Breakfast Meeting

Demiurge says "Pat, Daimon, Sarah, and Hitherby are all downstairs, just having got back from Heaven."

Pat continues to eat his croissant.

Demiurge says "Liz, Azalea, and others are upstairs, in the process of cleaning and dressing and patching bruises up and stuff."

Demiurge says "Marath is downstairs, keeping an eye on that mob."

Daimon gestures at people with his croissant and acts generally like a lunatic.

Azalea finds herself a pair of clean overalls and a blouse.

Liz winds up in a slightly faded and threadbare kimono.

Sarah does little eating and much contented beaming at and hugging of random people downstairs, including Marath.

As the euphoria wears off, the people downstairs might notice a certain Symphonic jangling which suggests a _large_ level of Symphonic disturbance during the night.

Pat takes note of this and files it for reference.

Daimon blinks about, and then goes back to calling Pat a complete bastard. Mostly because he is.

Liz still has a really nice shiner, and other scrapes and bruises, most of which are starting to heal nicely already.

Sarah looks concerned, but not yet unduly so, mainly because the people she's *primarily* concerned about are finally both in sight *and* demonstrably All Right.

Pat blinks placidly at Daimon.

Marath makes her excuses, and heads upstairs to check on the people up there.

Liz says "Y'know, Azalea, I think we should both head to the mall after this. Do you even have any other clothing besides your business suit?"

Azalea says "I believe I have quite a bit of stuff, stashed around the world. I would not, however, want to try to get it."

Marath reaches the upper hallway, and knocks on doors as she walks along. "Your friends are downstairs, Liz, Azalea. They just got back from Heaven, if you want a word with them."

Azalea looks to Liz. "Your friends, I think."

Liz smiles. "You should probably meet everyone, yeah."

Liz says "Come downstairs with me?"

Hitherby swirls thoughtfully, in the Kyriotate pose for "having an idea."

Pat glances mildly to Hitherby.

Azalea nods.

Daimon says "I don't have to do anything crazy, Hitherby, do I?"

Liz walks downstairs in her usual manner, with the addition of a small limp (but it's gotten better).

Hitherby wing-giggles. "I don't think so, Daimon."

Azalea follows Liz downstairs, newly attired in the overalls and blouse.

Hitherby says "Pat, I understand that certain scientists like to experiment upon rats, yes?"

Pat nods. "It's a rather common practice, yes."

Liz, when the folks downstairs get a good look at her, appears to have had a pretty rough night. She has a black eye, numerous scrapes and abrasions, and she limps. She's clean, though, and seems to be in reasonably good spirits.

Liz says "Hi Daimon. Pat, Sarah, Hitherby. How are you all?"

Sarah glances at the stairs, blinks, and straightens. "Oh, dear."

Daimon turns to look at people coming down the stairs, blinks a few times, and says, "Liz!"

Hitherby reflects. "Dark rats as well as the light ones Sephar uses in her -- well, presumably quite humane lab?"

Daimon gets up out of his chair to grab her and look at her.

Daimon says "Oh my God, Liz. Whe did this to you?"

Azalea says "I did."

Hitherby wibbles a bug-eye or, well, lots of eyes towards Liz. "Hey, Liz."

Sarah is wearing, rather than her usual librarian costume, skirt, a LOVE JUSTICE T-shirt, no glasses, and slightly mussed hair.

Azalea smiles, faint.

Liz grins a little sheepishly. "Um, Azalea there did it. Let me explain."

Liz says "Everyone, this is Azalea. I believe I mentioned her before."

Pat looks over at Liz and Azalea, and is already rising from his chair.

Pat says "Yes."

Daimon frowns. "Why didn't you call someone?"

Liz says "She's a former Calabite, now Ofanite of Dream."

<> Pat resonates Azalea, just before Liz speaks. :)

Sarah observes, "There would have been a slight problem with th--"

Daimon, if he can, will look at Liz's wounds, and then hugs her.

<> Pat rolls the d666 and gets 3 1 CHECK: 1.

<> Pat says "Bah. Azalea, what's your current emotional state?"

Sarah pauses, and looks near insanely pleased.

Hitherby says "My."

Liz leans forward and kisses Daimon's cheek. "I did call someone, Daimon. I called her and Aron, Virtue of Dreams. It's a long story."

Hitherby reflects. "Perhaps with the Princes divided, Hell no longer has the power to hold the erstwhile demonic souls."

Daimon holds Liz, obviously upset she looks like she's been through a war.

Pat relaxes slightly, placing his hand on the table and waiting.

Marath enters, and puts more croissants on the table. She says, "Azalea Redeemed."

Liz says "First though. Azalea, these are, respectively, Mazpatiel, Elohite of Judgement, called Pat, Chephirah, Cherub of Destiny, called Sarah, Oboth, Kyriotate of Animals, called Hitherby, and Daimonique, Lilim of Dark Humor in service to Judgement, called Daimon, and my boyfriend."

Sarah corrects mildly, "Lilim of Creation in service to Judgement."

Liz blinks. "What?!"

Daimon says "I had a long night."

Sarah just beams.

Liz whips to look at Daimon. "You did it? You Redeemed?"

Daimon says "Guess so. These things happen."

Pat looks quietly smug.

Liz *HUGS* Daimon tightly. "God, that's *great*. No wonder you all weren't at the metro station."

Liz blinks. "Creation? Wow, that means... you saw Eli?"

Daimon gets hugged and hugs back. "If you would have called, though... At least Pat and Sarah and Hitherby would have gone."

Azalea says "It was handled."

Daimon says "Yeah. Something like that."

Liz kisses Daimon for a long time.

Daimon gets kissed and kisses back. You know, this is the good part.

Liz mmms.

Pat glances sidelong at Sarah.

Daimon thinks about goin' back on upstairs.

Azalea looks over to Marath, helplessly.

Liz finally disentangles herself from Daimon, after a little bit, and then walks back over to Azalea.

Liz looks a little mussed.

Liz says "Okay, let me explain what happened."

Marath shrugs, and says, to Azalea, "Just stay away from him if he looks as if he's going to hug you. They're all in euphoria. Be nice to them."

Liz says "When you all didn't show at the Metro, I called Eduardo for help."

Marath passes Azalea a cup of black coffee.

Daimon says "Oh Christ, I'm not going to attack anyone."

Daimon returns to his chair to drink coffee and listen to the story.

Hitherby says "I showed! I just, er, was probably in the wrong place. Or distracted."

Marath pats Daimon on the shoulder, walking past. "I know, but not everyone wants to be hugged."

Hitherby waves a bug at Pat. "He told me to."

Daimon starts to say, "I damn well know what everyone wants..." but stops it before it comes out.

Liz says "Eduardo came along with Sephar and we went down into the sewers to investigate what might have happened there."

Azalea accepts the coffee, then begins to add liberal amounts of milk and sugar.

Pat finds his chair, lowers himself into it. "The sewers."

Liz nods. "The sewers."

Liz says "We found... something. I'm not sure what. Sephar and Azalea can tell you more, certainly."

Liz says "Before we could get it out, we were attacked by four Vapulans."

Sarah stands beside Pat's chair and makes a futile attempt at straightening her hair, then surrenders and just listens to Liz.

Pat reaches back and pats Sarah's hand at the grooming attempt.

Liz says "I found this...thing, but just as I did, I was hit by a Song of Possession and forced into the Marches. Turns out an Impudite took over my vessel, leaving Sephar and Eduardo alone with the Vapulans."

Liz says "I got my bearings, and zoomed over to the Tower of Dream, and, by God's grace, I ran into Aron and Azalea."

Liz says "Azalea had, I guess, just finished Redeeming."

Liz smiles brightly at Azalea. "Good thing, too. She saved everyone as it turns out."

Liz says "Aron arranged something with his Lady, and he and Azalea were able to go straight to where Eduardo was. I couldn't... I was stuck celestially until the Posession ended, so I'll stop there and let Azalea explain what happened next."

Pat nods to Liz and looks to Azalea.

Liz gives Azalea another friendly smile, and goes to settle down next to Daimon.

Daimon gives Liz a genuine buttered croissant.

Liz takes the croissant, and munches gratefully.

Azalea says "We arrived just as 'Liz' was running away; I'm afraid I did her rather a lot of damage, took the box away from her; a car came - more Vapulans, I suppose. We - well, Aron and Sephar and I managed to wreak rather a lot of destruction."

Azalea says "At this point, Vapula showed up."

Sarah flinches.

Pat closes his eyes for a moment.

Azalea says "Sephar did - something, and someone - an archangel - arrived. I don't really know who."

Liz says "Jean, I suppose."

Azalea says "We ran."

Pat says "They /both/ manifested?"

Azalea says "Yes."

Pat says "That does explain the echoes."

Daimon says "Jesus H. Christ."

Pat says "He was here as well?"

Azalea says "We took the box to a tether somewhere with a great many computers and whatnot. I think it was - technology? The man there said it bore the insignia of a long-dead demon prince of disease."

<> Demiurge says "Int Roll for those who want to try and remember stuff about DPs of Disease."

Azalea says "I left it in their capable hands, and went running back to find Eduardo."

Sarah says mildly, "Lightning." And then pauses.

<> Pat rolls the d666 and gets 6 4 CHECK: 6.

<> Hitherby rolls the d666 and gets 4 2 CHECK: 2.

Sarah covers her face in her hands.

<> Daimon rolls the d666 and gets 3 1 CHECK: 6.

<> Sarah rolls the d666 and gets 6 5 CHECK: 6.

<> Hitherby knows nothing about such things, but has been around long enough to fail to fail completely :)

<> Demiurge says "Hitherby remembers vaguely that there was such a Prince, called Makatiel, and he died ages back."

<> Liz rolls the d666 and gets 6 4 CHECK: 2.

<> Demiurge says "Daimon remembers there was Makatiel, who went insane and rogue, and was destroyed around the time of the Black Death. By, rumour has it, Judgement and the Game cooperating."

<> Demiurge says "Liz and Sarah and Pat don't remember."

Azalea says "When I got back, they'd decided, really, just to leave the blasted thing in Jean's hands, and he destroyed it promptly."

Pat nods, listening.

Daimon recites this information. "There was a Prince of Disease, named Makatiel. He went insane and renegade, and was destroyed in the Middle Ages, around the time of the Black death. Rumor has it, he was destroyed by both Judgment and Game - cooperating."

Azalea says "Makatiel had, well, at least it was rumoured he had, found a way to infect Vessels with the plague."

Azalea says "I'm sort of thinking that's what that box was."

Daimon considers. "The Black Death was before my time, I'm afraid."

Liz turns a little pale.

Liz says "God save us..."

Pat considers this. "Yes. That would be cause."

Hitherby says, reflexively, "It wasn't the fleas' fault."

Liz says "How... how did that box wind up in the sewers of Washington DC?"

Azalea says "The man at the tether was rather worried about that himself."

Pat says "Our answer at the moment is in shards in the Catacombs."

Liz nods. "I can imagine."

Daimon says "You ran into Vapulans. Theory: the Vapulans have found some interest in a relic of a dead prince. Theory: Nothing would amuse Vapula more then to let loose germ warfare on a large population base."

Liz says "Probably more ashes than shards, Pat. Eduardo was in full flame around the time I lost my vessel."

Pat looks at Liz. "Terethel."

Liz sighs. "No sign of Terethel, Pat.

Liz says "None."

Hitherby says, quietly, "David's Catacombs."

Daimon looks mildly amused. "So we know that the Game is probably cooperating with the Vapulans. And maybe this got discovered."

Hitherby says, "Terethel's Heart."

Hitherby says "Shards."

Liz says "Ah."

Liz blushes. "Sorry. I'm still a little out of it."

Sarah lowers her hands from her face. "I should have paid more attention to the Library," she mourns.

Pat looks at Sarah, questioningly.

Daimon says "Sarah, you didn't know."

Hitherby says "It sounds as if it worked out all right, Sarah."

Azalea sips her coffee, with a grateful sigh.

Sarah says "For this instance, yes."

Hitherby says "Which renders 'shoulds' rather unnecessary."

Azalea says "I hadn't realized how much more fun being on the bright side of life could be."

Daimon says "So the question is, what can we do to help, now that you've been there and back?"

Liz laughs softly. "I'm glad you like it, Azalea."

Sarah says "When I ascended, my Heart was nestled neatly in among the section of the Library dealing with that Demon Prince. I hope that this isn't indicative of a larger problem."

Liz *blinks* at Sarah.

Liz says "I..."

Liz sighs.

Liz says "You all need to know this."

Liz says "When I woke up."

Liz says "I was tied down with a collar around my neck to stop me from using essence."

Pat twitches an eyebrow at Liz.

Liz says "The Impudite had enough time to get me 'somewhere', I'm not sure where, and secure me."

Liz says "Or at least secure my vessel."

Liz says "But I was broken out by someone who is, I suppose, 'friendly' to our cause."

Hitherby glances to Azalea. "Where was Liz's body last seen?" she wonders.

Pat says "Friendly. Go on."

Liz says "Remember the Habbalite we ran into at the destroyed Tether? The one Eduardo read and found 'strictly' honorable?"

Liz says "The one we *think* works for The War?"

Daimon says "Yes."

Pat frowns.

Liz says "She cut me loose, made it look like I burst free on my own strength, and then got me out, blindfolded. She killed a human, probably a Soldier of Hell, on the way out."

Liz says "Then she drove me around, still blindfolded, to disorient me."

Pat says "Did it work?"

Liz says "It worked. I tried to keep track, but I lost it in a roundabout after a few dozen times around it."

Pat frowns a bit more, and nods.

Liz says "She drove me to the drop off point right after I lost it, so I think she was monitoring me. If I'd been able to trace it, she might have just killed my vessel, or taken me back."

Azalea looks ashamed. "I - I wasn't thinking. I should have brought the demon Liz back with us. I just - it was stupid of me."

Hitherby murmurs, again, "Where was her body left?"

Liz says "It's okay, Azalea. I... *sigh* I shouldn't have let my vessel get captured. I used the wrong Song of Shields."

Liz says "It worked, out, and I don't envy you running into Vapula, of all people."

Azalea says "On the street, I fear, mostly unconscious. I was hoping I'd knocked her out enough to last 'til Liz would have the Vessel back."

Pat sips coffee, considering.

Daimon sits back in his chair, and regards his cup of coffee.

Pat . o O ( Excellent. The telepathy is progressing. )

Hitherby reflects.

Liz says "In any case, 'Cecilia' dropped me off, took off the collar, and left me at the destroyed Tether. I caught a cab here."

Liz says "She said she'll retrieve my gun, ID, keys and carry permit, but I'm reporting them all lost."

Pat nods. "Wise. Elizabeth would be in a tenuous situation, otherwise."

Liz says "My other stuff's in my car, back at the metro stop. I have spare keys at the Hangar. Sephar can unlock everything, so I'll take him later. Then I should probably look at wrapping up or changing my role."

Liz says "They know where I am, who I am, my choir, and a few too many other things."

Sarah settles into a chair, and takes a croissant to nibble at.

Hitherby says, thoughtfully, "We are in it very deep."

Daimon says "Mmmm."

Hitherby opines, "We should either step up our program or move to the Himalayas."

Liz nods. "Cecilia said to look out for 'Junk Mail'. Given who we've offended this time, I have to agree with her."

Azalea offers to Liz, mildly, "They knew that before; I was spying, after all."

Azalea says "I have their files on you, upstairs."

Sarah queries mildly, "Junk mail?"

Daimon says "Letter bombs."

Pat nods.

Liz says "You do? I'd like to see them, if I may."

Sarah does not look enlightened.

Daimon says "So what do we do next?"

Liz says "Still, between the information and the stuff they took from me, they could ruin my role, and possibly me. I'll talk to my Superior about what to do."

Pat explains to Sarah "Explosive devices installed in an envelope or other parcel. When opened, they explode."

Sarah says "Ah."

Liz says "And Azalea, while I can hope for it, I don't think the next 'watcher' they put on me will be nearly so benign. It'd be nice, though."

Sarah says "I take it that it would be an increasingly bad idea for me to go anywhere near my apartment, then."

Liz gives Azalea a friendly, but weary, smile, and finishes her croissant.

Hitherby says "Azalea, how familiar are you with Bellman's?"

Pat says "Alone, yes. Azalea. I have a question."

Marath is occupied with getting the restaurant ready for the morning's business, and is now being helped by a quiet-eyed black man. She drops off a fresh jug of coffee and plate of croissants as she passes the table.

Hitherby says "Layout, defenses, personnel, and so forth? If you have this information, then I think the reluctance of my Superior and Zebina's to provide a strike team will be reduced. Based on what I have heard from authorities."

Azalea says "I'm not terribly familiar with it, I fear. I've spoken to the secretary."

Hitherby bobs.

You paged Azalea with 'Make an int roll?'.

<> Azalea rolls the d666 and gets 4 2 CHECK: 3.

<> Azalea says "woo"

You paged Azalea with 'It has just crossed your mind that this means you could find her dreamscape in the Marches.'.

You paged Azalea with 'And that one can do all sorts of questioning in dreams.'.

Hitherby says "Pat, if you will inform me of a lab where there are brown rats being abused, I believe I can gather Essence and information about Bellman's in one fell complicated swoop. -- Assuming, of course, that you do not have a plan that requires me or all possible backup to be elsewhere. If you do, I have no great attachment to mine."

Azalea says "But I think I gather quite a bit of evidence from the secretary, given a good night's sleep."

Azalea says "Your question, Mazpatiel?"

Pat nods to Hitherby. "As I have not yet formulated a plan, I will look for that information." He turns to Azalea. "The timing may be incorrect; if it is please disregard the question. The Destroyer set to watch my residence was sent to his Heart early yesterday. I would know any further details on the situation."

Azalea says "Last I heard, he was in trauma, and they were uncertain how he would recover."

Pat nods. "And has he been replaced?"

Azalea says "I do not know."

Pat nods.

Hitherby hums and swirls, swirls and hums. She says, "I suppose that one thing that might help is a list of the problems facing us. As I understand it, these are the reason Focals invested in the Opera, the location of the Game Tether, the resources of the Game Tether, Bellman's, and Sancuzzi's place, the connection with -- the telescope? and the underground thing and Makatiel, and sundry issues which we can do nothing about but improvise, like survival and freeing the Prince of Comedy. Have I been comprehensive?"

Azalea says "I would regret having become a turncoat so soon, were it not that I was glad to have been able to help Zebina."

Sarah says "I believe so, Hitherby, yes."

Daimon adds, "And Tokoba, who is likely Vapula.

Pat says "The telescope facility is a Vapulan Tether, Hitherby."

Daimon adds, "And Lust and Media doing their thing, and Civil Wars, and madness."

Hitherby bobs. "I revise that particular issue. The connection between Vapula and Makatiel."

Pat nods.

Pat says "And now the War."

Sarah flexes her hands, absently.

Hitherby says, thoughtfully, "I would advise against worrying unduly about our allies at this stage."

Daimon says airily, "I've decided to indulge and spend the day absolutely, positively Mad. Deeply insane. But none of you will notice the difference."

Sarah says "I've started some research, but not enough."

Sarah smiles at Daimon.

Azalea says "Bellman's is Nightmare's, of course."

Daimon lifts his eyebrows. "But, I will need to take a field trip to a tether of Freedom, as soon as I figure out where one is."

Liz leans over and whispers in Daimon's ear.

Daimon says "Sancuzzi is Fate. He has a hit man named Mad Dog. They're the ones who hit and destroyed the Comedy tether."

Daimon gets distracted by Liz.

<> Pat says "Demiurge, does Sancuzzi jingle any PI bells?"

>From afar, to Demiurge and Daimon, Liz whispers, "I want to see your wings, my darling. I want brush against them while I hold you..."

<> Demiurge says "Make an Int roll, Pat."

>From afar, to Demiurge and Liz, Daimon gets VERY distracted.

Sarah reaches for where her pocket should be, then sighs.

<> Pat rolls the d666 and gets 1 4 CHECK: 1.

>From afar, to Demiurge and Liz, Daimon leans over and whispers to Liz, 'As soon as we can get anywhere private....'

Daimon leans over and whispers back into Liz's ear.

<> Demiurge says "You recall some sort of Mafia link, Pat, now you think about it, but can't think of anything more offhand."

Pat says "You're sure Sancuzzi is under Kronos, Daimon?"

Daimon says "No, I'm not. It's an offhand assumption."

Hitherby hums a soft and thoughtful hum. "If we can capture the hit man, it might provide useful information. Then again, it might provide no information. I will defer to those who understand how such things work better than I."

Liz says "I'm fairly sure, Pat."

Liz says "I talked with the seneschal of a Lust tether, who says that she would send 'help' over to Sancuzzi's place from time to time."

Azalea finds a bagel and a seat, and begins to eat.

Liz says "She identified him as one of Fate."

Pat begins to dissect a new croissant. "There are strong mundane ties, there. That may provide an avenue."

Daimon says "And the Seneschal babbled about being attacked by Mad Dog, who worked for Sancuzzi."

Daimon says "Focals is a straight money laundering outpost. I'm wondering where their tether is."

<> Pat needs to hit the streets with his massive How To Be A PI skill. :)

Hitherby says, sadly, "They left via public transportation, and I was too distracted by Heaven to follow them."

Liz shrugs. "Capture the Lilim or Djinn of the game and interrogate them?"

Liz says "They know who we are, we know who they are. I'd like to stay on the proactive side."

Pat says "I can make calls, gather information on Sancuzzi."

Hitherby says, "I am with Liz regarding proactivity. I believe that we had several plans for sending them to their Tether that did not require capture -- but I may have been mistaken."

Liz nods at Hitherby. "Follow them, perhaps."

Daimon grins slightly. "I had a plan that involved, largely, being Funny. But I do need Sephar's assistance."

Pat says "Elaborate, please."

Hitherby says "I had considered manufacturing a Kobalite of enormous power, via a number of calls to the police, heading casually towards Focals leaving a trail of amusingly destroyed bodies behind him. I believe Daimon had a plan consisting of some modern gibberish that could well be much better, although I am unable to tell."

Daimon says "I have an email. It is, in fact, my own death warrant, but that's beside the point. It contains all the Headers on the email - who from, who to, server name. So we just do some email spam. Play with the DNS and reverse lookups until we get the server, telnet into port 25, put together an email by hand with exactly the formed headers as I have on the copy, send it to them. It's from Staciel, so I assume they're taking Orders from her. We just have to write the right thing...."

Azalea looks blankly at Daimon. She comments, mildly, "My."

Hitherby wing-laughs, helplessly.

Daimon says "The trick is to tell them to be at their tether at a certain time, and then wait for them to leave. The problem is that we can only send mail, back and forth. We can't receive."

Hitherby says "You see my point."

Liz is with Azalea on this one. Huh?

Daimon shrugs. "I've been around for a while, and I've spent a lot of it bored."

Daimon says "Basically, we can send bogus orders."

Pat smiles, slowly. "That's terribly illegal. Amusing, yes. Just, yes. How difficult will this be?"

You paged Azalea with 'You recall the name Staciel. Some sort of high-up person in the Game. A Lilim of the Game, you think. One of Asmodeus' 2ics.'.

Daimon says "For a normal server without paltry and poor security? Not very hard. With them? We'll need to do some hacking. That's not my corner, that's Sephar's."

Pat nods.

Daimon says "I defer to the Super Electron in this case to get us through defenses just to be able to do a straight telnet in. I don't know what we need to do or how it needs to be routed. It may have to go through a central mail server that isn't at Focals. But that's information in and of itself."

Daimon muses. "And then we follow them. Then we embarrass the hell out of them."

Sarah concentrates on her croissant. Something she unerstands.

Daimon says "It all depends on what I write in the email from Staciel to the other Lilim."

Pat says "What would be appropriate?"

Hitherby swirls slowly.

Pat considers Azalea, thoughtfully.

Daimon says "I'm not sure yet. Some commentary about needing to report to their tether at blah time."

Daimon waves a hand. "I'll think of it when I think of it."

Hitherby says "And something to make them not ask for confirmation."

Azalea says "So the Game has written your death warrant? That was fast."

Daimon says "No, it must be an unquestionable order, but common and straight forward."

Daimon grins. "It was! Isn't it GREAT?"

Pat continues to look at Azalea. "Your Heart is broken."

Daimon says "I'm so _flattered_ that they'd take interest in this little Ko-"

Daimon says "Um."

Daimon says "Forget it."

Liz looks at Daimon, then at Azalea, then at Daimon, then at Azalea. She starts wondering if she shouldn't be working for Destiny.

Daimon says "It'll take me weeks to correct my speech."

Daimon says "You know what I need? I need a flashcard with all the new terminology on it."

Sarah leans across the table to kiss Daimon's cheek.

Hitherby whirls to face Pat.

Sarah says "I'll work on it."

Hitherby has lots of faces. She can do this.

Azalea says "Yes, Pat."

Hitherby has lots of little *tiny* faces. But they are cute.

Daimon says "So that's my plan. In a nutshell."

<> Daimon puns!

Hitherby hums, "This may mean that contacting the secretary for information, Azalea, is contraindicated."

<> Liz says "You can take the Lilim out of the Kobalites, but you can't take the Kobalite out of the Lilim..."

Azalea says "Explain, Hitherby?"

Pat continues, calmly. "Nightmare has thrown lots with the Game. Word of treachery in an allied Servitor would definitely be of note to both the Game and its agents in the field."

Daimon grins at Pat. "I thought you were morally against breaking the laws, Pat?"

Hitherby says, "Azalea, it does not take enormous powers of perception for a passing demon -- if not the Dark Lady of Nightmares' own momentary attention -- to notice a broken Heart. Once that is accomplished, --"

Hitherby spins out a few bugs to orbit the central mass. "I believe Bellman's probably knows of your situation."

Azalea says, calmly, "I will be in as much trouble as the rest of you."

Azalea says "But I still have the Marches."

Pat says "How much of a target are you willing to be, Azalea?"

Daimon says "Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand that's why I have to go to the Tether of Freedom."

Azalea says "How much of a target did you need me to be?"

Daimon says "I can paint a mean bullseye."

Pat says "Posit. The Game, in the person of the Focals contingent, is made aware from quote down below end quote that one Calabite has turned to Heaven, and a return to the Tether is required for an updated briefing on a new target."

Hitherby hums a series of notes like a trickling waterfall, and wonders, "Why is this information not simply included in the orders?"

Pat says "Treason always causes a corresponding tightening of security. It is the nature of the Game."

Hitherby says, "Ah."

Pat . o O ( Stace wants intrigue, we'll give her intrigue. :) )

Hitherby nibbles some more on her tiny croissant, landing a few bugs on it to do so. "I believe my initial plan for following them may be 'bollixed'."

Pat says "Why?"

Hitherby says "I have insects on each of their cars. However, they are no longer using their cars."

Pat says "They can be moved?"

Hitherby says "I simply mention this. There is still the option of following them as raptors, which is both very effective and somewhat obvious, as lesser birds, which is less effective and less obvious, or you all in your car, which I understand is traditional and extremely obvious -- but that depends on skill. Where would you have me move the insects?"

Pat says "It would depend on their chosen transportation.,"

>From afar, Hitherby assumes that they haven't returned yet, since it's close to dawn, right?

You paged Hitherby with 'No, they haven't.'.

Daimon ponders havoc and chaos.

Hitherby pages: Did they use busses or taxis last night?

Daimon says "I wonder if we can tap into their phonelines."

You paged Hitherby with 'Taxis.'.

Hitherby says "They used the yellow vehicles that you can borrow using bills."

Daimon says "Taxi's have numbers on them, Hitherby."

Hitherby hums smugly. She took one of those, once! She's worldly.

Daimon says "And we can get Sephar to patch into dispatch."

Hitherby says, "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Daimon says "Hell, we won't NEED to follow them. This is fabulous. All Sephar needs to do is get into the dispatch radio."

Pat says "Or into the car's meter itself. The destination should be programmed."

Daimon says "Taxi's are an amazingly unsecure method of travel when you are faced with Funniness."

<> arcangel says "Or faced with Creativity!"

Hitherby considers this. "Excellent. Then they are doomed no matter which method they use."

Daimon says "Only because we'll be waiting for them to move."

Daimon says "The trick is this... hmmm.... I wonder."

Daimon says "So we get their location before they leave. We call the Media. We tell THEM where the location is going to be, and feed them some other information."

Daimon says "Now all I need to do is figure out what to tell the Media, and we're starting out on a world class Prank."

Pat says "How quickly can you improvise? The nature of the Tether may provide inspiration."

Hitherby says, seriously, "Daimon, are you certain that they will use the same destination from departure to arrival?"

Daimon says "It's easy enough. We get the Media to stop them and question them about their Mafia connections."

Hitherby says "The yellow cars are human-operated, and presumably can be reoriented en route."

Daimon says "Certainly. We need Sephar to listen in on it, or we need a backup, who will follow."

Daimon says "I would prefer no following - no obvious cars. That way, everything looks Normal."

Daimon says "Too bad we... hee... we can't swap one of us for the driver of the taxi. Or, hey.. wait a second."

Daimon says "Why can't we?"

Pat says "Because we would be recognized."

Hitherby bobs. "Agreed. I might coordinate with Sephar, perhaps, keeping a bird out of sight except when something causes him to lose them? -- which may happen; I understand that he can fail in a possession as easily as --

Daimon looks at Hitherby for a long time.

Daimon says "No we wouldn't."

Hitherby says, uncomfortably, "Look at the other Kyriotate, Daimon."

Daimon says "We'll con Sephar into this."

Daimon says "On the other hand, I may just be completely insane."

Hitherby says "If Sephar has the skill to drive a -- a taxi -- then it is a good idea."

Hitherby says "However, we must have a backup plan. Some humans are --"

Daimon says "I did claim to be spending the day quite Mad."

Hitherby says "-- petty, and resist possession even when it's very important."

Daimon says "So we need to work on a plan B."

Daimon says "I could do it. They might not recognize me."

Pat /looks/ at Daimon.

Sarah says "I'd consider that very doubtful, Daimon."

Daimon grins.

Daimon says "I mean me as ME. Not as Daimon Lightner."

Daimon says vaguely, "Sometimes it's good to have another me laying around."

Pat says "Elaborate."

Hitherby says "Perhaps -- what you said earlier, about Sephar inhabiting equipment, with me as a bird or three to pick things up when he loses track --"

Daimon says "You never know when you need a second vessel."

Pat says "Is the second unknown to the Game?"

Daimon says "No clue. But I very rarely use it. Although Hitherby's plan is more sane."

Hitherby reflects. "Perhaps you had best focus on the Prank part, Daimon, with the Media and everything, so that you will be using your temporary madness."

Daimon says "Ah. Good idea."

Pat finds a piece of paper and a pen, and starts writing.

Daimon peers at what Pat is writing.

Pat appears to be writing a letter.

Daimon says "Whatcha writin?"

Pat pages: Is there anything I'd need to write an imcomprehensibly bureaucratic missive?

Pat says "Email."

You paged Pat with 'You probably can do that. :)'.

>From afar, Pat is doing this thing.

Daimon grins hugely.

Hitherby hums a puzzled note. "*That* is email?"

Daimon says "Pat will know just what to say."

Pat says "Well, no. This will need to be transcribed appropriately."

Hitherby says "All of this fuss is about pen and paper, which humans have had for centuries?"

Hitherby says "Ah."

Daimon says "Deep."

Azalea chuckles.

Daimon finds deepness about now in everything. He examines a croissant, and appreciates it's flaws.

Pat asks, still writing, "What name should I refer to you with, Azalea?"

Azalea says "Depends who you're sending the email to."

Pat says "The Game."

Azalea says "Alia of Nightmares. What is it going to say?"

Daimon says "Afterwards, we'll fleece Pat for tattoos."

Daimon says "Or maybe we'll fleece Pat just 'cause it's fun."

Pat says "That your Heart has broken, and it is imperative that you are found before you take advantage of your knowledge to wreak irrecoverable havoc on the mutual goals of Nightmare and the Game. In the spirit of cooperation, et cetera, et cetera."

Daimon leans over to Pat, and whispers, "It's sexy when you get all technical and devious."

Hitherby murmurs, "Perhaps you should say that she was seen interfering with a Vapulan plot?"

Pat continues to write, adding clauses about said interference in the vaguest terms possible. "Thank you."

Azalea says "I have to admit that I don't understand the point of this exercise, but I'll trust you."

Azalea says "I'm told it's one of the things I should be learning."

Azalea smiles, wryly.

Pat says "We tell them nothing they do not know, Azalea, and give them ample reason to move to the Tether. Smoking them out."

Pat caps the pen and presents the letter to Daimon, a jumble of incomprehensible bureaucratese that probably hurts to read. "Will this be acceptable?"

Daimon frowns at it, turns it upside down, then right side up, says "Aaaaah..." peers at it, pulls it away, pulls it forward, and then nods vigorously. "Yep. Mucho coolness, duderino."

Pat nods.

Daimon tucks the letter away into the pocket of infinite stuff.

Daimon says "So huh. I need to take a field trip."

Azalea says "I don't suppose it could wait until I'd had a chance to look into the secretary's head for a while? It's just dawn; she should still be asleep."

Pat says "Of course it can wait."

Azalea says "Thank you."

Daimon says "Oh, it won't be until some errands are run. And even then, it'll be some prearranged time later today."

Hitherby smiles. "In the meantime, Pat can investigate Sancuzzi's mortally -- and find me my rats."

Azalea smiles at Daimon.

Hitherby smiles by making a smiley-face out of her swarm, of course.

Daimon says "I'm trying to think things through sanely, even if I may be the only sane man in an insane world."

Pat picks up his coffee.

Daimon gets up to go looking for Marath.

Marath is in the kitchen.

Daimon goes into the kitchen. "Um, hi."

Marath looks across from something she's frying up. "Hi there. What's the problem?"

Daimon says "Oh, no problem. I just need to take a walk to a tether to freedom, and I realized I have no clue where something like that might be hiding."

Marath frowns. "I don't _know_ about any Tethers to Freedom in the city, but I suppose that if you wanted a public landmark, there's the Statue of Freedom on the Capitol building."

Daimon says "_On_ the building?"

Marath says, "Or you could try asking at the Trade-Tether. They'd be the most likely to know, after that."

Daimon says "Oh, okay. Cool. Thanks."

Marath waves a hand. "It's on the top. There are tours out to see it."

Daimon says "Tours are cool. It's just, you know, I should probably tell 'em that the Game didn't chop me up into kibble."

Hitherby nibbles on her croissant.

Marath nods, her attention moving back to the pans. "Just make sure there isn't anybody waiting for you to try and run to there, okay?"

Daimon says "It would be easier if I could just call them. But if it's a statue, that makes things difficult."

Hitherby explains to Pat, with the bugs still airborne, "The nice thing about rats is that they live *inside* the walls, hidden, unheard, unseen -- and, if they're dark, they can hide in shadows outside the walls, too. A fleet of them and I could scan the building, in and out, and be gone again in minutes. -- Unless what they have in the basement is something sick enough that I have to act."

Marath shrugs. "I have no idea who runs it, if it is a Tether at all."

Hitherby says "I'd use roaches, but I expect they're ready for bugs at this point."

Daimon says "Well, I'll ask Liz, and call the Trade tether, and see what they know, then."

Daimon says "I just don't want people freaking out, is all."

Marath nods. "We don't want to panic because you forgot to tell us where you were going, no."

Pat nods to Hitherby. "How many will you need?"

Daimon says "I mean... well, you know what I mean. It works a lot of different ways."

Marath says, "Obligations all over, hmm?"

Daimon says "That's how it is. But if one of the Sisters dies in some messy way, Lilith tends to become... irate. And I'd rather that didn't happen, if you know what I mean. And besides, if I don't show her courtesy now, then I'm going to be very unhappy later."

Marath has a faintly disapproving air, but she nods. "I understand. Don't worry, I'll be reasonable about it."

Daimon looks a tad relieved. "Thanks. I just don't want to be forced to hurt someone I care about later because I was a jerk now. That's all."

Hitherby thinks. "About twenty, Pat." She considers. "That's a little more than I can control while still having Forces free for humans, but rescuing a few of them on general principles is good."

Marath says, "It's okay. We do understand, and the situation is unusual."

Daimon says "Cool beans."

Pat nods. "I may not be able to find a collection of dark rats in a lab, though. More common are the white ones. And even still, it would take a search."

Pat says "There /are/ always the street rats. They're normally heartier, as well."

Daimon goes and gives Marath a little hug, then returns to Da Group.

Hitherby reflects.

Marath returns the hug, then goes back to her pans.

Hitherby swirls softly.

Daimon comes back and sits down. Plop.

Hitherby says, "Street rats may be better. I should still rescue something, though -- I need the Essence, and it's a good plan for life, anyway."

Pat nods to Hitherby. "I understand. But necessity may dictate otherwise."

Pat says "If you need Essence, I've some to spare."

Daimon comes back, and sits at the table next to Liz.

Daimon grins at Liz. "Hi."

Liz smiles at Daimon. "Hi. Wow."

Hitherby hums softly.

Daimon smiles back at Liz. "Hi and more wows."

Daimon says "Soooooooooooo....... I need to get in touch with your Tether, Liz."

Hitherby says, "I --" She swirls. "Mazpatiel, I could desperately use three measures. Two to call the street rats, one for Corporeal Form if there is trouble, and still have my current two to summon -- help. But, as you can see, just one or just two would be almost as invaluable."

Pat extends his hand towards Hitherby's cloud.

Hitherby says, "I have never recovered from the Shedite eviction."

Hitherby lands a dragonfly, gleaming, on Pat's hand.

Pat makes a point of admiring the dragonfly, as he flows Essence into Hitherby.

Liz blinks at Daimon. "You do? Sure. Um, why?"

Daimon says "Well, they're the only people who would have the phone number of a tether of freedom."

Eduardo comes down the stairs from above, moving carefully, but looking far better than yesterday.

Sepharbird flutters down from the rafters to perch lightly on Eduardo's shoulder.

<> Daimon waits for someone to do something. :)

Liz says "Tether of Free... ah."

Liz says "Maybe."

Daimon says "Yeah, that."

Liz says "I haven't ever needed to know if we do or don't but..."

Liz says "I'll ask."

Hitherby forms a smiley face in the air as the dragonfly returns to the swarm. "Thank you, Mazpatiel. I admire generosity."

Daimon says "Mmmmmmmmmm...... cool."

Daimon looks like he has something on his mind other then making courtesy calls.

Liz grins, kisses Daimon's nose, and smiles. "I still want to see your wings, y'know."

Daimon says "And I'd like to show 'em to you."

Eduardo glances over and nods to the bird as it settles. "Sephar? Or Hitherby?"

Sepharbird sings softly, "Sephar."

Hitherby hums, merrily, "I'm over here, Eduardo."

Sephar flutters off Eduardo's shoulder and circles his head and then flit-flies over to Hitherby cloud, singing a quick note of joy.

Eduardo glances over, stiffening a little as he sees Daimon. "Ah," he says, then makes his way across the room.

Daimon does the 'Well, there goes some quick celestial nooky' sigh.

Hitherby swirls into a rotating, Ofanite-like ring for a moment. "Hi, Seph'. I hear you got into trouble without me."

Hitherby makes an amused noise.

Sephar flutters to perch near the ring, and bobs a nod. "Indeed. Quite a bit."

Liz grins up at Eduardo. "Daimon Redeemed, Eduardo. Have a 'look'. He's one of us now."

Sepharbird peers at Daimon, "Cool!'

Eduardo raises an eyebrow at this. "I was going to," he says, reaching out and offering one hand to Daimon. "They're clean."

Hitherby says, "I am not surprised that you got out of it again, of course. But you should be more careful!"

Daimon takes Eddie's hand... tentatively.

Sepharbird bobs abased at Hitherby, "Yes, ma'am. I should have had more backup, I think... like how you taught me."

<> Daimon says "Kyrio scolding!"

<> arcangel says "They're so cute!"

<> Daimon says "Can I have one? PLEASE?"

Eduardo's hand is hard, calloused enough even in his human vessel, and a strength evident in a grip he doesn't close.

<> Liz says "You already have two."

<> Eduardo rolls the d666 and gets 4 4 CHECK: 1.

<> arcangel says "It followed me home, Seneschal!"

<> Sephar giggles.

<> Daimon says "Is that a success? The resonance roll?"

Sepharbird says, "I *tried* to get to you when I could, but then got swallowed up by the Vapulan car."

Hitherby forms a sphere, with circular cross-sections rotating in different directions, and says, "I am not certain that it was not meant to happen this way. Eli chose that night to drag us away, and certainly it would have been bad if we had waited until late today to investigate the sewers -- still."

Sephar blinks. "Eli? Wow."

Hitherby makes a cheerful wing-chirp. "But I am glad that you thought of me."

<> Daimon gives it. "The most noble thing would be redeeming to Creation. The most ignoble thing is that he left Liz stood up while he promised to meet her for a night of nooky while he went off to redeem."

<> Daimon says "That's 'via his moral standards'."

<> Eduardo laughs! :)

Sepharbirb bobs a bit more happily. "Well, you were certainly the first I thought of for help."

Hitherby spins. "Clearly, while we are freeing Dark Humor, we must also assassinate Technology, so that he will cease making these Kyriotate traps."

Eduardo nods once, shaking Daimon's hand and letting it fall. "I'm glad," he says. "They would have objected if I'd had to come after you."

Daimon says "I guess. It's not like Pat wouldn't have killed me if I decided to go crawl my little green fanny back to the pit. Which is, disturbingly, no longer green."

Sephar bobs at Hitherby and chirps a laugh, "That would be good."

Daimon says "Ergo, I'm no longer Lilim. I'm currently an Other."

Liz blinks. "You're not?"

Hitherby lands a bug neatly on each of Sepharbird's shoulders.

Daimon says "Um, nope."

Hitherby says "We have been discussing sending Focals fake 'email'."

Liz just says 'Wow' again.

Sephar looks to both sides and then listens, "Oh! Cool."

Eduardo nods. "I'm still glad."

Daimon says "I'm happy I make your level of standards then, Eddie."

Hitherby says, in Liz's direction, "He has become neon pink. It is an interesting sight."

Sepharbird chirps happily. "What do you want to send them?"

Daimon says "I am _not_ neon pink."

Hitherby wing-giggles.

Daimon says "I'm sort of white. Er, pale. Humanish."

Eduardo lets his hand fall away, and gestures to an empty seat at the table. "May I?"

Daimon says "Sure."

Hitherby says, "Pat has composed something. We won't be sending it until later, because Daimon wants to be involved and to not do it until later -- but he says he'll need you, definitely."

Liz laughs softly, and kisses Daimon again. "I still want to see."

Hitherby says "Something to get them to go to their Tether."

Daimon kisses Liz back. Mmmmmmmmm warm Ofanite.

Daimon loves da Ofanite. He kisses her more.

Sepharbird hops once at that, "Keen. Uhm... like?"

Liz mmms happily, snuggling with Daimon over in the corner where they won't offend anyone.

Daimon gets his brain dragged away from Pranking by Liz.

Sepharbird murmur-chirps to Hitherby, "Aren't they cute?"

Eduardo glances over at Liz, eyes amused. Then he claims a seat, settling gingerly into it.

Hitherby forms a circle again for a moment, and then bobs when the circle dissolves. "Indeed."

Daimon is trying to think about Pranking, but ya know, Liz...

Liz is, Daimon would likely notice, wearing only a rather threadbare kimono, although it's certainly modest enough, properly worn.

Hitherby heistates a moment, and then offers, to Sephar, in a mock-Hell accent, "Hey, dudes, this is Staciel. Get your butts to the Tether pronto?"

Hitherby says "Only in Patese."

Daimon whispers into Liz's ear something about going on upstairs.

Daimon is utterly not thinking about this Prank.

Pat says "I have a dialect?"

Daimon hopes someone else explains it.

Sepharbird blinks. "Hrm. Hokay. But I know I can't write Hellscript."

Sephar peers at Pat.

Daimon pulls away from Liz, and holds up a finger in a "one moment" gesture.

Hitherby bobs to Pat. "I believe so, Mazpatiel, although obviously you use it only when nothing else specific is required."

Pat says "It's a matter of verisimillitude."

Eduardo considers the conversation and the menu in roughly equal amounts. "He speaks well."

Hitherby says "Daimon will translate Pat's message into Hellscript, presumably."

Daimon says "Sephar, short version. We're going to a public terminal. We're hacking into Focals. We're using the headers on the email death warrant on me to form a piece of email. I'll translate to helltongue, and type the message in. Pat has already written it. The message has a specific time for them to go to their tether to meet them. Then we wait for them to call the taxi. We intercept the taxi, and Kyrio the driver. Then we drive 'em to the tether. I will call the Media, tell them where it is, and have them go stop the Game and question them about Focal's Mafia connections."

Liz straightens her kimono, and goes over to Eduardo while Daimon's planning a Prank.

Sephar says "Oh. Hokay. Sounds like fun."

Liz says "Eduardo, I need to fill out a report for a missing gun, CCW permit, id, and Keys, all in a fanny pack."

Daimon says "We tell them Azalea is renegade. That this is their new target. They have to go to the tether for debriefing."

Eduardo says "I think I missed something," he says, the looks up at Liz. "We can get that done."

Sephar hophops about, thinking through the routing of the email.

Liz nods. "Today, if possible. I'll probably wind up getting them back, but in the mean time..."

Daimon says "Well, we have the server name from the email, presumably. Reverse DNS lookups should get us a machine to telnet into the SMTP port of. Yes?"

Liz apparently believes 'Cecilia's' assurance that she can get her stuff back. It would be the honorable thing to do.

Daimon says "If it's behind security, we'll have to find the proxy server."

>From afar, Sephar grins and knows that in RL, it could spoof that pretty easily with a public terminal. But the char can do as Daimon says, too?

You paged Sephar with 'You think so.'.

Sephar pages: Cool.

Hitherby bobs. "I would also appreciate your locality, Sephar, when I am investigating Bellman's, which I believe will happen either before the message or before the time it specifies. I am uncertain whether you should actually accompany me. Perhaps as long as you stay inside objects, which can be abandoned or damaged without dissonance, it would add more to the chance of success than to the risk.

You paged Sephar with 'Of course, you've never actually _tried_ forging an email directly to Hell. But heck. :)'.

Sepharbird bobs a nod at Daimon. "Yes."

>From afar, Sephar grins. Yeah. There is that.

Daimon says "And then on the way out we'll hop machines around the world, and port scan 'em."

Hitherby swirls around suddenly. "Wow. I have Essence."

Eduardo looks blank.

Daimon says "After the mail gets through, so that well, the mail gets through but they can't get out."

Hitherby says this as if it were an amazing new world.

Daimon says "Oh, and did I mention I'm completely insane today? Just a side note."

Sephar hops at Hitherby and cocks its head. "I can do that, stay in a simple object for about two hands of minutes, but it would take a more complex machine for me to stay longer."

Sephar peers at Daimon.

Sephar says "You hadn't mentioned that, no."

Daimon says "Well, I am. Ain't it great?"

Sephar contemplates Daimon's plan in this new light, you can see it thinking...

Daimon watches Sephar process. "Processing..."

Sephar chirp chuckles, "Yes, it still seems to be solid. Insane creativity?"

Hitherby wiggles her feet in the bugs on Sephar's shoulders. "Well, you could move from one to another." She sings a faint approximation of the celestial word, "Kyrio-hopping."

Daimon says "Something like that, yeah."

Daimon says "I'm crazy, in a good way!"

Sephar says "Cool."

Eduardo leans back, coffee in hand. "I hope someone else understands this."

Sepharbird sings the notes back to Hitherby and bobs a nod. "Two mirrors would do easily."

Liz says "Not a clue, Eduardo. I'll leave the Pranking to the experts."

Eduardo says "And I will leave the computers to all of you. I'm just old fashioned like that."

Daimon says "I am merely a mad muse, set adrift on the sea of insanity. I write my strange poetry to coexist with the music of life."

Sepharbird hops and chuckles at Eduardo, "Us youngsters."

Eduardo shifts his shoulders. "I was not going to say it."

Hitherby hums amusedly. "We will see how it goes. It occurs to me that your staying with me is difficult, as I can be more rats than you can be -- anythings -- but as long as you can arrive on the scene of trouble promptly, you will be a valuable safety measure."

Sephar bobs a nod, "No, it's good for me to know I'm young with much to learn."

Liz says to Eduardo, quietly, "Actually, *I* use computers all the time, and I have no idea what they're talking about."

Sephar chirps at Hitherby. "Hokay."

Daimon says "Hey. Vapula. Pranking. It's amazing what skills you pick up when you have an empty year or three."

Eduardo says "And I am old. With much to learn," and then glances at Liz. "I'm not sure if that makes me feel better."

Sephar contemplates, "I could circle just out of sight in a bird, to come as necessary."

Sepharbird asks Hitherby, "Would that work?"

Daimon contemplates. "I am both old and have traveled many paths, and am a novice stepping for the first time on the road to life. I have much to learn, but I have many experiences. I'm also nuttier then a fruitcake."

Pat does not see fit to speak his mind.

<> Daimon thppt.

Marath slaps a fresh jug of black coffee down on the table, and heads off to do more work. Customers have begun to filter in, and are investigating bagels, croissants, and bacon and eggs and the like.

Pat . o O ( It's all Eli's fault. )

Eduardo looks over at Daimon, and says "You are."

Daimon grins. "Thank you sir. Kindest thing anyone has said to me in virtually minutes."

Hitherby hums thoughtfully to Sephar. "A circling bird would be noticed. But perhaps two perched birds, on a tree -- one you, one me --"

Sephar says "Keen. That would be less noticable."

Hitherby says "And to prevent getting sucked into a device, I would say something every few minutes. Well, that wouldn't stop it, but it would give you warning."

Sephar chirp-chuckles.

Sephar says "Yes it would."

Hitherby says "I would like to think that I would not be caught so easily -- heck, I would like to think that it was bad luck and *you* would not be caught so easily -- but perhaps there is nothing either of us could do against them."

Sepharbird cocks its head, "It happened when I was in things, a computer, a car, so you may not have the bad luck I did."

Eduardo gives Pat a *look*. It says "Is Daimon going to be this bad forever?"

Pat looks at Eduardo. "No more than a month, I'd say."

Eduardo murmurs "Bright Lady preserve me," and then nods.

Pat nods, refilling his coffee.

Hitherby bobs. "Certainly the Dark Prince of Technology would be most concerned about Kyriotates of Lightning."

Sepharbird grins.

Sepharbird sings happily.

Sepharbird sings a quick flow of notes and then fluffs its feathers and plops down onto the breakfast table everyone else is at and picks at a few of the crumbs.

Hitherby moves her bugs over to just one half of her croissant.

Sepharbird cocks its head and then hops over to peck at a corner of the other half.

Sephar says "So how did Daimon go Bright? What happened?""

Pat says "Eli happened."

Sephar bobs gently, whistles a low-soft whistle.

Eduardo's eyebrow arches again. "Explains it."

Pat says "As to the actual process? I can't say. By the time we had ascended, he was already in grace."

Sephar bounces about in a bird version of it's rat dance.

Sephar chirps, "Keen. I'd wondered how it might be done, but I guess it only matters that it was."

Eduardo sits forward again, nodding. "Exactly."

Pat nods. "Just so. His Heart is in the Hall, his service at the Spires."

Liz blinks, and arranges a menu to shield off Hitherby from the rest of the restaurant. It wouldn't do for the normal clientele to be put off by the bugs-on-croissant and hurt Marath's Business.

Hitherby's little bug eyes blink. *spoik* *spoik*

<> arcangel wants to see Hitherby blink without eyelids.

<> Hitherby is talented.

Sephar bird sings to Hitherbugs, "I take it Liz already told you about our adventures last night?"

Hitherby says, puzzledly, "Zebina, I do not wish to make an order."

Sepharbird hops into the pages of the menu and peers about itself.

Hitherby hums agreeably. "She did, yes."

Eduardo grunts.

Sepharbird chirps, "Cool." from within the cave of pages.

Sepharbird sings, "So when do we do this mail thing?"

Pat says "Later today. More information is needed to craft the scenario."

Hitherby hums thoughtfully. "Is there any reason to delay on scouting Bellman's? If not, is there anyone else who wishes to accompany me?"

Eduardo eyes Hitherby. "I'd be obtrusive,"he says, almost as if addressing the menu.

Hitherby rises up enough over the menu to bob to Eduardo. "If there were any Vapulans around, they might react poorly to spotting you."

Daimon looks mellow.

Daimon is actually looking mellow at Liz.

Liz looks mellow right back at Daimon. Well, along with the black eye, of course.

Daimon is giving Liz one of those, "I should make her feel better" looks.

Liz grins at Eduardo and Hitherby.

Liz catches Marath the next time the Seneschal wanders by, and inquires after Tania.

Daimon just ponders life and stuff. And freedom tethers. And angry mothers who are almost Jewishlike in their anger. He imagines. "Oh, Daimonique, you went and redeemed without your coat! What would your father say?"

Daimon . o O ( So Lilith is going to say, 'I _said_ you were going to get sick hanging around with those nasty angels. Oy! Look at what happens!' )

Sephar . o O ( You lost all your pretty green! )

Marath says, to Liz, "We had a talk, I'll be seeing her again tomorrow - today, that is - and she went home to sleep. Nice girl. Thanks."

Liz smiles. "Good. I was worried about her."

Hitherby studies her croissant. "It must be nice to possess Stuff, Sephar. To leap into a croissant and become crisp and fresh and soft and extra-tasty."

Daimon says "Stuff is extremely cool. Sephar and I have a Stuff bond."

Daimon doodles little Celtic Knot drawings on a napkin.

Marath nods. "I'm sure she'll get back to you. Or back to Daimon."

Hitherby made sure to say that loud enough for Marath to hear, unless Marath is a long long way away :)

<> arcangel . o O (Kinky! Celtic Knots!)

Liz says "Daimon would be a better choice, I think."

Liz says "I can sing reasonably well, but not like he can."

Daimon says "I'm okay."

Daimon passes his little knot doodles to Liz.

Sepharbird kinda just looks at the croissant.

Liz smiles at the napkin, says, "You should give this to Jordan. I think he'd appreciate it."

Marath nods, then smiles down at Hitherby. "Want some more honey?"

Sepharbird pecks at the corner thoughtfully.

Sepharbird chirps thoughtfully, "I'm not at all sure I'd want to be eaten, though."

Hitherby says, "That would be very nice, Marath!"

Daimon says "If I see the Easily Scandalized One, I will offer him a better gift."

Liz laughs softly. "As you like."

Liz admires the knots a bit more.

Hitherby adds, to Sephar, "It is the way of the wild. Cats eat mice; wolves eat deer; muffins eat croissants."

Marath spoons out some more honey onto the edge of Hitherby's plate, then heads back to the kitchen again.

Hitherby says "One cannot dispute the natural order."

Daimon says "Hey, I can give Jordan what it was he wanted!"

Daimon says "He'll be happy."

Daimon resonates on Liz. Hmmm.

<> Daimon rolls the d666 and gets 3 3 CHECK: 5.

<> Daimon says "Whatcha Want Right Now, Liz?"

Sepharbird now peers at a nearby muffin a bit dubiously.

<> Liz wants, right now, another shower, her various cuts and abrasions and bruises to stop hurting, to find out how endangered her role is, mostly because she doesn't want to lose her plane, to see Daimon celestially and corporeally, in private, for a nice, loooong time, and to find her Superior and give him a very long and somewhat apologetic report about what went on.

<> Liz says "Oh, and on the 'low end Needs', to get better clothing for herself and perhaps for Azalea, who deserves better than overalls."

Daimon leans over and whispers to Liz. "What don't you go upstairs and take a nice long bath, and let me rub you down. Later, we'll go to the tether of trade, and then maybe out shopping a little. Then we'll do the whole hacking deed. Later. Later when we're all feeling much better."

Liz siiiighs softly. "Do we have time for that?"

Daimon says "Yeah gods, no. Is it good for your psyche? Will it make you perform better in a few hours? Hell yeah."

Daimon says "I need to talk to the Tradetether people anyway. You need to go there. So that part is fixed. And we can only do so much while Sephar and Hitherby are busy."

Sepharbird bobs again, "It'll likely take me a bit to figure out the reverse routing, though it's possible it'll take some time. I've never quite done direct-from-Hell routes before, so I want to know a bit more before I start."

Daimon says "Well, Sephar, you'll probably need my brain for that."

Sephar says "True."

Hitherby hums curiously. "It is removable?"

Sarah says "I hope not."

Daimon says "Maybe Lightning has perfected brain cloning."

Sepharbird flies onto Daimon's head and pulls a bit at his hair with a beak and says to Hitherby, "I don't think so..." and jump-hops at what Daimon says. "Oh, dear, no."

Daimon says "No?"

Sephar says firmly, "No."

Eduardo shakes his head and echoes. "No," voice weary.

Daimon says "I heard about an experiment on the west coast where they swapped two monkey's HEADS. But they couldn't attach the spinal column... actually, this is sounding quickly Vapulan."

Eduardo says "Not and replaceable. Trust me."

Daimon says "Okie."

Sephar bobs a nod, then flutters down to the table to bob again, "Yes. Quite Vapulan."

Sarah murmurs, "Flash cards, yes."

Daimon says "I am not really all that fond of Technology, actually. I dig computers, I dig other stuff, but you know."

Daimon ponders. "So Sephar, we should probably do this hacking at a wired public library. What time to you want to do this?"

Daimon thinks, doing it at a library will let Sarah do Stuff as well.

Sephar says "Whenever you're done rubbing Liz down?"

Pat checks his watch. "Hm."

Sarah glances to Pat. "Yes, dear?"

Liz laughs softly. "Well, if everyone's determined to see me have down time with Daimon, who am I to protest."

Sepharbird chirps at Liz.

Pat says "It's morning."

Hitherby says, helpfully, "I could not possibly see you do that. I am hidden behind a menu."

Sephar peers at Pat.

Sarah agrees, "It is morning, yes."

Daimon says "I just think that Liz has had a really hard night, and...."

Daimon says "Well, to be fair, I'll offer to have sex with Eddie too, because he's had the same bad night."

Daimon grins at Eddie.

Sarah blinks.

<> arcangel chortles. Big Black Wings does it again!

Eduardo pauses, coffee cup half-way to his mouth. He looks at Daimon a moment, then just shakes his head.

Daimon bursts out laughing.

Daimon says "No?"

Eduardo says "No."

<> arcangel | Eduardo . o O ( Creationers... )

Sepharbird chirps inquiringly, "Is that what one does for those hurt on Earth duty?"

Daimon grins wildly. "Well, maybe later, then."

Pat says "I should start on Sancuzzi."

Eduardo shakes his head. "No," he says, though it's not clear if that is aimed at Liz or Sephar.

Sepharbird says quietly, "Ah. okay."

Daimon says "Well, if you love someone, and you care for them, and they get hurt, you want to make them feel better."

Eduardo says "You do that when the passion is there."

Sarah glances to Pat. "It seems to be an increasingly bad idea for any of us to be alone. Is it avoidable?"

<> Eduardo says "You know. Having sex with Eddie's injuries would not be fun."

<> Daimon says "Well, there is celestially."

<> Sephar says "Cool."

<> Daimon is a chick, celestially, so hey.

Pat looks at Sarah. "This is an entirely mundane matter, I believe. The chances of running someone actually tied to Sancuzzi are..slim."

Eduardo says "Some of us have jobs," looking over to Sarah. "So no. It's not avoidable."

Liz says "Tell you what, Daimon. I have to give the 'lost gun and other things' report to the Police right away."

Daimon says airily, "I just quit and now I'm on unemployment."

Sepharbird says quietly to Eduardo, "Can a mouse hide in your desk?"

Daimon says "Oh."

Liz says "Let me do that, and pick up some extra things at the Hangar, and we can come back here."

Liz says "If Marath is willing to lend us a room and a tub."

Daimon says "I think all things are possible. I do have to track down the Freedom tether."

Marath says, sweeping by, "No problem," and is gone again.

Daimon says "I have to do that soonlike."

Eduardo looks down. "Possibly. But I travel."

Eduardo says "You do not want to see what I do."

Hitherby says "I can continue to keep bugs with people. It will hinder things at Bellman's, but not by that much."

Liz says "The SEC is normally closed on Saturday, but our part of it is always open, naturally."

Hitherby says "Up to y'all."

Sepharbird blinks up at Eduardo and bobs a nod.

Daimon says "Sure."

Liz says "We can run by the Trade Tether on the way back from the Hangar."

Daimon says "You need to report in anyway."

Eduardo . o O ( Young angel. And I'm a DC Homicide cop. She doesn't *need* to see that )

Liz says "Yeah."

Liz says "This is starting to become a daily happening, but..."

Liz shakes her head. 'An archangel and a demon prince, face to face, in the city.'

Daimon says "You Need to do it. It'll make you feel better to do it and get it over with."

Sephar bobs a nod at Liz.

Sephar says "I couldn't think of anything else to do when I saw him there. Had to call the Boss as I knew I was in over my head."

Liz says "I'm glad you did, Sephar. I don't think you would have made it out, otherwise."

Sephar bobs a nod, "I'm fairly sure I wouldn't have."

Hitherby says, "That would have been terrible."

Eduardo says "One can survive it. Vessels are fragile."

Sepharbird shakes its head, "I'm not sure Vapula would have limited the destruction to Vessels."

<> Demiurge says "Damn right he wouldn't."

Eduardo considers, then nods. "That would have been a loss."

Sarah agrees quietly, "To say the least."

Sephar says "Aron and Azalea. That would have been very bad."

Sepharbird sighs softly and settles, feathers fluffing a bit.

Daimon doodles on more napkins.

Hitherby points out to Eduardo, "And, um -- we don't have Vessels."

Sephar chirps agreement at what Hitherby says.

Daimon ponders Life.

Liz ponders a vacation.

Pat looks down at the pistol in his pants.

Liz thinks she'll add 'Whitewater Rafting' to her needs. She could *really* use a vacation.

Daimon says "So anyway."

Pat pulls the water pistol out of his waistband and examines it.

Daimon picks up the guitar Eli gave him, and for the first time, inspects it carefully.

Sepharbird watches Daimon.

Sarah comments mildly to Pat, "For your collection."

Eduardo says "Ah. Yes."

Eduardo says "My apologies."

Pat nods. "Indeed. But I'll need to go home before any investigation."

Daimon, not seeming to go anywhere fast, spends a few minutes of Zen tuning. Inspecting the strings, the action, the tuning.

Hitherby says, suddenly, "Oh. Liz?"

Liz cuddles Daimon (maybe a little gingerly) and ponders what she's going to do the rest of the day.

Liz says "Yes, Hitherby?"

Hitherby says "I feel dumb. Would you like a Song of Healing?"

Hitherby says "If you can provide a point of Essence, or Pat doesn't mind my using one of the ones he gave me."

Liz smiles. "I'd love one, although it's not absolutely necessary."

Liz says "Here, I can give you a point."

Liz holds out her hand.

Hitherby swirls up and lands her showpiece dragonfly on Liz's hand.

Liz gently lets a point of essence swirl from her new reliquary watch through her and into Hitherby. "There."

Hitherby forms a smiley face in the air, and then slowly and gently begins to Sing, allowing herself the unnecessary vocal music to shape her efforts and thoughts.

Hitherby Sings for a minute and a bit, and then finishes.

<> Hitherby rolls the d666 and gets 3 4 CHECK: 5.

<> Liz says "Wow, that's a nice song."

Liz sighs in relief as her vessel's cuts heal and the bruises and scrapes fade away until she's as she was.

Liz says "Thanks, Hitherby. I hadn't realized how beat up I was."

Hitherby bobs cheerfully. "It is no trouble. I learned the Song for my hosts; I have not had occasion to even think about using it on other angels until -- well. Now. Pretty much."

Hitherby swirls back to her croissant.

Liz goes back to cuddling Daimon, rather more comfortably.

Daimon looks happier, and cuddles Liz.

Sephar grins and contemplates giving Hitherby a point of essence to heal up Eduardo.

Liz thinks Eduardo could probably use it, yeah.

Sephar nods.

Hitherby also Sings Healing for Eduardo.

---

Fiat Justitia