I make the tiniest of nods in response to Vignette's mimed question.
I reach out with the hand not pinned down by Millions' head, take the syringe from her.
I try to breathe normal, evenly. Nothing to break the hardholder's sleep. I look for a ridge of scar tissue, a place that he won't feel the sting of the implant.
While August works on injecting Millions, I advance on my "soft feet"--that is, I do not move, but I send Spider ahead of me, crawling up onto the mattress, not touching him, but a short scuttle from...an extremity many men do not want Spider near.
Taking the tiny needle in the dark, the inserting it into Millions without him waking or noticing or anyone else bothering you? That sounds like you're Acting Under Fire to me. Let's see some dice.
There's a brief touch of hands as you pass over the needle. Spider works its way to Millions' leg and further as August takes the needle and carefully inserts it into the large man's neck, near the spinal column.
Millions doesn't stir. A crack of lightning, and the rain begins drip-dripping through a small hole in the roof, drops hitting the wooden floor a few feet away.
I can't help it -- I kiss his neck beside the injection site, then murmur slightly, a sleep sound, and pull away from him. Slowly. It is difficult not to cringe away from Vignette's little pet, but even when I brush against it with my leg, I do not make a sound.
If there is one thing that I can do well, it is leaving a lover's bed in the middle of the night.
I point at Millions soundlessly, move my fingers in the air at him and give Vignette a pointed look in an expession meant to convey something like 'Can't you do a spell on him?'
I roll my eyes and give August an exasperated look.
"I. AM. NOT. A. WITCH." I mouth, silently.
Then, I shrug, nod my head a fraction as if acknowledging there is some validity there. I point to my head, point to his, and make an exaggerated wiggly fingers gesture. Then I point to August, back to Millions, and make a knife-to-the-throat gesture.
I shake my head when she mimes knifing him. I can't say I hadn't thought about it just hours ago, but now, well, I just couldn't. I pulled a knife out of my hair anyway.
I move my mouth next to her ear. "Make him tell the guards to go away."
“Right,” I whisper. “I do not want you to slit his throat. I want you to think you are willing to.” I give her a hard look. “No matter whether you are or are not.”
I am acting harder than I am. I have killed, infrequently, sometimes accidentally. Threatening someone’s mind is a tricky thing. I do not know if August can do this thing.
“Get rid of the guards nicely, but then what? I could maybe make him take us to Safeco, give himself to Dog?”
I frown. I made this arrangement to resolve things without Dog, not drag the problem back to the pile.
Vignette may be my nightmare but she is not playing by my rules.
"Get rid of the guards and then make him grovel. Make him beg you to set him free from your spell. Make him offer you everything to make it stop. Make him regret the day that he ever tried to break an Arrow."
I pause. "Do this and I will not stand in your way if you are let into the pile."
This proximity, this quiet intimacy between you, so soon after August's coupling, her Brain Opening, the weird way you even got here. It hangs in the air. August handled your precious gear, Vignette, she's so close to you right now.
Vignette, you don't have the move deep brain scan, but for right now, you have performed the move on August as if you rolled a 10+. Please ask your questions, and remember, this may not be something just between the two of you. You're connected to Millions, too. He may, even in this deep slumber, "overhear" it.
August, answer honestly. Remember... this is for science.
This feeling, of having someone else in my head, pulling out my memories and then discarding them, is bad, but it is no worse than what Harbormaster has done to me for the slightest infractions. When he made me apologize for hours for allowing a cloud to darken his birthday, for instance.
From whom do I crave forgiveness? My aunt. My last words to her were "I don't need you." She died from the rain sickness soon after. I am certain I have never hurt anyone as much as I hurt her.
My secret pains? There is a part of me that hates myself, for what I let Harbormaster do to me. It is a part that I have pushed deep, tried to deprive of sustenance, but is tenacious, and still lives in my gut.
How am I vulnerable? My soul is vulnerable to blame. The martyr's way comes easily to me, but I have little of the martyr's strength. The Arrows protect me from that; without them, I could crumble.
When she starts to get out of my head, I feel it. Or I think I do. But before she leaves, I show her the red wave, the menace beneath the harbor that I saw when I reached into the aether. Before I called to her.
I show her the red wave and I hope that it frightens her.
I feel sick. I did not need to do that. I could have shut it out like I do for Cujo. Maybe I deserve this name they call me, "witch". How could I have known so much pain, so much punishment of self was beneath that pretty, pretty mask.
Then, as I flow back into myself, she pushes the red wave at me, chasing me from her mind. I see the terror that lurks in the harbor. I know I am only seeing a memory, but I panic all the same, fleeing her mind like I am pursued. I bite through my lip to keep from screaming, and the blood runs down my chin, adds to the drops leaking in through the ceiling.
The link broken, I look in August's eyes for several long moments, both of us wrestling with fight-or-flight impulses, I think. I exhale a deep breath I had not known I was holding, and look away, wiping the blood away from my chin with the back of my hand. My eyes go back to hers, and on sudden impulse, I throw my arms around her neck, hugging her tightly.
What do you say in such a case? I am sorry? I did not know? Do not frakking chase me from your mind ever again?
"We have very much left to do here," I whisper in her ear.
For a moment, when I see the blood drip down her chin, I think that I've actually called the red wave into her. Then I see that it is merely blood, the same we all have, and I relax. A little bit.
Until she hugs me. I had forgotten I was naked, until that moment, pressed up against her fancy lace and silks. And that strange glove ... I return the hug only briefly, and then let her go.
I consider the problem at our feet. The two outside the door. At least one of whom I would love to not see the morning.
"Okay," I say, suddenly brisk and businesslike. "I can probably have him send the guards away, Then what?" I look at August closely. "You brought me here to kill him? This is what you believe I do?" My tone is simply questioning, not offended.
I half-shake my head. Voice low: "I don't know what I think you do." It is a paltry denial.
Still quiet, I say "At this point, I think our options are either ending him or putting him under our thumb. But we should move quickly and quietly."
I crouch, empty Millions' gun of bullets, including the one in the chamber. Then I pick up his belt and move behind him. If I need to restrain him, I'll loop it around his neck. I watch Vignette, curious what this will look like.
If you want to try to use in-brain puppet strings, go ahead and roll+Weird. Don't forget you've got your glove, and you've tagged him (although, that's for Harm only).
Spider sits beyond Millions' reach, near his leg. I collect my syringe and move to stand beside August, at Millions' head. When August indicates that she is in position, I reach out place my hand on the side of Millions' face. It is not necessary that I touch his face. His hand, his arm would do as well, but I find the subject and the audience both find the face touch disturbing. My milk-white skin against Millions face forms a negative image of Spider's black legs on the white sheets.
A momentary irritation as Spider interrupts.
"Tell you what," I say in response. "When you start spinning webs, you can tell me how to do this. Until then, hush."
Strong, thin filaments of my mind sink into Millions', anchoring themselves deep inside his mind, binding his will to mine. Marking XP (4)
Vignette and August His skin is cool to the touch, pale delicate fingers on Millions' rough skin. His even breathing becomes halting, a thin wheeze... and then his eyes shock open, startling and wide. He stares into Vignette's eyes as she cradles his cheek.
You know him, August, his instinct would be to reach for his weapon and you catch a twitch in his hand. But Millions doesn't move. The powerful man is totally enthralled and he dangles there like an insect caught in a web imagined by Vignette's mind.
He knows what's happening, in some way, deep within. But there'e nothing he can do but listen to how it's going to be. His breaths come shallow and fast and his heart races... panic.
"Shhh... I am not here to hurt you. I offer you not just your life, but a new life, with the freedom to follow your heart," I say in a soft, calming voice. "For so long, you have been fascinated with your mistress, August," I say, stroking his cheek. "Now, you finally have her. You have tasted your new life, but you remain married to your first love--Pike. But you can have another life. You have done everything here there is to be done. You can put down the heavy burden of running Pike," I say in a voice full of sympathy as I cup his cheek. "Break from this harridan that rules your every moment and run away with your new love--your true love--August. Call your men, your council, your allies, and let them know you have turned over Pike to me, so that you and August can start a new life together without this terrible burden. Tell them to be loyal to me, as they were to you, and then go, start your new life with the woman you love." OOC: The command is that Millions give me control of Pike. Under ordinary circumstances, he'd probably die first, but he's in love with August, and now hypnotized by her. The command is couched in the offer of August to him. Who wouldn't ditch their day job to run away with August?
August Hey, so Vignette starts speaking to Millions. Quiet at first, like a parent talking to a child almost. But you listen to her words and you know... it sort of sounds like she's offering you to him. Did you hear that right? Now he's looking at you.
Vignette Millions looks at you, stares at you. You feel him watching your mouth, your lips. Every word pours into his muddled mind and inevitably takes hold. As you cup his cheek he turns his head slowly towards August. A calm smile spreads across the man's lips and you feel him slowly nodding yes. You've tapped into the man's desires and turned them strongly towards something you know he already wants. Now he needs.
Both Millions leans back, not quite fully awake. This must all seem like some sort of dream. His eyes close as he mutters August's name.
And moments later he begins to stir. He's going to wake, and probably do what Vignette has asked.
As I listen, there's a shiver that goes through me, thinking that it might be real. But a part of me knows that Vignette wouldn't sell me out so quickly, not after that moment of intimacy.
So, instead of reacting, I put down Millions' belt and I stand in front of him while she talks, a naked, glistening reminder of what he would be leaving Pikes for.
When he quiets again, I find myself folding his clothes and leaving the gun on top of the pile like a paperweight. I dump the bullets I removed earlier into a dead plant in the corner of the room.
My own discarded clothes I throw over my arm. As soon as Millions is awake and can clear off the trouble on the other side of the door, I need to get my real clothes from Queen Anne's office downstairs.
I continue speak to Millions in a soft, faintly melodic voice. "She is so lovely. I envy your new life. There is so much to do... You two should get away someplace special. There is a spot I know between here and Safeco that I think would be perfect. I know how eager you must be to get there. As soon as you let me take the burden of Pike from you, I will show you and August the place. I am sure you will be happy there." I smile warmly. "So happy that you might never leave."
Millions looks to you, August, hope filling his eyes. "August... you'll come with me? Just us, hidden away? It doesn't... doesn't feel like you. Just say the word, and we'll go."
I avert my eyes. Wipe away a nonexistant tear. "You know, it doesn't feel like you either, but it still feels right, doesn't it?"
I'd been planning on changing back into my own clothes, but I abruptly have a better idea. I slide myself into Millions' vest, watch his face as I put it on, zip it up halfway. Then pull back on that skirt.
"I'll pack, while you sort this out with Vignette. That cool, M? We gotta wait for the rain to die down anyway. And then we'll be off."
I'm looking over Millions' head at Vignette for permission, really. Not sure what her plan was.
Millions stares at his vest on you, August, it has the desired effect. He nods, almost sleepy. "Sure. That sounds great." He sits up, reaches for his pants, his gun.
I meet August’s eyes and give her a small nod of approval. I try to keep my expression hard. I am not built for this, though. Millions seems so vulnerable. What I am doing to him… There is no other way. He is not innocent. Think of what he did to Chance–to all the Arrows, to August. He would keep her here, now more than ever. I cannot be weak.
I begin speaking to Millions and almost–almost–stop when I hear Daddy’s voice come out of my mouth. “Millions,” I say softly, “some of your people will not want you to do this. They will want to keep you here for themselves, keep you from August and your new life. You know that we cannot let that happen, right?”
I pause. I tell myself it is to let that sink in, and that is true, but it is not the only truth. The other is that I am hesitating to do what must be done. Finally, I steel myself to hear Daddy’s words–the Admiral’s words–not something I would say. “You need to make sure that any of your lieutenants who will not accept your transfer of power to me, those who would keep you here, shackled to Pike and deny you your life with August, you need to deal with them before you go. You will never be free otherwise. ”
"Hey August," Millions says as he starts pulling on his pants. "We could call in Schooner, scrog him, then cut his throat. I know you'd like that." He's listening to you, Vignette, but he's more excited by August than he is scared of you.
"I'm still sore from the scrogging you gave me earlier," I lie. And smirk. Try to keep down the bile.
This whole mess ultimately falls at my feet. If I was going to call someone through the universes to me, how did my subconscious settle on Vignette? Though, she seems awful forgiving of all the badmouthing I've done in her direction. Might come with the territory of digging into other people's heads.
"I wouldn't mind watching you tell him and his sister you no longer require his services, though." My fingers unconsciously move to touch the scars Schooner gave me.
I give Vignette a look like 'Come on,' then follow behind Millions like an attendant, hands ostensibly pushed jauntily into my pockets but really holding tight to my knives.
I'm not sure if I'm still the hostage or if Millions is. Maybe both.
I move quickly to be beside Millions, if it it possible, as he goes out to address his folks. I do not want to be seen as a subordinate. Spider comes skittering across the floor and runs up the inside of the back of my coat, settling in the curve of my hip.
I whisper to Millions, "I will leave the manner of their dismissal to your discretion. However, it needs to be permanent. They are a danger and an insult to August."
Millions looks down at you, Vignette, when you join him. He's a big man, not the biggest, but he's no slouch. And you're you, of course, tiny but fierce. He opens the door and you step into the hall. August, you follow right by him, like an attendant, like a "good wife". His guards gape at you, Vignette, they know you didn't go in there.
Millions calls out, "Schooner! Suquamish!" He ignores his two guards for the moment. The first to come to his call is the girl, she was in a room across, looks like she was sleeping.
"What is it, Big Daddy?" she asks with a purr, flicking a glance to you, Vignette, not seeming the least bit appalled, maybe a tiny bit curious.
"I'm done with you. Go back to HM. Tho I hear he's at Safeco now." Millions dismisses her, no offer for a ride or thank-yous. She sours a bit, but goes into the other room to pull Schooner out.
When Schooner comes out of the room, he's fully clothed, a knife at his belt, a skinning knife. He sneers at you, August, "What did you do, Auggie? Got your claws in Millions but good, huh? You know his folk won't take weakness from him. Might as well cut him down. And poor you, the next Big Bad in charge won't love you. She's not even interested in you, she likes me."
Vignette, he has no idea what you're about to pull. He's obviously talking about someone else, perhaps a second-in-command or rival.
I see August's muscles tense and her fingers find their final grip on her knives. I want to give Schooner something else to focus on.
I take a step forward, toss my white gold hair back, and say to Schooner in a haughty tone, "Threaten August again, and you and I will give the people their first story of the Witch Queen of Pike!"
Schooner ignores your threat, Vignette, intent on slicing August open. He moves with grace, slicing at an arc for her face. Before he can get close enough, Millions steps to him, raising an arm up, taking the slice across his forearm. The blade bites deep, blood spurts from the wound, but Millions continues forward, grabbing Schooner's arm, trying to hold him fast, keeping him off you, August.
Realizing Millions is stronger and has leverage, Schooner pivots, moving backwards to bring the knife back, and jamming it into Millions' side. Millions' right leg buckles from the sudden pain and he falls to the floor, bleeding.
Both guards and drawing their weapons, which leaves you both exposed to Schooner. Suquamish is caught unprepared, you're not sure what way she's going to go.
Flood. This is not good. You know that thing I do where I gently send tendrils of my mind into another's, subtly wrapping strands of my will around theirs? This is not that.
My body goes rigid, my arms straight down, palms out, with my fingers splayed. I throw my head back and my eyes roll back into my head. My mind crashes into Schooner's like a tidal wave. "DROP THE KNIFE AND SURRENDER, RIGHT THE FLOOD NOW, OR I WILL PULP YOUR FEEBLE EXCUSE FOR A MIND!"
Schooner finches when you yell in his brain, Vignette, holding the knife warily and glaring at you. "Soak you, witch." He's going to attack August again, Vignette.
What do you do?
Millions guards draw out their weapons, a cudgel and a wicked claw hammer (Queen Anne doesn't allow guns upstairs, at least not with Millions lackeys).
"Ware, Schooner! " Suquamish says as she moves away from Millions guards, more inerested in running than fighting.
I am going to give the crowd something they will remember--and something Schooner likely will not. The strands of my mind sink deep into Schooner's. Wicked barbs of my wrath sprout along the length of each strand. I sense a flicker of realization from Schooner in the moment before I pull. And then he starts to scream. OOC: follow-through on Direct-brain whisper projection: 1 harm, ap (of course), loud (optional, and very much selected this time)
I pull another knife out of my boot, stepping in front of Millions. Couldn't really care if he lives in the long-run, but Vignette still needs him for her pageant play with his lieutenants. If Schooner comes for either of us again, I'll be ready.
A sound like one of Safeco's huge cannons goes off, but there's no echo. For a moment, everyone is stunned, and Schooner's eyes widen as clood trickles out of both ears and his nose. His eyes roll back and he falls to the ground like a pinata where someone cut the string. One of the guards, the guy with the cudgel, finally acts, stepping up to club Schooner in the head, then kick him. He's out.
Suquamish looks at you Vignette, she knows you did this. She turns to run for the stairs. The guard with the hammer, she drops to a knee to check on Millions, asking you, August, "We need Anne! Can you get him up here?"
I'm off running after Suquamish; she's on the way to Anne. She's not made for exertion the way I am, not vertically anyway. I'm gonna rush her hard, knock her to the ground. Millions' guards can take care of the rest. Then I'm gonna get Anne in here to look after our cash cow.
Suquamish does not look back, Vignette. She isn't scared of you, but she isn't stupid. August, if you want to take her down, let's see you make an Attack here.
August, you rush after Suquamish, running into her at the top of the stairs. You both tumble down the stairs, hard, feet flying, end over end. At one point, August, your foot kicks into and through a handrail spindle, which cracks and splinters into a hundred pieces (some of which end up in your foot and leg, take 1-Harm AP).
You end up lying on top of Suquamish, who is dazed and breathing erratic. She seems out of it. Some of Millie's Boys were hanging out down here, with performers and others who are waiting out the storm. They all look at you. You think you see Queen Anne in the crowd, heading your way.
Breath knocked out of me -- I'm wheezing, trying to spit out something meaningful before Suquamish fully extricates herself from our tangle.
Yeah all these dudes saw me used as human currency earlier but they also saw me perform and I'm wearing Millions' jacket.
"This fool's brother just had a go at your boss with a knife and now she's trying to run out on the bill. Lock this bloody fool down."
I'm pulling myself to the side so I don't get in the way when they come down on her.
Quieter, to just Anne when he gets closer, "Dude, Millions got cut bad, and I know this barely makes sense, but can you go stitch him back up? I can't be having him bleed out just yet."
Pulling out big splinters from my legs -- I need to put on my flooding pants like five minutes ago.
August, Yeah, being pants-less gets some attention. And yeah, these guys know you were with Millions, but well, so was Suquamish. They move forward, a lean guy with a scar on his left cheek pulls you up while a heavily tatted guy moves in to pull Suquamish up.
Let's see if you can Manipulate these guys into "locking her down".
Vignette,
August and Suquamish just went tumbling down the stairs. Schooner is still out of it, and that female guard has pulled off her shirt and it holding it against Millions' side, trying to stop the cloodflow, while the other guy with the cudgel is sort of watching, not sure what to do.
Millions will die without help. Why should I care? I was going to have to kill him anyway. He is already dead. These others just do not know this. Still, I would have him live a bit longer, postpone his death so he can help secure my place here.
It is Daddy who taught me this patience. I was, I think, twelve years old. The man strapped to my table was not a good person. Daddy told me so, and it was true. He had hurt many people, and he stole from us. I was sure Daddy was going to make me hurt his mind. It is a troubling thing to do when someone is helpless. When Daddy told me to let the man go, I looked up at him questioningly. I knew this man was already dead in Daddy's mind. Even back then, I was in Daddy's mind always, so comfortable that I do not think he knew I was there, comfortable everywhere except the one place in his mind I never visit--that room, where I am four years old, covering my ears and singing in the closet, while a suitcase lies open on the bed. Why, I wondered, would Daddy tell me to let the dead man go? Daddy does not have my gift, but he saw my confusion anyway. "Vigny, sometimes we have to be patient. He will get what he deserves, but first, he will bring us his conspirators. This one has work to do for us still."
"Someone get a stitcher! I yell in a commanding voice. This one has work to do for us still.
"You there, Man-with-Club, I yell to the man holding a club and looking like he is wondering what to do. "Finish the traitor, and when I rule here, I will know your name," I say, pointing to the Schooner.
August, Wash, one of Millie's Boys, hauls Suquamish up her neck and throws her onto a set of seats, pulling her hands behind her back and throwing on a set of cuffs. He says, "Can't just kill her, or HM would pitch a fit. But she won't hurt nobody, August."
Another one of Millie's Boys, Linc, starts for the stairs, "We gotta help bossman!" Queen Anne says he's getting his sewing kit, will be right up.
From above, you hear Vignette say in a pretty damn convincingly command voice, "Someone get a stitcher! "
Vignette,
The guy with a cudgel steps over to draw the knife out of his partner's sheath, and leans down to hold the knife at Schooner's throat, "Name's Hamilt. And Harbormaster will charge you a ton of trade for this if I kill him. You sure you want this... ma'am?"
I get to my feet slowly, carefully. Then in the privacy of Anne's parlor, I start to pull out the rest of the splinters imbedded in my legs and thighs. I make a cheap dressing with some of Anne's scraps.
When I've withdrawn enough of them to manage pulling on my leggings, I grab the rest of my clothes. Keeping Millions' vest on. Then I'm stepping lightly through the main hall of Grindhouse and through the front door. My bike better still be out there. I'm gonna swing by Bon's have her doublecheck my legs.
I scowl, outwardly, while inside I shudder at the thought of owing Harbormaster “trade”. “Tell me your name,” I say to the man in a tone the allows no argument.
August, You pull splinters and clean up, then head out towards your ride. It's raining hell still, and one of the firedancers, makeup run and body tired, he comes up behind you as you look out the open door. "You aren't going out in that... are you?"
What do you do?
Vignette, "Jax" he responds, looks over at the girl holding Millions' guts, "That's SueB." He doesn't end Schooner, since you didn't order it. Schooner isn't waking up anytime soon.
A couple of Millie's Boys come up, look at the bloody mess of Millions. They can't really help, but they give you eyes until Jax says, "She's taking over, Millions said it. Right, SueB?" She shrugs, then nods. They decide to keep vigil, make sure nobody else attacks their boss.
"Puddles, y'all." Anne says with frustration. "Can't you no accounts make messes in someone else's house? Dayum." He pulls out needle and thread and has SueB pull back the rag, which is already sticky with blood. "I can keep him from leaking anymore, but this soaker needs some real help." Queen Anne gets to work stitching him.
"Jax..." I say aloud, as if committing the name to memory.
I raise my voice so the rest can hear. "You did well. I do not need automatons that thoughtlessly carry out my commands. I need people--like you, Jax--who consider consequences and are bold enough to question me--when the situation permits questioning."
"But let me ask you this, Jax," I say as I begin to descend the stairs toward Jax and the helpless Schooner. My hard boots click on the stairs, and my coat billows slightly with each step. "If I tell you to end him right now, when the time for questioning has past, will you?
Vignette, Jax was a close guard for Millions, he's probably done murder in the past. He's wearing an older face than his years. He must see some new opportunity in you, Vignette. He nods, "Yes. No question. "
“This makes me very pleased, Jax. Maybe you will help me sort the people who will follow Million’s last command and accept my rule, from those who will not?”
“In the meantime, let me show you something.” I bend down by the unconscious Schooner, withdrawing my injector. “We will return Harbormaster’s man to him intact…but this," I say, injecting Schooner in the back of the neck, "will help ensure his good behavior. Consider it a sliver of my mind.”
I look back up at Jax, my eyes studying his closely. “You have already proven yourself to me. I would not insist that you also carry a sliver. Still, if you chose to do so of your own free will, I would count you among the most loyal and dependable of my new regime.”
I watch his reaction closely. My mind pushes gently, stealthily into his.
Vignette, Queen Anne finishes up the grisly work of stitching Millions' insides together, and steps back, muttering about needing a wash. The roof of the place is still being hammered by rain, and thunder rolls as Queen Anne leaves you and the four members of Millie's Boys.
SueB says, "We oughta get Millions back to bed." The new two, Wash and Linc, they help lift him up gently and carry him to the mattress in the room you just left. Jax sticks behind, looking down at you. "I.. uh. I don't know about that... ma'am."
Right now, he's a mix of excited and scared to death. He's heard nothing but horror stories about you, but he's wondering what it would be like to be on your good side. What would things be like under your rule? He's not about to pass up a chance to be in good with the boss, whoever that is.
But should he stick with you, and bail to Admiral if you're what they say you are? That's what he's feeling. Unsure.
I look between from red rain to the crowd of performers and Millions' hoodlums trapped inside Grindhouse. I don't really wanna stay but leaving isn't promising.
"That is fine, Jax." I say, looking down at Schooner, stroking his arm idly with my hand wearing the glove. "I understand that I have not yet earned your devotion. I do not expect such things unearned. Perhaps later," I say still looking down, almost as if talking to myself.
"You wonder," I say, looking back up at him, "how it will be with me in charge, whether the things people say about me are true. I cannot say. More importantly, you have no reason to believe me." I shrug. "All stories have some truth. Listen to the stories that will be told about what happened here today. I am sure they will be interesting, and they will be true in some ways."
I look Jax in the eye, holding his gaze if I can. "You do not want to 'bail to Admiral'," I say echoing his own thought word-for-word. "I used to work for the Admiral. I know him very well. He is not an easy man to work for--unless he needs you. The Admiral does not need you, Jax. I do. I do not want to hurt people, but there will be challenges to my rule, coming as it has, so suddenly and with Millings dead or dying. Millions would have eased the transfer of power. If Millions does not recover--or until he does--I need you to help me make this transition peaceful. I have seen already that Millions' people listen to you."
How can I get Jax to stay and help me solidify my hold on Pike?
The best way is to wrap up and cover your bits, then hop on that h-bike and follow all the high ground to Safeco. Drumma knows the way, you should follow your bird. It's not impossible, but it's not at all wise.
What do you do?
Vignette,
Jax's mouth opens slightly in surprise when you quote his own thoughts back to him. Then he closes his mouth, sets his jaw, you've just blown him away. "They listen... we're tight, as tight as anyone.You, uh, you don't know the people of Pikes. I do. You want this peaceful, it won't be easy. Nobody loved Millions, but he kept everyone safe. Or at least, took credit for what we did. I'll run Millie's Boys, Vignette. We'll put the word out. But it'd be a helluva lot easier if Millions handed it over... you know?"
He'll stay, but to get him all in? Put him in charge of Millie's Boys, let him keep some of the extortion jingle Millions used to keep, that you'll now get.
I purse my lips, then head back to Anne's costume room. I slide into a neon green latex trench coat, a pair of topaz lens goggles that dangle from a shiny chain and a surgical mask that's embossed with a pair of blue lips.
I sweep back out to the door, neon green tails floating behind me from the movement of my stride. I whistle up to the sky, wait for Drumma's answering cry. Then I'm gunning into towards SafeCo on my h-bike, following the blue blur of Drumma against the bloody sky.
"Jax, I am not trying to keep Millions alive because we are best friends. I know it will go easier if he hands it over, and if he survives, he will hand it over and walk to a dry hilltop with August. For now, though, you and I are on the wet path."
"Who will want to put a knife in my back if I give you Millie's Boys to run? You and I will disarm them." I smile a predator's smile. "I want you to run Millie's Boys--but," I hold up one slim, white finger to forestall his reply. "But it is more than just ordering them around. I will not have an army of thugs. You will replace the ones you cannot keep from hurting people unnecessarily. When you do this, the dismissed will become knives. Bring those to me. Some people find me very convincing," I say with a humorless smile."
"Millions pulled in a lot of jingle for 'keeping everybody safe'. I can ease up on people he was squeezing too hard and still have plenty. I do not share his more unsavory appetites, which should also help people accept me, and my need to sit on a pile jingle is not what his was. I need you to make sure that my lack of concern for wealth is not mistaken for weakness. I will continue to squeeze people who would disrespect me otherwise. Maybe I will give them more of what they demand--squeeze them harder so I can let up on others. You will give me full, regular reports of who we are squeezing and how hard.
"This is more than your ask to simply 'run Millie's Boys', but I will pay you double what Millions paid that position. Name that figure and the job is yours--knowing that lying to me this early in our acquaintance would very unwise."
Are you lying to me, Jax? That would be...unfortunate. (OOC: That's my 3rd of 3 holds.)
Jax answers solidly, "Millions gave me a barter every other week, plus food and a roof at his compound, of course. So the barter was walking around jingle. Sometimes, he'd hook me up with one of HM's girls, but that was after "job well dones", you know? When I put someone away, for good."
You take off out of Grindhouse, following Drumma to Safeco. The rain picks up unexpectedly, and the wind buffets your h-bike. You end up taking shelter where Drumma leads you...
I will not think Millions overpays his staff or denies himself. There should be extra for one man’s loyalty.
“I will pay you a barter a week. Same living quarters and food. I cannot make promises about girls.”
I do not object to sex for jingle, but the condition of some of Harbormaster’s “employees” is not forgivable. And then, there is Hope, her drugged state, being gifted to the Admiral like livestock… Harbormaster will not get extra jingle from me.
"Then I'm your man, Vignette." Jax says. SueB and Wash come out of the room where they laid Millions down. You hear August took off into the storm on her bike.
Anything else you want to do other than ride out the storm tonight?
"That is good," I say when Jax accepts my offer. "Your very first task is to get this," I say, gesturing at Schooner's unconscious form, "out of here--alive, as you said, so we do not owe Harbormaster, but gone for good. But first, I will leave him with something to help him remember," I add. I have been stroking Schooner's arm with my gloved hand, and now I lean close and whisper in his ear. I smile and then stand to face Jax. It was not a pleasant smile.
On hearing the news that August has left, I make a point of speculating to Jax and SueB and Wash that August must be distraught over Millions' being laid low on the eve of their departure, or perhaps she braves the rain in the hope of finding a healer to turn the tide in her lover's favor. I also express my concern for her, and that may be the most guileless thing I have said today. OOC: MC, that whisper to Schooner is just for color and to give Jax a little extra something to think about.
Jax nods, a bit nervous about your smile and your tone. He takes Schooner and Suquamish, puts them in the room where they were sleeping, and has SueB and Wash keep eyes on them until morning when the storm should be over and it's light out.
The night passes slowly. Millions doesn't wake. People downstairs continue drinking and ignoring the storm as best they can. You're in a dangerous and exposed position here, Vignette.
I ask Jax to find me two of Millions' most loyal staff--preferably not so loyal as to slit my throat on their own initiative--to watch over Millions with me. I cannot prevent his departure, if Millions walks the path of the dead, but I will not let anyone "help him along". I need him if I am to prevent bloodshed.
I sit vigil over this man who wants and does not want to give me this place he rules, this man I will kill as soon as he fulfills his purpose, and I find myself oddly envious. He has a destiny that he is about to fulfill, a happy end to what must have been a life of struggle. If he wakes, he will leave behind this struggle and walk off to the dry plateau with his love. It is an illusion, a path I have created for him, and one that will end in pain and blood before he reaches his reward, but for now, his purpose is clear and his years of struggle have culminated in his winning the woman he loves.
I wish my own path were so clear--though perhaps not as brief. I cannot work for Daddy anymore--not in the way I did. Harbormaster is worse, if my intuition is correct. I am hated and feared by people who do not even know me--and by some who do. Without a benefactor, I am just a scary witch, and eventually, witches burn, people destroy what scares them.
The Arrows welcome me, but I am not one of them. I cannot sleep in the pile forever... Half of the Arrows think I am a witch--even August. I do not even know why Dog pulled me in or allows me to stay. Maybe she will kick me out soon.
I need to be my own benefactor. When I found myself suddenly in Millions' bedroom, suddenly knowing everything he has done to Hachiko, to August, to all the Arrows, I wanted to punish him, to take away everything that makes him Millions and not just some street punk. At the same time, I saw that I could carve out a life for myself. It is not necessarily a life I want, but it is safety and it is freedom from the commands of men like the Admiral and Harbormaster. I cannot be an Arrow. I do not belong anywhere. And so, I have to create a place for myself, a place where it is safe for me to be alone in the world.
Musing on all of this while watching the rise and fall of Millions' breathing, I drift off to sleep, and before long, I dream...
I am in the forest--not the forest of the Beforetimes, or the deadly half-awake rainforest outside our borders. This is the forest of broken buildings left behind by those who lived Before. The buildings rise from cracked pavement, reaching up to hide the moon and blot out the night sky. It is, in some ways, as dangerous as the real forest. Highwaymen and worse ply their trade here. Red-tainted animals, red-tainted people, lurk in the shadows, afraid of what they have become and hungry to destroy those like they once were. I am alone and afraid.
Yet it is not just the broken city that I fear. The Admiral pursues me. I have betrayed him somehow, learned some secret I was not supposed to learn, and now I am a liability. From another quarter, the Harbormaster hunts me. He is naked and his want is clear, but he wants more than my body. He is the huntsman at the head of a pack of vacant-eyed, beautiful people. They fan out through the city streets, trying to hem me in, drive me into his arms. He will have me and make me one of them. I run, reckless in my need to escape. I try not to look too closely, not wanting to recognize any of them. I hear the whine of h-bikes and round a corner to see several Arrows. At my cry for help, they turn and zip away, Dog's pink mane flying, only Cujo looking back with anything like regret in her eyes.
My own eyes blinded by tears, I run headlong into Hope. We go down hard, and I land on top of her, looking into her placid, vacant smile. I know that her being among the Harbormaster's hunting party means that the Admiral has given Harbormaster his blessing. We have fallen into a sunken section of pavement. It is said that, in the days Before, that this was a pool surrounding a monument that spouted clearwater. I roll off Hope, her arms too weak, or maybe just her will too absent, for her to hold onto me. As the Harbormaster closes in on one side and the Admiral from another, a large black stag appears at my side, coming to the empty pool as if to drink from that time Before. The magnificent creature towers over me, unafraid, unaware of what my mind can do. I reach up and pull myself onto its back. It leaps the ring of Harbormaster's mindless creatures and bounds away. The air whips through my white-gold hair and my coat flies open. I am a comet, a shooting star. I laugh in exultation at the thrill of speed and freedom as we race away from Safeco toward Pike. As we descend on Pike, however, I realize I am betrayed. The magnificent stag is no longer that, its back is no longer muscle and coarse, fine hair, but rubbery and covered in mucus. Dark tentacles slide up and grasp my legs, my waist. I cannot dismount. My salvation has become my nightmare. The creature--no longer a stag--continues to morph until is is a thick mass of dark flesh sliding and crawling on a mass of tentacles. It crawls out onto the pier with me held firmly in its grasp. Thunder rolls and the rain starts to fall. The creature slides off the pier and into bloody water with a great splash. I cover my ears and sing my mother's song as the creature pulls me under the red waves.
I wake with a start, sweat-drenched and cold, wondering if I cried out in my sleep.
Jax just walked into your room, right as you woke. The rain has stopped, you can hear him as he says, "Vignette, the Arrows are coming, and they're riding loud. I pulled folks back from the edges to here. They're coming this way." He looks to SueB, who is awake, moves over to kick Wash's leg, he was sleeping a shift. "I don't think they'll come blasting in, but best we be ready." He looks to you, then adds, "Bosslady."
I pull on my coat, covering a blouse entirely inappropriate for sweat-drenched conditions. I have not slept well, but there are advantages to having milk-white skin and khol-lined eyes. I do not think I ever look like I have slept well.
"We will go out to meet them," I say to Jax in a voice loud enough for the others to hear. "It would not do to have the new Mistress of Pike be seen as cowering behind locked doors. Leave two of our most trustworthy with Millions, and bring a dozen who will not start anything unless I give the order."
"If so many of those exist," I add to Jax under my breath.
I walk out, at the head of whatever retinue Jax manages to gather, to meet the Arrows.
Jax quirks a frown, "We aren't an army or nothing, Bosslady. Millions got all the raiders to trade here, and that pretty much settled things down. We keep the work going, keep the gangs happy, and make sure trade in Pikes is fair. The Arrows probably outnumber us, but we've got bigger guns and lots of hiding places. This could get ugly."
You step outside to see the full riding force of the Arrows come your way, with eight of Millie's Boys standing by you.
Comments
I make the tiniest of nods in response to Vignette's mimed question.
I reach out with the hand not pinned down by Millions' head, take the syringe from her.
I try to breathe normal, evenly. Nothing to break the hardholder's sleep. I look for a ridge of scar tissue, a place that he won't feel the sting of the implant.
While August works on injecting Millions, I advance on my "soft feet"--that is, I do not move, but I send Spider ahead of me, crawling up onto the mattress, not touching him, but a short scuttle from...an extremity many men do not want Spider near.
August and Vignette,
Taking the tiny needle in the dark, the inserting it into Millions without him waking or noticing or anyone else bothering you? That sounds like you're Acting Under Fire to me. Let's see some dice.
Vignette can help, of course.
Acting under fire.
(Rolled: 2d6. Rolls: 4, 6. Total: 10)
August and Vignette,
There's a brief touch of hands as you pass over the needle. Spider works its way to Millions' leg and further as August takes the needle and carefully inserts it into the large man's neck, near the spinal column.
Millions doesn't stir. A crack of lightning, and the rain begins drip-dripping through a small hole in the roof, drops hitting the wooden floor a few feet away.
What do you do?
I wish I had asked to learn the Arrows hand talking. I know August carries knives. I can also see that...well, she does not carry anything currently.
I try to mime "knife", shrug and look around.
I can't help it -- I kiss his neck beside the injection site, then murmur slightly, a sleep sound, and pull away from him. Slowly. It is difficult not to cringe away from Vignette's little pet, but even when I brush against it with my leg, I do not make a sound.
If there is one thing that I can do well, it is leaving a lover's bed in the middle of the night.
I point at Millions soundlessly, move my fingers in the air at him and give Vignette a pointed look in an expession meant to convey something like 'Can't you do a spell on him?'
I roll my eyes and give August an exasperated look.
"I. AM. NOT. A. WITCH." I mouth, silently.
Then, I shrug, nod my head a fraction as if acknowledging there is some validity there. I point to my head, point to his, and make an exaggerated wiggly fingers gesture. Then I point to August, back to Millions, and make a knife-to-the-throat gesture.
I make a face. Everyone knows she's a witch.
I shake my head when she mimes knifing him. I can't say I hadn't thought about it just hours ago, but now, well, I just couldn't. I pulled a knife out of my hair anyway.
I move my mouth next to her ear. "Make him tell the guards to go away."
“Right,” I whisper. “I do not want you to slit his throat. I want you to think you are willing to.” I give her a hard look. “No matter whether you are or are not.”
I am acting harder than I am. I have killed, infrequently, sometimes accidentally. Threatening someone’s mind is a tricky thing. I do not know if August can do this thing.
“Get rid of the guards nicely, but then what? I could maybe make him take us to Safeco, give himself to Dog?”
I frown. I made this arrangement to resolve things without Dog, not drag the problem back to the pile.
Vignette may be my nightmare but she is not playing by my rules.
"Get rid of the guards and then make him grovel. Make him beg you to set him free from your spell. Make him offer you everything to make it stop. Make him regret the day that he ever tried to break an Arrow."
I pause. "Do this and I will not stand in your way if you are let into the pile."
Manipulate.
(Rolled: 2d6+3. Rolls: 1, 1. Total: 5)
August and Vignette,
This proximity, this quiet intimacy between you, so soon after August's coupling, her Brain Opening, the weird way you even got here. It hangs in the air. August handled your precious gear, Vignette, she's so close to you right now.
Vignette, you don't have the move deep brain scan, but for right now, you have performed the move on August as if you rolled a 10+. Please ask your questions, and remember, this may not be something just between the two of you. You're connected to Millions, too. He may, even in this deep slumber, "overhear" it.
August, answer honestly. Remember... this is for science.
Okay, August, you insist I am a witch, I will be a witch. See how easy it is for me to violate your mind, if you push me to it?
For what do you crave forgiveness, and of whom? I want to know what you are capable of.
What are your secret pains? I want to help you.
In what ways are your character’s mind and soul vulnerable? Sorry–I am so used to dragging that one from people, it has become habit.
This feeling, of having someone else in my head, pulling out my memories and then discarding them, is bad, but it is no worse than what Harbormaster has done to me for the slightest infractions. When he made me apologize for hours for allowing a cloud to darken his birthday, for instance.
From whom do I crave forgiveness? My aunt. My last words to her were "I don't need you." She died from the rain sickness soon after. I am certain I have never hurt anyone as much as I hurt her.
My secret pains? There is a part of me that hates myself, for what I let Harbormaster do to me. It is a part that I have pushed deep, tried to deprive of sustenance, but is tenacious, and still lives in my gut.
How am I vulnerable? My soul is vulnerable to blame. The martyr's way comes easily to me, but I have little of the martyr's strength. The Arrows protect me from that; without them, I could crumble.
When she starts to get out of my head, I feel it. Or I think I do. But before she leaves, I show her the red wave, the menace beneath the harbor that I saw when I reached into the aether. Before I called to her.
I show her the red wave and I hope that it frightens her.
I feel sick. I did not need to do that. I could have shut it out like I do for Cujo. Maybe I deserve this name they call me, "witch". How could I have known so much pain, so much punishment of self was beneath that pretty, pretty mask.
Then, as I flow back into myself, she pushes the red wave at me, chasing me from her mind. I see the terror that lurks in the harbor. I know I am only seeing a memory, but I panic all the same, fleeing her mind like I am pursued. I bite through my lip to keep from screaming, and the blood runs down my chin, adds to the drops leaking in through the ceiling.
The link broken, I look in August's eyes for several long moments, both of us wrestling with fight-or-flight impulses, I think. I exhale a deep breath I had not known I was holding, and look away, wiping the blood away from my chin with the back of my hand. My eyes go back to hers, and on sudden impulse, I throw my arms around her neck, hugging her tightly.
What do you say in such a case? I am sorry? I did not know? Do not frakking chase me from your mind ever again?
"We have very much left to do here," I whisper in her ear.
For a moment, when I see the blood drip down her chin, I think that I've actually called the red wave into her. Then I see that it is merely blood, the same we all have, and I relax. A little bit.
Until she hugs me. I had forgotten I was naked, until that moment, pressed up against her fancy lace and silks. And that strange glove ... I return the hug only briefly, and then let her go.
I consider the problem at our feet. The two outside the door. At least one of whom I would love to not see the morning.
"Okay," I say, suddenly brisk and businesslike. "I can probably have him send the guards away, Then what?" I look at August closely. "You brought me here to kill him? This is what you believe I do?" My tone is simply questioning, not offended.
I half-shake my head. Voice low: "I don't know what I think you do." It is a paltry denial.
Still quiet, I say "At this point, I think our options are either ending him or putting him under our thumb. But we should move quickly and quietly."
I crouch, empty Millions' gun of bullets, including the one in the chamber. Then I pick up his belt and move behind him. If I need to restrain him, I'll loop it around his neck. I watch Vignette, curious what this will look like.
Vignette,
If you want to try to use in-brain puppet strings, go ahead and roll+Weird. Don't forget you've got your glove, and you've tagged him (although, that's for Harm only).
Spider sits beyond Millions' reach, near his leg. I collect my syringe and move to stand beside August, at Millions' head. When August indicates that she is in position, I reach out place my hand on the side of Millions' face. It is not necessary that I touch his face. His hand, his arm would do as well, but I find the subject and the audience both find the face touch disturbing. My milk-white skin against Millions face forms a negative image of Spider's black legs on the white sheets.
A momentary irritation as Spider interrupts.
"Tell you what," I say in response. "When you start spinning webs, you can tell me how to do this. Until then, hush."
Strong, thin filaments of my mind sink into Millions', anchoring themselves deep inside his mind, binding his will to mine.
Marking XP (4)
Vignette and August
His skin is cool to the touch, pale delicate fingers on Millions' rough skin. His even breathing becomes halting, a thin wheeze... and then his eyes shock open, startling and wide. He stares into Vignette's eyes as she cradles his cheek.
You know him, August, his instinct would be to reach for his weapon and you catch a twitch in his hand. But Millions doesn't move. The powerful man is totally enthralled and he dangles there like an insect caught in a web imagined by Vignette's mind.
He knows what's happening, in some way, deep within. But there'e nothing he can do but listen to how it's going to be. His breaths come shallow and fast and his heart races... panic.
Vignette. What do you tell him?
"Shhh... I am not here to hurt you. I offer you not just your life, but a new life, with the freedom to follow your heart," I say in a soft, calming voice. "For so long, you have been fascinated with your mistress, August," I say, stroking his cheek. "Now, you finally have her. You have tasted your new life, but you remain married to your first love--Pike. But you can have another life. You have done everything here there is to be done. You can put down the heavy burden of running Pike," I say in a voice full of sympathy as I cup his cheek. "Break from this harridan that rules your every moment and run away with your new love--your true love--August. Call your men, your council, your allies, and let them know you have turned over Pike to me, so that you and August can start a new life together without this terrible burden. Tell them to be loyal to me, as they were to you, and then go, start your new life with the woman you love."
OOC: The command is that Millions give me control of Pike. Under ordinary circumstances, he'd probably die first, but he's in love with August, and now hypnotized by her. The command is couched in the offer of August to him. Who wouldn't ditch their day job to run away with August?
August
Hey, so Vignette starts speaking to Millions. Quiet at first, like a parent talking to a child almost. But you listen to her words and you know... it sort of sounds like she's offering you to him. Did you hear that right? Now he's looking at you.
Vignette
Millions looks at you, stares at you. You feel him watching your mouth, your lips. Every word pours into his muddled mind and inevitably takes hold. As you cup his cheek he turns his head slowly towards August. A calm smile spreads across the man's lips and you feel him slowly nodding yes. You've tapped into the man's desires and turned them strongly towards something you know he already wants. Now he needs.
Both
Millions leans back, not quite fully awake. This must all seem like some sort of dream. His eyes close as he mutters August's name.
And moments later he begins to stir. He's going to wake, and probably do what Vignette has asked.
What do you do?
As I listen, there's a shiver that goes through me, thinking that it might be real. But a part of me knows that Vignette wouldn't sell me out so quickly, not after that moment of intimacy.
So, instead of reacting, I put down Millions' belt and I stand in front of him while she talks, a naked, glistening reminder of what he would be leaving Pikes for.
When he quiets again, I find myself folding his clothes and leaving the gun on top of the pile like a paperweight. I dump the bullets I removed earlier into a dead plant in the corner of the room.
My own discarded clothes I throw over my arm. As soon as Millions is awake and can clear off the trouble on the other side of the door, I need to get my real clothes from Queen Anne's office downstairs.
I continue speak to Millions in a soft, faintly melodic voice. "She is so lovely. I envy your new life. There is so much to do... You two should get away someplace special. There is a spot I know between here and Safeco that I think would be perfect. I know how eager you must be to get there. As soon as you let me take the burden of Pike from you, I will show you and August the place. I am sure you will be happy there." I smile warmly. "So happy that you might never leave."
Millions looks to you, August, hope filling his eyes. "August... you'll come with me? Just us, hidden away? It doesn't... doesn't feel like you. Just say the word, and we'll go."
What do you do?
I avert my eyes. Wipe away a nonexistant tear. "You know, it doesn't feel like you either, but it still feels right, doesn't it?"
I'd been planning on changing back into my own clothes, but I abruptly have a better idea. I slide myself into Millions' vest, watch his face as I put it on, zip it up halfway. Then pull back on that skirt.
"I'll pack, while you sort this out with Vignette. That cool, M? We gotta wait for the rain to die down anyway. And then we'll be off."
I'm looking over Millions' head at Vignette for permission, really. Not sure what her plan was.
This is so floodin' weird.
Millions stares at his vest on you, August, it has the desired effect. He nods, almost sleepy. "Sure. That sounds great." He sits up, reaches for his pants, his gun.
What do you do?
I meet August’s eyes and give her a small nod of approval. I try to keep my expression hard. I am not built for this, though. Millions seems so vulnerable. What I am doing to him… There is no other way. He is not innocent. Think of what he did to Chance–to all the Arrows, to August. He would keep her here, now more than ever. I cannot be weak.
I begin speaking to Millions and almost–almost–stop when I hear Daddy’s voice come out of my mouth. “Millions,” I say softly, “some of your people will not want you to do this. They will want to keep you here for themselves, keep you from August and your new life. You know that we cannot let that happen, right?”
I pause. I tell myself it is to let that sink in, and that is true, but it is not the only truth. The other is that I am hesitating to do what must be done. Finally, I steel myself to hear Daddy’s words–the Admiral’s words–not something I would say. “You need to make sure that any of your lieutenants who will not accept your transfer of power to me, those who would keep you here, shackled to Pike and deny you your life with August, you need to deal with them before you go. You will never be free otherwise. ”
August and Vignette,
"Hey August," Millions says as he starts pulling on his pants. "We could call in Schooner, scrog him, then cut his throat. I know you'd like that." He's listening to you, Vignette, but he's more excited by August than he is scared of you.
What do you do?
A wave of nausea runs through me.
"I'm still sore from the scrogging you gave me earlier," I lie. And smirk. Try to keep down the bile.
This whole mess ultimately falls at my feet. If I was going to call someone through the universes to me, how did my subconscious settle on Vignette? Though, she seems awful forgiving of all the badmouthing I've done in her direction. Might come with the territory of digging into other people's heads.
"I wouldn't mind watching you tell him and his sister you no longer require his services, though." My fingers unconsciously move to touch the scars Schooner gave me.
August and Vignette,
Millions finishes dressing, straps on his pistol and his knife, then heads for the door, like he's going to do just that.
What do you do?
I give Vignette a look like 'Come on,' then follow behind Millions like an attendant, hands ostensibly pushed jauntily into my pockets but really holding tight to my knives.
I'm not sure if I'm still the hostage or if Millions is. Maybe both.
I move quickly to be beside Millions, if it it possible, as he goes out to address his folks. I do not want to be seen as a subordinate. Spider comes skittering across the floor and runs up the inside of the back of my coat, settling in the curve of my hip.
I whisper to Millions, "I will leave the manner of their dismissal to your discretion. However, it needs to be permanent. They are a danger and an insult to August."
August and Vignette,
Millions looks down at you, Vignette, when you join him. He's a big man, not the biggest, but he's no slouch. And you're you, of course, tiny but fierce. He opens the door and you step into the hall. August, you follow right by him, like an attendant, like a "good wife". His guards gape at you, Vignette, they know you didn't go in there.
Millions calls out, "Schooner! Suquamish!" He ignores his two guards for the moment. The first to come to his call is the girl, she was in a room across, looks like she was sleeping.
"What is it, Big Daddy?" she asks with a purr, flicking a glance to you, Vignette, not seeming the least bit appalled, maybe a tiny bit curious.
"I'm done with you. Go back to HM. Tho I hear he's at Safeco now." Millions dismisses her, no offer for a ride or thank-yous. She sours a bit, but goes into the other room to pull Schooner out.
When Schooner comes out of the room, he's fully clothed, a knife at his belt, a skinning knife. He sneers at you, August, "What did you do, Auggie? Got your claws in Millions but good, huh? You know his folk won't take weakness from him. Might as well cut him down. And poor you, the next Big Bad in charge won't love you. She's not even interested in you, she likes me."
Vignette, he has no idea what you're about to pull. He's obviously talking about someone else, perhaps a second-in-command or rival.
What do you do?
What's this?
My face is easy but my hands tighten on my knives.
"If you like them in return, you should caution them from challenging the Witch of Pike Place."
I watch him closely like the snake he is.
Reading Schooner. Marking exp.
(Rolled: 2d6. Rolls: 2, 2. Total: 4)
What does Schooner intend to do?
August,
Schooner pulls his knife from his belt, moving across the hallway, "If I cut your throat, this whole place would be better off, you conniving girl."
He's going to knife you. Either now, or later. He's sick of you and your troubles. He hates you for leaving HM and moving on while he's still there.
Suquamish gets what August said, though, looking to the guards, "Are you saying Vignette is taking over?"
What do you do?
"You've never been very subtle, have you?" I ask.
Schooner has one knife, but I have many, two of which are already in my hands and weighted well-enough for throwing.
I don't wait. I pull back my hand and release, six inches of tempered steel aimed at Schooner's heart.
Attacking Schooner.
(Rolled: 2d6. Rolls: 2, 3. Total: 5)
I see August's muscles tense and her fingers find their final grip on her knives. I want to give Schooner something else to focus on.
I take a step forward, toss my white gold hair back, and say to Schooner in a haughty tone, "Threaten August again, and you and I will give the people their first story of the Witch Queen of Pike!"
August and Vignette,
Schooner ignores your threat, Vignette, intent on slicing August open. He moves with grace, slicing at an arc for her face. Before he can get close enough, Millions steps to him, raising an arm up, taking the slice across his forearm. The blade bites deep, blood spurts from the wound, but Millions continues forward, grabbing Schooner's arm, trying to hold him fast, keeping him off you, August.
Realizing Millions is stronger and has leverage, Schooner pivots, moving backwards to bring the knife back, and jamming it into Millions' side. Millions' right leg buckles from the sudden pain and he falls to the floor, bleeding.
Both guards and drawing their weapons, which leaves you both exposed to Schooner. Suquamish is caught unprepared, you're not sure what way she's going to go.
What do you do?
Flood. This is not good. You know that thing I do where I gently send tendrils of my mind into another's, subtly wrapping strands of my will around theirs? This is not that.
My body goes rigid, my arms straight down, palms out, with my fingers splayed. I throw my head back and my eyes roll back into my head. My mind crashes into Schooner's like a tidal wave. "DROP THE KNIFE AND SURRENDER, RIGHT THE FLOOD NOW, OR I WILL PULP YOUR FEEBLE EXCUSE FOR A MIND!"
Marking XP (5)
August and Vignette,
Schooner finches when you yell in his brain, Vignette, holding the knife warily and glaring at you. "Soak you, witch." He's going to attack August again, Vignette.
What do you do?
Millions guards draw out their weapons, a cudgel and a wicked claw hammer (Queen Anne doesn't allow guns upstairs, at least not with Millions lackeys).
"Ware, Schooner! " Suquamish says as she moves away from Millions guards, more inerested in running than fighting.
I am going to give the crowd something they will remember--and something Schooner likely will not. The strands of my mind sink deep into Schooner's. Wicked barbs of my wrath sprout along the length of each strand. I sense a flicker of realization from Schooner in the moment before I pull. And then he starts to scream.
OOC: follow-through on Direct-brain whisper projection: 1 harm, ap (of course), loud (optional, and very much selected this time)
This is some sodding, bloody mess, innit?
I pull another knife out of my boot, stepping in front of Millions. Couldn't really care if he lives in the long-run, but Vignette still needs him for her pageant play with his lieutenants. If Schooner comes for either of us again, I'll be ready.
August and Vignette,
A sound like one of Safeco's huge cannons goes off, but there's no echo. For a moment, everyone is stunned, and Schooner's eyes widen as clood trickles out of both ears and his nose. His eyes roll back and he falls to the ground like a pinata where someone cut the string. One of the guards, the guy with the cudgel, finally acts, stepping up to club Schooner in the head, then kick him. He's out.
Suquamish looks at you Vignette, she knows you did this. She turns to run for the stairs. The guard with the hammer, she drops to a knee to check on Millions, asking you, August, "We need Anne! Can you get him up here?"
What do you do?
I nod to August. “I will be fine here.”
As Suquamish runs, I wait for her to look back--they mostly do, though they know they should not. If she does, I will reach out for her mind.
I'm off running after Suquamish; she's on the way to Anne. She's not made for exertion the way I am, not vertically anyway. I'm gonna rush her hard, knock her to the ground. Millions' guards can take care of the rest. Then I'm gonna get Anne in here to look after our cash cow.
August and Vignette,
Suquamish does not look back, Vignette. She isn't scared of you, but she isn't stupid. August, if you want to take her down, let's see you make an Attack here.
Attacking.
(Rolled: 2d6. Rolls: 2, 1. Total: 3)
August,
August, you rush after Suquamish, running into her at the top of the stairs. You both tumble down the stairs, hard, feet flying, end over end. At one point, August, your foot kicks into and through a handrail spindle, which cracks and splinters into a hundred pieces (some of which end up in your foot and leg, take 1-Harm AP).
You end up lying on top of Suquamish, who is dazed and breathing erratic. She seems out of it. Some of Millie's Boys were hanging out down here, with performers and others who are waiting out the storm. They all look at you. You think you see Queen Anne in the crowd, heading your way.
What do you do?
Breath knocked out of me -- I'm wheezing, trying to spit out something meaningful before Suquamish fully extricates herself from our tangle.
Yeah all these dudes saw me used as human currency earlier but they also saw me perform and I'm wearing Millions' jacket.
"This fool's brother just had a go at your boss with a knife and now she's trying to run out on the bill. Lock this bloody fool down."
I'm pulling myself to the side so I don't get in the way when they come down on her.
Quieter, to just Anne when he gets closer, "Dude, Millions got cut bad, and I know this barely makes sense, but can you go stitch him back up? I can't be having him bleed out just yet."
Pulling out big splinters from my legs -- I need to put on my flooding pants like five minutes ago.
August,
Yeah, being pants-less gets some attention. And yeah, these guys know you were with Millions, but well, so was Suquamish. They move forward, a lean guy with a scar on his left cheek pulls you up while a heavily tatted guy moves in to pull Suquamish up.
Let's see if you can Manipulate these guys into "locking her down".
Vignette,
August and Suquamish just went tumbling down the stairs. Schooner is still out of it, and that female guard has pulled off her shirt and it holding it against Millions' side, trying to stop the cloodflow, while the other guy with the cudgel is sort of watching, not sure what to do.
What are you doing?
Millions will die without help. Why should I care? I was going to have to kill him anyway. He is already dead. These others just do not know this. Still, I would have him live a bit longer, postpone his death so he can help secure my place here.
It is Daddy who taught me this patience. I was, I think, twelve years old. The man strapped to my table was not a good person. Daddy told me so, and it was true. He had hurt many people, and he stole from us. I was sure Daddy was going to make me hurt his mind. It is a troubling thing to do when someone is helpless. When Daddy told me to let the man go, I looked up at him questioningly. I knew this man was already dead in Daddy's mind. Even back then, I was in Daddy's mind always, so comfortable that I do not think he knew I was there, comfortable everywhere except the one place in his mind I never visit--that room, where I am four years old, covering my ears and singing in the closet, while a suitcase lies open on the bed. Why, I wondered, would Daddy tell me to let the dead man go? Daddy does not have my gift, but he saw my confusion anyway. "Vigny, sometimes we have to be patient. He will get what he deserves, but first, he will bring us his conspirators. This one has work to do for us still."
"Someone get a stitcher! I yell in a commanding voice. This one has work to do for us still.
"You there, Man-with-Club, I yell to the man holding a club and looking like he is wondering what to do. "Finish the traitor, and when I rule here, I will know your name," I say, pointing to the Schooner.
Manipulate
(Rolled: 2d6+3. Rolls: 2, 6. Total: 11)
August,
Wash, one of Millie's Boys, hauls Suquamish up her neck and throws her onto a set of seats, pulling her hands behind her back and throwing on a set of cuffs. He says, "Can't just kill her, or HM would pitch a fit. But she won't hurt nobody, August."
Another one of Millie's Boys, Linc, starts for the stairs, "We gotta help bossman!" Queen Anne says he's getting his sewing kit, will be right up.
From above, you hear Vignette say in a pretty damn convincingly command voice, "Someone get a stitcher! "
Vignette,
The guy with a cudgel steps over to draw the knife out of his partner's sheath, and leans down to hold the knife at Schooner's throat, "Name's Hamilt. And Harbormaster will charge you a ton of trade for this if I kill him. You sure you want this... ma'am?"
You hear people coming up the stairs.
What do you do?
Well. I'm clearly not needed here.
I get to my feet slowly, carefully. Then in the privacy of Anne's parlor, I start to pull out the rest of the splinters imbedded in my legs and thighs. I make a cheap dressing with some of Anne's scraps.
When I've withdrawn enough of them to manage pulling on my leggings, I grab the rest of my clothes. Keeping Millions' vest on. Then I'm stepping lightly through the main hall of Grindhouse and through the front door. My bike better still be out there. I'm gonna swing by Bon's have her doublecheck my legs.
I scowl, outwardly, while inside I shudder at the thought of owing Harbormaster “trade”.
“Tell me your name,” I say to the man in a tone the allows no argument.
August,
You pull splinters and clean up, then head out towards your ride. It's raining hell still, and one of the firedancers, makeup run and body tired, he comes up behind you as you look out the open door. "You aren't going out in that... are you?"
What do you do?
Vignette,
"Jax" he responds, looks over at the girl holding Millions' guts, "That's SueB." He doesn't end Schooner, since you didn't order it. Schooner isn't waking up anytime soon.
A couple of Millie's Boys come up, look at the bloody mess of Millions. They can't really help, but they give you eyes until Jax says, "She's taking over, Millions said it. Right, SueB?" She shrugs, then nods. They decide to keep vigil, make sure nobody else attacks their boss.
"Puddles, y'all." Anne says with frustration. "Can't you no accounts make messes in someone else's house? Dayum." He pulls out needle and thread and has SueB pull back the rag, which is already sticky with blood. "I can keep him from leaking anymore, but this soaker needs some real help." Queen Anne gets to work stitching him.
What do you do?
"Jax..." I say aloud, as if committing the name to memory.
I raise my voice so the rest can hear. "You did well. I do not need automatons that thoughtlessly carry out my commands. I need people--like you, Jax--who consider consequences and are bold enough to question me--when the situation permits questioning."
"But let me ask you this, Jax," I say as I begin to descend the stairs toward Jax and the helpless Schooner. My hard boots click on the stairs, and my coat billows slightly with each step. "If I tell you to end him right now, when the time for questioning has past, will you?
Vignette,
Jax was a close guard for Millions, he's probably done murder in the past. He's wearing an older face than his years. He must see some new opportunity in you, Vignette. He nods, "Yes. No question. "
“This makes me very pleased, Jax. Maybe you will help me sort the people who will follow Million’s last command and accept my rule, from those who will not?”
“In the meantime, let me show you something.” I bend down by the unconscious Schooner, withdrawing my injector. “We will return Harbormaster’s man to him intact…but this," I say, injecting Schooner in the back of the neck, "will help ensure his good behavior. Consider it a sliver of my mind.”
I look back up at Jax, my eyes studying his closely. “You have already proven yourself to me. I would not insist that you also carry a sliver. Still, if you chose to do so of your own free will, I would count you among the most loyal and dependable of my new regime.”
I watch his reaction closely. My mind pushes gently, stealthily into his.
OOC: Casual brain receptivity. Marking XP (1)
What are you really feeling, Jax?
Vignette,
Queen Anne finishes up the grisly work of stitching Millions' insides together, and steps back, muttering about needing a wash. The roof of the place is still being hammered by rain, and thunder rolls as Queen Anne leaves you and the four members of Millie's Boys.
SueB says, "We oughta get Millions back to bed." The new two, Wash and Linc, they help lift him up gently and carry him to the mattress in the room you just left. Jax sticks behind, looking down at you. "I.. uh. I don't know about that... ma'am."
Right now, he's a mix of excited and scared to death. He's heard nothing but horror stories about you, but he's wondering what it would be like to be on your good side. What would things be like under your rule? He's not about to pass up a chance to be in good with the boss, whoever that is.
But should he stick with you, and bail to Admiral if you're what they say you are? That's what he's feeling. Unsure.
What do you do?
I look between from red rain to the crowd of performers and Millions' hoodlums trapped inside Grindhouse. I don't really wanna stay but leaving isn't promising.
I contemplate my chances.
Reading the sitch.
(Rolled: 2d6. Rolls: 3, 5. Total: 8)
What's my best way through/past the rain?
"That is fine, Jax." I say, looking down at Schooner, stroking his arm idly with my hand wearing the glove. "I understand that I have not yet earned your devotion. I do not expect such things unearned. Perhaps later," I say still looking down, almost as if talking to myself.
"You wonder," I say, looking back up at him, "how it will be with me in charge, whether the things people say about me are true. I cannot say. More importantly, you have no reason to believe me." I shrug. "All stories have some truth. Listen to the stories that will be told about what happened here today. I am sure they will be interesting, and they will be true in some ways."
I look Jax in the eye, holding his gaze if I can. "You do not want to 'bail to Admiral'," I say echoing his own thought word-for-word. "I used to work for the Admiral. I know him very well. He is not an easy man to work for--unless he needs you. The Admiral does not need you, Jax. I do. I do not want to hurt people, but there will be challenges to my rule, coming as it has, so suddenly and with Millings dead or dying. Millions would have eased the transfer of power. If Millions does not recover--or until he does--I need you to help me make this transition peaceful. I have seen already that Millions' people listen to you."
How can I get Jax to stay and help me solidify my hold on Pike?
August,
The best way is to wrap up and cover your bits, then hop on that h-bike and follow all the high ground to Safeco. Drumma knows the way, you should follow your bird. It's not impossible, but it's not at all wise.
What do you do?
Vignette,
Jax's mouth opens slightly in surprise when you quote his own thoughts back to him. Then he closes his mouth, sets his jaw, you've just blown him away. "They listen... we're tight, as tight as anyone.You, uh, you don't know the people of Pikes. I do. You want this peaceful, it won't be easy. Nobody loved Millions, but he kept everyone safe. Or at least, took credit for what we did. I'll run Millie's Boys, Vignette. We'll put the word out. But it'd be a helluva lot easier if Millions handed it over... you know?"
He'll stay, but to get him all in? Put him in charge of Millie's Boys, let him keep some of the extortion jingle Millions used to keep, that you'll now get.
I purse my lips, then head back to Anne's costume room. I slide into a neon green latex trench coat, a pair of topaz lens goggles that dangle from a shiny chain and a surgical mask that's embossed with a pair of blue lips.
I sweep back out to the door, neon green tails floating behind me from the movement of my stride. I whistle up to the sky, wait for Drumma's answering cry. Then I'm gunning into towards SafeCo on my h-bike, following the blue blur of Drumma against the bloody sky.
"Jax, I am not trying to keep Millions alive because we are best friends. I know it will go easier if he hands it over, and if he survives, he will hand it over and walk to a dry hilltop with August. For now, though, you and I are on the wet path."
"Who will want to put a knife in my back if I give you Millie's Boys to run? You and I will disarm them." I smile a predator's smile. "I want you to run Millie's Boys--but," I hold up one slim, white finger to forestall his reply. "But it is more than just ordering them around. I will not have an army of thugs. You will replace the ones you cannot keep from hurting people unnecessarily. When you do this, the dismissed will become knives. Bring those to me. Some people find me very convincing," I say with a humorless smile."
"Millions pulled in a lot of jingle for 'keeping everybody safe'. I can ease up on people he was squeezing too hard and still have plenty. I do not share his more unsavory appetites, which should also help people accept me, and my need to sit on a pile jingle is not what his was. I need you to make sure that my lack of concern for wealth is not mistaken for weakness. I will continue to squeeze people who would disrespect me otherwise. Maybe I will give them more of what they demand--squeeze them harder so I can let up on others. You will give me full, regular reports of who we are squeezing and how hard.
"This is more than your ask to simply 'run Millie's Boys', but I will pay you double what Millions paid that position. Name that figure and the job is yours--knowing that lying to me this early in our acquaintance would very unwise."
Are you lying to me, Jax? That would be...unfortunate.
(OOC: That's my 3rd of 3 holds.)
Going into the rains prepared...
(Rolled: 2d6+2. Rolls: 3, 2. Total: 7)
I don't make it to Bon's, but I also don't get sick.
Vignette,
Jax answers solidly, "Millions gave me a barter every other week, plus food and a roof at his compound, of course. So the barter was walking around jingle. Sometimes, he'd hook me up with one of HM's girls, but that was after "job well dones", you know? When I put someone away, for good."
He's not lying.
What do you do?
August,
You take off out of Grindhouse, following Drumma to Safeco. The rain picks up unexpectedly, and the wind buffets your h-bike. You end up taking shelter where Drumma leads you...
Please go here.
I will not think Millions overpays his staff or denies himself. There should be extra for one man’s loyalty.
“I will pay you a barter a week. Same living quarters and food. I cannot make promises about girls.”
I do not object to sex for jingle, but the condition of some of Harbormaster’s “employees” is not forgivable. And then, there is Hope, her drugged state, being gifted to the Admiral like livestock… Harbormaster will not get extra jingle from me.
Vignette,
"Then I'm your man, Vignette." Jax says. SueB and Wash come out of the room where they laid Millions down. You hear August took off into the storm on her bike.
Anything else you want to do other than ride out the storm tonight?
"That is good," I say when Jax accepts my offer. "Your very first task is to get this," I say, gesturing at Schooner's unconscious form, "out of here--alive, as you said, so we do not owe Harbormaster, but gone for good. But first, I will leave him with something to help him remember," I add. I have been stroking Schooner's arm with my gloved hand, and now I lean close and whisper in his ear. I smile and then stand to face Jax. It was not a pleasant smile.
On hearing the news that August has left, I make a point of speculating to Jax and SueB and Wash that August must be distraught over Millions' being laid low on the eve of their departure, or perhaps she braves the rain in the hope of finding a healer to turn the tide in her lover's favor. I also express my concern for her, and that may be the most guileless thing I have said today.
OOC: MC, that whisper to Schooner is just for color and to give Jax a little extra something to think about.
Vignette,
Jax nods, a bit nervous about your smile and your tone. He takes Schooner and Suquamish, puts them in the room where they were sleeping, and has SueB and Wash keep eyes on them until morning when the storm should be over and it's light out.
The night passes slowly. Millions doesn't wake. People downstairs continue drinking and ignoring the storm as best they can. You're in a dangerous and exposed position here, Vignette.
Do you sleep? If you do, what do you dream about?
I ask Jax to find me two of Millions' most loyal staff--preferably not so loyal as to slit my throat on their own initiative--to watch over Millions with me. I cannot prevent his departure, if Millions walks the path of the dead, but I will not let anyone "help him along". I need him if I am to prevent bloodshed.
I sit vigil over this man who wants and does not want to give me this place he rules, this man I will kill as soon as he fulfills his purpose, and I find myself oddly envious. He has a destiny that he is about to fulfill, a happy end to what must have been a life of struggle. If he wakes, he will leave behind this struggle and walk off to the dry plateau with his love. It is an illusion, a path I have created for him, and one that will end in pain and blood before he reaches his reward, but for now, his purpose is clear and his years of struggle have culminated in his winning the woman he loves.
I wish my own path were so clear--though perhaps not as brief. I cannot work for Daddy anymore--not in the way I did. Harbormaster is worse, if my intuition is correct. I am hated and feared by people who do not even know me--and by some who do. Without a benefactor, I am just a scary witch, and eventually, witches burn, people destroy what scares them.
The Arrows welcome me, but I am not one of them. I cannot sleep in the pile forever... Half of the Arrows think I am a witch--even August. I do not even know why Dog pulled me in or allows me to stay. Maybe she will kick me out soon.
I need to be my own benefactor. When I found myself suddenly in Millions' bedroom, suddenly knowing everything he has done to Hachiko, to August, to all the Arrows, I wanted to punish him, to take away everything that makes him Millions and not just some street punk. At the same time, I saw that I could carve out a life for myself. It is not necessarily a life I want, but it is safety and it is freedom from the commands of men like the Admiral and Harbormaster. I cannot be an Arrow. I do not belong anywhere. And so, I have to create a place for myself, a place where it is safe for me to be alone in the world.
Musing on all of this while watching the rise and fall of Millions' breathing, I drift off to sleep, and before long, I dream...
I am in the forest--not the forest of the Beforetimes, or the deadly half-awake rainforest outside our borders. This is the forest of broken buildings left behind by those who lived Before. The buildings rise from cracked pavement, reaching up to hide the moon and blot out the night sky. It is, in some ways, as dangerous as the real forest. Highwaymen and worse ply their trade here. Red-tainted animals, red-tainted people, lurk in the shadows, afraid of what they have become and hungry to destroy those like they once were. I am alone and afraid.
Yet it is not just the broken city that I fear. The Admiral pursues me. I have betrayed him somehow, learned some secret I was not supposed to learn, and now I am a liability. From another quarter, the Harbormaster hunts me. He is naked and his want is clear, but he wants more than my body. He is the huntsman at the head of a pack of vacant-eyed, beautiful people. They fan out through the city streets, trying to hem me in, drive me into his arms. He will have me and make me one of them. I run, reckless in my need to escape. I try not to look too closely, not wanting to recognize any of them. I hear the whine of h-bikes and round a corner to see several Arrows. At my cry for help, they turn and zip away, Dog's pink mane flying, only Cujo looking back with anything like regret in her eyes.
My own eyes blinded by tears, I run headlong into Hope. We go down hard, and I land on top of her, looking into her placid, vacant smile. I know that her being among the Harbormaster's hunting party means that the Admiral has given Harbormaster his blessing. We have fallen into a sunken section of pavement. It is said that, in the days Before, that this was a pool surrounding a monument that spouted clearwater. I roll off Hope, her arms too weak, or maybe just her will too absent, for her to hold onto me. As the Harbormaster closes in on one side and the Admiral from another, a large black stag appears at my side, coming to the empty pool as if to drink from that time Before. The magnificent creature towers over me, unafraid, unaware of what my mind can do. I reach up and pull myself onto its back. It leaps the ring of Harbormaster's mindless creatures and bounds away. The air whips through my white-gold hair and my coat flies open. I am a comet, a shooting star. I laugh in exultation at the thrill of speed and freedom as we race away from Safeco toward Pike. As we descend on Pike, however, I realize I am betrayed. The magnificent stag is no longer that, its back is no longer muscle and coarse, fine hair, but rubbery and covered in mucus. Dark tentacles slide up and grasp my legs, my waist. I cannot dismount. My salvation has become my nightmare. The creature--no longer a stag--continues to morph until is is a thick mass of dark flesh sliding and crawling on a mass of tentacles. It crawls out onto the pier with me held firmly in its grasp. Thunder rolls and the rain starts to fall. The creature slides off the pier and into bloody water with a great splash. I cover my ears and sing my mother's song as the creature pulls me under the red waves.
I wake with a start, sweat-drenched and cold, wondering if I cried out in my sleep.
Vignette,
Jax just walked into your room, right as you woke. The rain has stopped, you can hear him as he says, "Vignette, the Arrows are coming, and they're riding loud. I pulled folks back from the edges to here. They're coming this way." He looks to SueB, who is awake, moves over to kick Wash's leg, he was sleeping a shift. "I don't think they'll come blasting in, but best we be ready." He looks to you, then adds, "Bosslady."
What do you do?
I pull on my coat, covering a blouse entirely inappropriate for sweat-drenched conditions. I have not slept well, but there are advantages to having milk-white skin and khol-lined eyes. I do not think I ever look like I have slept well.
"We will go out to meet them," I say to Jax in a voice loud enough for the others to hear. "It would not do to have the new Mistress of Pike be seen as cowering behind locked doors. Leave two of our most trustworthy with Millions, and bring a dozen who will not start anything unless I give the order."
"If so many of those exist," I add to Jax under my breath.
I walk out, at the head of whatever retinue Jax manages to gather, to meet the Arrows.
Vignette,
Jax quirks a frown, "We aren't an army or nothing, Bosslady. Millions got all the raiders to trade here, and that pretty much settled things down. We keep the work going, keep the gangs happy, and make sure trade in Pikes is fair. The Arrows probably outnumber us, but we've got bigger guns and lots of hiding places. This could get ugly."
You step outside to see the full riding force of the Arrows come your way, with eight of Millie's Boys standing by you.
Please go here