[The End is Nigh] Chapter 2: On The Maiden's Secret Service...

Captain Hesperus

Captain Hesperus

Harbinger of the End Times and Apostle of Ghan
Administrator
Supporter
After the earth-shattering events of the day, you all take soothing teas to calm jangled nerves and finally disperse back to your lodgings, wherever they might be in the Celestial City. Over the next day and a half, your time is taken up with interviews, report-writing, giving statements to a variety of gods and committees and, rarely, private time for yourselves. You have all received invitations for parties that you would not normally have been even considered for; those of you who attended them found that the entire reason for your invitation was entirely for the purpose of disclosing the events that occurred within the Dome of the Perfect Lotus. After that you had been all but ignored.


It was only when you each received a letter that either appeared on top of your paperwork, or in the pocket of your clothing or bags, that you found yourself being called to work:


“My dear associates,” the letter read in perfect Old Realm, “would you kindly present yourselves with all haste to my office for tea, crumpets and conspiracy.


Yours, Pluto.”

Your association with the fledgeling Incarna Pluto has granted you the Allies background with two dots (currently)
 
----- Kiki T'ai, The Chosen of Detours -----


----- Journeys | Messenger/Guide | Sheet -----


----- Personal 12/12 | Peripheral 29/29 | Willpower 5/5 -----


At the time the letter arrived Kiki was to be found in one of the vast stables of Yu-Shan caring for her dear yeddim friend Gurd. About to replace his feed she noticed the small letter lying on the hay by her feet. She picked it up to read.


"So now it finally begins? Good, i was getting restless staying here anyways with so much going on outside".


She clapped Gurd on his muzzle and dropped down from the haystacks to grab her bag, her wandering staff and the massive sword sheathed in leather that was lying on the floor. She had been prepared.
 
----- Starfall Shower -----

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----- Chosen of Battle | Young Sifu |

Sheet -----
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----- Personal 16/16| Peripheral 28/28 | Willpower 10/10-----

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Starfall Shower like usual was found practicing with one of his dummies inside his manse. Starfall studied his opponent moves and actions, blocking the assault with his daiklave with great timing. He took a look at the letter. Starfall like many viziers had heard of the stories of the Viziers who saved the Loom and the emergence of the new maiden of hours, Pluto.

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He headed to the office of Pluto while smoking his pipe along the way. As a young shieldbearer and sifu in training for the gold faction, Starfall was curious to find out what kind of assignment awaited him. On the way, he wondered also if Pluto might become a supporter of the Gold faction eventually.

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----- Cynis Atropos -----


----- Endings | Internal Affairs Investigator | Sheet -----


Atropos hadn't slept since the death of her Maiden. There was no time for such menial things as sleep, after all, when the whole of Creation was at stake. She had not been to any of the parties to which she had been invited, nor had she attended any of the functions necessary to keep up appearances as a Department Head. Instead, her manse is a hive of activity. Her pattern spider skitters about, poring over tome after tome of ancient lore, and small gods of her library peer into opaque crystals, divining notations made by half-mad authors that might never have existed in this reality. Atropos sits at the center of it all, meditating in the inner sanctum of Apocrypha, accessing its vast databases on the Primordial war and attempting to learn everything she could about the returning Autochthon. She mutters to herself as she sorts through her available information, dead to the world.


Abrubtly, she is brought out of her reverie by a light burning sensation against the skin of her thigh. She pulls a letter from the leg of her pants, unfurls it, and reads.


"Apocrypha...Deactivate neural uplink," she mutters, waving a hand vaguely and disconnecting herself from the knowledge database. She stands then wobbles as the wave of exhaustion she had been pushing away by linking herself into her manse washes over her. "No...Can't sleep yet..."


Several minutes later, fueled by coffee and determination, Cynis Atropos starts out for the office of the newest Maiden, looking remarkably put together for someone who hadn't slept for at least fourty-eight hours.

I never got a response in the last thread, I used my Efficient Secretary Technique to gather information from my personal library about Autochthon.
 
----- Eros -----


----- Serenity | Muse | Sheet -----


When the letter arrives Eros is in western Yu Shan, catching the Don of the Celestial Mafia up on recent events such as the return of Pluto and assiting him in the planning of his God-Blooded daughters wedding. After reading the letter Eros excuses himself from the preperations. He calmly walks to his room in the mansion and gets dressed in his finest morning clothes, its not often one gets to enjoy Tea with an Incarna. He calmly walks in his finery towards the nearest canal and takes a dragon boat onto the gold lane. Arriving at Pluto's office in a few minutes.
 
----- Crystal Tea Cup -----


----- Serenity | Intellectual, Socialite, Tea Lover | Sheet -----


The elemental held the the cauldron between his two arms cradling it until the steam rose to fill the room again. Crystal nodded and he poured the hot water into her brass tub. The water instantly warmed again, almost too hot. "Thank you, La Wei, you may go."


She continued to soak in the tub until the water had cooled some before stepping out of the tub and wrapping the silk robes around herself. As she walked into the fountain room that was also her bed chamber, she noticed a note resting on an ivory tray. She didn't want to read it. Her last four invitations hadn't gone so well. They had been confusing when she wasn't hosting the event and was instead a part of the event.


As she dressed for the tea party, she was surprised. She hadn't heard from the Maiden of Hours since their first bonding when the Loom was under attack. She had spent so much will to keep the Maiden alive and functional that she felt an attachment long after it was over. She had decided to stay away on the hopes that it would fade, but seeing her mark at the bottom of the invitation was pulling at the original thrill in her veins.


She donned her clothes and started walking toward the Maiden's office. Her clothes were fine but comfortable.
 
----- Kiki T'ai, The Chosen of Detours -----


----- Journeys | Messenger/Guide | Sheet -----


----- Personal 12/12 | Peripheral 29/29 | Willpower 5/5 -----


Kiki moved through the masses of gods and other folk that walked the streets of Yu-Shan, thinking about what had happened the last day and a half and what what was gonna be. The amount of attention and static paperwork had not amused her in the least, she had after all always preferred being on the move down in Creation. Good thing she had gotten this letter when she wasn't in the Golden Barque of the Heavens, then she'd have to wait for it to land by dusk before she could go. She went down the long wide golden street where Pluto had her offices and walked in.
 
You all make your way to the Dome of the Perfect Lotus by your own ways and means, but regardless of where in Yu-Shan you started out from, you all arrive at the door to the office that belonged to Chejop Kejak at pretty much the same time, depending on stride length and relative foot speed. It is easy to hear a hubbub within and, as you enter you are confronted by an outer office filled with a host of Terrestrial and Celestial Gods, each clutching fistfuls of papers, petitions, treaties, letters of authority, reports, testimonies, deeds, grants, licenses and constitutions. Every single head turns to look at you and every single eye appraises you before they return to their various discussions, hagglings, consultations or outright arguments.


As you draw closer to the door to the inner office you can plainly hear an argument taking place within.


“You can’t just send letters like that!”


“Why not? I wanted to speak with them and it seemed the most efficient means of gathering them.”


“I don’t mean the method, even though that’s supposed to be reserved for the direct business of Fate itself. I mean, you’re not supposed to say that you are inviting people for conspiracy!”


“I don’t understand, that’s why I’m gathering them here, so why not write it plainly? I mean, it’s unlikely that they’d simply take time out of their busy lives just to come and drink tea with me. I had to tell them it was for something important. And besides, I do plan to conspire with them.”


“But you’re not supposed to be so plain about it! You should be a little more obscure about your meaning. What should happen if that letter got intercepted? What if someone decided to audit you on some trumped-up conspiracy charge?”


“Gracious, Petal, you are going to worry yourself into an early grave. The letters I sent were for the business of Fate and, in the case of an audit, isn’t intercepting those letters an offense in itself? And one perpetrated against an Incarna? That’s plenty severe, I think. And as for obscurity, there’s enough concealment of motives and obfuscation of causes already, why should I add to it? The time is too valuable to be wasted. And talking of time, you’d better let them in, they’ve been stood at the door, listening for the past few minutes.”


There was a pause, possibly of someone trying to recover their composure, and the door opened.


Burnished Petal stood before you, his clothes rumpled and his eyes dark-ringed from too little sleep. He sighs as he looks you over and winces as he sees the gods behind you rising as one from their seats and moving to converge behind you in a shouting, jostling melee, each brandishing their paperwork for Pluto’s attention. Petal ushers you all into the inner office, forcing the door shut behind you all even as the gods try to force their way in. He has to stamp on several feet thrust in from outside before finally getting the door closed.


Most of you had never seen Kejak’s office, seeing as you were not of his faction, nor even of his Inner Circle of allies, so what you see now is an eye-opener. The room’s walls are lined in bookshelves that stretch from ceiling to floor and weighed down with hundreds of arcane tomes and memory crystals, some that appear to date back to the First Age. Apart from the door you entered through, the only other clear space on the walls is behind the desk, and it looks suspiciously like a Celestial Gate. Before it is a heap of scrolls, stacked books and broken wood stained the same color as the other bookshelves. Over your heads, an intricate orrery whirls and spins, each star and constellation recreated in perfect detail with precious gems and Magical Materials. There are several chairs around the room, some covered or surrounded in piles of books and scrolls and a couch on the right side of the room.


And before you, seated in an chair that was far too big for her is Pluto. She is sat upon a stack of books so that she can sit comfortably at the desk, which is piled high in documents, requisitions, petitions and more. Her ever-present Pattern Spider is sat on the desk beside her left hand, playing with a small pool of spilt ink that rested on the highly-polished lacquered surface. As her milky-white eyes fixed on you, her lips split into a radiant smile and she hopped up and scrambled over the desk, scattering parchment, ink wells and brushes across the desk and the floor. She dropped down the other side and stood before you all, bowing to you politely.


“Welcome, all of you, and thank you for coming so swiftly! We have much to talk about and I have something I need for you to do.”, she chattered, her excitement at your arrival evident, “Petal, send all of those irritating gods away, could you? And cancel my appointments for the rest of the day,if you would? Oh, and could you bring tea? And crumpets? Yes, crumpets with fresh butter! That would be delicious!”


Burnished Petal opened his mouth as if to say something, but as he turned to his Maiden, she fixed him with a huge grin and he simply sighed, turned and stepped out the door. There was a sudden and renewed clamor outside that grew in intensity for a few minutes and was hastily silenced with the sound of flesh striking flesh and something heavy hitting the floor.


“Come in, take a seat. I think some of those piles of books are hiding seats. Or you could make seats out of the books I suppose.”


She turned and returned to her desk, climbing back into her chair even as Petal returned with a large tea tray loaded with a pot of boiling water, cups and a plate loaded with buttered crumpets.


“Crystal, could you be ‘Mother’?”, she asked, glancing over at the Chosen of Venus.
 
----- Starfall Shower -----


----- Chosen of Battle | Young Sifu | Sheet -----


----- Personal 16/16| Peripheral 28/28 | Willpower 10/10-----


Starfall Shower like many heard tales of Chejop Kejak office but it was even more impressive in person. Still tho, without wasting much time, when invited to take a seat, the young man pushed the books away to reveal a chair. Once comfortable, Starfall glanced at the tea and crumpets coming in but waited for the maiden or someone else to begin serving the hot beverage. There was indeed a lot of things to talk about but he didn't want to pretend to know anything about the goal of the meeting and simply gave a brief introduction with a polite bow.


"Enchanted to finally meet you, Starfall Shower at your service."
 
----- Cynis Atropos -----


----- Endings | Internal Affairs Investigator | Sheet -----


"Actually, while it is an auditable offense to intercept mail from an incarna, my lady," Atropos said, bowing automatically to the Maiden of Time, "conspiracy is a significant enough charge that the bureau might be inclined to overlook the indiscretion of reading someone else's mail. There's a precedent..."


She walked over to one of the stacks of books and began to look through it before seeming to snap out of whatever state she was in, blinking like an owl exposed to bright light. She had bags under her eyes to rival those of Burnished Petal, and wore the glazed-over expression of the sleep-deprived.


"I've been doing research," she explained to no one in particular, and sat down on the stack she had been looking through.
 
----- Eros -----


----- Serenity | Muse | Sheet -----


Eros arrives and bows to Pluto as he enters the room removing his top hat as he does. "Good morning, your Ladyship. Allow me to be of some service" With a flick of his wrist he throws his top hat high into the air and disappears into a blur, rapidly moving around the room to rearrange furniture so that all of the assembled sidereals are seated at one high table for tea. Moving nearly faster than the speed of thought he retrieves the table cloths from the closest and sets the table, relieving the servants of the tea as they enter the room. He thinks to himself that this service is unacceptable for an Incarna, the division of serenity would have had everything in place already. He finally comes to a rest near Pluto, pouring hot water into her cup to warm it. "Your ladyship If I may be so presumptuous, I suggest we hear Atropos first, her investigations are always of the highest order and whatever she discovers should take the lions share of our attentions."


OOC: Eros is activating Life Without Compunction for this scene.
 
----- Crystal Tea Cup -----

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----- Serenity | Intellectual, Socialite, Tea Lover |

Sheet -----
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"Certainly." Finally someone was asking her to do something. All she had done since the dome expanded was to answer questions and give reports. She had become so nervous when people asked her questions now that she would blink and stammer until the words jumbled out of her mouth in nearly incomprehensible bursts.


Unlike most of the other vizers, she was still just in her training period. She had done a few small tasks, but most of the time she was supposed to act as a hostess and serve those around her until she learned the names and personalities of the residents of Yu-Shan. The webs were very complicated here and jumping in too early would mean certain disaster.


Serving tea she had done since she was born. She had grown up in tea houses in the south, listening to petty complaints from petty merchants about pretty lords. She understood something abut politics, but Yu-Shan was the big time. Plots were embedded in intrigues, intrigues attached to factions, factions running conspiracies, and the conspiracies were involved in motives stretching back to the Primordial War. Not something you jumped into quickly.


As Eros stepped up and set table for the day, Crystal set to preparing their tea service. She set the water to reheat until it steamed rather than just boiled. She stacked the teacups, saucers, plates and knives on one arm with a practiced ease that came from years of practice and near god-like improvements in balance and precision that the Chosen often possessed. She quickly set the tea service for each of the guests, including one for herself as a last minute thought. She had been invited after all, and probably not just to serve tea. She would have to offer her services when her next Chosen exalted for Pluto, to train them to serve.


With practiced ease she measured the tea for the three pots of water that she prepared and set the to steep. "Is there anything anyone needs before we get started? Anything for our Maiden-host?" She returned to the tea pots, set them on wicker rounds and balanced all three as she placed them on the table and poured for each person seated before taking a seat herself.


She had chosen an aromatic dark tea blend from the Maiden's server. The scent would work quickly to clear the head of the jumbled senses that existed outside the room. The dark tea had a little more kick to it to help relieve the tiredness they all felt. And the steaming heat would help relax weary muscles so their attention would focus on the immediate task at hand.
 
----- Ragara Caft -----


----- Secrets | Rationalist Dataminer | Sheet -----


----- Personal 16/16 | Peripheral 34/34 | Willpower 10/10 -----


Caft enters the office, noting every detail of Kejak's official space. Inefficient. Kejak clearly cares more for spectacle than results. Still, fits his persona and could be useful in his position. Caft takes a seat, VERY carefully not damaging or sitting on any books. You simply do not treat books that way. Caft bows respectfully to Pluto and tries to hide his headache from the past few days. Caft sits in silence as Pluto speaks, filing away her every word just as he had the events at the parties. Mother. Not enough data to reach a conclusion regarding her meaning. Highest probability at pattern spider progenitor (12.47%). Caft accepts the food graciously, despite his preference for scones over crumpets.
 
As delicious tea and scrumptious buttered crumpets are doled out, Pluto grins indulgently.


“So, I guess you’re all ready and raring to go do Fate-stuff?”, she smiled, sipping her tea.


As the mouthful hit her tongue, she rolled her eyes and sighed with pleasure, “I always loved this blend, even though I’ve never tasted it before. Temporal glitches and borrowed memories are such a pain at times. But anyway, the reason I call you all here.”


She stood up, wiping her tiny butter-stained fingers on her yukata, “I’ve had teams of minor gods, god-blooded functionaries and a few unfortunates from your Divisions that were late to the party a couple of days ago number-crunching the massive fate anomaly and they came back with some quite surprising details. Apparently, Creation initially received an infusion of fifteen million, eight-hundred and sixty-seven thousand, nine-hundred and 47 new destinies, a mixture of mortal and god-like, but with a smattering of very strange destinies that appear to be Essence-users of a form no-one is familiar with. Yet. Over the past day or so, those numbers have decreased to somewhere in the fourteen-and-a-quarter millions, possibly due to the manner by which they entered. Geomantic retro-analysis indicates that the origin point was directly above the Omphalos but, considering the Pole of Earth’s stabilising nature, the material that penetrated Creation was then scattered hither and yon, seemingly at random. Traces have been made across the Four Directions, one concentration landed in the Eastern forests, somewhere near the source of the Meander River. Another crashed down approximately a thousand miles due south of Chiang-Dav, while another plopped down in the Glitter-Flame Desert somewhere. There was one that landed in the jungles of An-Teng as well as four that hit the Western Ocean, one in the south-west, one due west and the other two closer to north-west. Finally there were three that landed slap-bang in the north. One is north-east of Chanta, another is in the Black Crag Mountains near Gethamane and the last on the Great Ice itself.”


As she spoke, Burnished Petal had brought a hologlyphic table and laid it out before the tiny Incarna. He then opened it to reveal the map of known Creation, upon which Pluto marked each of the locations with her finger. Where her finger pointed a glowing orb of white appeared


“Nazri managed to muster up some of the Golds and Independents and dispatched small teams out to investigate some of the different locations.”, the Chosen of Hours said, touching several orbs to turn them yellow, “but, with the continued absence of the Bronze Stars, we’re seriously undermanned. He wanted to split you off into a few smaller groups and send you to the south...”


“But I overruled him.”, Pluto cut in and the little God and her Sidereal exchanged a glare. Obviously her decision was not sitting well with her Chosen, “Because, I decided that you all work far better together than apart. And I like you. Also, I think there’s some gnarly Fate-stuff tying you all together at the moment, some unresolved hinkiness in the Loom that gets kinda....fatal should you all be split off.”


She shrugged.


“So, Pluto would like you all to investigate this locationhere.”, Burnished Petal continued, highlighting the orb that sat by the city of Gethamane, “Your objective is to establish contact with whatever sentient lifeforms can be found there, determine their inherent threat level to Creation and treat with them as required by your investigations. Additionally, if you could observe one of these unusual Essence-users in the process of expending Essence, your findings would be invaluable.”
 
----- Eros -----


----- Serenity | Muse | Sheet -----


Eros takes his seat to enjoy the tea offered by the Maiden. He smiles to himself at the prospect of a first contact mission, one of those hasn't been performed in ages. He puts down his tea cup to speak in a measured and elegant way "This all seems reasonable indeed. I would be delighted to undertake the task, and I am sure Caft would love to compile data on such a novel topic. "
 

----- Crystal Tea Cup -----


----- Serenity | Intellectual, Socialite, Tea Lover | Sheet -----
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"Fate-stuff?" That was the last thing she wanted. She was just finished training, she wasn't ready to go play around with the fates of people, let alone... how many did she say... 14 million souls.


There was a bit of discussion about places that she had heard of but had no idea where it was. Some were in the south, at least she knew that part. And then they told her she would be going to glacier-covered mountains in the far north. She was from the south, she had no idea what cold was. She thought it was cold here. Now she had to go north.


"We are going into the cold to meet people? These are people, right? People and not giant monsters like in the First Age?"
 
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