say anything, just stay there, ok? I'll be right back."
Ulos took off at a pace, running out of his dorm, climbing the stairs to the Parrot's Perch at a rate he'd never ever considered before.
(Running Roll - 76 + 10 (Phys) = 86 vs DC 80, Failure DC 20. Time used reduced!)
He opened the door, seeing Madavian inside, busily combing out his curls with a brush.
"Oh, hi Ulos, what-"
"Sorry, no time. Come with me. We need to help Abraham!"
(Roll not required - Madavian is a Friend, Madavian has Trait: Reckless.)
"Alright, let's go."
Ulos ran back down with Madavian, too out-of-breath to explain.
(Running Roll - 97 + 10 (Phys) = 107 vs DC 80, Failure DC 20. Critical success! Time used heavily reduced!)
The two pelted back, covering ground quickly, Madavian bursting into a huge smile on the way. What he thought was happening, Ulos wasn't sure, but he was glad he was alongside him. Ulos rarely ran, and the Curse left him short of breath more often than not, but it lay lightly on his shoulders today, and he was able to move without issue.
Back into the bathroom, where the blue-haired boy still lay on the floor, Abraham slouching against a wall, jumping as they came in.
Madavian looked down.
"Is that Senator Aleivas's son? Thomas?"
He looked shocked.
"What happening here. Ulos, quickly. Explain."
"Abraham, stop me if I'm wrong, but I think I understand. Basically, the Narubite students have been trying to get Abraham out of 'their' block, this guy is Abraham's roommate. He didn't turn up for the last few study groups, and the last time he did turn up he was really wet. Far as I can tell, they've been screwing with him to make him drop out. I heard.. Thomas corner him in the bathroom, and say some pretty horrible shit about Abraham and his family. Abraham hit him, and here we are."
Madavian looked down.
"Saint's tits on a pig, Ulos. When you get into trouble, you don't do things by halves, do you?"
He closed his eyes for a second, calculating.
"Ok. Way I see it, we have a couple of options. Firstly, I negotiate with Thomas for you. Quid quo pro, Abraham leaves the block and maybe I owe him a favour. You're a friend, but if I owe someone a favour because of you, you owe me a favour, and so would Abraham. Not sure it'd work, though. We could lie, which is a pretty good idea, unless Thomas finds out I was involved. If he did... well, you'd both owe me pretty big. Not saying we're not friends, but if Father writes and asks me why I spent so much political capital, I'd better have something to show for it. If he doesn't, though, it lets me wash my hands of the affair in public."
"Sunette's up at Abraham's room as well, if that helps."
"Yeah, it'd make a lie easier to spin. She's Kerek, I'm Junotrin. If we both say the same thing, well, there's a reason Father never gets invited to those fancy Kerek parties, and it has nothing to do with his manners. Unlikely we'd both say the same thing unless it was true, y'know? Lastly, we can threaten him with a lie. I don't owe him a favour, but he probably gets pretty pissed at us. Means we keep it out of the teacher's sight for now."
Due to your Extra Time, you are able to get Sunette without penalty.
Ulos dashed off.
"Sunette!"
She was standing at Abraham's door, looking in.
"Ulos... look at this."
They looked in. There were two beds in the room, not bunks like his and Madavian's. One cupboard had a broken lock, and the books in there (library books, no less!) were heavily defaced. The covers torn off, and random pages torn out. One of the beds had no blankets or sheets, and the mattress was soaking wet.
"I can't believe they did this to him."
Ulos smiled mirthlessly.
"I can. He's a flit, Sunette. You want to come help Abraham, or are you out?"
(Roll: Sunette Assistance. 4 + 30 (Friend) - 10 (Cautious) = 24 vs DC 50. Roll beneath 5 is an automatic critical failure! Sunette is no longer accessible during this Crisis)
"I... Ulos, I can't. What if they go for me next? Madavian doesn't have to worry about it, but it's not like Family Kerek is going to fight for me if it really comes to that. They'll just cut their losses, unenrol me, and send me home. I'm sorry."
Ulos looked at her, contempt clear on his face.
"Do what you have to, Sunette. I don't know why I thought you'd do anything else."
He turned and walked away, ignoring the apologies behind him.
"Hey, Madavian. Sunette's not helping. We're going to have to do this on our own. Abraham's room is trashed, though. They took his sheets, ruined his library books, dumped water on his bed..."
Madavian looked at him, suddenly calculating.
"We can bargain with that."
He reached down, rifling through Thomas's pockets.
"Got his keys. Given we all share the same two basic texts, we can steal his books, and use them as leverage. What do you think, Ulos?"
[ ] Commence Negotiations - You're going to need to bargain if you're going to get out of this one without a new enemy. Let Madavian wake Thomas up and work his magic. Madavian will owe Thomas a Favour. You and Abraham will both owe Madavian Favours. Abraham will be found another room eventually, but may need to sleep on your floor for awhile. Due to your discovery of the damage to Abraham's room, you can force Thomas to pay for replacement books.
+ Defuses the situation as best as you can, less future issues.
+ No Rival gained.
+ No book issues.
- Abraham will have to crash on your floor for awhile, making your study suffer.
- Madavian owing Thomas a Favour could end badly.
- Thomas gets away pretty much unscathed for what he's done.
[ ] Spin a Lie - Figure out what "really" happened here. Make a pretty good coherent lie you can all stick to, and Abraham probably gets away with moderate punishment due to Madavian using his status to shield him. No Favours owed. Due to involving the teachers, Abraham will get a new room quickly. Thomas becomes a Rival (Hatred). Due to your discovery of the books, you can use this to get the teachers to force Thomas to replace the books.
+ Nuclear option, no going back after this.
+ If it works, the teachers are on your side for any future issues with Thomas.
+ No Favours owed.
+ No need to pack three people into your tiny room.
- You now have a rich, politically connected Rival who has a lot of Narubite friends.
- You have all the political power of a flit from the Empire to oppose him with.
- Madavian now needs to not oppose Thomas in public to prevent his involvement coming out. You're probably gonna suffer.
- Seriously, do you want to piss off the extremely nationalistic equivalent of Draco Malfoy?
[ ] Threaten Thomas - Bargain? With this piece of crap? No, Ulos does not negotiate with terrorists. Firstly, make up a story. You have the room, the books, and Thomas's words as proof. If he doesn't comply, you take his stuff, go to the teachers. Take his stuff, and give him Abraham's shitty stuff in return. Textbook Chits are pretty interchangeable - Abraham can go return those books and borrow a new set of his textbooks. May as well loot the rest of his cupboard while you're at it, give him a taste of his own medicine. You and Abraham both owe Madavian Favours. No teacher involvement or agreement between the parties. Abraham will not get a new room. Thomas becomes a Rival (Hatred). Due to your discovery of the Books, you can loot Thomas's cupboard. Gain some quantity of Items, some quantity of Coins commensurate with the wealth of a Senator's Scion.
+ Maximum risk, maximum reward.
+ Favour owed, but not by Madavian.
+ Major item and wealth gain.
+ Weakens Thomas in terms of items and study ability when it comes to later confrontation.
+ Satisfying. Fuck that guy.
- You now have a rich, politically connected Rival who has a lot of Narubite friends, though Madavian is publically backing you.
- Abraham will now need to crash on your floor indefinitely, making your study suffer. (though you might have the money to remedy that...)
- Will require ongoing investment to ensure Abraham doesn't bring this up again and screw you.
- If the teachers find out you could be in all sorts of trouble.
Note - once a primary course of action has been decided, voting will be opened for a number of sub-options to modify it fully (you might be able to drop the Book issue, for instance in return for a concession elsewhere if negotiating).
There is also a second vote for Sunette's Relationship below.
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