in_nomine-digest Sunday, September 30 2001 Volume 01 : Number 2396 In this digest: [none] IN> [INEWS] Bulletin, Sep. 13 - 29 IN> IN Successors: The New Prince of Greed. IN> In WoD: Garou IN> The First day is the Hardest - Hardcore!...continued. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 29 Sep 2001 21:01:27 -0400 From: "Charles Phipps" Subject: [none] [I think it would make more sense if the archangels giving the various curses were changed. In the Book of Nod, Michael is the archangel of fire, Raphael is the archangel of the dawn, Uriel is death, and Gabriel is mercy (another rendition of the Cainite legend places Michael as fire, Uriel as light, Gabriel as vengeance, and Raphael as mercy).] Interesting point but the work is by no means absolute because it is merely a Vampiric rendition of their legend and Caine's persepctive. Also the words cover a great deal of concepts.... Michael giving a vunerability to Fire after all is an aspect of War and the most readily easily acessible form of destructive power against Caine's horde. Guns after all are fire based weapons but he uses them more than Gabrielites. Raphael giving Sunlight as a vulnerability is a bit of a stretch but not a terrible one when it is seen as a turning away from the Light. Uriel giving an immunity to Death is just another example of the Malakim's extremely teneous grip on reality...if Caine will not be Pure then Uriel will make his body as corrupt as his heart and his body r As written up Azrael would never tolerate such a mockery of Death. Gabriel giving Golconda is much more powerful I think than Novalis who is NOT the Archangel of Redemption/Peace/Rebirth or Enlightment but merely the most pacifistic one. Gabriel is much more tied to God and while Michael is Fire's destructive aspect in this case the ever wise Messanger of the Lord chose to use Fire's purifying aspect. In truth it might be Gabriel simply delivering *YVES's* curse on Caine Good points however, in any case it is merely my WOD in In Nomine, I may want to do Lilith and Mages next or Werewolf and the Marches. - -Charlemagne _________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 29 Sep 2001 23:02:50 -0400 From: "William J. Keith" Subject: IN> [INEWS] Bulletin, Sep. 13 - 29 Once again, this is the amateur version. :^) It is a collection of adventure seeds based on real-world news items for this week -- you are, as always, free to discard or use them as you please. This week I will begin the real point of the series, which is to tie new stories into old ones. - ------------------ Five fire workers in the World Trade Center, slowed by their rescue of an older woman, avoid death by mere feet either way -- trapped between the fourth and second floors, they survive the collapse from above and the ruin below. Now angels of Protection are on guard against overzealous demons -- just because Josephine Harris was presented with an "Our Guardian Angel" coat is no excuse to believe that a perfectly harmless old woman is a real angel. (The fire chief who is recovering nicely in the hospital, of course, is an entirely different story. There were bound to be a few Sword Kyrios in here somewhere -- and putting Zadkiel on the other case nicely draws attention away from the steady recovery.) In the wake of the loss of his biggest Tether, Marc has announced a realignment of Trade's forces intended to focus on a new objective spanning, most likely, several decades. While many details are still being held close within the Council, the opening salvos are clear -- many angels of Trade who worked in or around the World Trade Center (several returning from Trauma) are being assigned in and about Central Asia. Some are helping with refugee efforts; others, with governments in the region. The overriding purpose is to set up a region-binding trade system that will bring Central Asia (and, with any luck, Russia and the subcontinent) into the global trade fold. Nybbas should be thrilled. He should be overjoyed. Media has once again verified its place as the center of the Universe when something major happens. So why is he frustrated? Hints might be found in the behavior of several units of the Media: Sports, Hollywood, and Music are all being upstaged by News, and no Media demon likes being upstaged. What they might do about it is anyone's guess, as is what News might do to stay on top of the heap. For example, can you be sure of your statistics? 90% of Americans is a lot to agree on *anything*, especially a war -- a war which, conveniently, would generate a great deal of interest in the Media. Assuming, of course, that it isn't entirely Special Ops runs rather than telegenic bombing raids. Asmodeus has been remarkably tolerant (for Asmodeus) recently, of what might seem to be division within The Game. The question which is being debated by Gamesters is this: is Rudy Giuliani breaking The Rules? Or playing by his own (and thus better) version? What should be done about his attempt to stay in office, if anything? Human investigative agents are combing the financial records for the possibility of anyone having profited from the events of Sep. 11. Unfortunately, Mammon has somebody in position to profit from just about *everything*, so investigations are coming uncomfortably close to some of his best agents. Game and Judgment investigators have had their interest piqued as well -- could Mammon have had intelligence that much of the rest of the celestial world did not, and actually direct Servitors to profit therefrom? Last week rumors were begun of brewing conflict between agents in service to Lilith directly, and demons of Nightmares, over shaping nations' views on freedom vs. fear. That conflict has become more open, and some of the players are starting to be identified. David Cole, of the NYTimes, has been assigned a (very subtle) demonic bodyguard afer his Sep. 25 editorial, while many humans are reporting "unexplained urges" to call in bomb threats, pointing to Nightmare Shedite involvement. Novalines in Japan have been noticing a trend toward increased militarism for several years now, a trend which has accelerated with the Prime Minister recently breaking longstanding policy and offering military support beyond their borders. The sinking of a South Korean fishing vessel has not helped, either -- high level angels overseeing Flowers operations in Japan are reassessing the level of their activities and considering a more focused push on societal values within the framework of the Japanese Constitution. Minor News: Jean is taking this opportunity to release several new genetics-examination technologies and some computing advances. Lightning is investigating seriously the possibility of Vapulan interference in what was universally considered a "surprising" result from the Board for Reproductive Ethics on the allowability of sex selection via fertility procedures. Earlier reports of the elimination of relevant Servitors may have been incorrect -- if innocent humans were deprived of a job, this may need to be fixed rapidly. The unidentifiability (due to *complete* anonymity) of a dead man at an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, reported in "News of the Weird," was the work of a Kobalite who is sufficiently dedicated to his pranks to die for them. Kobal is reportedly considering him for a promotion, and several angels in the region are looking out for a way to stop him. The question, of course, is how to defeat a Comic Kamikaze? - ---------- Eli Watch: Eli has not been spotted this week. Gabriel Watch: Gabriel was not directly observed this week, but many Servitors of Fire in San Francisco known to be carrying Dissonance and Discord are no longer thus afflicted. - ---------- William ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 29 Sep 2001 11:09:23 -0400 From: "Rolland Therrien" Subject: IN> IN Successors: The New Prince of Greed. Taking advantage of the last few days of September to get to work on this project I've had in mind since early September... I've just been unable to work on it 'till now. Actual Stats and Superior write-up will follow this short History. Rezzack New Balseraph Prince of Greed. "The World is mine for the Taking... and I plan on foreclosing, soon..." In Hell, the word "Hostile Takeover" takes on a whole other meaning. That was pretty much the thought going through Kobal's mind as he watched his beloved protege Haagenti's forces going through Mammon's weakened troops like... Like a crowd of starving third-worlders through a crew of pizza delivery guys. Hmm... He would think of a better line soon, he was sure. As for the Glutton Prince Haagenti, he was actually at the front lines, litterally chewing through the resistance, working his way towards Mammon, whom he knew was cowering in his vault. Soon, Greed would be devoured by Gluttonny, and Haagenti would be the de-facto power in Shal-Mari. Kobal was still wondering if this was a bad thing, or a good thing. He fractured himself and teleported another form of himself in the building beside Haagenti. "So, doing all right, my friend? ...We need to finish this before Asmodeus turns his attention back to Shal-Mari and starts to object to the Chaos." Haagenti growled at his "mentor" even as he finished slurping up a Balseraph in his mouth, then nodded. "I just need to find that stinking Snake's Heart, then he'll be Mine..." "I can tell you where it is, Oh Gluttonous One." Both Kobal and Haagenti turned to see a slim Balseraph in a power suit slither up slowly towards them, seemingly very calm and untroubled by the chaos and carnage surrounding them. He was clearly, by his uniform, one of Mammon's top Servitors, just a few distinctions shy of actually being a Word-Bound, but with more then enough Forces to Qualify. Haagenti grinned. "So, little Snake... you wish to sell out your Master?" The Balseraph nodded and pulled out a notepad with a contract and a standard bloodpen, and held them up to Haagenti and Kobal. "Quite so, Sir, but I insist we follow a few simple terms for the Transaction. Just in case The Game ends up asking about it..." Haagenti paused for a moment, and looked over the contract's terms, then growled. "I could just eat you and find the damn thing on my own... Why should I give you "One Item of Mammon's, of your choosing", anyway?" The Balseraph simply grinned. "Oh, you could... But that might take some time... more time then Asmodeus might have afforded you to "Look away." Besides, What I want from Mammon is Inconsequential to you." Haagenti looked questioningly at the Balseraph, then back to Kobal, who smiled and shrugged. "Hey, might as well save some time, Clock's ticking." Haagenti nodded and signed the contract, then Kobal signed as a witness. "Ah, Very good. Just this way, please. By the way, my name's Rezzack." - ----------------------- "Where are they, where are they...?" Mammon waited nervously in his barricated office, holding a large, gold-plated sword in his hand, waiting for the invitable, when he suddenly felt something... His Heart! He quickly teleported to his Heart, which was locked in a dozen-layered safe in a Vault at the heart of his bank, only to find the safe ripped open, and his heart now cluched in Haagenti's horrid fingers, as both he and Kobal grinned. He wondered how they'd found it, when he he suddenly spotted Rezzack, one of his most promising, up-coming Servitors leaning against the vault wall. "You Traitor!" Those were Mammon's last words as Haagenti engulfed both him and his Heart in a short struggle, then turned towards the Servitor and licked his lips. "Now... I believe I have given you what you asked, Dread Prince... I believe I am now to recieve my end of the bargain?" Haagenti growled and nodded. "Fine, sure... Now, what do you want? Take your pick." Rezzack smiled and pointed at Mammon's soul remains. "I want his Princedom. ...I want to be the new Prince of Greed." Both Haagenti and Kobal looked at him with wide eyes. "WHAT!?" Haagenti growled, "I just got through removing the old one!" "True, Dread Prince... But I believe that my esteemed EX Superior made a big mistake in being so Hostile to you. After all, there is a noted difference between Greed and Gluttony, a Difference which can allow me to coexist with you in a peaceful, cooperative manner, as Mammon's replacement." Haagenti squinted and tried to grasp as the Balseraph continued; "It's all about Supply and Demand, you see... You, Gluttony, are the Demand. ...And I can be the Supply, if you wish. Our words can support each other, not compete." Kobal just stood by and smirked as he saw Haagenti, the dreaded Prince of Gluttony, who's Hunger knew no end... as his hunger apparantly paused to let the Liar's words sink in. Haagenti nodded. "Yes... Makes sense... You will not interfered with Gluttony?" "Sir, I promise you, I'll do my best to HELP Gluttony! I mean, Restaurants make a lot of Money, right? So do clothing shops, and car dealers, and everything else that promotes Consumerism. So the more I help you, the more I help MY word... We'd be helping each other... All I need is your sponsorship and BOOM, we're in Business!" Haagenti nodded and smiled. "Very well, Snake. You got a Deal." "Glad to hear. I was kinda curious as to how this would go myself." All three turned to look in the direction of the new voice, and all blanched to see the Lightbringer himself, standing in the doorway, smiling in his usual mysterious way. "I hope you don't mind, the Bank was all open anyway. I hope Mammon's replacement handles that situation soon. Oh, and don't worry about Asmodeus, I told him I'd personally handle this." Rezzack, suddenly feeling very worried, crouched down into a very low reverence, while Haagenti and Kobal simply went down on one knee. "Oh, you can stand on one knee too, Rezzack... It's standard for all Princes before me." Rezzack looked up in disbelief. "R-r-really, Sire? You mean it?" Lucifer looked down seriously. "Of course. Mammon's in no condition to argue, Haagenti's sponsoring you, even the paperwork's done. And, quite frankly, I think you'll do better then Mammon anyway. Congratulations, Prince of Greed. Haagenti, since you're patronizing him, do help him get things back on track here. Well, I gotta go now, I have things to do, people to Damn..." As he turned to leave, he paused to add "Oh, and Rezzack? Don't screw up... you CAN be replaced..." Rezzack gulped and nodded, resolving not to waste the time he was going to spend as Prince collecting Enemies, like Mammon did. Stats to Come. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 29 Sep 2001 23:23:40 -0400 From: "Charles Phipps" Subject: IN> In WoD: Garou *TOP SECRET* From: Benedict, Angel of Double Agents To: His most holy master Dominic the Lord of Judgement Re: The Garou Shapechangers Most Holy Archangel of Judgement I am most pleased by your satisfaction with the report I have used the Game Archives to compile on the menace of the vampire-like species known as the Cainites. I am further pleased to hear that you wish me to continue my information search by investigating similar supernatural "races" which may form a substantial impediment/aid to our continued progress in bringing the world to a state of universal Holiness and the crushing of the dreaded Scourge in the form of Demonkind. To that end I have spent the past few months compiling a similar report to the one I sent you in regards to the extremely potent force of the Garou shapechangers. As requested I have faxed a copy of this report to Lord Laurence for pursual, the Archangel Yves for his usage, and similar copies to the Archangel Novalis and Jordi for personal inspection. It is my hope that both can provide rebuttal should my hell and library gained comparison studies prove less than complete or worse, inaccurate. Further copies shall be prepared at your leisure History As you are well aware Most Holy the Marches have existed since the Creation of the Earth and though it is not common knowledge, humanity is not the sole producer of dreams but also animals/plants/ and possibly microrganisms . In order to understand the Garou one I believe must first understand their creators which harkens back to the then and possibly still megapowerful ethereals of the "Earth Anamorphization" Gaia and the possibly more powerful anamorphizations of the Wyld (Change)/Wyrm (Balance)/Weaver (Stasis) . As you are aware these entities proved a great deal of trouble for Heaven with the Archangels of Stone, Purity, Valor, (future) War, and other militants opposed to their ilk's spread and confrontations were frequently bitter though I can only presume given the nature of the dreams that extermination was not considered feasible or desirable by their continued existence. Despite attempts to curb enroachment however the "Triat" proved durable and eventually lead to the creation of lesser spirits of a incredible variety which I have discovered the most infamous species are termed "Mokole". These spirits are the Proto-Garou and exist in a similar form that I believe is including many of the original spirits that originally took vessel form to inhabit the Earth that was home of the Dinosaurs. It is my hypothesis and allusions by the eldest of these beings and records that the Archangel Jordi was in extensive contact with these spirits and may have taken to a patronage aspect to them. I dare not personally give more than a hypothesis that the creation of vessels was either taught to the ethereals by him or that he learned it from them it was as you know this event which precipitated the destruction of the Dinosaurs among other causes though this is very dangerous knowledge The Triat are more or less silent in the matter of the Garou until a much more recent and traumatic event in the creation of Humanity. Apparently the addition of humanity's dreams aided by Heaven (specifically the World Forger, Lightbringer, Lightning fists, and Knowledge giver's efforts) directly led to an imbalance in the Triat's traditional functions and the driving of the Weaver (Preservation) into a state of manic activity that resulted in the Wyrm being physically entrapped as an ethereal entity....an event that drives both entities into insanity as Heaven classifies it. Both now are a definate hostile threat now instead of a passive one. Due to close association with this entity the "Gaia" entity in collusion with several other powerful entities proceeded to create the "Shape Changer species" in an attempt to preserve their existence against such beings. These beings including the spirits of the Mokole before included many based on traditional animals such as Cats, Wolves, Pigs, Bears, and formed a surprisingly varied multi-planar assault on the change in the world caused by humanity. It is a fairly safe assumption these efforts were supported by the Lord of Animals given ethereal cooperation was not expressely forbidden at this time and a number of surviving ethereal texts refer to the "Beast King" in a way that is eeriely reminescent of Lord Jordi. Evidentally however efforts proved too slow for Jordi as interrogated Cherubim have admitted their part in driving the "Warrior" caste of the ethereal-in-vessel Garou to attempt a ten thousand year containment of the human race via massacre called the Impergium. It appeared initially Gaia and company Ethereals believed containment was prefferable to extermination but the Lord of Animals felt differently as is less than common knowledge , the "Red Talons" tribe still bear the red mark from Lord Jordi's bestowal of recognition, blessing, attunements, and forces. As you are aware Lord Michael eventually convinced the Beast Master of the folly of this interference with the Lords plan and Jordi with his support before the Fall. However Malphasian records indicate the then Archangel was already *possibly* (Hellish texts are notorously unreliable) involved with Lucifer who had his reasons to protect humanity), Baal who hated the ethereal races, and perhaps others in making sure that the Shape changer races were eliminated. A War of Rage was fostered between them leading to the extinction of at least one group and the soul killing of the majority of the rest's spirits. Malphas's imprisonment in Hell ceased this interference for some time but he has certainly resumed it and kept at it since his release. As they ae ethereals it is impossible to change their fundementral dream and they still bear the scars today. To this day the Garou remain the front lines of the many milleneuia long goal of eradicating the influence of the Wyrm/Weaver in the world today and the containment of humanity's dreams. Were it my nature as an Elohim to feel pity milord I would for these sad wretches on an impossible mission but I do not and recognize their flaws as well as boons. Physiology Garou are simply put merely an ethereal spirit of a very large (though gradually decreasing) populous, very large presence on the Earth, and exceptionally well advantaged position. The majority of spirits dwell in Ethereal realms called "Ancestor Realms" where they are continually recycled into vessels as they become available. The spirits themselves are roughly speaking about soldier level of ability and far less than Angelic ability by some account however their service to "Gaia" has given them a unique attunement that allows them to assume a variety of shapes with the expenditure of essence that they foolishly divide into numerous categories depending on their rite to recovering it (calling it alternatively Rage/Gnosis/Will). This expenditure allows them to dramatically increase (or lower depending on perspective) their physical attributes to the point of gaining an extra force in their "Crinos" form. Another attunement is apparently Jordi created (or created by the altering of humanity's dreams in a funementally horrid way because of the Impergium that it gifted them with a new attunement) called "The Delerium" which is automatically invoked upon transformation to the most physical form and causes massive Belethian fear in mortals. Garou are notoriously hard to detect in their roles because of their special variant of the song of creation woven into their ethereal bodies called "the Song of Primal Passions" which invokes a primative variant that will create a "kinfolk" (similar to the Child of Grigori) on most accounts (9 out of 10) or on a "succesful" breeding the female carrying the child will produce a full vessel for the Garou spirit to inhabit in a loathesome ritual. This song worse produces a 100% chance of producing a vessel Garou but with massive ammounts of dischord in a Gorgon/Nephilim style abomination called "Metis" but apparently in most Garou this is considered highly taboo. Garou should not be underestimated as foes because while none can learn sorcery like Cainites or Mortals being ethereals they are extremely well entrenched with a simply MASSIVE ammount of songs both corporeal and ethereal (called rites by them) with many frequently being invented or learned by their ethereal patrons. A massive number of minor attunements passed on to them by the same patrons though being ethereals they are extremely weak in nature (called "gifts") and a large number of artifacts created by their spiritualists and taken from bound ethereals (called Fetishes) that with their formidable physical strength makes them a exceptional threat even for a warrior angel. Combined with the fact they travel in packs the average Garou group is a significant physical threat to even a tether. Furthermore they can ascend to the Ethereal planes just like an angel though the majority seem unaware that such an encounter will soul kill them (I have yet to see the process in action or have records of it studied but they can't be that different I do not believe). Furthermore I am disturbed by the fact that a large number of ethereal tethers (called Caerns by the Garou) are in their possesion and are formidable reserves for the Shape Changers though significantly less in number than Heavens worldwide Hell and Ethereal Relations The Forces of the Garou are primarily engaged in nonstop battle with the forces of the Wyrm and to a lesser extent human civilization. To our credit this is actually a singular benefit in some ways because the forces of Hell smell of the singularly entropic forces of the Wyrm always to the Garou. The Demons the Garou most greatly come into conflict with appear to include Nybbas, Vapula, Baal, and Mamnon who have a great deal of their corporate holdings invested in a number of corporations that appear to launder/produce money for Hell and provide extensive services to their words. I recommend that this network of mortal institutions be investigated though I suspect nothing new will be discovered. However the Demon Prince with the Most visible opposition to the Garou and aid appears to Be Beleth who has visible contact with a number of "Wyrm allied" powerful ethereals and may even be their secret master as opposed to the entrapped Ethereal itself and the majority of her ethereal servitors come into frequent conflict with Garou which the Shapechangers term banes. Furthermore frequent conflict also occurs with Saminga's undead (Called "Formori" along with numerous other classes of Undead monstrocities) are cited. Unfortunately a good perhaps 12th and growing amount of the Garou have been corrupted to various Demon prince or Wyrm or otherwise hostile to Heaven entities that become Hellsworn through the "Black Spiral Dance" that we know by a simple much older name as the Soul-pact. It is unknown how many of these Garou are directly working for demons masquerading as totems. Furthermore because they do not understand the War the Garou routeinly prove to be impediments to everything about them and often suffer the Bezerker dischord....striking blindly where other methods might be more effective. To list their ethereal patrons would be titanic and simply put every pantheon and god it seems desires a 9 ft tall killing machine as a worshipper/ally and most of the old spirits are accepted by the Garou as allies in the Far Marches as opposed to Blandine allied (though Cherubim seem to do quite a bit of masquerading as well-the ties between MArc and the "Glass Walker" tribe needs exploration) In Conclusion Autonomity remains the best defense against the Garou as their misunderstanding of the composition of the universe (the Umbra as they call it) is colored heavily by their ethereal ties and should Heaven be proven conclusively too them, they are likely to consider it through much the same lens as the ethereal pantheons due to tattered feelings on the Purity Crusade and much of their belief that our actions stink of the Weaver. Also as difficult as it is to accept the combined Garou forces on Earth present a military challenge to eradicate that would require another Purity crusade like effort to eliminate as the Inquisition proved inadequate a measure to deal with it. Furthermore it would require a massive genocide of those humans simply tainted with this ethereal blood, the eradication of their patrons, and the destruction of their homelands. An action which would be questionable under present Heavenly doctrine and destroy a great bulwark in unaligned humanitys as well as transfer a great deal of Hell's problems to us. Therefore I recommend concentrating on further areas and developing peaceful relations to focus the Garou to fighting FOR heaven (or at least against hell) and perhaps unintentionally destroy their dream by transfering their essence from gaia/earth figure to Gaia/God. Forceful extermination of the Hellsworn Garou like any evil soldier of course is a matter of policy to be pursued. Of course it is the Commander of the Host's decision but the problem may resolve itself before such action might be taken in any significant manner. The Archangel Jean estimates the Garou's relentless war will exaust their spirits completely against Hell and Nightmares (and each other) by the end of the generation. - -Charlemagne _________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 30 Sep 2001 22:02:32 +1100 From: "james walker" Subject: IN> The First day is the Hardest - Hardcore!...continued. > Very engaging. Will you be using the canon version of Fufur or the list > created DP of destruction? Canon - fun as the list version was, I'm trying to run through the situations canon Lilim have been through. Besides, I LIKE Furfur. He'd make a great Archangel of Passion. > I sort of liked the latter version, but it will > be great to see how you develope this story with either. You set the stage > well. > > Jeffery Thank You! =========================================================================== The sound shook the floor beneath their feet as Erisya and Rave entered Hell Gem. The music had a catchy tune weaving around a deep hypnotic beat, and Erisya found herself swaying in response to the passionate rhythm. Rave flashed another of his trademark smiles: "Great, isn't? Tonight's DJ is one of the Welcomers - they always manage a great mix." ~Welcomers?~ "They're demons who intend to serve Eli when he Falls. Kronos is their official sponsor, which is the only reason the Game leaves them alone. But all of the with-it Superiors support them, at least tacitly - Lilith, Furfur, Andre, Nybbas, Valefor - even Haagenti. They live a dangerous life, but they'll be the Eli's aristocracy when he turns up." ~Who's Eli?~ "The only Archangel who isn't stuck in the past. The other Archangels booted him out of Heaven, so he wanders all over Earth, enjoying everything it has to offer. He was at the gig when the Boss got promoted to Demon Prince - shows you how close he is to joining us! But even in here it's not really safe to talk about him." Hell Gem was by no means the largest of Furfur's nightclubs - it was tiny compared to the Brimstone Club. But it was easily the most exclusive. Only the best dressed, the most sophisticated, or the most powerful could hope to get past the bouncers. And that was after spending several days queuing at the doors. Lilim found it slightly easier to get in, but even they could be turned away - something that shocked the older tempters, used to having everything their own way within the Guild Hall. They had attempted to blackball the club; all this had achieved was to make it more popular with the younger Lilim, who were more than a little resentful of the control their more experienced sisters had over the Guild Hall. Free Lilim rarely had to queue to get in. If Furfur was pleased with a mission a Lilim had fulfilled for him, he tended to give them a "back door pass" allowing them easier access, and all of his own Lilim have such a pass. Even so, the bouncers have no compunction against turning them away if they aren't incredibly well dressed. ~How many Fabiani does it take to make one of those jackets?~ "Only one, but you need a good knife! Hah, Hah - oh, you weren't joking - how the blazes did some punk get in here wearing an off the shelf jacket? THRASH! GET THIS SLUG OUT OF HERE!" A huge Calabite bouncer answered Rave's cry by bearing down on the demon who had attracted Rave's ire - a smirking Impudite who was trying to chat up one of the Lilim at the bar. Sweeping the unfortunate Leech up in one massive hand Thrash strode to the nearest wall and put his other fist straight through it. He then rammed his victim through the hole. Of course, the Taker's head was larger than Trash's fist, and his shoulders wider still - a couple of Forces tore free before Trash had finished his task, and could head to the door to find out how much the Impudite had bribed the door wardens - and demand his cut. "Drink?" Rave suggested. ~Umm..sure. Uh - it's important what you wear here, is it?~ "Gawd yes. When you come here by yourself, make sure you're wearing a designer original, or something better. Lilith pops in occasionally - keep an eye on what she's wearing, that'll be the next big craze. You don't need to worry about what you wear at the other Hardcore clubs - so long as it's tough enough to survive the mosh pit - but that means slumming with the plebs." ~So your leather outfit is a 'designer original'?~ He laughed. "Nah - although I did strip it from James Dean's corpse. But I'm the manager - I don't follow the rules, I just set them. And as long as you're wearing my jacket, the bouncers won't touch you." The bartender handed her a strawberry daiquiri, and Rave something that sizzled in it's shot glass. Casually violating his own rules about no drinks on the dance floor, Rave guided Erisya out there and started to dance. Gingerly following suit, Erisya was soon raging madly; before heading back to the bar for a rest - and then after a drink back out to dance again. Eventually even the alcoholic haze couldn't stop her legs from complaining of fatigue. The haze did, however, make Rave's offer to massage the tension out of her legs particularly tempting. She was even more exhausted by the time she sobered up; the ache in her head offset the pleasant buzz she felt elsewhere. Leaning on Rave's arm she managed to walk down a corridor to his office. It occurred to her that the music beating through the wall was only part of the reason for her headache. ~Are those drinks supposed to cause this headache? Or was it the dancing?~ Rave pulled a bottle from behind a filing cabinet and poured her a drink. "Hair of the Dog will fix that." She hesitantly sipped the drink, and was pleased to feel the ache pass. Rave rummaged through his 'in' box. "Where is the wretched thing, it's been hours since we arrived - ah!" He pulled out a flashy magazine called Wild Beat. Its' headline was 'Mystery Guest at Hell Gem!' and showed the picture of Rave and Erisya entering the club. "That's pretty good. You know, you could build a pretty impressive reputation on this." Erisya took the magazine, and her face flushed. Opening the magazine, she read the article - a wild speculation about who she was and why she was on Rave's arm. Rave smiled to himself, watching her face. Instant fame was going to her head, no doubt about it - and she was smart enough to realise that it would disappear as soon as the truth was known. Not smart enough to figure out that Wild Beat was an in-house publication by Hell Gem, of course, but he wouldn't have used the ploy if he'd thought she was. "We'll have to figure out how to work this. Let's see...a few carefully worded denials; decide which rumours to refuse to comment on - what we really need is a way to try unsuccessfully to clamp down on the entire thing. Are you due to fulfil any contracts in the next few days?" ~Uh - no. Would that help?~ "Oh yes; especially if the contract has a secrecy clause. That would drive the press wild - imagine how they'd run with it, wondering which Demon Princes are involved in whatever you are doing, how it influences the War, why it's so secret - you'd be able to sell the story for a fortune. And that'd give us time to weave a very saleable story too. Hmm..." He paced up and down the room, appearing deep in thought. He stopped as if a idea had struck him. "But this is so simple - they'd expect you to leave by one of the joint Tethers anyway, so why not head to the Corporeal straight from here? I can pull a few strings to get a juicy contract pushed your way, bribe the Seneschal to let you use the Tether - hmm, this could get pricey..." He turned to face Erisya. "I like you, girl, but this is going to cost me. Cost me a lot, actually... suppose we make a deal? You choose the level of Geas - whatever you owe me, I'll owe you, and you invoke it to get me to pull the strings to get you a juicy contract, lots of publicity.." he indicated the magazine in her hand "and so on. Heck, make it a high level Geas and I'll speak to Furfur himself about the contract and make sure it's a prime one that'll give a shot at getting on the fast track. Deal?" ~So, I'll be owing you - and you'll get me a contract which will be really good?~ "The best. AND I'll cover the media story at this end, and make sure that you get paid a bundle for whatever exclusive story we cook up." He flashed another of his trademark smiles. She smiled back, a little hesitantly, and wondered how large a Geas she should go for. But it was Geas for Geas, and it had been fun with Rave...a Geas/6 formed around her throat, another around Rave's arm. He smiled and touched his new earring. A mental command and the Geas Erisya wore changed shape to become an intricate necklace. "So all you have to do is invoke the Geas, to have me get you the best possible contract, and foster your media image..." She did so. Rave smiled again. "Okay, let's go. If we head through a Tether and travel to the Suicide Nazis concert, we'll get you a much better deal. I know that the Boss wants a lot done there, so if we imply that you had already worked out the problem yourself we can haggle for more goodies for you since you are clearly the one for the job. And of course, he doesn't have to wait while you travel to the right spot." She was still wearing his jacket; he slipped his hand under it. As she'd mislaid the rest of her clothes, that caused her to gasp. "Now you need to get dressed - and I'll need my jacket back - and then we can get going!" It was several months before Erisya realised that she'd paid a Geas to get Rave to do his job; and by then she'd opted to join Hardcore anyway. Still, she WAS well paid for that exclusive interview. ========================================================================= I have a freeform to write, so I don't know how much stuff I'll be writing for the IN list in the near future. Still, I'll make sure to send some stuff so you know I'm still alive! :-) James. ------------------------------ End of in_nomine-digest V1 #2396 ********************************