[did I survive last night?]
Dice: 4 d10 TN7 (1, 1, 5, 7) ( success x 1 )
Elijah PoirotInhale
The sound travelled there. He'd never been to this particular nightclub, but Elijah had only been in town for a couple months and was slowly but surely going through and figuring out what clicked and what didn't. He hadn't successfully combed through every single place in Denver but this? This was one that he had been told he couldn't ignore.
Walking into the club, there was enough to make his knees feel weak. To look around and finally feel something when he walked into a church, to see people wherever he turned, to feed on that sort of energy, to build on it, to go forward. Most importantly, he loved nightclubs because of the want hat they drowned out other sounds, the way he didn't hear someone disembodied talking to him, th way it wasn't so hard to focus on people because there was so much sound and sensation that he could instead draw from that it didn't matter if he was only half listening to the living person in front of him because he could play that off well enough.
If this is Lucy's calling, then Elijah had no idea how she managed.
Exhale.
Jenn had taken him here, but he hadn't had to be dragged to actually come, she has just gone on and on and on about this fan-freaking-tastic DJ who was going to play. There was only one DJ that Jenn effused so passionately about, and Elijah had taken great pains to not mention that he actually knew her. So maybe that was a draw, the only big question was whether or not he was going to go dance or if he was going to try and find her before her set started
Lena Reilly[[Magedar! Uncanny Instincts spec]]
Dice: 7 d10 TN6 (1, 4, 4, 4, 7, 8, 8, 10, 10) ( success x 5 ) Re-rolls: 2
Lena ReillyThe Church Nightclub is one of the many nighttime hotspots in the city, and this one is unique for its location. The place was once in fact an actual church, the building first constructed in 1865 when the Gothic architecture fit a religious establishment of such style. Now it serves an entirely different crowd but the sensation inside is no less exultant. There's a fine line between religous fervor and passion after all, and that line makes this place a conjunction of both. Maybe some essence of prayer and faith lingers and spurs the newer emotional spikes, or perhaps it's just about taking what was old and making it new again.
Either way, the beat is pounding and ambient trance flows through the sound system as the dance floor gets its groove on. The Church has a full bar below stained glass windows and an event calendar that is full of music and bookings by some of the best DJs. One of those is DJ Halcyon, who has a standing engagement here on weekdays. DJ Halcyon herself--or, as we better know her, Lena Reilly--is currently in the DJ booth, watching as the current DJ does his thing. There's a distinct rivalry that goes on between DJs for their work, but Lena rarely gets into those kinds of feuds because she's more interested in living through the experience of their work than stealing their ideas.
Elijah has seen a warm, friendly but reserved Lena before. This Lena? Totally different. She's completely within her element and if she didn't look like--well, Lena--one might not even recognize her. She's rocking a tank top with "In Love With the DJ" emblazoned in neon green against black, her auburn hair streaked with green for the night. She's in a state of constant movement...even not working right now, she's always moving to the beat, her head nodding and her hands in constant motion of some kind. This is Lena as she would be in a perfect world; in the nightclub, she's at home with herself.
And then she lifts her head as that sense of Resonance settles over her. She looks around and it isn't hard to find Elijah; the pull is strong to Lena's honed Awareness. She smiles and says a couple of words to the DJ before slipping out of the booth, heading his direction with a raised hand in greeting.
"Hey you," she says when she gets close. "Funny running into you here. How are you?"
Elijah PoirotHow Elijah managed to find a place for his pocket watch the world may never know, but he seemed to have foregone a vest that night in favor or wearing a fitted tee shirt and a pair of black pants. He had on half a dozen bracelets and a necklace he couldn't quite get off because his room mate had tied it on and he was waiting for her to either release him from his fashionable prison or wait until the damned thing fell off. He saw Lena and his face lit up with delight.
Yes, delight, because while the Lena he'd met before was nice and she was reserved and she was friendly, this Lena was different. He hadn't met this Lena before. He put up his hands, grin on his face widening, "I slept like shit!"
But he laughed about it, the thought didn't seem to bother him, but instead the sound was triumphant. He slept like shit, and yet he was still here, absorbing the air being around people, still breathing. Still taking it all in, still being and loving every minute of it. "I'm fanhastic- what about you? You look-like-wow."
Alive, bright, vibrant, in her element- Elijah didn't have words.
"You've seriously got the best job."
Lena ReillyShe comes up close to him, but doesn't reach out and make contact. This Lena is freer, more alive...but that's a boundary she still only crosses when she knows someone, or when she's in a crowd. Groups of people are easy. One-on-one is harder. But that doesn't mean that she's skittish at all; she's calm, confident, and vibrant with her Resonance pulsing strongly (if still, as always, withering away after every thump).
She grins widely when Elijah says she has the best job and shrugs. "I'd like to play it cool and say that it's okay...but yeah, I really do." There's a touch of sympathy in her eyes when he says he slept like shit, but it's not pity or concern. Lena is a caffeine junkie; if Elijah looked closely up at the booth he would see a couple energy drink cans already and they don't belong to the current DJ. So she knows very well what it's like to not sleep well...and for other reasons, she knows bad dreams, though not as bad as Elikah, Grace or others in the Awakened world of Denver.
"I'm good. I'm great," she quickly amends to. "When I'm working I always am. Or waiting to work. C'mon, you want a drink? I get discounts and rarely use it."
Elijah Poirot"You see this? This is my jealous face. I can't say anything, though, because I'm pretty sure I've found a way to tap into the mind-numbing boredom of a copy shop to see the very fabric of time itself move at one third of its normal speed because Jesus those are the longest eight hours ever," he laughs, because laughing comes easily, and there was the question of whether or not he wanted a drink.
He didn't have to think long.
"I'll take a drink, they have anything decent with tequila? What time do you go on? Since you're here, I figured we could shoot the shit for a little while?" hopeful, that. Because when you were young and when you were impulsive and when the world was still bright and shining, there were always questions.
Lena ReillyElijah's description of the mundanity of his work brings a chuckle to her lips. "True story, I knew an Ecstatic who lived for his job on a baby food assembly line. He said that the slowness of Time and the whirring sound let perfect his meditation ability until he could almost do it at will. And he was good at it, too...though that may have been because he was always stoned."
She winks at that, then nods. "They have some good tequila stuff. Take your pick and they can probably make it." He asks if they could talk and she warms, smiles again. "Yeah, absolutely. I'd love that."
She leads him over to the bar, where the guy behind the bar recognizes her of course. They don't seem particularly close, though Lena's friendly with him and places an order for whatever Elijah wants. She herself gets a vodka Red Bull and once the drinks are in hand, she looks at him.
"So how've things been going for you? What with everything...you know. The mission."
Elijah PoirotHe orders tequila mockingbird, which he ordered because he liked the name and he liked watermelon. Surprisingly enough, they mixed it without a bat of an eye. The young man popped the jalepeño slice into his mouth without any thought for the fact that this might be hot for other people, and munched merrily along to drinking what was there. He didn't start the evening with a shot of tequila, which is testament to his budding self control. Or, conversely, testament to how good the bar is here because there was certainly better things to drink on the menu.
How are things?
"Did I tell you that Grace is working on this now yet? I forget who I've told what to, but Grace is looking into it, and she said she'd tell Alicia if she found something." Not Elijah. He seems to accept that grudgingly, that he won't know if Grace finds something, or really when Grace is going to be looking for things. "Sid gave me a guy's pager number who was around when all this stuff went down the first time, so I'm hoping I can talk to him. His name's Pan?"
Lena ReillyThe name Pan puts recognition in her eyes. Lena knows the man, although perhaps not as well as others. It was something that bothered her a little--not that he's helping, but that she never got to know him as well as she could have. It was a matter of her own self-isolation earlier in her stay in Denver, a problem which still rears its ugly head from time to time to this day.
Still, she's smiling when he mentions him. "Pan's a good guy, from what I know of him. We ran across a whole...thing a while back. Zombie dogs." She says it with a straight face...either she's dead serious or has a fantastic poker face. "I probably would have been pretty messed up if he hadn't taken the brunt of it. Sera was there too...she and he are pretty close. Hopefully he can help."
She takes a lean against the bar on her stool, running her finger absently around the rim of her glass. It's a move that is seductive for some people, but with her it comes across differently. There's no come hitherness, because...well, Lena doesn't do that kind of thing, for obvious reasons. She enjoys the feel of the condensation on sensitive fingerpads; she does it without really thinking about the motion. Especially here...touch, scents, sounds, sights. It's all part of the visual submersion that she craves and lets herself get into when she's in her element.
"And Grace is a good choice too. If anyone can find information, it will definitely be her." It's said to be reassuring; she gets the grudging nature of being kept out of the loop, but she admired that he can accept it.
Elijah PoirotZombie dogs, she says.
"That's a thing?" he asked, she had to have been serious and he takes her as such but he's looking at her like he can hardly believe it even though, well, he really does believe it. Elijah took a second to blink, sort things out, take into play what she said about the situation and what speaks of the character of one Pan Echeverría
Back on the topic of grace, his attention was on Lena, doesn't take her motion as being particularly seductive, because when he drinks he does close his eyes and he never quite gets the damned grin to come off of his face like the whole world was here and the fact that it was bright and live and vital for him was present enough for the young man. There's so much sensory input, and he gladly takes all of it for a chance to drown out the constant talking he hears.
"I was honestly surprised that Grace agreed to do this. She's… she was pretty spooked on account of that virus thing she told me about. I honestly thought she was going to tell me to take a hike."
Lena ReillyThe very mention of the Hydra virus throws a shade over Lena's face. She blanches briefly and there's a moment where she looks like she's about to emotionally withdraw. Lena has spoken with Elijah about the Passions, and how letting one ride out too strongly can lead to bad things. She admitted that she has let them carry too much at times, as much as she tries to avoid it. Fear of Hydra...that's one of those times and it still hasn't gone quite away.
But while it nearly makes her pull back, she shoves it aside and comes back forward into the present. She swipes her hand through her hair and smiles slightly, albeit with a bit of an edge. "Hydra fucked a few of us up, yeah. But Grace isn't one to let that stop her from doing something she thinks is important. Clearly, she thinks this is one of those times."
Elijah Poirot"I don't think I can thank her enough for this," he said. It's all he could say. All he could really think of to say. It was strange, because the longer things went on, the more real it seemed, the more concerned he was growing at the prospect of bringing the world down on everyone's head even if he didn't have a backup plan, especially since he didn't have a backup plan. He didn't have an exit strategy, and the idea of something happening to grace was…
Well, now. It was becoming more and more a potential reality, now, wasn't it?
"Anyway… I don't… I have no idea what to do to help her except stay out of her way so I'm trying right now to stay out of her way."
Lena Reilly"Sometimes that's all we can do. It's the hardest thing in the world when we want to help, but that's our job sometimes...being on standby in case we're needed, even if we have to accept that there's probably not anything we can in the particular leg of the journey."
She's sympathetic. She's been there before, more than once, and it's a tough spot to be in. She's sat in hospitals for weeks to stand watch over a couple Mages here in Denver while others tried to handle other situations, because it was all she can do. It's the limitation that her health imposes on her; fights and running and the like aren't where she's best used. One little scratch...
Well, anyway.
"So instead you just have to provide support the best way you can. Letting them do their thing and let you know that you're there if they need you."
Elijah PoirotHe listens to Lena, really listens. Pays attention and takes in her wisdom because Elijah? Well, Elijah was too young to be a bastion of wisdom. he nods, nods again because she is his point of focus and the young man takes a drink of his drink, savors the taste of watermelon and tequila on his lips before taking a second before.
"Hey, i was meaning to ask you about that code you told me about," he said, "this probably isn't the place but, y'know… I'm interested in knowing because… well, from what I've heard it makes a lot of sense."
Elijah PoirotHe listens to Lena, really listens. Pays attention and takes in her wisdom because Elijah? Well, Elijah was too young to be a bastion of wisdom. he nods, nods again because she is his point of focus and the young man takes a drink of his drink, savors the taste of watermelon and tequila on his lips before taking a second before.
"Hey, i was meaning to ask you about that code you told me about," he said, "this probably isn't the place but, y'know… I'm interested in knowing because… well, from what I've heard it makes a lot of sense."
Elijah PoirotHe listens to Lena, really listens. Pays attention and takes in her wisdom because Elijah? Well, Elijah was too young to be a bastion of wisdom. he nods, nods again because she is his point of focus and the young man takes a drink of his drink, savors the taste of watermelon and tequila on his lips before taking a second before.
"Hey, i was meaning to ask you about that code you told me about," he said, "this probably isn't the place but, y'know… I'm interested in knowing because… well, from what I've heard it makes a lot of sense."
Lena Reilly"The Code of Ananda." That brings the light fully back to her face. She pauses a moment, thinks, and then nods with her head.
"C'mon. There a little room that we can talk in about it, if you want. Staff here uses it as a hangout spot away from the public, but it's usually unoccupied on weekdays."
Elijah Poirot"Okay!" and with no small amount of delight, he followed along... but not before finishing his drink.
Lena ReillyHis enthusiasm is infectious, especially for people who live off emotion. Lena can understand why the Tradition community of Denver has become so enamored of him, and she can't help but smile, despite the oh-so-recent specter of Hydra brought to her ears. She picks up her drink--as yet tasted--and leads him around the dance floor to a little door to the side of the DJ booth marked "Staff Only."
The inside of the room isn't huge; it's more like a break room than anything. There is a small refrigerator so the staff can store things without using the bar fridge and a couple of couches, with a door leading to the outside for when people want to smoke. The floor is black laminate, the original wood likely lying underneath.
Lena takes a seat on one of the couches, curling her legs underneath her and finally taking a swallow from the energy drink/alcohol cocktail. "All right, so the Code of Ananda. Like I said, there's ten guidelines, and many of us within the Cult have...different opinions. Me, I tend to agree with all of them, but that's my way."
Elijah PoirotKalen once likened Elijah to a puppy, and the analogy was a fairly accurate one. he was enthusiastic, fidgety, and generally well meaning even if he did occasionally eat someone's shoes or chase stray cats. Or technocrats. Frankly, the technocracy was less terrifying than a very angry housecat but only because the technocracy would not passive aggressively puke in your shoes. We digress. Elijah had an infectious enthusiasm, and when he came to sit back, his attentions as direct on Lena once again.
though, in the quiet of the room, it was a little harder for him to focus. A little harder for him to keep his head on straight and his thoughts where they needed to be. for now, things were quiet, but there was always the threat, the underlying tension and preparation for the storm.
"Is it like a law or is the code like guidelines? Will they kick you out if you don't follow them?"
Lena Reilly"The answer is...complicated." That makes her grin. It's a question that she had, and had a little trouble coming to terms in when she was first brought into the Cult. "It's a messy, conflicted matter...and gloriously so, much like life is. To some of us, it's law and we take it upon ourselves to prevent others from acting against it. To others, they're more guidelines. If you want to make it even more complicated, some of the individual tenets are handled more or less strictly along the law vs. guideline spectrum."
She sighs a bit. "The easiest way to explain it is that they aren't true laws. They're more like proverbs...words of wisdom. The best way I can get it acress is in how it pertains to me. Or how I feel about it. And some tenets of the Code I kind of consider inviolate. I've acted against people, both in and out of the Tradition, who have been about to take an action that violates them. Others...well, they don't really equate well into laws, so it's hard to really argue the point. It's my moral code, I guess you could say. And like any moral code, others' codes may conflict. It's how strongly they conflict that matters to me, and the amount of harm they may do to others by acting as they do."
Elijah PoirotSo it's… kind of like.. well, it kind of sounds like the Chodana but not really exactly like it because the way Eleanor talked it was kind of like philosophy and kind of like rules and kind of- anyway," he knew he was rambling, could at least recognize (sometimes) when the words coming out of his mouth were more like a place filler for things he knew he was thinking than actual coherent thoughts that could be released to fend for themselves in police society.
"So… what's the code say? Is it, like, do unto others kind of?"
Lena ReillyLena doesn't know the Chodana, so it would be a question lost on her if he actually asked it. But he's more saying it to himself so she doesn't interrupt...let's him talk it out and waits, to let him get to that point. When she asks him about what the code says, she nods.
"That's part of it...kind of. Here, I'll list them out for you." And that's what she does...repeating the tenets of the Code with far more then what would be considered rote memorization familiarity. She doesn't explain them right away...there will be time for that later. And she wants to see what he has to say about them.
"First: Thou art miraculous; so are we all.
Second: He who spits upon his good right hand will find the left one fails him in need.
Third: Each gold coin yields two like it; each stalk given creates a bundle. Yet each count taken turns the rest to dross, and one bundle gone creates a famine. Thus shall a Seer count his deeds.
Fourth: Some minds best rest asleep. Strive not those who would not waken otherwise.
Fifth: Truths foreseen are not always truths.
Sixth: If a man or woman would rend another's passions, let him be as one torn by wild dogs. For passions are the seat of the Self, and if they bleed, so to does the soul.
Seventh: Let each Seer account his own deeds, and if those deeds should want for wisdom or kindness, let him be put forth to weep alone.
Eighth: Humor cooleth blood; wrath spilleth it.
Ninth: Even trees rent by lightning may grow new fruit.
And tenth: A fool feels no fear; a Sleeper remains shackled by it; a Master transcends it, yet recalls its wisdom. It is good to be afraid; it is folly to bow to terror."
Elijah Poirot[willpower: I totally did not phase out halfway through]
Dice: 4 d10 TN7 (4, 5, 8, 9) ( success x 2 )
Elijah Poirot"I… don't think I quite get the third one. If you give good, then you get good back, but if you take then you're going to lose everything? I think? It seems very rule of three to me.
"So the sixth sounds pretty intense… and I don't think I quite get it completely either, but it sounds like you really shouldn't try and fuck with someone else's passions because that's like getting in the way of how someone communicates with their soul. but I don't know how someone would do that… but that's really intense.
"And the seventh sounds like… like if you do something stupid or assholish, you should have to account for your actions on your own.
"The tenth one makes me think of the Golden Mean- how you should strike a balance for things. too much fear is crippling, not enough is being fool hearty.. but it's not necessarily a bad thing to be afraid, because it's supposed to teach you something… but I don't know what Sleepers have to do with it, is it a fear of the truth? I mean… that's really kinda personal for me… once I stopped being so afraid of myself I learned so much… But I don't know if that relates."
odd. Elijah didn't seem the type who would have reason to be afraid of himself, of what he could do, but there it was. that panic, that paranoia referenced but not revisited.
Lena ReillyShe smiles as he starts running through, impressed with how he seems to understand them. She didn't think of him as dense or anything, but they are some pretty lofty concepts. That he's displaying such a comprehension of them is...inspiring, to say the least.
"The third one is very Rule of Three, yes." She nods. The idea is that, much like what most people understand Karma as...the more you give, the more that is created. Thus, the more you have access to. It's all very Newtonian, if you want to look at it scientifically. But the more you take, the more that everything starts to die. The key is that if you take, you should give something in its place so there is no dearth.
And you're right on with the sixth as well. Remember, for the Cult, Passions are everything. They're incredibly strong, but also can be fragile. If you rend someone's passions--turn a source of joy into a source of terror, fear, or pain, for example--then we turn people away from wanting to feel joy every again. Similarly, if we take the fear someone's and turn it into joy, then they no longer have that fear to draw upon. And thuse, they'll never be able to reach ecstacy, and expend their lives and spirits.
The seventh is pretty straight-forward, but it needs some context. You're right that it's basically a law of accountability. We within the Cult are all about community. We're pretty social creatures, for the most part. We need community to function, and we have a drive toward being part of a community. If a mage within a community risks us all with foolish actions or behavior, then they tend to be shunned. Thus, the chance of being a pariah tend to keep most mages from doing things they'd otherwise do."
She pauses here. "I'm not trying to make reference to what you're doing, in case you might worry about that. There is some risk there, and others could feel that way. It's a blurry line, but I understand what you're trying to accomplish.
And for the last...Fear is a peculiar and tricky Passion. Sh'zar, who set forth the Code, knew this well. It's one of those Passions a lot of people, even experienced Cultists..." Including, she indicates with a hand on her breastbone, herself, "...can't always get their brains around quite right. Sleepers doesn't necessarily mean those who aren't awake here. It's mean to mean those who haven't acheived enlightenment. In some ways, we're all still Sleepers. And yeah, it's about balance. Some people try to ignore fear...others try to confront every fear head-on. Both lead to a lot of dead people."
Elijah Poirot"I'm worried that I'm doing just that, though, fucking up good ol' number seven? I mean, i… I keep thinking I should be doing this, but getting everyone's input on things, especially when I asked for help? It's… it's strange, to feel so certain and then suddenly… you're not. What Alicia wants is to know what happened to her Dad, and that's it and the further things go on, the more worried I get about bringing something huge down on people that I can't take back. I feel like I belong somewhere, I don't… I don't want to be alone again," he admits. He's not ashamed of it, not afraid to admit that he didn't want to be alone, that he thirsted for this sense of community he'd found, that he'd hoped to help encourage.
"I can see where this would be really helpful for helping guide your actions and stuff… once you get past… y'know… language. And stuff. Who's Sh'zar? The language sounds crazy old, like, middle English old."
Lena ReillyThere is a moment, as she's sitting there listening to him, that a decision is made. As he talks about his concerns and his fears, and not wanting to be alone again. And as soon as he's done, she leans over, eaches out and puts her hand over his wrist. The touch is brief, but it's there.
"If it all goes bad," she says, sincerely, "I will back you regardless. And I am very damned sure I'm not the only one."
And that's all she feels like she needs to say about that. She leans back again, picks up her drink and sipts it as he asks about Sh'zar. "He was...basically the founder of the Cult. We existed before that, though not in the same way. Some of our people argue that we're the oldest Tradition, though I'm not 100% on that. Anyway, Sh'zar brought us together in a way that hadn't been seen before. That was during the time of the First Cabal...the beginnings of the Nine Traditions. Back in the late fifteenth century..."
She stops there, scrunches up her forehead and nose. "I think. Time is all relative, anyway. Oldest, fifteenth century, first, last...none of that really matters. Its just invented so we can conceptually understand it. The point is, he's one of true creators of the Cult as it exists---and of the Traditions as a whole."
Lena Reilly[[PAUSE]]
Lena ReillyLast posts:
Elijah Poirot
“I’m worried that I’m doing just that, though, fucking up good ol’ number seven? I mean, i… I keep thinking I should be doing this, but getting everyone’s input on things, especially when I asked for help? It’s… it’s strange, to feel so certain and then suddenly… you’re not. What Alicia wants is to know what happened to her Dad, and that’s it and the further things go on, the more worried I get about bringing something huge down on people that I can’t take back. I feel like I belong somewhere, I don’t… I don’t want to be alone again,” he admits. He’s not ashamed of it, not afraid to admit that he didn’t want to be alone, that he thirsted for this sense of community he’d found, that he’d hoped to help encourage.
“I can see where this would be really helpful for helping guide your actions and stuff… once you get past… y’know… language. And stuff. Who’s Sh’zar? The language sounds crazy old, like, middle English old.”
Lena Reilly
There is a moment, as she’s sitting there listening to him, that a decision is made. As he talks about his concerns and his fears, and not wanting to be alone again. And as soon as he’s done, she leans over, eaches out and puts her hand over his wrist. The touch is brief, but it’s there.
“If it all goes bad,” she says, sincerely, “I will back you regardless. And I am very damned sure I’m not the only one.”
And that’s all she feels like she needs to say about that. She leans back again, picks up her drink and sipts it as he asks about Sh’zar. “He was…basically the founder of the Cult. We existed before that, though not in the same way. Some of our people argue that we’re the oldest Tradition, though I’m not 100% on that. Anyway, Sh’zar brought us together in a way that hadn’t been seen before. That was during the time of the First Cabal…the beginnings of the Nine Traditions. Back in the late fifteenth century…”
She stops there, scrunches up her forehead and nose. “I think. Time is all relative, anyway. Oldest, fifteenth century, first, last…none of that really matters. Its just invented so we can conceptually understand it. The point is, he’s one of true creators of the Cult as it exists—and of the Traditions as a whole.”
Elijah PoirotShe assures him, gives her word that if it all goes bad then Lena will back him. Regardless. She's certain she wouldn't be the only one and that seems to assuage some of his concerns, puts his mind at ease that he wouldn't necessarily have to brave the awakened world alone. there was something strange about that, it's a concept he comes back to, figuring out where he would fit and what he would do if he didn't necessarily find himself to be a missing puzzle piece in some larger picture.
Grace said it herself, it wasn't safe to do all of this alone. Maybe it was the lack of safety that scared him, perhaps something to think about later.
Lena reassures him, and his lips quirk upward. He doesn't shy away from contact, but craves it no matter how brief. Whether that contact be physical or emotional.
They talk about time tables and time lines and the specifics of it seem to get Elijah a little tripped up. History was one of his worst subjects, if only because he was at once incredibly good with dates and incredibly uninterested in them. "The date doesn't matter as much as the concept," he replied, following along and taking a moment to really take that in, "so, what was it like before the traditions were… y'know… the Traditions."
Lena ReillyElijah didn't do well in history because he was uninterested in dates; that's another point in which they're similar. Even before she was a Cultist, Lena was both deeply cognizant of the importance of the past, yet completely uncaring about the linear aspect. Those who ignore the past are doomed to repeat it, they say...but perhaps it's just that those who look at the past AS the past fail to realize that it's the same as the future and the present, and thus unwittingly take journey to a point where past and present coincide.
But that's neither here nor there. (Or rather, it's both and thus not relevant right now.) Elijah asks what it was like before the Traditions and Lena quirks her lips, then grins. "One day maybe we'll find out first-hand." Hey, the girl recently charged into a Roman arena, rode a dragon and got blown up by an airplane. Stranger things have happened.
"From what I know though...it's just like anything before stuff gets organized. Chaotic, but free and running in wonderous directions. Spirit mages from all corners of the world doing their own thing, both good and ad. Oracles from Delphi and Aztec seers looking into the future and seeing the same thing from half a world apart, albeit in their own ways and through their own means and not ever thinking that one might be the same as the other. Blood witches and Celtic shamans and..." She shrugs. "Well, all of it. But as varied as it was, a lot of war, too. Some of them, such as the conflict between Euthanatos and Akashics, still continue to this day. There are a lot of grudges too...the Verbena and Celestial Chorus have never fully trusted each other, for example. Most of that kind of thing stems from before we were organized."
Elijah Poirot"But now that the traditions are organized there's slightly less internal warring over ideologies and nobody's trying to burn each other as heretics?" he asked, might as well ask because he needed some kind of confirmation.
he wondered, mused, briefly over whatever conflict there was between the Euthanatoi and the Akashics, what that could have stemmed over and what all of that actually meant. Perhaps a question for Eleanor. Perhaps a history lesson. For all his poor marks in history (dates, man, fuckin' dates) he did enjoy the topic. He had a love of stories, of what happened and how it happened, all the while not being terribly hung up on the things people thought were important about it. if he could remember the importance of why something happened, why did it matter if he didn't know something happened on May 12th? beyond, of course, making it easier for everyone else to understand.
We digress. His thoughts were prone to digressing.
Lena Reilly"Slightly less, yeah." She nods a little, wryly amused. "To be honest, mostly they agreed to get together and stop trying to kill each other because of the reason most people stop trying to kill each other: a common enemy. The Technocracy, or what turned into the Technocracy, formed before the Traditions did and as a unified group had the upper hand. With all of the proto-traditions and mystic societies isolated and fighting each other, it was easy for them to be picked off before members from each of them came together to work out a treaty of sorts, which ended up becoming the Council of Nine Traditions."
Elijah Poirot"So a lot of the reasoning was practical," like most things, of course it would have a practical reason. he listens and paused, "what about the technocracy? you said that they united as a group way back in the day? So... do they have groups like the Traditions? They can't just be one group? what's their deal anyway?"
This could suddenly make Elijah's confusion towards people's fear of the technocracy make sense. The young man literally knows nothing about them.
Lena Reilly"They are in groups, yeah." She purses her lips...like many in the Traditions, her information is less strong about the Union. "I don't know all of the details about them. A lot of our knowledge was lost when the Technocracy basically won the war around the turn of the century; our Umbral headquarters was cut off from us, the Avatar Storm happened and then...yeah. From what I know, it was bad. I wasn't anywhere close to Awakened at that point."
It would likely be frightening to many of the Ascension War-era mages how little their successors knew compared to them. But it isn't all lost. "The ones I do know are the New World Order, the Progenitors and Iteration X. They seem to be the ones we encounter the most, when we do. As to what their deal is...they don't view magic like we do. They believe in science and reason over mysticism and the occult. We're not Awakened to them...we're Reality Deviants. They think that we're dangerous to the world, but because we aren't part of a homogenized society where everything is the same and nothing is extraordinary or special."
Elijah Poirot"Waitaminute, what's the umbra? And what's the Avatar Storm, for that matter?" he asked, and he already knew. He knew what the umbra was, even though he didn't know there was a word for it because he looked at it all the time. He spent a good chunk of time staring into it. He was sold on his apartment because of the umbra, of the view he had of the sky and the spiral stars that went on forever and the fledgling tenebrous buildings that did not dare to block his view of Denver. He loved his apartment because of the umbra, but still he had no word for the land between, the reflection of his own reality. Not like the land where ghosts lived.
No, he knew what the Shadow Lands were, knew the word because he'd heard the word before, had heard it growing up and it had initially confused him because there was such truth, it was the land where shadows lived.
Elijah had no word for the Nothing between the shadows and beyond. He had no words for the place he dreamed about. It suited its nature just fine; there was a power in words, and there was a power in defying those words. He gave that place too much power by refusing to name it.
The explanation gets noted, about the war that was lost that Dan had mentioned when he explained what was going on, when he had urged Elijah not to pursue his current trajectory of thought. He'd heard the term before, Reality Deviant. "How're they different from Virtual Adepts and Etherites, though? patience believes in science, but Patience isn't a dick about it."
Lena ReillyThere's a moment when Lena is about to say Hasn't Kalen told you about the Umbra? And then she remembers that Kalen doesn't do Spirit magic and the crease in her brow smooths out.
"The Umbra is what we call the spirit world. The world that is side-by-side with this one, like two objects phased into each other. The Avatar Storm..."
She purses her lips again. "That's a long story. The short of it is that when a lot of bad stuff went down that caused the Technocracy to win the Ascension War, one of them was the Avatar Storm. A series of traumatic events caused a storm in the Gauntlet--the wall between worlds. That wall is--we believe--made up of the shattered Avatars of other Awakened. And so travelling through the Gauntlet to the Umbra is physically and spiritually damaging to us."
Elijah Poirot"Oh, cool there's a word for it," he sounded genuinely delighted by the prospect of finally having a word to use for the place between the worlds. The mirror world. The umbra, the place where spirits lived.
"Oh, so that's why Lucy said it was dangerous to go between the worlds... it's possible, but it could really, really mess you up?"
Lena Reilly"Exactly." She nods. "It...well, I haven't ever actually been across myself. I don't have that level of ability. But what I've been told is that it essentially flays your Avatar. The stronger the Awakened, the more that it can hurt you."
Elijah Poirot"Fuck," he said, astounded by the prospect of what it could possibly do, though his thoughts did wander while he wondered. He had a lot to ponder, and with that the sound of the music outside came back to him, "do you wanna go dance? I need to digest all of this and i feel like I've been sitting still for an eternity."
Lena ReillyShe smiles when he asks if she wants to dance, and nods. "I would love to."
Her drink is finished and then she rises, setting the glass down on top of the minifridge. "C'mon. Whatever song it is, it's probably one of my favorites."
