Session 102

Chancel_Amyra
Chapter 12

Knockwood: Well... technically, we haven't solved the problem we set for ourselves at the beginning of the last chapter, except in a limited way
BethE: As far as I know, Laz hasn't said anything about trying to come back. I think he values what little sleep he is getting at the moment.  :)
BethE: Pleased to meet you!  :)
Harold: Same here!
BethE: But that gives us the chance to have it bite us in the butt!
Random_Nerd: But on the other hand, in the process of not solving the problem, you haven't stabbed anyone or burnt down a mansion, as characters in some hypothetical Buffy game that totally isn't run by Beth may have theoretically done.
Random_Nerd: *shifty eyes*
BethE: This is Nobilis. It isn't mass destruction if the continent is still in one piece.
Knockwood: well, hell, burning down the spooky mansion is just common sense with a Hellmouth in the area.
Random_Nerd: Yes, it was completely a planned and plotted thing.
BethE: There wasn't a Hellmouth. It was just the home to a creepy cult. And a lot of the PCs were naked at various times. It was a weird episode.
Random_Nerd: We utterly didn't burn it down by accident and then flee without our pants.
Knockwood: oh, sweeps week.
Harold: lol
BethE: It makes it hard to come up with a Season Finale. It's hard to top that episode.

• • • You are now known as Theresa.
      

Knockwood: oh, heck, that's easy... the players finally get noticed by The Authorities. Can they keep the secret and survive with a Trial going on?

• • • Harold is now known as Herbert.
      

Theresa: Plus, you have to be on guard against weirdness from someone who specializes in the weapon: Spatula.

• • • Knockwood is now known as DanteE.
      

Random_Nerd: So, now, let's see. From looking over your character sheet, it seemed that you had a fair amount of Realm. Now, the Nobilis book is silent on whether to give Chancel points for Realm of characters introduced after Chancel creation, but I see no problem in allowing it.
Theresa: The problem is that they don't _want_ it to be a secret. Heck, RN's character thinks the whole world should know!
Random_Nerd: So, did you have any particular thoughts on ways that you might want to enhance or change Amyra?
DanteE: (afk for a minute...)
Herbert: Yep, I was thinking that, once he's comfortable with his Estate, Herb will probably do a little urban renewal, trying to remodel parts of Kaerkoven to look like the sort of utopian architecture that is found in Brasilia for example.
Herbert: I'll also probably try to spread the city a little, if Theresa will allow it ;)
Random_Nerd: Hmm. Will you want to rebuild the part of Kaerkoven that Monty destroyed, and the PCs decided to leave broken as a Harvest?
Theresa: Why is the guy named Herb Urbanization instead of Plants?  ;) I can see give and take about it.
Herbert: I suppose I can also buy Chancel properties with the Chancel points you'll giveme. I'll have to think a little about those.
Herbert: But yeah, rebuilding that part of the city would clearly be a project Herb's interested in!
Random_Nerd: Hmm. Okay.
DanteE: (bak)
Random_Nerd: Now, we probably need to kick the tires of your style of Urbanization, even though you aren't as much of a Domain-junkie as some of the characters.
Random_Nerd: As you explained it in your email, it seemed to be more focused on the expansion of cities in physical space, unlike James' version, which seemed to more involve concentrations of population and highly urbanized locations.
Random_Nerd: Did you have any further thoughts on that?
DanteE: so, more of a Sprawl thing?
Theresa: (I am not a Domain junkie! I can stop any time I want! *offers* Strawberry?)
Theresa: Obviously the high cost of gas is an Attack against him.
Herbert: Yep, the extension of the city's physical form, including buildings and roads of course, but also stuff like water pipes, sewers, etc. And, in parallel (if I'm not overstretching it), the orderly working of the city.
DanteE: (Heh... playing CoH, they added Plant Control to selected Heroes now... I've played with a few folks who have an ambulatory human-sized venus flytrap as a 'pet'. :) )
Random_Nerd: Hmm. The orderly working seems to fit.
Random_Nerd: Now, would I be correct in thinking that to some degree this involves conceptualizing a city as a living creature?
DanteE: NOt really... high gas costs encourage people to stay in their cities as opposed to, say, driving to the countryside
Herbert: Stuff like good circulation on the roads, clean spaces, etc.
Herbert: Yep, that would be a nice way of putting it.
Random_Nerd: Yeah, so orderly working would definitely fit.
Herbert: Indeed, I'll need to have a word with the Noble of Energy. We need more cheaper oil.
Herbert: Or nuclear-powered cars...
Random_Nerd: Nice dinosaurs you got here. Be a shame if they were to get crushed under a bunch of rock for a few million years, wouldn't it?
Herbert: And since I'm aligned on the Code of the Light, the city as a place where humanity can thrive.
DanteE: in fact, some people are actually moving into cities from suburbs to be closer to their jobs and save gas
Theresa: But that means that the City is a more compact creature, not an expanding creature.
Herbert: And jobs are moving to the suburbs to get closer to the employees.
Herbert: And that's bad :p
DanteE: well, what's your take on gentrification?
Random_Nerd: Let's see, as far as Codes go, you're aware that Kudzu has the Cold property, which imposes the code of the Wild in only its negative aspects, correct?
Random_Nerd: (Negative in terms of MP flow, that is.)
Herbert: Which means I lose MPs every time I go against the Wild and I don't regain any even when I serve it right?
Random_Nerd: Correct.
Herbert: I'll live with that, even though I can see how the Light and the Wild may frequently collide.
Random_Nerd: True.
Random_Nerd: It can be an interesting balancing act.
Random_Nerd: But, hey, could be worse. Consequences has the codes of Heaven and Hell.
Herbert: Yep, looking forward to it (until I loose my last MP).
Theresa: (And the tradtional words of a session: "The Wiki has been updated." This is IC session 102, actually.)
Herbert: Poor guy. And such a nice fellow (unless that changed during your visit in Locus Barakiel?).
Theresa: Nah, he seemed the same. Stressed out like the guy from InNomine in charge of the Prince of Technology but nice guy.
Random_Nerd: Not really. Only thing that relevantly changed there was the revelation that he knows about and supports Barakiel's... nontraditional approaches to the next Age.
DanteE: we haven't talked to him since...
DanteE: Vapula?
Herbert: I'll try to post my character sheet on the wiki as soon as possible.
Random_Nerd: One moment, let me find that link...
Random_Nerd: (Link: http://www.stormloader.com/users/moelane/innomine/servitors/Sparky.htm)http://www.stormloader.com/users/moelane/innomine/servitors/Sparky.htm
Random_Nerd: And (Link: http://www.stormloader.com/users/moelane/innomine/seeds/vapseed.htm)http://www.stormloader.com/users/moelane/innomine/seeds/vapseed.htm
Random_Nerd: But the nuance is different with Consequences.
Random_Nerd: He's less to keep Barakiel on track, and more there to form a buffer between him and Noble society
Herbert: Tough job.
DanteE: yeah, if we were better roleplayers we'd spend every session gibbering. :D
Random_Nerd: Really, Barakiel seems to favor Nobles with highly focused roles. Consequences is his planner and public face. Shadows is in charge of mastering High Summonings. The others we haven't seen much of.
Theresa: But focused is a common trademark. While ours seems to be..meander?
Random_Nerd: Kudzu's approach seems to be to pick the right people and then tell them to go out and get things done, I don't care how, and fetch me a giant while you're out.
Herbert: He does like giants. Is the rabbit safely back on his moon?
Random_Nerd: At present.
DanteE: how big is Monty now?
Theresa: Smaller than his moon?  :)
DanteE: give it time
Herbert: I wonder what happens when something gets too heavy for the planetary body he's on.
Theresa: But this is Kudzu's moon, it doesn't have to obey Physics.
DanteE: well, if physics worked properly, the thing would shift to orbit the new center of gravity.
Random_Nerd: But for all you know, Physics is actually Entropy.
DanteE: this being Locus Kudzu, that's a HUGE if
Theresa: Physics being Entropy would explain my grades in my physics classes.
Herbert: So the moon could eventually orbit around the rabbit. Nice :)
Random_Nerd: Let's see, is there anything else that needs addressed before we start the game proper?
Random_Nerd: You guys are in-chancel and not particularly busy at the moment, so it's relatively easy to introduce our new PC, I think.
DanteE: like I said... didn't we send the cultists back home?
Herbert: I'm good.
DanteE: I remember thinking it's a BAD IDEA to have culists in Amyra
Theresa: I believe we did and if we didn't, we did anyway.
Herbert: Bad ideas are what good games are made of :D
Random_Nerd: If you guys want, we can retcon them back out.
Random_Nerd: I never really understood why you brought them in in the first place.
DanteE: we brought in a few so we could use Realm Divinations to figure out what's going on
Theresa: We only brought the one in, when Snow sent Horse out for hamburgers.
Random_Nerd: Ah, okay. So, shall we have you have sent the ones you brought in back out afterwards?
DanteE: and somewhere an english teacher screams...
Theresa: Sounds good to me, RN.
Random_Nerd: So, shall we cut to the two existing PCs standing near the Whispering Library, whereupon they shall be told by Kudzu of their new family member?
DanteE: or our offices
Random_Nerd: That would work too.
Theresa: Which would you prefer, Knock?
Random_Nerd: Now, for Herb, do you object to him having been ennobled roughly a couple of hours before we start here?
Herbert: No problem. Should I assume that he has a basic understanding of how his "powers" work?
DanteE: can go either way. Though don't forget I kept James' gear in my Vault-O-Stuff
Random_Nerd: Understanding what you can do is fine with me.
Random_Nerd: So, ready to start?
Theresa: Ready!
Herbert: Yep!
DanteE: sure
Random_Nerd: __________________START_______________
Random_Nerd: It was a dark and stormy night, somewhere far away and not particularly relevant. Meanwhile, in Amyra, it's rather sunny and pleasant. This makes the fact that there's what sounded quite like a loud crash of thunder directly outside of the Clock Tower rather odd.
DanteE: ('odd' lost it's meaning a long time ago... :) )

• Theresa looks up from trying to teach her deskplant how to pronounce the letter 'b' correctly.
  

Herbert: (What's the command to write those again? (ex.: Herb is walking in the street.))
Random_Nerd: There's another one, a bit quieter, and a bit closer, right out the window. It appears that Kudzu is trying a slightly new body at the moment, made out of roughly equal parts scattered bricks, storm clouds, and thousands of old rusty tools.
Random_Nerd: (/'
Random_Nerd: (Err...)
Random_Nerd: (/me does whatever.)
DanteE: (/me does stuff)
Herbert: (Thanks :) )
Random_Nerd: At least, presumably it's Kudzu. If there's another giant humanoid shape made of the above things that would be standing right outside the windows of your respective offices, that may be a problem.
Random_Nerd: Kudzu: "HEY!"
Theresa: *murmurs* "The boss didn't say he was expecting company, so it's probably him. Probably." *looks out window and waves*
Theresa: "Yes, Boss?"
DanteE: "Hello boss..."
Random_Nerd: KUDZU: "IMPORTANT NEWS. I'VE DECIDED TO help CREATE A NEW SIBLING OF YOURS TO REPLACE THE ONE THAT help me I'm falling GOT BROKEN."
Random_Nerd: (The softer words come from a smaller face set in the side of Kudzu's chest. Now, this sort of appearance isn't unheard of for him, but it does rather look like James.)

• DanteE opens his window and grabs what he can...
  

DanteE: (and that sounds dirty, doesn't it)

• Theresa blinks at the James-face and says "A new sibling?"
  

Random_Nerd: Only thing within reach is a rather startled pigeon.
Random_Nerd: K: "YES. MY URBANIZATION WAS BROKEN, AND THE DEMON WASN'T drifting, I'm drifting REALLY UP TO THE JOB YET, SO I PICKED A NEW ONE."
Random_Nerd: Outside, cars are stopped, and people seem to be photographing Kudzu with their cellular phones.
Random_Nerd: (Did you have thoughts on how Herb should actually physically go to meet the other PCs?)
DanteE: "Ah... all right... (checks out the James-oid)
Theresa: "I hadn't realized you had considered Lesson for the job, sir. Where is our new...sibling?"
Random_Nerd: K: "WE HAVE A WAR ON, AND URBANIZATION WAS ONLY RECENTLY stars, but they aren't really stars UNDER WHAT SEEMED LIKE AN ATTACK they're not stars at all BY UNKNOWN PARTIES."
Random_Nerd: (The Jamesoid seems to be made of brick, but has James' face, and has an expression about as strained as a face made of brick bits can really show.)
Herbert: Herbert is walking along the road, towards Kudzu, in something of a trance.
Random_Nerd: (Kudzu doesn't seem to have noticed it yet.)
Theresa: "Makes sense to have someone else pick up the baton, so to speak. Have there been any other attacks on Urbanization while you have been deciding?"
Herbert: He looks like an overworked white-collar type in his early forties. He?s holding a notepad and a pen.
Random_Nerd: Jamesoid: "I still don't remember, but they looked like stars. But they aren't."
Random_Nerd: K: "NO, JUST THE ONE YOU FOILED, WITH THE BRICKS. THAT ONE DIDN'T REALLY MAKE SENSE TO but they're /falling/, and they're inside my ME."
DanteE: "Ah....?" (points to Jamesoid)
Theresa: "From what you've told us, sir, Excrucians don't have to make sense.":

• Herbert walks up carefully closer to Kudzu.
  

Herbert: "God?"

• DanteE looks over Herbert with The Sight...
  

Random_Nerd: K: "OH, THAT. GET BACK INSIDE, FORMER-URBANIZATON. YOU DON'T GET TO TALK TO ANYONE ELSE UNTIL I KNOW WHAT YOU but nobody asks why they have stars falling REALLY ARE but I can see them too."
Random_Nerd: The Jamesoid withdraws back into Kudzu's chest.
Theresa: (I like that last bit from Kudzu/James, RN. Slightly creepy and mournful and yeah, we never have really asked why the stars.)

• Herbert shudders brutally as James disappears back into the Imperator's body.
  

Random_Nerd: K: "OH, DON'T LOOK AT ME LIKE THAT. IF YOU HAD A LUMP ON YOUR ARM THAT YOU THINK MIGHT BE A TUMOR, YOU WOULDN'T FEEL BAD FOR THE TUMOR."
Theresa: (Hey, I thought my surgery results were off-topic for games.  ;) )
Theresa: "I would say that tumors usually don't talk back, but I guess we could hear even tumors now."
DanteE: "Aha. We'll give the new guy the orientation talk and teach him the corporate song immediately."
Random_Nerd: K: "ANYWAY, URBANIZATION, OTHER NOBLES. OTHER NOBLES, URBANIZATON. NOW, GO SAVE THE WORLD OR SOMETHING, I NEED TO GO SEE A METAPHORICAL ONCOLOGIST."
Herbert: *murmurs* "Hi..."
DanteE: "Hi! Come on in!:
Theresa: (I get this vision of Kudzu on a couch, talking to Wilson from the show House....)
Herbert: Herbert still looks a little stunned, but walks in to meet his new family.
Theresa: "Come on up. Secondish, floor. Don't open the door on the first floor or you'll let Horse out."
DanteE: "Second. First floor would let Lesson out."

• DanteE quickly steps into his vault and looks over James' gear...
  

Herbert: "Horse? In the building?" Herbert looks suspiciously at the said door, but keeps going.
Random_Nerd: (Horse is on the first floor, though, I thought. Isn't he in Monty's old room?)
Theresa: (That's what I thought. I thought we kept Monty on the ground floor.)
DanteE: (Yeah, but I think that was on the 2nd floor)
Theresa: (Ehh, moving on.)
Random_Nerd: (Eh, yeah.)
Herbert: (Where am I going, the conference room?)

• Theresa will go out to meet with the new person. *smiles* "Welcome to the clock tower. I'm Theresa, also known as Plants. And you are?"
  

DanteE: (Yep, 3rd floor)
Random_Nerd: (And although you don't really know your way around yet, you can do lesser divs of realm for free, so you're never really lost in Amyra.)
Herbert: "Ja... euh... I mean Herbert. I'm in charge of the Planning Department of the city. Interim director in fact. My boss died when you guys arrived..."
Theresa: "Well, I'm actually a native. Been here all of my life. I just got promoted, so to speak."
Herbert: "Oh, and I'm Urbanization." Herbert smiles suddenly, as if things are suddenly starting to make sense.
DanteE: (Any weirdness about the gear? :)
Theresa: "Pleased to meet you, Herbert." *smile* "How about you follow me and I'll show you to the conference room. We'll need to get you your own offices, here, too."
Herbert: "Oh, congratulations. On the promotion I mean."
Random_Nerd: (Still there. James seems to retain some connection to the Chancel. Odd, that.)
DanteE: (Herb: remember the desc I put up when I first created the conf room?)
Herbert: "I already have an office at city hall, but I guess I'll need one here now."

• DanteE comes out. "Yes, I doubt perching on the roof would work for you..."
  

Theresa: "Same to you! It has it's ups and downs." *waves hands around, you might notice that she's missing various fingers on each hand* "But hey, not everyone gets handed a Pillar of the Universe every day, you know?"
DanteE: "Your predecessor was a gargoyle. Given life."
Herbert: "That would explain why I... I remember having wings." Looks at his back to make sure that they're not still there.
Herbert: Points at Theresa's hands. "What happened to your fingers?"
Theresa: "This is Dante, he's Courage and also Blades. He also has had experience with having a past life poking up once in a while."
DanteE: "Well, we all have to some extent.
DanteE: "Yours is just a little more ... immediate."

• Theresa looks serious. "In exchange for knowledge about the world and its end, I sacrificed my fingers to Jan Ben Jan, Imperator of the Second Age. I'm not allowed to grow them back for a year and a day."
  

Random_Nerd: (Yeah, but yours has a kid. Kind of. Sort of? It's complicated?)
Theresa: (Child support suit waiting to happen!)
DanteE: (... he does?)
Theresa: (Weapons was part of the Angel that was the dad of the Giant.)
DanteE: (oh yeah)
Herbert: "Pleased to meet you Dante."

• Theresa looks at Dante. "I don't think I have past lives to sideswipe me. Although it would be a convienent way to explain my stop on Santana's tour in Brazil last weekend..."
  

DanteE: "Good to meet you...
Theresa: "Dante, this is Herbert. Urbanziation."
Herbert: (Tpyo strikes again!)
DanteE: "So... what, if anything, did Kudzu tell you?"
Theresa: "We also have a sister who is Hope, a sister who is Capriciousness (she's a coyote) and a brother who is Numbers. It's a growing family, it seems."
Theresa: (It's the graffitti way of spelling!)
Herbert: "Not much actually. I thought you'd know. I feel like... Well, like a god, but I'm not too sure what I'm supposed to do with all of that power."
DanteE: "Oh... Kudzu is that blob of clouds and building violations we were just talking with."
Herbert: "He's the boss right? But he's not God with a capital G?"
DanteE: "Ah, yeah."
Herbert: "I guess I'll be able to run the Planning Department all b myself now..."
Herbert: (by)
Random_Nerd: (Bad Tpyo. No cookie!)
Herbert: "There's a lot of work to do. You've made a mess of some parts of the city." Writes something down quickly in his notepad.
Theresa: "Religion has gotten all..perpendicular on this side of the mirror."
DanteE: "If you are Urbanization (you can hear the capital U) the planning department will be talking to you."
Theresa: "And you won't need construction companies."
Theresa: "Or permits!"
DanteE: "Let me show you something real quick..."
Herbert: Smiles. "That should speed things up considerably."

• DanteE makes a gesture, and Ghosts a glowing ball into existence."
  

Herbert: "And, what else do we have on the agenda? There's a war going on?"
DanteE: (scratch that ")
Theresa: "
DanteE: "I believe you should be able to do the same thing...
Theresa: "There's a war going on, we have to take care of Amyra now that's it's cut off from the rest of the world, we have to take care of our Estates, and then there's hobbies and social time and vacations..."
Random_Nerd: There's a light rapping sound on the door of the conference room.
Theresa: "Oh, and the Boss. The boss likes to send us on errands. Usually with us bringing back souvineers. Like a giant sentient tree."
Herbert: "Vacations, we get vacations?"
Theresa: "Well, we get to visit many exotic locations...and stuff tries to kill us there."
DanteE: "Who is it?"

• Herbert turns towards the door.
  

Random_Nerd: Samuel, through the door: "Did I hear the Big Boss bellow that there's a new Noble?"
Theresa: "Indeed."
Herbert: "That would be me. And you are?"
DanteE: "Come in!"
Theresa: "Oh and Herbert, there are other worlds with other people who live on them..."
Random_Nerd: Sam walks in, holding a small battery-powered fan with fanblades that look melted and deformed.
DanteE: "And they all hang from the branches of Yggdrasil. Remember Norse myth?"
Random_Nerd: William stands in the hall, wearing the expression of one who knows that interrupting Nobles in a meeting can result in both termination of employment and Dementia Animus.
Herbert: "The big tree? I vaguely remember seeing it, flying over its branches..." Herbert looks confused for a while.

• DanteE points to the melted fan. "You getting drunk?"
  

Random_Nerd: S: "That could just be the walking redwood."
Theresa: (Nice expression. I get the feeling that Sam is used to interrupting.)
Random_Nerd: S: "Well, do you guys just eat a big hunk of fat and sugar?"
Theresa: "Yes. It's called Death by Chocolate."
Random_Nerd: W: "Only when we need to get food in a hurry while driving."
Theresa: "Herbert, this is Samuel, a Dionyl, and William, a human. They are our, and by extension, your, Aides, helping us in organizing our lives and running the Chancel, dealing with tidbits and so forth. William brought back that set of troopers that got lost in Mexico a while back."
Random_Nerd: S: "So, does the demon work for you now?"
DanteE: (Do we have an idea of Herb's Realm score?)
Theresa: "Sam, William, this is Herbert, the new Urbanization."
Theresa: (Nope, but you looked in the gear room. You tell us how big his piece is.  : ) )
Random_Nerd: (He knows what he can do, you probably don't.)
Herbert: "Hello gentlemen. Pleased to meet you. I have my own assistant at city hall. Could she get an office here too?"
DanteE: (That was James', not Herb's)
DanteE: "Her brain would melt."
Theresa: (But I figured that with your Aspect, you have complete recall of what the room looked like.)
Herbert: "The demon? Wait... that would be Lesson right? I vaguely remember hating him for some reason..."
Random_Nerd: W: "I can see to your assistant being brought over, and an office prepared, if you'll give me her name and number."
Herbert: "Her name is Frances, here's her number. And thank you very much."
Theresa: "Yes, Lesson is the demon. He was the former Urbanization's Anchor. I guess you get to decide whether you want to keep him or not."
Random_Nerd: W: "Should I prepare an office for your demon as well, sir?"

• DanteE punches a few buttons on the table, to put Lesson's image on the screen...
  

Herbert: "I'm not sure I'm comfortable with "taking" him. He was my predecessor servant. He's part of his time and his time is over."
Random_Nerd: S: "Doesn't he already have one, in that old factory?"
DanteE: "And one downstairs."
Herbert: "If he's useful where he is now, we should probably leave him there... But I'd like to meet him eventually."
Herbert: "I still feel as if he's a - distant - part of me."
DanteE: "You sound a little like James, actually..."
Theresa: "He probably is still a part of you." *ponders, to Sam and William* "Does it kill an Anchor to no longer be an Anchor?"
Random_Nerd: S: "Yeah."
Random_Nerd: W: "Usually. But sometimes it makes them insane or catatonic."
Random_Nerd: S: "Well, it depends how they stop being an anchor."
Random_Nerd: W: "True. That's if their Noble or Imperator severs them."
Herbert: "Is he still my Anchor?"
DanteE: "That's a good question, actually..."
Random_Nerd: S: "If their Noble just dies, they usually become a Noble, unless there's another canidate or someone eats their master's heart or something."
Herbert: "It doesn't feel like it. At least, not really. I sense a connection to him, but it's distant, sort of garbled."
Theresa: "Kudzu qualifies as something."
Random_Nerd: W: "Which is rather why I've been having nightmares about the demon being ennobled."
Random_Nerd: S: "Which reminds me, you owe me five bucks."
Herbert: (lol)
DanteE: (you mean 5 crowns. :) )
Random_Nerd: W: "I hand it over with deep gratitude for the fate that I will not have to experience."
Random_Nerd: (Nah, neither of them has been in Amyra long enough to think in terms of the native currency yet.)
DanteE: "Actually, there is a way to check...
DanteE: "If he is your anchor, you can ... well, telepathically communicate with him."
DanteE: "And I know it's not quite telepathy, but it's close enough for this."
Theresa: "And it's private enough that you won't have us listening in on your phonecalls." *smile*

• Herbert tries to communicate telepathically with Lesson.
  

DanteE: (I put Lesson on the screen, right?)
Theresa: (Oh and small sidetrack - is William's wedding before or after the End of the Age?)
DanteE: (maybe it IS the end! :D )
Random_Nerd: (Before.)
Herbert: "Strange. I sort of sense him. But there's a lot of static on the line if you know what I mean."
Random_Nerd: (Slightly before.)
Random_Nerd: (Oh, and a ghost of Lesson is on the screen.)
DanteE: (Lesson's reaction?)
Random_Nerd: (He scratches himself with his left foot.)
Herbert: "I guess I'll need to have a word with this... demon."
Theresa: (William knows that Theresa is doing the flowers for his wedding, _right_?)
Random_Nerd: A second later, Lesson, on the screen, looks up for a moment and then reaches out of frame to pick up a telephone. William hands a cordless phone to Herbert
Random_Nerd: Lesson, on the phone: "Who is this?"
Herbert: Herbert takes the phone. "Euh...hello? Demon?"
Herbert: "It's Urbanization speaking."
Random_Nerd: L: "Yes. Who gave this nu... ah."

• DanteE checks out how everyone reacts...
  

Random_Nerd: L: "Ah."
Random_Nerd: Lesson, on the screen, shows somewhat masked frustration and anger.

• Herbert scratches his head for a while.
  

Random_Nerd: This isn't discernable in his voice, other than to the degree that it /usually/ contains masked frustration and anger.
Herbert: "Can you still...hear me in your head?"
Random_Nerd: L: "Can't. Other than that my inner ears are in my head. But don't think that's what is referred to."
Random_Nerd: L: "So. The boss is dead?"
Herbert: "Nope. From what I understand, I have to love you or to hate you to keep you as an employee. And I can't say that I feel either way about you. So I guess that means... you're fired. At least, as far as being an Anchor is concerned."
Random_Nerd: L: "Ah. Still work for the other bosses, as before since the boss left?"
Herbert: "And, well, I suppose that your old boss is... not dead but..." Herbert's face shows signs of pain for a few seconds. "He's no longer your boss."
Herbert: "Exactly. Is this satisfactory?"
Random_Nerd: L: "Suppose so. Isn't really my decision. Will continue doing what I'm doing until told otherwise."
Herbert: "Okay then. You do that. Carry on." Herbert ends the call and turns to his siblings. "So, what should we do now? Do we have any urgent tasks on the agenda? Any crisis to handle?"
Herbert: Herbert looks uncomfortable and adds: "Oh, and I guess that now that I'm a Noble, I can ask for permission to do something about the part of the city that was destroyed by the furry monster?"

• DanteE checks if Lesson lost his Anchor connection... and possibly his marbles...
  

Random_Nerd: (Lesson appears to be still Anchored, insomuch as divinations provide no details on the state of his marbles.)
Random_Nerd: S: "Whose permission would you have to ask?"
Theresa: "We can take you to see the furry monster, if you like. At the moment, nothing much is going on. The Age as we know it will be ending in a couple of months. William's getting married. I'm thinking about trying to find King John a girlfriend. Not much to speak of."
Theresa: 'Oh and Numbers probably submitted his permits for the supercollider but knowing him, the permits were approved."
DanteE: "In fact... that would go to your old office, wouldn't it?"
Herbert: (Would building something like this ((Link: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6c/Brazil.Brasilia.01.jpg)http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6c/Brazil.Brasilia.01.jpg) be a minor or major creation?)
Random_Nerd: (Major if you did it all at once, or minor if you spent a few hours and made it a chunk at a time.)
Herbert: "Yep. I remember reading something about this. It does violate quite a few by-laws. But it's Brian so..."
Theresa: (Nice office.)
DanteE: "Was it you specifically who saw i? Maybe that's why you're here."
DanteE: *it
Theresa: "Or Kudzu just played Eeny Meeny Miny Mo."
Random_Nerd: (I'd say that you would generally need a Major creation to make something much bigger than a car in one go, but that's just off the top of my head.)
Herbert: "You think so? Yes, it did land on my desk. It's a big project... Big projects are usually pretty complicated." Herbert looks dreamy for a moment, lost in thought, in dreams of old.
DanteE: "That's also a possibility./"
Theresa: "And Brian was thinking very big. Big and nuclear."
DanteE: (You're not going to pop an office building into existence right here on the table, are you? :) )
Herbert: (And, if the building suddenly appears in the city, would it cause dementia animus?)
Herbert: (Eheheheh, not indoors, that would violate a number of by-laws ;) )
Random_Nerd: (If people saw it popping in a bit at a time, it would. If people just came by the next day and it was there, it would confuse people but wouldn't directly shake their hold on the prosaic.)
Herbert: (All right, I'll create it tonight.)
Herbert: "Big and nuclear isn't very popular with the mayor's office at the moment. But, you know, it's Brian. What is it for anyway?"
DanteE: (The part Monty stomped is basically a pile of rubble at the moment, right?
Theresa: "Well, I think part of it is because he thinks it'
Theresa: s cool. And plus, he's curious about the Universe."
Random_Nerd: (Yeah, it's pretty much a bunch of buildings that have been chunked, flattened cars, and so on. No corpses, though, since you got to them in time.)
Herbert: "Well, if you don't mind, I'd like to build a little something there, to liven up that part of the city." Creates a ghost miracle representing the building in question.
Theresa: "So what are your viewpoints on what Urbanization is, Herbert?"

• DanteE pops a current picture of that part of town on the screen
  

Herbert: "Mmmmh, good question." Thinks a bit. "Urbanization is about order. A city that works, that breathes, where cars, water, people, electricity can circulate easily."
Random_Nerd: S: "The breathing is figurative, right?"
Random_Nerd: S: "What? With Nobles, it doesn't do to assume."
DanteE: (Would that mean a Creation miracle could clean up that part of town?)
Random_Nerd: (Yeah. One major, or some time tossing out minors.)
Herbert: "Oh, yes, for the moment at least."
Theresa: "Did you play a lot of SimCity before this, Herbert?"
Herbert: "A few of my colleagues tried to get me to do so, but I'm not really into video games..."

• DanteE mulls over the possibility of Kudzu using High Scores as selection criteria... :)
  

Herbert: "But I think I'm starting to see the appeal." Herbert looks a little megalomaniac for the briefest of second.
Random_Nerd: William leaves the room.
DanteE: "Hm... you know, you could build an office here, or do your work in that. (points to ghost-building)"
Herbert: "There's a lot of things I could improve now, without all of the paperwork, the committees, the endless discussions..."
Theresa: "Hmm, Herbert, have you been told the rules yet?"
Herbert: "I'd like an office here, with you guys. The building would be... my first contribution to a more modern, more beautiful Kaerkoven."
Random_Nerd: (Don't tell your Imperator about a problem you can fix, or you'll have to. Don't tell your Imperator about a problem you /can't/ fix, or you'll have to...)
Herbert: (lol, yeah, I love those rules, especially the one about sneezing ;) )
Herbert: "Rules?"
DanteE: (Hm?)
Random_Nerd: (When in doubt, sneeze. It confuses them.)
DanteE: "There's official and unofficial. Lord Entropy lays down the "official" rules..."
Herbert: "Somehow, I know about the official rules. I mean, Entropy's Law. But I'm not too sure about the unofficial."
Random_Nerd: S: "Don't Get Caught."
Theresa: "Well, there's the Kudzu rules, of protect the Chancel and your Estate. There's the Entropy laws, especially the ones about love and don't mind-fracture the normals."

• Theresa smiles at Sam. "Yeah, that's underneath it all."
  

Random_Nerd: S: "In this one rule is all the Law and the Prophets."
DanteE: "Well, everyone has their favorite. I think 'Thou Shalt Not Take Shit' is big in many Nobles' minds..."
Random_Nerd: S: "What? I like reading human books."
Random_Nerd: (That one's actually in Entropy's Laws, Dante!)
DanteE: (I know. :)
Theresa: "And there's your own personal laws...but we haven't found a way to really _cure_ DA yet."
Herbert: "My personal laws? Curing DA?"
DanteE: "Actually... come to think of it, there's one thing you should see."
DanteE: "The Heart."
Theresa: 'Dementia Animus (and I'm really sorry if I mispelled that...). It's what happens if you do a really flashy bit of magic in front of someone normal. It breaks their minds. Shouldn't do it too often or to a large number of people. Draws the wrong kind of attention. And personal laws...well...hard to explain. We have Kudzu's laws and then there are the laws that we have for ourselves."
DanteE: "The Center of the Chancel is one floor above us."
Herbert: "The Heart?" Herbert seems fascinated. "Yes, I'd like to see that."
DanteE: "(following Theresa) well, unless they're Noble, Anchored, or inured like William and Samuel here."
Theresa: "Hence the word 'normal'. " *smile*

• Theresa will head up toward the Heart.
  

DanteE: "Anyway... the Heart is here in the gearworks of the clock..."
Herbert: To Theresa: "I see. I think I understand. Kudzu is of the Wild. Freedom is the highest principle. It's a neat idea."
Herbert: "Of course, freedom should have limits. For example, you can't build anything and everything in the city."
Theresa: "Yep, that's one of Kudzu's laws. You can feel his and your laws deep within you. When you can't keep them, it...it just...okay, 'hurts' is a very minor way of putting it, let's put it at that."
DanteE: "Weeeeellllll...."
Theresa: "If the city was big enough."
Random_Nerd: Heart: Tick, tick, tock, tick.
DanteE: (I kinda wonder what all our gears look like...)
Herbert: "It will grow..."

• Herbert looks carefully at the mechanism.
  

Random_Nerd: The gearwork of the Clock Tower seems to have changed significantly.
Random_Nerd: Now, this isn't the first time this has happened when you weren't looking. After all, when Dante took James' gear out, the machine didn't stop working.
Random_Nerd: But the degree of the change is new, as a large part of the machinery seems to be driven in one way or another by a large and shiny new gear in a vertical position near the middle.
Theresa: "That happen to be you, Herbert?"
DanteE: "Hrm."
DanteE: "Yeah, we each have a gear in here...
Theresa: "Nice tract of land in there, actually."
Random_Nerd: Inside the largest gear, smaller gears turn and revolve in what would normally be solid metal.
DanteE: "That one with the sharp edges is mine...
Herbert: (Realm 4 will do that to you ;) )
DanteE: "That somewhat bent one belongs to our resident coyote...
Random_Nerd: It's only slightly smaller than Kudzu's gear, which is frankly immense and rarely seems to be in the same place on two successive visits.
Theresa: (Still technically without a gear, in here.  :) )
DanteE: "The wooden one's hers...
Random_Nerd: (Kudzu, as an Imperator, has Realm 5.)

• Herbert is speechless for a few minutes.
  

Random_Nerd: (Theresa doesn't have a gear.()
DanteE: "The little one hung on the wall not connected to anything."
Theresa: (I has no Realm.  :) Which is one of Theresa's drawbacks. The Chancel doesn't take her seriously.)
Herbert: (I guess you make it up on the Domain side of things!)
Herbert: "This is the Heart of the Chancel...and of Kudzu?"
DanteE: "That one with the absolutely precise markings is Brian's...
Herbert: Herbert nods, discovering the true extent of his family.

• DanteE keeps having to go around the big one...
  

Theresa: "Here is the center of all that We are."
DanteE: "This one's ... really impressive"
Theresa: (Forgot Hope, Dante.  :) )
Herbert: (Two gears for Hope? Or a dual one?)
DanteE: "And behind ... well, you, here, is this bio-chromatic one..."
DanteE: *bi-
Random_Nerd: (You guys mind if we stop soon?)
Herbert: No problem.
Herbert: ()
DanteE: "Now I'm wondering what all you can do to our little Chancel. :) "
Theresa: "From the size of his gear, probably just about anything. But outside would be a different story."
Herbert: "Yes. There's a lot a can - and should - do in here. I'll have to talk to you about it Theresa. The city needs to grow to live, but I wouldn't want to... well... harm your own Domain."
DanteE: (Maybe you can make Kaerkoven an arcology. :) )
Herbert: (That would be quite a side-project. And an interesting one :) )
Theresa: "There have been some nice innovations in the outside world with apartment housing gardens and using building gardens to cut down on energy costs. Plus, it could make a city more self-sufficient if it could grow at least some of its food source."
DanteE: "Yeah, but low on protein.."
Herbert: (There are cows for those needs.)
DanteE: (Call it a week, with us going 'wow' at his gear? :) )
Theresa: (Ahh, I see you have truly braved the logs. You have my blessing. <g>)
Random_Nerd: (Cattle have a subtle, but deep significance in Amyra.)
Random_Nerd: ___________________STOP______________________
Herbert: "Yes, that's true. I'm sure we'll be able to work something out... I was also thinking of establishing a settlement on that moon, but there are some safety considerations I'll have to take care of..."
Theresa: (The question would be 'which moon'? <g>)
Random_Nerd: (Hmm. You have more to say before we stop?)
Theresa: (I'm good.)

• • • You are now known as BethE.
      

Herbert: (The one with the rabbit of course. It has huge touristic potential.)
DanteE: (The one where you won't get stomped)
Herbert: (No, I'm good :) )

• • • Herbert is now known as Harold.
      
    • DanteE is now known as Knockwood.
      

Random_Nerd: So, what'd you guys think of this session?
BethE: Much better than usual.  :) Welcome very much to the group!
Knockwood: good to be doing something
Knockwood: Hello Harold!
Harold: Thanks! It's quite a pleasure to join the game.
Knockwood: Now, what's the status of the other players?
Knockwood: ... come to think of it, wasn't there a 2nd potential new guy?
Harold: And I really liked this first session. Of course, it was essentially the intro of a new character, and I can't wait to get my first Kudzu mission ;)
Random_Nerd: Not one who could work with the schedule, I think.
BethE: You will be sent to Sweden for herring.
Harold: Giant herring?
Knockwood: y'know... maybe us goofy players should make an effort to think up a plot line
BethE: Could be a giant herring. It could just be a herring. You never know with the Kudzu FedEx quests.
Knockwood: (Of course we thought up the last one...)
Harold: Indeed. Is this chapter supposed to be player-driven or exterior-event-driven?
Random_Nerd: Currently undecided.
Knockwood: well...
Random_Nerd: If you guys don't have something you want to get started, I know what the next major external event wil lbe.
Random_Nerd: But I don't know if you'll do something before or instead of that.
Knockwood: what if we each try and think up a plot thread, and choose one next week?
BethE: That sounds like a good idea.
Harold: What were the big ones on the table, I mean the subplots left open?
Knockwood: Got a week?
Harold: Yep :)
Random_Nerd: Let's see.
Knockwood: Well... the Cult is technically still out there.
Random_Nerd: James came back, only now he's radioactive. So to speak.
Random_Nerd: You have a giant that the Moon doesn't like.
Knockwood: _Something_ happened after I grabbed the Lance.
Random_Nerd: At least one Excrucian is working what seem to be long-term plans against you all./
BethE: We have a rabbit on the moon. The End of the Age is in a couple of months. Technically Barakiel thinks we're changing Kudzu's mind into helping him.
Random_Nerd: Barakiel is nuts.
Random_Nerd: The cataclysm at the end of the age is coming, and soon.
Knockwood: At least one Shard escaped from us.
BethE: We have an Excrucian's mount living in our clock tower.
Random_Nerd: And it's an anchor.
Harold: Wow. Lots of choices.
Knockwood: We have some weird curse that causes our Nobles to go dormant...
Harold: lol
Random_Nerd: Heh.
BethE: A Bane of the Chancel.
Random_Nerd: They're just off Guarding The Horses.
BethE: And we even _have_ a Horse!
Knockwood: Technically most of us still have families we, um, love.
Knockwood: There are still 6 Traps somewhere in the Chancel.
Harold: That's right. Herb is also married.
Harold: Looking for the traps could be interesting.
Knockwood: We never really sorted out the real mystery of the Blood Drop...
Knockwood: and there's other stuff in my Vault-O-Plot-Points
BethE: Theresa's hubby is dead but she still visits his grave. And she has taught many kindergardeners that are out there in Amyra.
Knockwood: Y'know what... we don't have the stats for teh Chancel on the Wiki
Knockwood: We can visit Teh Chancel, situated on Da InterWebs!!!111!11!!
Random_Nerd: Huh. I guess I just assumed they were there and didn't notice that they weren't.
Harold: It would be a good idea to put them up. I'd be curious to see them. Is Kudzu's sheet there?
Knockwood: his desc is, but not his sheet...
BethE: I don't know if Kudzu ever had a sheet...
Knockwood: Oh, Kudzu's just full of sheet. :)
Harold: Careful, he might hear you :o
Knockwood: BTW, you know how to make a new page on the Wiki?
Random_Nerd: Just make a link to a page that doesn't exist, try to go to it, and then edit it, right?
Harold: I can't say that I do, but it can't be that complicated... I'll try to create one for Herb.
Knockwood: Yep. What you do is, edit the main Chancel Amyra page...
Knockwood: in the Player Characters section, put in "Herb, new Dominus of Urbanization"
Knockwood: Actually: "Herb, new Dominus of Urbanization"
Knockwood: The Urbanization page would be for James
Knockwood: Then save it, and the new page will have a red link there in that section.
Knockwood: Click it, and put in your char info
Harold: Done :)
Harold: Well, the page is created, I'll enter the info later tomorrow.
Knockwood: Well, the link's created...
Knockwood: Not that it's that big a deal. :)
BethE: Yeah, who reads the wiki anyhow.  ;)
Harold: Once Herb is on the Internet, nothing will stop him!
Harold: I do :p

Chancel_Amyra
Chapter 12