Mage: The Awakening PbP - Nemesis

Thessaly speaks quietly, a little taken aback by the whole thing.

"Cymbeline, have you seen the Tower before? Maybe you Awakened a long time ago, but just sort of...repressed it until now? That might explain how you were able to do that before you passed out."
 

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Shayuri said:
Thessaly speaks quietly, a little taken aback by the whole thing.

"Cymbeline, have you seen the Tower before? Maybe you Awakened a long time ago, but just sort of...repressed it until now? That might explain how you were able to do that before you passed out."
Cymbeline shakes her head no in reply, “If I have I can’t remember, and a place as terrifying as that I think I would remember. The images are burned into my mind… the horrible things I saw there, I never want to see again…”

Gawain adds, “As horrible as Pandemonium may seem, there are worse things in this Fallen World… but I digress love.” He turns to Harlequin, “Unlike the Guardian, I do not pity Banishers. They are wretched and despicable creatures who have rejected their Awakening, perhaps out of misguided belief in faith, outright madness, or for far more sinister purposes. I will admit it is possible to rehabilitate some… but most are beyond redemption.”

Cymbeline adds, “You said that we should alert the Guardians and the Arrows? What does that mean? Are these people Awakened like us?”

Gawain nods solemnly and then looks to Morrigan, Harlequin, and then Thessaly. He smiles, “I apologize if I speak out of turn; I have a loose tongue.”
 

"No, please...under the circumstances your advice is welcome," Thessaly replies. "I'm still very new at this. I've only just started to meet the other Awakened in town. So I'm glad -someone- knows what needs to be done next."
 

Shayuri said:
"No, please...under the circumstances your advice is welcome," Thessaly replies. "I'm still very new at this. I've only just started to meet the other Awakened in town. So I'm glad -someone- knows what needs to be done next."
Gawain gives Thessaly a charming smile, “You could have fooled me Thessaly with your wisdom, your astute summary of the Awakened condition is impressive. I think you give yourself far little credit, love. You have your grandmother’s blood running in your veins, you are destined for great things, great things indeed.”

He relaxes in the chair with an appraising eye, “You already possess her ethereal beauty, I am sure in due time you will come to understand the Mysteries with a skill and acumen that will be feared and respected. Just as much as your beauty will inspire poetry and great stories to rival the tales of Atlantis.”
 

Was Gawain on the tune? It sounded as though he may have had a thing for Winnie. Was it possible he had taken a liking to Thessaly as well? Either that or he was repaying Thessaly's kindness with flattery. Flattery was an acquired taste that Harlequin didn't have.

"Cymbeline, the Guardians of the Veil are an organisation I am a part of. They are one of the five Orders that the Awakened usually align themselves with once they've learned the basics of magic. In a nutshell we are the police for Awakened society, and occasionally other supernatural communities, but our methods tend towards those of the more infamous secret police organisations that you may recall from Sleeper history. We ensure that overly curious Sleepers are fed incorrect information, and that troublesome Mages learn better behaviour. Cleaning up after said troublesome Mages is another of our duties. Obviously we are disliked on many levels, and it is deserved, but we are a necessary evil. Someone has to do it.

"The Adamantine Arrows are another of these organisations, although I don't know very much of them. They are the equivalent of Awakened military, and it is their job to deal with the more martial threats towards Awakened society, meaning they too occasionally clean up after troublesome mages. The other three Orders are the Free Council, the Silver Ladder and the Mysterium. Gawain is a member of the Mysterium so he could fill you in on his Order," Harlequin indicates his elder.
 
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Thessaly's cheeks turn bright red, and she beams under the gush of praise heaped on her.

"Well, I...thanks. That's really nice of you to say. A lot of the time I feel like I'm swimming upstream, but...well, I'm learning too." She clears her throat.

"So how are we going to do this? Hal should lie down and rest..." Thess gives him a look. "With those injuries you really shouldn't be moving around. Gawain's hurt too, Cymbeline just Awakened, and we can't send someone out alone to warn everyone. Morrigan and me are the only two left, and I hate to just leave..."

She paused slightly, realizing that she was, in fact, afraid to leave. Not, she supposed, that a Banisher would respect her Sanctuary, come to that.

Then something exploded in her head, the way things sometimes did when she was distracted. It had sort of nibbled at her before, when Cymbeline had described her dreams, but now that she was Awakened it assumed a new importance...

"Cymbeline? You said you saw a woman in the Tower? A Queen? And that you knew her name? What was that all about? Was it like in your dreams, when you -were- a queen? Or was it a separate person?"
 

Morrigan followed the others down the stairs after making sure the front door was locked, some healthy paranoia never killed anyone. Once downstairs she stayed in the back a bit, leaning against the wall, letting the others explain everything to Cymbelline. Relating her own experience with Awakening would only make her feel even more uncomfortable.

As the discussion touched on the orders and the Arrow in particular she spoke up, "Hal comes quite close to what we do in the Adamantine Arrow. We live to protect and to serve so to speak. We strive to keep our fellow Awakened safe from harm, both supernal and mundane. I was sent here by my master to protect Thessaly and by extension her new cabal."

Banishers, of course why didn't I think of that, she thought to herself, "I have a feeling this Nemesis isn't working on his own. The girl in the coffeeshop earlier might be associated with him. I found these outside when I was making sure no one would find anything to ask difficult questions about," she places the pack of Japanese cigarettes on the table, "A bit odd for someone with such exotic tastes to find his way to a town like this... I believe they might have gotten some kind of inside information about the Hierarch coming here."
 

Harlequin picks up the pack of cigarettes, turning it over in his hand, then a wicked grin crossed his face.

"Heh, much as I'd like to crash for the evening I think it's become even more critical that we get in contact with the local Guardians and/or Arrows before tomorrow morning. A thought just occurred to me," Harlequin gave the pack a closer look, checking how many remained before he continued, "Nemesis is here to hunt, a stressful event made even more so by the fact he failed his first attempt. He's going to want smokes to calm his nerves, but he dropped his pack. He has refined tastes, but is too smart to return to the scene and I doubt we'd find this brand at any old newsagent or petrol station. Thessaly, how many specialised Tobacconists do you have in town? I'd be willing to put money on finding him at one of those come opening time tomorrow.

"Although if we're unlucky then his attachment to this brand won't be strong enough, and he may just get a replacement pack of any old brand from a twenty-four hour gas station before going into hiding for a while."

He puts the pack down again, turning to Morrigan.

"Those cigarettes are one hell of a find, Morrigan, but I'm uncertain whether he has any connections or colleagues here in town. He got off the same bus as me, probably an hour ago, and there was noone waiting there for him. Between when I saw him leave the bus station and when he encountered Cymbeline and I he mustn't have gone far, he had probably been wandering in search of anyone he thought was a Mage. If he had people here I'd figure his first port of call would be with them to get his bearings and make plans, rather than lash out at the first potential victim.

"What makes me uncertain is that he didn't have any luggage with him. He may not be intending to stay for long or, as you suggest, he may have allies he can call on here to supply him with what he needs for an extended stay."
 
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Cymbeline nods slowly Thessaly, “The woman in the tower was the same from my dreams… she was cold… uncaring. She said that she knew me, knew what I was meant to do, and that I would achieve greatness. She terrified me…”
 

"...Noone has any opinions on my theory? Alright, s'all good, what about contact details for those local Guardians or Arrows? Either is good right now," Harlequin looks to the others.
 

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