Holy crap that was an info dump.... and yet i still wish i new more about what was going on with the rest of the company. I fell so lost gah!

>Amen
Titus developed issues, Andrei's been slowly going nuts, Gloom either ruined or rendered the library inaccessible, and Grisha learned pain techniques from Amen which is making her mental instability worse. We should put in some checks on the orders they are giving Amen.
As a bonus, it appears that when a guest gives an order it goes via an existing bind due to orders we have given him before without creating a new binding. This is important as it means we can use Amen more if we have a proxy give an order. For example, we can get him to tailor clothes for us again (from purchased materials now that we disassembled organ farms). You should buy various raw materials and have them delivered to the mansion, and use a guest as a proxy to get nice clothes from amen every day from now on.

Furthermore:
1. talk to rest of company and stress the danger of using amen. Point out snazzy outfits are safe (hooray for a snazzy dressed company!)
2. Order amen to inform you, truthfully, of the exact wordings of orders made by guests (we can then deal with them as they crop up)

>Dayplan (in order)
You have all these engagements you mustn't delay.
1. Some free time, what we do with it is negotiable.
2. Meet owner @ 4pm
3. Feed silja
4. Treat bonzi's infection.
Then tomorrow morning when done with that get a sake rubdown for the tiredness so you could meet Oggmum at agreed upon time.

>Free Morning time (find hillel)
This Hillel girl has interesting beings looking for her, lets find her! We can use a combo of hummingbird swarm and allview to rapidly search.
The bonus is that every supernatural we come across we can tag in allview plus we could kill something for the whaitiri boon AND enjoy some DELICIOUS (TM) beyond that.

>Research
1. Give hummingbird 1 of each heart of regenerator we have, including a phoenix's heart to study. explain to him what a phoenix is.
2. Aim for 24/7 dual chakra orientation maintaining... as soon as it fails reset it, we now have enough.
3. During bonzi job bring your brothers. Pay close attention and have sensing chakra on... to study the leprechaun magic. Don't experiment on him of course but just carefully observe with a mind to the specifics.
4. Sleeping wastes 1/3rd of your time. It can be bypassed partially or entirely via sake rubdowns, also perhaps sleeping in NN bubble, and perhaps techniques of flesh manip, soul manip, and even chakra that can reduce or eliminate that. Start asking around with gia and davgon so we can get this taken care of. Look into possible harmful effects of doing so (and perhaps buying a charm that prevents such).
5. We need to talk things out with hummingbird, the experiments you stopped are important. Yes his studies are invaluable and need our massive energy output, but those experiments are needed if we are going to increase said output. We could however concede to debating the merits of specific experiments with him before seeing if they are worth doing... also some of them can be done not on armas himself (see below)
6. Armas can and should perform experiments on select ensouled bugs, ones for which he created the soul himself rather then ones who got it spontanously. I am pretty sure creating it gives you the right to do so...
7. We could potentially create souls and then eat them or store them en masse in allview for use as an energy source as needed.
7a. Perhaps we should discuss the legality of such a practice with owner at the meeting today?
7b. Its plausible that owner cannot create souls like that, if such is the case this is a service we can offer.

>>454034
SUST to:
-Adding a binding to Amen when you're specifically saying you want to avoid adding binds to him.
-Looking for Hillel when we've been told IN THE EXACT SAME REPORT, that two very high level entities, both looking for her, fought upon meeting.
-Silliness about wasting eight hours a day sleeping when Armas sleeps less than half that and (WARNING: META) we barely have enough to do to fill the hours he's awake for anyway.

Instead of binding Amen more, stress the danger of Amen (as you say), but just trust Amen's other occupants to check with Armas. They're not all idiots with Lev gone. Instead of trying to find Hillel, have Satai and Andrei use their methods to find out a) who she is and b) why people are looking for her. Instead of that sleep silliness... well, nothing, it's just silly.


Armas Orders
Something I'd like to do is send HB into the undersewers with a hummingswarm. This should benefit Armas in a number of ways

While he's down there, he'll be doing things like:
-Fighting things that attack the swarm
-Testing out his new techniques
-Talking to people, if there's anyone who wants to try talking instead of attacking
-Mapping out the undersewers by regularly re-orienting in Allview and tagging areas of interest (and tagging the people he talks to, as well)
-Collecting loot and corpses from his (now dead) opponents and bringing them back

Then once that's decided, all that's left is convincing him to do it. It shouldn't be hard, given it's a chance to prove to Armas just how amazing his abilities are.

If it's still before dawn, spend the rest of Sake's healing charges harvesting Stacey for Silja. While we're at it, or even if it's too late to do the harvesting, check on how Silja's doing with the changes – has she had any of her senses start working yet (if the systems look like they're fully built), can she feel her body, etc – and whether the Note Writer is still communicating with her. If he is, consider having Feodor keep an eye on her – he's apparently endeavouring to get a squid spirit animal, which should give him some Elder-sensing abilities.

If Matvey's hanging about, see about sparring with him again, while the both of you are wearing those rechargable charms. Use flesh manipulation instead of chakratic reinforcement for brute strength and speed and focus using your non-Hummingbird-derived abilities while he's off murderising the undersewers. After the match, recharge whichever of the charms have been depleted – while remaining careful about not overcharging them and potentially destroying them, like you can with a mundane rechargable battery – and have a chat with Matvey. Talk about his new place, his new dog, his new armour, and his new sword. Also ask him to show you his coin-map, and let him remind you about going to see Sometimes Merchant. Thank him for the reminder and give the metaphysically mercantile goblin a visit.

Down in the sewer, see what's up with the contract he wants to talk about. Whatever it is, tell him you'll have an answer for him tomorrow so it doesn't interrupt the rest of my post. On the way back up into the mansion, come up with the idea of using Svetlana's hummingbird to provide long-range Summer bloodline recharge by cannibal fleshcrafting meat from the kitchen. Try it out – find a way to use a bunch of Summer energy, then control the hummingbird into the fridge and absorb some meat – and see if it recharges you or just that hummingbird.

Spend the rest of the morning and afternoon before the meeting practicing Soul and Flesh abilities. For soul, tearing off pieces of your soul and trying to shape them into something useful would be good – a few years of such practice and maybe you could make your own Angels – or more messing with those ensouled bugs. If nothing else, pull off a few soul bits and put them in Allview for later work. For flesh, continue to work on bodily reinforcement, to eventually fully replace your chakra orientation of the same name, and also try to pick up a little bit about the creation of golems from Gianni.

In the afternoon, we've got our meeting with the Owner, from four until an unknown time. Since we don't know when the meeting will finish (even if it will probably be very short), don't bother making any concrete plans for the rest of the day. Wear that snazzy blue “orange” suit again, I like it – it's both understated and unique. The only thing we know we'll be talking about is the island above the Akkorokamui's caves, so make sure to bring all the information that Andrei's collected, and see if you can prepare a soul piece that shows a memory of what you could see via Allview. If he asks where you got such a memory, tell him that your sources safety would be at risk if you told. Wear the usual soul guise, even if he can probably see through it – it's not going to bother him, but it'll keep us safe from anyone who tries to look anyway. Once the main topic's out of the way, talk about the Shen – whether he wants anything done with it, whether there'd be repercussions from anyone if a certain mercenary leader were to manage to kill it, etc. Also consider, with advice from Shadowbro, whether to bring up Lo Fang's unauthorised soul collecting.

After the meeting, assuming it doesn't take a huge number of hours, take as many people as are left in the house on a trip to Bonzi's bar. Have a few drinks with them, maybe a meal, and just have fun for a while. Just make sure to get working on Bonzi's Pot before 11pm – if it really is going to take fifteen hours, we need to make sure we're out before our meeting with Oggmum at 3pm tomorrow. Tell the others not to wait up and to head home whenever they're done.

>>454374
Upvoting this except for not using HB-time-bubbles to sleep. However, we should first question Dávgon and Gianni about those.

While sparring with Matvey, have Gianni present so that he can better teach you fleshcrafting afterwards, focusing on what he saw.

After recharging the charms we used, try to get a feel for how delicate that was, and whether it would be possible to recharge them mid-combat without burning them out.

If HB-swarm finds any good stuff in the undersewers, SB could shadowport it above. Likewise, SB should be on the lookout for corpses from HB fighting so that Armas can eat them. If there is a very powerful enemy, Armas could even pop up there (either by shadowport or by cannabilising his own body, healing it back next to the HB in the sewers. He could then come back up by doing the same via sveltanna's HB) and sacrifice it to Whaitiri with the mere-heartstab (soul + flesh = better than flesh, right?).

If we do manage to get a boon, it should focus on compounding/making external our bloodline.Ask SB whether Whaitiri is benefiting from Armas' greatly increased magicalregen (she should, we share a soul graft), it could be quite the argument for upping the quality of the boon.

Ask SB how far he is in Doonegaes fleshcrafting package, and if he would be like Armas to try to make ensould gorillas/other animals and try to have SB dominating their shadow, if that's legal.

>>454374 upvote

>>454374
I'm upvoting this with some slight modifications.

In addition to looking for information on Hillel have Satai and Andrei look for information on Rocco's bloodline, specifically have them start their search on the bloodline it's a derivative of, the 'forgotten grandfather' bloodline. We /still/ haven't figured out what Rocco can do and why we keep forgetting what his soul looks like.

We should ask Sake if he knows of any particularly potent thunder aspected creatures, Whaitiri is the goddess of the thunder after all and I feel we're missing out by not tapping into her primary power set, if she can help us unlock that or compound that into our bloodline that would be an option we need to consider.

If we do end up talking to Gianni about the creation of golems we should try to steer the conversation onto him. We don't actually know much about the man, we know what we've seen in his soul, the anguish he's had in his life up until this point. I'd like to know about that guy, the one under the excessive hedonism. It's probably a sore subject but between the hours of training and saving his life we should have built a firm enough foundation with him to learn at least a few tidbits about his past.

As for the Owner meeting, we need a different suit, we just wore the blue "orange" suit, it'd be unsightly to wear it again so soon. I suggest the midnight black suit with the gold thread tie and maybe those albino rattlesnake shoes we have lying around somewhere.

At some point we NEED to call Camella and discuss the issue of her soul with her, it's best to tell her now just as we've learned of it instead of waiting for her to find out at the meeting with the Witch. We need to caution her we don't know how it happened, where she came across it, or if in the case of it being from the Owner it was on purpose or accidental. This is kind of a delicate subject since it effects her prospects of returning home. I almost expect this to happen at the end of the night because this may require more input.

When we bring people to the bar that might be a good time to find out any particular things we want to know about our minions or questions we have (for instance if any other posters have particular questions for them). And if Hafaz and his friends are free invite them too, it's been AGES since we've talked to those guys. Seriously our oldest friends in the city and we've left them out in the cold for such a long time. Share a beer or two at the very least.

In addition to the SUSTs applied by it to this >>454034 post I would like to expand them on my end to include all the research suggestions save for 1, 2, and 7a.

>>454891
Upvote. Especially the part about talking with Camella.

Before the meeting with Owner today, we should ask SB if he's looked through the Doonongaes' memories for relevant information on the Akkorokamui and if he's confirmed that the Shen was associated with it. We can't really trust Note Writer at his word, after all. A progress report on the status of the Doonongaes fleshcrafting package would be nice too, but isn't necessary, Armas understands that SB has a lot going on in the dark, even if he doesn't know the specifics. Speaking of, I'd love to hear about it, if SB would be willing to share.

>>454374
Feodor isn't suitable for being Silja's "escort" right now, and won't be for at least a couple more days in-game. You know this, since you are playing Feodor.

There are two characters in the mansion who are suitable: Bagga, and Lyubov.

Bagga's Elder-sensing ability is very crude. Lyubov's is much better, but she's not quite aware of it yet. Elder examples aren't that common, with the exception of our mere. It's the 14th Elder artifact, after all. Asking Lyubov to assess the mere would probably clue her into the fact that she's got Elder sensing ability.

Once Lyubov is aware she can sense Elder things, she'd be the superior choice for keeping an eye on Silja, for several reasons (as outlined in >>/questdis/60896 ).

So, I am SUSTing having Feodor interact with Silja at the moment.

Instead I propose we assign both Lyubov and Bagga to work together on keeping Silja monitored/protected (since they both have other work to do anyway). Make it clear to all parties involved that Lyubov's the official guardian in the event Armas isn't available.

I rather like the idea of, now that the Golem has reached its first working model, focusing on the Blood Heart. We never did get an idea of what materials we would need, did we? Just hammered out a list of valuable traits for it to have and a vampire contact to check Amen's work.

Perhaps ask Amen if the hypothetical construct would be able to handle explosively-dissimilar powers (angelic and demonic, divine and vampire, summer and winter-aligned beings) as discreet parts, mix the as-yet-unmixable, or result in a massive explosion that would destroy Istanbul? Or do we have these as options?

>>454891
I like the idea of hanging with Hafaz, though we'd need something clever to set it up, what with the yaks still not knowing we're more than bare acquaintances. On the other hand, that whole plan ended up fizzling, so whatever.

More dangling plot threads: Blade and Adelat. Not saying we should pick them up again just yet, what with the meetings and missions and stuff to do, but just something to keep in mind.

If we do call Camella, well, this is awkward, but- has she resigned herself to this dimension? The longer she goes, the harder it's going to be, and in Istanbul we have a goddess, an ancient dragon, a witch and a witch-saint we're on good terms with. Surely we could wrangle her a solution.

> 'only regenerate magical energy [today]'

I'm not quite sure how our unlimited energy and regeneration works so what I'm going to say might already be covered and been discussed.... Anyway.
Wouldn't the binding be much stronger is instead of "today" we used "this hour"? Or going even further "this minute", "this second" and seeing how great we are at accelerated thought we could even go further than that, into split seconds and smaller. Such limitations would make our bindings immensely more powerful.

Alternatively, instead of making binding "only regenerate magical energy today" why not do "only regenerate magical energy on TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 29th, 2011"? Logically those both are absolutely the same but conceptually they are much more different. Every single day is "today" but "TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 29th, 2011" happens only once in eternity.
Going much further on this idea, why not restrict special bindings according to one or another calendar? Jewish, Islamic, Maori (if there is such), etc. If some binding could be someway or another significant to some culture or religion, it could be much more powerful if we adjust it to that particular calendar.-
....By the way, it is "TUESDAY, MARCH 1st, 2011"....
So, for example, "March 1st 2011" would be "25th of Adar I, 5771" according to Jewish calendar. If we can find some binding that could be strongly reflected in Jewish culture and/or mythology, then we could use that system instead of good old Gregorian Calendar. I seems to remember that there was something about a Golem in Jewish religion. We could use that to power bindings that improve our golemcraft or something.

Combining all these we could make bindings like "Only be able to craft golems on 25th of Adar I, 5771, at 6pm, 37min, 16sec" and constantly change it every second so that we can make an uber-golem (or just keep it down to a single day if every second is tedious)

So I suggest trying out doing that and see if it changes anything.


Also, it seems my character was handed off to someone else and I was not asked or notified about this?

 

>>457647
Who ARE you?

C'mon, tell me: who are you?

'Cause I really want to know.

Also, your proposed date-specific bind schema would remove the conceptual part from the bind, and may not be any more powerful than "Today" would be (as there is only ever one "Today").

The hourly and minutely parts of the bind would requiring learning the "This Hour" and "This Minute" concepts. Useful but given that we have more energy than we can use anyway (enough that Armas is in danger of leaving just a crater if he interacted with even a fledgling vampire, according to a blurb Bob mentioned in IRC) there's no reason to pursue them just yet. Once we've got a need for more energy, it'll be useful.

To prevent that, we should edit the existing bind to the following: "I can only regenerate energy Today with the exception of if my energy interacts in an uncontrolled manner with opposed energy. Then I will not regenerate energy until the uncontrolled reaction is over."

>>455011
Addendum to this post.

We (Grail, Seventeen, Juroko, Ironybot, and myself) discussed this in IRC and decided that the people who should be introduced to Silja first are Lyubov, Titus, Bagga, Hillevi, and Dmitrii. These are all people who Armas can confidently feel genuinely like him, and who will portray him in a positive light if he comes up as a topic (he likely will in conversations with Silja). Silja's continuing re-integration into society is important for her mental health and for weakening Note Writer's influence on her, and the first step in that is to get her used to people who aren't Armas or Note Writer.

Additionally, we should officially instruct Svetlana to conduct an audit of Satai's purchase order procedures and make sure she happens on the spiked written request from Lyubov for the tank tools required to actually use that tank. We've let Satai do as he wishes for the most part, and for the most part that's served us well, but he decided to second-guess Armas here about the potential utility of the tank.

If he doesn't have a good excuse for why he put off making the purchases we should punish him by making him write "I will not gainsay legitimate purchase orders" on a chalk board like, 100 times.

>>454034
>>454374
>>454383
>>454891
>>454900
>>455011
>>455032
I take a moment to swiftly consider just how early I got up-and what this means for my options. If Bonzi said fifteen hours, I have to see Owner at four, and it's one in the morning… this could work.

Before I head out I get Sake, Dávgon and Gianni on the job giving Silja another meal before dawn arrives. That… and I get sidelined by Hummingbird, who's rather insistent on needing to ask me something.
>[HB]"Assist me in forming a Swarm, so that I may continue my research into the manifold way."
"I've got stuff to do today, and would actually need you there too-"
>[HB]"No matter: You have sufficient magic to fuel your own fresh formation from the swarm, and I will accompany you whilst the swarm is used for experimentation. We shall both get what we desire-now."
His tone brooks no argument-and since he shot down my only real objection to the plan, I go along with it. Once more, my body breaks apart like water released from a mold, every drop spinning off into a newly formed avian form. My mind is spread far too thinly over the sudden mass-and is overstressed for only so long, before the solitary bird whose torso is naught more than the Allview itself becomes the singular focus of my perception. The odd-bird-out explodes as I feel my Summer line draining….

And just shy of five seconds after beginning, I've gone from a single form to a swarm in the thousands and having wholly regrown my form. I pick my clothes back up, toss them in the hamper and start dressing in my blue-colored 'Orange' suit, a personal favorite.
SUMMER ENERGY: -23 27/50
Properly attired for the day, I have a brief word with SB.

So. Silja.
>"Yes?""
I'm thinking of… socializing her, for lack of a better term. Get her exposed to more people, less dependent on the Note Writer.
>"A goal I can appreciate."
Thank you. So, I've decided the best people to socialize her are Lyubov, Titus, Bagga, Hillevi, and Dmitrii.
>"That seems wise-all hold positive opinions of you in assorted forms."
That was my thought: They would help bolster my influence over her while lessening the Note Writer's…. or so goes the plan.
>"We shall have to see how it is in execution. That said, I have to wonder why you conferred with me on this-it seems you've already reasoned it out.""
Well, I was hoping to get all of them informed this morning, but-
>"You will be busy with Bonzi and his pot-yes, that's equitable: I will see to it they are informed of their new duties on waking."
Great-load off my shoulders, there.

With that done-and my wiggle room ever-dwindling-I head off to Bonzi's bar. The Leprichaun-currently a Glurichaun-is initially gregariously resistive to letting me in-until he's reminded he did contract me to work on a personal problem. It would seem Glurichaun behavior is every bit as stereotypically drunken as the stories allude to-I'll have to file that away for later. More importantly, I have to focus on the curve ball I'm getting.
>[Bonzi]"You can't bring your Soul Shadow or your Soul Brother in-just you and your familiar, no more."
"May I ask why?"
>[Bonzi]"Ach, don't be a boorish runt!"
I eye the 'chaunish pot beside Bonzi, currently tilted on it's side and unfathomably dark within it's lip.
"…Very well."
I stride into the pot with confidence…. and things go a bit screwy.

With Shadowporting and mindscape conversations, transitions to demiplanes-all of that, there's a clear cut discontinuity, a break in consciousness as I go from there to here. Here and now, as I step inside of what looks, to my every sense, like a normal, albeit enormous, cast iron pot, I find… scintillating snowflakes, fluttering across my sight, visual and spiritual alike, static disrupting my hearing and balance alike-there is a moment where my attention briefly turns inward to avoid tripping like a fool-

And as I stand upright once more, I find myself within a gargantuan metal pot easily the size of an entire city-and suffused with a necrotic, overripe air.
>[Bonzi]"OY, can you hear me?"
"Yes."
>[Bonzi]"Right. Simple. I just took everything that's mine out of the pot-so the ONLY things in it now are not mine-like you and the infestation. Kill everything that's not you, scour their remains from the pot, and you're done. Just be thorough with the corpses-they can regenerate from just a few drops of blood."
"Understood."

What follows is both surreal… and, frankly, boring. In this massive, empty pot it's painfully easy to find the shuffling, corpse-like fungal lifeforms that Bonzi needs excised-and with the mere to feed their flesh to Whaitiri, I'm not exactly messy putting them down. I have to say I'm a bit surprised at the time estimation Bonzi gave: With how big the Pot is, I barely get done in thirteen with HB forming a swarm out of me to track down the other intruders-this would have taken days without him, of that I have no doubt. …Still, what needed to happen, happened. I find it odd though, that he was so demanding that someone with soul manipulation work the job.
>[IT]"FYI: Gates to gods nested in objects-like me, or your mere-count as Soul Manipulation. That is how the interface invariably works, after all."
…Or there could be a very simple explanation.

Some five minutes after I'm done, Bonzi taps the Pot's side, the walls ripple and tremor, my senses overload in a confusing snarl-and I am back within his bar, not that far before half past three. Bonzi, once more a sober Leprichaun, hands me a small cloth-of-gold bag that clinks prettily in my hands. I open it as he speaks.
[Bonzi]"Let's see-you've got a rechargable blade charm that can take up to ninety points worth of melee magical attack and convert the impending energy into internalized bad luck for the attacker before needing to be recharged. You've got an arrow charm with the same set up-ranged magical attacks have their magic turned into bad luck. Both of those charms take a lesser ritual to recharge: You have to get your blood on them before you recharge it, otherwise it won't key to you. That also means you'll need to charge them up yourself before they will become active for you. The shield charm directly converts magical energy from the wearer into warding force when attacked with any mundane force that's kinetic, electric, thermal or a combination therein. It's based on Leprichaun processing logic, so it's pretty much impossible for you to have made a more energy efficient shield yourself. The mind charm's by-the-books: Takes impending magical energy used for mental intrusion attempts, and converts it into good luck for the wearer. This transformation is also powered by the caster as an automatic defense. Lastly, there's a Curse charm that requires recharging to be done at dawn or dusk, and will turn any three curses that hit it either into a positive, inverted booster-like say turning a strength sapping curse into a strength-enhancer-or bounce the curse back at the caster if it can't be safely inverted. No single curse can have more than fifty points of magic invested in it without potentially burning the whole amulet in one go to react to it-and if a curse is at one hundred or more points of power, the charm won't reflect or invert it, just nullify it. …That covers them, I think-you'll have to try them out yourself to resolve your questions about them."
"I imagine so. Thank you Bonzi."
ACQUIRED:-------1 90-point max blood-locked rechargeable Leprichaun Blade Charm
ACQUIRED:-------1 90-point max blood-locked rechargeable Leprichaun Arrow Charm
ACQUIRED:-------1 wearer-fueled automated thermal/electrical/kinetic Leprichaun Shield Charm
ACQUIRED:-------1 wearer-fueled automated luck-producing rechargeable Leprichaun Mind Charm
ACQUIRED:-------1 Rule-of-Three dawn/dusk rechargeable reflection/inversion Leprichaun Curse Charm

I walk to the Asitane only AFTER I charge up the Arrow and Blade charms, and string all five charms around my neck. Big things coming in small packages-I have no problem with pay in such a format as that. I monitor the time and my pace, and should have no issue getting there by four.

Of course, on the way-I find myself inexplicably twitching-and HB stuttering in the air beside me.
>[HB]"Vexxing. I require another swarm, giant."
"Wait-did you just lose the past swarm?"
>[HB]"They were sacrificed in the names of personal improvement and progress. Now…"
"Do I get a sneak peak at what you're learning?"
>[HB]"Most certainly not-I will inform you when I have answers that do NOT produce more questions than they answer."
"…Wow, okay, if you're shooting for that, then yeah, take your time. Also, good luck-you know how inquisitive I can be."
>[HB]"One must set their goals high if they wish to retain proper standards."
I can't help but grin as I help HB out by once more letting him form a swarm from me-and then re-manifest myself from a single bird. After having done that twice in a single day my summer line's feeling very light-but I can fix that up when I get some magical meats and such.
SUMMER ENERGY: -23 4/50
HB sends off yet another swarm-and after I redress and verify I didn't get my suit dirty, I'm off for the Asitane, finishing my trek shortly thereafter.

I arrive to find the maître d’hôtel already waiting for me, and after he reassures me I need not check in my 'accessories' since I've been invited rather than being a simple diner, I'm promptly escorted to a reserved section of seating, where a man in a periwinkle suit awaits me, currently eating Escargot that's blindingly brilliant to my soul-sensing.
>[Owner]"Armas-there you are. Have a seat."
"Thank you. How has business been?"
>[Owner]"Ah, the current most popular form of small talk. Let me see: business has been neither better nor worse than the norm-is the popular aphorism still 'same old, same old'?"
"Last I checked. May I ask what you're having?"
>[Owner]"Hydra reconstituted into a new form for easier consumption. Truth be told, the recipe still needs work."
"I look forward to seeing that recipe completed, then. I assume there is no need to be restrictive with wording in our conversation?"
>[Owner]"None at all."
"Excellent-then I'd like to be forthright, and ask about those coordinates you assigned me to investigate. I want to know what, if any, kind of job exists there."
>[Owner]"Hm… I suppose I don't need to keep delaying with you, given how personally and collectively powerful you and your cohorts have become… yes, I'll speak of the potential job that lurks here."
I find that at some point in talking with the Ruling Dragon who's soul is resisting my polite efforts to read it with dual-run maximally overcharged Soul Sensing, I missed a flute of champagne appearing near my hand. I regard the sparkling bubbles the do not rise, but instead loop and spiral madly about the liquid.
>[Owner]"As you are aware, a prior occupant of the bosphorus is slumbering beneath that island now, a creature that the Wizard Dorjpalam would be most keen to see dead. A bit of background on this particular Akorokamui, for your edification: He's not aged well, and has become old of mind as well as body. He's not dim but… slow in key areas. He's the normal Gigantism Conceptual Shoggoth other Akorokamuis are-and like them, has eaten enough hydras and other regenerators he's fully able to recover from anything that's not rather immediately lethal. His 'claim to fame' is that he is untouched by chronal and spatial manipulation-even from a Wizard-and beyond that, cannot be Cursed. He is, thanks to this, utterly unable to grasp caution as a thing he would experience. He's gluttonous and slothful, and would no doubt eat even me if I was boorish enough to give him the chance and he thought it could be easily done. But, should he not see it as worth the effort… well, then he'll be most loquacious, assuming you treat him like a pedantically arrogant young Dragon."
At this the Turkish Ruling Dragon artfully shrugs.
>[Owner]"What can I say: My species has it's foibles as do all. I think the other thing you need to know about him is that even if nothing enforces it, he's been absolutely truthful by direct literal meaning of his words in all dealings. A ray of hope, if you will."
I nod appreciatively as I construct a profile for the Akorokamui based on the traits I just learned.
"Does this Akorokamui have a name, or lacking that a title?"
>[Owner]"A title yes: Infinite Draconic Breath."
"…A translation, I'm assuming."
>[Owner]"Of course-but I think it deserves to be every bit as awkwardly childish in its sound as possible-it could almost sound dignified in japanese."
I can't help but smile at that.
"So."
>[Owner]"Yes-so. The job is damnably simple: Bind I.B.D. with a lasting Soul Bind or set of Binds that you then return and hand off ownership to me of. A simple net, and return."
"…As you said, damnably simple."
>[Owner]"I'm aware. And it can't be linked to me-I currently have our conversation as exceptionally private, and that glass-which you and your familiar will imbibe-will impart upon the memory of this job offer the strongest and subtlest mental protections I can muster-for this simply cannot be linked to me. It would be better to never attempt the job at all than fail on this front, do you understand?"
"Perfectly."
>[Owner]"Excellent. There's no time limit on the job, and you needn't even accept it."
"And should I accept, and then complete it?"
Oh that predatory smile….
>[Owner]"I think you'll find it sufficient to warrant the job's difficulty: I offer a wish. I will let a contract designee of your choice-who I will procure at my own cost-to bind me in Contract to provide for you one Favor, no matter it's form so long as I am capable of it. I would insist on wording that allows you to telepathically make your wish known no matter my location, at which point I would be compelled to immediately resolve the wish as ably as I am capable. What's more, I will agree to be bound to bear no grudge or onus, should your wish or it's time prove unsavory to me. I offer you a one-time use token to call in my full might for any single purpose you desire, in exchange for performing a task most vexxing."
"…Oh so simple, isn't it."
>[Owner]"I try for the beauty of simplicity where possible."
After that there's more conversation-I feel out a few questions about IBD that more or less mean to me there's no way I could take it in a fight and that if it was actively trying to resist them, there's no way I could Soul Bind it. That said… if I abuse it's honesty and mental state, I think a path may reveal itself. I also find out that Sometimes Merchant's been getting flack recently for the Wyld Goblin's expansions, and he may be cutting ties with the fae courts. The conversation loops around and about with little real purpose beyond that-and eventually, the Owner dismisses me after HB and I have finished the glass of ordinary-tasting champagne. I find it a shame that SB still doesn't have any particularly juicy secrets from his repeated delving into the copy of the Doonongaes' mind we have, but such things happen. Maybe someday soon he'll really have something of substance from it.
>"Don't hold your breath on that-I believe you are intimately familiar with how time consuming, non-urgent projects can fall to the wayside."
All too well.

By the time I get home the sun's already setting-the talk with the Owner ran a couple hours when counting small talk-and I find myself hankering for some violence. Understandably, I immediately seek out Matvey, looking to continue my magical sparring lessons against a fellow swordsman who also knows a thing or two about Dunter Footwork. Unfortunately it seems he's out tonight-and while I could call him, two things stop me: Overhearing Satai talking with Davgon about how surprised m y quartermaster is that he's becoming so strong with Reinforcement, and seeing Hillevi cracking open her laptop to do some browsing. An idea rapidly cobbles itself together and I approach her with a smile.
"Hey Hillevi, you got some time?"
She blinks as she looks away from the computer's boot screen.
>[Hillevi]"Hm? Oh hi Armas-time for what?"
"Some sparring-I got a couple ideas I want to test."
The cherubic smile that adorns her face at the request WOULD be reassuring... if I didn't know that's how she looks at the prospect of beating someone's face in.
>[Hillevi]"Oh sure!"
Laptop forgotten, Hillevi promptly stands and follows me to the main foyer.
>[Hillevi]"So how are we doing this today, then?"
" I'm looking to investigate my chakra-so if you could try to avoid constantly overwhelming me with your bloodline..."
>[Hillevi]"Ah-so you just want me to keep up pressure and match you, is that it?"
"Sounds about right. -At least, outside of a few one-offs: I've also got some new charms to test out."
>[Hillevi]"Okay-sounds fun!"

My spar with Hillevi starts slow, especially compared to our last tussle. There's no ice armor, no soul bubbles, no freezing punches, no fancy footwork. In their place is what at first glance looks like form practice, with me constantly looking for an answer to a simple question: If having more energy to run through one's chakras allows for greater effect, and I have vastly more energy than any of my employees, then why do I not also have vastly greater physical might when using Reinforcement? The answer, frankly, surprises me.

It turns out that I've been doing Overcharging wrong-or, more accurately, too safely to properly use the power at my disposal. I'd been 'capping' my Overcharging when I felt the familiar strain of dangerously overheating flesh and blood, the creaking threat of imminently snapping tendons and muscle fiber. I had been reacting to this stimuli in what ostensibly was a rational manner: I was not pushing it to avoid damaging my body, a mindset that... frankly doesn't fit very well given my regenerative abilities. And it turns out that, when I pust pash that warning point, the chakra gets more and more unstable-until it reaches something of a plateau, and therafter regains its earlier stability. There's a few details about this properly overcharged Orientation that stand out as markedly different. For one, the sheer amount of chakra energy in my system seems to be directly translating to heat-sweat is rapidly steaming off of my body the moment it's shed, and my skin has flushed a vibrant red-yet I feel no discomfort alongside my physical change. …I definitely note that Hillevi seems a bit less inclined to actually touch me now that my temperature has risen so much. I also find that, at least currently, I'm subject to brief but seemingly unavoidable muscle spasms after I relax from a state of maximally high tension. To wit: Should I strike a target as hard as I can, my arm will spasm and quiver for a second or two thereafter as it settles back down. Currently, this bars me from using my full powered chakra on combination attacks-but I hope that with practice this issue will be resolved.

In terms of practical effect, I can only say that simply put, I feel like a fool now that I can see how much power I can irk out of Ito's Orientation. Now that I know that I can indeed exceed the presumed safety cap my body appraised me of, I can match Hillevi's brute force might. To be true she still consistently overpowers me-but that seems wholly due to a combination of her size advantage, and my inability to maintain full power while rapidly shifting how I tense my muscles. Were I to arm-wrestle her, I could stalemate her for hours. ....Duke is understandably still wholly outside of my reach, but I can break down stone walls and wrench open steel doors with ease now. I should be amazed by just how strong this makes me-I could probably take the muscle trio of Iosef, Vlad and Rosti in brute force now-but compared to the power of the Humming Swarm...

A certain bird lands on my shoulder as I muse on this topic.
>[HB]"It is well that you recognize the sublime grace of what I labor over. That said, do not neglect raw physical ability-all competence flows out from it."
I try not to smile.
"I'll take your wise words under advisement."
After a regal nod from my diminuitive companion, I move on to the (hopefully) more fun of this experiment: testing my new Leprichaun charms. ...I find myself falling in love with them rather swiftly.
-When I implore Hillevi to strike at me with a magically aided fist to trigger the Blade charm, the ice around her hand explosively shatters, simultaneously robbing her attack of it's magical oomph, and throwing her fist off course with the unexpected frigid blast's recoil. I stand there, utterly unmoving as Hillevi completely whiffs.
-When Hillevi next bombards me with an ice spear nested with Valkonen magic, He's faced with a similar problem: Her normally imminently stable magic abruptly destabilizes, and an entire section of the spear loses containment in a violent burst that throws the spear off course. Once again, I needed do absolutely nothing-the charms took care of throwing the attacks off course.
-I have Hillevi verify that the blade and Arrow charms will not, in fact, trigger when she simply mundanely attacks me-a thrown fist or stone lacking any actively invested magic goes right on through.
-When it comes time to test the Shield charm, I know exactly how I want to test it: I have Hillevi build an ice box around me, and wait for the charm to take effect: instead of feeling a chill grow around me (even if I am immune to mundane cold's harm) I remain utterly comfortable-and what's more, I can only just detect the drain on my system-it's so minor I could do it indefinitely. It's not a perfect test, but so far as I see the Shield Charm works as it should. I follow it up by having Hillevi try to mundanely hit me as hard as she can-and simply stand there, eating the blow's kinetic force with an only momentary dip in my power. After that, I declare the shield charm good to go.
-I can't really test the mind charm since I don't have any practiced mental invadors, mind manipulators or mentalists on hand, so I table that for now.
-I sure as hell am not having Amen test my anti-Curse charm, so that's also tabled.

I find that we developed something of a crowd in our spar and subsequent charm test, and spend an hour or so answering questions and directing some self-improvement from the more inquisitive watchers. After settling that up, I head off for yet more personal practice. For the rest of the night I perform something that only recently stopped being the height of insanity to attempt: I rip off bits of my own soul and sculpt them in an attempt at making spiritual constructs. Tonight I work small and simple, just shooting for making semi-permanent spiritual constructs for the very insects I ensouled. Even then there are plenty of problems: I have constructs continually burst nearly immediately after crafting, owing to my skewed state overfavoring soul capacity over coherance rendering all of my craftings as over-pressured. I have constructs detonate under my care when I attempt to reinforce them enough they can weather their own force. It takes me an hour to even find proof there is in fact a 'sweet spot' range of reinforcement where the crafting actually lasts longer rather than exploding for one reason or another. Even then, my night is replete with failure after failure-in truth, my only real accomplishment is verifying I'm at least fast enough to prevent the calamitous (on a small scale at least) rupture of my craftings right next to/around the ensouled insects. ...Well, that's not quite true-I learned a few other things.
-I learned that for my own brand of external soul-sculpting, I'd need to find a similarly soul-regenerating manipulator to learn from, or resign myself to learning only be experimentation.
-I learned that Davgon can salvage the ruptured shards of my spiritual constructs for soul mass just as if they were pieces of proto-soul from animals-and that he's only too happy to oversee my experimentation.
-I learn that there is a buffer period between placing a spiritual construct on a soul, and when that construct's presence starts causing a change in soul growth rates. I don't know exactly where that cutoff is yet-but I know it's there.

After checking in with Sake in the wee hours and once more seeing to it he blows his remaining healing load on Stacey for further Silja feeding with Gianni and Dávgon's assistance, I move to turn in. Not a bad day's work-and I finish the day futilely attempting to work off some of my inexhaustible energy with Lyubov. It's the kind of futility I can get behind-and I don't mind our every night being a reminder to Lyubov I'm the energizer bunny.

With that frankly smug thought I end my day.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 2nd, 2011
PERSONAL FUNDS: $3,233,660.00
BUSINESS FUNDS: $1,781,109.00
CASH: $6,120.00
SHADOW PATIENCE: 85%
WINTER ENERGY: 160
SUMMER ENERGY: 13/50

I wake up with some brain coffee, push the insensate Lyubov off and get up-I've got one thing on my mind right now, and nothing's getting between me and food. I promptly stuff my face with a bevy of foods as I prepare everyone else's breakfast-and by the time everything's been plated I've recouped a great deal of my Summer losses.
SUMMER ENERGY: +16 29/50

As people begin trickling in, yawning and grumbling as their bodies wake up, Dmitrii briefly confirms he'll make time to periodically talk with my rifle, just as Hillevi and Lyubov do. Good-looks like that's progressing. While I have my sixth plate of food for the morning, my brain kicks out yet another topic I've yet to follow up on: Whaitiri's magic portfolio. Yeah, she's a cannibal-and I've got plenty of connection to that part of her-but she's primarily a goddess of THUNDER, which is conspicuously absent from my own power set. Glancing around the table, I pose my question to the two individuals I think are most likely to have an answer.
"Say Sake, Dávgon-if I asked what kind of creatures work best as sacrifices to a Thunder-aspected god to get access to said power set, what would those creatures be? I'm assuming they'd be thunder-aspected themselves, right?"
>[Sake]"ROCK OUT WITH ROCS! ...Wait, the phrase is 'rock out with your cock out', isn't it? So... 'Rock out with your roc out?'... no, doesn't sound right. Anyway, yes, thunder aspected creatures, and seriously, go get some rocs."
>[Dávgon]"Sake is correct: While there are other, less potent creatures with thunder-related magic, precious few are primarily thunder-oriented: Really, Rocs are your best bet, when you look at effort invested to acquire one, and how much any one roc would matter as a divine sacrifice."
"Huh-straightforward. Just for my edification, what are some of those lesser types?"
>[Dávgon]"For lesser types that are exclusively or primarily thunder oriented, there's some offshoots of Sirens, some music related creatures... really, in all cases, they're actually rarer than Rocs while having less value in this case."
"Did I seriously stumble on one of magic's situations where the answer is simple and unconditional?"
>[Sake]"You totally did-Rocs rock for thunder magic, end of story!"
"Good to know."
>[Gianni]"Not to interrupt your godly moment here-"
"Go on."
>[Gianni]"Thank you legs-now, I've finished assessing that fellow Rostislav brought back-Adib, the roman piece of man-meat with all the different bits of fleshcrafting on him?"
"Yeah."
>[Gianni]"Well, I've integrated everything of value into my own golems-and I'm curious if you can reshape my golems into your golems."

I think about that for a moment as I contemplatively chew some food. I'm an internal fleshcrafter, so OFFICIALLY I can't make golems and such-but I'm a cannibalistic internal crafter, and that means if I'm touching something organic and overwhelm it's ownership, I can craft it anyway. Based on that...
"Yeah, should be doable now that I think about it. You want to start after breakfast?"
>[Gianni]"If you've got time for some skinship, yes."
"Right-after breakfast it is."
Smirking at how few people even pay attention to Gianni's ever-unique speech mannerisms, I wrap up my morning meal-and get to work.

Making golems-no, repurposing existing golems completely into my own servitors is immensely involved work. Very little of it is actually complicated-it's just that so many processes need to occur for the repurposing to work. I need to overwhelm innate Ownership with energy from a court NOT involved in the golem's operation-no claiming Summer golems with more summer. I CAN use an opposed court's energy-but only if I enclose the golem in question within a soul bubble while attempting to use the opposed court energy. There's variables for what kind of flesh crafter made the golem, how old it is, how many times it's been reworked. There's ways to read pertinent data off the golem to determine what approach is viable for commandeering it. Details, contextual modifiers, exhaustive sequential if/else action lists... frankly, I feel the sting of convoluted bureacracy lurking within this work-around to allow me to craft my own golems out of those others made.

It takes me the whole way until noon until I can commandeer just one of Gianni's golems in one go without him reminding me of how to do it-and the process is still unacceptably slow, requiring more than a minute to perform. What matters though, is that this is very real progress, and gives me a foundation to build on.

It helps I got to fully recoup my summer losses cannibalizing energy from the golems.
SUMMER ENERGY: +FULL 50/50

I get a call from Hafaz a short while before noon and call the lessons off while I answer.
"Hey, Hafaz-haven't talked for a while, what's up?"
The very fact he pauses at all before responding cues me in to pay attention.
>[Hafaz]"…Armas, hello! I know you're no doubt busy, especially with the new gym you're part of, but the boys and I were wondering if you'd want to meet up for some drinks-shoot the shit as one-time fello Krav Maga practitioners, yes?"
"…Yeah, sounds good. You got a when and where?"
>[Hafaz]"How about Das Bones' gastropub-I hear he's currently serving cut beer-we are curious what that is. And for the time-what about now? Are you available?"
I'm already rechecking my mere and buntline's positioning beneath my suit's exterior.
"I am. Meet you there?"
>[Hafaz]"Excellent. We shall see you soon."
[small*CLICK*[/small]
My thoughts turn inward.
>"Yes, it's potentially suspicious-but between myself, Sake and HB, I don't think you would encounter sufficient opposition even in the case of an ambush for it to be dangerous.""
>[HB]"If necessary I can override your control to forcibly render you a swarm."
>[Sake]"I can do… my thing, if stuff goes down. Healing, shifting, shadowporting-yeah, you're covered."
And that's not counting what I can personally do… yes then, I'll go.

I tell Gianni we'll continue the lessons another time, and start making my way out the door-to be stopped by another new face in the house, a midnight-skinned man of positively dwarven proportions on a meaty scale.
"…Do I know you?"
I find my opinion of the stranger rising not just from the feel of how bound by his own code he is (and therefore predictable), but by his subsequent and utterly prompt bow to me, delivered prior to his own words.
>[Adib]"Lord Laine. I am Adib, a slave of Rostislav, one of your followers."
"Ah. The man from the fight club he bested."
>[Adib]"The same."
"What is it?"
>[Adib]"Lord, would it be correct to say you are heading to get drinks?"
"I am."
>[Adib]"If it is not rude to ask, I wish to know if I could come along."
"…No. I'm catching up with some old friends."
Without a single further word, Adib simply bows and steps back out of my way.

…Huh, that was a thing.

I head out the door with my brotherly companions, and enjoy my stroll over to Das Bones' shack. Once there, I find five familiar swarthy bearded faces waiting for me-Hafaz, Ahmed, Yomi, Shaya and Hadar. All of them stand when they see me, moving to give me thoroughly manly hugs in greeting before shoving a stein filled with oddly disjointed looking beer in it-no doubt Das Bones' brew.
>[Hafaz]"Armas, good to see you! How's life been treating you since you switched gyms?"
Still at this, hm?
"Very well-though I think you could guess that."
>[Hafaz]"Probably could. …Listen, we've heard your name come up with some new acquaintances, wanted to ask you about it in person."
"Okay-ask away."
Hafaz' face takes on a look heavily denoting a man being watched, for just a single moment, before it's gone in a flash.
>[Hafaz]"Would it be correct to say that you know several of Baki's bosses?"
…Now it makes sense: He's being watched by Yakuza affiliates, who don't know that he had prior dealings with me-this meeting's a cover to establish legitimate reasons in the eyes of the yaks for us to know one another. And knowing that-
"What, Godhand and the rest? Sure, I met them, had a little chat with them and all-I take it from the fact you asked about the apparent self-owned masseuse' bosses that you know he's-"
>[Hafaz]"Yakuza, yes, we know. So it's true then? Our old workout buddy is in with the higher ups?"
"Seems that way-what can I say, perk of having the right resources at the right time."
>[Hafaz]"No kidding…"
From there, the conversation loses the stilted awkwardness it began with-and I enjoy a solid couple hours of drinking and bullshitting with the boys. While I do, I slowly spot all six watchers keeping tabs on us, and stare each one down until they leave as a bit of a personal amusement. Turns out Hafaz and co got conscripted to be supplementary instructors for the Yaks, and teach them Krav Maga now-unsurprising, but definitely of note.

Eventually our time shooting the shit comes to an end with me inviting them to stop by and bug me whenever they want-and I head back out with a half dozen beers in my gut in pursuit of yet another appointment: Oggmum.

When I arrive I find a simple house with two floors and a total lack of ornamentation. I get one knock in before I realize that… I'm on the inside of the house. Just as with Bonzi's pot, there is no clear-cut moment where I went from outside to in-it was an insidious shift that happened beneath my attention, furtively warping my reality. Taking a wild guess in this place where my soul sensing seems to utterly shut down, I speak.
"An interesting way to greet people, Witch Oggmum."
>[Oggmum]"One must find ways to amuse oneself. But I must admit curiousity-where is the person this meeting was supposed to revolve around?"
"In Italy on work-but she can be pulled away from it."
I turn around in time to see a pleasently homey, middle-aged woman of indeterminate race smile at Camella, who now stands in the room alongside me. There's a frantic instant before she spots me where I see her hands going for concealed weaponry, but on seeing my smug smirk she settles down.
>[Camella]"What is-"
>[Oggmum]"You're the one that wishes to go home, are you not?"
And just like that Camella loses any interest in non-Oggmum things.
>[Camella]"I… yes, I do."
>[Oggmum]"A difficult thing to ask-particularly given your world was largely nonmagical. You know this would require you to be as untainted by magic as is possible to return, correct?"
>[Camella]"I do, but… if I don't-"
>[Oggmum]"Then living in this world can be hard indeed, yes. Hm… the draconic taint on your soul doesn't help either."
Kinda wish I had a camera for this.
>[Camella]"W-what?"
I clear my throat.
"Do you mind?"
>[Oggmum]"Go ahead."
I find Camella's undivided attention wholly on me.
>"Just say as I say and this should go smoothly…"
"So. Soul growth. If a large soul and small soul are near to one another, the small soul will be induced to grow, by the presence of the larger soul and it's ambient radiation of soul energy. This growth will, perforce, be flavored by whatever the larger soul is."
She looks a bit mad at that-and I can see her thoughts zeroing in on a certain Ruling Dragon.
>[Camella]"…Owner."
"Yes."
>[Camella]"How long have you known?"
"Not so long that getting this meeting put together wasn't the fastest solution. She's not so far augmented that return is impossible, is she?"
>[Oggmum]"No, not yet… but one more trying battle fraught with soul growth, one more new level of comprehension of chakra… much could push her over the edge."
"Could you bleed magic off of her to take her away from that limit?"
>[Oggmum]"Sadly no-in touching her, I would render her too magical-and once she breached the limit, it cannot be undone."
"So I'd need some sort of nonmagical way of reducing magic, if I wanted to help her stave off the tipping point."
>[Camella]"What… about going back?"
>[Oggmum]"Possible but quite trying-I would have to demand appropriate compensation-and I do not know that you'd accept my prices."
>[Camella]"Tell me."

At this point it becomes readily apparent Oggmum wishes to talk with Camella alone. How do I know? My brothers and I are now in a different room, with metronomes covering the walls and all striking off the time in different ways. The walls tick…

And the door opens, Oggmum stepping in and shutting the door behind her.
>[Oggmum]"As I expected, she didn't like my price. She stated she will do what she can to limit potential soul growth and carry only mundane items-it should help for a time, at least. I sent her back to whence she came from for the meeting-I trust that was acceptable."
I nod at that even as my brow furrows.
"Is there no way you can think of that could let her prolong her time before it's too late to go?"
>[Oggmum]"Oh, I can think of a few-but should I provide them, I wonder? She doesn't like the taste of what a return demands of her-and is still reconciling her growing attachment to this world. Would it not be crueler to leave her stuck between worlds? Is it not better to let one happiness die conclusively so that she can focus on and enjoy the one that remains?"
I scratch me head.
"I know what decision I'd like to see, but as what's genuinely best for her? Hell if I know."
>[Oggmum]"It is a dangerous game, trying to do what's best for others. One of the most dangerous, in fact."
"No kidding. Hey-how's Labombard doing?"
>[Oggmum]"He has stabilized."
"You okay with him paying me a visit-or me saying hi to him in person?"
>[Oggmum]"I can see to it he visits you in the near future."
"I'd like that."
>[Oggmum]"I shall do so then. …Was there anything else you wanted of me?"
"No, I-"

And I'm back outside, sitting on the stairs up to her front door, mouth still open mid-sentence as my mind blossoms to my returned magical senses. …Freaking Witches and Wizards.

With Camella back in Italy, I review my mental list-and find the last, most important item on my itenerary: Drinking with everyone in the house. Not a one of them-not even Satai, who I have to find with the Allview and summon back to the house with an HB body, objects. Zhenya and Matvey-along with Matvey's new biosuit, sword and puppy-are the last to arrive-and I can't help but laugh at the wary expression that gives way to confusion when he sees what he was called for. What surprises me most is that Dávgon, GIanni, Adib and Duke ALL have booze of their own to contribute-and, after I blew my pocket money-all six grand of it-on assorted microbrews, exceptional scotches, cognacs and rums to round out an otherwise all-magical drink list, we have enough booze even Duke would pass out. …Admittedly, that's mostly due to the bottle Duke brought that Hillevi and I will be sharing with him.

Everyone sets up in the foyer as I put myself on drunken munchies duty and more or less cook nonstop all night while shooting the shit with everyone present. I get a kick out of Sake and Ohotnik's perpetual antics, with Matvey's nigh-indestructible puppy constantly trying to cuddle the playfully, violently resistive weasel. I watch Duke, for a rare moment actually dropping his glamor and appearing as the hulking, hirsute man he is, having a drunken flex-off against Iosef, busy slurring about free shirts. I egg on Matvey and Nikifor alike when Rostislav floats the idea that the two actual swordsman in the house should have a go at it-and laugh my ass off when a concerted effort from Lyubov sees to it they duel with cylindrical sofa pillows. The battle is intense and brutal-and in the end, everyone wins.

Eventually the night begins to wind down: People start leaving, more than a few looking to drink in less…. well, less 'Amen'-ish environs. I can't fault them-though Lyubov heads out with them. Seems Matvey invited her, had a few things to bullshit with her about concerning his new place.

So I spend the entire night playing with bugs with no one to gainsay me, and by morning I can make a soul-bubble construct around a bug that lasts for ten seconds, or until the first ensoulled material touches it. It's nothing compared to HB's stuff-but it's progress, and the proper, non-cheating kind. I find that every now and then I still prefer it.

THURSDAY, MARCH 3rd, 2011
PERSONAL FUNDS: $3,233,660.00
BUSINESS FUNDS: $1,781,109.00
CASH: $0.00
SHADOW PATIENCE: 85%
WINTER ENERGY: 160
SUMMER ENERGY: 50/50

I dose up on brain coffee, wash up, change into a new suit-still with my signature neon orange tie-and get ready for a new day.

What do I plan to do with the next couple of days?

>>457732

We should give Camella a call and thank her. There are not many things Oggmum could have wanted from her personally for payment. The only thing I can think of that she would have refused, in fact, is to have betrayed Armas somehow shortly before leaving. Or possibly Owner, but that seems dangerous even for a witch.

This isn't as paranoid or crackpot as it sounds. Remember that Oggmum offered us a chance to slip out of bet with Cornelius for the express purpose of making him look dumb. We didn't take her up on that, but it's indicative of her modus operandi. She watches people of interest, and looks for chances to make trouble for them to satisfy her own agenda.

Now, we've cooperated with, and are taking jobs from, the Zosimus clan. The clan that is feuding with the Mubarak clan, Oggmum's clan. That makes us a valid target for fuckery from her end, not that a witch needs an actual reason to mess with people, but it makes the justification easier for Oggmum.

Oggmum goes to a lot of trouble to cultivate a reputation as being fair, and has invested a lot into seeming to be (or actually being, for the most part) a nice woman. That's the perfect cover for getting people to agree to doing things they normally would not. Like breaking their word, or betraying close friends, or turning on employers.

Still, good to see that it did not work in Camella's case.

===Dialogue===

A piece of dialogue like: "Hey Camella, I just wanted to say thanks for yesterday. I wasn't privy to what Oggmum wanted from you, but I can guess. And if my guess is right, it means a lot to me that you turned her down."

[Confirmation]

"Well, she's got her own agenda. Still, I really appreciate that you didn't play into it..."

[Denial]

"Well, alright. I'll take your word for it..."

[Flat question of what Armas's guess was]

"I've got an idea of what her modus operandi is. I knew that when I arranged the meeting for you. I figured that you still deserved the chance to make a choice. I can't make decisions for you, but I can do my best to help you, even if it won't result in an outcome I personally want..."

[Question of what Armas wants]

"...I just want to be a good friend. And that means I can't do much more than be supportive, since the decisions are all yours. If I offer up my opinions I'll just end up trying to convince you to do what I want. It wouldn't be fair of me to do that, so I'm just hanging back and trying to get opportunities for you to pursue whatever you decide on..."

[Conversation continues]

"...Look, I wanted to know if you wanted me to transfer Feodor over to you for the month? It occurred to me that if there's some sort of problem, you might need his skills. Mundane medicine is the safest sort of medicine for you right now, right? I was thinking of recalling Andrei."

[Camella objects: The reason for putting Andrei on the mission was to get him out of the mansion.]

"Yeah, I know. I was thinking of having him live with Placid instead. I think the little guy would be a good influence. Besides, Lyubov says she got him a computer and I think it'd be good for him to learn from Andrei."

[Camella objects: Placid is a monster]

"Actually, he's a really soothing guy to hang out with. He's inquisitive and smart, and very easy to get along with. He's always behaved well for Lyubov and I. If I introduced Andrei to him and gave them a chance to get to know each other, I'm pretty sure I could get Andrei to go along with it. And if he really objected I could put him up in Ito's with the excuse that I wanted to have a man representing us in Ito's now that other groups are taking an interest in him. Either way, Andrei's in a healthier environment."

[Camella agrees]

"Alright. So, are you going to hang on to the ritual charm as a shit-hits-the-fan option, or would you like to send it back with Andrei for now? Your choice, but I don't like the idea of it just sitting around potentially unattended."

[Camella's verdict]

"Ok. And is there anything else you'd like that I can do for you? Just, whatever you want, let me know."

[Request or denial]

"Sure. I'll give you a call later too. Or you can call me. That's one of those things friends do right? Catch you later."

===End Dialogue===

Other things that need doing in the next two days

* We should get a sample of Matvey's bio-armor before he leaves the country for his vacation. Armas and Gianni can analyze it, and learn what they can from it for applying to the golem (and for making bioarmors of our own). We can reassure Matvey that we're not going to use it against him.
* We need to give Placid his chance to install the laser-eyes on the golem. And we need to build the extra heads for it, if we haven't already. We've got the eyes for the laser system, we just need to get Placid's help at this point. We also need to move the golem to the storage facility but that's not too hard to accomplish. Finally, we'll also want to put the extra heads in.
* We need to get a fire or borders manipulator to help when we install the phoenix hearts to power the laser system. We can find one through Mammon's Market (buy one, or contract one), or by contracting the service through a broker (SM with a stipulation for confidentiality). Alternatively, we could assign someone to go down to the Hobgoblin arena and make contact with an impressive looking fire manipulator.
* We need to acquire a bass guitar as a gift for Labombard. He will be visiting by the end of the week (Saturday seems likely). A magic bass guitar (possibly based on a roc if we're going to be hunting them anyway).
* We should spend more time with Hillevi. As we will learn from Lyubov, Hillevi's had a bit of a let down over Matvey hooking up with Zhenya. Distracting her by bringing her roc hunting would be a great way to help her blow off steam. Bringing B.C. along would also be useful. The two of them are both strong and tough. Arkeus says the roc hunting plan (which he said he'd post soon) will only take a half-day or so.
* We should spend more time with Placid and Lyubov, just having fun telling stories, taking walks, and talking about stuff. Lyubov will want to go visit Matvey's property, since she promised she'd keep an eye on it while he is away, and has permission to walk around the property and house.
* We should chat with Sijla and find out what she thinks of talking to the others.

>>458653
We should say these things to Camella. The conclusion is logical, and if true the implication is bad. Oggmum is an enemy of sorts?

The other small tasks are sensible. To go to Mammon's market is the best chance to get the fire magician needed.

I am getting into Armas Laine's mindset. Most actions have made sense from the Armas point of view, but thinking of Lyubov as a fuckbuddy does not make sense. Armas should become serious about Lyubov. She is powerful and deeply involved in his life. She is fun, and he is very fond of her. Could he say he doesn't love her without lying? Armas likely could not. Armas will admit, for the sake of his heart, that she is more than a fuckbuddy. She is a girlfriend.

Flowers must be out, because I have suggested and they have been rejected. So instead, Armas would want to show his fondness for Lyubov by giving magic to her. What is a good gift that he can give to her? She is a very magic person, she is educated, and she is the avatar of Tesla. She has asked for training, but what if Armas and Shadowbro gave her the memories of the Doonongeas? Give to her the memories in the unfinished package that Shadowbro has made and in the mind object the goblins made. Help her to finish making a fleshcrafting line for herself using those, and analysis of Armas, and analysis of the heart in the golem. All are divine fleshcrafting. It could be done in Allview or other places where there is control of time.

What will Armas do with Lo Fang's Sword Job? Is he going to continue to ignore it, or will it be done? The money would be very nice to have.

What about the other jobs that were offered and not taken? Ask Tesla if he has jobs for Laine Corporation.

Right, I'm tired of Armas being landlocked.
Lets look in that chakra book for flying orientations, if we find one, add a second soul bind so we can only train chakra today and learn how to fly!

>>459033
Sust on the mindraping our fuckbuddy with thousands of years of memories that wouldn't be that useful thing.

>>459129
That is thousands of years of killing and eating humans. Probably not a good thing to cram into her.

>>458653
I'm less sure it has anything to do with Armas (not everything is about us, and Camella is one of those once-in-a-generation geniuses herself), but I like the dialogue.

>>459129
Why bother with a flying orientation when we can do the swarm trick?
-
Honestly, it's not the best use of our time, but I kind of want to spend a day going back to basics. Take down the Reinforcement and mess around with a little Krav Maga (see if you can drop by Hafaz's group when they're instructing the Yaks; there's potential for fun and reputation-building there).

Hit Ito’s night classes and meet up with our three favorite disciples while testing out how much our jukenjitsu and kas pin has deteriorated. What has everyone been up to? Do we still want to cultivate them? If so, we could begin by showing them what we have to offer; rare tomes, magical equipment, something to get the blood pumping, whatever. Have we considered lending Ito the book on the 7,777 uses of chakra? We don’t use it that often since we have so many other tricks. Speaking of, is there an orientation in there that – rather than helping us learn faster – helps us keep lessons fixed more firmly in our mind? We could ask Meng Yun for a lesson about it if we find one. That would help keep us from forgetting skills when we inevitably get bored and switch to learning something else.
I’d also like to schedule a lesson with Lo Fang about the basics of Taoist paper charms – I gather those reinforced charms that can block Reaper bullets are like wallpapering whatever you want to protect with $100 bills, which is within our price range these days. And I still want to do something with those thousands of hours of Wyld goblin tutelage. Can we take an hour for each branch of study – goblin trap-making, charms (battery charm branch to spread our metaphysical excess around, preferably), and goblinic smithing? Maybe we’ll be able to find what most interests us from that and go from there.

SUST on giving Lyobov the Doonongeas memories. She already has enough memories to sort through already and we have a oversupply of insane russians that we don't need to increase.

Personally I'm not seeing the which asking Camella to betray us, what's her motive? Petty Revenge for not choosing her clan over the Vampire Dynasty?

Armas short-term to do list:

*Hop down into the sewers and talk to SM in person about the contract he wants to talk about per his request according to Matvey's report.
*Get on trolling the werekid for the minotaur cannibal(no idea as to specifics, my trolling talents are limited).
*Troll that bloodliner for the SM. Favours are always nice! Maybe we can use his favour to negate one of the Savoy favours?
*Do some investigating on who stole from the triads in front of the leprechaun place. More golems are always nice. Maybe ask the triad what was actually stolen?
*Spend quality time with both Hillevi and Placid. Have a ice cream eating contest with them!(Possible benefit of soul growth to proximity to bigger souls?)
*Spend quality drinking time with Duke(he has a big soul right? Soul growth for the win!)
*Put up a no eating sign at our Kodoku bugs, because seriously this is getting ridiculous.
*Call Arkvad and follow up on the availability of Mauser Shadows for ShadowBro.
"Just wondering if any new leads on that Shadow Mauser have come up?". Possibly ask Johan or other magical arms dealers as well if Arkvad responds with a negative.
*Get Lyubov something nice like a cool charm to shield her shadow from harm or something from one of the various supernatural dealers that we've become aware of.

Long Term List of Stuff to do:
*Research and acquire Anti-Scrying Protection of some sort.
*Take acting and/or drama lessons! Get our basic social skills back up to scratch!
*Learn lipreading since the eye is visual only.
*Consider feasibility of improving our eyes to see in a wider spectrum, like those were-shrimps eyes that were on sale.
*Add cameras and other mundane sensors to the supergolem to counteract illusion and other sense trickery(besides the invisibility that the cyclops eyes counteract).
*Acquire various good quality mundane lucky charms(e.g. four leaf clover, acorn, good quality(possibly silver) horseshoe etc.). Test for luck magic via Sake. Belief magic should theoretically have given them at least some basic luck magic of some sort?
*Use Goblin Training to learn charm making or something?
*Hunt Rocs
*Look into possibility of taming rocs for death from above.
*Buy Dreamcatchers for the Riihivuori children
*Start putting out feelers for stuff that can make light in the Dark, as per SB's request
*Visit New Zealand!

>>459033
I agree on the subject of Lyubov. There are times when self-deception is useful but lying to himself about his feelings regarding Lyubov does not profit Armas. He likes her personality, the fact that she likes his, spending time with her, he trusts her, and the sex is good. The fact that she now has enormous magical potential is a bonus too. Despite resolving not to, Armas has thought of and treated her as a girlfriend on multiple occasion, it is clear he harbours romantic feelings for her. Lyubov is Armas' girlfriend, he is her boyfriend, they are dating. And it's great that Armas feels that way, because he knows that Lyubov feels that way too. It isn't even a thing they need to talk about it's so mutually evident. Totally.

The only thing they may disagree on is with having additional sexual partners. Armas obviously would like to have the freedom to pursue other women sexually, at least in some fashion. While Lyubov has expressed concern about other women more than once, likely because of previous relationships. She wont be receptive to an open relationship unless Armas can assure her that he isn't looking for an out or that she is inadequate in any way. This is not an urgent need however, and can be left to sit until an ideal opportunity presents itself.

Speaking of sex, Lyubov is using mundane birth control methods. Which is great, that she's doing that, but Armas has fleshcrafting. He should stop being a lazy ass and get Gianni to show him how to control his fertility. Hell, bring Lyubov along, Gianni has got to have some advice on magical sex in general and she asks good questions usually.

[Roc Hunting Plan]
When we next see Placid he will have the observation spirits ready for Allview. Once we have them set up in there we can task them to look for rocs. Get the characteristics of their usual nesting/hunting grounds from Davgon/Sake/Stacey. Once a roc is located, we go after it with Sake/Hillevi/BC, basically any non-minion who wants to come kill a big bird. I personally favour having someone launch Armas right at the thing so he can stab it.

[Stacey]
We should continue feeding Silja as usual. We should also spend a couple hours with Stacey to remove or loosen any old standing orders she has from previous masters or that we or Satai may have given her that are no longer necessary. It should hopefully make her like us more and be a little happier. Also ask her if anyone in the company has been treating her unwell, uh, other than the whole beheading thing, and if she's happy with Satai as her supervisor. Ask her what types of things she's been up to, what kind of things she would like to be up to.
Finally get those divine lessons from her as well. At least an introductory lesson.

[Training]
Reinforcement: The muscle spasms are definitely less ideal. I have an idea that they may be caused by the maximal overcharging causing "stiffness" sufficient to interfere with the electrochemical signals of the nerve tissue. Run the idea past Gianni and Go Ping to see what they think. It's a shot in the dark but if correct, there are solutions. The three that jump out at me are being precise enough to overcharge everything but the nerves, building a non-physical control method for Armas' body, or altering the nerves to operate under the.
Shadow pockets: It has been a while since we first worked on setting up the tiny shadow pockets to be distributed through Armas' body so that the Nazinaut shadow can be safely overlapped with his body. Show Gianni what we've got so far and ask for his advice on how to improve them. Ideally we'd learn how to affect semi-permanent change so that they don't have to be maintained by Summer energy and we can use Reinforcement in conjunction with the shadow.

[Were Child Trolling]
The people we had assigned to this job are on vacation and in a coma respectively, so we have to step in to take up the slack. Find out what bars the kid frequents and take Lyubov out for a date at wherever he is. Multi-tasking! The point for now is to just scope him out, tag him in Allview, and see if we can pick up anything about his character or habits that we can exploit to manipulate him.
Current plan I have is to adopt a disguise and dare him to rob some random magical shop that we select. Once we're sure he's taken the bait we sell the rumour that the shop is being targeted by a thief to SM. Then we approach the shopkeeper directly and offer the services of our company, there is a rumour going around that it is going to be broken into after all. I would suggest Bagga for the mission. Being beat by a newbie orphan vampire would be incredibly humiliating. He'd need to be supervised for the operation, but with an Allview tag and the eye spirits to monitor the were's movements, we could easily be on scene to provide covert assistance when necessary. Plan will probably need tweaking based on what we find out about the kid.

[Matvey]
Get a look at that coin map to Owner's arena, ask for a sample of his bioarmor, find out where he's staying in Italy and order a truckful of flowers to be delivered to wherever it is. Or however many flowers $5000 buys. No note. Svetlana can be made to handle the boring bits.

Let's get that H&H meeting done and over with. No reason to wait on that, and I figure we'll be looking at tens of millions of pure profit there. So give Arkvad a ring and ask him to set up the meeting. I figure these H&H guys are slavering to get their hands on reverse-engineered Reapertech, so the meeting will happen tout suite. Request, strongly, that Arkvad be included.

A few different conversational bits we might include:
"Gentlemen, thank you for taking the time to meet with me. I am certain we can come to an agreement that will please all involved parties."

If asked about Arkvad's presence: "Forgive me, but I don't know you all. I am certain you are businessmen above reproach, but H&H is a faceless entity for me. Arkvad has treated me well in my dealings with him. I would prefer to continue dealings through him." If they press the point, repeat gently, "I would prefer to continue dealings through him."

"I've always been pleased with Holland & Holland's service - except for that one time with your vampire contractor, when I paid good coin for magical items and received plain, unenchanted wares." Grin. Like the Smile. All the teeth. They HAVE to know that pissing off freaks with Armas's power can be a death sentence. "But these things happen. I was very pleased with the bone-work done on my familial weapon, for example. What kind of loyal customer would I be if I went to Pfiefer-Zeliska over one mistake?"

"Now, let's get down to business. I and a young man named Hamlet - I believe you have already employed him? - discovered a number of valuable breakthroughs in weapon technology. Certainly not reverse-engineered from anyone ... that has patented their work."

I can't find a list of the things we reverse-engineered from the Reapertech (besides Johan recognizing a shape in the explosive tip of the bullets being a shape devils hide in, resulting in x3 the explosive power), but presumably Armas will be able to remember.

What do we want? We could push to be brought in as a partner in H&H, but mostly I want cash money and a certain number (20 would be preferrable) of the new prototypes made with this technology.

>>462614
While I like the idea of getting that meeting with the H&H dudes, we should probably talk to Arkvad and have him set it up so that it isn't a rush job. We've waited over a week now, we can put it off just a bit longer.

We're stuck in Istanbul until Matvey's vacation is over anyway, we don't need to spring the meeting with the H&H CEOs on them. How about if we just schedule the meeting with the H&H executives for a later day? That shows some consideration and planning on our part.

Roc Hunting Plan
Now, we have been told that Roc are pretty much the go-to when one needs Thunder-affiliated beings, and we definitely want a thunder compounding to our summer bloodline. We are well aware of the advantages of being taught directly by the being that grants us the compounding, goddess who also share a soulgraft with us, after all. Now, we have a few very effective ways of finding some: We could go the usual SM route, but we also have...Allview. Placid told us almost a week ago that he should have the souls ready when next we went and met with him, so getting them and putting them in our eye should be a priority regardless. Once that's done, Sake should give a clear 'image/soul-representation' of a Roc, so that the souls in our eyes can get to searching for them. Maybe we should think about vinding or soulsculpting to make them more efficient for that work, but be wary of touching Placid's work. As the souls are going to be dedicated to a single envirment, ask Placid and Dávgon whether we could tweak the eye, or the souls, so that they are in time-dilated mode and can search extremely quickly. Do that if possible. Make sure to give Placid a hug for work well done. Make sure that we are realizing that he might not quite be lour son, but we are a father to him, no need here for a 'Fatherly soul-guise'. Reserve some time later for another ice cream spree.

If the work is well done, we should have the souls finding Rocs in a very short amount of time. If they don't, we can probably assume that we will need more information. Best candidates are, in order, Whatiri, BC and Dávgon then Leprauchon/Minautor. Using the information from each of them to give hints to the souls could help, too, obviously. Last resort is SM, but better not go there.

Once we have divined the location of Rocs, we should target a nest of them which have a good power+number/defense ratio. The goal here, the optimal outcome, is to get at least one very powerful body intact for whaitiri as well as 'left-overs' for Armas to dine is once the compounding is over. Eating Rocs just after getting a thunder-compounding of our bloodline is probably as good a jumpstart as realistically possible. A couple of discussions to have before the actual hunting begins with Dávgon/SB/Sake:

*Should we try soulbinding the small spirit remnants in the Rocs to “Can only be eaten Today” or some such, either/both for the ones for Armas and Whaitiri, or would the summer/winter conflict just utterly annihilate Armas and Whaitiri? Make sure to ask Whaitiri's own opinion if they seem confident.
*Our recent greatly improved soul-regen, as well as other-regen of magical energies, has been shown to leak to Sake and SB. Is it also leaking to Whaitiri, who has a soulgraft of Armas? If that is so, we probably should use that to make sure the boon of compounding is as powerful as possible.

Armas should also find a way for 'Walking on air', in case he needs to go into mid-air melee. The possibilities are either trying to get some kind of Hermes-style HB-wings + dunter footwork (possibly needing us to forgo charka as we would need inner fleshcrafting for okay step), or else even a “Walking on air” Chakra orientation from the book. It could be useful to ask other people like Sake/HB/Dávgon/Gianni their opinions.

Armas should either ask Go Ping or look in the chakra orientation book for a “infuse our weapons with energy”. Especially one that should work with guns, like Long Wang seemed to use when we were fighting the Doonegeas. Our way to use IT is definitely good, but it's also obvious that Ito's reinforcement is not tailored to do this. Likewise, finding a optimum orientation for enhancing our mere would be really useful.

If it's possible without wasting too much time, have Armas finally learn to make a soul-bubble without relying on HB.

Now, as to the hunting itself:
We should first decide who to take with us. Sake is a obvious need, but Hillevi could be useful too, and we need more Ward-bonding, especially as Matvey is gone, and Satai is in coma.

General hunting tips:
+If we fount a nest with multiple Rocs, we should try to sneak our way there during a night while making sure with our Allview that none are noticing us. Armas with a applicable soulguise (maybe we should try for “that soul that is always out of attention” by thinking back to our Goblin stealth training) and plying all of his skill to be silent as well as nondetectable during a stalking should be able to sneak there and strike before they know what is happening. Shadowpinning could be quite useful there, too.
+If we have to engage them when they are in the air, Sake should use his conceptual tripping to turn the air against them and Armas should use the fact that they are tagged with Allview to accurately pin their shadows with IT: those two methods should help bring them down. Hillevi no doubt has her own ideas for what to do. We could also get Sake to take us to the air, or even have Hillevi throw us up. With a little HB-momentum, as well as a way to walk on air (or at least change direction in some ways) we could have some fun mid-air melee.
+If we are trying to target a single flying Roc, we could also think about having a HB going up with gear in soul-bubble, then turning back into Armas and stabbing it. This would need some way for HB to do that in a sneaky way though. But, well, this is HB.
+We might think about using favored prey for using as baits, so that we could sneak behind them, as well as making them come down. Buying some from menageries like where Rosti bought his pups should do fine. Worse come to worse, we would need to ask Placid to make animals. It's the preferably not option, because Placid will probably not be happy about that.

Bait Funny way:
+Have Armas run around with a cow on his shoulder, with a suitably Bait-like soulguise. Cow on a stick. We already have some cows, too, so that make it perfectly easy to do.

Contigencies:
+If Sake or Hillevi get injured, we might think about doing the opposite of 'stealth' here. Take a leaf out of HB's book, and dazzle them with our brilliance. Basically, inflate our soul and use a soul-guise saying “the enemy to get rid of first is HERE, and his weakness is Melee!”, and then go all out with IT and charging it up with energy so that we truly appear as a first class ranged threat. Especially as, if they are attacking Sake/Hillevi, they probably are showing us their backs.
+HB's latest swarm we gave him should be back by then, which means there is something like 30 summer energy we can 'take back' at any moment and then use it for making a Armas body from one of the HB around. We could use that as a great way for either resilience or sneak-attack.
+Have Sake float a use piece of dark cloth (Armas bought lots of clothing materials) for making shadows and use this as a way to enhance SB's shade and shadowport, in case things go very wrong: Armas should try not to use SB for this, as there have been signs SB is getting very busy lately.

Division of spoils:
One Roc should obviously go full-in for Whaitiri at least (check if you can do anything to make it more potent for her via soul or flesh crafting, and then ask her about it before doing any modifications). Another should hopefully be eaten by Armas, and a last one for Hillevi. If there is more or less than three, we should be ready to leave bones for Hillevi if need be, and/or getting more for Armas. If possible, we should try to have bones left over for making a bass guitar for lambobard. If Armas has decided that he is giving a lot of power to Whaitiri with his enhanced regeneration, make sure to use that to gain the most powerful Boon possible for that compounding.

>>462421
Upvote because Abeo is a cool guy I am sometimes an asshole to.
>>458653
Upvote to Matvey and Lev bioarmor tasting, as well as the other stuff.

[General Training ideas]
First, we should make sure to ask Dávgon and Gianni about the side-effects of sleeping in a time-dilated soul-bubble. If it's ok, do it.
Ask Dávgon, as well as check ourself, the effect of our soulbind on our soulgrowth. Ask what he believes a second one would do.
+Ask Duke for some Strength conceptual training. With Armas own resilience as well as HB focus (improving the base strength is always good! He told us nary a day ago!) and possibly some kind of soulbind to enhance the training (that's something to be wary of, however, as it could contaminate it. Something like “Can only learn from Duke today” could be interesting though).
+Learn how to make Hermes-style HB-wings, and learn how to use them for enhanced mobility.
+Learn how to make soul-bubbles, and try to make soul-bubbles on feet. It might make a few hundreds exploded feet, but after a while we should be able to get those soul-bubble in the right dimension/density/make so that they are optimal for quite a few more things.
+Get animal for soul-breaking and ensouling practice. The bugs are a good first-step, but if we want to do some really funky things, bigger animals could be bigger. Once we have tasted Matvey's bioarmor, we could even try to get some nice material for our first bioarmor prototypes: Get nine gorillas (either buying or from Placid, though the latter is less preferable), ensoul them, body-quirk and soulquirk them (three different template), then have three of them fusion with the others, so that we have three power-of-three fusioned Gorillas. Then fusion those three for recursive rule of three bonus. From then on, we could have a great familiar base for a bio-armor.
+Test to see (With HB and all our gear far away) if we can cut off one of our limb, bind it for maximal cannabilizing fleshcrafting gains, and then use fleshcrafting to cannablize it, to see if we gain more energy than we lose. We need to ask around before doing this, as the summer/winter interaction could be BAD. OTOH, we apparently cannibalized Armas meat in our fight against Hillevi, when all of it was frozen under Hillevi's winter magical power.
+Soul guise practice: Analyze how different trait 'speaks in souls, and maximize that for effects. Practice by remembering what it is to be “outside of attention-range”
+Soul-Guise: Armas has realized that Bagga could feel something divine about him. This should mean the extra-speciliazed vampiric blood-sensing needs Armas to be able to find a soul-guise that counters it. Talk about it with your brothers, and change the default soulguise as needed. Furthermore, hides the presence of our soul bind in our soulguise. We should then train to be able to change our binding while continuing to appear that we have none.
+Continue Gianni Epithelial fleshcrafting practice.
+Reinforcement: When we train in our reinforcement, we should aim to polish and understand our ability a bit more. As such, trying to use flexibility so that we can choose to concentrate all our reinforcement into a specific body part would be a good step. Trying to time ourself from going 'full body reinforcement' to 'reinforcement in my legs', for example, would help us improve our response time, and make it easier to counter and attack ourself. We should be wary of the winter chakra/Summer body conflict, however, and begin slowly. Especially if we try to use specific-body when amplifying reinforcement.
+Learn from Dávgon how to make Item-bound spirit animals (very useful if we want to make mythic familiar bioarmor, for example).
+M7 should be incredibly useful for maximizing Soul-guise and fleshcrafting in practicular, though incredibly dangerous too.

>>458653
>>459033
…Hm.
>"I know that tone of thought: What is it?"
Well, it's just the fact that Camella rejected whatever price Oggmum set on a trip back, and-
>"Ah. Yes, it's very possible that she requested some form of treachery, to divulge extensively sensitive information-I know of no other price that she would balk so forcefully as to avoid a trip home. And, based on that-"
It has to be me, or the Owner.
>"Indeed."
And since I'm the one actually working with a vampire clan that Oggmum's were tribe doesn't get along with-
>"Then yes, it seems logical to conclude the requested betrayal involved you, rather than the Ruling Dragon.""
…Which is why I'm gonna call her ass and thank her for that-encourage/foster loyalty, all that. Even if she is a bit too… fuck, I don't even have words for the specifics of her personality that rub me the wrong way, but-
>"Yes: Rubbing one the wrong way is wholly separate of such professional dedication as she presumably showed when rejecting a chance to achieve something she holds very dear to her. ..Interesting."
Hm?
>"Did you undertake a mental acuity ritual while I was occupied, or-"
Hah, funny-you know, when I don't have shittons of distractions I do at least all right thinking things through. Anyway: Phone call. Unless you have something pertinent to supply, I'm just going to get to it.
>"I leave you to it. Oh, parting comment: Satai is, as you know, becoming a Mentalist-he isn't one yet, but I'll let you know when he is: I plan to take him into our shared mindscape at a later date-it would be most beneficial to his learning.""
Excellent, he found something he actually likes as a path to power top stick with? Yeah, let me know.

Blinking to dispel my moment of mental communication and return to normal time, I pull out my phone and place a call. I'm not at all surprised Camella picks up before the second ring-she's always been prompt.
>[Camella]"Armas: What's the situation?"
"Hah, there's no current issue-this is something of a personal call."
I can practically feel a layer of tension peeling off of her psyche through the phone.
>[Camella]"…I see. Well, I have time: What is it?"
"Camella, I just wanted to say thank you for yesterday."
I take the nearly silent intake of breath from her end as all the confirmation I need that my theory was right.
"I wasn't privy to what Oggmum wanted from you, but I can guess. And if my guess is right, it means a lot to me that you turned her down."
>[Camella]"…I'll preface my question by stating I'm in a secure location. Now: What exactly are you implying here? What is your guess?"
"I've got an idea of what her modus operandi is. I knew that when I arranged the meeting for you. I figured that you still deserved the chance to make a choice. I can't make decisions for you, but I can do my best to help you, even if it won't result in an outcome I personally-"
>[Camella]"Armas."
"Hm?"
>[Camella]"…Please plainly state what you think she asked."
I pause at the tone in her voice, an out of place gentle plaintiveness, bereft of her usual authoritative edge.
"I believe she asked for sensitive information about the company you currently work for, and specific members of it. Do you need me to be more specific than that?"
>[Camella]"…No. No, that's accurate. …You really didn't find the fact that I might have said yes an issue?"
"Camella, I know that she's got her own agenda, and I really appreciate that you didn't play into it. That said… I just want to be a good friend. And that means I can't do much more than be supportive, since the decisions are all yours. If I offer up my opinions I'll just end up trying to convince you to do what I want-we both know how I can be. It wouldn't be fair of me to do that, so I'm just hanging back and trying to get opportunities for you to pursue whatever you decide on..."
For a time, the only thing I hear through the line are her soft exhalations, and I give her the time she needs to properly formulate a response.
>[Camella]"I… I don't know what to say."
"Well, I wouldn't mind a thank you-"
>[Camella]"Armas, you know what I… no, you're right. Thank you Armas-really, I don't know how to even say how grateful I am about this… I just…"
I can practically feel her awkwardness at being beholden to someone else's good will billowing through the line-and I toss her a line.
"Anyway-got my question cleared up, said what I needed on that-let's call it friendly waters under the bridge, yeah?"
A snort and a giggle bordering on a chuckle are my response-that's the Camella I know.
>[Camella]"I can do that. So? You couldn't have called me just for that."
"Indeed I did not. I wanted to know if you wanted me to transfer Feodor over to you for the month? It occurred to me that if there's some sort of problem, you might need his skills. Mundane medicine is the safest sort of medicine for you right now, right? I was thinking of recalling Andrei."
>[Camella]"Interesting. While I appreciate what you're offering, I think that may be unnecessary: I currently have access to a surprisingly skilled doctor. Turns out that there's a retired Esercito medic here that's a practicing surgeon-while I've no doubt that Feodor could potentially give better medical treatment, I doubt he could do so with less magical signature than a genuinely mundane person."
"…Wow, okay yeah, that's probably true. Have to ask though, did you inves-"
>[Camella]"Yes: He settled here twelve years ago, and was known by the prior individuals in charge of the town. Additionally, he's the only ex-army here."
"Good to hear you aren't potentially sitting on a hidden army or something. Well-there was actually another reason I brought up Feodor: I was thinking of switching him with Andrei."
>[Camella]"…Mission need or mental health?"
"The latter. Don't tell me you got that sorted out too?"
>[Camella]"You did appoint me as second in command."
"Okay-so wow me."
>[Camella]"Andrei is teaching children in a rustic setting how to operate, repair, and build basic electronic devices-and has rapidly made himself very popular amongst the locals. He's also becoming less introverted and anti-social in the process. Seems he's got a natural inclination towards teaching, and likes kids."
"…Damn. That fast?"
>[Camella]"I suggested it when I heard him muttering about people not knowing how to use computers-seems he saw some adults having issue, and was having to restrain himself from lecturing them. I suggested teaching the children instead."
"Let me guess-the adults are learning better through them, feathers unruffled?"
>[Camella]"Precisely."
"All right then. Would it be correct to say, then, that so far smooth sailing on this?"
>[Camella]"I currently forsee no complications or issue based on how we are handling this particular contract."
"Great. Well hey-give me a call if something changes-and good talking to you."
>[Camella]"Hmph. I'd like to say your horrifically unprofessional approach to mission reports wasn't growing on me, but… well. Thanks for the talk."
"Hah, I'll break you of that rigidness one day."
>[Camella]"Goodbye, Armas."
*Click*

With a productive check-in out of the way, I hang up. I start going through a mental list of activities to devote my time to-and am interrupted a few minutes in, when Lyubov breezes through the door, still huffing and blowing and covered in sweat from the morning jog.
[Lyubov] “I was hoping I’d catch you before you left! I need to talk to you about something that happened yesterday.”
…She didn't even slightly smile saying that. Serious stuff maybe?
“What’s that?”
[Lyubov] “I- um. I hurt Sake.”
What? WHAT!? Why didn't I hear about this?
>"He was provided treatment in a timely fashion, and suffered no longterm-"
Dammit SB you know that's not what I…
“What did you do? Is he alright?”
[Lyubov] “He’s physically fine! Gianni fixed him up. And, um. He was setting up one of those big wind bombs he told us about on Monday, to fire at Ohotnik-"
"That's that dog he got custom built down at the Arena when he got his bioarmor, right?"
Lyubov's soul fluctuates a bit when I interrupt her mid-vent, but she recovers her steam fast enough.
[Lyubov] “Yes! And, and I asked him if it was a good idea to fire that off at the dog, and he just ignored me, and I sort of made a punny joke and he started laughing and lost control of it, and. Yeah.”
I ignore my personal reaction to the wilted, utterly crestfallen body language to her drooping frame.
“Lyubov, how bad was it?”
She’s quiet for a moment. I can see the upwelling of emotion in her soul, a surge of ugly emotion and memory: the weight of a thousand deaths resonating with her imaginings of Sake’s experience. I reach over and give her shoulder a friendly squeeze.
“Lyubie.”
[Lyubov]”He ended up disemboweled, and his paws were blown off entirely, and-”
She marshals her emotions before she starts crying.
[Lyubov] “-and I don’t blame him for being completely angry with me. I should have left well enough alone.”
At that, my brother-from-no-other-mother speaks up, vocalizing his input for once.
>”The fuzzball could have avoided the trouble entirely by answering your question. And in any case he shouldn’t be plying such destructive power in the house, especially if it takes all of his limited powers of concentration to make it work. Any weapon that can backfire due to a pun is too dangerous to actually use. Not that he paid my warning any mind.”
The up-till-now unobtrusively roosting Hummingbird atop one of my bookcases buzzes his wings before chirping and shoving a few thoughts in my mind.
>[HB]”Sir Shadow speaks the truth, a weapon so dangerous to wield should not be used in one’s own nest save for dire times.”
“You talked to him about this before?”
As Lyubov tries to take her heart back off her sleeve and get it together, my shadow takes up a lecturer's pose on the ground.
>”Hummingbird and I both tried to. He’s stubborn enough I realized it would take someone getting hurt to change his mind. I didn’t anticipate that it would be him, though.”
“Was anyone else hurt?”
[Lyubov]“No. It was just him. I tried to apologize to him, but he won’t even look at me now.”
>”Part of that is because his pride has been hurt by my warning being proven correct in a very dramatic fashion.”
“…The other part would be that getting killed by a well timed pun is something that’s happened to him before.”
Lyubov's head snaps up.
[Lyubov] “Excuse me?”
“When I fought him to the death, before we were soul brothers, I used puns to distract him so he would not be able to use his full power against me.”
>”Einrik told us he did something like that too, remember?”
“That’s right. That would be Sake’s third death due to a pun.”
[Lyubov]”…”
She’s not saying anything. Not really a silence, it’s too filled with self-recrimination for hurting her friend so deeply to be any sort of actual silence, but it is a quiet moment just the same. So I hug her. She’s sweaty from her jog, warm, and soft. She relaxes against me, returning the embrace.
“He’ll forgive you in time.”
>”He’s making a bigger issue of it than he should. He didn’t die, the body is intact, the discomfort was temporary. He even got to keep his precious little weasel-dick.”
I frown at that.
“What?”
>”Someone changed his body’s gender for him. He’s got a male Ramidreju body now. Don’t tell me: You didn’t notice.”
“It’s not like I spend a lot of time looking at weasel genitals. Who did it?”
>”Lyubov knows.”
[Lyubov] ”Well. Sake wanted it to be a surprise, but you know now, so. Yeah. Placid took care of it.”
“I’m surprised that he trusted Placid at all. You guys did this on your own?”
[Lyubov] “Yes, we talked to Placid together. I gave him a little reward, a thousand liters of ice cream, for helping Sake.”
>”Now that I did not know. That’s amusing.”
[Lyubov] “He helped Dávgon with a project last night as well, to upgrade the defenses around Matvey’s property. Placid has been taking those lessons about cooperation to heart, I think.”
I can't help but smile at that-the onetime monstrous destroyer is growing up, heh.
“Really? Do you know what they did?”
[Lyubov] “Some sort of setup with land-bound spirits that Dávgon worked into defenses. Matvey asked me to check on the cabin while he’s gone, so I’m going to be driving out there with Placid to walk and make sure everything is fine. Do you want to come along with us? It’s a lovely little property.”
“That sounds nice actually. I wouldn’t mind checking out the work. But why does Matvey need more defenses? I thought he had a good set of wards around the place.”
[Lyubov] “Well… The original wards were put in place by the previous owner, Kazadora- “
I interrupt without the slightest trace of mirth or impishness, for once completely serious.
“Kazadora.”
The word hangs there, heavy and grim. I haven’t forgotten the bubbly homicidal Encantado, nor how it took my arm just before I met the Valkonens. My eyes narrow as she nods her head.
“Lyubov, if you’re going to visit, I should be with you.”
The blond Russian looks a bit confused at my sudden adamance.
[Lyubov] ”Seriously? What’s up with her?”
“Think crazy powerful blood manipulating Encantado with a side of enslaving dick. I tangled with him-"
[Lyubov] ”Her."
"…You're sure about that?"
[Lyubov] ”Matvey seemed pretty sure."
…I recall how I heard Encantado can't shift across genders-and the excessively masculine voice I heard before. …Don't know if that's skill, cunning or both, but either way I bump my threat assessment of the little psychopath up a few more notches just to be safe.
"Well, I bumped into.. her… once before, and was happy to escape, even if it was thanks to the Mad Drunk teleporting us- B.C., the Rhivuldori kids, me, and himself- to safety.”
[Lyubov] “Boy we just meet the nicest people huh? Well, anyway she left herself on the permitted list and apparently came right up to their front door after a rogue Mind she abandoned managed to possess Zhenya’s new violin and tried to run away. Luckily Ohotnik killed it…”
>”I have the corpse in storage, by the way.”
Then it probably wasn't a genuine threat, all things considered… okay.
[Lyubov]”…Then Rostislav apparently broke through the original wards by bodyslamming a weakening curse he’s voluntarily had all week for training purposes into the wards until they absorbed enough of it that he could push right through. He tore out an entire ward node. Then Matvey had a second set of wards put in and Hillevi froze those. They’re still fine, she just temporarily disabled them with raw power. And then after I took Hillevi home Kazadora apparently used a water portal trick to appear in the pond and bypassed the wards entirely. So, yeah, Matvey wanted more defenses.”
I rub my face. Sounds like Matvey had his own Wayward Wednesday.
“Why did Hillevi freeze Matvey’s new wards?”
[Lyubov]”Well, it is something you should hear because you are her guardian. So. Maybe you have noticed she sort of had a crush on Matvey?”
I give her a wry look at that.
“It hadn’t escaped my notice, but I figured I could rely on him to behave properly.”
[Lyubov]”I think you can. Hillevi had not realized that Matvey was going to be cohabitating with Zhenya, and she was very upset. She came up to the house and Matvey explained why things are as they are, and then I talked to her and clarified some things. She was feeling very, um. Hurt and put out over Matvey picking someone who is not very magical over her. She had sort of maybe felt like that about you, and me, too. But I’m a Witch Saint, so it was understandable to her that you decided on me. But Matvey picking Zhenya felt like an insult to her, you see.”
I file away that internal motivator of my ward for future reference-that's critical information about how she views the world, there.
“Because Zhenya’s solely a chakra user.”
[Lyubov]”Well she’s got some Conceptual magic now too, Duke taught her Strength, but yeah, as far as bloodline clans reckon things Zhenya is just interesting, not main family marriage material.”
The obvious conclusion leaps to my mind: Lyubov could be considered main family material by dint of her magic potency. Yet another tidbit I file away.
>Nice to see your mind is still working. Pay attention to her though.
Naturally.
[Lyubov] “…Anyway we cleared it up, Hillevi understands there was no insult intended and that mundane people and chakra users and such don’t have all the same requirements and reasons to marry that she will.”
“Sounds like everything’s all cleared up. So what’s the big deal about telling me?”
[Lyubov] “It’s not just all that. She was pretty miserable, and she’s, you know. Curious. About what love is like, about what sex is like, all of that. Even if she’s a very powerful person, she’s still a teenager. So I talked to her and cleared up some weird ideas she’d gotten from magazines.”
Ah, modern media and a fresh, naïve teenage mind. Good to know that didn't blow up.
“Well. Good.”
[Lyubov] “She wanted to know about magic sex too, and, well.”
I hold up a hand.
“Right. No, it’s fine, I understand.”
[Lyubov] “You’re not put out?”
“No. It’s better if she’s not ignorant.”
[Lyubov] “Yeah. And I stressed to her that a relationship is the important part, it’s what makes the rest work. And what to look out for to be sure about a relationship, and I told her about my own past so she could understand some of it, and anyway I think the lesson stuck. I hope so, she’s a good person, I’m sure she’ll meet the right guy someday.”
“Provided her dad doesn’t decide she should be part of a political marriage, yeah.”
I can't help but think back to all the twenty-plus year old Valkonen 'kids' currently unmarried in a recently skeletalized clan.
>”You’ve seen how overprotective of her he is. I think it’d be highly unlikely.”
I smile suggestively at Lyubov.
“So, what sort of wisdom did you impart to her?”
[Lyubov] “Well… you know just as well as I do about what we’ve been up to in the bedroom. Just. Semi-sanitized versions of that, really.”
“Have you thought about talking with Gianni about this? It’s his, heh, area of expertise.”
She quirks an eyebrow at me.
[Lyubov] “You know he’s, um. Kind of… hands on.”
I watch her in silence for only a few seconds before I see the tinge of a blush at what drove that particular euphemism. Hah.
“Then how about we talk to him about it together? That way there’s no question about what we’re doing, since we’ll be right there for each other.”
[Lyubov] “I like Gianni well enough, but that seems sort of personal.”
“You’ll find no better mentor, short of somehow getting a dragon to give us tips. And, if you’re going to learn how to make the most of the divine fleshcrafting package you’re building, you can’t go wrong establishing him as a magical mentor. It’ll be a lot of fun for you and me.”
I smile at her playful reticence. We both know she's already on board.
[Lyubov]”Well…”
“Come on Lyuba, we’ll be in it together, for each other.”
[Lyubov]”…what day do you want to do this?”
“How’s Sunday sound? I’ve got to make sure Gianni’s got time that day, but I think it’ll work.”
[Lyubov]”Right. Alright.”
She kisses me and then smiles wryly.
[Lyubov]”I’m going to get a shower before you talk me into something else. But don’t forget we’re going on that walk with Placid this afternoon, ok?”
I nod at her, and watch her escape into the bathroom.

I wonder what I should do with the information about Kazadora?
My shadow can't help but provide a dry response to that.
>Building a trap and inviting Markku to finish the job would help win further favor with him. Matvey’s got a more detailed report on the matter, but it amounts to Kazadora expressing interest in him as only a psychopath can.
I’d feel bad for the guy but he’s on vacation and I’ve got to handle all the daily bullshit he’d normally deal with.
>I couldn’t help but notice that you’re acting differently around Lyubov.
Am I?
>You’re thinking of her more like your girlfriend.
…Well, she is, basically. She thinks of me as her partner, we act like we’re partners, we get along, I like her, I like spending time with her… she’s my girlfriend. …Dammit.
>I’m glad you’re not lying to yourself about how you feel. She’s a good ally to have.

With that dealt with, I start occupying myself with… the details, those things that crop up and need doing but are really hardly worthy of any real attention. Before Matvey can head out, I get him to give me a sample of his Bioarmor-which I thoroughly inspect on physical contact and via Soul Sensing. I can feel the Amen-like workings of the Meat Circus in it's origins-and can see it has a Spirit Animal style bond to Matvey, making it his familiar. I find the craftsmanship, such as I can assess, wholly exemplary, and make a total copy of all I can perceive to stuff into the growing magical library within the Allview. I explain to Matvey I want to have it analyzed and see what upgrades could be applied to the Golem project I've got brewing. He's all for it, since I make it abundantly clear that besides it's relevance to the golem I have no intended use for the material, and only Gianni, Dávgon and I will be handling the sample before it's been expended. I find myself a bit pleased with the relative level of trust he shows-I hardly have to do any reassuring at all to get the sample, despite how easily such a thing could bite him in the ass. Before we part, I also, at his request, take a full gander at the coin he's got, courtesy of the Owner. I immediately perceive brain damage taking place along with spiritual corrosion, but the damage is minor enough I can repair it without incident: after the assault, I find a… Concept, of a location an Arena deep within and yet without the earth, imprinted on my mind. One I'm utterly unable to utter. Curious. I take a full fleshcrafting scan of the sample it took for reference against the full-body scan, decide to briefly attempt a thorough analysis and find it's so overloaded with data I'd need a goodly bit of time to analyze it properly. Wholly unsurprised, I turn it over to the Finn and the Italian so they can get to work. Seems both of them like the idea of having a multi-million dollar Familiar-based custom-built bioarmor sample to work off of-who'd have guessed?

While I'm handing the sample over, I note that Gianni's got the golem rebuilt to have the three heads I'd plotted about a while back-and recollect my plan to mount bitchin' eye lasers in each, powered by pheonix hearts. More specifically, I remember my plan to have Placid work on getting that weapon system set up, since he's the only one with serious enough fleshcrafting chops to get the job done right. Seeing that the stage is set-I have the hearts, the golem, and the heads-I head on out into the late morning, and pay my little flesh monster buddy a visit. As usual, when he opens the door he doesn't smile, but does become excessively attentive to my presence.
>[Placid]"You have returned. Do you desire a status update on the souls you left in my care?"
"Are they done?"
>[Placid]"They are not fully rehabilitated and reconditioned, no."
"Didn't think so-actually, this was about another pending project. Remember our talk about eyes?"
The mass of flesh and magic currently guised as a child vaguely similar to myself in bone structure widens his eyes a fraction, and one of his cheeks twitches. It's not even close to normal childish glee, and yet…
>[Placid]"Is it time?"
"It is-can you create a zone of privacy to work in, if I bring the golem down to the sewers and meet you there?"
>[Placid]"That is within the realm of my ability, and can be accomplished. Is it correct to say you have the three hearts?"
"I do."
>[Placid]"Then if you are willing to avoid test firing the crafting until a Conceptual Fire or similarly specialized external bloodliner can go over my work, then I can render the entire project in a prototypal complete status."
"You could have it all put together?"
>[Placid]"I have given it thought since our last conversation on the topic, and believe I can."
"…Okay. Meet you in the sewers?"
>[Placid]"I will be ready, and will find you."
"Great-just remember to be polite to the Goblins, okay?"
He nods studiously as he shuts the door behind him, leaving his menagerie indoors to promptly walk over to the nearest alleyway manhole before descending.

I make it home and have Gianni and Dávgon-still working on Matvey's sample-to come along as Gianni's golems bring my pet project down into the room Amen showed me for meeting the Red Caps, and exit into the sewers outside of Amen's command. Within seconds, a rumbling wave of flesh races down one of the tunnels, before resolving itself neatly into the pudgy shape of Placid's prepubescent form, still smartly clad in a faux school uniform. From his feet, a layer of flesh an inch thick flows out, swiftly covering every surface of the sewers before sealing around us, forming a sectioned off private working space that has Gianni lazily clapping.
>[Placid]"This is the golem, correct?"
>[Gianni]"It is, it is. What's more-we've got something besides the pheonix hearts to work with."
One of his golems hefts a pair of Cyclops eyes, the ones I bought from Smiling One's sight not all that long ago. Placid studiously considers them, before looking at the golem proper.
>[Placid]"I must reappraise you of options: Systems equipped with Cyclopean ocular lenses will be able to handle use before having a Fire manipulator finalize the system."
"Good stuff. So, unless you have a better idea, I'm thinking mount them in the two auxiliary heads, and making sure they can swivel well. Basically shoulder-mounted laser cannons at that point, right?"
>[Placid]"…Sufficiently accurate. Should I begin?"
>[Gianni]"Just a moment little one-would you mind if I participated?"
"I wouldn't mind being a funnel so I pick up some lessons passively-I know this is above my skill level, but I can handle being your conduit for this, yes?"
Placid regards us both studiously.
>[Placid]"I can do this. Are there further considerations that must be addressed?"
Gianni and I look back at Dávgon, who bemusedly holds up his hands.
>[Dávgon]"I'm good."
"Right then. Placid, let's start."

I'll be honest-I don't remember much of what physically happens for the next five hours. Oh, I know well enough what happens, but it's all inferential: I don't recall seeing, smelling or hearing change take place. What I do remember, is a nigh-unending, relentless deluge of magical equations and flesh manipulation spell matrices filtering through my body and into the golem, I remember craftings linking a heavily composite body to an august mythic creature's eyes. I find that actually sifting through this data is something of a subconscious effort, and am finding myself 'remembering' how to do a few new things where graft integration is concerned.
[ARMAS IS NOW ABLE TO PERFORM HIS OWN MYTHIC ANIMAL GRAFTING ON HIS OWN BODY. ACQUIRE MORE EXPERIENCE TO FREELY DO SO WITH OTHERS.]
But far, far more importantly, through the process I become intimately familiar with the Golem's current status, and find myself compiling an internalized list of it's current specifications, for ease of reference.

WAR GOLEM PROJECT CURRENT STATUS
[FORM]-The Golem is some ten feet tall, bipedal with a total of six overlong arms that can easily double as further limbs for locomotion. It has a heavy tail as thick as a car tire round, with a total length of some fifteen feet. Atop it's head it sports three heads, the middle of which faces forward while each of the others stares back over a respective upper shoulder while at rest. Both side heads are capable of full rotation, and can bring their gaze upon anything provided an uninterrupted line-of-sight. Each head sports a single fist-sized mono-eye surrounded by beady eyes smaller than my little finger's nail. Each of the three heads has a remora-like fang-filled maw, complete with a hooked, elastic and prehensile tongue-tentacle, capable of stretching up to thirty feet.
[HEALTH]-Golem's body is fully functional, able to regenerate from any non-fatal injury, and does not have critical organs able to sustain lethal injury. Effectively, provided sufficient magical energy and blood intake, it can and will regenerate any form of tissue damage within a day. Further, it's flesh is heavily saturated with soul bits, courtesy of Dávgon's repeated ministrations. As such, the flesh is innately resistive to magical harm, to the point that it is particularly hard to ignite, freeze, cut, shatter, petrify or detonate by directly magical means. It is not immune to any form of magic, but is notably resistant to all physically expressed forms of magical harm. Gianni notes that to a poorly trained bloodliner, it would be effectively invulnerable, while someone of his skill level could still pierce through at least partly. To prevent passive loss of energy and general fuel, while operational the golem requires one barrel of blood per hour at rest. All of its abilities barring regeneration are fueled by its magical energy, of which it has roughly as much as a Doonongaes/Spirit Einherjar - specifically, the Doonongaes I killed a while back or Abloec, by my reckoning . It regenerates flesh and magical ability alike with blood intake, including the minimum barrel per hour. An amount of blood in equal to the volume of flesh to be regenerated can fuel the process of regeneration. To fully replenish a depleted magical capacity, the golem would need to take in nine barrels of blood.
[MIGHT]-The Golem's physical parameters have been robustly stabilized: It is quite notably stronger and faster than a Doonongaes, and far more nimble than something of its size should be. Provided sufficiently durable surfaces to brace itself against, I have no doubt it could outmaneuver me in mobility. Each and every limb, leg, arm and tail alike has been prepared by the Red Caps Lucy and Ricky to be compatible with much of Dunter Footwork, the core of its uncanny nimbleness.
[ORGANIC ARMAMENTS]-Each of the golem's nine limbs (one tail, two legs, six arms) are capable of overpowering most forms of non-draconic physical might, able to bend even the mightiest mundane vault door in half-or rending it asunder. There is no form of mundane defense that it cannot breach-and precious few in the magical community could claim to have superior might. As such, all of its limbs must be classified as weapons, considering the sheer amount of might present. It's legs have a range of six feet, it's arms five feet, and it's tail fifteen feet. The golem also possesses three tongues capable of prodigious blood-draining ability, able to reach targets thirty feet away, that can drain blood at a rate of a gallon a second from targets unable to guard themselves. The tongues in question cannot pierce metal armor greater than an inch in thickness. The last purely organic weapon system (that is operational) are the two auxiliary head's eye-beam systems: With the ability to redirect the perpetually produced heat of a pheonix heart through the nigh-indestructible cyclops eyes to create a contained beam of intense heat sufficient to turn whatever falls in the direct line of the eye's sight into plasma-air converts near-instantly, while more dense collections of matter take longer. It's capable of vaporizing stone, and is bright enough that it can double as a blinding-flash to any that look towards it with unguarded eyes.
[ARTIFICIAL ARMAMENTS]-The Golem is outfitted with a hardened iridium alloy storage tank partly recessed into its back, and tubes that feed down each of its six arms to palm based emitters. The Golem's own Doonongaes-derived poison and Nazinaut-derived flammable acid feed into the tank, where they mix with the treated, heavily toxic waste I harvested from a double-transcendent living legend from China (I still chuckle about that). Gianni was also able to integrate the cannisters of weaponized gas I picked up a while back into the golem, and it produces approximations of said chemicals to funnel into the tank as well. The emitters can achieve sufficient pressure to spray the fluid material a distance of some sixty feet before dispersion, discounting prevailing winds. The resultant spray is air-flammable, and is speculated to be fully able to kill most non-draconic being on contact, excluding those capable of regenerating from just a damaged soul-and even then, they could still be terminally injured from such an attack. I am reasonably certain that SOME part of this particular weapon system is considered reprehensible by the general magical public, but I can't seem to find anything that I know to be 'bad'. It could just be that I'm assuming a weapon this pervasively effective would HAVE to be disallowed. Either way-it's freaking awesome, no doubt about it.
[MAGIC ITEMS][b]-Greatest of all the Golem's current equipment though, is the pilfered Reapertech Time-Dilation Charm set, complete with the safely scoured bit of the Reaper agent's soul to insure compatibility. Between it and the natural Dunter movement, this beast could easily hit speeds in excess of three hundred miles per hour, and could dodge bullets given room. With this kind of speed and mobility, it's raw strength renders it even more deadly in close combat-I don't realistically see much short of Dragons or Skinwalkers being able to shrug it off. Further, this massively increases its potential accuracy with all attack vectors, given the comparatively longer time to adjust aim.
[b][ARMOR]-Currently the weakest point of its aggregate physical ability. While Igor's genuinely surprised me, having re-tempered a large mass of armor plating with his new multi-dimensional hammer, the fact still remains that it's largely mundane armor. It's quite possible the flesh beneath is hardier than the armor itself-and has regenerative ability as well. Still, I note the golem to have full coverage from plate armor that has to weigh at least a ton, and could probably survive a tank round without being breached, under the right circumstances. To be sure, it's bullet proof even for lower-ranked magical armaments. Still… it doesn't really measure up to the rest of the system, in terms of physical defense. What it does provide, is particularly hardy defense against attacks from the Dark, and mental attacks against whatever soul is currently piloting the golem, provided the armor is not yet breached.
[CONTROL METHOD]-The Golem's possession-based piloting system has been getting quite a few hours logged by Dávgon and Gianni alike-and HB, I find-but it's still awaiting literal weeks of data from dozens of different minds before Dávgon would feel comfortable programming in artificial assistance. To be easy to pilot, plenty more work is needed-but for those with very capable minds or souls-Placid, HB and the like-it's now fully operational and battle-functionally pilotable.

In short, the Golem project… is fully operational. All I have left to do is continue improving it. There's loads of room for it, to be certain. I wonder what I'll do next.

After the massive undertaking that was getting the eye plasma-beam weapon system up and concretely cataloguing the golem's status, I get it hauled back into the mansion, and round up Lyubov before taking a walk with Placid around town. While HB refuses to comment on the why of it, he elects to shadow me with a few dozen independently flying Hummingbirds-no doubt further refining his control of a swarm form. Placid doesn't say a thing about it, but to me it's obvious he's absolutely fascinated by the replicated birds tailing us, and wastes little time in carefully observing them. Even when we detour through a park and I entice the flesh monster to sit on a swing and let me push him, he keeps watching the birds. Though to be fair, he doesn't seem to have a single issue with using the swingset, even if his glances at the few other children are clearly not 'normal' by childish standards. …Someday soon, I hope, I'll be able to say he could pass for a kid. I also can't help but note each bird notably preening itself as it's focused on by the War Walker-no doubt HB has zero issue with Placid's attentiveness. In the end, Placid surprises no one with a suggestion that we acquire ice cream, and the outing ends with him meticulously working on an oversized sundae on the way back-his fifth of the day.

After we get back, I spot Hillevi in the mansion-and immediately notice the discrepancy between her visual forced cheer and troubled soul. After sharing a look with Lyubov, I head off to talk with the titanic teen-and find that she's completely uninterested in talking about how she feels. What she IS interested in, however, is pestering me with a myriad of questions about modern life. I don't detect any sort of pattern or underlying objective behind their asking beyond simple curiosity, and answer them to the best of my ability. She has me pinned down until dinner, and keeps on asking through the cooking process and well after the meal. I happily continue to answer for hours on end, witnessing her soul sorting out it's wrinkles and doubts as she distracts herself from the process. I find myself wondering if the Valkonens know something about spiritual distemper and it's treatment that I don't-but readily recognize now isn't the time to ask. The point is that by evening, Hillevi seems her normal cheery self physically and spiritually, and that's enough for me.

Of course, that's not all that happens, as I'm occupied by a text not ten minutes after Hillevi's satisfied.
>[Matvey]Forgot to mention. Shit went down yesterday.
I totally know about that already. Kazadora, Rostislav, Hillevi, all that.
>[Matvey]Ah. And the Placid visit?
That too.
>[Matvey]Well okay then. ..Oh, bet this one you don't know: Company netted you 4.43m+ in Arena trip. Deposited it in account.
…Yes, that is something I did not know.
BUSINESS FUNDS: +$3,700,000 $6,220,042.00
>[Matvey]Nothing major in the outing-Bagga flubbed, we learned that Submission's a crapshoot unless you know tricks, learned of one of said tricks. Zhenya made friends with a Glurichaun.
Contact-style friend or just impulsive friend?
>[Matvey]Impulsive-don't think we could work the connection yet.
Got it. Anything else?
>[Matvey]Lev and Grisha in Hobgoblin Arena. Also 25% cut. Nothing major-but by the end real known, odds got crappy.
What was the take?
>[Matvey]4.34m+
BUSINESS FUNDS: +$4,352,822 $10,572,864.00
You know I think I love you. Anything more?
>[Matvey]That's it.
I see. And no worries on not reporting promptly-you sorted shit, so it was a nonissue.
>[Matvey]What I hoped. Later.

I grin over the considerable windfall and increased exposure my company netted itself.

>>459129
After dinner's long over, I find myself spending a considerable amount of time indulging yet another of my endless supply of whimsical impulses: I meticulously search through the chakra orientations book for one that would allow a form of flight I like…. but frankly, none of them seem quite right. They either lack enough hi-speed maneuverability, have issues with elevation change, or are too influenced by environmental conditions. Frankly, not a one of them is solidly rounded enough to suit my tastes-and eventually I have to give the search up as a bad job. I know I'm being excessively picky, but I feel it's appropriate-why bother learning an inferior skill if I theoretically could be spending that time on something far more useful in the long term? Especially when I consider the incredible versatility of HB's swarm form. Shutting the book and returning the book to Satai's care (and drawing on the heavily zoned out man's face, bestowing him with a magnificent mustache and drawing dicks on the backs of his ears), I decide to call an end to the day. I walk back out of the room, my reflexive use of Attention-avoiding footwork and opportunistic Soul Guising as 'someone utterly forgettable and unworthy of notice' having seen me through the book return and prank alike without that Siren Stacey having noticed my presence. I can only hope I get to witness Satai's reaction.
>"For once, I promise to share the memory of his reaction with you."
Excellent.

I saunter back into the bedroom. Lyubov’s already there, her hair bundled up in a towel while she works on some schematic on her computer. She sets it aside and smiles at me.
[Lyubov]”Hey, everything went well?”
“I can’t complain. How about for you?”
[Lyubov]”I’m fine. I thought I should bring up a couple of things though.”
I can’t help but tease her a little.
“Uh oh, more things!”
[Lyubov]”Oh don’t be like that, it’s just keeping you in the loop and…”
She trails off as Amen starts undressing me, the weird buzz of what feels like ten thousand little magic fingers working on my suit until it just isn’t there. As soon as it’s done, I flop down on the bed beside her.
“Sure. So, hit me with it.”
[Lyubov]”Normally I’d just notify Satai of this and let him deal with it, but Satai’s, um. Indisposed?”
Shadowbro speaks up in his gravelly affectation with just a hint of smugness.
>”It’s purely for his own good.”
What happened?
>”He’s finalizing his mindscape, and I have my shade helping him with it. I estimate he will be out of commission for several days. I’ve already notified Svetlana and have her taking over all his duties for the duration. I have a shade member taking care of his body for us. Sometime in the next week or so you will have a fully qualified Mentalist working for you, by my estimation.”
Sounds good to me. Let me know if there’s anything I can do for him.
>”Of course.”

I turn back to verbal communication.
“So, what was it you’d normally notify Satai about?”
[Lyubov]”Oh. Well, it’s about the demonologist, Johan.”
I feel Shadowbro go still.
“What about Johan, Lyuba?”
[Lyubov]”He is sort of upset or something. He was wondering if we were sending people to haze him, because Bagga... Well, you know, he’s a kid. He’s only seventeen and in some ways just as sheltered as Hillevi, and anyway he told me he was sort of rude when he bought a ritual from Johan. And, you know how Iosef is.”
“Mr. Gives-Zero-Fucks, right. Well, this is no bueno. Johan's been a phenomenal contact and I don't want to see that shat on.”
[Lyubov]”Bagga is repentant and wants to apologize, and I talked him into agreeing that he shouldn’t deal with vendors alone. He’ll bring one of the trustworthy adults with him for the foreseeable future, at least until he’s got his confidence back. I picked Iosef’s brains and I think we could make a good apology to Johan if we asked Cookie Lady to make some pumpkin bread for him, and we were brief about it.”
“Sounds fine to me. Why didn’t you just do it?”
[Lyubov]”I wanted to check with you that you wanted to send such a message first. Also I thought maybe you would want to deal with this personally?”
“You’re friends with Bagga right?”
[Lyubov]”Sure, he’s a good kid basically. Just, he is a kid still.”
“You can go with him to do it then.”
[Lyubov]”I thought it might be better if you do it because I’ve never met Johan before, and all he would know about me is that I’m a Witch Saint and apparently associated with your company and that’s sort of the wrong message to send for an apology.”
“Is it?”
>”It is.”
[Lyubov]”Witch Saints traditionally are bad news, and Tesla is not so well known really, and so it’d just be sort of intimidating instead of actually apologetic. And it will mean a lot more if you go and clear the air instead of me. So I will get the pumpkin bread from Cookie Lady for Johan, and then you and Bagga can go together tomorrow night to deliver it, ok?”
>”Her logic is sound.”
“Man why do I have to do everything?”
>”Because you let Matvey talk you into sending Camella to Italy instead of him, and then you let him take a vacation instead of insisting he stick around to deal with this stuff. The buck has to stop somewhere, and until Matvey’s back, it’s you. But you already knew all that, you’re just whining because you like to.”
“Seriously, you are as bad as Einrik-why can't I grouch in peace?”
>”I do try.”
[Lyubov]”That is tomorrow night though. Tonight’s ours.”
She starts to cuddle up to me, and we settle in for the night.

FRIDAY, MARCH 4th, 2011
PERSONAL FUNDS: $3,233,660.00
BUSINESS FUNDS: $10,572,864.00
CASH: $0.00
SHADOW PATIENCE: 80%
WINTER ENERGY: 160
SUMMER ENERGY: 50/50

I wake up before Lyubov yet again-seems to be a pattern when we retire early the night before-dose up on Brain Coffee and-
Narrowly avoid stumbling as SB shoves memories of Satai's face quivering rapidly for a moment on seeing a mirror, before he cleaned himself up. Underwhelming… but more importantly, he didn't notice the dicks. My prank lives on. With such excellent news on the mind, I begin my day in earnest.

>>460720
>>462421
With my mind already set on pranks, I look into that Werekid that mucked with Bonzi's minotaur bartender. It's an interesting job, and involves trolling-mulish as Sake's been since that whole debacle Lyubov told me about, he's quick to tag along. With yet another miniature cloud of hummingbirds, this time a full score, flitting about within a block of Sake and I, we prowl. The werekid's not hard to find-with soul-sensing and HB's muted interest, I swiftly identify a group of were-inclined souls in the area the kid's known to prowl. With a building still between us, I sift between the souls, seeing nothing beyond the expected 'venerable, experienced, veteran were as bodyguard to heir' motif I was expecting. I don't really think any would be an issue, even together, if I go full-tilt with HB and that wonderfully powerful soul-bubbled swarming attack of his. …And how odd is that, to casually look at a group of magical somebodies and think of them as… as faceless mooks. Really going to have to watch that I don't become QUITE so arrogant as a Dragon, now that I've got stupid amounts of power to throw around and at least one badass way to express it.
>"And you still need to work on ways to genuinely integrate the mere into your swarm form, as it is most certainly possible, in some form."
Point well put-but beyond that, be a sounding board for me, I'm going to try and pick this kid apart now that I've figured out which soul he is.
>"Of course."
Okay-so, nothing too big-I'd say Dávgon's size? Yes, probably Bagga's age by the amount of memories, or near enough-I can't really be sure just off memory density within the soul's coherence. So yeah, not a super-prodigy, not a crazily boosted badass, just a well-trained adolescent were-heir. Heh. So, memories don't have any insane standouts, except for one-him getting his ass WHOOPED by some other clan's… nobody. Hah-he's obsessing over getting his pride stomped over by a a no-name kid from a different clan.
>[Sake]"Prideful, hates being shown up by someone without status-no, finds that immensely embarassing, and hates to have it witnessed… okay, go on, go on!"
Okay-hm. There's a… skin? A layer around his soul. Guessing it's supposed to be invisible, or hard to detect at least-I'm barely getting it. …Oh hey, I'm pretty sure he's got a magic item-I can't read them from the distance, but I feel a bunch in the group, I'd expect the kid to have some of them. …Yeah, two of the best-souled bodyguards have a similar skin.
>"It could be a clan skill of some form, and he's mastered it early."
Point, but I'm betting item.
>"Agreed."
So, a soul protection, at a guess-doesn't want someone just up and possessing or soul-sculpting him, I suspect. Kind of a 'don't step on me badasses' type thing. …Yeah, now that I've had a while to get feedback on item sensing their crowd, I'm confident that's what those are. Still no idea on the other charms-so could potentially be risky. But nothing for sensing, I bet-Not a spiritual quiver at all when I stopped, and then kept pace with them from the far side of the block's sidewalk.
>[Sake]"Lack of quality spiritual sensing, so hard to identify visually concealed parties… hm-HMMMM…"
And… oh, yeah-one of those soul's doesn't have a body-and It's bound to the kid's soul. Spirit Animal. …Predator? Yeah, I'm saying Predator class-it's too… broadly there. I'd be surprised if it couldn't touch the physical realm. Tiger? …Liger. Predator Class Spirit Liger. Wasn't overtly magical on death though-so doesn't feel like it could seriously harm a swarm, or anything that can regenerate spiritual harm. But definitely not physically blockable. Aaand… that's all I got. I'm going with 'arrogant not particularly talented heir, gets pissy if people don't think he's awesome.
>"I completely agree with you, even if I'd not phrase it in quite those words."
>[Sake]"I'm thinking make him trip. It's… it's PERFECT for him! Tripping makes anyone look lame, mundane or otherwise, and It's not a spiritual attack, and it's something I can do at range!"
I'd like to be certain they couldn't follow you if you did it extensively, so that we could really shame him.
>[HB]"…I believe that is a challenge I could indulge: Avoid identification by dint of sheer agility, and prevent a group from so much as chasing a lead for a prolonged time. It would require quite masterful ability to perform… but one such as I could meet the challenge with the necessary gravitas."
Excellent-and if he and his group are too distracted by birds for anyone to notice or prove it's magical clumsiness-especially to the kid's party-then…
>[Sake]"Then we are set! Oh man, this will be great!"
Like a well-oiled machine, our party enacted a grand trolling, with SB capturing data through his Shade and Allview alike.

So over the course of six hours, eighteen blocks and frankly a mountain of magical data that could see this recreated in film with ease, A hot-shot were-kid is publically humiliated in the heart of turkey to such an extent that he openly sobs, and in fact eventually urinates on himself, complete with more than a few people pointing or making open expressions of revulsion at him. Even his guards were keeping a considerable distance from the immensely clumsy kid. Spiritually, he ended up… a different person altogether. I don't think he'll quite ever be the same short of soul-editing by a deft hand. And after how publically he made his family look like fucktards… I question if his parents would invest in him. Hell, if they're stuffy enough he might not even be heir anymore.
>"…This is already something of news amongst certain sections of the Dark. I imagine Bonzi and the Minotaur have heard of it by now, if not the total details. We should meet with them, offer the magical record we have."
Agreed.

We do just that-and Bonzi greets me with one of the widest smiles I've ever seen, including my own.
>[Bonzi]"Tell me you-"
"Are responsible, and made a magical recording."
A gravelly chuckle from behind the leprechaun pairs with the spiritual signature of the cannibal minotaur-and in EXCEPTIONALLY short order, he is laughing his ass off inside Bonzi's pot watching the footage in full, and Bonzi himself is showing me how to channel internal soul manipulation and chakra radiation in concert such that with every change in direction while in motion, I can 'shed' a golden, glimmering afterimage that memetically draws the eyes of all save myself for the brief instant it exists: With a few quick turns via Dunter Step and Hummer's Momentum, straight to Goblinic Attention dodging, I think I could lose most anybody's notice in a crowd. That said… seeing how it functions and understanding the principles are wholly separate of being capable-and while Bonzi does… something that I'm rather upset I wholly can't read to my chakra system, it's up to me to repeatedly practice to the point I emit with enough reliability and power that it's genuinely useful in battle.

Rather unsurprisingly, I practice the entire night away, just so that the next time I leave the house, I can be certain I'll be practicing functioning, if weak, Leprechaun Footwork when and where I want.

Satai still hasn't noticed the dicks on the backs of his ears-but others have. So far, no one's told him-not that he's doing much since SB stepped up the intensity of his 'assistance' in training the man. Practically comatose now.

SATURDAY, MARCH 5th, 2011
PERSONAL FUNDS: $3,233,660.00
BUSINESS FUNDS: $10,572,864.00
CASH: $0.00
SHADOW PATIENCE: 75%
WINTER ENERGY: 160
SUMMER ENERGY: 50/50

I don't wake up so much as eventually stop training upon achieving reliable activation of the footwork. I still freshen up with Brain Coffee. The moment I do a prior engagement crops up in my mind, and I give Arkvad a call-I never did hear back on the Mauser Shadows… except-
>>462614
>"That won't be necessary: Holland and Holland, as it happens, is capable of… shipping… to the Dark. I was provided a satisfactory implement gratis-Arkvad also repeated the companies gratitude over the Titancorp findings, and suggested you keep an eye out in a few months. They anticipate being interested in assistance with prototype testing-with our company getting free prototypes-and a free outfitting with the final product. Oh, and while Arkvad's still hacking out the details on your behalf, there's going to be a percentage from the initial run profits once it eventually is on the market."
Really, the only thing I can react to that with is a resounding fuck yeah, I hope you know.
>"Of course."
With dawn approaching, I head to meet with Stacey, Sake, Dávgon and Gianni for yet another Silja meal-I didn't really pay attention to the last few because frankly, Silja's been… stuck… in the egg state. For certain, I feel advancing flesh-based complexity within the egg, and her soul is taking a more conventional root in the body she's building, but… well, still a semi-squishy flesh egg. Stacey hardly seems bothered by the process at all now-having it happen repeatedly without a whit of harm, and being prevented from having to experience the entire process, she seems to have acclimatized. I suppose that's not all that surprising: Habituation is powerful force.

I next hit up Gianni, asking about my chakra overcharge issues with Reinforcement, the muscle spasms. I posit they could be caused by the magic over saturating my nerves-and he validates my theory. Seems that sufficient magic within an already magical organic system will have aspects of it's expression convert to whatever type the flesh is receptive to-like electricity for my nerves. Go Ping, currently teaching a bonus lesson on Chakra to the minions still around at the moment chimes in with his own ideas. He says that I'd either need to harden my nerves to such influence through rote repetition, or get them magically enhanced. I file the data away, and thank them for their time-and pull Gianni more privately aside. He goes from looking sexually provocative to dramatically pouting to petulantly professional before I finish explaining my idea to place compressed pockets for shadow formation within my flesh that, collectively, when expanded would make my natural state look less… ravenous. He says that he could make an initial go of it, and could tweak it after I collected some proper data on it for him. Obviously I find this fine, and soon enough he's crafted several thousand near-identically shaped collapsed chambers in my flesh, micro-sacks that I can expand with a newly formed set of muscles. I work on getting over the wierdness as I activate them-

And puff out, feeling… bloated? Like the dream of being bloated, as my form pads out, and I merely look like a dedicated bodybuilder, rather than a gaunt muscle-cannibal. …Well, not quite. It takes two modifications, and a total of three hours for Gianni to get me looking, to human eyes, genuinely normal while unclothed. At least a full hour of that was spent getting him back on track when he repeatedly tried to direct things to a kinky end-the price one pays for his work, I've found. In the end I've got what I want-and SB is capable of fitting the Nazinaut's shadow within me so I can have it's strength push on my flesh for added speed and strength. The only problem is that my tissue can't survive the trauma unless I'm plying Reinforcement. Something I will have to remember.

>>466057
I find myself thinking of Titus at the moment-more specifically his persistent pet project, those gloves of his. It's my understanding they're now legitimately Divinitech Lightning Gauntlets that, while still simple and rather fragile in construction, are pretty damn useful. And I recall that little talk where I learned how Rocs are the go-to for Thunder-but they're also associated with Lightning. I twist my minion's potential gains around my own, and push myself into seriously looking at Roc hunting.

Or I will, after I check my phone and-holy crap Riker's calling.
"Riker."
>[Riker]"Laine. Have a secure moment?"
"I'm in good company."
>[Riker]"Your company?"
"Exactly."
>[Riker]"Right: Here's the skinny. AORB's offering to make you a Liaison Condottiere."
"A merc?"
>[Riker]"A merc they'll turn a bit of a blind eye to so long as he takes the odd job they throw his way."
"Can jobs be refused?"
>[Riker]"Any time-but refuse too many and you're off the list."
"Any other perks?"
>[Riker]"You get a number to call and can access general rank AORB database. Get some missions in, your information access goes up. Just to be clear-no access to magical learning's, just reconassaince."
"Is it possible to GET access to instruction at all?"
>[Riker]"Sure-get appointed a Free-Holding Agent. There's only hundred and eight of those, incidentally."
"I see. Anything else, or is it now whether I accept?"
>[Riker]"Nope, that's it."
"Then I accept."
>[Riker]"I'll let you know-and the number'll be loaded on your phone within the hour."
*CLICK*

…Well that was rather to the point. …Nice.

Back to the Roc Hunting idea… I go back to Placid's place.
"Hey, about those souls-they're still not ready?"
>[Placid]"Perhaps I innacurately phrased their status last time: They would function, but not at a level that would be appropriate for me to claim as my best work."
"Ah-ha. And what would you say of their status now?"
>[Placid]"That there is a notable amount of improvement left I can do, but little of it without actual data on their performance."
"I'm hearing 'They're ready for use, bring them back later for a tune up'."
Placid's brow briefly furrows as his body goes perfectly still.
>[Placid]"…Yes."
"Okay-would you mind helping me make sure I load them in properly?"
>[Placid]"I can provide such assistance."
It takes exactly twenty one minutes and sixteen seconds of Accelerated thought with Placid's assistance to do it, but all two hundred seventy six souls, each largely resculpted into a floating compound eye, are disseminated into the Allview's world replica, and synched up to my soul, both in myself and SB. The data flow is on-demand… and I can find no initial flaws in the setup. Thanking Placid, I stay and spend an hour reading more stories to him as he meticulously grooms and cares for his ever-growing collection of animals. The moment he's done though, I set the spirits-every last one-to seeking out a Roc in the Allview, and to report on any sightings.

I find myself expecting swift results… and am disappointed. Seems the magical storms that Rocs love are RIFE with interference and natural warding properties, and aren't exclusively the home of Rocs. It could take days to find what I'm looking for, according to SB's initial estimates-and that's with the souls going at Accelerated Thought speed. There's quite a bit of thorough analysis needed.

So I get my ass back home after story time (and a hug for Placid because he obviously loves them), and work on that whole conditioning my nerves with repeat exposure to overcharged Reinforcement thing. To put it mildly, I look retarded for pretty much the rest of the day, and I have no problem letting the minions see it. In short enough order-from my perspective at least-I've gotten the muscle trembling and jerky movement considerably more under control-in fact, it's only a minor tremble now. That said… it seems that took me until nightfall. Odd-I guess I was more focused on my fine-tuning than I thought.

Deciding that enough's enough with that, I hunt out Lyubov, and get to thoroughly distracting myself, and claiming a reward for all the shit I've been getting done. It is a good night.

SUNDAY, MARCH 6th, 2011
PERSONAL FUNDS: $3,233,660.00
BUSINESS FUNDS: $10,572,864.00
CASH: $0.00
SHADOW PATIENCE: 70%
WINTER ENERGY: 160
SUMMER ENERGY: 50/50

I wake up before dawn and disentangle myself from a few limbs, noting the pre-dawn gloom outside. I dose up with brain coffee, and wonder:






What's my plan for today?
What about the next few days?
And do I want to go right off Roc hunting when I find one, or do I want to get real meticulous planning it?

Wait, we can graft monster bits to ourself now?
Hmm... Gianni should still have doony's penis and we have a new ability to test! Ask Gianni if we can borrow the doony penis to test our new trick. If he lets us use it and we can graft it and regrow it after removal, lets give him back two of them for letting us use it.
And maybe graft a few tentacle dicks to the golem. For offensive purposes.

Oh yeah! Call that number Satai gave us for those cars and order those things already! Geez, we've been sitting around without awesome cars, while being able to get said awesome cars for ages now. Stupid forgetfullness/lazyness.

Armas's brothers have been using him as a battery, without even paying us for it. That sucks. It does mean that someone can use anothers magical energy as a battery, though. Now, Armas can actually make souls, why not try making one to make more energy for his own use? First we should ask Davgon about whether or not it's actually possible and legal to make souls to use as energy generators, but if it is? We gotta learn how to do it. Think of all the power we can get from a ton of souls all making power for us!

As for the flight orientation, Why is maneuverability even a problem? We have a trick that lets us change our momentum any way we want, all we need is SPEED! But, if we're not actually willing to learn a orientation that doesn't fit us just right, how about learning to fly from Hummingbird? Ask Hummingbird to teach us how to fly. If he agrees, add a new soulbind "Can only learn from others today".
If he says no, add the soulbind anyways, ask Sake if he knows how we can get some good magic booze and then go bribe Duke with said magic booze to get conceptual strength training.

Visit Johan like you were supposed to the day before yesterday to apologize? While you're there ask him about anti-scrying protection and the possibility of hiring him to take a looksee at out killer golem's armour and the possibility of improving it.

Learn lipreading, or have your scout souls in the Allview learn lipreading? Look up lipreading classes on the internet or something.

Have Igor start crafting ballistic plates and/or butchermail/other lightweight armour for the minions that haven't gotten better armour than the base armour we gave them a while back, to add to it, that will provide better protection against the dark and such. Alternatively retemper their existing armour or buy good armour and temper it. Also possibly buy some metal cloth(preferably something like cloth of gold, except something like cloth of copper/bronze or cloth of pewter) to make multidimensional clothing?

Add cameras and/or other mundane sensors to the supergolem to counteract illusions and other sense trickery(besides the invisibility that the cyclops eyes counteract).

Acquire various good quality mundane lucky charms(e.g. four leaf clover, acorn, good quality(possibly silver) horseshoe etc.). Test for luck magic via Sake. Belief magic should theoretically have given them at least some basic luck magic of some sort?

Hop down into the sewers and talk to SM in person about the contract he wants to talk about per his request according to Matvey's report.

Arkeus 2012/10/30(Tue)16:42 No. 467550 ID: 7ae93c
File 135164056564.jpg - (69.99KB , 620x620 , 1351568161867.jpg )

>What's my plan for today?
Well, here is the thing. We have engaged Go Ping for a week of teaching. While the minions had their fun for five or six of the last few days, it would be a real shame to not profit at all from this directly. Using the whole of Sunday to be taught by Go Ping might be a good investment there. Ask him what orientations he specializes in. If Armas has been paying attention to the company grapevine, he should be aware that Go Ping specializes in 13 different orientations. It could be worth it to spend the whole of Sunday in a soul-bubble world of HB-make along with Sake, SB and Go Ping, with minor time dilatation, x13, so that Armas could divide his training time equally for each of the orientations Go Ping specializes in. This would also have a rule of three going on of 'Go ping teaching us 13 orientations', 'Go ping teaching us each orientantation into 13 neatly divided chunks of time', 'Go ping teaching us into a place where time runs 13 times quicker than normal'. Hopefully. Sake would be needed for 'refreshing' Go ping when needs be, and I am sure he would have his own stuff to train in.

When approaching Go Ping for this training session, we should make sure we are upfront about the time-dilatation, and that we offer him additional pay in, say, ramidreju rubbing, which should greatly increase his physical fitness and health level. Of course, if possible at all we should see if HB can hide the methode for time dilatation: he knows how dangerous we consider Lo Fang.

This, of course, depends whether we dare show to one of Lo Fang's men some of our own more esoteric trick. I would say 'go for it', especially if we can make sure he forgets about it. SB could possibly edit the memory of how exactly Armas did the time dilatation. Either that, or Satai if he wakes up early enough.

A not so minor side-effect bonus would be if SB were to join us and use the day to peruse the Doonegaes memories.
>What about the next few days?
Well, like Go Ping's leaving tomorrow, there is someone else who is probably leaving soon. Someone who is immensely more capable: Duke. We have been told recently by Lyubov Darling that Duke taught Zhenya Conceptual strength, and we gotta get some of that. Increasing Armas' own base abilities is a necessary step if he wishes to get to the big league on a decent footing, after all, and conceptual magic is probably THE way humans can get there.

Armas should go talk to Duke, and mention how he apparently brute-forced learned the 'Today' concept for his binding, what with being able to regenerate both body and soul semi-easily, and mind to some degree. Armas should then ask Duke if he would be willing to teach him conceptual strength 'like a real man'. Some ideas to spice up that training would be obviously extreme physical efforts. Also, Duke Specials.

>And do I want to go right off Roc hunting when I find one, or do I want to get real meticulous planning it?
[Roc Hunting Preparation and Planning]
A couple of discussions to have before the actual hunting begins with Dávgon/SB/Sake:
*Should we try soulbinding the small spirit remnants in the Rocs to “Can only be eaten Today” or some such, either/both for the ones for Armas and Whaitiri, or would the summer/winter conflict just utterly annihilate Armas and Whaitiri? Make sure to ask Whaitiri's own opinion if they seem confident.
*Our recent greatly improved soul-regen, as well as other-regen of magical energies, has been shown to leak to Sake and SB. Is it also leaking to Whaitiri, who has a soulgraft of Armas? If that is so, we probably should use that to make sure the boon of compounding is as powerful as possible.

Armas should also find a way for 'Walking on air', in case he needs to go into mid-air melee. For this, he should learn to:
+Make some kind of Hermes-style HB-wings + dunter footwork (possibly needing us to forgo charka for the learning period as we would need inner fleshcrafting for okay step and the hermes-style wings).
+Make soul-bubbles under our feet that we could use to walk on, using dunter footstep on, etc etc. This could lead to quite an immense increase in agility, as well as some much better understanding on Soul bubbles. We would probably first need to have Armas finally learn to make a soul-bubble without relying on HB.
+Armas should either ask Go Ping or look in the chakra orientation book for a “infuse our weapons with energy”. Especially one that should work with guns, like Long Wang seemed to use when we were fighting the Doonegeas. Our way to use IT is definitely good, but it's also obvious that Ito's reinforcement is not tailored to do this. Likewise, finding a optimum orientation for enhancing our mere would be really useful.

Now, as to the hunting itself:
We should first decide who to take with us. Sake is a obvious need, but Hillevi could be useful too, and we need more Ward-bonding, especially as Matvey is gone, and Satai is in coma.

General hunting tips:
+If we fount a nest with multiple Rocs, we should try to sneak our way there during a night while making sure with our Allview that none are noticing us. Armas with a applicable soulguise (maybe we should try for “that soul that is always out of attention” by thinking back to our Goblin stealth training) and plying all of his skill to be silent as well as nondetectable during a stalking should be able to sneak there and strike before they know what is happening. Shadowpinning could be quite useful there, too.
+If we have to engage them when they are in the air, Sake should use his conceptual tripping to turn the air against them and Armas should use the fact that they are tagged with Allview to accurately pin their shadows with IT: those two methods should help bring them down. Hillevi no doubt has her own ideas for what to do. We could also get Sake to take us to the air, or even have Hillevi throw us up. With a little HB-momentum, as well as a way to walk on air (or at least change direction in some ways) we could have some fun mid-air melee.
+If we are trying to target a single flying Roc, we could also think about having a HB going up with gear in soul-bubble, then turning back into Armas and stabbing it. This would need some way for HB to do that in a sneaky way though. But, well, this is HB.
+We might think about using favored prey for using as baits, so that we could sneak behind them, as well as making them come down. Buying some from menageries like where Rosti bought his pups should do fine. Worse come to worse, we would need to ask Placid to make animals. It's the preferably not option, because Placid will probably not be happy about that.

Preference
Bait Funny way:
+Have Armas run around with a cow on his shoulder, with a suitably Bait-like soulguise. Cow on a stick. We already have some cows, too, so that make it perfectly easy to do.

Contingencies:
+If Sake or Hillevi get injured, we might think about doing the opposite of 'stealth' here. Take a leaf out of HB's book, and dazzle them with our brilliance. Basically, inflate our soul and use a soul-guise saying “the enemy to get rid of first is HERE, and his weakness is Melee!”, and then go all out with IT and charging it up with energy so that we truly appear as a first class ranged threat. Especially as, if they are attacking Sake/Hillevi, they probably are showing us their backs.
+HB's latest swarm we gave him should be back by then, which means there is something like 30 summer energy we can 'take back' at any moment and then use it for making a Armas body from one of the HB around. We could use that as a great way for either resilience or sneak-attack.
+Have Sake float a use piece of dark cloth (Armas bought lots of clothing materials) for making shadows and use this as a way to enhance SB's shade and shadowport, in case things go very wrong: Armas should try not to use SB for this, as there have been signs SB is getting very busy lately.

Division of spoils:
One Roc should obviously go full-in for Whaitiri at least (check if you can do anything to make it more potent for her via soul or flesh crafting, and then ask her about it before doing any modifications). Another should hopefully be eaten by Armas, and a last one for Hillevi. If there is more or less than three, we should be ready to leave bones for Hillevi if need be, and/or getting more for Armas. If possible, we should try to have bones left over for making a bass guitar for lambombard. If Armas has decided that he is giving a lot of power to Whaitiri with his enhanced regeneration, make sure to use that to gain the most powerful Boon possible for that compounding.

[General Training ideas]
First, we should make sure to ask Dávgon and Gianni about the side-effects of sleeping in a time-dilated soul-bubble. If it's ok, do it.
+Ask Dávgon, as well as check ourself, the effect of our soulbind on our soulgrowth. Ask what he believes a second one would do.
+Get animal for soul-breaking and ensouling practice. The bugs are a good first-step, but if we want to do some really funky things, bigger animals could be bigger. Once we have tasted Matvey's bioarmor, we could even try to get some nice material for our first bioarmor prototypes: Get nine gorillas or other potent animals when it comes to ensouling (either buying from a menagerie or from Placid, though the latter is less preferable), ensoul them, body-quirk and soulquirk them (three different template), then have three of them fusion with the others, so that we have three power-of-three fusioned Gorillas. Then fusion those three for recursive rule of three bonus. From then on, we could have a great familiar base for a bio-armor.
+Test to see (With HB and all our gear far away) if we can cut off one of our limb, bind it for maximal cannibalizing fleshcrafting gains, and then use fleshcrafting to cannablize it, to see if we gain more energy than we lose. We need to ask around before doing this, as the summer/winter interaction could be BAD. OTOH, we apparently cannibalized Armas meat in our fight against Hillevi, when all of it was frozen under Hillevi's winter magical power.
+Soul guise practice: Analyze how different trait 'speaks in souls, and maximize that for effects. Practice by remembering what it is to be “outside of attention-range”
+Soul-Guise: Armas has realized that Bagga could feel something divine about him. This should mean the extra-specialized vampiric blood-sensing needs Armas to be able to find a soul-guise that counters it. Talk about it with your brothers, and change the default soulguise as needed. Furthermore, hides the presence of our soul bind in our soulguise. We should then train to be able to change our binding while continuing to appear that we have none.
+Continue Gianni Epithelial fleshcrafting practice.
+Reinforcement: When we train in our reinforcement, we should aim to polish and understand our ability a bit more. As such, trying to use flexibility so that we can choose to concentrate all our reinforcement into a specific body part would be a good step. Trying to time ourself from going 'full body reinforcement' to 'reinforcement in my legs', for example, would help us improve our response time, and make it easier to counter and attack ourself. We should be wary of the winter chakra/Summer body conflict, however, and begin slowly. Especially if we try to use specific-body when amplifying reinforcement.
+Learn from Dávgon how to make Item-bound spirit animals (very useful if we want to make mythic familiar bioarmor, for example).
+M7 should be incredibly useful for maximizing Soul-guise and fleshcrafting in particular, though incredibly dangerous too.

Hybrid Tech
Armas has been increasing his reinforcement and chakra aptitude far enough that it would be a shame to utterly eschew body-influencing chakra, so Armas should think back to his recent breakthrough on how Hybrid tech work. Could he be able to make an hybrid tech matrice that is simply a “Use reinforcement”? If he actually needs to use both Summer and Winter energy to even begin it, does it mean he needs both fleshcrafting and winter-dominated type of technique, or could he use both for reinforcement? If he needs two different tech to make a whole, he could probably simply practice enough with his fleshcrafting to make a 'reinforcement analog” with it that would complement and compound the pure chakratic reinforcement, and use the matrice to combine the two. He should talk about it with his headvoices, get their opinions.

Magical Booze
Hey, We should totally talk to Sake how to make Magical Booze. After all, him trolling Bagga by creating booze has made the company rounds. Duke would surely appreciate the effort, too, and could help us as a taster!

>>466835
>What's my plan for today?
We kind of forgot about going to Johan's, it's a good thing we didn't set a date for it. Let's try to work that into our schedule for today, call up Cookie Lady and ask her if she'd be willing to make some pumpkin bread for our friend, because we feel we may have offended him. Then ask her what ingredients she'd need and pay her visit with the ingredients in hand, we should have all of them in the kitchen with our weekly groceries coming in. Leave a note somewhere for Lyubov when she wakes up so she knows the appointment with Gianni is still on and we'll be there in the evening. When we're at Cooky Lady's place we can make a little small talk, ask her how things have been and generally enjoy a pleasant chat with that nice old woman. We'll come back later in the day for the bread, since we don't really have the time to stick around for the baking process.

In the mean time we should look up that new database Riker gave us access to. It's only basic level clearance, sure, but lets see what they have on all the major factions in the city like the Triads, the Mafia, the Nazis, the vampire dynasties, the were clans, the bloodline houses, the Wyld goblins, all of them. Grab whatever they have on the magical sea creature situation too, anything that could be pertinant or useful on our job for the Owner. Finnaly, for our own amusement check what they have on Blade.

While we're on the computer check out the Smiling One's website too, it's been a while since we last logged on. I want a third cyclops eye, our pet project looks absolutely garish with only two. Preferably we can find a vendor who will take the phoenix hearts in trade like before, if not the same vendor, but we'll see. Any other organs we can find, like better teeth or claws, specialized organs to increase its regen, or anything that just screams 'Armas'.

Make some use of Go Ping today, if we can cram that in sometime. I'm not particularly keen on doing much chakra work though. Let's talk with the guy, I want to know about that last job we were called on for, the one where they used a golem made from May Lee. Get some actual dialogue going with this man, ask him about it, we're pretty good or at least we used to be good at reading people and I want to read Go Ping. Half the reason I want to do this is because I'm genuinely interested and the other half is to potentially spot and note more about the way Lo Fang trains these guys. Go Ping is a model Triad, this may be insightful.

We should have burned an hour or two with all that, go check back with the Cookie Lady, get the bread, thank her and if required let her pinch a cheek.

Spend the afternoon with Lyubov taking lessons for Gianni. No input to offer there, just have fun.

When we finish up with Gianni it should be around night time, grab the little vamp and march him to Johan's with the pumpkin bread. Give Johan a very short, precise, and to the point apology. He is a man who values his time highly and we were told he prefers it not be wasted by going on too long. Tell him we're on behalf of our employees and that we did not intend to make any offense through whoever came to his shop. Make sure the kid does the same and have him present the bread to Johan. On this same train of thought we should make sure to at least buy something from his shop while we're visiting, I'd like to get a ritual that can detect the status and location of a person using their blood. That should wrap up our interaction quite nicely.

Now here's something we've been putting off, it may even be irrelevant at this point. Ask Amen to produce some of Jidkova's blood and use it in the ritual you purchased, if she's still alive and in any sort of shape I think we should steal her. Purchase that teleporter pad that our quartermaster Satai brought up a while ago and use her blood to take her to our location, she should be in a fragile state because she'd have been in isolation for months if she's still alive. We can manipulate her and bind her to us fairly easily and in the process acquire a blood manipulator which is not Amen, a handy tool. I don't expect to get this project off the ground in the next few days, if it's possible at all, but check if she's alive today and buy the teleporter regardless, that thing is handy and would save us from being kidnapped again.

Check with Shadowbro at the end of the day to see whether or not there's been progress made on locating rocs to hunt.

>What about the next few days?
Work in a visit to Ito's sometime in the next few days, we haven't been there in forever! Let's see how the old goat is doing, we did kind of send away like half his instructors. Ask about business and whether or not things are going well. If things aren't going well see what we can do to help.

Spent some time asking Shadowbro about any appropriate measures we should take for offering our roc sacrifice to Whaitiri when the time comes, there's usually a lot of protocol that comes with Maori gods and dealing with Tapu, especially with food and especially in Whaitiri's case. We should know what we're doing here.

Why not see if we can ask Titus about his new tree friend? Get an introduction for us and Lyubov. It'd be an interesting outing to say the least.

Visit Matvey's place like Lyubov offered, check out the land, watch the house, try not to break anything or disturb the peace.

>And do I want to go right off Roc hunting when I find one, or do I want to get real meticulous planning it?
Generally I support the plans in the posts above.

>>466836
Upvoting getting those cars.

>>467377
>>467403
I've got to SUST the entire section about Go Ping, that particular rendition of the plan for id training, trying to bind the rocs we eat, asking Placid for too much stuff, and trying to eat our own limbs. If we want to learn how to bind spirit animals to items ask Davgon AND Big Crazy. Aside from all of the SUSTs I'll give a tentative upvote to the rest of this post.

For our lesson, maybe get GiaGia to take skin samples and make golems with the genetically identical copies of the Russians. Then if any of them get their stupid asses killed, we can stuff their spirits into the golems. Gets around a lot of the problems of death-and-rebirth, though having their bodies made by Gianni may give cause for concern.

Call up Lo Fang, get another lesson planned. I still want Taoist charms.

The minions have been buying magic stuff to supplement their mostly meagre abilities. Why doesn't Armas do the same? I guess they wouldn't work well with the HB swarm, but Armas spends more time unswarmed than not.

Speaking of the swarm... I wonder if there's a way to link the mere to us so that when we Swarm, it likewise breaks into pieces? A swarm of HBs with their beaks tipped with a sliver of one-hit-kill jade would be nice.

>>466840
Voting 'no' on Johan. The fewer people who know we have a big ol' biblical apocalypse (of the pestilential kind) golem, the better. Though, a few thoughts on the golem: I think the trick we should use on the armor is layering. Typically people didn't just wear fullplate, they had a suit of wool or leather under it. So when we figure out the bioarmor trick, have a layer of that underneath the plate armor. Also, can we bind it to only accept commands from those possessors we designate? Might stop it from being taken over by enemy possessor creatures; some spirit einher do not like us, remember.

>>466836
Cars are fine, I guess... but I think we could justify using the company expense account for those. I'd rather have an island. How about Twin beach Island (http://www.privateislandsonline.com/islands/the-twin-beach-island)? 2.5M for 216 acres, beaches, rainforests, coral reefs, cellphone reception, 40 acres of flat land in the middle to build a alpha base or skull-shaped doom fortress, whatever. Besides just being able to say we own an island, it should get you a lot of clout among the Maori shamen, if they're anything like the mythology. Land owned and people led are what gives a man 'mana whenhua'.

A little bit about Titus:
- He's still on the guard job, but it's been pretty quiet on his shifts. He's working on incorporating the upgrades Armin suggested. To that end, and since the taser gloves are a very economical design at present (around 5-8 grand per pair for the basic package), he's making a handful of other mk.IVs. He's considering a mk.V design that would incorporate the tree (and spirit) of a certain dryad into the design. Wires mimicking a human nervous design have some resemblance to a tree's branches, and if the exterior is made of her wood, I think it may be doable. Also consider making a whole suit out of this stuff. A heavy rubber/kevlar bodysuit would be kinda uncomfortable, but useful if electrified.
- He's been working as an assistant instructor of Sambo over at Crash Course for a little while now. Hang with Hans (the Sambo guy) and Hafaz's group. They're a pretty friendly bunch for ex-military. Go out for beers, pay his own way without buying more than a round every now and then (don't want to be suspicious, they're probably still in 'deep cover' mode).
- Its the 6th, right? On the 10th, there's a world-traveling BJJ guy coming to hang out with the Corvos Academy team. He basically swings by to kick the asses of the locals in local tournaments and then heads off for another country the next day or two. He sounds like a hoot. See if you can convince him to spend the night in a palatial mansion in the heart of Istanbul in exchange for a few pointers. Claim you follow his blog; he probably loves fans.

As a alternative to the video cameras I suggested earlier, I'd like to instead suggest having Gianni add a smorgasbord of extra senses to golem. Heatvision, electromagnetic sensing, uv vision, improved smell, possibly some sort of tremorsense or echolocation etc.

Get divine magic lessons from Stacey

>>468183
supporting checking the AORB database and visiting Smiling One's website. If there are still Catoblepas lungs available try to purchase 2-3 lungs for the golem.

First, I want to set aside 2 million for Dávgon’s research budget. That’s money he’ll have in an account he has access to, which he can use as petty cash for buying books and secrets and the like. He’ll probably need more, but 2 million gives him a chance to show us what he can do. Should be enough for a book or two. Since Lyubov was so keen to keep nagging us about Dávgon’s request for a research budget, she can help him with it.
Both Dávgon and Lyubov are to collaborate with Svetlana on the Threat Database project (primarily just updating the database’s index with the information in the research material, no need to transcribe or duplicate efforts).

Give Lammy a call. See what’s up with him.

Ask Stacey to recite the question and answer sessions she had with Satai. With Satai out of it, we can’t get his input based on whatever he learned from her. The next best thing is to just learn what he learned. Have Svetlana with us for this, she can transcribe the oral reports to hardcopy for the database.

Use Allview to find that werelion that Zosimus wants dead. Getting a boon from Cornelius will be very worthwhile, but we need intelligence on him if we’re going to do it right.

Speaking of intelligence, we should talk to Placid about the Nazis. Learn what we can from him about their bases, and where they are likely to be keeping the other war walker. We can’t leave that hanging forever, and we DID promise Owner that we would assault the Nazis with Placid.

>>466836
Pillbug. Man. I don’t even know what to say. I don’t think grafting monster dicks is the way to go, though. SUST on the Dooney Dick idea.

>>466836
We know that it’s possible to turn souls into engines. Einrik did it for us with the illegal Reaper soul. Finding out about the legality of it is worth doing, though I don’t expect there to be any issue with doing so to souls built from broken-off pieces of ours.

We should probably ensoul those cows Satai ordered and then turn them into blood batteries for Amen. That seems like good practice anyway.

I also don’t think that adding another bind is a good idea until we know how to remove binds, or at the very least have a good idea about how to remove them. It might be possible to slip out of a bind oriented around the Rule of Three, but your proposed wording doesn’t take that into account. Basically, until we either test To Scoff at Three or we find out how to remove binds the normal way, I don’t want to add another bind.

>>466840
I don’t want Johan to get in on the golem project. SUST to that

Proposed Dialogue for Johan:

“Johan. I understand one of my men was rude. He wants to apologize.”

Then let Bagga have his say (no more than a sentence or two, coach the kid on it beforehand).

“I brought you a little something as well, to make it clear my company appreciates the business relationship we have with you.”

At that point give him the pumpkin bread that Lyubov got from Cookie Lady. If he doesn’t seem to appreciate what he has in his hands, encourage him to taste it.

Finally, inquire after that ritual Grail wanted (“a ritual that can detect the status and location of a person using their blood”).

Lip reading seems like a waste of time to me. I downvote it.

Igor’s plenty busy already with work SB has given him, and we know he’s a perfectionist. Don’t saddle him with more than one job at a time. Keep this in mind as Igor’s next assignment, and make sure to mention it to SB.

Generalized Belief magic primarily exercises pressure shaping on non-divine things. If the objects are already magical, or already have souls, or if they become magical, then Belief will shape that. But if they are not already ensouled or magical, they will not benefit much from Belief pressure. We want a lucky object project, we should try our hand at ensouling living four-leaf clover and seeing what happens.

>>467550 (previously >>467377 and >>467403)
I share Grail’s reservations about the Go Ping interactions. If we want to learn more from him, negotiate proper pay. On consideration, I also share his reservations about asking Placid for trivial stuff, as it sets a bad precedent. Given that Matvey and Dávgon had him help with a big project last week, and that we’ve had him work on the souls for Allview and the laser systems for the golem, asking for a bunch of ensouled apes is just tacky. The last thing I want is to abuse our position as his Guardian.

>>468183

We should make mining the AORB database an actual project. Put Svetlana on it at a minimum. Have Andrei give her what help he can remotely (considering he’s a hot shit hacker, I’m expecting a lot).

The teleporter pad is a useful enough device that it’s worth dropping 3 million on.

Visit Matvey’s with Lyubov and Placid.

Apologize to Ito for decimating his instructor pool by offering to give him a fleshcrafting upgrade to his body. Sake’s weasel-rub did a lot to help him, but Armas knows enough at this point to make Ito even better than he was when he was young. See if Lyubov can channel the fleshcrafting work (hooray for passive learning).

>>468507
Making ready-to-steal bodies of all your minions seems like a bad idea. SUST to that.

However, keeping samples or data on them on-hand so that we can build bodies as needed seems fine.

That island you linked is a LEASEhold. As in we wouldn’t actually own it, we’d be renting it. So, I’m going to have to vote against that particular idea.

>>468813
I agree with getting Divine lessons from Stacey, but there’s no reason to force a duplication of effort. Get Lyubov involved from the start as well (issue an order to Stacey to not be upset by Lyubov’s status as a witch saint, to get around that whole being terrified of Lyubov issue she has).

Matvey:
/\/\- Enjoy your vacation. See the sights. Meet people. Taste the local cuisine.
/\/\- Wistfully depart from Italy by Tuesday and return to Istanbul. Bring back chintzy souvenirs for everyone.
/\/\- Throw yourself into training. Work as hard as you can for as many hours as you can getting better at the skills you need to win the match you have against the gladiator that challenged you. Take yourself out of sniping practice, hopefully temporarily but likely for a long while. Hone your swordsmanship with Shuhadaku Zayin's guidance. Seek out dojos with Ito's help in order to pit your lack of form against established sword styles for development. Hone your focus well and visit Das Bones' regularly for advice.
/\/\- Attend to officer duties as per normal, but pass along the various mission reports, communications, and other accessory paper work to Svetlana.
/\/\- Begin a training program for all of the employees at the company with a focus on teamwork, the development of group tactics, unit cohesion, and coordinating the increasingly disparate power sets present within the company. Use traditional military experience, Black Army training, and your personal set of leadership abilities to develop the program. Schedule it in lieu of chakra training when Go Ping has left.
/\/\- Ensure the payment for the recently completed jobs (the ambulance mission [$55,000] and Ibruhem vampire bounty hunt mission [35,000]) has come through and that the company and mercenaries involved are paid. Sort out between any of the brothers you can reach what exactly the pay for the Hobgoblin job long since completed is and make sure it gets out to those who worked on the mission.
/\/\- Make house purchases. Buy tools and supplies for construction and home repair, good ones. Expand the mundane security system. Get a bigger, better, more durable bed. Swap out the wood burning stove for an electric or gas stove. Buy a good sound system and music library. Start filling the actual library with books, consult Zhenya to see what she'd like stocked. Purchase fun stuff, like a pinball machine and pool table.
/\/\- Take Ohotnik to socialize with the puppies the couple that breeds kangals has. Try to make idle conversation with them, keeping up the ruse that Ohotnik is simply an impressive kangal crossbreed.
/\/\- Ask Svetlana if she would be willing to teach Zhenya and yourself how to cook in your decidedly old fashioned kitchen in your new home. After she accepts spend a couple pleasant evenings learning how to make edible things

Iosef:
I- Visit Johan throughout the week, wonder if he's even getting close to the end of his list of unstable rituals he's going to test on you.
I- These eating contests are starting to get boring, you've hit most of the big ones in the city already, maybe it's time to step it up. Ask around the company and be told by Gianni there's this place called Bonzi's that has some eating challenges, decide to scope it out.
I- If you have to do training with that Go Ping guy try to learn something that will make your life easier, like how to make your ritual orientation better.
I- Catch Ivan making an outing, ask him what's going on, learn he's going to the zoo and decide to join him. The walking from place to place seems annoying and you start to wonder if it's worth it when you could just see animals on that one television channel that has that show about bigfoot, get a chance to pet a big cat, totally worth it.
I- Keep your heavy weapons skills sharp. Check that all the heavy weapons you're familiar with are properly maintained and take the Gatmalite out for practice.
I- Be lazy, hang out in your new spot inside the workshop where Davgon and Gianni work. Enjoy delicious snacks and watch all the mind rotting television you can. Ponder if you could fit a minifridge in there for maximum lazy man efficiency.
I- When Rostislav is free ask him if he can get Adib to give you some lessons on how to do hand to hand combat, maybe it'll let you make better use of that soul quirk you got that you almost forgot about.

>>467550
I agree with your plans.

>>470089
>>468183
There are good points in these posts, and I agree with them (except for disagreeing about >>467550). Ito's fleshcrafting work should be done with great care.

An effort should be made to talk to Svetlana and to learn more about her and about Lyubov. Armas has free access to his girlfriend's mother, it can only be helpful to get to know her. She is working for Armas, and will hopefully be a loyal employee.

Armas has not really talked to Sake since meeting the Yakuza. He should make time to talk to his brother, and to play with him. If Sake and Shadowbro are still angry at each other, then the three brothers could bond by working together to make Adelat's contract break.

Armas must have the contract in his hand when he talks to Adelat and tricks her into being a slave.

It is the week before Lyubov turns 22. Armas should think of presents for her. I think Lyubov would like a slave. Armas can get her one from the goblins, or he could give her Adelat. He must solicit Lyubov's friends to learn what they have planned, and to plan a party.

Armas should take Hillevi, Placid, and Lyubov to a movie, "The Way Back." It is a movie they will all find thought provoking.

By popular request, a summary of what Lyubov intends to get done this week:


L*~Training with various people as time and schedules permit, with a focus on Soul this week.
L*~Hire a lawyer to patent her invention.
L*~Use a 3D printer to make parts she needs for her plasma wing.
L*~Get Feodor to help her duplicate an experiment that allows mundane trapping of light.
L*~Check out the magic electronics shop for superconductors.

Those are the highlights. She's still doing all the normal stuff she does (interacting with Placid, Hillevi, Silja, Hyougo, and all the people in the house, spending quality time with Armas, visiting Cookie Lady and bringing her to the Dojo on Tuesday).

>>470623
SUST, not enough flowers. (Seriously though, this is all terrible.)


[Thought Experiment]
We know that the way Armas learns new things is that he "hardcodes the actual data into my Id and can instant-access it". This isn't particularly meaningful in and of itself, many people must learn this way and their Ego still has to prompt their Id to use the skills learned. But Armas is different, he doesn't need his Ego to prompt his Id to action, he can act without Ego. Any skill coded into his Id, which is all of them, is eligible for use in Armas' egoless state.
But skills aren't just things like making magic bubbles out of soul energy, it's things like cooking or sex, even learning itself. Taking things a step further, Armas should be able to leave the bulk of mechanical learning up to his Id while he devotes the entirety of his Ego to understanding the theoretical side of the material.

Igor:
-Ask around for decent black market weapons dealers and purchase a Milkor MGL-140 ($2000), 50 smoke(white)($2000), 100 practice tracers($4000), and 100 HEDP($6000).
-Exhaustively study every one of the rituals SB was generous enough to provide and begin testing their effects.
-Take time every day to get used to his new shadow and spirit sight and see what he can... see.
-Continue work on personal armour.
-Try to make hummingbird a... Matroyska doll set that looks like him and can hold liquid between the shells? Uh, okay this definitely bears practicing for.

Svetlana:
-Standing order: give generic giftbaskets to people on their birthdays, on behalf of the company.
-Be extremely thankful when Satai wakes up. No notes, no contact lists, and that work load; how does the man even do his job?
-Attempt closer collaboration with Satai.
-Put together standard corporate NDA for company, submit to superiors for approval.
-Update her wardrobe since her things are somewhat worn out, out of date, and not in the local style. $2500 budgeted.
-Begin to incorporate scarves into the outfits she wears, where appropriate, so that HB has somewhere to sit comfortably. And out of sight, though she doesn't mention this to him.
-Make a little nest for HB attached to a clothes hanger so it is mobile. She is decent at crochet, has yarn, and time to experiment. A double-layer to hold shape better, possibly around a metal wire frame if the shape wont hold, with raw cotton worked into the inner layer for extra comfort.
-Attempt brewing more highly caffeinated coffee for HB. Call Andrei for advice and instructions, he has a reputation for this kind of thing after all. Quietly admonish self against falling to her mild caffeine addiction.
-Search online for a 1974 Dnepr MT-9 650cc motorcycle and find a seller in Romania offering a restoration project with almost all of its original parts and a number of spares for $900. Buy it immediately and pay $235 to have it shipped to the mansion within the week.
-Ask more approachable co-workers for help with chakra training after Go Ping leaves.

Vlad's tasks while in Italy:
-Shoot an email home to father and grandfather, see how they're doing. Reply with a status update if everything's okay, also pictures.
-Go out shopping and pick up a nice Saint Barbara medallion to wear. Saint of people who worth with things that go boom, can't hurt to have a little token of insurance.
-Think back to the alcohol-seeking rampage incident. ...Yeah, that was kind of a fuck-up, shouldn't have gone to such extremes. Also Camella is scary. Attempt one week of sobriety as penance, inform tiny Italian commissar of possible erratic behavior during that time.
-Remind self this does not prevent STOCKING UP on booze for later consumption afterward.
-Distract self from lack of alcohol with funny cat videos on the internet or finding a gym to work out at. Or maybe downloading more gunsmithing books/trolling gun boards.
-Try not to get into too much more trouble.

Satai Orders:
- Continue mentalist training with Shadowbro until he declares it complete; then wake up
- Check on/with the armory, Stacey, Svetlana, Verusha, and company friends to determine any events and changes during absence
- Relentlessly train mentalism up to the limit of what is possible while still acting normal outwardly
- Offer to remove traumatic or otherwise unwanted memories from other members of the company, both for their mental health and for weaponization
- Investigate Labombard's mind if/when asked
- Seize additional opportunities for money which present themselves
- Seize additional opportunities for lore which present themselves
- Finish off a certain job which was interrupted by unconsciousness
- Get more information on Placid from the company members; meet him and talk if nothing untoward is discovered
- Get back to quartermaster duties; get more ammo and make purchases as requested
- Spend what time can be spared making contacts/picking up magical women (whichever, really)

Grisha Orders:
- Enjoy the hell out of new body and powers; quickly become the most adored person in company/town even when not present
- Have fun of all sorts with Lev
- Ensure that the townspeople and company get along really well; make friends with everyone and smooth over all problems with magic and money
- Teach some townie ladies sexy footwork tricks when bored
- Learn more about pain from Anguisher
- When not working, go on random independent explorations of relatively close parts of Italy; seek out opportunities to make friends and stretch magical muscles
- If Sake comes by have fun in his company

>>466836
>graft a Doonongaes penis to ourself
SUST. No. If we must play with grafting, find something actually useful to graft; if we must play with our dick, use our own fleshcrafting to do it.

>>466840
>Learn lipreading, or have your scout souls in the Allview learn lipreading? Look up lipreading classes on the internet or something.
Looking up and/or taking lipreading classes online would be a waste of our valuable time when we can get this skill grafted or taught in person by someone who knows. And if we need mundane skills taught to ourselves or our minions, we can have Satai and/or Svetlana handle the work involved in locating instructors and arranging for tutelage. Order one or both of them to solve this problem.

>>467550
>Get nine gorillas or other potent animals when it comes to ensouling
>Twist them with magic and then meld them together
We are in a learning phase here. Use something small and simple, like more bugs or mice, when first mastering flesh- and soul- warping into horrible frankencreatures. We can move up to big, impressive things once we know what the hell we're doing.

All the training in this post... needs to be prioritized. Instead of trying to do all that and accomplishing none of it, let's just list out the ideas with our advisers and focus on whatever handful of those they think is most practical over the next few days.

>>468183
>In the mean time we should look up that new database Riker gave us access to.
This is important. Instead of bothering to make our own database, just have a couple minions spend some time downloading everything in this database and make an offline copy for ourselves. It will save us a lot of time and effort we have better uses for.

>Purchase that teleporter pad that our quartermaster Satai brought up a while ago
I support this, although it might take a bit to arrive. At a minimum, allocate funds (four million was cited) and leave orders for Satai to make the purchase.

>>468507
>Speaking of the swarm... I wonder if there's a way to link the mere to us so that when we Swarm, it likewise breaks into pieces? A swarm of HBs with their beaks tipped with a sliver of one-hit-kill jade would be nice.
Definitely supporting this- at least, insofar as asking around our crew about it, and getting any recommendations they might have for where to look in terms of doing further research in this direction. I wouldn't expect to be able to pull this right off, but getting a bit of guidance shouldn't be difficult.

>>468813 >>470089
>Get divine magic lessons from Stacey
>Ask Stacey to recite the question and answer sessions she had with Satai.
SUST. We already got a summary of what Stacey knows, and divine magic was not on the list; further, how the hell is it a good idea to sit around for hours listening to Stacey recite Q&A sessions with one of our minions? We delegated that in the first place because it was a colossal waste of our time! At most, leave a note for Satai to add Stacey's knowledge to our databases and double-check her for any knowledge of divine magic principles that he didn't catch in his initial when he wakes up. That will take all of thirty seconds instead of wasting half a day, and this isn't urgent enough to justify anything more- if it was, we could just mindrip Stacey instead of talking to her anyway.

>set aside 2 million for Dávgon’s research budget
SUST. Instead, take twenty minutes to talk to the man and hear out why he apparently needs millions of our dollars, and why he can't just ask Satai to buy him things so he can work to benefit the company when it's explicitly Satai's job to buy things to benefit the company. Lyubov seems supportive so whatever he wants is probably a good idea, but come on, we put people in place to handle this already. If Dávgon can give us a solid idea of what he actually wants to do and the expected gains from it- and tell us why we can't just buy the knowledge more cheaply- then tell him that we authorize a research budget, but we need regular reports on what he's doing- given verbally every week or so on his own initiative- and that he should work with Satai to buy whatever he needs, with our backing.

>Use Allview to find that werelion that Zosimus wants dead.
Do not do this personally. This is a good plan, but should be done by our world eye minion crew and only after they locate rocs for hunting. Delegate!

Zhenya's Orders

-Enjoy the week off with Matvey
-Get in lots of sight-seeing, including a pistol factory if time allows!
-While drunk have a conversation with Ohotnik about how huge he's going to be when he finishes growing.
-Swimming's not your strongest suite but it, and surfing, is still quite fun.
-Give your friends calls to check on how they're doing later in the week (Lyubov, Sake, Svetlana, Duke).
-Ask Matvey/NNS to please examine the fire gun from the arena to determine its functions.
-Pick out souvenirs for everyone! Nothing too opulent, budget of no more than $600 a person. Except Duke, pick up a nice handle of magic booze for him (no more than $10,000).

Bagga Orders:
>: Found out about a fist oriented fighting school called Limber Larry's Beef Beater in the meat packing district. Considering it is Ibruhem turf, he'll wait until he has a buddy and hopefully some charms to prevent commands to his blood.
>: Decide to participate in the fight club Adib went to. Apparently Adib put in a good word for him! Yay! What can possibly go wrong?
>: Make sure the two rogue hunting missions are done this week.
>: Keep up the vamp training and Ito training.
>: Try to find ways to make the ibruhem training simpler. Maybe feet tapping or drumming fingers? Have to look into it.
>: Try to talk to Armas or one of the higher ups about the garden idea.
>: Make sure to visit his Lizard friend for the foot working training they agreed upon. Should probably look into a method to get there safely.

Armas Orders

>What's my plan for the day?
Get up, have some breakfast, and head down to the sewers to speak to Sometimes Merchant. There are three things on the agenda for today. The first is whatever it was that Matvey noted he wanted to speak to us about on Monday – we've left him waiting, so if it's something like a job offer, he may not need us anymore.

After that's sorted, inquire about the payment we spoke of when we first told him about Chugainov's indiscretions. His exact words were that he would call us once he'd verified the claims. We know he has a phone, so that should have been literal. He didn't call us, though – which may be something to bring up, even if it's just to forgive him for it. Nevertheless, we should discuss payment and terms of use as agreed earlier. Payment could range from an introduction to a memory manipulator that can copy Feodor's biology education over to us – to avoid boring lessons – all the way to something like a soul-slave, like a Svartalf charm-craftsman or a blood manipulator experienced with large projects (like a certain Company Heart). Terms of use shouldn't be too much of a worry, since the information doesn't really affect us, though we may want to include something like him not being able to use it to harm us in any way.

Thirdly there's the prank footage that Shadowbro has. Simple distribution contract here, I think. Some fixed percentage of value of anything he's paid for the footage comes to us – I'm thinking we start off at 60% and let him try to haggle down – and in return he gets exclusive distribution rights, meaning we don't sell it to anyone else to sell (while implicitly still allowing us to sell it). That should be everything, unless there's anything else he wants to bring up.

For the rest of the morning, we should follow the plan presented in >>468183, with the following additions:

--Put in a call to Abloec, and if he answers/appears, invite him to test out the possession system on the golem – but make clear that he'll have to hand over his memories of it for now, since it would be a terrible security breach if that information were to get out at this point. He can have the memories back at some point after the testing phase is over (hint: it might never be over). If he doesn't like that deal, offer him something to sweeten it.
--While talking to Go Ping, keep the Sphere Labyrinth Orientation up. Towards the end of the session, we should also get him to organise another chakra lesson with each of Meng Yun and Lo Fang for later in the week.
--When checking the AORB database and the Smiling One's website, check out websites with either large areas of land or islands for sale (not necessarily the island suggested by >>468507)

The afternoon is for learning about magic sex from Gianni with Lyubov. Try not to let Gianni convince anyone to provide any 'demonstrations' that are of the sexy sort.

At some point that night, take Bagga in to apologise to Johan, using >>468183 and >>470089.

>And do I want to go right off Roc hunting when I find one, or do I want to get real meticulous planning it?
Just use the sections from Arkeus' post (>>467550) entitled “General Hunting Tips”, “Bait Funny Way”, and “Division of Spoils”.

Voting
>>466836
SUST to everything except for buying the cars and learning to make soul batteries.

>>466840
>>468813
SUST to those purchases from Johan. As others have said, he's too much of a security risk for too little potential with regards to the golem's armour, and the anti-scrying is less than important considering we live in Amen, who's already been shown to prevent scrying (if Allview's any indication).

SUST also to the projects for Igor – not only does Igor have enough work to do with the golem's armour, but none of the other minions need additional mundane armour – and adding extra senses to the golem (both electronic and biological) – wait until the possession system's ready, there's no point just overwhelming the users with however many extra sources of actively decoded data.

I'll upvote the lucky charm stuff – it'd be pretty funny to lure Sake in, grab him, and start rubbing him on them to see what happens. “What, I can't just rub you on stuff to make it lucky?”

I'll also upvote the lipreading idea, although I feel that it would be better to get it as a memory graft that we can put on the Allview souls, since we won't be the one looking for stuff.

>>467550
SUST to that Go Ping training. Not only is training with time dilation something that can be harmful to people without Armas' ridiculously oversized soul, but training with him all day would ignore plans we've already made for Sunday, notably the lessons with Gianni. SUST to the 'General Training' list except for epithelial training with Gianni and learning to do item-binding of spirit animals with Davgon (and BC, if he's around). SUST to the “Hybrid Tech” idea, as it's far beyond Armas' current understanding of the topic.

Upvoting the training with Gianni and Davgon, as well as the ideas of magic booze making (maybe Gianni knows how to do it with fleshcrafting, too) and getting Conceptual Strength training from Duke – ideas that would ideally be combined, with the booze being a payment for Duke's time.

>>468183
The only thing I'd go as far as SUSTing would be trying to visit Karganya without an introduction.

>>468507
SUST to copying the Russians' bodies – as noted, it's a huge security risk.

>>470089
SUST to the Stacey Q&A, since that's a huge waste of time. SUST also to the Placid Q&A, with the exception of finding out about the other War Walker – discuss that while walking on Matvey's property, perhaps.

Upvotes go to setting some of the Allview souls to finding the Werelion and collecting information on him, ordering the teleporter, checking up on Labombard, the research budget, and setting that work for Lyubov, Svetlana, and Davgon.

>>470623
SUST to talking to people without suggesting things to actually talk about. SUST to tricking Adelat into breaking her contract – that idea already failed once, so if you're not going to add a substantial plan to it, it'd fail again. SUST to the movie, as based on its subject matter, it'd be a very insensitive thing to make Lyubov watch.

Surprisingly, though, I'll upvote looking into plans for Lyubov's birthday.


Minion Orders
Feodor
*With his usual conversational partners – Lyubov, Matvey, and Satai – busy, on vacation, and comatose, Feodor spends extra time hanging out with Davgon and other housemates.
*Disappointed with his performance when sparring against Go Ping, Feodor continues experimenting with the squid.
*Feodor returns to the sewers to make another purchase from the resident goblin merchant. He buys a book that he can't read.
*Secret arena trip.
*Feodor remembers Dmitrii's birthday and sends him a half a dozen bottles of vodka and some black-market painkillers as a gift.
*Feodor's anatomy training with Gianni and Ivanovich continues. This week's lessons: magic sex organs, and may god have mercy on his soul.
*Finnigan's clinic is busy as usual with gunshots and stab wounds. Mrs K returns for her procedures, and Feodor asks Satai for some help investigating her curse.

Rostislav
*Having calmed down after last shift's “Domina incident”, Rostislav decides to get his puppies under control. By bringing them to work and having Radu curse them, naturally. The evil puppy is cursed to be unable to express its hate without permission and the lazy puppy is cursed to not be on fire.
*Secret arena trip
*When he hears about Dmitrii's birthday from Feodor, Rostislav uses his prostitute connections to organise the kind of party Dmitrii would enjoy (if you know what I mean) over in Italy.
*Finish the guard job.

Ivan
*Ivan continues meditating alone, still trying to 'aim' at his soul. He's helped by his new ability to see souls' positions.
*With Matvey on vacation, Satai unconscious, and Nikifor in Italy, Ivan has a lonely time on the range, trying to keep the sniper group going as the only sniper present.
*Working and training at Ito's takes up a lot of time, but it's balanced by not being forced to undergo six hours of chakra training a day. Ivan uses some of that free time to work on his jukenjitsu form.
*Ivan continues his bulletmaking operation, finishing off the rest of the silver he bought. He leaves a note asking the currently insensate Satai to contact a specialist in magic ammunition so that they can be further improved.
*Ivan decides to relax and go to the zoo. On his way out of the mansion, he's met by an inquisitive Iosef, and the pair go together. Patting a derpy litigon is the highlight of his week, though that crow is annoying.
*Ivan spends some time getting some park pocket-realm rest.

DoubleU!MYdoubleV. 2012/11/13(Tue)19:53 No. 471572 ID: 805d4d
File 135286519345.png - (353.43KB , 1024x768 , dolladollabillyall.png )

From #golemquest with love.

Matvey's orders are as follows:
/\/\- Enjoy his vacation. See the sights. Meet people, including an affable vacationing Doonongaes named Tree Tender. Taste the local cuisine. Find magic food still wholly dominates mundane.
/\/\- Wistfully depart from Italy by Tuesday and return to Istanbul. Bring back chintzy souvenirs for everyone.
/\/\- Throw himself into training for upcoming match against the Transcendant gladiator that challenged him. Take himself out of sniping practice, hopefully temporarily but likely for a long while. Hone swordsmanship with Shuhadaku Zayin's guidance; attempt to ignore his garrulous methods. Seek out dojos with Ito's help in order to pit your lack of form against established sword styles for development. Visit Das Bones' regularly for advice.
/\/\- Attend to officer duties as per normal, but pass along the various mission reports, communications, and other accessory paper work to Svetlana.
/\/\- Begin a training program for all of the employees at the company with a focus on teamwork, the development of group tactics, unit cohesion, and coordinating the increasingly disparate power sets present within the company. Use traditional military experience, Black Army training, and your personal set of leadership abilities to develop the program. Schedule it in lieu of chakra training when Go Ping has left. Render it mandatory.
/\/\- Ensure the payment for the recently completed jobs (the ambulance mission [$55,000] and Ibruhem vampire bounty hunt mission [35,000]) has come through and that the company and mercenaries involved are paid. Sort out between any of the brothers you can reach what exactly the pay for the Hobgoblin job long since completed is and make sure it gets out to those who worked on the mission.
/\/\- Make house purchases. Buy tools and supplies for construction and home repair, good ones. Expand the mundane security system. Get a bigger, better, more durable bed. Swap out the wood burning stove for an electric or gas stove. Buy a good sound system and music library. Start filling the actual library with books, consult Zhenya to see what she'd like stocked. Purchase fun stuff, like a pinball machine and pool table.
/\/\- Take Ohotnik to socialize with the puppies the couple that breeds kangals has. Try to make idle conversation with them, keeping up the ruse that Ohotnik is simply an impressive kangal crossbreed. Note this is becoming harder as he keeps getting bigger but is still puppy-shaped.
/\/\- Ask Svetlana if she would be willing to teach Zhenya and yourself how to cook in your decidedly old fashioned kitchen in your new home. After she accepts spend a couple pleasant evenings learning how to make edible things. Unfairly compare her baking to Cookie Lady.
Iosef's orders are as follows:
I- Visit Johan throughout the week, wonder if he's even getting close to the end of his list of unstable rituals he's going to test on you. Haha, probably not.
I- These eating contests are starting to get boring; he's hit most of the big ones in the city already, maybe it's time to step it up. Ask around the company and be told by Gianni there's this place called Bonzi's that has some eating challenges, decide to scope it out. See an ogre eating a child-sized pile of meat on first arrival: decide this is perfect.
I- Successfully be lazy and avoid having to train with Go Ping in favor of Honey Boo Boo viewing.
I- Catch Ivan making an outing, ask him what's going on, learn he's going to the zoo and decide to join him. The walking from place to place seems annoying and you start to wonder if it's worth it when you could just see animals on that one television channel that has that show about bigfoot, get a chance to pet a big cat, totally worth it.
I- Keep heavy weapons skills sharp. Check that all the heavy weapons you're familiar with are properly maintained and take the Gatmalite out for practice. Fail to report ammunition usage to Satai or Svetlana.
I- Be lazy, hang out in new spot inside the workshop where Davgon and Gianni work. Enjoy delicious snacks and watch all the mind rotting television he can. Ponder if he could fit a minifridge in there for maximum lazy man efficiency. ...Yeah, he probably could.
I- When Rostislav is free ask him if he can get Adib to give you some lessons on how to do hand to hand combat, maybe it'll let you make better use of that soul quirk you got that you almost forgot about. Get okayed by Rostislav: wonder when he should bug the Adib guy.
Titus' orders are as follows:
T- Stay on that guard job; it's been pretty quiet on his shifts.
T- Keep working on incorporating the upgrades Armin suggested into gloves. To that end, and since the taser gloves are a very economical design at present (around 5-8 grand per pair for the basic package), he's making a handful of other mk.IVs.
T- Consider and plan a mk.V design that would incorporate the tree (and spirit) of a certain dryad into the design. Wires mimicking a human nervous design have some resemblance to a tree's branches, and the exterior would be made of her wood. Also consider making a whole suit out of this stuff. A heavy rubber/kevlar bodysuit would be kinda uncomfortable, but useful if electrified.
T- He's been working as an assistant instructor of Sambo over at Crash Course for a little while now. Hang with Hans (the Sambo guy) and Hafaz's group. They're a pretty friendly bunch for ex-military. Go out for beers, pay his own way without buying more than a round every now and then.
T- On the 10th, there's a world-traveling BJJ guy coming to hang out with the Corvos Academy team. He basically swings by to kick the asses of the locals in local tournaments and then heads off for another country the next day or two. He sounds like a hoot. Attempt to convince him to spend the night in a palatial mansion in the heart of Istanbul in exchange for a few pointers. Claim to follow his blog; he probably loves fans.
Igor's orders are as follows:
(Iggy)-Ask around for decent black market weapons dealers and purchase a Milkor MGL-140 ($2000), 50 smoke(white)($2000), 100 practice tracers($4000), and 100 HEDP($6000). Be pleased with purchases, yet still unable to shake discomfort with more modern technological contrivances. Find self irrationally thinking a cartoon-style fuse bomb would be better.
(Iggy)-Exhaustively study every one of the rituals SB was generous enough to provide and begin testing their effects. While practicing, get offer from Gianni to make minor modification to his wrists so that he can bloodlet more efficiently. Mull over proposal.
(Iggy)-Take time every day to get used to his new shadow and spirit sight and see what he can... see. Damn shadows and soul stuff-keeps moving too much. Someone should nail that stuff down so it's not so distracting... or rivet it.
(Iggy)-Continue work on personal armor. Render it testbed of new SB rituals.
(Iggy)- Oh shit, Armas ordered him to make modular plate armor for the employees! ...Wait, that sounds fun. And it'd let him demo stuff for the next rendition of the golem armor! Great success!
(Iggy)- Due to a combination of naiveté, prodigiously magical booze served by Bonzi courtesy of Labombard's money, end up very drunk… long story short, get betrothed to a dwarf from the Dimirken Clan. Igor's got some 'splaining to do!
(Iggy)- Acquire Marriage Debt (One step below Blood Debt, two steps below Life Debt, three steps below Clan Debt, the greatest Debt one can owe a dwarf) to Herata Kheazai, for interfering enough in fallout of betrothal to let Dimirken Head learn who Igor's boss is before killing Igor to prevent impending dishonor of his daughter.
(Iggy)-Try to make hummingbird a... Matroyska doll set that looks like him and can hold liquid between the shells? Uh, okay this definitely bears practicing for.
Svetlana's orders are as follows:
{S}-Standing order: give generic giftbaskets to people on their birthdays, on behalf of the company.
{S}-Be extremely thankful when Satai wakes up. No notes, no contact lists, and that work load; how does the man even do his job? Feel like he's cheating upon learning that he doesn't sleep.
{S}-Attempt closer collaboration with Satai.
{S}-Put together standard corporate NDA for company, submit to superiors for approval. Learn from Satai that magically binding contracts are a thing-wonder if that would be better.
{S}-Update her wardrobe since her things are somewhat worn out, out of date, and not in the local style. $2500 budgeted.
{S}-Begin to incorporate scarves into the outfits she wears, where appropriate, so that HB has somewhere to sit comfortably. And out of sight, though she doesn't mention this to him.
{S}-Make a little nest for HB attached to a clothes hanger so it is mobile. She is decent at crochet, has yarn, and time to experiment. A double-layer to hold shape better, possibly around a metal wire frame if the shape wont hold, with raw cotton worked into the inner layer for extra comfort. HB is pleased.
{S}-Attempt brewing more highly caffeinated coffee for HB. Call Andrei for advice and instructions, he has a reputation for this kind of thing after all. Quietly admonish self against falling to her mild caffeine addiction. Contemplate getting a Turkish press, having heard one can make excessively caffeinated beverages with such a device.
{S}-Search online for a 1974 Dnepr MT-9 650cc motorcycle and find a seller in Romania offering a restoration project with almost all of its original parts and a number of spares for $900. Buy it immediately and pay $235 to have it shipped to the mansion within the week.
{S}-Ask more approachable co-workers for help with chakra training after Go Ping leaves. Still find the entire notion of 'harnessing one's chakras' a bit baffling.
{S}-Be assigned duty of working with Satai as appropriate to draw data from AORB threat database. Longterm project.
{S}-Be made aware of Smiling One's website, provided Armas' login, and be told to find a decent price on one (1) Cyclops eye. Be provided analysis of prior cost for acquiring a pair.
Vlad's orders are as follows:
\/-Shoot an email home to father and grandfather, see how they're doing. On getting a suspicious response, realize he got drunk and forgot to tell them the night he meant to let them know he was, in fact, alive, contrary to Chugainov's report. Whoops. Send pics as proof of liveliness.
\/-Go out shopping and pick up a nice Saint Barbara medallion to wear. Saint of people who work with things that go boom, can't hurt to have a little token of insurance. Give no fucks to the ribbing over having acquired a mundane charm-boom is boom.
\/-Think back to the alcohol-seeking rampage incident. ...Yeah, that was kind of a fuck-up, shouldn't have gone to such extremes. Also Camella is scary. Attempt one week of sobriety as penance, inform tiny Italian commissar of possible erratic behavior during that time.
\/-Remind self this does not prevent STOCKING UP on booze for later consumption afterward.
\/-Distract self from lack of alcohol with funny cat videos on the internet or finding a gym to work out at. Or maybe downloading more gunsmithing books/trolling gun boards.
\/-Make it one hour into sobriety before caving.
\/-Try not to get into too much more trouble.
Satai's orders are as follows:
$- Continue mentalist training with Shadowbro until he declares it complete; then wake up. Be thankful for new Mentalist mentor-in-a-locket.
$- Check on/with the armory, Stacey, Svetlana, Verusha, and company friends to determine any events and changes during absence. ...Iosef's been helping himself to heavy weaponry and munitions without logging anything.
$- Relentlessly train mentalism up to the limit of what is possible while still acting normal outwardly.
$- Offer to remove traumatic or otherwise unwanted memories from other members of the company, both for their mental health and for weaponization. Get initial response from Feodor towards this end.
$- Investigate Labombard's mind if/when asked.
$- Seize additional opportunities for money which present themselves.
$- Seize additional opportunities for lore which present themselves.
$-Be caught by Armas: Be informed that he should work with Igor to design next edition of Golem Armor to include embedded camera hardpoints and transmitters-both for intelligence gathering, and funny video capture. Be more concerned with the first reason, no matter what Armas says. Be told that he's expected to give this more attention than he gave the tank issue.
$- Keep a close eye on newly reported (Last Spelling) contention amongst Leprechaun populations-seems something's going on there, even if they're not talking about it. Maybe a change of leadership?
$- Finish off a certain job which was interrupted by unconsciousness. Find it immensely easier to complete with rudimentary mind-reading at his command. Who would have guessed.
$- Get more information on Placid from the company members; meet him and talk after learning no one has anything negative to say about Placid that has actual substance.
$- Get back to quartermaster duties; get more ammo and make purchases as requested.
$- Spend what time can be spared making contacts/picking up magical women (whichever, really).
Grisha Orders:
G- Enjoy the hell out of new body and powers; quickly become the most adored person in company/town even when not present. Find dreams that involve the people around her slowly becoming alien little critters she can't understand-or make understand her-strange but funny, and brush them off.
G- Have fun of all sorts with Lev. Lev's opinion only tangientally enters into the equation for funtimes.
G- Ensure that the townspeople and company get along really well; make friends with everyone and smooth over all problems with magic and money. Find self doing this to 'clean up' after Vlad somewhat often.
G- Teach some townie ladies sexy footwork tricks when bored. Laugh at how much more interesting this makes the town bars.
G- Learn more about pain from Anguisher. Ow, but informative!
G- When not working, go on random independent explorations of relatively close parts of Italy; seek out opportunities to make friends and stretch magical muscles. ...Huh, doesn't seem to find anyone. Wierd-doesn't everyone else practically trip over magic stuff even when they don't want to?
G- During Sake visits (wow he can fly fast!) have amoral fun of the prankish sort.
>Bagga's orders are as follows:
>: Found out about a fist oriented fighting school called Limber Larry's Beef Beater in the meat packing district. Considering it is Ibruhem turf, he'll wait until he has a buddy and hopefully some charms to prevent commands to his blood.
>: Decide to participate in the fight club Adib went to. Apparently Adib put in a good word for him! Yay! What can possibly go wrong?
>: Make sure the two rogue hunting missions are done this week. Be wholly oblivious to the knowing smirks of the older members of the company at this assertion!
>: Keep up the vamp training and Ito training. Unsurprisingly, getting a proper handle on his blood's magic without official tutelage continues to be immensely time-consuming relative to results-who knew?
>: Try to find ways to make the ibruhem training simpler. Maybe feet tapping or drumming fingers? Have to look into it. ...End up learning even MORE ways to trip, stumble and in general make a fool of self in the name of training. Have zero evidence this is better than the existing methods.
>: Try to talk to Armas or one of the higher ups about the garden idea. Be told to do something impressive with a plant first, and THEN they'll listen: No, buying a magic plant that's nearly impossible to mis-care for doesn't count. Lame adults!
>: Make sure to visit his Lizard friend for the foot working training they agreed upon. Meet with Lyzzyrd Skyzzyrd in Sewers to this effect. Continue to be shocked by fact that he doesn't soak up magical knowledge like a sponge.... what? He needs craptons of actual physical strength and superior response-time to actually use what he's learning here? Man, that almost sounds like montage rules don't mean shit here!
Feodor's orders are as follows:
*With his usual conversational partners – Lyubov, Matvey, and Satai – busy, on vacation, and comatose, Feodor spends extra time hanging out with Davgon and other housemates.
*Disappointed with his performance when sparring against Go Ping, Feodor continues experimenting with the squid.
*Feodor returns to the sewers to make another purchase from the resident goblin merchant. He buys a book that he can't read.
*Secret arena trip, sh don't tell anybody!
*Feodor remembers Dmitrii's birthday and sends him a half a dozen bottles of vodka and some black-market painkillers as a gift.
*Feodor's anatomy training with Gianni and Ivanovich continues. This week's lessons: magic sex organs, and may god have mercy on his soul.
*Finnigan's clinic is busy as usual with gunshots and stab wounds. Mrs K returns for her procedures, and Feodor asks Satai for some help investigating her curse.
Rostislav's orders are as follows:
*Having calmed down after last shift's “Domina incident”, Rostislav decides to get his puppies under control. By bringing them to work and having Radu curse them, naturally. The evil puppy is cursed to be unable to express its hate without permission and the lazy puppy is cursed to not be on fire. Evil puppy hates this: Lazy puppy sleeps through the procedure, and doesn't seem to notice-or care. Not sure which.
*Secret arena trip. That Feodor's pretty fun, hah!
*When he hears about Dmitrii's birthday from Feodor, Rostislav uses his prostitute connections to organise the kind of party Dmitrii would enjoy (if you know what I mean) over in Italy.
*Finish the guard job.
Ivan's orders are as follows:
*Ivan continues meditating alone, still trying to 'aim' at his soul. He's helped by his new ability to see souls' positions.
*With Matvey on vacation, Satai unconscious, and Nikifor in Italy, Ivan has a lonely time on the range, trying to keep the sniper group going as the only sniper present. Well, at least Hillevi's there-she may be throwing ice, but she's doing it at ranges in the miles, and with pinpoint precision: close enough to sniping.
*Working and training at Ito's takes up a lot of time, but it's balanced by not being forced to undergo six hours of chakra training a day. Ivan uses some of that free time to work on his jukenjitsu form. Eyes boss the few times he sees the guy use it: Looks like he's got all sorts of other stuff in his version. Mull over trying to pick up some of that.
*Ivan continues his bulletmaking operation, finishing off the rest of the silver he bought. He leaves a note asking the currently insensate Satai to contact a specialist in magic ammunition so that they can be further improved.
*Ivan decides to relax and go to the zoo. On his way out of the mansion, he's met by an inquisitive Iosef, and the pair go together. Patting a derpy litigon is the highlight of his week, though that insistently busybody crow is annoying.
*Ivan spends some time getting some park pocket-realm rest. His suspicion over the fact he's found it and not yet seen any other entities there continues to wane.
*Be assigned duty to learn how to lipread by Boss when he runs into Ivan at a café.
Lyubov's orders are as follows:
L*~Forgiveness Sunday is a good day to apologize for things. Do so in person when possible, and otherwise by phone. Get it taken care of before the lessons with Armas and Gianni.
L*~Throughout the week get in as many lessons with Armas, Placid, and Dávgon as time and schedules permit. [40 hours]
L*~Contact Ito’s tax assessor, ask for a referral to a good lawyer. Initiate the patent process for the magnetic array designs. ($2,000) [4 hours]
L*~Make contact with the nonprofits that have been founded by Tesla fans (The Tesla Foundation, Tesla Inventor’s Club, Tesla Society). Start the process of networking with them via e-mails and phone calls. [4 hours]
L*~Ask Hillevi to make some liquid nitrogen and show her and Placid how to make their own ice cream (the gourmet method where you mix it with heavy cream and flavoring). Realize shortly thereafter as they fill a room with magical ice cream that this was likely a mistake. [4 hours]
L*~Buy a 3D printer and play with it a bit ($22,000). Convert the micro-matryoshka electromagnet array design into a format the 3D printer can read. 60 micron thick stacked loops will ensure much more powerful magnetic fields, though it will require a week-long build time for all the arrays required to make the next iteration of the plasma wing. At least the build can run on its own, mostly. [24 hours]
L*~Work with Dávgon and Mom on the Divine creature and Monster Anatomy research and compilation project. [24 hours]
L*~Continue the research into Armas’s past as time permits. [4 hours]
L*~Think about how Sake has, on multiple occasions, complained about being tired all day because of using all his stored healing magic not long after sunrise. Conclude that the reasonable solution is to trap sunlight from the sunrise so that Sake can meet the required conditions to re-charge his body whenever he wants.
L*~Discover through published research that a number of researchers in India have figured out how to use ferrofluids, oleic acid compounds, and magnetic trapping to catch photons. Collaborate with Feodor (he has way more chemistry experience) to help duplicate the experiments and modify them to be useful for catching sunlight. Build light concentrators (ordered parabolic mirrors on constructed frames, $400 each) which direct light into the entrapment device, which can be triggered by dropping the magnetic field. The prototype runs on wall power, has a battery backup, and is about the size of a microwave oven. ($8,000 to $15,000 in parts, lab equipment, and reagents). [8 hours total, Feodor’s part takes 4 hours]
L*~Once the prototype (using completely mundane parts) is proven to work, get Armas to have Sake exhaust himself during one of the sessions with Stacey and Silja. Then ambush the sleepy weasel with the prototype! Hopefully this will go a long way toward making him feel less upset with her. ...After recieving weaselly buttslap to the face, conclude he does in fact feel less upset.
L*~Visit the magic electronics shop, learn that magic superconductors are based on pure metals and use the Super concept to work at room temperature. Useful, but expensive and dangerous to work with. Ones based on mundane principles and combined with ever-ice spell effects exist but are only superior to what is mundanely available because they don’t need active refrigeration. They’re actually more brittle and harder to work with than the best mundane products. Oddly enough, no one seems to sell a product based on phonon manipulation. [2 hours]
Zhenya's orders are as follows:
-Enjoy the week off with Matvey
-Get in lots of sight-seeing, including a pistol factory if time allows! ...It does, woohoo!
-While drunk have a conversation with Ohotnik about how huge he's going to be when he finishes growing. Find Ohotnik's silent contemplation of this topic sagely, up until he starts gnawing on a hind leg. Give scratchies. Receive licks.
-Swimming's not your strongest suite but it, and surfing, is still quite fun. Though it's a bit wierd to see a dog's way better at surfing than she is.
-Give her friends calls to check on how they're doing later in the week (Lyubov, Sake, Svetlana, Duke). With worry note that Duke describes himself as being bored.
-Ask Matvey/NNS to please examine the fire gun from the arena to determine its functions. Something something devil-bullet demiplane somethine something ammo regeneration something something no idea how to check ammo count. ...Huh. Whatever, fun pistol!
-Pick out souvenirs for everyone! Nothing too opulent, budget of no more than $600 a person. Except Duke, pick up a nice handle of magic booze for him (no more than $10,000).



>>>466836
As Lyubov's leg stirs over my midsection in a manner I find quite enjoyable, I find my first thoughts of the day to be sexual. But not quite in so straightforward of a manner as might be assumed-no, I'm thinking about something I technically did once, and the Gianni's own area of expertise.
[Sake]"Kehehehe-"
Again, not that direct. Sake, that weasel wine I drank when we bonded-does that amplify existing magics, or does it grant wholly new branches or school of magic?
[Sake]"It just amplifies, why-oh! Oh oh oh, you're actually following up on that!"
…Wait, so when the Kyrppa Peiko mind made my body throw a wind blast with my dick-
[Sake]"Yeah, you've got a natural affinity for phallomancy!"
I do!? That's amazing! Oh, I am totally going to ask Gianni all about-
>[SB]"If you go down that path, you may find me so disgusted by your chosen magical vocation that I'd elect to rate mutual destruction over being associated with a phallomancer. You have many avenues of magic that you've already explored and found competence of a sort in-there is no reason to invest in such a horrid and disrespectful school of magic."
…Okay, I'm going to let this drop-for now-but you know that some day or other, I am TOTALLY learning this, right?
>[SB]"Become well known enough and respected enough that such a black mark against you does not render you a laughing stock any would be loath to associate with, and I may reconsider my stance."
Fine, I'll get crazy famous first. Just don't forget what you said-you aren't going to be a stick-in-the-mud on this forever, else I may decide that trolling myself is indeed a worthwhile investment of time and energy.
>[SB]"…And neither of us want that. Very well-I shall not forget."

With that avenue of fun denied to me for the moment, I focus on a different form of hedonism-the acquisition of grossly decadent toys I can show off. To wit, I pull out the report Satai provided me days ago, for where to acquire a pair of Rolls-Royce Phantoms, as well as contacts for speedy interior remodeling so both can be clad in my favorite color beneath their sleek black exteriors.
>[SB]"I still don't know if I should take it as proof positive Orange is a superior color, or be concerned that your baseless enjoyment of that particular shade is so great that despite no longer having your organic inefficiencies I still covet the color myself."
The former and you know it! Now… let's see, private car dealer contact number… name's…. okay, his last name is Smythe, so I'm not even going to risk mutilating that first name. And… ah-ha, preface the call by mentioning I know 'The Asitane's Owner and have seen his scale collection'. Pretty clear message there-show I know what's what in the broad sense for the magical community, and associate myself with a VIP. Right, that's straight forward. Let's give him a ring…. after getting out of bed. Lyubov murmurs and promptly rolls herself into a cocoon with the newly freed sheets in my absence. After using fleshcrafting to get rid of my morning breath, I pick up my phone to make a call. I clear my throat, shaking some cobwebs off my persuasive panache before a man with a rusty-sounding voice speaks in a paradoxically oily tone.
>[Mr. Smythe]"Who is this?"
>[MMM,MMMM Trait auto-activated!]
"Mr. Smythe, I was given this number after several enjoyable conversations with the Asitane's Owner, all of which afforded me the opportunity to see his most impressive collection of scales."
There's a momentary hiss of a sharp intake of air-oh, I got his attention there.
>[Mr. Smythe]"I… see. Well, I do believe I'll still need some way to reference you, mister…?"
"Mr. Laine."
I pick up the second pause too. Seems he's heard of me-I can work with that.
>[Mr. Smythe]"Understood. Well, Mr. Laine, I have one final question before we can get to business: How… private.. is your phone?"
"Private enough I'd feel comfortable talking about, well, just about anything. Does that assuage any concerns for you?"
>[Mr. Smythe]"It does indeed. Well, Mr. Laine, what kind of vehicles are you looking to promptly and discreetly acquire?"
"A pair of Rolls-Royce Phantoms, black-I don't care what their interior looks like, I fully plan to refurbish them-in fact, I believe you would have a strong sense of who I'll be contacting for that."
>[Mr. Smythe]"The Greek… yes, his shop does impeccable-and oh-so-critically discreet-work. Yes, I'll be certain to send your purchases to him…. So, two Phantoms-does the year or specific variant matter?
"Do you have the Centenary Collection-"
>[Mr. Smythe]"Spirit Of Ecstasy Phantoms? Certainly, I do."
"With Starlight headliners?"
>[Mr. Smythe]"Indeed."
"Well then, I think we have the makings of a deal here."
>[Mr. Smythe]"All that's left is to discuss payment, I believe."
>[MMM,MMMM Trait auto-activated!]
Long story short, Mr. Smythe ends up a bit confused at how he ended up happily accepting $900k for two phantoms of my choosing, complete with aftermarket body replacement-sure, bulletproof car bodies and glass don't mean THAT much in my line of work-but that should make for a far sturdier base for subsequent magical enhancement. I even manage to convince the man to personally foot the bill for the retooling of the car's interiors to my preferred shade… and learn I should have my pair of new vehicles ready in two weeks.
BUSINESS FUNDS: -$900,000.00 $9,672,864.00

After putting the phone down, and finding myself immensely pleased ordering such expensive commodities was rendered far easier than it should have been with the aid of a silver tongue, I chuckle while throwing on an orange robe, and plodding down to Dávgon's workshop. There's a question I want to answer, after having considered the function I've been serving for my Familiar and brothers alike. Despite the early hour, I find Dávgon hard at work, carefully monitoring and influencing the Kudoku jars as the refinement process of the existing champions I ensouled continues apace. On my entry, he carefully puts down his tools before turning to face me.
>[Dávgon]"Yes? If you're here to check on progress, the insects are coming along nicely at acclimatizing to their fabricated souls and coming into harmony with them appreciable to what they'd experience with a natural soul. It shouldn't be long before they start manifesting genuine soul quirks indicative of their own preferences-and after that they'll be fully matured souls."
"And at that point, they'll be about as flexible as is initially feasible, and we can look at actual purposes for excessively toxic, survival-paragon ensouled bugs."
>[Dávgon]"Exactly."
"Great to hear-but not what I came here for-not this time, at least. I've been thinking about magical batteries, and have been wondering about a possible offshoot of that school of crafting: Soul Batteries. Do you know much about them, and the laws concerning them?"
>[Dávgon]"I do. Ask, and I shall answer as best I can."
"Excellent. Well, I'm curious if it's even legal to make Soul Batteries, first off-"
>[Dávgon]"It is, provided you don't convert an existing soul into one without a Contract giving you total ownership of said soul. Making them from 'scratch', or from pieces of one's own soul or a willing other's soul are perfectly allowable."
"Is that so? That's reassuring to know-so, my methods for making a battery are A-OK, so long as I'm making them from myself-or a willing other."
>[Dávgon]"Precisely."
"And then, to make sure I'm not operating under grossly inaccurate assumptions-exactly what IS a soul battery? Is it just a mindless well of soul energy, like what HB, SB and Sake can tap, or is it something else?"
>[Dávgon]"No, that's accurate enough: Effectively, if you made a Soul Battery from yourself, it would be a Mindless, Bodyless piece of Soul bereft of initiative or intelligence-raw existential power. And since it's soul-"
"I can slap bindings on it as I will."
>[Dávgon]"Correct. The only problem is time: Reshaping and refining a fragment of soul into a stable battery, even for you, would still take a day-the method, at least the ones I know of, all require you to start at dusk, and finish at dawn."
"Well now that is a wrinkle in my plan. …Still, it's readily doable for me, even if the timeframes are irritating. I'm assuming the process is hands on enough I wouldn't have much chance to multitask?"
>[Dávgon]"That is correct. On the plus side, given your abilities it's doubtful you are even capable of outputting lackluster soul batteries without consciously trying to do so."
"Hm… good to know. Thanks for clearing that up, Dávgon. I'll leave you to your work. …Actually, do you have more insects you'd like me to ensoul?"
>[Dávgon]"No… however, I would like you to look at how all of the souls you already crafted have been developing, in detail, and attempt to engorge their Soul Capacity: They have more than enough Soul Coherence to withstand it."
"Sure, I have a few hours."

I completely miss breakfast (and run into lunch) getting the souls 'pumped up', but everyone seems to have managed in my absence.

>>466840
As I quickly sauté some unnecessarily magical stir fry to munch on, I recall that I owe Johan an apology on behalf of the company… thanks to, primarily, Bagga. So after I have my snack, I promptly stalk out of the kitchen, get dressed, hunt down Bagga, grab the runty vampire by the scruff and, before I can make it out the door, Lyubov foists a plate of pumpkin bread on me-made by the Cookie Lady specifically for Johan. Armed as best as possible for my 'mission', I march out the door, on my way to the Demonologists-and have Bagga go completely limp in my hands. …Right, sunlight. I walk back inside, shove him in the biosuit that makes him Gloom-sized that the kid somehow thought I didn't know about, re-pick him up, and go back outside. Throughout it all, he seems a bit nonplussed, and can't really offer any input until we're several blocks into the trip.
>[Bagga]"…Um, Mr. Laine, sir… why are you carrying-"
"You were an idiot, I'm shaming you for it. Enjoy having people stare at you on the way over."
>[Bagga]"Won't… won't they stare at you too?"
"Goblin footwork kid. They barely notice me-and the few that do don't bother me. Why, you not liking the attention?"
>[Bagga]"I'm not wearing clothes!"
"Sure you are-just inside the biosuit."

He makes a few more squawking noises and complaints on the way, but since he seems to grasp how important of a business contact Johan is, he's not getting heated about it. Frankly, he's taking this better than I'd expect a teenager to take it-but then, he can't really BE a kid anymore. If a public shaming helps him realize it… well, I'm man enough to provide it.

For completely unrelated reasons Sake Snickers from around my neck.

We reach Johan's shop, and on entering I toss Bagga onto the ground before the Demonologist, still holding the plate of pumpkin bread in my off hand.
“Johan. I understand one of my men was rude. He wants to apologize.”
When Johan's gaze goes from me to Bagga and the kid doesn't immediately start apologizing, I nudge him with my foot by way of prompting him.
>[Bagga]"Oh! Um yes, I'm very sorry Mr. Johan, I-"
>[Johan]"Did you bring him the whole way here in your hand… in that suit?"
The smile I give Johan at the question isn't QUITE feral. While nodding-just to really make it clear-I offer forth the plate of food, following amusement with indulgence.
“I brought you a little something as well, to make it clear my company appreciates the business relationship we have with you.”
Johan, his face inscrutable even as I can sense the joviality that now wells in his soul at the thought of the insulting kid being shamed, tries a bite of pumpkin bread-and stops, staring at his hand while images most nostalgic flash across his soul, of long-past times when his mother would bake just that product for him. …Yeah, Lyubov came through there. Looking up from the plate of food, he offers me a rare smile.
>[Johan]"…Apology accepted."
"All right."
I turn to Bagga.
"Okay kid-you can head back. I got business to discuss with him."
The vampire opens his mouth-or his biosuit's mouth, at least-closes it, shakily nods and darts out the door. The moment he's gone Johan guffaws.
>[Johan]"Aaaah… yeah, don't think he'll be forgetting how that went for him. ..Heheh, thanks for that-I needed a good joke, I think."
"So no harm done?"
>[Johan]"Water under the bridge. ..Where'd you get this bread?"
"Trade secret."
>[Johan]"Oh I'll find out one way or another… so? What's the business you wanted to discuss?"
"I wanted to know what options you can bring to the table, for enhancing metal armor grafted to a golem."
>[Johan]"A war golem?"
"Exactly."
>[Johan]"Well, I can do several things, but most of them are along the same vein. I'll go ahead and start with the least expensive options, and work my way up. First option is infusing the metal with Demonic or Devilish taint, in the form of blood-this would let the war golem be percieved as a fellow demonic being to demons and devils, as well as making it more resistant to harm from demonic origins. Outside of masking and resistance of such a specific nature though, there is no benefit. The next option would be burning devil bones atop the armor in a ritual to infuse supernatural strength into the metal-this is a more universal resilience, but does make the armor more readily detectable to demons. The next option would be to reduce a demon into an oil that would then be applied to the armor before it is blood treated, rendering the armor invisible and poisonous to demons, while making it able to inspire fear in non-demonic entities. Lastly, I can infuse devil souls into the armor and then soul bind the armor to the war golem it's grafted to, rendering the golem massively resistant to any attempt at stealing Ownership, as well as allowing the war golem's passive magical abilities, whatever they may be, to apply to the armor itself. Each of the four potential avenues of enhancement come with price tiering based on quality of ingredients and rituals as per normal. If you want a more detailed breakdown, I'd need to see what you want enhanced."
"I see… you've given me something to think on. Just for a ballpark, say money's irrelevant: How durable could you render basic steel armor?"
>[Johan]"As magically unassailable as a locked demiplane, fatally poisonous and undetectable to devils and demons alike, treated as living flesh by the war golem, and as resilient as First Grade Mithril."
"Hm… I see. Thank you for the summary Johan-I may well have a rather large project soon."
The old man merely nods, enjoying his Pumpkin bread. Rather than even attempt small talk, I simply nod to him, and make my way out the door. Just as I'm about to make my way home, he calls out a final comment.
>[Johan]"Word of advice: Enhance the metal itself as much as you plan to, before you look at ritual options."
"I'll keep that in mind."

I'm only a few feet out the door when Sake uncoils from my neck and soars off to points unknown, clearly intent on adventure. On the walk home I entertain myself with Attention Sensing and being unseen in a crowd-and spot Ivan out and about. …Well, he's out: He's currently just sitting at a café, watching the crowds pass by. Curious, I take a seat next to him, and quirk an eyebrow his way. He gets the hint.
>[Ivan]"….Watching mannerisms."
"Of the general populace? Why?"
>[Ivan]"…Gloom used to."
"And so you're… what, taking over his hobby?"
>[Ivan]"….Infiltration technique is important."
"That's certainly true-but be honest, how much are you picking up just watching?"
>[Ivan]"…Not much."
"Let me take a stab in the dark here-you're lacking context for a great deal of what you see, right?"
He takes a sip from his mug, swishing it about his mouth before answering.
>[Ivan]"…Seems that way."
"If I may suggest-lip reading. It's wholly mundane, so no one can detect you'd know what they say out of audible range unless they could get in your mind and see you have the knowledge."
>[Ivan]"…It could work."
"Indeed. Should I take that as an admission the topic of study interests you, and you will pursue it?"
>[Ivan]"…Yes."
"Then let me know when you feel competent at the art-I may have some highly profitable business for you."
Like buying a copy of the knowledge to implant in my Allview souls.
My only answer from the Russian is a nod-and I leave the soul-eyed one to his afternoon meal.

Right as I reach the mansion, I detect Sake's soul inbound-and by the sheer spiritual amusement he's sporting he's got something fun to blab about. I hold the door open for him as he swoops in, and promptly get bombarded with snicker-filled words… and leaves.

…No, specific leaves-clover leaves.
>[Sake]"Hey! I'm finally getting a handle on Ramidreju innate magic-you know, outside the rubmagic stuff-and I totally need your help with some fun tricks! I wanna reinvest luck in these four leaf clovers, so we can use them as Luck Charms!"
"Why wouldn't they already have luck in them?"
>[Sake]"Because everyone knows they're lucky, and some people got stuff setup so they can siphon luck out of known lucky items-before anyone can even use them! So, we gotta build our own-and I figured re-lucking something that was already lucky once, is way better than lucking something that was never lucky at all!"
"…Is that just a guess, or-"
>[Sake]"Nah-remagicked stuff is usually better than once-magicked! So, gonna help me?"
"How exactly can I help?"
>[Sake]"I need some of your blood so I can bath in it, get Ramidreju luck in it, then I'll soak the clovers in that, and sleep on them for seven days! That'll put the luck back in, and it'll probably stick!"
"So you just need my blood?"
>[Sake]"Well, I'm gonna use a bunch of your bleedoff soul energy to do all this, but you already give me that. Wanna watch?"
"Yes-I won't deny that Luck Magic is something I'm quite interested in. Will I be able to see the process?"
>[Sake]"Um… not unless you change your binding so that you can only sense luck magic inside of souls, and not just souls in general, I think."
I look to HB on my shoulder, knowing how he feels about me picking non-regenerative orientations.
>[HB]"…How long will the initial ritual take?"
>[Sake]"Hm… two hours?"
>[HB]"I find this tolerable."
…Aaaaand binding changed to exactly that as I promptly slice open my hand and fill a cooking pot with my blood. What follows is decidedly fascinating to me-for one, I learn that Sake's fur is hydrophobic specifically to blood, and with my binding switched, I see… something… a glimmer of glitter and pizzazz, flash made substance venting from the weasel's fur and into the swirling crimson fluid, building slowly, with every wiggle imparting just a bit more of this nebulous something that I have to assume is luck. After a quarter hour of thorough bathing Sake hauls himself out, careful not to spill any of the charged sanguine fluids, and tosses in his harvest of several dozen four leaf clovers. From there, Sake promptly starts desiccating the pot with a slow-moving wind manipulation, reducing the pot's contents more and more, until only a ruddy paste is left atop the impacted leaves. From there, Sake meticulously licks up the paste, one by one revealing the now browned leaves, looking particularly plump-and infused with that same almost-sparkle that I now know to be spiritual luck, concentrated from the liters of fluid that had originally housed it. Interestingly, licking them clean seems to increase the luck in them-perhaps some is being transmitted through Sake's saliva? Finally, with each and every leaf cleaned, Sake gathers them all up, drops them in his personalized sleeping donut, curls up…. and goes to sleep.

I'll go ahead and assume the ritual's over now-and I switch my binding back to regeneration rather promptly.
>[SB]"I find it curious how much like cooking that was."
Yeah-I had assumed rituals had some common themes to them, but… based on this, I have to reassess that. There's commonalities, sure, but few in terms of specifics. The similarities are more in the need for input, either in components, actions, environmental effects or something like that, along with… let's call it programming, in the form of runes, specific methods of using components, spoken chants, what have you. …It's less of a branch of magic, like, say, Fire Manipulation, and more an entire school of it.
>[SB]"Agreed. It seems similar to Chakra in that respect.""
Yeah-absolutely massively broad, and unlikely to ever be fully mastered unless I've got a few dragons in my pocket or something equally ridiculous.

I help myself to a cup of coffee in the kitchen, pour HB a saucer of energy drink, and ponder Ritual magic in general, wondering just what I'd want to specialize in, to get appreciable returns for study. Eventually giving that up as a wash thanks to my lack of a concrete purpose with the magic just yet, I decide to check in with Sometimes Merchant-he wanted to talk to me about a few things, as I recall. Popping down into the sewers, I'm accosted rather immediately by my 'favorite' Goblin. Interestingly, his mask isn't sporting an indulgent or smug look today.
>[SM]"Do I need to remind you of my already stated wish to eschew work for or associated with the higher powers?"
What is he-
>[RRRRRR Trait activated]
Ah-
"Just because Lyubov's associated with Tesla doesn't mean I do his bidding, or otherwise act in his name. Or is such an indirect link as that an issue? If so, I'd have to question why Ogrimmir's influence on me is acceptable, but this is not."
The fitful glow of his ever burning halo flickers-and the pensive-looking mask shifts into a more normal grin.
>[SM]"So long as you retain that view, then there's no issue."
"Good to know. And the actual reason you wanted to speak to me?"
>[SM]"Two things: First, a query as to whether we can strike a Bargain. …Do you know anything about who let out an ever-expanding Hydra deep beneath the surface?"
"I wish I could say I did, as I imagine you'd value that information."
>[SM]"…Indeed. Well, if your awareness of the topic changes, do let me know. The second topic… a potential contract, one with a rather vast award: A complete imprint of my tribe's awareness of Goblinic practices: Wyld Goblin Footwork, Ventriloquism, Dark-Wearing, Trap-Making, Charm-Crafting, Cooking, Tracking, Animal Husbandry and Martial Arts. All said and done, several millennia worth of learning in the arts of the most… discreet… species of goblin."
"I say that's a hell of an offer and we both know it. Now what's so desirable you'd offer something like that?"
>[SM]"We wish you to slay the Meat Circus for us, with an item of our making."
"…To be absolutely clear, so there's no chance of miscommunication-"
>[SM]"Of course."
"You're asking if I'll take a contract to use a Goblin weapon to strike down Meat Circus, onetime piece of Amen, current integral part of SugarSkull's Arena, itself owned by a collection of Dragons, thereby crippling the arena and earning said Dragon's-and SugarSkull's ire, alongside the entire no doubt massive audience and competitors of the Arena?"
>[SM]"Hence why we offer the sum total of our Tribe's knowledge. And we both know that if you can orchestrate the assassination discreetly, the primary risk-that of vengeance after the fact-will be a nonissue."
I rub my chin at that. It's a stupidly dangerous offer even for me, but that payment…
"Hypothetically speaking, say I accept the contract: Would there be a timeframe?"
>[SM]"Within two fortnights."
"Mm-hm. And would I get any backup, like you provided for that Hobgoblin job?"
>[SM]"We would be willing to invest thirteen goblins in providing a distraction, but no direct aid, no."
"And this weapon-how easily would it kill Meat Circus?"
>[SM]"You are wondering if assassination is possible, or if the killing would be a battle? The weapon will slay Meat Circus in a single strike-but this must be delivered inside of the circus-not to the exterior."
"So if I wanted to be stealthy about it, I'd need a way to get back out wholly undetected, from a dying demi-plane entity… hm."
>[SM]"I can tell you're quite conflicted-you have time, yet, to consider the offer. Just know that if you accept, you will have to finish the mission-once the weapon is in your hands you cannot renege."
"…Got it. That it?"
>[SM]"For business? Yes. Beyond that-I was wondering if you would like to watch some of our tribesman in their efforts to integrate your teachings on modern weapons into our preferred combat styles?"
"…Would my pay be anything beyond my own learning of your new style by observation?"
>[SM]"No."
"…Sure, let's see what they've been working on."

Turns out… they've been working on quite a bit. I-and HB in triplicate-watch them use guns in a manner I find ingenious-they hide from the Attention that their gunfire draws, rather than using silencers. Careful observation only tells me that it's an evolved form of Attention avoidance-
>[RRRRRR Trait activated]
Until I realize I'm looking at the external version of Attention avoidance that goblin footwork provides. I'll need to test it thoroughly myself sometime to be certain, but… I think they're disassociating themselves from the shot's sound on some magical level, and it lets them simply not be detected as the originator of the shot. That said… since they're still standing where the gunfire comes from, a canny mind that actually is familiar with firearms will know that, detection or no, the shots came from a specific direction-and return fire doesn't explicitly need a detected foe to work. HB agrees with my assessment, and we mull over potential ways to move to most economically get out of the danger zone after successfully shunting shot-attention… only to have SM interrupt our internal conversation.
>[SM]"You've been watching them for hours now-so? Whatever your current thoughts on the implementation would be considered fair payment for the viewing."
"…I think that it's a great external use of Attention-diversion, but I think that the footwork is being neglected too much, and will lead to reflexive return fire still being a threat."
The Merchant cups his hand, nodding at the squad that's been demonstrating for us in a shadowed room of nebulous proportions, who all promptly fade from sight and perception.
>[SM]"…I see. Yes, that makes sense-in fact, I find that council valuable enough I must make an admission to balance the scales: I, and most of the older magical community, still have trouble thinking about what kind of weapon a firearm IS, on the field of battle. Yes… one truly doesn't need skill to be dangerous with it-a phrase with two meanings, and I fear I neglected the less-known of the two."
The shadows around us reverberate with a chuckle as my Soul Shadow's presence swaddles us all.
>[SB]"Indeed-It's not that they are just easy for the untrained to be dangerous with, but that they present danger to a skilled fighter OUTSIDE of purposeful, competent use, and that must be warded against as well."
HB perks up at that.
>[HB]"Truly? I had not considered this, due to the woefully slow speed of the attacks 'guns' generate. But… magic can accelerate them, can it not? I give you my thanks, Shadowed Soul."
>[SB]"While your appreciation is noted, it is the Goblin's reaction that I am interested in."
>[SM]"Indeed-and I'm happy to note that since I came to this realization and alluded to it prior to your comment, I owe you nothing."
>[SB]"Oh, I'm well aware. Does that conclude your business with us for the moment?"
>[SM]"It does. Shall I return you to beside Amen?"
"Not quite yet. I assume you've verified the information I provided about Chugainov by this point."
>[SM]"Ah, the dear general… yes, we have, though regrettably Jidkova is now dead and irrevocable unusable, rather than simply isolated and distrusted. A pity."
"Which doesn't change the fact that-"
>[SM]"We owe you something of value in turn for it on confirmation, yes. Do you have a field of reward in mind?"
"I happen to be looking for a skilled and discreet memory manipulated talented at copying and safely installing memories and skills. What can you do for me in that category?"
The mask flickers speculatively, the flames as hesitant as the eventually offered answer.
>[SM]"…I believe the only fair trade I can offer, given that, is to offer you the name of an imminently helpful and… cheerful… individual quite prodigal in the realm of Mind Manipulation-a first generation bloodliner by the name of Katz Obermensch. He is not interested in making money, but rather copying-solely for personal use-new memories and skills. So long as you do not have anything you refuse to let a… tight lipped individual possess without the intention to vend or gift, then Katz could fulfill your needs gratis, provided they are regularly new to him."
"And if I do ask him to move primarily things he knows?"
>[SM]"He will grow bored and eventually refuse. He will not reject future proposals out of hand, however."
SM hands me a slip of paper with a phone number on it."
>[SM]"I am required to ask you not bandy his name about widely-he prefers to not be notorious. Is that acceptable?"
"That is agreeable."
And just like that I'm back home, and a glance at the sky shows it deep into the dark of night. Smirking at the free seed of growth for Attention-Sense and it's applications I got out of that, I wonder about the second truly massive job placed on my plate, as I head in and get some sleep.

MONDAY, MARCH 7th, 2011
PERSONAL FUNDS: $3,233,660.00
BUSINESS FUNDS: $9,672,864.00
CASH: $0.00
SHADOW PATIENCE: 65%
WINTER ENERGY: 160
SUMMER ENERGY: 50/50

>>467550
Again dude, HB cannot yet make time-dilated soul-bubble worlds or anything of the sort-he can just make soul bubbles, that's it.
I wake up to find Lyubov getting out of bed to head out for a jog-seems she got thoroughly hooked on those early morning runs thanks to Camella, and I wave goodbye to her before getting ready for the day. I find that, interestingly, it's not the new goblinic practices awaiting investigation for potential application I want to look into-no, it's something far simpler, and broader. I've heard of and seen Zhenya trying to learn of Strength from Duke-and I've seen the results. I know that, whether she fully grasps it or not, the man is teaching her the foundations of Conceptual Strength Manipulation, such as he knows it-and that's something I'm very interested in. Were I to couple that with truly overcharged chakra… I wonder, I wonder, just how much strength would I have?
>[IT]"A dangerous, dangerous, dangerous amount. The realm of Conceptual manipulation is vast-and perilous for far more reasons than you might suspect. As to what those manifold, oft-hidden reasons might be? Well… I am, after all, the working of a Trickster God: How would I be living up to old Rabbit's way if I simply told you?"
I grab a bottle of Pheonix-heart infused vodka from the still in Vlad's room while I mull over-and discard-the warning. The realm of Conceptual magic is too.. too powerful, to likely to let me strive for the heights of dragons for me to discard for a vague warning. As I make my way through the house to Duke's current haunt, I can't shake the sense of laughter coming from the gun at my side.

On finding Duke lounging on a sofa and watching K-1 reruns and constantly heckling the fighting, I toss him the filled cup as I sit down beside him.
"Duke."
>[Duke]"Armas."
"You appreciate to the point discourse, yeah?"
>[Duke]"Always."
"I'm looking to learn how to use Conceptual Strength, and think I could take… proper lessons in it, unlike Zhenya-who, by the way, I appreciate the baby gloves on."
Mid-guzzle of the gallon container I lofted his way, Duke shoots me an uncharacteristically appraising eye.
>[Duke]"Normally I wouldn't give a fuck, but you are the guy giving house and booze for my use-you know that it's more than just brain damage, learning a Concept, right?"
I shrug with a lax grin on my face at his not-quite concern.
"I already brute force learned the Concept of Today, and applied it to my Soulbinding."
A wide grin spreads lips over equally wide teeth as Duke's visage goes positively predatory.
>[Duke]"Well now… if you're willing to spend a fuckton of time regenerating from and during my lessons… yeah, I'll give teaching you my tricks of Strength a shot."
"Excellent."

I already know what's coming when I see him move to drain the last of the bottle.
"Though I'd prefer to not unduly damage the house in the process."
He pauses at that-I head off whatever that frown building on his face precipitates.
"I'm thinking different venue. You got a place in mind, or would 'in the woods' be good enough for you?"
With a final swallow he finishes the brew and sets to thinking.
>[Duke]"…Mm. Owner's pretty big on keeping magic quiet, and to teach you proper, I'm gonna be… loud. So… fuck, let's go to the Undersewers, plenty of big enough places, with no one to hide from. …Where should we-"
>[HB]"I know of several locations where beings of considerable might could privately spar in the Undersewers."
Before I can think about how many questions I have about that statement, Duke claps his hands and gets up.
>[Duke]"Right then, let's go to whichever's closest."
>[HB]"I believe that Duke will need to carry my giant, if you wish to make good time-it is a considerable distance to even the closest, for those not blessed with wings and aerial swiftness."
>[SB]"Or… I could just shadowport the both of you. I've determined that Duke's hail enough I can move him without causing actual damage with my current ability, and I've…. been around the dark. Are you thinking of the canyone beside Enkidu's Necropolis?"
>[HB]"The same-it has no occupants at the moment."
>[Duke]"Hah, a ride through the Dark? Let's do it!"
Shadow rises about the both of us-

[DISCONTINUITY]

We arrive in an underground grand canyon, the walls sable and softly glowing with an inner light, the air murky, as if forever fogged, with the towering walls of the canyon miles apart. It is an underground wasteland, quiet and desolate-

Duke displays his appreciation for it with a pleased roar before turning to me.
>[Duke]"Well kid, wussy lessons or real, the method's the same-I'm going to beat my understanding into you, and make your body understand what it means to be strong. You ready?"

He doesn't wait for a response before charging my way. Instinctively, I ply Overcharged Reinforcement, Hummer's Momentum and Dunter Footwork to throw myself away from the coming blow-only to see Duke frowning at me, his momentum halted as suddenly as it began.
>[Duke]"Learning's no place for that sissy dodging shit-you get beat with, and you rage out with Strength to learn it-you don't run away from it!"
"That would be easier to accommodate if I could actually see your real strikes coming."
>[Duke]"Wha… ah. The Glamor. Sure, I can do that. …Heh, not like anyone'll see."
The man that has almost always looked like an aged, tanned caucasion with dignified grey hair swept back and matching his white suit plucks something from his chest… and transforms. An aquiline nose becomes a repeatedly broken mass of gnarled, bulbous flesh. A svelte jaw becomes ponderous and primal. A graceful neck bulges like a bull's-and hair blackens darker than shadow, spreading rampantly across the formerly clean jaw. Everywhere, the body bulges, ditching dignity and aesthetic for muscle, for power, for strength and raw force. A discarded charm is tossed to Hummingbird, as Duke, now finally visible as Li Kui, the Iron Ox, the Black Whirlwind hefts his pair of axes and smiles at me.
>[Li Kui]"Aaaah…."
His breath does not steam, nor does smoke come from his mouth-instead, a foreboding sense of weight, of Attention compressed into something new wafts from his mouth, shaking the magical vapors whizzing across the room.
>[Li Kui]"Okay. Now-lesson time. And don't you be a bitch and dodge-you can take it."

What follows….

Is pain.
>[GAMBLER'S GRIM GUTS advances into the level four trait GAMBLER's GRIM GUTSY GUMPTION!]
>[GGGG now allows Armas to rapidly adapt to any form of pain at unnatural speed-no form of mundane torture can effect him, and any static forms of pain will fade from distracting him within one minute, and can only incapacitate him for a handful of seconds! Magically induced pain can still breach this if specialized.]

Immense amounts of pain that redefine how I view the notion of agony.
>[GAMBLER'S GRIM GUTSY GUMPTION ascends into the level five trait GAMBLER'S GRITTY GRIM GUTSY GUMPTION!]
>[GGGGG allows Armas to acclimatize to curse pain and magical pain as well-and provided enough time, any magically induced pain placed by something less potent than a dragon will eventually fade to fully ignorable levels!]
SUMMER ENERGY: 0/50
I don't come close to actually fighting Duke-no, what I did, what I was there for, was to have 'Strength' beaten into me… and having been subjected to it, I think I understand, at least in part, why. Between the endless regeneration from body-crushing damage, I got a glimpse of it-a sense of what's beyond the horizon, past 'all my strength'…. and in it, I see a shadow of that same… something… I've come to recognize within 'Today'. I can't quite tell just WHAT it is yet-but it's there, and I can detect it in every blow that Duke strikes me with, every casual time he drives fist through bone, flesh and stone alike. But after a four hour session as brutal as anything I've every even dreamt of, something that disabused me of the last of my silly human views on pain's importance, I know that there's definitely something to learn here.

Strangely enough, it's Duke himself who stops the lesson the moment he notices I have a headache even after regenerating-and says I should wait a few days before the next lesson. SB brings us back to the mansion after assuring me he and HB will take care of the many splatters and parts of my body I left behind. So, having showered and re-dressed myself, and with an empty Summer bloodline… I decide to follow up on that Roc Hunting idea, because it's awesome, and will see my Summer Line fully recharged. I thank Duke-now once more disguised-for the lesson, and start preparing. Let's see….

Roc1:---II can't say that I found an actual nest with multiple Rocs, since my Allview Souls (Shall I call them Viewers?) can't get too close. Seems even with concerted effort, the best my Viewers can do is determine which thunderstorms have Rocs in them-not the number, the specific location, or spiritual information. I'd either need to give them all massively inflated spiritual perception-the likes of which would rupture their souls as is-or build some sort of electrical ward-piercing function into the Allview. Point is, I'm not getting more detailed information than 'Rocs over yonder!'
Roc2:--- I'll want a Soul Guise that's appropriate for hunting… so, not just 'Don't notice me', but a variant that wouldn't feel like prey. After all, it seems safe to assume at least some magical critters mask their presence spiritually-and I don't want to overlap with them and get attacked. So… I'm thinking 'patch of dirty hail in the storm', what with the nearest storm sector containing Rocs being in an area where it's snowing and hailing. It's not perfect, not at all-but for something they won't even be able to properly notice, it should be good enough to close the distance.
Roc3:---It's pretty much guaranteed they'll be in the air-they're in stormclouds, and while the nearest identified 'nest' is in a mountainous region, weather reports don't put the cloud coverage's bottom near enough to the peaks to matter. So I'm going to, effectively… be riding Sake. Good thing he's got energy to spare. Speaking of Sake, I'll probably want to abuse his magic tripping shenaniganery-I imagine abruptly being upside down is bad for Rocs just like it is for most anything else. …Fuckall chance to do shadow-pinning: Midair, there's nothing to cast the shadow on, and the ground's far too distant for long range pinning.
Roc4:---Since even the closest will take hours to reach by Sakeflight, there's no real way I can bring Hillevi (Sake's told me she's far too heavy for him to lift), so no freezing the thunderstorm funtimes. A pity, but it looks like this job's mine and my brothers, and no one elses. ..Well, HB can come too.
Roc4:---I'm not knowledgeable about Rocs, not enough to actually bait them-so this will be a good old fashion 'locate, kill and retrieve' hunting trip, no staking out a trap with bait or anything like that. Which is good, as that can get pretty time consuming.

With my four critical details about how I'll approach the hunt figured out, I recheck my Viewer's findings, note the nearest storm's slowly drifting away, relative to Istanbul, and decide there's no time like the present.
"Oy, Sake!"
A green blur flies into the room as I strap Iron Trick and the Mere to my person. HB, as ever sitting on my tie's knot, simply watches in silence.
>[Sake]"Yeah yeah, what's going on?"
"You could fly me, right?"
>[Sake]"Oh totally!"
"Great-we're going Roc hunting."
>[Sake]"Ooooh, right now?"
"You know it. You coming HB?"
There is a burst of wind from wings far too tiny for the deed, as a glittering bit of brilliance hums out a reply.
>[HB]"You seek to best and claim those of avian descent that dance in the sky's wrath and have the boldest calls of all…"
A sense of not-heat… no, the idea of heat colors the air about my throat as the diminutive figure atop my tie picks his meaning with care.
>[HB]"…I would lose my claim to having the heart of a true warrior, if I dared refuse such an invitation as this. Onward then, to battle, and glory amidst the tempestuous hunting ground of our foes!"

I would have prepared more after that-double checked plans, maybe tried to finagle a way to bring a cow as bait or something-but honestly, having a hummingbird give a psych-up speech, however brief, is enough for me: We're gone with the wind.

With Sake wrapped about my waist like a belt, the four of us(Sake, Hummingbird, Iron Trick and myself) swiftly ascend to the skies and make haste to the north-north-east, to a storm some ninety miles out with exactly the weather we need, and Allview consistently pinging as being near certain to have Rocs. I find, on arrival, that being unshielded in a raging thunderstorm stuffed with hail and rampaging rain several thousand miles above the surface is a bit stiffer conditions than I had really anticipated-makes sense, since I didn't sit down and pull a Satai before heading out. Still, compared to… well, just about anything I've had to deal with recently I ended up labelling 'bad'… it's hardly a problem. Ignoring the stinging, the cold, the biting chill and all, my Soul Guise proves no issue to maintain. And yet, even with myself fully occluded and enduring of the weather, my search is hardly easy-or swift. The storm is, simply put, massive-and the Rocs aren't to be found in the heart, as I'd initially anticipated. What's most interesting is that while I can detect the Roc's souls-both of them-I simply can't get a stable read on them. Their souls appear for the barest instant, and flicker away long before even a second passes, leaving me to wait for their next appearance. It takes hours, but I eventually find out why they've been so uncannily difficult to pin down: They come with the lightning. It's HB who makes the discovery, with one of the many probe bodies he scattered through the storm, though he is ashamed he didn't capture it. What he saw proves fascinating: The Rocs appear within the lightning bolt's body, and on the bolt's disintegration explode into the thunder's rumbling wave, washing over the land. It seems that their cry truly is thunder-and when so uttering it, they become the very sound they roar. While the new detail of Roc Physiology and Magical nature is fascinating, it reveals the task of capturing them as genuinely challenging-something that seems to endlessly please the Hummingbird. He is more helpful, more willing to take action than I have ever seen throughout the entirety of this hunting trip-and eventually, his efforts yield fruit. For tireless huors he swarms the storm with hummingbirds, pushing his will to its limits without a single hint of complaint or hesitation. One of his many bodies is at ground zero for a lightning bolt, and one of the Roc's manifests nearly on top of it. Though destroyed in the process, the hummingbird body manages to puncture the Roc's shoulder, the unexpected wound cancelling it's cry before it's fully formed, knocking it whole and soul-sensible out of the now vanishing finger of lightning. No longer riding the storm's most flash attributes, the bird, the size of a full-sized airplane, shakes feathers of ball lightning loose-that whiz with unnatural precision around the bird. A shield of electrical harm, malleable to it's will as it may be…. prove inadequate. Before I can get close enough with Sake to assist, HB has brought his entire swarm to the defensive Roc… and a war of attrition was fought with great alacrity. By the time I arrive, the remaining seventeen hummingbirds are flying an orbit around a slowly plummeting body…. and the storm around us begins to break up.

When SB confirms Whaitiri's ready (and that she can't tap my soul runoff to boost the ritual), I plunge the mere into the Roc's heart, the corpse and the remaining soulstuff within being fed to the Maori Cannibal Goddess. She chants in a tongue most certainly alien to Te Reo and nonsensical to my understanding as the roc's body is consumed by the gem-veined blade. As the last feather is sucked in Whaitiri's chanting, singing out of the blade, reaches its crescendo, my mouth opening of its own accord. I roar out!

And bring the thunder.
[SUMMER BLOODLINE NOW CAN BE USED TO CREATE THUNDER!]
Gain some familiarity with it to explore indirect applications down the line!
SUMMER ENERGY: 55/55

Pleased with the ritual's simplicity and directly observable reward, my throat now capable of creating ear-shattering roars, thundering screams and shattering glass/knocking things over with pressure waves, I watch the storm dissolve around us. The Hummingbird refuses to admit to being let down that we never were able to track down the other Roc we sometimes detected-it seems it left with the storm. With day having turned to night hours ago during our long search, Sake flies me home, HB reabsorbing his clones en route.

>>468183
On our return, I note that Titus is in today-it must be his off day for guard duty at the Zosimus compound. Seeing him diligently tinkering with new renditions of his ever-evolving gauntlets, I blink at the spiritual shadow imprinted on the many gems on his table. Recalling his mention of meeting some form of Lightning Entity in the park, and the imprint itself feeling shocking, I decide my interest has been piqued enough I'm looking to arrange a meeting. I sidle up to the man in utter silence, and wait until he's not handling something easily broken.
"Hey!"
Predictably, Titus starts, his fingers twitching enough one of the shaped pieces of nomex falls to the workbench beneath his hands. He manages to offer a passable smile when he turns to me.
>[Titus]"…Mr. Laine. Can I help you with something?"
"Indeed you can Titus. I've found myself looking to arrange a meeting with Karganya-for myself, and Lyubov, if she's amenable to it."
I can feel the sudden tension in his soul as he works to choose his words carefully.
>[Titus]"…Sir, you are aware that Lyubov's the Witch Saint of a God of Electricity, and that Kar… the Lightning Spirit is, well, made of Lightning?"
"You're saying she'd be worried about what Lyubov might do to her? …Hm, not knowing Lyubov I could see how the Spirit would come to that conclusion. Can't fault it either-simple self preservation. Okay-is there a specific protocol for the spirit's kind, in regards to how her concerns could be alleyed, and the meeting be rendered permissable? I'm fairly certain it'd be mutually beneficial to all."
>[Titus]"I can certain bring it up to her and see what the options are."
"That's all I need. Let me know how that goes, okay?"
>[Titus]"I will."
I Item Sense the complete sets of gauntlets as of yet assembled at his workstation.
"And solid work there-they're feeling more along the lines of professionally crafted magic items now."
He blinks at the unexpected complement, mouth working for a moment before he glances sheepishly at his work.
>[Titus]"They… they are? I had hoped, but… that's good to-"
When he turns around I'm out of his field of view, having idly decided to Goblin Step my way out of the room.

Have to have a little fun, after all.

Next, I have a chat with Svetlana, and explain to her the access we've acquired to AORB's threat databases. Once I've made it clear it's effectively like a compendium of dangerous critters with useful information, she seems wholly onboard with the project I give her, of perusing the database and working with Satai to beef up the companies personal threat database. It helps that it's really just data compilation and acquisition, stuff she's more familiar with than the majority of the magical stuff she's been subjected to. I imagine she finds the notion of this project comforting, in a way-and her soul lends credence to my theory. I tell her to see what they have on the Triads, Mafia, Neonazis, Istanbul-based Vampire Dynasties, Were Tribes and Bloodline Houses, as well as the Wyld Goblins. Past there… she can look up whatever threats she deems most appropriate. I also introduce her to Smiling One's website, and give her a brief overview of the fact I'm putting together a techno-organic mobile defensive unit, and I currently need a Cyclops' Eye to finish the project. While she views the site's overall theme a bit askance, she seems on board with the idea of getting parts for a home defense unit. …Ah, creative phrasing: I love it.

With that done, I go to the Khorobrova I'm far more acquainted with, intent on some sexytimes-to find she's got an alternative idea for the night that I can't help but find intriguing… or at least, I eventually do.
[Lyubov] “So. I have been talking to Silja, and I told her about an outing I had with Placid, out to the modern museum. And um. We talked about him, some, and his abilities. She was very impressed, and wondered if it would be ok if she could meet him, and get his help with... finishing.“
Awakening Silja… it's a goal I can't just brush off, no matter where I hear it.
"Hm. Yes... I can see how that could work. You really think she'd be okay with that? He is a bit... inhuman."
[Lyubov]"She asked, which is a big thing for her all in itself. She is not used to being assertive at all. I did tell her that she would need to know exactly what she would like from him. He is only a month old now. She sort of seemed, uh. Hesitant, initially, about that. I get the feeling she tried hard to not be a burden in her first life. But I made it pretty clear she has to be explicit about what she wants if she gets help from Placid. And she's been thinking it over, anyway."
"Wow. Well, if she's for it, then yes, we should look into that. ...I'd still want to get her a bit more development though-I don't know if you can sense it, but her body is still... crying out, I suppose, for nourishment. Plus, we'll need to find out what Placid needs to finish this-not to mention concretely nailing down exactly what she wants to ask for is probably going to take her time. But yeah, I completely endorse this when both parties are ready to avoid unfortunate miscommunication."
[Lyubov]“I... uh. Will get a whole bunch of magazines and anatomy books and stuff for her to look at. So she can be sure she gets what she wants for looks. The rest, the way all the magic in her flesh manifests and ends up being put to use, that will depend on how her development finalizes, right?"
"I believe so. Spiritual reincarnation from and into a vessel like that... well, I'm afraid I don't have much experience with it. ...But, as interesting as that is, that is not at all relevant to why we can't have a very fun night right now, so..."
I find my attempts to get at the sexytimes I sought stymied, my hands brushed aside-as Lyubov gets to her really topic.
[Lyubov]"Oh! Wait. I know you stood Gianni up for a good reason last night and all, but, when I went to talk to him about it and make sure he wasn't offended by us bailing at the last minute, he mentioned that. Uh- wow you're grabby tonight- that he could help me... um. Get familiar again with my chakras."
…'Stood up'. Yes, I suppose that's right-even though I only did so because a certain brother promised mutual suicide if I investigated things like that.
>[SB]"Indeed I did-and the threat still stnads."
I let my hands stall out as I process what Lyubov just said, not just the start of it.
"As in you could actually use them again?"
[Lyubov]"Yeah. He and Dávgon talked about me a bit and my chakra issue came up apparently- well, anyway, Gianni's pretty sure if he just... manipulated... each chakra gate's seat in my body, he'd be able to show me what changed, and then I could just, you know. Adapt what I've learned already, to my new format. But. Uh... he'd need to... get grabby."
I wiggle my fingers enthusiastically.
"And you're thinking if someone's gotta be grabby..."
[Lyubov]"Mmm. Yeah. And... also, this is kind of something you'd enjoy anyway. I mean, you brought up the idea of doing something sort of like this in front of everyone last month. And, I'll get to watch what you're doing. I've got a good handle on reading what you- ah… Gianni's all-mortal magic is like a foreign language to me right now."
"And if I'm the channel for that magic, it gets switched to divine..."
[Lyubov]"That's what I mean!"
I lower my hands, bow my head, and make another head bow as well with a bit of fleshcrafting prowess. There, now I can focus.
"Okay, shall we then?"
[Lyubov]"Yeah. He said he'd wait a bit tonight to see what we decide on. So we can catch him right now."

Turns out Gianni's already heard about SB's promise-from SB himself, I can only assume-and doesn't even bring up the missed lesson. Instead, the three of us sequester ourselves in the soundproofed room, as Gianni lays his hands on me, I lay my hands on Lyubov… and a bit of bodily puppetry takes place. I intake Gianni's magical signals, parse them through my own magic, and put them into motion. My hands move, caress and glide-and I feel the tendrils of magic spiking from my fingertips to tease about her chakras in tune with GIanni's own salacious but informative dialogue. It seems there's been a bevy of small but, cumulatively, important changes to her chakras thanks to the Witchification, and Gianni walks her through the every detail of the difference through me. It takes a few hours, actually, to go over them all-but by the end, Lyubov's ecstatic: She's fully regained her old chakra competence in her new form. Perhaps it is because of this change, then, that she's so keen on her very first suggestion, the moment we leave Gianni's room-while I'm still mulling over what I learned about identifying chakras in other's bodies and interacting with them via Fleshcrafting. Seeing no one else up and about-and presuming them all off at Ito's by their absence-I decide that her suggestion has merit, and we head off to see Ito's after a brief conversation.
[Lyubov] "Thank you for helping with that. I learned an awful lot during that, about myself and my chakra gates, and about how you and Gianni formed that conduit for channeling his efforts into you. And... I am pretty certain I could copy that now. So, uh, I'd really like to try it, and I think I know something we can do that will give it a test, and make up for things with Ito. Since, um. You did send most of Old Master's instructors away to Italy."
Funny how she still calls him Old Master. She’s grown leaps and bounds in the two months since I first heard her use that title for Ito, though in our way, all of us have.
"What, you want to tweak his gates?"
[Lyubov] "Yeah, and... maybe finish what Sake started? I mean, he is in much better shape now, but, couldn't you. You know. Make him like he's your age? That way he'd be able to keep up with the student overload he's got right now. If I channeled for you, I'd learn from it, and he'd benefit just the same."
"Channeling FOR me would bloat up your magic real fast though. On the other hand, if you... I guess programmed me? Yeah, programmed me to provide the fleshcrafting, I could do it, effectively at your will. But that doesn't grant you the necessary knowledge of how to do the fleshcrafting...This seems a bit like a catch-22. Thoughts?"
[Lyubov] "I need a way to bleed off some of the energy I've got... but I've got my actual chakras again, not just the divine emulation of the reinforcement orientation. If I can get an orientation up that's expensive to run, and that pushes my gates... I don't know. It would depend on if I could do it and bleed off energy at least as fast as it accumulates... Right? I think that's right, anyway."
"That could take quite a bit of time. Why don't you just watch me Fleshcraft Ito this time, and then you can try your hand at the programming thing for someone else, later. Otherwise, you have to learn new ways to use chakra, and that'd be even more time consuming."
She gives it some serious consideration. I can see how she’s torn well before she verbalizes it.
[Lyubov] "Well, that's fine too. I just. Um. Want to try out what I'm learning and everything, but yeah, I can't just let that be a reason to throw caution to the wind. It's just I noticed I learned a lot more in a lot more detail from being involved in that conduit you and Gianni set up. Maybe there's some way to have the best of both sides, where I can be part of just your intent, while you push the majority of your power through a direct connection to Ito. Like, you guiding me guide you, I guess?"
Maybe it’s because we just finished a multi-hour session where I got to grope her openly in front of someone else, but a rather naughty thought strikes. I can't help but leer a bit.
"Well, if you were stuck reeeeaaal close to me, you'd probably read the spiritual radiation I've got going on, and pick up the spellwork in more detail from that."
At first she seems like she’d go for it, and then the full meaning of what I’m implying strikes her.
[Lyubov] "I- um. Wait. What are you- you're not-“
I leer a little more at her.
[Lyubov] “-you are! In front of Ito!? No, nope! No way!"
"Damn. Worth a shot."
[Lyubov] "He wouldn't go for it, never mind me! He'd just kick us out."
"Fine. Observation for later practice it is, then?"
[Lyubov] "I think so. Unless Ito doesn't want me present. In which case... I'll just miss out, I guess. I’ll get dressed and we’ll go."
I guess she feels that keeping good relations with Ito is worth sacrificing a learning opportunity, if he wouldn’t be comfortable with it.

I continue to review what I learned from Gianni tonight while she gets changed, and it isn’t long before we’re moseying along to Ito’s dojo. We arrive just as the night students are getting ready to go home. We say a few very brief hellos, and approach Ito as he packs away training gear for the night. Lyubov launches right into her spiel.
Interestingly, when we arrive at the Gym… no one's there-at least, none of the Russians. Ito spots us promptly, and with the gregarious energy that has possessed him ever since Sake's rubbing, he decisively pauses the lesson he's giving the fledgling vampires, Iskander and the rest, and jogs over to us. Before he can open his mouth, Lyubov starts babbling.
[Lyubov] "Hello Ito! I know it's just about the time you wrap up everything for the night and all, but Armas and I did a thing where he helped me with my chakras and we got to talking and I thought that you could benefit from something like that too. And then we talked some more and we thought maybe you could get, uh, everything done so that you'd have a body that's just as good as when you were my age and, uh. Armas could do that if you want, and if it's OK with you I'd really like to observe while he does so, so I can learn what he's doing and be able to do it in the future myself, for myself and others and yeah. What do you think?"

Ito's face takes on that look I knew best from when he was fully an old man, his youth-inspired exuberance stifled in the face of Lyubov's onslaught.
>[Ito]"...You offer more youth?"
[Lyubov] "Yeah."
His eyes sparkle with... not mirth, but anticipation. He grabs both of our arms, and promptly drags us to another room before sliding the door shut.
>[Ito]"What must I do for this to happen?"
I shrug affably at him.
"Well, just give me skin contact, and a bit of your time... and hold still."
The process is time consuming for me-and with all my attempts thus far at comprehensive fleshcrafting alteration to others, I have to focus wholly on the task. I pick principles I learned from rehashing the Kudoku bugs to better handle their new souls, the alterations I've learned to make in claiming flesh golems, my endless experience at healing myself-all of it swirls together as I continue to target aged cells and render them more vigorous than they already are, shaving bit after bit of age's weight off of Ito. I couldn't quite say how long, exactly, I'm at it-but when I'm done, Lyubov joins me in running an appraising eye over a now thirty-something year old Ito, who looks reverently at genuinely unwrinkled, hardy flesh. With him now physically back in his prime in addition to his literal lifetime of fitness, there's no denying he now looks like a paragon of healthy living-which strikes at odds with how swiftly he grabs a bottle of sake and offers us some dozen odd shots worth of cheer and thanks. Seems whatever irritation he may or may not have had about the reduction in accessible military instructors isn't bothering him a whit anymore-and I make no secret of how happy I am for him. After watching his lessons-and how readily he's terrorizing vampires-every one of them, no matter that some are most certainly not quite so fledgling-with nothing more than chakra, experience, and gumption.

Lyubov and I head back to the mansion after giving Ito the gift of even more youthful vigor-and seriously questioning if this was a good idea-and find….

The moment I open the mansion's door, I'm bombarded by the soul of a wolf wrought of rage and violence, chained, shackled to a human soul that buckles under it's terrible weight-and at the same time, the person is… at peace with their burden, in a strangely captivating fashion he's accepted it so well the weight doesn't bother him as it should-rather, the soul has the illusion of oppression by the shackled wolf. Blinking at the influx of new spiritual data, I hear Lyubov giggling-and spot a naked Labombard on one of the many sofas in the Foyer, a note in Satai's handwriting literally stapled to his forhead. I tear it off the snoozing man's face, idly noting how swiftly the injuring closes-it's near instantaneous-and read Satai's 'report':

Armas: Labombard has quite an appetite (est. 8 tons of food consumed, stocks depleted) but was generous in revelry (speak w/Igor re: marital status if interested). Please make clear whether we will need to feed him regularly so I can increase our food deliveries accordingly.

…Well then.

I glance at Lyubov, still giggling even as she yawns, before shrugging, and deciding I'll deal with it tomorrow. It's time for sleep.

TUESDAY, MARCH 8th, 2011
PERSONAL FUNDS: $3,233,660.00
BUSINESS FUNDS: $9,672,864.00
CASH: $0.00
SHADOW PATIENCE: 65%
WINTER ENERGY: 160
SUMMER ENERGY: 55/55

>>468507
After waking up, I get dressed and call the few Russians not out on missions to the foyer-where Labombard is no longer passed out, I'll need to track him down and follow up at some point-and pose an idea that I woke up to, one that's rattled about my braincase and needs an outlet. Simply put: I propose building backup bodies for everyone, as a personal fleshcrafting project. Unsurprisingly they're initially wary of the idea for a slew of reasons-but that's not the point. What matters is, I convinced enough of them that this is worth serious consideration they'll bandy the idea with their coworkers until it's no longer so strikingly strange to them-so when I ask them again, later… well, I'm confident they'll be interested.

After my groundwork for making the Minions more able to survive… well, death, I head over to Gianni's room, the sighting of one of Satai's RC contraptions inpsiring an interesting set of ideas. On seeing me enter he pulls out a pair of chairs, has a seat, and waits. I begin without preamble, the moment I've joined him.
"I'm curious about perceptual organs, both how they could be implanted in the Golem without overloading a possessor with sensory data, and how they could feed into technological transmitters for creating recordings. Additionally, I want to know if you know of ways to integrate video cameras and assorted conventional sensors into the golem's sensory network."
The easy grin on his face fades a bit as the developing lustful leer in his eye fades at the thought of a complex question. He's silent for a time, idly drumming fingers on his knee, before he responds.
>[GiaGia]"Well. I think that, while I don't actually know much of anything in either of the latter two fields, I do know enough about integrating wholly organic organs to a sensory grid and minimizing extraneous data for a pilot. But that's not at all enough to answer your question."
He cups his chin pensively, a frown tugging at his cheeks.
>[GiaGia]"Although… I do believe I could acquire the necessary knowledge-I know a fleshcrafter that owes me a favor or two, who could put me in touch with a legitimate expert I could get some new memories from. …That said, I'll still need to expend an appreciable amount of capital. So I'd need funding, and time-but I could provide exactly what you need."
"Interesting. How much?"
>[GiaGia]"One hundred thousand dollars should be enough-a trifle to you, as I understand it."
"Sold-when do you expect to know what I need?"
>[GiaGia]"I would venture a week, no more."
The man gets his money-
BUSINESS FUNDS: -$100,000.00 $9,572,864.00

And I can't help but note Dávgon eyeing the process, a question unasked nestled within his soul. Upon staring at him in question, he voices the thoughts that drove his interest.
>[Dávgon]"If we're discussing improvements possible only with funding, I've been talking with Gianni, and we can render these Kudoku bugs as living, reusable charms that we could then embed within the War Golem for a myriad of highly useful effects, that, coupled with the rest of the golem as-is, could finish pushing it into the realm of full combat readiness."
"Is that so?"
>[GiaGia]"My only comment into this little discussion is that little Dávgon here's been very busy plotting out possibilities-I suggest lending him an ear, at the very least."
"Noted. Dávgon-a bit more detail, if you please."
>[Dávgon]"A brief list of possible uses for such ensouled living charms: Charms that target curses and remove them from the host body through their efforts, charms that await specific schools of magic to be used against the golem only to absorb that magic and funnel it towards further fueling the golem. Charms to accelerate the rate of injury repair. Charms to sacrifice themselves as area-specific protections for sensitive parts-for example, charms that would die before the storage tank could rupture, giving it layered durability. Charms that act as network nodes for possessors, filtering incoming data and prioritizing stimulous-or even partially automating the control process above and beyond simple possession experience placed in the soul seed."
"Well you've definitely got my attention with that. But what do you need to do that?"
>[Dávgon]"A bevy of Spirit Shaman and Sami tools specific to soul manipulation, several ritualist tools for handling flesh alteration by spiritual means, a few persistent charms, and some new tomes on general magic theory specific to the purpose of making living charms. All told, I estimate I would need some two million dollars, US, to make all the acquisitions."
It's a decent chunk… but considering how much I've already sunk into the War Golem…
"…Sold."
The man gets his money, amidst a rare moment of emotionality out of the man, where his eyes light up with childlike glee at the thought of all the things he'll soon be able to do.
BUSINESS FUNDS: -$2,000,000.00 $7,572,864.00

>> 471294
After spending some time talking with him about his potential project options after resupplying on my dime, I put in a call to Abloec… by summoning. The old Einher spirit shows up promptly, and I explain that I've got the golem ready for testing, if he can put up with a magically imposed non-disclosure agreement. He puts… quite a bit less thought into it than I'd expected before accepting-and soon enough, Placide's imposed a binding to that effect on Abloec's soul (A process I watched VERY closely), and the ancient, immensely bearded spirit whistles appreciatively at the Golem's current form.
>[Abloec]"I was wondering if the non-disclosure was just a bluff to make this sound more impressive, a way to trick me into giving feedback on a piss-poor project… I see that's not the case. You've done quite a bit of work on this thing, haven't you."
"It's a hobby."
>[Abloec]"Mm… getting hard to tell the disparate parts involve apart now-that's some solid blending you've got going on here. Bet I'm only detecting half or less of what all's even in it. Soul Seed looks sturdy as a central processor, too-I bet it'd be safe for human piloting pretty quickly, with some good initial data."
"Which is where you come in. Do you mind making this first piloting largely diagnostic?"
>[Abloec]"Not a problem-and good to hear you weren't willing to just let me run around and maybe break it thanks to an unforeseen glitch. You need other evaluators here, or are the flesh and soulcrafters with you all you planned?"
"No, I think we're good-if you would be so kind."
What follows is every bit as pleasing, as informative, as it is eerie. I watch a an expert of possession take command of a vastly complex entity I'm intimately familiar with the workings of, and imprint much off of how possession is supposed to work. I watch flesh shift and flow in minute yet manifold ways, passive fleshcrafting enhancing a being's ability past its existing limits, and wonder at how I could grant that to golems I take over from other external fleshcrafters. But most eye-catchingly of all… I see the golem in motion, at last. I see those massive thews on three sets of arms flex and heave, I see racer's legs flex and test the ground, I see a massive tail flicking to and fro, I see it's three heads peer about, their maws letting hooked tongues idly flick free. To see the being move as if alive and self aware is on a fundamental level unsettling even to me-and I know, instinctively, that I've irrevocably fallen in love with my project's promise. There's no way I'll even entertain the notion of stopping this halfway, now that I've seen that it's very operation makes a human mind knee-jerk fear it wholly separate of it's otherworldly physique. Even beneath it's armor, the terrible weight of magic and it's distorted flow of time make it a genuine monster.

Thanking Abloec for his time several hours later, I exit the golem room while making an immediate beeline for the foyer: I can detect Labombard's soul around and about, and I'd very much like to get that explanation. On the way, Amen stops me, briefly, to deliver a card into my hands.
>[Amen]"This was provided by a representative of the Dwarven Dimirken Clan, and addressed to this one's master."
Frowning at that, I open the letter….

To the Master of the group known as the Company of Laine, I am Letel Dimirken, son of Fulgrim Dimirken, son of Harden Dimirken, current head of the Dimirken Clan. I am writing to you in regards to one of your underlings, whose name I understand to be Igor, and my youngest daughter, Patere Dimirken.

Yeah this isn't starting well.

A series of unfortunate events came to a confluence when your underling stumbled into a betrothal negotiation ceremony that was taking place, and was publically witnessed accepting a betrothal offer from my daughter by members of both my clan, those of three other Clans, as well as assorted members of the magical community, including Sir Bonzi, the Leprechaun. This culminated in your underling taking part in the aforementioned ceremony and finalizing it on his own behalf, to thereafter reject it, claiming ignorance, and shamed my Clan in front of all those present, and in that action damaged my daughter's honor. Once wiser heads realized the mistake both she and he had made, he was graciously granted temporary Gold Brother status by the Kheazai clan, so that I would not be honor bound to kill him as soon as I saw him. Our code dictates that his life should be forfeit for this insult regardless… unless you, as his Master, can come to an agreement regarding the handling of this matter with me. To that end, I respectfully request that we meet at your earliest convenience, at the establishment owned by Sir Bonzi, to discuss what shall be done. I am obligated to retain possession of your man until such time as we've resolved the issue his actions created. -Letel Dimirken, Clan Head of the Dimirken. Let your chisel be swift and sure

….
Welp. Igor's been having some fun, it seems. At least my reputation kept that from going COMPLETELY south for him. …Focusing once more on the fact that Lammies in the house-and I would really like an explanation for the missing food. I come to a stop before him… and notice his attire. He's clad in racing stripe and flame-decal equipped… lederhosen. I feel… I feel a bit jealous, actually. Like he's stealing my thunder.

I blink that distraction away and simply stare at him patiently, knowing he knows I'm there. As I expected, soon enough he speaks.
>[Labombard]"I would like to wholly blame the esteemed Li Kui for my masticatory indiscretions, but frankly even so I don't doubt I consumed a considerable amount of wealth, judging by the appreciable shift in total magic in my body."
"You did eat quite a great deal, yes."
>[Labombard]"I will note that I'm not inclined to eat anywhere near that much except in those rare cases my metabolism is genuinely overwhelmed by magical liquor."
"Reassuring."
>[Labombard]"And, outside of the party I through for your minions last night, I would like to offer you my services, gratis, until such time as I've paid off the debt I incurred through my action. Does this strike you as fair, Mister American?"

A nigh-unkillable, expertly capable superbruiser of a merc, working for free until I say otherwise….





What do I say to Labombard's offer?
What do I do with the rest of the day?
What's my plan regarding Igor's situation?
And what about the next few days?
[I would really appreciate it if there was an attempt at being more cohesive with suggestions-it's hard to hit such a wide range of possible ideas, and my only other option is mass ignoring suggestions.]

Accept Lambobard's offer of course.

Offer yourself up as ritual sacrifice to the dwarves to appease them or whatever. If possible twist this into somehow getting a introduction to a dwarven armourer to later contract to make armour for the war golem.

Thunder Experimentation! Try to thunder whistle.

Have 2-3 of our Viewers look for the red polelike object stolen from the Triads outside Bonzi's place so we can finish up the leprechauns last job, by identifying the perpetrators.

Tell Satai to get awesome dreamcatchers for those traumatized waterbloodliner Riihivuori kids. Give him say a half-mil budget abouts for it? Also have Satai start putting out feelers for mithril, adamantine or other magically strong metals and the availability and price thereof.

Move minifridge we get SM deliveries to into our room or another secure location. Giving the entire house access to phoenix hearts seems unwise. At the very least put a lock or a sticky note with NO EATING and frowney face on it on the fridge.

Add superior bones if available(e.g. apparently gargoyle bones are tough, it is implied that Adib's skeleton is stronger than gargoyle bone(he bit through rosti's finger), or whatever witchery meat circus could cook up for us) to the war golem, consult Gianni on this. Acquire them from the Franco Senior, Smiling One Website, Meat Circus or whatever other contacts Gianni has.

Speaking of Adib, isn't he like superold? Like a couple of millennia abouts? As such maybe he knows a lot of old languages, maybe even sumerian or whatever language that book we extorted from that guy(windmanip puppeteer iirc) was in again? Inquire and find out if he could translate the book for us.

While I am not 100% clear on how the phoenix vodka fountain works, apparently you put something fire related in at one end and more than you put in comes out the other side? If that's more or less correct, try and get some summer blood line fire manipulator blood, or any other fire related blood(phoenix blood is probably ideal, but fire giant or salamander or whatever could probably work) and try to make a blood fountain with a spare phoenix heart if we have one(if we don't borrow the still one to test concept then put back in still). Buy blood from vampires, Franco Senior, Meat Circus, SM, possibly Johan(fire demon blood?) etc. If successful try to incorporate into the war golem to bypass it's barrel of blood per hour dependency. Also this may help to feed Bagga(he could maybe gorge himself on magical blood to gain awesome vampire powers or something, if we can remove phoenix divine taint or make it work with our other regenerator hearts(erineyes&troll iirc)).

Have Svetlana also search for Catoplebas lungs if any are available.

Have Andrei buy a cheap laptop, making sure to buy one without any form of wireless whatsoever. Isolate from any other systems, have it only run on battery power(power cord not plugged in), put it in a isolated room, preferably in that storage area placid warded. Run the magic floppy disk on it, see what happens, be ready with fire, hammers, guns and axes. Have SB port him from and to Italy as necessary, if he could do so without harming Andrei, if not then port the floppy and a laptop if needed.

Have a proxy do all purchase from Meat Circus as necessary(Einher issue).

Armas will get a ritual to view the past from a ritual expert (Johan) and watch the crime in progress. He may also ask Lyubov to go through security camera videos from other businesses around the bar to find leads for the Viewers to follow up on.

Armas will have the Viewers watch Elwen Emba and see who he knows. Then have them follow the people he knows. Then search their homes for evidence that they betrayed Elwen.

Armas should mention to Labombard that the Triads have a small reward for his location. Then he should invite him to help with the Giant mission for Bonzi.

Lyubov's birthday is soon, buy her some slaves or another suitable gift. Fine jewelry, or property, or other things may be appropriate.

Ask Shadowbro who is the most suitable for breaking the wards on the safehouse. Then go with them to break in.

The dreamcatchers are a good thing, but therapy would be better. Buy them a therapist slave.

>>473864
Once again, sust. No slaves.

Those clothes. Lammy can't have them. You're the one thats supposed to wear garish clothing, not him! Steal his clothes. Preferably while he's still wearing them.

>>472822
Accept the crazy wolfman's offer, it's not like we haven't been dying to work with him for months now. What we should be doing for the next few hours is shooting the shit with him, there's so much to talk about and such little time. We know each other, but only barely-we should fix that. Ask him about himself, get the skinny on what he's planning to do now. What are his current goals beyond paying us back for eating all of our food? If those plans involve the Triads getting back at the Triads who he is definitely no longer working for, how can we help? And, most importantly, what can he tell us about Lo Fang, assuming he has not been bound in ways we cannot fix. There are so many mysteries surrounding that man, if we can even learn some of the peripheral details we will be better for it.

Ah yes, and mention to him we're planning on having his first job with us be to help us take down a drunken, thieving, Giant. I want to assemble our forces together for this one so in addition to Labombard how about we get Big Crazy and Hillevi to join us too. One person off from having the whole gang come together, oh well. The goal for this isn't to overwhelm the Giant, but instead to use our diverse and frankly ridiculously malleable power sets together and try to make a lesson out of this with Hillevi. The only time she's gotten to participate in a battle with those that can stand even close to her muster was against Placid and this could serve as a more positive lesson. We can spin this fairly easily. Our goal should be to take as many Giant parts with us as we can so paying her is a matter of offering up more bones or something similar. We should strap up with our usual load out, Iron Trick, Mere, and Matebas. It would be a sad day if we just went in with raw power though, we need a dash of trickery at least. Consult with Duke on this, see if it'd be possible to debilitate a giant by mixing together the most noxious materials we know of like his feces, Doononges poison, and whatever else we can scrape from under our fridge. Should that be viable ask Leprechaun Bonzi to allow let us intercept the Magma Dwarf brew and swap it out with the mixture, maybe take a guise to act as the usual trader. Set this up for the end of the day (or whenever this next update will end), and by that I mean be at the Giant's location under the bar.

Mom should be sending yearbooks these next few days, be ready for setting aside a couple hours with Lyubov to sort through them. I'd be prepared to find things we don't like or understand in them.

On Igor's marriage I really just want to collect some information before we act, but by default I'd seek out an equal arrangement on this where neither has to be overly sacrificial. Letting it go through and having us give them something to make it up or a deal of some sort.

Find some time in the coming days to practice with your newly acquired thunder manipulation abilities. I suggest we find a practice room in the house, somewhere large and away from things we can destroy. Let's not make a room, since Amen has numerous ones already lets try for one of the existing ones, use the pool as a back up option. Once we have a space just...do it. No fancy experiments or anything, just test our newly acquired capabilities so we have a baseline for what we can do now.

There's also the matter of visiting that former property of Kazadora's that Matvey now owns and that Lyubov invited you to go to with Placid. It shouldn't take more than an evening and it'd be a valuable expense of our time to see what went on here. If it turns out to be complete bunk, well at least we got to spend some time with Placid as we don't do that nearly enough. We really do need to contact Einrik soon, we now know Kazadora is in the area and his family has an obligation here that we'd be remiss to get in the way of. Hillevi must have some means of contact with her brother, ask her about it.

Ask Satai to purchase the teleporter pad, even if Jidkova is dead it is still a worthwhile expense. It can prevent future kidnappings, bring to us targets if have the appropriate blood, and in generally be an immensely useful tool for mission completion.

Oh and for Lyubov's birthday find somewhere we can take her dancing, she mentioned that she'd like that a while ago. Lets pick somewhere nice.

Jobs, we have a ton of jobs still yet to do and more over we have jobs to collect on, jobs to pay for people, and jobs we need to get more intelligence on.

There are a bunch of jobs we need to check on, we need to keep these things in order if we want to avoid another shortage of jobs, can't have these things floating around and giving us a worse reputation. For instance what is going on with the mission we sent those minions on to discover the fate of the ambulance or the missing blood bank tax? Those were time intensive, surely they are done by now and if they are we need payment. And that comic book job, it was just a mundane comic book. Bonzi even valued the job within the normal range the book goes for, if our people haven't done that already with a little sweet talking to turn us a tidy profit we should just to do it our self. If those vampire hunt jobs aren't done yet send out ask Hafaz and his group to take them on for us. That out of the way we should probably figure on paying people, if we do the normal 25% for the above jobs we just need something for the ones that went on to work with the Hobgoblins, what if we give them one of those rechargeable blade charms we earned from a mission a piece, which still leaves us five blade and five arrow in our armory a piece. It's just moving resources around and for practical purposes it doesn't cost us a dime.

We have yet to make a move towards trolling a one Yilmar Aksoy. I can't believe you Armas, really, putting off trolling for this long. We're even get paid to do it this time! Now we need to get on this and we need to do it right, but we are woefully lacking in the information required to really hit this kid where it hurts. What we know of worth is that he is prideful and he is fond of USSR-era music. So with this in mind the logical conclusion is to attack his pride through his love of music in life. Now we need to know how he is invested in music, is he simply a fan or a musician himself? If he's a fan we need to know of who and if he's a musician we need to know what and where he plays. Gather anything relevant to these two fronts from either the Last Spelling, from Satai (who has had feet on the ground in the local night scene it seems safe enough to say), or from Bonzi's bar. Once we have that we can form a proper plan.

>>473009
A general upvote.

>>473864
SUST the first, fourth, and sixth sentences.

Lammy: "Throw in a heart of your own, you did eat mine after all and it's only fair, and you've got yourself a deal you fantastic Frenchman, you." Give him a Smile.

When practicing with our thunder do it in the mansion's tank range. We're supposed to have one of those. Set up targets at a variety of distances and in different arrangements, to try to get a feel for the level of damage we can cause at different ranges and in what sort of an array. Attempts should be made to shape the area of effect of the thunder shouts, narrower, wider, etc. No hurry on it though.

We should set at least one Viewer to monitor each of our employees at all times. Strictly to alert us/SB if they are in serious danger, of course. I don't care what they get up to, they just better not die doing it. Would give leads in case of kidnapping, etc as well as passively map out more of the world through the Viewers' observations.

>>475886
General upvote.

>>473864
SUSTing the first, fourth, and sixth lines.

>What do I say to Labombard's offer?

“It strikes me as a very polite and fair offer from one of my friends. You’re welcome to stay in my home, as my guest, as long as you like. One emptied larder isn’t going to make me mad. That said, I appreciate the gesture. If you want to work until we’re square, I’m fine with that, but it’s by no means required.”

“Great. Now, just so you’re aware, Go Ping’s got an offer of money out on your location. I don’t intend to collect, but I’m curious about what the Triads are going to want with you when they find you.”

“Gotcha. Since you’re obviously not going back to them, I’m just going to say Lo Fang’s been trying to get his hooks in people he thinks could be levers against me, and it’s left me pretty disenchanted with him. I’m not at the point of outright turning down work from the Triads, but I’m not adverse to taking jobs against them, either. Or making jobs against them, if we can set things up right. Well, some of them, anyway. Not all of the Triads are tainted by Lo Fang’s actions.”

“Yeah? That’s a pain in the ass, but maybe we can work with it… well, anyway, we can talk about them in depth later. I want to bring up something a little more domestic. Here, look at this letter. You ever deal with the Dimirken clan?”

“Don’t worry about it. Granted, you did bring Igor to the venue, but he’s a grown man. He may not have known quite what he was doing, but that doesn’t mean anything to injured honor. From the sounds of things there’s room to negotiate here, right?”

“So. I’m to be his ‘clan head’ in the eyes of the Istanbul dwarf community. What’s your advice on making sure we get out of this with contacts instead of enemies?”

“That’s something I honestly did not know. If they were that shy about dealing with a businessman that’s got a little Wyld Goblin magic then Igor’s accident here might be our best chance at an ‘in’ with the dwarves, as a company.”

“Well, obviously, that’s very useful. I’ll send a letter back to Letel and ask to meet him tonight.”

“So how do you feel about a fight with a boozehound Giant? I’m thinking of getting all the heavy hitters in the household in on helping finish a job that I’ve left outstanding a touch too long.”

>What do I do with the rest of the day?

Today? There are jobs to do. Check up with the people you assigned different jobs to (the rogue vampires, the comic book job, others that should have been completed by now).

Furthermore there are jobs we are running out of time on deciding to take. The big one is that Warehouse Ward Key job. The ideal people for it are Lyubov for the mundane security system and divine wards (since she can just take them over completely) and Placid or Dávgon for shutting down the mortal magic wards (Placid’s a genius with this stuff, while Dávgon’s got years of training and practical experience). Shadowbro should… shadow, to help pick out the best items in the warehouse for the reward.

Then there’s dealing with the Giant that’s been stealing Bonzi’s booze. Either we plan on going in hard and killing him quick, or we talk him into not being a pest. Either way, we need to deal with the job.

We should confirm if the Sword Job for Lo Fang is still on the table. It’s been some time since he offered it.

>What's my plan regarding Igor's situation?

Lyubov will talk to Igor and learn that both he and Patere are willing to live with a marriage if that’s what it takes to make things right. There are plenty of options for making a more or less equitable marriage, or where we get Patere more of the time than they get Igor. I think we should go for it.

The in-house connection to a stone working dwarf clan will help a great deal when we decide to initiate the Maori Pantheon Sieidis Project. Even if they don’t have specific training in building a sieidis, without a doubt they will have the craftsmanship skills to help us not make a complete mess of our first attempts.

On a personal note, Igor is just about the most socially inept person in the house. He’s a good guy, but he’s got all the social graces of an emu. We might have ended up arranging a marriage for him anyway. This just saves us the effort of finding him a girl.

>And what about the next few days?

Once we’ve got Igor back, arrange for some help for him. We still have that marker for a favor from the blacksmith and the librarian. Let’s just call it in, and get him some training in how to build the armor plates we ordered.

We have yet to deal with the Doonongeas Memory Object. It’s 5,000 years of memories from a divine fleshcrafter, in an messy jumble. Shadowbro started to sort them out, but even with 6 months of NN time he made little progress. Satai could do better, but it would still take him months (either in an NN bubble or in real time), and at the cost of forcing him to over-specialize. The over-specialization problem Satai faces could be mitigated if we got him a lot of NN time to get a variety of mentalist experiences in (but that would be expensive).

So with all that in mind here are our options:
1) Get a memory organizing mentalist bound to a magic item or as a slave and have him do the indexing on the DMO. Estimated cost $1.5 million to $3 million or more, may take months for the job to be done but we wouldn’t cripple Satai with a long job so early in his career as a mentalist.
2) Get an NN bubble with four years of time, set up so that it allows Satai to grow properly as a mentalist while doing the work. Probably expensive as fuck, but we get to speed Satai's progress along in the process.
3) Bargain with Tesla to get him to do or to help with an NN bubble for Satai. Downside: Tesla and his followers can probably get it to market quicker than we can.
4) Bargain with Whaitiri to get her to do it, or to get her to find a third party to do it. Downside: Whaitiri could get it to market quicker than we can.
5) Get Katz Obermensch to do it. If he wants to do it. He may not, given that the goblins gave us his information (he may already have done it for them)
6) Use the favor from the Goblins for humiliating Yilmar Aksoy to get them to do the memory indexing.

>>473009
There’s no reason to not get permission from Adib for Sake and SB to build language packages of all the languages he knows. Even the old ones are going to be useful if we get into Divinetech programming at all (no sense in looking like a jackass in front of Lyubov).

We can pay Adib for his trouble. Lyubov and Svetlana are already getting him set up with a fake identity, and we can find other things he might want (training, trinkets, cash, whatever).

At least have Lyubov look over the evil floppy disc, and maybe ask Tesla about it.

>>475886

Armas’s Mom is sending copies of home photo albums and other family mementos. She was not able to find Armas’s old yearbooks, unfortunately (and rather suspiciously). They should arrive sometime this week.

Unbeknownst to Armas, Lyubov actually put in an order with the publisher of his high school senior yearbook for one of the archive copies they had, not long after she became worried about his lack of childhood stories. It won’t have any signatures from friends or any notes, but it’s better than nothing. It should arrive soon, possibly this week.

>>475787
No! Bad Pillbug, no stealing clothes from friends. SUST.
(someday getting everyone naked will be the appropriate response, but today’s not that day)

>>473864
While buying a therapist slave for the kids may not go down well with Markku, we could get Stacey a therapist skillset and have her talk to the kids via Skype. That would also give us an in-house therapist option for when our people need it (Matvey will need the help shortly, actually). We can get the skillset from a university student or faculty member who needs the cash and doesn’t mind having his or her memory of selling copies of the memories removed (or who alternatively can be trusted or is already aware of the magic world). We can ask Hamlet or Jagda to suggest a student or faculty member that we could approach. Katz Obermensch would likely be willing to do the work.

>>473009
Generally upvote, particularly thunder whistling- that's worth a couple hours of our time, I think- but remember to delegate where appropriate. We don't need to personally go buying blood or bone.

>>473864
>Armas should mention to Labombard that the Triads have a small reward for his location. Then he should invite him to help with the Giant mission for Bonzi.
Hillevi would also be appropriate for that mission; invite her as well. And the reward is almost certainly gone by now; Labombard's been up and about town for days.

>>475886
General upvote, and:

>Gather anything relevant to these two fronts from either the Last Spelling, from Satai (who has had feet on the ground in the local night scene it seems safe enough to say), or from Bonzi's bar.
There might be intel in the AORB database also. One never knows.

>>475897
We can probably get a lot more than one heart... he did eat a whole bunch, and we do bargain quite well.

>>475787
>Those clothes. Lammy can't have them. You're the one thats supposed to wear garish clothing, not him! Steal his clothes. Preferably while he's still wearing them.
Upvote. Hilarious. Labombard won't mind; he find nakedness funny. Preferably, steal his clothes while he's talking to someone who would be embarrassed, and do it so stealthily that neither of them notices anything until they're all gone.

>>475898
>So with all that in mind here are our options:
Those might not be all our actual options. Bring up the issue with our brothers and see if they have any ideas.

>We should confirm if the Sword Job for Lo Fang is still on the table. It’s been some time since he offered it.
I would downvote this, if only because the millions that Lo Fang offered no longer seem like a huge priority for the level of precision and risk involved here. Unless we just want to do the job for personal amusement; then we can do it.

>>473009
>>473864
>>475787
>>475886
>>475897
>>475898
>>475901
"First things first Labombard-"
I tear his garishly eye-catching lederhosen off of him in one fell swoop.
"I'm the crazy flashy one around here, thank you very much."
For his part, the man's utterly unfazed by his sudden change of dress-and after a shrug, sprouts a layer of fur around his pelvis not unlike a natural mankini. The bemused smile curling his lips shows he's even less bothered than I'd anticipated-but I don't let it take any fun out of the act.
“Now then: What you propose strikes me as a very polite and fair offer from one of my friends. You’re welcome to stay in my home, as my guest, as long as you like. One emptied larder isn’t going to make me mad. That said, I appreciate the gesture. If you want to work until we’re square, I’m fine with that, but it’s by no means required.”
>[Labombard]"Oh, but it is-even if you say there's no debt built by this act, debt exists, and I will work it off, both to you, and the company at large. It is my way-and no arrogant American bastard will waylay such plans."
I can't help but laugh at that.
“Great. Now, just so you’re aware, Go Ping’s got an offer of money out on your location. I don’t intend to collect, but I’m curious about what the Triads are going to want with you when they find you.”
The easy smile doesn't budge at the comment.
>[Labombard]"Yes, I don't doubt that all of Lo Fang's officers have been instructed to make offers like that-I was one of his favorite tools, after all."
“Gotcha. Since you’re obviously not going back to them, I’m just going to say Lo Fang’s been trying to get his hooks in people he thinks could be levers against me, and it’s left me pretty disenchanted with him. I’m not at the point of outright turning down work from the Triads, but I’m not adverse to taking jobs against them, either. Or making jobs against them, if we can set things up right. Well, some of them, anyway. Not all of the Triads are tainted by Lo Fang’s actions.”
>[Labombard]"No organization is, I've found. In point of fact, I have a few friends amongst the Triads' numbers that I would regret to see injured or slain. …And Lo Fang knows this. He values me as a weapon, I fear, more than he does them as allies-so were I to actually show up to deliver my complaints in person…"
He lifts his hands helplessly.
“Yeah? That’s a pain in the ass, but maybe we can work with it… well, anyway, we can talk about them in depth later. I want to bring up something a little more domestic. Here, look at this letter. You ever deal with the Dimirken clan?”
Labombard accepts the parchment with a nod, and reads its contents with a critical eye. Eventually he sighs, a hand rubbing his face.
>[Labombard]"…I am, though sadly the kind of reputation and honor I hold with them is quite inapplicable to marriage debts and the like-it's one of those obtusely rigid dwarven honor things. Still, I am at your disposal, of course, for getting this handled."
“Don’t worry about it. Granted, you did bring Igor to the venue, but he’s a grown man. He may not have known quite what he was doing, but that doesn’t mean anything to injured honor. From the sounds of things there’s room to negotiate here, right?”
>[Labombard]"There is-there should be. Because he's associated with you who's more or less his Clan Head by their reckoning, they have to deal with you and at least attempt to resolve this amicably. The fact you're a known merc and would potentially bring your wrath on them if they just killed him out of hand… definitely is a factor here, too."
“So. I’m to be his ‘clan head’ in the eyes of the Istanbul dwarf community. What’s your advice on making sure we get out of this with contacts instead of enemies?”
>[Labombard]"Honestly? I'd need to know your situation perfectly-and that'd take answering excessively personal questions I don't want to ask-but the general direction, I'd say, is politely implied threat in discourse, and playing up your potential threat. Do that without doing any actual insulting or outright threatening, and you'll rattle them-I imagine they'll give you a way to solve the situation, themselves. And to be clear-they don't often deal with those associated with the Wyld Goblins-Dwarves and Goblins, as a rule, don't get along, so they'll probably be averse to you, in some form."
“There really is a general enmity between goblins and dwarves? That’s something I honestly did not know. If they were that shy about dealing with a businessman that’s got a little Wyld Goblin magic then Igor’s accident here might be our best chance at an ‘in’ with the dwarves, as a company.”
>[Labombard]"Likely. The Dimirken are stone masons with knowledge in the ways of rendering stone into analogues for other materials-stone metal, stone cloth, and so on. They aren't at all skilled with metal-in fact, you might have something there-isn't Igor a smith?"
I rub my chin at that, an easy smile adorning my face.
“Well, obviously, that’s very useful. I’ll send a letter back to Letel and ask to meet him tonight.”
>[Labombard]"Actually, I know where the Dimirken clan holdings are-I could just lead you there. You don't explicitly need a meeting to meet them, if you follow. That, and it's a power play-surely an American can appreciate that, yes?
“Who am I to ignore advice that plays to my strengths? Putting that aside-just for a bit, at least-How do you feel about a fight with a boozehound Giant? I’m thinking of getting all the heavy hitters in the household in on helping finish a job that I’ve left outstanding a touch too long.”
His eyebrows climb only marginally at that, his soul still roiling and unimpressed.
>[Labombard]"Depends on the Giant, but that would likely be an engaging fight. Sure, I'm up for it-what's the headcount for who's on board?"
"You, me, Duke, Hillevi, Big Crazy-"
>[Labombard]"The Amerindian that's always with the Finn in the bug-room?"
"A… succinct way of putting it, but yes."
>[Labombard]"Anyone else?"
"No, that should be it-I'm expecting to wrap this up fast or have to withdraw and recoordinate, not get dragged into a long haul fight."
>[Labombard]"A good idea-Giants get their most dangerous when they've have time to get their big-ness going."
"I assumed."
I throw my arms wide as I segue out of the official business.
"So, you're healthy and free, yeah?"
>[Labombard]"Miraculously enough, yes."
"Did your absence fuck anything up for you?"
>[Labombard]"The rehab? Not like I had any family waiting to see me, and the last girl I was with… I'll be honest, not a healthy relationship, and I'm happy this made her break up with me, rather than having to deal with it myself. She was… well, that's not important. Anyway-a free man, and now helping out a friend-I told you we'd work together, you American bastard!"
"Haha yeah you did fuzzbutt. Didn't quite think it'd be due to a 'sorry I had the munchies' scenario-but hey, I can work with it."
The bald man rubs his scalp at that.
>[Labombard]"Ah… that 'Duke'. He's one of the few people who's ever gotten me drunk at all-and he seems to relish the challenge. Thankfully, I don't eat that much when I'm not so inebriated-so that shouldn't be a repeat thing."
"So how well do you know Duke, then?"
>[Labombard]"Oh, well enough-got beaten about by him a few years back-before my Triad Days-and forcibly befriended. Eccentric as hell, but a fine enough fellow."
There's a drunken grumble from another room-clearly Duke approves of the assessment.
"So you'd mentioned your military service had been with the French Foreign Legion, right?"
>[Labombard]"I did mention that-but on having met your own companions, I must clarify I came from a similar branch to the one they once called home-a magical response team. Unlike them, however, I was… a weapon, rather than a meat shield. No offense intended, of course."
"Meh, I can't see that bothering them-it's the truth, isn't it? Yeah, I can see how a willing Loup would be a valuable thing for a group like that."
>[Labombard]"No question there."
"You ever fought a Giant before?"
>[Labomdard]"Plenty-haven't killed any, though."
"Plenty, huh? Where'd you have the chance to run into 'plenty'? Last I heard, they're rare as hell, all things being equal."
>[Labombard]"Yeah, but I'm an amazing and sophisticated man like that, knowing all sorts of beings."
"Let me guess-that's why you know me, right?"
>[Labombard]"But of course-I do need someone to slum it with, don't I?"
"Hah. Hold on a sec while I handle something real quick here."

I do the most critical of things-and move my minifridge to my room, before rounding up Hillevi and heading to the bug room, where, lo and behold, I find Big Crazy.
"Hey."
>[BC]"Hey."
"We're gonna go Giant killing. Wanna come?"
I'm almost proud of how unperturbed by the guy is. And Hillevi's sudden enthusiasm as she realizes she's going on a FUN outing… well that's priceless.
>[BC]"Yeah-You, me, Hillevi?"
"And Labombard."
>[Hillevi]"Oh, the Loup too? This is going to be so much fun!"
"That's a nice attitude Hillevi-but we're treating this like a learning experience, okay? So I'll be throwing questions at you and everything."
A hand klonks against her forhead in a parody of a salute.
>[Hillevi]"I'll be ready!"
"Meet in the foyer. Oh, and make sure everyone's clear the goal is minimal tissue damage-I want parts to work with, not just broken bits, okay?"
>[Hillevi]"Roger!"
As everyone goes off to gather their things, I suit up-this time in a signature neon orange silk suit with black shirt and equally neon tie-before adorning myself with the Mere and Iron Trick and lastly heading to the foyer, HB and Sake inescapably tagging along-not that I'd refuse either. Chuckling over what the Giant-slaying crew amounts to, the seven heaviest hitters in the Mansion get together… and we head out to Bonzi's at SB's insistence-something about checking to see if we can poison the Giant with a shipment it's prone to plundering. Which makes sense, to be sure-but it's not quite as fun-a sentiment the Hummingbird seems to silently agree with, while Sake just sniggers about my neck. The whole way over, our crew, under Glamors, passably human, or dodging Attention, didn't talk much: I'd venture each of us was already considering how we'd handle this with the caveat I threw in-Duke, in particular, is being a bit sulky about it, with zero effort put into hiding his mulishness. Without the need from input on my part, Labombard breaks in with some frankly hilariously racy jokes, and Duke's back to his gregariously cheery self. By the time we've arrived at the bar, we're all ready.

When Bonzi lets us into his low-ceilinged, cosey little bar of smokey wood and dark paneling, I waste no time in asking my obliged question.
"So-just to verify, any way we can swap out a shipment of booze with something that'd incapacitate or kill the Giant? We've got some resources-"
>[Bonzi]"No lad-you think I haven't tried? This Giant's a dab hand at making his immune system and hardiness, all of that Bigger, and shrugging off just about anything he feels like. This your 'Plan B' here, then?"
"Yeah-strike team for surgical removal, if discreet wasn't an option."
Perched on the edge of his pot behind the counter like always, Bonzi puffs on a long stemmed pipe as a smell heady and aromatic wafts through the air.
>[Bonzi]"Aye… well, are you going on in now?"
"We are."
With a spritely spring to his movements Bonzi's leapt from the edge of his Pot and swung it's swiftly expanding mass, opening first, towards us. Darkness swallows us all.

[DISCONTINUITY]

We're in a cavern-clearly deep beneath the earth, and the unnaturally smoothed ground is clear evidence we're standing on a path. I note HB swiftly summoning a swarm-but curiously, not from me, but from down different tunnels racing through the darkness, while Sake tenses and coils about my neck. With Soul Sensing as overcharged as is possible, I can't get a bead on any soul within a mile or so of our location-but then, I wasn't expecting to. If a Giant has mastery of Bigness, what prevents them from applying it to their soul? Thankfully…

With a heavy sniff, Labombard nods his head just as Big Crazy Speaks in a muted whisper.
>[BC]"Dirt Snake's detected a large enough heat source to be our target. Nine hundred eighty meters to our back, around a bend in the cave."
>[HB]"I Have the quarries precise location-he seems to be in a drunken stupor."
Someone forgets to use their quiet voice.
>[Duke]"Hey, how big is he?"
Thankfully, HB's voice is always soft.
>[HB]"As big as two of the wheeled boxes that many giants ride together-buses, I believe was the term."
>[Hillevi]"I remember dad and big brother both telling me that when Giants are already at least twenty feet tall, we can't freeze their brains or hearts in one shot anymore, sneak attack or no… um, the last part there was Einrik's advice. Dad doesn't-nevermind, shutting up."
>[Sake]"Hey Armas, can you confirm size?"
As some information filters into my mind from HB detailing the creature's location, I fire up the Allview and find out. It takes mere seconds to find the beast, clad in a scaled hide as a loin-cloth and drunkenly sprawled against a wall… easily thirty feet tall, if standing. His body is neanderthalic in it's shaping, and his heavy jaw lolls open as drool idly spills to the ground.

I blink and reopen my eyes.
"He's thirty feet, near enough. Also passed out."
>[Labombard]"And I smell enough assorted liquors that I have little doubt he is just that drunk…"
>[Hillevi]"So now what?"
"Come on, kiddo-why don't you tell me what should happen now?"
>[Hillevi]"Er…. okay, we know he's defended, because he's already huge. But he's also unguarded, because he's besotted with drink. So… so I'd say, everyone gets up close as we can, and then we just blow everything we got at his face, and blow up his head. That kills most things-and Giants would be one of those things."
"There was that stated caveat…"
>[Labombard]"Giant brains are not nexuses of Conceptual understanding-their eyes aren't all that superior, tongue and teeth don't have much comperative value: It's the muscle, skin, bone and heart that are the big-name parts, here. "
"Ever encountered Giants that didn't go down from head destruction?"
>[Labombard]"Not yet."
>[BC]"So?"
"So plan approved-let's go."

From there, it's a quiet prowl down the tunnel's length, and in the utter darkness we all navigate with relative ease, we find a prone form: Our quarry, rank and reeking, utterly unkempt, and dead to the world.

We work on making him just 'dead'.

Hillevi is held in the air by Labombard just before the giant's face, her hands outstretched and mere inches from the Giant's closed eyelids. Hummingbird has a bird ready and waiting before both nostrils and next to each ear. Duke's held up in Labombard's other hand, his hands, though visually empty, loosely open as if clutching handles, and poised to strike with an unseen weapon at an unguarded throat. Big Crazy's shrugged off his shirt and… sprouted an extra ten arms, all of which are wreathed in undulating spiritual energy, at the Giant's right temple, perched on Hillevi's rock-steady arm to reach. And I stand on her shoulders, hands outstretched above the Giant's yawning maw, a pool of fabricated Doonongaes poison (and aren't those implanted glands finally proving of worth) gushing from my skin at the ready. Even if the being can make it's hardiness 'Big', that sounded to be an active process-and the more attack vectors it must defend itself against, the better. With a quick signal, we begin.

Poison pours into an open mouth as Hillevi discharges the harshest freezing force directly into the Giant's eyes that she can, just the backlash of which freezes solid my legs, Big Crazy's legs and Labombard's hand around her. As the ice crackles and races over eyes that tried to spring open and holds them fast, HB's four-sided attack is initiated, each bird flaring it's soul bubble as brilliantly as it can before plunging into the fleshy orifices before each of them. For his part, the onetime hitman is as unperturbed by the freezing of a large chunk of his flesh as he slams his fists into the comparatively fragile temple: And I'm fairly certain it's not just blind hope that makes me hear a snapping sound. Duke, for his part, is eagerly ready, and swings both hands down: Blood blossoms and spatters from two titanic slashes now running across the rousing Giant's neck, seeping onto his chest in throbbing waves. For his part, Labombard flings the now frozen hand yet locked about Hillevi back, the still living flesh sloughing off it's frozen extremity to swiftly reform a clawed paw he rams into the ruined neck, heedless of Duke dicing his hand along with the target.

His choice to throw us back ends up being as wise as one could hope-for, eyes frozen, with four birds tunneling in it's face, half of it's skull impacted into a bloody pulpe and its neck an ever worsening ruin-filled waterfall of ichor…..

The Giant rumbles to it's feet.

And looms.

A neck swells in size so swiftly that Labombard's hand and the Duke within it are slapped aside. Stone crumbles and cracks, yielding like rice paper before an expanding mass of flesh that treats all of existence around it's growing form as paltry and flimsy. I switch to full Overcharge Reinforcement and, with Duke's 'lessons' in mind I rip myself free of the frozen limbs-
HYBRID HEALING
SUMMER ENERGY: 52/55
And land in a crouch on fresh limbs.

Big Crazy emulates my method as Hillevi wrenches herself free, all of us preparing to face the expanding tides of flesh-

Until three glowing balls of air twisted into spherical crystal that quake and scream their agony to the world around them slam into the expanding flesh like cannonballs, massive dimples as large as dumptrucks blooming in the flesh as the impact rocks the body back.
>[HB]'My bodies were lost.'
'That doesn't surprise me here. Bit durable, isn't it.'
>[HB]'I believe these to be it's death throws-the beast has been mortally wounded, however-'
'If it doesn't stop growing soon-"

I don't want to consider how pissed Owner would be if a Giant breached a path up into Istanbul's subway system and I was responsible.
"Containment options?"
The flesh moutnain before us is still growing, the earth quaking as it breaks before it's meaty might.
>[Hillevi]"I could try to reinforce the cave-"
>[Labombard]"That would just direct it's growth."

Rather than taking part in our harried discussion, Duke puts his own idea into action, and begins madly chopping away, the earth shattering beneath his feet as he plies as much of his strength as he can. In truth, the Giant's now several hundred feet tall and growing, not even half of it is still in the cave with us, and Duke's attacks would be comparable to a bee sting. But blood flows-and more importantly, the body tries to react, the flesh contracting so the GIant can orient upon its threat-

-When the body finally gives out, and with a strangely rubbery feeling to the air, the body, now the size of a highrise, shrinks down in a massive rebound to be a headless corpse a little over six feet tall.

I dart on over to the side of the crater the body dropped in, rushing down to verify my trophy's condition: Head and neck alike, totally gone-missing a chunk of his side and likely the kidney beneath… two floating ribs on the same side are collapsed… and that's it. …Yeah, I'm going to go with 'Fighting Giants is stupid, but killing them isn't' as a maxim from this-the initial damage was way, way easier to cause than that after it woke up-I'd be a fool to ignore that. As I check with SB before he shadow ports the body away, I turn back to our group, where Duke looks a bit put off at how quick the 'fight' was, while Big Crazy and Labombard are trading high fives.
"Hillevi."
>[Hillevi]"Yes!"
"Good plan."
The smile that lights up her face is every bit as cherubic as I could imagine.

[CLEAN-UP AND COLLECTION DISCONTINUITY]

after SB gets us all back topside in Bonzi's bar, the Leprechaun favors us with a gap-toothed grin.
>[Bonzi]"Good-assassination. I was skeptical you would, with that one in your group."
>[Duke]"Hey, you know I like killing fine-I just like the violence even more."
>[Bonzi]"I'm surprised you didn't rouse the foe so you could fight more."
>[Duke]"I wanted to, but they do give me free booze."
>[Bonzi]"Truly? A prize worth curtailing oneself, it would seem."
While Duke grumbles evermore, the bar's owner turns back to me.
>[Bonzi]"So: Spot in my pot, all yours. Just say my name three times whenever you want to put something in or take it out, and I'll take care of it. I'm already bound to not know what's in it, so you're good to go."
"Rather straightforward."
>[Bonzi]"I don't see much point in keeping a man waiting."
"And while we're on the subject of work-what about the Comic job? Svetlana got that to you, didn't she?"
>[Bonzi]"She did. I offered her the payment this very day-it's possible you missed her."
"I'll talk to her about it when I get back then."
Before I can make to leave, Kronknar catches me eye, and I get the distinct feeling he's got something personal to tell me. I turn back to the rest of my group, and let them know I'll meet them back at the house. Stepping to the minotaur's corner of the bar, I patiently nurse a mug of beer he slides my way while never making eye contact.
>[Kronknar]"As one gourmand to another, I figured I'd give you a bit of a tip, on a different open job: That Aksoy kid."
"Yilmar?"
He keeps polishing a mug in his hands as he nods.
>[Kronkar]"Yeah. He's heavily racist against weres, and he's known to be homophobic. I imagine you can use that."
>[IT]"You could, Sake could… why, even your Shadow Soul could, I think. Who could NOT use such easy levers as those?"
'Yeah, this makes the job easy to pull off, no doubt.'
I thank the minotaur bartender and after finishing my free beer I make my way out, trotting to catch up with the rest. Labombard splits his attention between poking fun at Duke and chumming it up with Big Crazy, while Big's equally split between Labombard and talking with Hillevi about some Valkonen minutia. In all, we're a noisy bunch on the way back to the house-and at the doors, I tap Labombard on the shoulder, and jerk my head: We've got another task to attend to tonight.

Labombard leads me down into the Undersewers, and after we've traversed canyons, necropolis and undergroud rivers aplenty, we come… to civilization. Angular homes cut into the earth's stony hide, lanterns and bioluminescent fungus aplenty casting luridly mixed yellow and blue light across the surroundings. We march past a mile of clustered homes, with only occasional occupants sticking their heads out to check on us, before Labombard stops before a single door, larger than most, with the symbol of a chisel painstakingly engraved in the stone above. The door itself, while likewise stone, is marble artistically wrought into the shape of brambles and thorn bushes, and seems to sway to an invisible gust of wind. With a glance my way, Labombard taps a stone plate on the ground, and I watch the stone tendrils withdraw in utter silence before the Loup Garou pushes open the now visible door. Having finally completed my head count and having learned that by sheer population density this has to be a full sized dwarven metropolis comprised of many clans sandwiched together, I follow my guide inside, where a dwarf woman with a well-groomed mustache artfully curling about her dimpled cheeks welcomes us, outwardly showing none of the surprise that colors her soul.
>[Dwarf]"O-oh, Blood Friend Labombard, how… unexpected. May I ask who you have brought with you this day?"
>[Labombard]"He's the Clan Head, or near enough, for that Igor guy you got. Head Letel's going to want to meet him."
Seemingly relieved to have clear orders to foist off on someone more important, the dwarf scurries off as the Frenchman reclines against a wall carved with the images of what looks to be a dwarven play-it's plot unknown. I'm halfway through deciding if it's part of a tragedy or a macabre comedy when a dwarf with a grayed beard carefully pleated in a dazzlingly complicated fashion sweeps in, his clothes seemingly cloth of… obsidian. On seeing us he bows his head to both of us, before offering a politely measured greeting.
>[Letel Dimirken]"…Blood Friend Labombard. Clan Head Laine. Would you please follow me?"
>[Labombard]"Ah, Head Letel-after you, old one."
We walk-and, in some cases, crouch-along simple, tightly-spaced corridors near the entrance, until we reach larger, more spacious corridors just before a massive room of curious design. At its heart is a cube of crystal, heavily lined with shelves dotted with tomes of all possible makes. This cube is suspended solely by the platform leading to it, above what appears to be a whirlpool formed of magma, fitfully bubbling beneath the transparant flooring. In this room of crystal and literature, we take tow of the seats opposite Letel at a perfectly spherical table of what… I might have to call ruby. Granted, given it's a sphere, not a normal flat surface or anything I might not have known it was a table… had Labombard not asked for a glass of some water and set it down on the sphere's surface, where it clung without spilling the fluid within despite being at a 90-degree angle. And given this… furniture wrought of gem is some ten feet across…

Well, the clan certainly has their resources, don't they?

Clearing his throat after we're all seated, Letel gives me a sample of how he operates.
>[LD]"So, is it correct to say you have an understanding of the situation?"
"Sufficient to know that from your perspective there was honor lost, and your ways insist you seek redress along one of several possible avenues, correct?"
>[LD]"That is so."
>[Labombard]"Head Letel, if I may…"
The dwarf inclines his head to the cavaliar former legionnaire.
>[Labombard]"I must observe that a certain paired set of rumors are wholly true-Armas Laine, in addition to possessing ownership of Amen, is both a business associate of Owner himself, and does, indeed, have custody of an artificial Skin Walker. Were some of it not private information, I could also regale you with details of why his entire group contains several individuals of genuine note-among them Li Kui, the Black Whirlwind, and the same Spirit Shaman that made quite a stir in Greece recently."
The squat man with an unreadable soul (and an overtly spiritual charm about his neck) mulls over Labombard's words with a sigh.
>[LD]"I needed no further convincing to be made completely aware that, as a trade clan, any scenario where negotiations broke down would in all likelihood spell doom for my clan. That said-I cannot let the issue slide-to do so would be to forfeit my honor as Clan head, and the honor of my daughter."
"Then it is good that we both wish to find an amicable solution."
>[LD]"Indeed. Officially, there are five ways this situation could be resolved with Igor alive: First, you could submit yourself to us on Igor's behalf to accept his execution, thereby restoring our clan's honor and placing us in your debt for offering a greater sacrifice than initially demanded. This debt would apply to your entire cla-group, and would persist past your passing. Second, you could…. pay off the value of the debt."
>[Labombard]"He paused on that one because that'd mean buying his daughter, essentially, and that's not something any father would like to discuss."
Letel favors the Loup with a frosty glare at that, but says nothing about the interjection.
"And the other options?"
>[LD]"The next option is going ahead with the marriage, but with you offering a publically viable dowry to nullify the debt-preferential contracts, significant magical items or craftings, things of that nature. Another option is to execute Igor yourself."
"Ahuh. And the last?"
>[LD]"Offer someone else of higher status from your… group… in Igor's place."
"So-Die, buy her, marriage with bribes, kill him, or new marriage partner, is that right?"
>[Letel]"That is so."
"…How secure is this room?"
>[LD]"We have invested considerable resources rendering it quite private and unassailable by listening magics of any form."
I nod at that, the half-formed idea in my mind finally springing into shape.
>[MMM,MMMM Trait auto-activated!]
"I don't like any of those options, and we're both well aware that whatever social concerns exist regarding your clan's standing, the power in this negotiation lies with me. So here's how we're going to resolve the situation your daughter made because she was too short sighted to pick her targets better."
The Dwarf before me stiffens as I get right down to the nitty gritty with an ominously strong-worded preamble.
"So first thing we're gonna do-you're going to kill me, with whoever else in your clan you need watching to have it verified."
The Dwarf clan head blinks at that. Hell, so does Labombard.
"After that, Igor's still going to marry her-we'll say something about my death being that bribe to pay off the debt-and you'll claim you resurrected me at least partly because you found the Curse released on my death to be unacceptably damaging to deal with. To this end, you're going to donate to me the funds you'd expend on such an endeavor, and we'll claim that you merely financed the resurrection. You'll also sign magically binding contracts to not only be unable to tell the truth about the slaying-you'll willingly relinquish ownership of even the memories of the event in question."
As I cut off, Letel eyes me with an incredulous eye before shaking his head.
>[Letel]"…Forgive me if this is banal, but to reiterate: We will sign a contract to give away memories of killing you, kill you, provide funding for a resurrection which… will not take place?"
"Don't worry about the ressurection."
>[LD"…I see. And thereafter, the marriage will… still go through?"
"Yes."
The dwarf rubs his chin, a thing line of sweat marring his brow.
>[LD]"…I do not see how this is to your benefit."
"You don't need to-that's rather the point. Suffice to say, I'll be around, and still expect fair and upright dealings between our two groups from here on out."
>[LD]"…I do not understand what your goal is here."
The Frenchman beside me can't help but laugh at that.
>[Labombard]"Ah, Head Letel-you must grow accustomed to the explanation 'because Armas', I fear: It is one those who know him are well versed in."
A heavy sigh escapes the diminuitive man before us.
>[LD]"So it would seem. …Since we are speaking plainly here-can you at least tell me that your plan, whatever it's purpose is, does not pose a risk to our clan?"
"I have no intention or plan to bring harm upon your clan."
>[WLG Trait levels up to the level 4 trait: WORD'S WORTH LIKE GOLD]
>Dwarven clans around the world will now look upon you with more trust, now that you've navigated a marriage incident!
With the look of a man both walking to and let off from the hangman's noose, the Dimirken Clan Head nods, and presses a thumb to a block of quartz jutting from the desk. In seconds, a leather-skinned construct appears before us, it's soul more mechanical than organic, and waits patiently while we hash out the precise wording of the contract. I have to give Letel credit-he attempts to leave himself wiggle room… but it's no use. The contract ends up forcibly removing his memories of how he killed me and how I was brought back the moment the entire procedure is concluded-and, with the wording set and his memories already forfeit in advance, he can't help but ask.
>[LD]"Why?"
I consider the question as SB confirms the man has no charms on him that would let him place memories for later retrieval to circumvent the Contract-and decide to tell him.
"I'm immortal, or close enough-but I need to verify something about it. So go get a weapon that can fatally damage souls, so we can get this done."
With Labombard guffawing at my utterly frank admission, Letel backs away-and while he doesn't scurry, he comes very close to breaking statliness when he heads off to retrieve a weapon of proper substance.
>[Labombard]"I hope your intent was to leave him with a sense of further terror at the thought of ever crossing you even after the memories are pulled, for I fear that's what you've just done."
"Well, you know us Americans-so fond of our image and being the big man on campus."
>[Labombard]"Hah. …If you need my memory of that little detail of yours gone, I will happily submit myself to your colleague Satai to have the memory purged."
"I'll keep that in mind-mostly, I just wanted a place that SM couldn't detect."
>[Labombard]"Es.. ah, the Wyld Goblin Tribe leader, the one who's name no one knows."
"The same."
>[Labombard]"Well then, in the heart of a Dwarven Clan's holdings would be a fairly safe place to do just that."
"That was my hope."
>[Labombard]"Just for personal reference here: A marriage paid for with a clan head analogue's death puts one in full Life Debt to the clan that sacrificed their head. That said-try not to go hog-wild milking such a debt, yeah? They actually have metrics for adding up percentile use of the debt to track when it's finally been met."
"Noted. …Ah, and here we are."

Letel reenters the room with an old matron at his side, and a strangely lumpy rust-colored sword carefully cradled. He and the newcomer both sign the contract-and a sword is plunged into my chest.

[DEATH]

There is a moment-a transitory period-where I'm between 'slain' and 'restoring myself'. A moment where I am not my fleshly body, where I am not my mind, or even my soul-I am merely the shadow, the scraps, the recollection of Armas housed in the splintered fragments of my spirit. And then…. the Romanov roots in my Winter Bloodline due what they do best. The ceaseless energy of my Bound winter line surge, filling the gaps within my tattered soul, my spirit reviving in seconds. I coalesce above my fallen body-and do the obvious thing: I possess my just slain form on the ground. After all, it's just got a hole through it's heart-that's hardly anything at all!

The process is admittedly trying-to possess a body, even my own, when my soul no longer has a place to call home is an utterly irregular experience, and I find myself immensely glad I chose to brave it for the first time under controlled conditions, and not in the heat of battle. It takes all of my attention to reestablish my ownership of my body-but I find a bit of a prize waiting for me when I'm done: Two dwarves, gaping at me like fish… until their eyes blur, and they grow confused for a separate reason.

Blinking, Letel eyes the weapon in his hand while looking our way, eyeing the cut in my suit with canny eyes.
>[LD]"…So it's been done."
"It has. I trust you'll transfer the funds."
>[LD]"For the resurrection… however you did it. Yes. ….Well, I believe that… concludes our business. You are free to take your man home-but we will need him available: The wedding does require planning."
"Right. Do you know when it might happen?"
>[LD]"It's likely at least a month off, yet-there are… formalities to observe, when marrying outside of Dwarven lines. Ours to deal with, but time consuming."
"You'll let me know?"
>[LD]"Of course."
"Great. Well-if you happen to find yourself in need of my services, or that of my company-you know who to contact. Where's Igor?"
"This way."
The walk passes in silence-and I find Igor with a young Dwarf woman, laboring over a chair with, frankly beautiful legs. Seriously, they look like the love children of snakes, roman columns and gothic buttresses, a complicatedly convoluted affair that holds an aesthetic all it's own. For his part, Letel's steps slow as he enters, eyeing the chair bemusedly before clearing his throat. As the dwarf and Igor both turn around, I see the relief in my wayward smith's eyes.
>[Igor]"…Boss. Hi."
"Hi. You're still marrying her."
>[Igor]"I am?"
"You are."
>[Igor]"…I am. ..Huh."
"I was expecting a bit more of an involved reaction than that-either happy or angry, whichever."
He glances back at the dwarven woman who was sharing the room with him, and I see a scrimshaw pattern of conflicting thoughts go through his soul.
>[Igor]"Uh. She's… okay, when you get to know her? I don't know-should I be angry I have to marry her?"
"Given you have to ask, I'll go with 'no'. …So."
I turn to the Dwarf in question.
"What's your name?"
>[Patere Dimirken]"Patere, of-"
"Of the Dimirken Clan, daughter of Letel, head of the clan, yes yes. I'm taking Igor back now-you have his number to contact him?"
She holds up her cell phone-I see Igor's number on the speed dial list.
"Okay then. I imagine I'll see you again soon enough. …Igor."

At my word, Igor falls in beside me-and, after a brief exchange of farewells with a thoroughly cowed Dimirken clan, the three of us (plus Sake and HB) make our exit. Igor, for his part, doesn't seem to have any inclination to talk on the way back about what happened to him-so I talk about something else.
"So Igor."
>[Igor]"Yes?"
"I happen to be owed a favor by a blacksmith, and I was planning to pass that favor on to you-I imagine you can put it to better use than I can."
>[Igor]"You do? I mean… who?"
I rattle off a name and address.
"Just mention you're here to collect regarding a situation with a librarian-he'll know exactly what I mean."
>[Igor]"Uh… okay. Thanks."
Labombard speaks up from Igor's far shoulder.
>[Labombard]"And I'll be happy to teach you what I know-I've done some smithery myself, as it happens, though I hear you're a dab hand."
"Oh… thank you?"
I get to listen to Igor awkward all over the conversation the whole way back, with the exclusive exception of when Labombard's got him talking about actual smithing. It was entertaining, in a trainwreck sort of way… but that's now in the past, as we're back at the mansion late at night. On our return, I debate whether I should stay up and keep getting things done… or if I should turn in for some nighttime fun.

Somehow I end up in bed with Lyubov instead of doing anything productive. I wonder how that happened.


WEDNESDAY, MARCH 9th, 2011
PERSONAL FUNDS: $3,233,660.00
BUSINESS FUNDS: $9,672,864.00
CASH: $0.00
SHADOW PATIENCE: 65%
WINTER ENERGY: 160
SUMMER ENERGY: 55/55

I wake up not with a yawn, but an immediately administered brain coffee as I find myself grinning: Today pomises to be rewarding.

I occupy myself in the early morning-and I fear I'm waking progressively earlier as the days pass-by wokring on a bit of fleshcrafting, following a bit of an idle thought to its logical conclusion. I'm clad in a bath robe and idly clutching a chip of Doonongaes bone in one hand, and Giant bone, carefully extricated from the recently acquired corpse in my other.
So, let's see... Rostislav's body has Gargoyle bone in it-and I've gotten a solid look at that during that spar we had a few days back. Similarly, the Doonongaes bone I hold is fairly familiar to me, from our extensive work with the Golem project. The Giant bone is new to me-and I find that it seems to simmer expectantly with a magic most similar to that in my soul binding and that which Duke recently tried to instruct me in. That said, by this point I've got a solid enough grasp of external fleshcrafting I can at least try my hand at analysis-and in both samples I hold, I find a plethora of skeletal alterations I could attempt to ply. Ways for cells to stack together more efficiently, more robust cellular structure, better shaping for blood flow through the bones, a greater flexible range before breaks become an issue, heightened durability for compression and torsion alike, strong anchor zones for tendons, ligaments and muscles... initially, all I look for-and all I see-are mundane differences that will add up to a wholly superior skeletal system.

But that doesn't satisfy me. I look deeper-or rather at an entirely different level: I begin to analyze the wholly magical signatures I detect in each chunk of biomass, starting with the Divine sample. The Doonongaes bone proves deceptively easy to decode-and proves a short-lived mystery. All of it's raw physical hardiness, every last iota that's not wholly biological in nature seems entirely rooted in converting ambient magic in the body into strengthening force-in effect, the fleshcrafting equivalent of passive reinforcement for the bones, a pre-coded system for one's skeleton to function at higher levels. It takes a few tries to get a system that doesn't dissolve the moment I try to do something finicky fleshcrafting-wise, but in essence replicating the Doonongaes bone's strengths isn't difficult so much as somewhat time consuming. The Giant bone sample, a mere fleck of seperated vertebra taken from the produced stump, however, proves quite inscrutible-I can't decode the methodology behind the Conceptual energy rooted in it's mass. What I can do, however, is copy the differing approach to pulling in raw magic in surrounding flesh to reinforce the bone, compare it against the methods I copied from the Doonongaes, and integrate the two. I don't do it expertly-no dressing up my knowledge as being truly insightful or masterful-but my workman's approach does let me hammer the two together into a whole that, while not greater than the sum of its parts, is certainly better than either sample used. Finally, with my model for prospective alteration built.... I apply my findings to my own form, bone rippling, oozing and flowing within my flesh as it is rebuilt to a new standard. I feel the ambient Winter magic in my flesh being consumed, not by my bones directly, but by the Giant-based, court neutral magic processing systems I replicated, which then funnel the unaspected energy to my skeletal system. I have a joyous moment where I think I can take the system I copied and apply it to the rest of my flesh and finally bridge the Winter/Summer conflict that is my form, but there's something... I withdraw my mind from that endeavor once I recognize that I can't replicate what I've studied without a stronger understanding of Conceptual magic and how it works. For now, I have to make do with bones that are passively more durable than tempered steel, and naturally reinforce themselves with my radiant energy-which is to say, if I end up fighting something that can break my bones in melee, it's probably something that could convert any of the russians to paste.

[GODLING BONES acquired!]

Finishing up my conversions to find that the pre-dawn morning has become late morning edging on noon, I verify with Sake that he took care of Silja's daily dose with Davgon and Gianni, before I ping SB with a hopefully straightforward request-one which he readily agrees to. Now, as to the other member of the exchange... I track down Rostislav's latest acquisition, the man known as 'Adib', a fighter from one of the local low-grade magic fight clubs. On seeing my approach, he swiftly stands-not with the rigid attention of a military man before a superior, but the older, more archaic respect of a lesser man before a greater. I wouldn't be able to immediately interpret such an anachronistic mindset were his soul-a frankensteinian smorgasbord of grafts and magical signatures of past laborers-showed me his conceptualization of me as something like a Prelate mixed with a Slave Owner.
>[Adib]"Mr. Laine. Is there something I can do for you?"
"Perhaps. It's my understanding that you are quite old-a relic, in fact, from roman days, is that true?"
>[Adib]"I was born during the rule of the Roman Empire, that is correct."
"And would it be correct to say you know a number of languages that currently are considered 'dead'?"
>[Adib]"I know Latin, Etruscan, Akkadian, Eblaite, Elamite, Pheonician, Semitic, Sumerian, Aramaic , Gallic, and what is now known as Old Persian: I believe all of those are dead languages."
"And how about modern tongues-which ones do you know?"
>[Adib]"Berber, Spanish, Mongolian, Turkish, Greek and Italian-though it's an older Italian dialect."
Fifteen new languages... yeah, I'm liking the idea to ask him about this.
"Excellent. My followup question, then, is if you have any reservations about my Shadow producing a copy of your linguistic knowledge for my own use."
>[Adib]"Do as you will, Mr. Laine."
Ah, I love the compliant types.

With a nod to SB's image on the wall my brother gets to work, and I get on with the rest of my day.

First, I check in on Svetlana, to inquire after the pay from Bonzi. It seems she worked with Satai to get the gold provided converted into more liquid assets and already deposited it in the company account-after taking care of the costs incurred acquiring that specific comic book. The end result is that we 'only' made seventy thousand dollars, near enough, on the job-which isn't bad at all, given no expendable resources were used in the process.
BUSINESS FUNDS: +$69,520.00] $9,742,384.00
She also informs me she's managed to make a Cyclops eye purchase-she's rather certain she got a solid price for it, citing market metrics she put together as indicative that Cyclops eyes normally go for 700-1000k, with her having acquired one for 620k. It's getting delivered tomorrow morning-so I know what Gianni, Davgon, Placid and I are all working on.
BUSINESS FUNDS: -$619,290.00 $9,123,094.00
After she's reported on her successful acquisition, I give her a new purchase to hunt out a solid deal on: Catoblepas lungs, one set. I'm pleased to note that, while I can't read her soul through the charm she's now sporting, I'm canny enough to read the shifts in her facial tension that I know she's not actually bothered by it-she's already looking at this as 'work, as per normal', or at least partly so. Good to see she's settling in. She also takes our brief meeting as an opportunity to tell me she, Satai and Labombard are still working on the company threat database based off AORB, Last Spelling and Labombard's own experiences.

Digesting Svetlana's results, I head to the kitchen to make lunch for everyone-really, I've been enjoying the excuse to cook again with Boris gone-and while I'm working, SB gets back to me about that language packet from Adib-and mid-omelette flip, I find myself excessively moreso polylingual. I imagine I could actually read that book I managed to purloin from the Ghanem heir a few weeks back-when I get to it.

After serving lunch and amusing myself in the process by skirting about the attention of those I serve such that plates seem to magically appear before them laden with tasty treats, and then polishing off my own meager four plates of food, I grab the ever-elusive Satai before he can head back out. He looks expectantly at me as I explain what I need.
"So, few things: What's the status on the Blood Bank and Ambulance jobs for the Zosimus clan?"
>[Satai]"Both are complete."
"Pending payment?"
>[Satai]"No, the company accounts should reflect the payment, minus the cuts for those who enacted the missions."
BUSINESS FUNDS: +$(57,000.00-25%)+$(55,000.00-25%) $9,207,094.00
"Excellent. So-still pending the Ibruhem and Yorgin jobs, right?"
>[Satai]"And the guard duty job, though that's more an issue of waiting until it's complete."
"Right... So, some new things for you."
He quirks an eyebrow expectantly.
"For one-that teleporter pad you'd mentioned before-I want us to acquire it, and then get samples of all workers at the company, so that if an emergency occurs we can forcibly remove them from a hazardous situation and get them whatever treatment they require."
>[Satai]"...Understood. What price range am I working with?"
"Let's cap it at six mil."
>[Satai]"I see. Is there more?"
"Yeah, I-"

My phone rings. Looking down, I see the number's from Oyac Securities.
"...Give me a second here."
I flip the phone open.
"Hello?"
>[Banker]"Mister Laine?"
"This is he."
>[Banker]"I'm just calling to inform you that there's been a deposite to your account that came with a note to call you and say, quote, 'Compliments of the Dimirken'."
"I see. And how much was the deposite for?"
>[Banker]"Four million, seven hundred twenty three thousand dollars, sir."
Aaaand THAT is going in my personal funds-I am the one that died for it, after all-
PERSONAL FUNDS: +$4,723,000.00 $7,956,660.00
"I see. Thank you for the courtesy call."
>[Banker]"Of course sir!"
*CLICK*

I turn back to Satai, who's sporting a dry smile.
>[Satai]"Good news?"
"It would appear so. Now-I also want you to acquire either a single multi-person dreamcatcher, or two single-person dream catchers that would not only capture nightmares or all sorts to prevent mental unrest, but would encourage sleep to be innately theraputic and mood stabilizing, in a manner conducive to healthy mental development for a child."
>[Satai]"...To clarify, would this be for those wards of the Valkonen family you haven't spoken to in some time?"
Yeah, that's a nice little reminder I should really call them.
"The same."
>[Satai]"Same question as before, then-what's the price range?"
"Two million total-and that's from my personal funds. Check with the Valkonens first though, and verify it won't unduly overlap with whatever they've already instituted. Lastly, I want to talk to you about Stacey."
>[Satai]"Should I call her?"
"No, I'd rather not bother her unduly-I do, currently at least, grasp how easy it is to trip her Contract into forcing her into action, so I'd rather not have to tiptoe about that at the moment."
>[Satai]"I see. So?"
"I'd like to see about acquiring for her some memories of therapists, magical and mundane alike, for her own mental health, so she can be a good person to talk to for the Valkonen wards, and so that she can be a secure confidant for anyone in the company that needs to talk something out. Do you think that this proposal would actually function as I'm anticipating?"
>[Satai]"I'd need to confirm with her that she could use such knowledge on herself-but even if she couldn't ,I believe that could be amended with an order directed her way with the proper phrasing."
"And do you think she'd actually be willing?"
>[Satai]"Assuming the prior point isn't an issue? Absolutely-she's inferenced that she'd like to be more at peace with her situation for her own mental health, and this would accomodate that."
"Great-Start looking for people willing to sell memories of how to be a therapist-for mundane memories, I'll leave it to your discretion what she's provided with, besides child psychology. The goal isn't to make her as effective as possible, but to render all possible parties-Stacey, the Riihivuori kids, the company employees-as satisfied and pleased as possible."
>[Satai]"...I'll add that to my to-do list."
"Good man-well, I'll leave you to it."

With a brief nod to one another, we part ways-and I decide to implement some insurence on the remaining Zosimus jobs: I call Hafaz. Like always, he picks up promptly.
>[Hafaz]"Armas."
"Hafaz. Got a potential job request for you."
>[Hafaz]"What's the job?"
"I may have overestimated the maturity and general readiness of one of my employees, and given him too many concurrent jobs. I'd like to get your assistence in reducing his burden."
>[Hafaz]"...Who are the jobs for?"
"The Zosimus clan."
>[Hafaz]"And the job itself?"
"Hunt down a rogue Yorgin Vampire."
>[Hafaz]"The one out in the Meatpacking district going ghoul-crazy?"
"Neutralization job: Your team got it?"
>[Hafaz]"...Tell you what, we'll do it free, if you'll publically cop to having outsourced the job."
"Street cred?"
>[Hafaz]"Your name, inexplicably, is worth something these days."
"Hilarious, isn't it. Okay-you've got your credit."
>[Hafaz]"Excellent. We'll call you in a day or so to confirm the job's been done, and we can discuss it over some beers."
"Sounds good."
*CLICK*

Well-that's Bagga's life made a bit easier.

Now then... lunch has come and gone, and I think I'll take up Matvey's offer to check his house now-yes, he and Zhenya are back today, but he wanted the place assessed, not house-sat, so this shouldn't really be a problem. I grab Lyubov, Matvey and Zhenya to explain my intent, and it seems no one's got an issue with it-Matvey, for his part, is just relieved he's getting another appraisal of his land's status. The drive out is utterly uneventful, with Lyubov chatting happily with Zhenya about their trip, while Matvey and I find ourselves in a competition to see who's the most stoic on the trip out. Not sure how that came about-or who won-but it was entertaining enough.

On arrival, Matvey gives me a moment to look at his outer wards before dropping them to let us all in. I'm not particularly impressed with them-I can see where physical matter-the stones spaced around the grounds-are the nodes that direct the wards, and I see that they're double layered from the after-image laden visual representation I get of the magics involved. For her part, Lyubov does a better job analyzing the magical state of the wards, making a few comments to Matvey about noted flaws she'd discovered in his absence, none of them major, before we actually enter. Inside, it's my time to shine: I finally get to appraise the Spirit Animals-turned-Land-Gods that Placid laced Matvey's property with. I find their status as Predator Class Spirit Animals solid-if lacking in clarity-and see that each one is rooted to a spherically defined section of space, rooted in the ground they're anchored to. Walking the grounds carefully, I find that, while this method does cover the majority of the terrain, there are paths, narrow or not, that could let one circumvent the spiritual defenses with the aid of soul sight or soul sensing to identify where one should not tread. Ultimately, this ends up being the biggest issue I can find with the inner defenses-and I make no secret of it.
"So Matvey-is it intentional, to leave paths between the Land Gods from the perimeter to the cabin?"
>[Matvey]"No-that's just how Placid built them."
"Let me guess-a bit hesitant to ask him to rework them?"
>[Matvey]"[Russian Silence]"
"Right, right. For future reference the guy's fine with redoing his work if he didn't fully grasp how you wanted something set up. If you want, he'd be more than willing to reshape those land god anchor points-though to be honest, I'd appreciate the chance to try my own hand at it."
Matvey favors me with a curious glance at that-and thanks to his increasingly stoic expressions, I might not have been able to decode that-if I hadn't briefly flipped my Soul Bind beneath my Guise to 'Can only read Matvey's soul Today' and seen a thought flitting across his mind-that of gnashing human teeth, feasting on what is clearly a leg.
Ho-ho, he's got suspicions about my Cannibalistic magical nature? Good to see he's not blind to the hints around him.
Finally, the man nods.
>[Matvey]"I'd appreciate that, if you're willing."
"Of course-it'll be a good learning experience-and worst case scenario, Placid will be able to repair any mess ups I might engender."
>[Matvey]"Not exactly the most confidence inducing way to phrase it."
"If we're being flippant, then I don't really need your confidence when you've already agreed."
>[Matvey]"Point. Do you know how long it'll take?"
"Not a clue-but I'll blindly ballpark it at 'hours', and we'll go from there."
>[Matvey]"I will observe your work, if that's acceptable."
"It is your place-do what you want."
With Matvey joining Lyubov to look over my metaphorical shoulder, I get to work.

Placid's work is, ultimately, pretty easy to pick apart and tweak. Nothing's locked down-which I attribute to Matvey not having specifically asked for the work to be permanent and indelible. That's just fine with me-as I get to dive right on through the spirit animal-turned land gods to their soul's core, rooted in the earth beneath them-and from there, to the veins of spirit spreading through the soil that determine where the spirits can roam. Ultimately, I'm doing the equivalent of redistributing soil to turn evenly spaced sinkholes into interconnected rows. What makes this interesting for me is the thought to pattern my work after my own Sphere Labrynth, expanding my own knowledge of maze-building in the process. None of the land gods is difficult to alter the range of-but it is positively fiddly work, to make each one a part of the interlinked network I plot-particularly because I'm still being stymied by the land god's unwillingness to have their territory overlap. This proves problematically frustrating for more than an hour-but eventually, I hit upon an idea, and manually adjust the spiritual signature of each Land God's soul to be the same. ...Mentally, I picture this process as repainting a bevy of cars to all be the same color. Once so matched, I can link up the interwoven territories, and from them create a single, cohesive territory all the land gods use-and, after testing it to insure that it really does function how I now think it does, I turn back to Matvey, currently sipping a cup of piping hot tea.

"So, do I need to explain it, or did your suit tell you enough?"
>[Matvey]"You... have rendered the land god defense system as more akin to a net than a collection of individual territories, with any point on the net being accessible by all the land gods."
"Got it in one-I imagine that being assailed by scores of Predator Spirits simultaneously is more daunting than repeatedly facing individual ones."
>[Matvey]"I wouldn't know, but that seems reasonable to assume. ...Thank you, Ar-"
"Ah ah-don't thank me yet, I'm not done."
Rubbing my hands together, I eye the now thoroughly gloomy sky overhead, and estimate it to already be nine oclock-wow, I was really dumping quite a bit of time into this endeavor.
"So-there's a room you wanted to eyeball, too."
>[Matvey]"...Yes. Follow me, please."
We're led into the cozy cabin that sports signs of liberal use of premade dinners (seems the old-timey stove has proved vexxing to the occupants) and shown to the trapdoor in the kitchen. I can't help but smile as I inspect the wards inked in partly dried blood festooning what appears to be a concrete-encased panic room.
>[Matvey]"I'd really appreciate it if this room could be confirmed as safe or not."
"This is the one that had... issues... with it, correct?"
>[Matvey]"The same."
"Okay...."
I eyeball the room prepared by Kazadora with a critical eye, looking for any hints of danger yet lurking in it's confines. I pierce the stone walls deeply, seeking embedded magic items or hidden runs carved within the stone-nothing. I check the wards thoroughly, for the slightest hint of something that can cast Attention on others, a Magic Item, a sense of Soul-anything to suggest this is yet dangerous. ...There is nothing. I cast an eye back to Lyubov just to be sure-and she shakes her head: Seems she couldn't find anything either. I turn back to our host.
"Well Matvey-no signs of dickery that we can detect. I won't out and out guarantee it's clean, but at this point it seems fairly safe to assume it is."
>[Matvey]"I see. Not all that I'd hoped... but it's enough. Thank you."
"Hey, any time. Though you do realize I have to cook dinner for you, right?"
>[Matvey]"How do you figure?"
"I can't walk away seeing you've been going with takeout and whatever's real easy to make-that's boring! Besides, I haven't had occassion to do wood fire cooking in a while-so yeah, sit down and prepare yourself to be hungry."
With a wry grin, Matvey allows me to shoo him out of his kitchen as I set to work-only to be interrupted by Lyubov. Who I ALSO promptly shoo out-at her playful protests, I swat her bottom with a wooden spoon-she's a crappy cook too, outside of baking-and if she wants to change that, we can do that at the Mansion-not when I'm forcibly stuffing my food down people's throats.

With the ingredients on hand, I make a spiced chili-derivative out of some slightly burned meatloaf, and make something not unlike a heartier form of meatballs and spaghetti. I also boil and strain the kale they had sitting in their refridgerator, before it could go bad. It's not much of a meal by my standards-but then, I'm currently used to having a few dozen sets of magical food on hand back at the mansion.

...Now that I mention that, if Labombard ate everything back at Amen, then why was there food available to make lunch? I don't have any orders slated for... right, some of the food deliveries are midday. Yeah, that's got to explain it.

I find myself mulling this niggling doubt over the entire way through the meal, which Zhenya is gushing over while pointedly looking at Matvey, who with a sign mutters something about getting their cooking situation resolved soon. After the meal's done, I find that Matvey's actually heading out with Lyubov and I-turns out he's going drinking with Ito tonight. On hearing that, I can't really find a reason not to go myself, so after Lyubov expresses an interest in doing her own thing tonight, she takes the van back to the mansion while Matvey and I wait for Ito to pick us up in his gleaming purple Cadillac. When the smooth-faced old man spots me with Matvey, he shoots off a feral grin.
>[Ito]"Oh-the fountain of youth's going out with us tonight, is he?"
>[Matvey]"Seems that way-I assumed that's not a problem."
>[Ito]"No problem at all-I still owe the man a lifetime's supply of free beer, I think-might as well get on paying that off."
"Given I'm not planning to die of old age, you may be working on that tab for a while."
>[Ito]"Details. So, found a new place to try out tonight."
>[Matvey]"Yeah?"
I can see the expectation to be faced with violence painting his face as he explains.
>[Ito]"Yeah. Used to be a fight club-type group, but they got thoroughly chastized by... parties-"
He looks pointedly at Matvey.
>[Ito]"So now they're pooling homebrew and trying to restart the club with a bar as a base. Operating out by the docks-heard good things about the brew and the atmosphere."
"Sounds good to me."
>[Ito]"Personal request: Don't mention who you are, or no one will want to have a physical dispute. That would make for a boring evening."
"Fair enough-we need to plan to be out of there before midnight?"
>[Ito]"Given I'm still doing night lessons tonight like every other night, yes."
>[Matvey]"Well, enough wasting time-let's go."
Matvey and his dog clamor into the back seat, with my officer deferentially ceding the front seat to me. We drive over with carribean Jazz music blaring out of aged and slightly tinny speakers, with Ito working his way through two thirds of a cigar (and half of a bottle of scotch) during the fifteen minute drive. On arrival, we find he's leading us to a derelict shanty that looks partly assembled from driftwood, with the thump of music and the thrum of souls seeping out from within. When we enter, I find that Ito's quite the known commodity to most people there-and he's already engaged in arm-wrestling within five minutes of going through the door, with a pitcher of beer being the wager. For our part, Matvey and I simply work the room, trying the many beers on hand-and I find both of us are being afforded a polite show of deferential respect-no one seems to want to step on either of our toes. Compared to Ito, who by night's end has gotten in no less than five fights and wagered his own teeth against a vampire before pulling his prizes from the man's mouth bare-handed upon his victory, we both have rather subdued nights out-and for me, at least, that's not really a problem. Eventually, Ito glances at the clock and shepherds both of us into his car, where he drops me off at the mansion before speeding off with Matvey and Ohotnik, presumably to return them home as well.

The day complete, I head in-and find Lyubov already asleep. I debate waking her for a minute-before deciding I can skip a night here and there.

Sleep commences.

THURSDAY, MARCH 10th, 2011
PERSONAL FUNDS: $7,956,660.00
BUSINESS FUNDS: $9,207,094.00
CASH: $0.00
SHADOW PATIENCE: 65%
WINTER ENERGY: 160
SUMMER ENERGY: 55/55

I wake up well before Lyubov yet again-partly because she seems to be trying to wake up before me, something I'm taking great delight in shutting down-and decide that the best idea for how to spend my morning....

Is to whistle, scream and shout.

It's Thunder time.

This first time, I decide to not startle everyone awake with impossibly loud sounds, so I make my way to the indoor tank range, and have Amen set up some practice targets-assorted types, thickness and shapes of glass, ceramics, and some samples of brick and concrete. And I throw the entire beginning half of the day away, devoting it all to getting an initial handle on how my newly expanded Summer Bloodline handles the whole 'Thunder' thing.

I learn a few things.
-If I'm shouting as hard as I can, I'm going to shatter glass willy nilly. Great if I need a distraction in a place with a bunch of windows. The glass seems guaranteed to break within two hundred feet of me in an enclosed area-maybe half that in an open space.
-Ceramics will also shatter around me, but at a quarter the range of what glass does.
-For brick and concrete, I pretty much need to be right next to it to make it start cracking-but if I TOUCH the stuff while shouting, I can outright explodify the stuff-seems contact lets me channel the vibrations far more thoroughly-makes sense, I guess.
-I can't seem to shout my throat out-not even 'damaged but repairable'-seems some aspect of the bloodline expansion involves protecting my throat and respiratory system in general from the damages Thunder Shouting would incur.
-It seems there's nothing that forces me to 'build up' to peak shouting-I can hit my peak Thunder in the first instant of shouting-so the only benefit of long-term shouting is sustaining the shout, not building it to new heights.
-Whistling is totally it's own field-when I whistle shout, I end up shredding my tongue within seconds-there's something about the vibrations that just rips it apart. That said, I think Thunder Whistling carries more than twice as far as normal shouting, even if it isn't any more potent.
-Whistling, it seems, CAN push Thunder to heights past my presumed maximum output. I'm not yet sure of the specific mechanisms and rules involved, but it's very clearly related to music-I'm getting the output increases only when I whistle tunes, and even then only during certain parts. Currently I'm thinking that's when I reach musical climaxes... but I'll need way more data to verify that as being ironclad.
-So far, it seems I can triple total Thunder potency with whistling-but I don't know if that's an actual ceiling, or just the best I've yet found-that was when whistling the 1812 Overture.
-Whistling or Shouting, when I make with the Thunder my whole body shakes-but it doesn't seem to be combat applicable. When I touch things to shatter them, it takes some time for the vibrations to build up, and the vibrations on their own aren't strong enough to rip my suit apart, so I'm pretty sure I can't treat it like any sort of armor... yet.
-I hit the ceiling for what my, at least for shouting, is a mundane biology's limits within a few hours. I'd need to do some actual fleshcrafting to alter my physiology to really draw out Thunder's strengths.
-In the end, I learn I'm ultimately a forever reusable flashbang minus the flash, and that I can deafen with ludicrous ease.
SUMMER ENERGY: +5 Max 60/60

With a MUCH firmer grasp of what I can and can't do with my Thunder shouting and whistling as of now, I head back upstairs in the early afternoon, chuckling over how my throat isn't sore from all that. I note, as I check my phone, that Hafaz messaged me with a very easily interpreted message.
[Hafaz]Job done. Collected pay. Handed off to Satai. Didn't know he knew that many magic clubs.
It's half an hour old-so I text Satai, checking to see if he made the deposit.... seems he did.
BUSINESS FUNDS: +$35,000.00 $9,242,094.00

I had plans to do things with the rest of the day-maybe work on the Golem, now that we've got that third eye, and a Giant's body. Could have been real productive, too.

But then Duke happened.

Long story short... we have another 'lesson', which thankfully doesn't require I outrageously expand my tolerance for pain to even greater heights than the first lesson. Instead... oddly... he has me doing my damnedest to beat him as he lazily takes me apart. I don't mean that he overwhelms me-this is a rather controlled situation, to be frank. What he does, is methodically introduce system-destroying attacks to my body, and both while so damaged as well as whole, he demands that I hit him hard enough to knock him on his ass-something I know I can't do no matter how hard I overcharge my chakra in Reinforcement. That said... he manages to piss me off enough that five hours in (and after three hours of him trying to feed me a line that trolling people isn't funny-I mean REALLY) that I start ignoring... well, quite a bit. My bodies reports of hitting max output, the state of my overcharged reinforcement, my overall state of health-I know he's going for pushing me into something, and I let him have at it, and finally-

My fist briefly feels like a mechanical sledgehammer as it slams into his jaw, knock his upper body back and nearly rocking him off his feet. Both of us pause at that-and Duke's face splits into a grin, showing me his bloodied lip.
>[Duke]"Hah, there you go. Seems pounding enough Strength into you's got you doin' what you gotta: Now, let's see about getting you to do it again."
The rest of the lesson is again an excercise in pain, with the only high points being two more instants where I manage to get that same sense of impossible weight and heft to my blows. It's not yet enough to say I've got a handle on Conceptual Strength, but Duke seems confident another lesson or two will see me properly finished with his training, such as it is.

We make our way back to the mansion after the session, and I take great pleasure in spending the rest of the evening with Lyubov, who only initially protests that she's got experiments to do.

At some later point, we sleep.

FRIDAY, MARCH 11th, 2011
PERSONAL FUNDS: $7,956,660.00
BUSINESS FUNDS: $9,242,094.00
CASH: $0.00
SHADOW PATIENCE: 65%
WINTER ENERGY: 160
SUMMER ENERGY: 60/60

A new day dawns-and with it, I decide that a Lo Fang job I've been on the fence about is really pretty damn interesting to me. There's a contract out for nearly half a mil-well, $430k to get the ward schematics to a safehouse of one Elwen Embla, and thereafter crack the combination Magitech/Divinitech warded and sensor-equipped warehouse. I'd not wanted to touch it because it's a Lo Fang job and frankly, fuck that guy, but... it is rather amazingly suited not just to the Allview, but to Lyubov's own ability set. What's even better, is that there exists the possibility to crack the wards ourselves and cut out the Triad middleman-why be limited to just our three top choices?
>[SB]"We'll have to assess the value of the stored items-but logically, that would be the higher yielding approach."
I know-just exploring options here. I'm thinking of sticking ten Allview souls on Elwen hunting duty-that seem reasonable?
>[SB]"You have a sufficient number that such a dedicated search shouldn't negatively impact your ability to use the Allview."
Glad to hear I have your support. Oh, lets stick another ten on tracking down that missing pole from Bonzi's, and another ten keeping tabs on that Yilmar kid-we'll need to know where he is to-
>[SB]"As to that... Sake expressed a strong desire to handle that mission himself overnight."
....Tell me what you know.
>[SB]"He knows a few were-weasels, stoars, martens and ferrets and, between them, has secured the assistance of several gay weres to lure Yilmar into a subdued gay bar... and then create pandemonium, centered around Yilmar."
Hm... I could see that working, but-
>[SB]"He will have his backpack and cameras with him."
Right, I'm sold, he can have at it.
>[SB]"He expects to be done by tonight."
Solid. I'll check in with him later, then.

With that done, I shake Lyubov awake, who after a few muzzy headed grumbles, looks blearily at me.
"Morning. I know you're going to start getting ready for your jog in a few minutes, but a little FYI: I've got a job offer I'm thinking of taking that will involve ward cracking, so if possible, please brush up on that-the assumption is that these are very solid wards."
She blinks the slow blink of the recently woken.
"Well, mull that over and let me know if you have questions."
With another mumble she eyes the alarm and rolls back over to enjoy those last sweet minutes of rest.


For me... my morning is occupied by work. The moment Gianni and Davgon have finished with Silja, I set them to moving the Golem to the sewers where Placid can access it without stepping into Amen, and give the little War Walker a ring-as ever, he's pleased as punch to be of help. We get together, SB coughs up the delicious Giant corpse, and we get to work. ...Well, Placid gets to work-Gianni and I are mostly just monitoring, while Davgon's taking notes. Gianni looks a bit pissed he's not hardy enough to act as a conduit for Placid to work through-as it is, I monopolize that function, and get a crash course in fleshcrafting Conceptually active meat. It's... to put it bluntly, vexingly baffling. I don't know why Placid does nine tenths of what he does, and some of it is so complex I can't even tell WHAT he did, conduit or no. All I can do is hold on and commit the magical action to memory as fast as I can.

In the end, we're nowhere near done when we take a break-the Golem's armor is still held open, and the Giant's body is awkwardly half-sticking out of the exposed flesh. But there's cause enough to interrupt-or so Lyubov thinks.

It's three PM-quite a few hours after we started-when she interrupts, with a comperatively succinct blurb.
[Lyubov]"Um so that teenage Witch out in Japan I've been talking with, Hyougo? Yeah, so there was an earthquake and a really big tsunami, and it's completely messing up the Japanese coast and her holdings are fine and safe and all but she's really freaking out because a bunch of mythic animal preserves and stuff like that got broken open, animals scattered all over and also she thinks there's smugglers who knew it was coming and loaded up crates with animals to let the tides sweep them out so they could get around the ban and-"
"Let's truncate that: Impressionable witch, very panicked by events, looking for input from you?"
[Lyubov]"Yeah and she-"
"And she's very receptive to whatever advice you have?"
[Lyubov]"Yes! And I have no idea what to say I mean I know how to talk to a teen about stuff but the ban she put up effects you too so I thought I'd tell you and see what you want me to say."
She finally takes a deep breath.
[Lyubov]"...And your yearbook arrived."

Right: Mentally vulnerable witch, prime for the manipulating via Facebook.
"I need to see some news reports, see what-"
Lyubov thrusts her laptop into my hands-I start scanning the open tabs with initial reports on the tsunami and the frankly impressive devestation it's wrought. ...Okay, I can work with this.








What's my recommendation for Lyubov on what to say to the freaking out, vulnerable Japanese Witch Hyougo about all the crap going on in Japan right now, and how do I use this to my advantage?
Oh yeah-tomorrow's Lyubov's birthday-what am I doing for that?
Please have your posts in by 10:00AM PST this Saturday

>>476511
[Redacted]

...Ahem. Anyway, I suggest Lyubov offer condolences and ask if there's any way she can help. You are, after all, a mercenary organization.

Realize that lyubov's birthday is not tomorrow but the day after tomorrow.

>>476520
If it means having a Witch as a friend, perhaps we should offer help without charge. I mean, Lyu's a Witch (sort of) so she can help her step by step. Have Lyu be that friend she needs.

As for birthday gifts, you have those lightning devil crossbows - Try customizing one for her, somehow. Maybe an engraving? They're perfect for her, if not for the 'devil' part...

>>476520
Thanks for not banning me outright for that inexcusable outburst. Sorry.

>>476750
Yes, a gift of that sort might be nice, but how about something of utility? Or a piece of artwork? Weaponry seems a little off to give someone after a major disaster.

Lo Fang training! We haven't gotten any in weeks.
Call up Lo Fang and schedule some training. Try to see if we can learn a speed boosting orientation this time.

>>477027
Do we really trust him, what with the "We are most certainly going to try and brutally kill him in the very near future" thing going on? I fear for our safety should we attempt to collect anything other than his head.

>>477103
If Lo Fang said he'll train Armas then thats what he'll do. Armas has nothing to fear.

>>477103
Armas can trust Lo Fang as far as his word. Yes, we've everything to fear from intent, but really, he's not betrayed us yet.

But uh, we should make a secure call to Camella - touch base RE Lo Fang's soul, in case we need to kill him and she's not around.

Whatever happened to those Einher that were planning on killing Armas or something? Perhaps we should go, kill them and get few questions answered from Ogrimmir? Or, I dunno, go and kill them solo (but with someone watching our back in case shit proves to be harder than we thought) just to try out our strength. Its been a while since we fought anything on our own.

Also, send like 100,000$ to parents. Probably would be enough to pay off any debts they have. Maybe a million if we feel generous enough. Also, call them and Rhivuolli (however that was spelled) kids. Shouldn't take more than half an hour.

The Witch's primary concern is the possibility of crated animals dodging around the ban via outflowing tide. She's either stretched too thin and distracted to handle it herself, or can't act unless the ban is being violated for political reasons. Either way, the obvious solution is for her to authorize some trusted person of hers living outside of Japan to be the only one permitted to export the animals. If there's only one person allowed to do that, and there's crates full of animals leaving Japan, then OBVIOUSLY it's said person doing it. This should be enough political pretext to allow us to track down the crates, drive off or kill the smugglers, and take the animals into our custody. The Witch benefits by having the immediate situation dealt with in a manner that doesn't undermine her authority and let's her exert influence over the animals still, through the person she's entrusted.

Issues: Travel time: we should aim for a Witch port if possible since the Pacific ocean is... a ways off. Transport: getting crates full of animals back to the mansion could well be difficult to manage for us. Authority: might end up in Lyubov's hands instead of Armas's, based on witch whim. Not debilitating if so, Lyubov's close at hand and trustworthy, it's just not the ideal situation.

For Lyubov's birthday, which should be on Sunday and not Saturday, take her out dancing, somewhere she hasn't been before. Just spend the evening and night with her, making sure she enjoys herself without having to worry about anything.

>>476374
I'm fine with spending the rest of the day looking through those yearbooks if need be. There's something curious about our past and finding out what it is one of the few things we're obliged to do at this point. Examine that year book, look for our picture, look for pictures of your friends, pictures of people you hated, pictures of your teachers, the clubs you were a part of, find them all and talk about with with Lyubov. She can be helpful pointing out inconsistencies in what we're talking about, that and it'd be good to talk to someone about it all. So reminisce, talk about it, then make a plan to ask Arkvad out for later this week, if we find we have nagging concerns we can feel them out with him. Send an invite out for tomorrow to a nice mundane restaurant, we can celebrate our respective company's successes and then work into it.

And Armas, seriously, Lyubov's birthday is the day after tomorrow. What you want to do, like I've been saying, is find a nice spot that has dancing and then take her there. You haven't even done the footwork on that, find places. It's not like we don't know people who could point us in the right direction, Sake, Shadowbro, Labombard, Satai, really any of them could tell us what we need to know. I've got nothing else in mind after dancing, mind you, so pick somewhere that's filled with other activities.

Take some time out today to just talk to people. There's been some considerable neglect of several of our close personal friends and associates, namely the Riihivuori kids, Hilja and Eirikki. We haven't had a skype conversation with them ages, lets see how they are doing now and how they've been adjusting. A couple hours of simple and innocent chatter, feel free to tell them Uncle Armas has some good news about the dream catchers too, let them know we haven't forgotten.

Big Crazy was all full of bluster to talk with us before we completely shut him down, I'm not going to say we stop doing that and let him get his brag on. Psh, it's far too funny to have him not, but he's a friend and we've shared very few words with him. Share a beer with Big, talk about how stupid you both were only a couple months ago, trying to break into Amen or alternatively being duped. Ah man, old times. What is he looking for nowadays? Still dreaming of outshooting his teacher? He's big on dreams, despite you know, not being a dream shaman-do make a couple jabs about that if you can, talk about dreams. We're increasingly short on specific ones for ourself these days. Oh and see what he does when you mention Helmi...

Silja is always rewarding to talk to and we haven't been on that as well as we could, presumably we talk to her for hours a day, but I need some details. What have we been talking about? Anything important? If not, I feel thematic today, ask Silja about dreams.

Talk to Otso too, boy's been having adventures, we love adventures. Is he okay? How's that rune magic working for him? School? We don't know if he's even in school anymore, do we? It might be an opportunity to talk with his parents if he isn't, give us a way to direct Otos a bit more. Trade some information about monsters, we know a great deal and I'm sure he'd be fascinated to hear about giants, cyclops, sirens, and demonic knights.


We need to get in gear if Kazadora is in the area. Seriously, that woman is dangerous and she's in our business. Information is at our fingertips nowadays, reach out and grab it. Find out what we can about her, how long she's been here, what she's doing, where she's going, anything and everything, it all informs our options for what we can do with her. With that information in hand ask Hillevi how we can reach Einrik and TELL HIM. The Valkonen need to know she's here, they can help us route her out, in fact we can't kill her or remove her, Markku very clearly called 'dibs'. So get Einrik's number, call him, and tell him. While you're at it chat about how things are at home, what he's been doing, we haven't heard from him in ages it'd be good to catch up.

On Elwen Embla, we don't know anything about him/her. Now if we have Allview souls looking for her, doing recon, it might be wise to see what information about her is already available to us through traditional means. That said with the plan we currently have going, the one to exploit the Triads job offer and instead claim the goods in the warehouse Elwen has the schematics to, we should think about for a second. Lo Fang offered the job because he wanted one specific item from it, what item is that and how can we leverage it to our advantage? We could find out if we took the job officially, but then we couldn't do anything with it. If we could find someone else who took the job and then have Shadowbro do a little mind tinkering...well you see where I'm going with this.

This whole thing isn't one job, but two. There was a second offer from Rocco to find out who learned Elwen was carrying a ward key to the warehouse she's connected to, which conspicuously coincided with the Triad's job offer. Now the Triads didn't mention the ward key, they actually mentioned the schematics to a safehouse and that there are wards on the warehouse they'd like us to break, but this is all very strange. They think for some reason that this is a good time to rob the warehouse and the mafia has a stake in finding out who it is that's leaking information of Elwen's activities. The information leak is supposed to be coming from someone close to Elwen, we have the allview and are monitoring her-so make a list of people Elwen is affiliated with and interacts with on a regular basis. When we know how Elwen is connected to the mafia and who she associates with a clearer picture can form. My money is that there's a triad mole in her inner circle and while it's a bit optimistic I'd love use that in the game we're playing against Lo Fang.

>>477027
SUST, because even if it were a wise move to train with Lo Fang at this point there are so many other things we should be spending our time on. For Armas Chakra may be nice, but it's additive, we'd be better served learning how to fleshcraft better or getting better at shooting and combat with the mere.

>>477214
Upvoting, I agree that this be our response to the situation with the witch.

>>477216
>>477214
Both of these I agree with and upvote, but we should also use All view to help look for the crates to make it a bit easier for her as well. Would be a good exercise for it too.

>>477214
Upvoting, with the addition of using all available allview souls to help locate the crates.

>>477216
Upvoting the Otso and Rword(Riihivouri I think? Too tired to check) children talking and Kazadora research.

>>477027
SUST on Lo Fang training. If I've learned anything from media featuring asians it's don't trust people named fang, unless you should.

Okay, gifts for Lyubov. How close are you to being able to craft golems? If you can, craft her a stereotypical igor type golem, with a limp, lisp, the ability to appear right behind you when you call it and a habit of calling people Mashter. Call in placid and Gianni to help as necessary. It could help her with her mad scientist experiments, or capture lightning or whatever. The best presents are those you make yourself so this will be better that anything you could buy/steal.

A further thought on the Japan thing, this whole things smells of somebody paying off or someone who is a powerful water/earth manipulator to cause a tsunami in order to carry out smuggling operations. If possible try to identify the perpetrators for further kudo points with the witch, if she doesn't know already.

Nother random thought, truenames, ritual magic, riddles. Presumably riddle magic is a form of ritual magic. Powerful beings probably have protections against people randomly issuing riddle challenges at them. Access to a truenames would probably bypass such protections, enabling you to riddle owner or whatever. If we could someone manage to get that shoggoth beastie under the island's truename, soulbinding it would be a piece of cake if all my fatigue-addled logic hold up. Keep your ears open for any opportunities to learn it's name that pop up.

>>477214
>>477216

I'm upvoting these posts, with the provision that any dealings we have with Hyougo take top priority.

It's been a good 7 hours since the tsunami hit. If Hyougo's only just now complaining to Lyubov it suggests that she's been busy as hell with the mess.

>>477218
Using Allview to perform searches is a good idea. It's likely that the smugglers are /still/ struggling with searching through the flotsam and jetsam of the tsunami for all the crates they want. It shouldn't be too hard to set up the Viewers to locate crates loaded with things in stasis, warded or glamoured vessels, and loose critters.

Once we have a fix, we can get the identities of all the idiots involved, and see which smuggling networks and dealers are willing to taste the fruit of a poisoned tree (i.e. who is shady enough to risk a Witch's ire).

Use search grids, double-check Viewer work with everyone we've trusted in Allview thusfar (Shadowbro, Sake, Lyubov, Hummingbird, and Armas).

Invite Placid into the Allview to help, and ask him if all this searching data will give him enough to be able to perform his Tune Up on the Viewers?

Don't use Viewers already engaged in long-term tasks (which means we'll have about 50 Viewers tied up monitoring other things, and the majority on the search in the Pacific).

>>476771
Honestly I thought it was funny-Labombard mockingly gives Armas shit about being an American Asshole, and Armas is a troll, so that was a great deal more in character than most tongue-in-cheek posts. Not sure why/how you got the admonishment, but hey, just sayin'

>>476523
...Oh.
>[SB]"Just realized it, did you?"
That Lyubov's birthday is the day AFTER tomorrow, and not tomorrow? Yup.
>[IT]"A minor detail, that. I'm sure being off a day won't be detrimental to you at all…"
>[HB]"I still do not understand-what purpose is there to celebrating one's birth? It's a trivial accomplishment bereft of meaningful accolades-should you not celebrate your mate's greatest struggles overcome, instead?"
On that, it’s not just a celebration of the accomplishment of being born (which I’ll note is far riskier for mundane humans than birds), it’s also the celebration of the person being in your life. Think of it like a commemoration of the day they joined us.
>[HB]"A lackluster answer, but I shall accept it for the nonce."

>>476520
>>476750
>>477214
>>477219
My mind gets back to the big question: Just how CAN I profit from the debacle on Japan, and the Witch's plight? ...Slipping into Accelerated Thought to properly ponder the situation, I break down what I know.
===It's been a good 7 hours since the tsunami hit. If Hyougo's only just now complaining to Lyubov it suggests that she's been busy as hell with the mess, especially given how her power (presumably) works. If ever there was a group of magic users that practices handwavium, it'd be Witches and Wizards-and seven hours should be far and away beyond the time they need to get stuff done. In fact... it having taken so long suggests there were forces actively working to retard or delay her workings.
===The Witch's primary concern is the possibility of crated animals dodging around the ban via outgoing tide. She's either stretched too thin and distracted to handle it herself, or can't act unless the ban is being violated for political reasons. Assuming there are political reasons, a Merc could be exactly what she needs.
===Either way, the solution that first comes to mind that benefits me is for her to authorize some 'trusted' person living outside of Japan to be the only one permitted to export the animals. If there's only one person allowed to do that, and there's crates full of animals leaving Japan, then OBVIOUSLY it's said person doing it-and if someone ELSE is moving crates, why, that'd make them smugglers to be disposed of-incontrovertibly, in fact.
>[SB]"I can effectively guarantee she won't approve an exporter, period-that said, a guardian employed to actively PREVENT smuggling..."
Yeah-okay, I could work with that.
===Scratch that-I'm shooting to be her emergency enforcer, more or less.
===This should be enough political pretext to allow us to track down the crates, drive off or kill the smugglers, and take the animals into our custody. The Witch benefits by having the immediate situation dealt with in a manner that doesn't undermine her authority and let's her keep her face by showing she can't just be exploited like that.
===If I go that route, it's overwhelmingly unlikely she'd want to let me keep animals I 'rescued'. Yeah, I can talk a fast wheedle, and I've got more life experience than little Hyougo, but I'm pretty sure that means fuckall when dealing with a Witch-so, it'd be smart to prioritize ways to profit that aren't reliant on her making an exception to her decrees for me.

I slip back out of Accelerated Thought, my method of EARNING her gratitude determined, even while the means I'd want that gratitude expressed remains nebulous. Lyubov's still looking at me expectantly.

[In Turkish]"So, here's the plan: Stroke her ego per normal for offering condolences to a frantic younger person, ask if there's any way you-or, by extension, the company-can help her. Don't even bring up prices or anything-just make her aware we're willing to help, and willing to prioritize giving that help.”
[Lyubov][In Turkish]"So, um, yeah. Okay, I can do that, but she's probably going to have just loads, oodles of people looking to get on her good side that way, right? And what about Kash... you know what, why don't I just show you."

True to her word, the Witch Saint shows me the chat log, such as it is, while Gianni and Davgon start turning back to their work to appear disinterested in what they're listening in on.

[8:31] Lyubov: Hey I heard the news and I know you’re inland but are you and your peeps ok? [8:38] Lyubov: I bet you’re just really busy. I pray you’re ok. I’ll keep my computer nearby so please let me know if you can. [2:58] Hyougo: OMG Lyubov there was a huge earthquake that caused this super-giant tsunami hit and messed everything up! (;*△*;) [2:59] Lyubov: I heard! Are you OK? [2:59] Hyougo: I’m OK and so are my family but it really messed stuff up. I am so mad at Kashima and his stupid fish. [3:00] Lyubov: I have been looking at video of the mess and it looks really horrible. I am glad you and your loved ones are safe. [3:02] Lyubov: Isn’t it like nine at night where you live? [3:03] Hyougo: I’ve been going all over the coast fixing wards and catching animals before they eat people and it is like all the mythic wildlife on the coast has gotten loose maybe tens of thousand animals loose/missing now and a bunch dead. The stupid selkies and ningyo aren’t much help because they’ve got a huge mess in the sea catching namazu. The yakuza branches aren’t even here and a bunch of practicioner houses are all busy with rescuing people. [3:03] Hyougo: It is and I’m sorry it took so long to get back to you but it’s been crazy. [3:03] Lyubov: It’s ok. It sounds like you have a lot to do. [3:05] Hyougo: I think some smugglers knew this was going to happen and filled a bunch of shipping containers that they left on the beach to be swept out to sea, I found one filled with a bunch of tsukumogami and brought it home and they all claimed they were caught/bought and then put in the crate by glamoured people. I don’t know what I’m going to do, I don’t even know how many containers got out because there is so much disruption and death it’s messing up things, and there’s so much work I don’t know what to do! (;*△*;) [3:05] Lyubov: And you need to know where they are to get them yourself? [3:05] Hyougo: Yes, but I can’t even get most of the crates that are at sea myself, I’ll make the selkies and ningyo look really bad, and I really don’t know what I’m supposed to do. [3:06] Lyubov: Is it ok if I get my boyfriend in on this? [3:07] Hyougo: You said he’s clever before. Ok. [3:07] Lyubov: BRB, got to find him. [3:07] Hyougo: Ok. Going to eat, back in fifteen.

...Well this could alter the preferred approach method here.

“Who’s Kashima and what do his fish have to do with anything?”
Sake, draped around Lyubov’s waist like some sort of fuzzy belt, speaks up.
>[Sake] “Kashima’s a Shinto god, his main job is restraining a type of giant catfish called Namazu that cause earthquakes. He sells their spawn as a delicacy; very tasty actually.”
[Lyubov] “I guess some got loose or something? I do not know, it did not seem wise to press on that, it wasn’t very relevant.”
I rub my chin thoughtfully.
“Sounds like she needs help with the wildlife in Japan in general. She’s been relying on the magic sea creatures as her lieutenants?”
[Lyubov] “She has had a good relationship with the selkies, she’s mentioned them a couple of times. She likes fur seals and that’s what most of them are in her area.”
>[Sake] “I got in contact with a friend in Kumamoto earlier today, which is totally fine being so far south, and he said most of Hyougo’s servants are pretty low ranking in the grand scheme. She made a lot of friends with the smaller yōkai by banning trading them, but she’s got a lot of the stronger divines pretty mad at her.”
I can see the surprise on Dávgon and Gianni’s souls- I guess Lyubov hasn’t spread around that she’s been making friends with a Witch. Placid merely cocks his head, as he listens in, still positioned near the golem.
>[Dávgon] “Excuse me, you are talking about Hyougo Hanmaki, correct? The Wizard?”
[Lyubov] “She prefers the gender-specific term Witch rather than the general term, but yes.”
>[Dávgon] “…of course she does.”
[Lyubov] “We talk a lot on the internet, she’s a nice kid. She lives in Hokkaido. The northern island, but she’s way inland, she didn’t get hit at all.”
>[Dávgon] “You’re friends with her?”
[Lyubov] “Yeah.”
>[Sake] “She even asked for pictures of me dressed up!”
>[Gianni] “And now she’s overwhelmed with work, hmm?”
[Lyubov] “Basically. She needs help, but she doesn’t know what sort of help.”
>[Placid] “If Witch Hyougo is classifiable as a friend and she needs help, then it would be advisable to provide what aid she needs. If Witch Hyougo cannot articulate what help she needs, then it would be best to evaluate her situation and choose an approach that attempts to achieve desired outcomes.”
“You took the words right out of my mouth, Placid. I do have some ideas on how we can help her, based on the facts that she’s both overworked, and in a politically tricky situation. If she has to step in for her allies, they look weak, and she’s distracted from other critical work. If her ban is publically acknowledged as having been violated, she looks weak. But her ban has already been violated, and she’s got way too much work on her plate at the moment to do a cover up. So the obvious solution is to double-think the problem into something manageable.”
>[SB] “How did I know you’d pick that as your solution?”
I ignore his jibe about my predictability. I backtrack to a prior decision, wondering if maybe I COULD get export rights, after all.
“If she were to authorize some trusted person of hers living outside of Japan to be the only one permitted to export the animals, then there would be a publically acknowledged avenue for exports. Which would mean she would have an out. All the “smuggled” goods would obviously the work of the- what would we call this?“
>[Gianni] “Game warden?”
[Lyubov] “It’s not just animals, it’s all spirits. Yōkai Kanrinin, maybe.”
>[Sake] “There would be no mistaking what that function is, that way, but it’s an inelegant way to put it. What about Yōkai Shugo?”
[Lyubov] “Oh that’s an old word, that’d work really well!”
>[Dávgon] “And what does that mean?”
[Lyubov] “Literally, ‘Governor of Otherworldly-Weird things’ with that word for governor having connotations of controlling in-absentia.”
“That’d work. So, obviously all the “smuggled” goods are actually authorized by the Yōkai Shugo. And any policing or spot checks that the Yōkai Shugo performs to make sure things are being done satisfactorily would be legal. And if it was found that some people had not prepared their shipments correctly, they’d have to return the goods and be punished.”
>[Sake] “So you’d ask her to name Lyubov the Yōkai Shugo and then we all go hunting for loose yōkai?”
“Basically. Her or myself.”
[Lyubov] “I do not know if she will go for it. Me being a Witch Saint will complicate it. Probably.”
>[Dávgon] “It would be akin to her endorsing Tesla in her territory, but putting a Witch Saint in charge of yōkai-related matters would be a good way to send a clear message to the stronger divine beings that oppose her.”
“Shape up or else.”
[Lyubov]”That’s kinda…”
“Kind of necessary? I agree, there’s circumstantial evidence that this tsunami was orchestrated specifically to get yōkai out of Japan. Even if it’s not the case, the message needs to be sent to keep the uninformed yōkai from trying anything on their own. Really, Lyubov you make a lot more sense for the position than me."
I offer a patently fake wounded smile at the admission.
"Hyougo already trusts you enough to ask for help. She only knows about me through you, as far as I know.”
The computer chimes.

[3:23] Hyougo: I’m back.

I start typing, and then realize that I’m on Lyubov’s account.
“Lyubov can you do something about the name here? I want it to be clear that-“
There's a flare of spiritual energy-Divine spirit, specifically-as something in the computer changes.
[Lyubov]”Done.”

[3:24] Armas: Hello Hyougo. This is Lyubov’s boyfriend. [3:24] Hyougo: Hi. [3:24] Armas: She explained the problem. We talked it over, and I have an idea. [3:24] Hyougo: Tell me! [3:24] Armas: Typing now. [3:28] Hyougo: Armas are you still there? [3:29] Armas: Your problem is that there is no way to even excuse anything unauthorized leaving Japan in quantity right now. People will be able to figure out that a lot more yōkai are on the markets than should have been washed out in the tsunami. I don’t know Kashima and I don’t know what happened, but I do know that people are also going to think that this means they can try duplicating the tsunami to remove more yōkai. Unless there’s a significant deterrent you’ll probably see certain parties who want a chance to smuggle some of their “goods” out try to do that. Since duplicated tsunami events will hurt nearly everyone, and the world market seeing a lot more yōkai will hurt the selkies like you said, as well as make people think they might be able to sneak things past you, you need to make a decisive political statement with a decisive action. [3:29] Armas: My suggestion is to create an office of Yōkai Shugo, a trusted person who is given the power to manage limited trade in yōkai leaving the country. Anything that’s gotten out of the country already was obviously done under the Yōkai Shugo’s watch, and with permission. So you and your allies don’t lose any face. [3:30] Hyougo: I don’t want any trade in them! [3:32] Armas: I know, but it’s already been seven hours. I’d guess some crates, the highest value stuff that merited using teleports once it was far enough away, are already in warehouses. This way there’s a legal explanation for all the new traffic on the market, and you have a designated deputy who has the duty of managing the task of hunting down all those yōkai smugglers and making them regret what they did. Because the Yōkai Shugo would of course have the right to check all yōkai shipments leaving the country, to be sure they’re being shipped out in a safe and humane fashion. Since the techniques the smugglers used are not safe or humane, they would have to be punished. See? It works really well. [3:33] Hyougo: But that won’t stop them from trying another tsunami later, it’d just make them move faster next time! [3:34] Armas: The Witch Saint of Tesla being the Yōkai Shugo would make most of the players that stand to gain from another tsunami think twice. As I understand it, almost all of the beings best placed to profit are divine. Witch Saints are terrifying to them. As long as Lyubov’s got the position, the message would be clear: behave or else.” [3:34] Hyougo: Lyubov wants to do it? [3:34] Armas: You’re her friend, I’m sure she’d agree for your sake. I’ll hand the computer to her, and start getting our men ready to help with this. Would it be asking too much to ask you to do teleports for us? When we get a fix on smugglers, we’ll pass the location to you, and you drop our team in on top of them. Or if you prefer we can use vehicles, it’ll just take longer. [3:35] Hyougo: I can do teleports if you can figure out where you want to be.

While I’m consumed with carefully typing answers to Hyougo, I dimly note that Sake, Shadowbro, Dávgon, and Gianni all are working hard at convincing Lyubov that being the heavy and taking on this responsibility will ultimately be a good thing. By the time I’m done with Hyougo, Lyubov’s mostly on board.

As I hand the computer to Lyubov, Sake makes a good point.
>[Sake] “Be sure to ask Hyougo for permission to conduct some actual exports. Just enough to make the office seem legitimate. Remind her about the Red Seal Ships, she should have learned about them in her studies of Japanese history.”
“I don’t mean to be a boor, but I’m not big on Japanese history.”
>[Sake] “They were ships given official permission to conduct trade with the rest of the world, to reduce the frequency of piracy by Japanese ships looking for goods that they could not get through legal trade.”
>[Gianni] “Give them a taste of what’s forbidden in a controlled way, so that they don’t roughly plunder your booty. Makes sense to me.”
I choose not to smile at that-there's big-league business afoot.
"Sake, SB-get everyone that's not out on a mission looped in on this-we'll need to have strike teams ready."
>[SB]"On it."
I'm getting to work on the Allview, turning every non-committed spirit towards the Japanese coast and nearby waters, hunting for would-be-smuggled goods, while Lyubov texts some more with Hyougo, clearing up a few details-and briefly popping out of existence, only to reappear holding a spidersilk eboshi hat, well over two feet long and rather floppy, with the Kanji for Hanmaki on it's front. While the Allview's processing and compiling locations, I can't help but smirk at the utterly childlike glee on Lyubov's face.
"Badge of office, I take it?"
[Lyubov]”Yeah! It's awesome!”
She promptly puts it on, laughing as she finds it utterly impossible to make the hat stand upright. I'd laugh along with her-but SB's shadowporting the minions into the room, and I've got enough pings from the Allview we can start acting.
>[SB]"I have made them aware-we can begin."
"Lyubov-Hyougo ready with those teleports?"
[Lyubov]”We have locations right?”
"Yeah-how's she want them?"
[Lyubov]”Can you do GPS coordinates?”
"Not a problem."
Thus far silence since his one point, Placid speaks up.
>[Placid]"...May I come as well?"
I don't even need to think about it.
"Sure-the more the merrier-actually, grab Hillevi, she could-"
I don't get to finish that sentence as Placid takes me literally, a tentacle growing out the door and retracting back into his body in a flash, a very confused looking Valkonen set down beside him.
>[Hillevi]"Um, wha-"
Sake flies from Lyubov's waist up to Hillevi's face, and whaps her in the face with his butt, sniggering all the while. Hilariously, that's how he chose to give her a memory download to get her up to date. Her eyes boggle as she processes it.
>[Hillevi]"Oh.... Ooohhhh this is gonna be so much fun!"
I look over the room, seeing the Russians already outfitted with their normal gear.
"Everyone ready?"
It's not REALLY a question-but everyone nods a confirmation anyway.

And with that... begins a surreal series of events. In total, we teleport to three hundred eighty six different locations, and effectively repeat a script. Each time we show up in force, Lyubov states her position and duties, we look intimidating, and... would-be smugglers react. Some-the ones I assume to be the smarter ones-recognize the play for what it is, and are utterly cordial, apologizing that they had thought to 'salvage' coincidentally washed-out boxes of goods for resale', and 'happily' turn them over to us, to then return to Hyougo. Others damn near shit themselves either on recognizing Lyubov as a Witch Saint, or on hearing we're backed by a Witch, and do their utmost to run like hell and not look back. Thanks to time constraints, we don't waste time chasing runners when we've already got the divine beings back. Some get angry-but every angry group has at least one member savvy enough to realize that trying to make an issue of it on the spot is a no-win scenario. By the end, Lyubov's face and my own are no doubt known to just about every smuggler worth their salt that was involved in the event... and Hyougo's got several thousand displaced divine beings to get back to their proper place, while still dealing with the widespread devastation. She signs off with a hurried thanks thrown our way, and says she'll contact us again when she's not, quote 'super super busy', and she cautioned Lyubov to not take actions with her 'position' until then, since technically it's not official yet.

Personally, I'm imagining she's going to want to take the title back-or leave it as just a title. While it's clear she and Lyubov get along, the subtext of her back and forth with Lyubov as we did this made it rather clear she was uncomfortable with non-Japanese having such a rank. That doesn't mean we won't try to keep the position in-house and finagle our own exclusive shipping rights, but... well. Is Hyougo silly? In context absolutely, but given she's a Witch I don't think it'd be wise to argue it while she's stressed. Instead, I start plotting how I can turn her eventual reachback into tangible profit for us even if we don't swing the shipping rights. It's with this thought in mind that I dismiss those that came along for the nonviolent show of force.

For her part, Lyubov busies herself playing with her new hat as Sake incessantly tries to crawl inside of its floppy peak. Clearly, the hat was the real prize from this endeavor.


>>477027
>>477103
>>477164
>>477185
>>477218
With the afternoon and evening having passed in a blur of Witchly teleportation and official bullshittery, I find myself winding down for the day, and my mind drifts... to Chakra. Specifically, to the lessons that Lo Fang agreed to provide weekly. Now, I COULD take him up on that now-he is still obligated to provide should I request-but... at this point, it's effectively guaranteed that someday soon, I'm going to fuck him over utterly, and see him dead. For every merit I can find in ignoring the risk and still going, I can find a counterpoint of equal importance in abstaining. Simply put... it's a can of worms, indelibly so, and... I'd rather not have to deal with it. At the end of the day, Chakra's additive, and I've got enough exponential power options that it's just not that useful to me, compared to other options. So I opt to let the idea die a quiet death.

That said, I still think I should make a secure call to Camella- she should be up right now, it’s only midnight.
>[Camella]"Armas."
"Hey. Anything to report?"
>[Camella]"Not currently-though that's not why you're calling."
"Nope. Wanted to touch base about Lo Fang."
I can practically feel her bristle through the phone.
>[Camella]"...Go on."
"I'm going to need to deal with him soon-and when I do, it's likely the end result will be you owning his soul."
>[Camella]"So you're going to kill him?"
"Damn skippy. No way I'd trust his soul for anything at all unless it was contractually bound."
>[Camella]"It's a bit depressing to me that I'm completely okay with that-but that still doesn't explain why you called-hadn't we already cleared this up?"
"Not particularly. So having his soul suddenly pop up and be totally under your ownership isn't going to be a nasty surprise, and you'll have the means to handle it?"
>[Camella]"Yes, I can deal with it."
"Okay-great. Don't be surprised if and when that shows up, then-and hey, good job keeping stuff quiet up there, I'm kind of surprised."
>[Camella]"Grisha has been a... challenge... to keep under control, but she and Vlad have been behaving."
"Good to know. Andrei doing all right?"
>[Camella]"I'd say that being deprived of a great deal of electronics has forced him to become more coherent."
"Good for him. Well, I'll let you get back to that-plenty to do back here."
>[Camella]"Until later... heh, 'Boss'."
*CLICK*

>>477204
With that dealt with, a different long-pending activity pops to the forefront of my mind. Specifically: What the HELL happened to that group of Einher I'd heard about who were gunning for me?
>[SB]"They were eaten by a Grue."
What.
>[SB]"What part did you not understand?"
So they all got murdered-and eaten-down in the Undersewers, then?
>[SB]"It's my understanding they attempted to follow Body somewhere, and things went poorly for them. I haven't invested in acquiring the full story, but they are confirmed dead."
...Right. ...Well, that's that, then.

I feel a bit let down at that.

After that little conversation and gift giving... I call it a night. Faking-but-not-faking being an export official under a witch's employ proved to be demanding and time consuming work.

SATURDAY, MARCH 12th, 2011
PERSONAL FUNDS: $7,956,660.00
BUSINESS FUNDS: $9,242,094.00
CASH: $0.00
SHADOW PATIENCE: 60%
WINTER ENERGY: 160
SUMMER ENERGY: 60/60

>>477216
With the new day dawning, I wake up Lyubov by not making any effort to be quiet waking up, and set to checking that yearbook with her using her new hat of office as a sleep cap and peering over my shoulder.

The Yearbook... is odd. I recognize enough faces that initially I'm thinking I might be looking in the wrong direction to answer those deep-seated questions about my Self, and yet... as I continue to appraise the book, flipping throughout the pages, I wonder if I should remember more than a mere sixth of the people I went to school with. Surely, high school wasn't THAT boring. I recognize everyone that went on to join the Marines around the same time I did-big surprise there-and the people I never interacted with past graduation don't ring any bells. Given the decade intermission, I can't say that's unusual... but the school wasn't massive or anything, and only knowing a sixth of them just feels a bit... too slight. I puzzle over the yearbook, aimlessly seeking patterns to what I remember and what I don't-I recognize the fallout of one of the pranks I oft joked about in the marines with my old school buddies before we went our separate ways in life, and I don't remember why I chose 'Lies are the best thing to believe if you're the one that made them' quote for the yearbook. I'd like to think it was just an allusion to my love of bullshittery, but... again, I feel like I'm missing something.
>[SB]"Interesting-I have a similar sense of unease even parsing the data as you see it, which is identical to how I feel when I directly view the book."
So there's something innately wrong about this my Soul's reacting to.
>[SB]"Precisely. I will attempt to look into this on my own-it may take some time, but I believe it's important for me to attempt it first, due to my advantage where time is concerned."
Keep me-
>[SB]"There are some fields in which I will eschew all of our urges towards capriciousness-and clearing up a jarring discrepancy in our collective past is one of them. You will know what I know, when I know it."
With a sigh, I put the book down.

[Lyubov]”Didn't find what you were looking for?”
"No, I haven't-not yet. But I did confirm there's something off here."
We chat for a bit more past there-nothing but frivolities, really-before we go our separate ways with the new day.

With my mind already cued to thinking about friends, family, and people not often thought about... I find myself feeling a bit ashamed that I haven't contacted Hilja and Eirikki in a while. Yes, the Valkonens are taking care of them, and yes I do have plenty of things to do-but that doesn't excuse NOT paying them any attention. So I pop on the laptop, fire up Skype, and work on some Mandragora root tea while I wait for one of them to see the incoming request. It takes a few minutes, but Eirikki's silent face fills the screen, his eyes lighting up in childish glee on seeing me before he darts off-screen. Soon enough he returns in a clamor of wildly uncoordinated limbs, practically dragging his sister with him. Hilja, who had been looking a bit confused and distracted, her nose buried in a leather bound tome who's cover is festooned with images of water and ice lights up like a Christmas tree as she sees me.
>[Hilja][In Finnish]"Oh, Uncle Armas!"
I can't deny it warms my heart to see the child just as bubbly as any other preteen girl, and not constantly haunted by the events that led to me meeting her and her brother-and I don't make any efforts to hide that happiness.
[In Finnish]"Hey kiddo. Sorry I haven't called in a bit-things have been pretty hectic down here in breezy Istanbul."
>[Hilja]"I heard, I heard! You've got an... um... not a Skin Walker, but something like that, as your Ward besides big sis Hillevi now, right?"
...Huh. Now that's an interesting question. I wasn't aware that news of my second ward had reached as far as Finland-but then, maybe that's more because the Valkonens have a vested interest in staying up to date, rather than proof it's truly that momentous. What's far more noteworthy to me, however, is-
"Oh-ho... 'big sis' Hillevi, huh?"
The fierce little blush that races across her pudgy cheeks is frankly adorable, and I once again assure myself I'm not at all above teasing children.
>[Hilja]"S-shut up!"
"Oh, well if that's how you feel maybe I should call later-"
Two sets of widened, imploring eyes look at me as the Sister hastily backtracks.
>[Hilja]"No, don't do that!"
"Oh, so you want to talk to 'Uncle Armas' now, huh? Well okay, we can do that. I take it by the book you've had your nose half-wedged in there-"
Hilja sets the book down with such a precocious bias that I know what I'm going to offer next isn't nearly as needed as it once was.
>[Hilja]"I'm not reading it, see! I'm paying attention!"
"Haha, okay. Have you been eating right?"
She wrinkles her nose at that-as behind her, Eirikki makes a not-too-subdued expression quite akin to gagging.
>[Hilja]"Hydra tastes yucky. I don't like it."
"Have you tried telling Markku that?"
>[Hilja]"Yeah, but he talks about how it's got magical content, and it's good for us, and stuff. But it's still gross," she confides, crossing her arms over the book she just set down.
I consider how delicious all magical food has been to adult palettes-and wonder if this means magic isn't tasty to consume at earlier points in one's life. It's a modestly fascinating question-and I think I have my answer right here.
"It's not making your soul get too big or anything, right?"
>[Hilja]"No, it's not, but it's still icky, and I don't like it-it tastes like that Basilisk stuff that da...."
And like a light switch got flicked, her eyes turn morose and lose their luster, as painful memories resurface. It strikes me that now is the best time to 'strike'.
"You both remember how I talked about getting you something to help you sleep?"
Two heads nod at that, their fugue beginning to lift before it can properly swaddle them.
"Well I've got some good news-look forward to the best night's sleep ever-FORever, in the near future."
Yet again, a tiny brow crinkles.
>[Hilja]"...How can sleep be better than not having nightmares?"
"When the sleep's cathartic and therapeutic."
>[Hilja]"Um... I don't know those words."
"Sleep where you feel even happier and better waking up than you did the day before, not because you rested, but because the sleep was that good for you."
>[Hilja]"Really?"
"Really really-you should hear from me soon, complete with having some presents coming your way."
He of course says nothing-but I definitely take note of Eirikki's smile at that, and the loosening of tension around his eyes. For her part, Hilja seems rather ecstatic-but interestingly, less for the gift's purpose, and more for the fact I'm getting her something. Seems she's the type of kid that really likes getting presents-well, I can work with that.

We spend two hours chatting past there-complete with me finding out Einrik's been badgering Markku nonstop about reopening communications with old contacts long since disused-and that the Estate's been getting periodic visiting shamans, looking to pick Einrik's brains (or, when he's out, peruse his notes) about the experiments he performed with Big Crazy. Yet again, I'm reminded that BC's gut-bound Hydra Familiar is genuinely a big deal. Eventually Helmi shows up, letting the kids know it's time to work on their Water Manipulation, and after a minimal amount of whining that they'd rather keep talking with 'Uncle Armas' they comply, and Helmi asks me to give my regards to BC before shutting off the connection.

With Big Crazy on the mind-and sensing his soul and accompanying spirit animals in the mansion, I decide to keep the in-depth chat motif rolling strong, and set out for just that. Big's, unsurprisingly, in the bug room with Dávgon, working with the Sami Shaman on the many kudoku jars, monitoring the champions that are slowly being refined. On my arrival, only Big Crazy looks up-Dávgon, as ever, thoroughly enthused in his work.
>[BC][In English]"Armas. What brings you here?"
My answer... is directed at the ever-busy Finn.
"Dávgon-beer us."
Without turning around, the Sami plucks two brews from a freezer beside him, and lobs them over his back in my general direction. Catching them, I motion for Big to follow me-unsurprisingly, he's already realized this isn't exactly going to be the most heavy or serious of conversations we're about to have. After we're both seated and have cracked open our deer-piss-beers, I fire my first shot of the discourse.
"So-what'd the Valkonens do for you, besides give you the Hydra bit that you worked with?"
I can see it in his eyes-in his soul that he's abruptly prepared to divulge a long-refined diatribe extolling his arduous tasks overcome, the virtues he needed to demonstrate, the trials he had to successfully complete, and the attention it got him. I let him get started...
>[BC]"Well, Einrik had access to some rather impressive if incomplete records of past experiments by non-Soul-Manipulating shamans, and it turns out I was able to-"
"Really, Einrik had stuff on that too? Honestly, how large is that guy's library?"
His brow twitching a bit at the redirect, Big takes a long pull of the hallucinogenic beer before answering.
>[BC]"Well, they are a massively old family that currently has a shortage of members-I'd venture to say they CAN'T spend all their money, not unless they're specifically trying to. And with Einrik's love of research..."
He offers an affable shrug.
"Jeeze, that's a bit telling when you think it through. Any highlights from the material you saw-or did you not get to see his part of the estate's library?"
>[BC]"No, I saw it-he found my creativeness enough motivation to let me have free access, which is why I was able to-"
Nice try buddy-no showing off for you!
"So hold on-what were the highlights? He have anything on Conceptual Magic, esoteric rituals or runes, Name magic, you know, the fun stuff?"
With a much put-upon air, the amerindian takes another pull from his beer (while I do the same) and answers.
>[BC]"Well, I did see a discussion book about the banned Concept of Negation, but that's just theory discussion. What he had that interested me the most was a book penned by a Dragon going by 'L' that discussed Elder beings, and how they behave outside of Elder Space."
"No shit-he's actually got documentation on that?"
>[BC]"It was a short and frankly, quite unkempt book. I suspect he'd acquired it by force."
"Interesting. Don't suppose you had a chance to skim, peruse or otherwise assess that book."
>[BC]"No, I was busy working on a revolutionary-"
"Oh-is Helmi still after your dick?"
At that, Big pauses, giving me a level, lidded look.
>[BC]"...You're not going to let me tell my story, are you."
"Not a chance."

Once again, Big Crazy demonstrated why I like the guy by taking the utter rebuff in good grace, and bullshitting with me about 'the good old days' when both of us were little more than thugs for higher, and joins me in laughing at how we're technically still exactly that, just... more magical. I find out he's been taking part in just about every shooting tournament he's been able to find out about, and is looking to get enough notoriety he could plot out a trip back to the States and try his hand at surpassing his teacher in the ways of gunplay, Bob Munden (And I STILL can't get over that being his teacher). We laugh, mock one another and in general pass the time convivially-and Big, at last, makes peace with the fact I'm just not going to let him show off, purely for my own amusement.

On a conversational bent, I go next to someone I'd been… not exactly avoiding, but definitely taking note of (and, in my way, respecting) her growing unease in my presence: Silja. As always, she's an egg of flesh as long as a person is tall, currently leaned against a subwoofer, with baroque music sneding vibrations into her taut flesh shell. I walk over, and put a hand on her side, knowing that I can't just ignore her.
Hello again.
Her reaction clinches it for me, validating my choice to broach the subject-her quivering reaction to the touch isn't a surge of general motion in all directions-it's a recoil, faint or no.
>[Silja]"Oh, Armas, hello! I.. how are you?"
I'm doing quite well, if rather busy.
>[Silja]"Well, try not to work too hard."
I'm attempting that just now, actually: I have some time, and I'm catching up with some friends.
I can feel guilt emanating from her spirit at that.
>[Silja]"Is.. is that so? Well, I'm happy you wanted to spend some of that time with me-I mean, not that I don't like talking with the others, and I apologize if I gave offense, but…."
The flesh orb trails off, floundering.
Silja, would you like to tell me what's wrong?
The egg visibly deflates at the gentle question.
>[Silja]"..No, I don't want to-but I should tell you, so…"
If you don't want to-
>[Silja]"No, no this is… good. …Um. I'm not quite sure where to start."
Would it be rude to suggest the beginning? I do have time.
>[Silja]"The beginning. …Okay, I can do that. So, you know that I'm thinking about asking Placid to… well, complete me, I guess-to finish the resurrection. And I've had to think really carefully about what I want to be, and… well. I thought about it, and the only way I can be happy, I think, is to step away from my past life. And… I know it's not your fault, but you remind me of… of my Armas."
Gee, wonder where this is going.
And that's still painful to you.
>[Silja]"I know it's stupid, but… you even look like him-not, not a lot, but enough, and when I didn't believe you, and… Sorry. I know I'm being silly, but-"
But that's how it is.
>[Silja]"Yeah…"
Well, if you want space, I can give you that.
>[SB]"And if the irrational aversion to Armas continues to be an issue, I can offer you a means of removing such a viewpoint."
SB-
>[SB]"It's true-I know something of memory modification myself, and we have in our employ a Mentalist. If you so choose, it could be rendered a non-issue."
>[Silja]"I… thank you for the offer-really, actually, I do. I'd been wondering if bad… thoughts.. could be removed, so… I appreciate the offer."
Don't feel obligated to-
>[Silja]"No, this is good-I… have more options to consider."
If you need anything, you know I'll help.
The flesh orb jiggles, laughter reverberating across it's form.
>[Silja]"I'll keep that in mind."
That's good to hear.

We chat more after that, but ultimately… as she said, I still make her uncomfortable, and I try to respect that.

After the talk with Silja… there's one more person I want to call-
>[SB]"To finish reassuring yourself you give a crap about them?"
To see how they're doing, and maybe get a few chuckles, actually.
>[SB]"Otso?"
Otso.

I give my Einher cousin a call. Unsurprisingly, he picks up promptly.
>[Otso]"…Is that you?"
"So it would seem."
>[Otso]"I need to figure out a way to get a specific restricted number to play a… nevermind, you're not giving me a hint on that, are you."
"No, I'm not the one that would blather technological quirks at you-so, how are things? The research been going well?"
>[Otso]"It's been going great actually. Uh… so, long story short, the system doesn't use any one established rune system-but it HAS influenced a bunch of different alphabets over time. So, I've been learning as many runic alphabets as I can, and testing them. Cool thing-I know I haven't yet figured out what it IS, specifically, but I know there IS a root runic alphabet, I know it's general… okay, it's very vague shape, but I'm definitely getting a better feel for how to program this-I just have to think of my skin as a computer screen, my blood as the keys I press to make the runes that are the programming language, and it mostly makes sense."
"And what new things have you learned to do, then?"
>[Otso]"Okay, let me think-so, I actually figured out that the strength boost? Totally not just muscle recruitment like I was kind of thinking, it's taking the… the energy of the Einher seed, and investing it in one's body. It empowers muscle, reinforces bone, hardens organs-"
Sounds quite a lot like Chakra.
>[Otso]"So, I can fully suppress it, and actually go back to just regular strength-OR, I can over-drain the seed, past it's recharge rate, and for a little while be… heh… pretty strong, you know?"
"I think I have a sense of how heady it can be to rip steel doors apart like wet cardboard, yes."
>[Otso]"Woah… uh, so I can't quite.. do THAT, but I can totally outmuscle things I couldn't normally, with the… I guess passive flow rate? Oh! The regeneration-that's also fueled by the seed-and I still don't really know much about THAT, past it being somewhere in me, and that it refills itself-anyway, the faster I want to regenerate, the more energy it takes-but, if I leave it set real low, I can, like, passively have super-human healing! Really slow, yeah, but it's free! Oh, also-I can use the energy to… make temperature not bother me so much-hot or cold. I can fire and freeze-proof myself, I guess? I don't really know why that's how the power works yet, but I'm working on it!"
"Not too shabby, Otso. But as great as it is to hear how your research is going-what have you been DOING with it?"
>[Otso]"Yeah so, I can currently say our hometown's werewolf-free!"
"And how do you know that?"
>[Otso]"Well, I can sense werewolves and vampires and stuff-I think it's because the seed's like a radar for other magic-stuff or something. Anyway. No more werewolves in town!"
"So you can't sense them anymore. Did you kill them all?"
>[Otso]"What? No way, that'd be, like, sixty werewolves or something! I bet they just left after I kept roughing them up, heh."
"I think now is an excellent time to tell you magical stealth, especially against supernatural senses, is a very big field of research."
>[Otso]"…Oh."
"Yes. Oh."
>[Otso]"Uh… so… they could be prepping to take me out."
"Not to alarm you, but potentially. How thoroughly did you study potential sensory boosts via runic coding of your Einher seed?"
>[Otso]"Not enough, clearly."
"Well, you've got your new direction for research-and clearly, you've been having fun being big man on campus-but how's school? Not neglecting that for the obviously far more exciting magical side of things, are you?
>[Otso]"Well, my English grades have dropped, but I'm actually doing better in Math and Science!"
"That's great to hear-you still thinking about doing college?"
>[Otso]"I… man, so much stuff has happened, I don't know-I think so, though. …Uh, hey, so… I gotta admit, I'm curious-what… what kind of magical stuff do you deal with, anyway?"

So I tell him-I walk him through a few months in the life of a magical Mercenary rampaging through the ranks… and I can feel him listening with bated breath. After an admittedly lengthy bit of exposition, I finally finish, and…
>[Otso]"…So holy shit, uh, I guess Magic's not like some little aspect of the world and is more like, the truth that we don't get to know and could totally smush us."
"I'd like to say you oversimplified, but that's fairly accurate."
>[Otso]"…Huh. I'm… gonna need to think on that-while I work on more rune combinations."
"Have at it-and again, good to hear things are mostly going well for you."
>[Otso]"Thanks!"

With that done… I begin plotting, with the remaining afternoon and evening, exactly how I will handle Lyubov's actual birthday. I consider retooling Lightning Crossbows for her, I consider art, tool, I consider taking her out dancing, I consider shows, fine dining, walks in the park, stargazing and boating. I consider making her a golem with its motiff heavily borrowed from the iconic 'Igor' figure of Frankensteinian lore. I consider many things…. and eventually, make a choice, and get to work.

SUNDAY, MARCH 13th, 2011
PERSONAL FUNDS: $7,956,660.00
BUSINESS FUNDS: $9,242,094.00
CASH: $0.00
SHADOW PATIENCE: 60%
WINTER ENERGY: 160
SUMMER ENERGY: 60/60

It's Lyubov's birthday, and I make a day out of it, in a way that has nothing to do with the company, or our business, and as such it's completely and utterly bereft of note, beyond the fact it took all day, I trolled her seven times without her getting mad, we both had a good time, and I spent some money on the occasion. Specifically: Exactly $22 US.
PERSONAL FUNDS: -$20.oo $7,936,660.00
And I will never explain how it cost so little.

Additionally, I had a Sunday where NOTHING of non-personal note transpired. It was refreshing.

MONDAY, MARCH 14th, 2011
PERSONAL FUNDS: $7,936,660.00
BUSINESS FUNDS: $9,242,094.00
CASH: $0.00
SHADOW PATIENCE: 60%
WINTER ENERGY: 160
SUMMER ENERGY: 60/60

With Lyubov having to head out in the middle of the night to meet with Hyougo by means of teleportation, I get up and start checking the Allview. Sure enough, there aren't any straggler containers or would-be pirates profiteering off of Japan's recent disaster, so Lyubov's not needed in the official sense… or is she? While getting the souls on Elwen and the general minion population to process their findings, I home in on Lyubov and see what's going on. She's talking with Hyougo-I have to assume it's Hyougo, at least, why else is she talking with a tiny teen Japanese girl in a robe-laden kimono so maddeningly complicated even I think it's a bit much? Still can't lip read, so let's see what I can infer…

Lyubov's sleepy, hat's on head. Hyougo gestures at hat, looks a bit mad.
Lyubov looks mostly unfazed, waves hand either placatingly, or dismissively. Again, would need to know what's being said.
Hyougo gestures-the cliff-side rock-garden they're in grows a book, and a table. The book is easily more than a foot thick. Lyubov looks incredulous.
Hyougo again gestures, Lyubov says something, Hyougo tilts her head, shakes it.
Lyubov says more stuff-again, Hyougo shakes head.
Lyubov gestures at the Witch-looked like a prompt to speak. Witch stands there.
Hyougo says something, Lyubov nods her head-

I'm not looking at Lyubov back in the bedroom, walking over to me.
Yeah, think I don't need the Allview for this part.
I open my eyes as Lyubov starts babbling without preamble.
[Lyubov]”Uh. So. Yeah, Hyougo expected me to show up the day before yesterday, then yesterday, was upset I didn't, and anyway she says I have to study some laws and proceedings, and that I should ignore whatever Sake says about them-”
>[Sake]"Hey!"
[Lyubov]”And that I can't be allowed to be the Yōkai Shugo without knowing this, so I have to study it, um, right now, and no I can't mind-download it, because that's lazy or something, and I swear Tesla's laughing at me, and-”
She sighs, more than a little frantic.
[Lyubov]”And so yeah I have to go study magic trade law in japan the old fashioned way… right… right now."
She looks at her watch and growls.
[Lyubov]"So, uh-bye?”
And with a blip she's gone, still in her pajamas.

…Well then.
>[SB]"I see no problem with this."
>[IT]"I think this is hilariously thematic-she meddles with beings she shouldn't, and things completely outside of her control happen-it's like the world meddles with her back."
Sake's fur is still bristling.
>[Sake]"Why'd Hyougo say she couldn't listen to me!?"
>[HB]"I would think it more than passing obvious, lover of jocularity and deception."
In a decidedly huffy pout, Sake slinks out the door.

….And that's when the Allview sorting kicks back results.
-Seems I know where Elwen Embla lives-her exact address, where she shops for food, which bar she goes to in the evenings, the parks she visits during the weekends-and… I found what is probably the Triad leak near her, but it confuses the crap out of me. …It's May. May Lee. The Triad I saw die, that had a golem made in her image… and whose soul I never saw prior to her passing, so I can't even say if this is her resurrected, or another golem. The soul certainly looks normal….
-Elwen's place is warded from top to bottom, and is the top floor of an apartment complex. I have no idea what the inside of the place looks like-but I feel that her Ward schematics are either in her head, or in her place. Either way, I won't learn more through the Allview.
-I learn where Titus goes to meet that lightning tree he knows-and I mark the Demiplane entrance on my mental map.
-I learn where Ivan goes, to get time to himself-yet another demiplane built into the land of Istanbul, set in a park. It's contents can't be viewed, but inferred, from his peaceful expression every time he exits.
-I learn Rosti and Iosef are both frequent customers at Bonzi's. In fact, all the Russians go there at least sometimes.

There's more, but… huh. Still a bit distracted by 'SURPRISE NO MORE LYUBOV FOR A WHILE'. I mean, I can check on her with the Allview, but she can't interact with that detection system at all. So… yeah. Teenage Witch done stole my girlfriend. I feel like I'm in a soap opera. How wonderful.






So what am I doing on this rather oddly started Monday?
And for the next few days?

>>478249
For being so silly, we should think of the greatest prank ever on Hyougo. I suggest we wait a few months, then TURN JAPAN INVISIBLE. All of it.

Right now, though, we should totally go get together a plan to murder the shit out of Lo Fang. Then execute it. And him. Because seriously, fuck that evil soul stealing git. He's probably a devil or something.

ORDERS FOR TYRONE:
T> Write letter to family ( http://pastebin.com/WQMF3Qw2 ), don't send.
T> Talk with Bagga RE: Becoming independent from orphanage. Get deal: Do work for Bagga, get good word to Armas, whatever that is worth.
T> Try to figure out how to make money enough to not die of thirst
T> Ask around for odd jobs from anyone that will listen during spare time at Ito's night sessions
T> Help Bagga with anything he needs help with, so long as Bagga passes along the 'good deeds'.
T>TYRONE IS AVAILABLE FOR HIRE AS WEAKSAUCE HELPER FOR ANY MINION WHO STILL VISITS ITO AND CAN MEET HIM talk to Shot__ in IRC for going rates

Read the extorted book now that you're a super linguist.

Finish up the golem+giant body work Lyubov so rudely interrupted. Does it have superbones now?

While I am not 100% clear on how the phoenix vodka fountain works, apparently you put something fire related in at one end and more than you put in comes out the other side? If that's more or less correct, try and get some summer blood line fire manipulator blood, or any other fire related blood(phoenix blood is probably ideal, but fire giant or salamander or whatever could probably work) and try to make a blood fountain with a spare phoenix heart if we have one(if we don't borrow the still one to test concept then put back in still). Buy blood from vampires, Franco Senior, Meat Circus, SM, possibly Johan(fire demon blood?) etc. If successful try to incorporate into the war golem to bypass it's barrel of blood per hour dependency. Also this may help to feed Bagga(he could maybe gorge himself on magical blood to gain awesome vampire powers or something, if we can remove phoenix divine taint or make it work with our other regenerator hearts (erineyes&troll iirc)).

Have Andrei buy a cheap laptop, making sure to buy one without any form of wireless whatsoever. Isolate from any other systems, have it only run on battery power(power cord not plugged in), put it in a isolated room, preferably in that storage area placid warded. Run the magic floppy disk on it, see what happens, be ready with fire, hammers, guns and axes. Have SB port him from and to Italy as necessary, if he could do so without harming Andrei, if not then port the floppy and a laptop if needed.

Thunder. Go ahead and fleshcraft yourself for better thunder capabilities. Larger lungs, tougher tongue and so on. Try to get some musical clapping, footstomping, dancing or whatever involved with your thundering, since music seems to help things. Possibly a tough and thundery musical instrument may help you boost things further, heck a metal instrument crafted with that magic hammer could have interesting effects. Though I've always disliked musical magic personally we must pursue all possible avenues of power.

Since we probably have some viewers free currently, have them look up and index as many Endman clones as they can find. Having 20 or so search for that Shen in the bosphurus would also be useful.

Another fleshcrafting idea, Gianni has stated that he can do that for the golem, and prevent sensory overload to boot. Collaborate with him to do something similar to you.

Lev Orders:

*Get back into woodcarving, practice makes perfect, or at least somewhat proficient hopefully. Focus on carving wooden knives and depictions of mundane and magical animals.
*Search the web for tips on woodcarving.
*Try to experiment with bloodsoaking some of your carvings, put one of your carved knives and one of your carved animals in a container of your blood in the fridge, to prevent the blood from clotting, do the same with some with a another pair but leave them out in the sun to dry. Leave for a week and examine results. Probably nothing will happen but it's worth a shot no?
*Do some bodybuilding when you get the time. Better muscles means you can throw knives farther.
*Practice your knifethrowing with your nonseeking knives a bit, to keep up to scratch.
*Try to get the Anguisher to teach you a few offensive curses.
*Spend some quality time with the other minions. Andrei has been doing some magic computer stuff apparently right? How's that going?

>>478249

While Lyubov is kidnapped, send a bouqet of flowers to her at the Witch's house. Pink and red roses. It is a reminder that we miss her, and a reminder to Hyougo that there are people who love her new friend.

Notify Svetlana at once that Lyubov have been taken but is safe. It is the duty of the head of the house to tell his future mother in law that her daughter is taken.

"Svetlana, wake up. I am sorry to be waking you so early in the morning, but Witch Hyougo has decided Lyubov must be educated in law matters to do her job as the Yokai Shugo. However, she has decided that Lyubov cannot use magic learning methods, and that Lyubov can't come home until she knows the entire law body. I think she wants to keep Lyubov around because Lyubov's so much fun."

"The law book for Japanese trade law is large. It may take years, if we allow Hyougo to have her way. But I don't fancy leaving Lyubov the object of a young witch's attentions. Even if she is not in danger, we will miss her very much. Since a witch has too much power to oppose directly, I will need to make a plan."

"This just happened. Just a couple of minutes ago. I came right to your room to tell you. I need more than that to make a plan. I will get my brainiacs and we will determine how to satisfy Hyougo and get Lyubov back."

Silja is also Lyubov's friend. She should be told right away.

Placid should be told. and it should be explained to him that we will be clever to get Lyubov back, instead of strong.

>>478341
I am SUSTing the invisible Japan plan. That is crazy.

To make Lo Fang dead, we must know where Lo Fang and his men will be. Get the Yakuza to help in this, and the army.

Get the army to help by arresting many of Lo Fang's men for having a stolen army tank. Hide the army tank somewhere associated with Lo Fang, possibly on his boat, and implicate many of his men.

Use the Yakuza to help weed out Lo Fang's footsoldiers.

Then make the attack with all the heavy hitters.

Spend the next few weeks collecting information and manipulating people so that Lo Fang is badly weakened before the attack.

Upvoting:


>Notify Svetlana at once that Lyubov have been taken but is safe. It is the duty of the head of the house to tell his future mother in law that her daughter is taken.
( >>479093 )


And all of that stuff about telling people about Lyu's vanishing.

>While I am not 100% clear on how the phoenix vodka fountain works, apparently you put something fire related in at one end and more than you put in comes out the other side? If that's more or less correct, try and get some summer blood line fire manipulator blood, or any other fire related blood(phoenix blood is probably ideal, but fire giant or salamander or whatever could probably work) and try to make a blood fountain with a spare phoenix heart if we have one(if we don't borrow the still one to test concept then put back in still). Buy blood from vampires, Franco Senior, Meat Circus, SM, possibly Johan(fire demon blood?) etc. If successful try to incorporate into the war golem to bypass it's barrel of blood per hour dependency. Also this may help to feed Bagga(he could maybe gorge himself on magical blood to gain awesome vampire powers or something, if we can remove phoenix divine taint or make it work with our other regenerator hearts (erineyes&troll iirc)).

>Have Andrei buy a cheap laptop, making sure to buy one without any form of wireless whatsoever. Isolate from any other systems, have it only run on battery power(power cord not plugged in), put it in a isolated room, preferably in that storage area placid warded. Run the magic floppy disk on it, see what happens, be ready with fire, hammers, guns and axes. Have SB port him from and to Italy as necessary, if he could do so without harming Andrei, if not then port the floppy and a laptop if needed.
( >>478381 )



Refining:
>>478381
>Thunder. Go ahead and fleshcraft yourself for better thunder capabilities. Larger lungs, tougher tongue and so on. Try to get some musical clapping, footstomping, dancing or whatever involved with your thundering, since music seems to help things. Possibly a tough and thundery musical instrument may help you boost things further, heck a metal instrument crafted with that magic hammer could have interesting effects. Though I've always disliked musical magic personally we must pursue all possible avenues of power.

Get some bigass bass equipment, see if you can use it to pump up your own power. Try songs with a heavy bass line, or a thumpy, heavy rythm. See about using actual thunder to augment your useage even further, (That is, the sound made by arcing bolts of electricity) made with some sort of electrical or lightning magic. (Put this one off until Lyubov is back.)

Consider thunder-proofing your colleages somehow, if you're going to use this in battle you don't want everyone working for you going breifly deaf.

Downvoting:

>Vanish Japan
( >>478341 )


Too crazy. There's no way we can have the required mojo.

>Lo Fang Tank Plan
( >>479093 )


Too silly - and unlikely to work. Planting it might prove impossible with the things we have, and pissing off Lo with a plan that is not gaurenteed to work is asking for more trouble than we really should have to deal with.

Unless these are refined to the point where these objections are moot, these downvotes remain.

Bagga Orders:
>: Use the database to help broaden his knowledge of the vampire community, look at the Aksoy clan, and find info on his sire... REALLY not liking Orphan Maker's track record!
>: Take good care of his vampire cactus Igne and his pet project Pitcher Plant. Some music, no fertilizer for the Pitcher plant, make sure the soil has some pearlite and peat moss while keeping the humidity good for it. Keep giving Igne his own blood.
>: Keep up the training with Lyzzyrd Skyzzyrd. Hopefully the mental improvements can help him make up for his lack of tail.. or crazy strong legs.. perhaps he should try a few ways to make the foot work suit his body build? Probably should push the limits of his body a bit more too.
>: Keep up the Ito Trainin-he got younger again? ...Try to weather the Itorture the best he can.
>: Keep up the blood monitoring and vampire practice. Try a few little tests to see how it's growing. Maybe try to see if he can see Igne's invisible flower using it and a proper feeding? Worth a shot.
>: Give Tyrone a simple bug catching job to help out the others with the Kudoku experiments.
>: Ponder visiting his Father with a few friends... he does have some questions he needs answered.

>>479093
Yeah.. down voting in general. The flowers are corny, the tank plan is bad all around, and the wording is a bit corny.

Also going to stop the 'making Japan invisible' plan. Oh the ways that can go wrong.

I do agree that we need to find a way to deal with Lo Fang, but we need as much info about him as possible first. Lammy could probably help there. Might want to look into May Lee as well.

Boris Orders

>Continue running 'Boris' Borscht', his highly successful food cart. Hand out free meals to children from time to time. Also, give free meals to the homeless (if there are any). Take a hit in profits, but feel too good about himself to care. Wonder if the Cookie Lady’s unrelenting kindness is rubbing off on him.

>Ask his regular customers if there are any highly trained chefs in town. If so, approach one and ask for private lessons for the duration of his stay in Italy. Offer payment if necessary.

>Approach Camella and tell her that he thinks he’s really falling behind in his Chakra training compared to the rest of the Russians. Ask her for advice.

Right. Armas, try and see if you can use that notquiteLegendary Laine charm to hit up Elwen Embla, the goal being to get her to invite you home.
Just bump into her at one of her more amicable moments and share a cup of coffee or something.
You don't really lose anything if it doesn't work, it'll come off as a serendipitous event as long as you don't act like a complete idiot, but I have confidence you won't.
This doesn't have to happen on the first date, though that would be ideal, at the very least use that gilded tongue to secure yourself a second date.
Once you get into her place, you can take a look around and see if that helps.

If this doesn't pan out, you can always try something else, like getting Satai to the level that he can take them out for you.

>May lee
Confront her, in person. See if she recognizes you, has memories of the event, is friendly. If you are still 'friends' then she might just be able to explain some things. If she doesn't remember anything and you can confirm it's her 100%...well Go Ping has some explaining to do.

Set up a meeting with him for tuesday at 10.

>your ward.
POKER NIGHT ON FRIDAY


===Zhenya orders===
>Be a Strong pillar of support for Matvey now that he's back from his ordeal.
>Hang out with Satai some more, catch up on happenings as he has time. Invite him to lunch tomorrow to chat.
>Check with Arkvad about interesting pistols again, see what they've got in your price range(around 7k, wiling to go higher for truly magnificent/rare pieces.)
>While talking to Arkvad broach the topic of Baki and how to get a meeting with him. See if she can get an appointment for this week and if so, (after MASSAGE) ask if he would be willing to teach his technique.(Be willing to pay but don't offer it unless it seems like it's needed)
>Go meet up with Armas, ask him if he can take a look at that gun won at the area, the one Matvey and NNS gave a bit of info on and see if he can give more detail. For example how to access the demiplane or change the bullet type, limitations, etc.
>Talk with Armas about naming weapons and visit Davgon for any more information on how NAMING things affects them, and if he knows any NAME MAGIC things he would be willing to teach.
>Visit Satai and see if he can be coaxed into taking a lunch break to catch up.
>Spend some time with Sake, see if he can be coaxed into showing her around the interesting magical places in Istanbul he knows of. Spend some quality time with him either way, play some music.
>Keep practicing with Duke, ask him about that feeling she had back when she caught the Lep pot. Prepare self for training changes.
>Keep up with Running, ito work and shooting down at the range.

Stop being distracted, there is nothing you can do at the moment and Lyubov should be able to handle herself. Maybe a daring rescue happens later, who knows, but for now continue sorting through the Allview results.

To take out Lo Fang safely we need more information. Get Svetlana to make a report on everything in the AORB database on Lo Fang, the local Triad in general, and any and all noteworthy known members, allies, and contacts. Get Labombard to provide a tactical analysis, strengths, weaknesses, likely responses to different kinds of attacks, known contacts, location and value of Triad assets, etc. Allocate some Viewers to verify information and track enemy movements and shipments; weakening them over time may be the most viable approach and you need to know where to strike. May Lee- it is unknown if it even is May Lee, but Labombard might be able to tell. Go with him to verify, hopefully with the two of you avoiding detection will be simple.

If we want to kidnap May Lee we could tip off the Mafia to her location as the person who found out about Elwen Embla, then snatch her before they raid her place. To the Triad, it should look like the Mafia took her. Unsure of the value of this course of action though.

Some time in the next few days we should observe Labombard sparring with Matvey. Labombard has frankly great healing, it might be what we need for our hybrid-tech research. And receive our Duke-beating to train Conceptual Strength.

[Experimentation]
When we trained under Davgon for those six months in NN time we learned a trick we haven't really done anything with:
>temporarily inflating my own soul to boost a subsequent move's power in exchange for overstressing my spirit
Considering we routinely rip chunks of our soul off these days, I don't think that "overstressing" is a real worry anymore. But instead of inflating the entirety of our soul for a generic boost, we should inflate specific portions of our soul that are related to specific functions, to boost only those functions. Our spiritual senses, for example. This should hopefully result in a similar boost as a binding, while being entirely temporary and will be our first real experimentation with inner-soul manipulation.

The household has a lot of powerful Divine creatures running around it, which means the house is full of a lot of stray divine energy radiating from their souls. This causes an increase in soul growth in less powerful souls, but what about Bagga? He's a vampire and divine energy is BAD for him. So is the soul radiation harming him? If so, we should do something about that. If not, we should investigate the reason that it isn't, because it would be a useful thing to know how to replicate, maybe even applicable to Camella's situation. Davgon would be a good start to the investigation.

While we're looking at that, Armas' eye water is supposed to be "pure". Does that extend to magical signature? Because, again, that could be highly profitable if true and properly understood.

Igor Orders:
-Continue work on golem armor and modular plate armors for company members.
-Continue work on learning rituals, Labombard said he'd help. Nice guy.
-Start Work on Labombard's commissioned pocket watches. He's a really nice guy.
-Try to get to know Patere better and learn some of the Dwarf stuff he'll need to know for the... wedding. ...Hope she calls him, he somehow deleted her number when he tried phoning her.
-Try his hand at making a pair of single-handed war hammers.

Svetlana Orders:
-Worry about her daughter being under the thumb of an unknown power in a foreign nation. Again.
-Having learned just how easily magic can change humans into... something else, ask Davgon to examine her soul for magical contamination.
-Take training in chakra more seriously, it being the only self-sourced magic with which to resist the effects of magical contamination she has. Her humanity is at stake. Take Labombard up on his offer to provide assistance.
-Resolve to no longer attend church.
-Gather plant-based magical predator repelling flowers from the demiplane. Plan for weekly visits to resupply.
-Speak with Satai on a private matter that unfortunately intersects with company business.

>>481706
>Talk to Go Ping about May Lee
SUST, we're planning to take down his boss and he's made it clear he's loyal to him. We can't let the Triad know we know about May Lee.

If this post is too late, too bad.

LYUBOV WEEKLY GOALS
L*~Lyubov experiences a surprise kidnapping by her demanding witchy friend Hyougo, with apparent support by Tesla. Ok then. Studying Magic Japanese trade and contract law is a thing now. “Wait, I have to learn international copyright and patent law too? And I can’t go home until I show competence at all assigned subjects? But I’m allowed to take breaks and talk and hang out with Hyougo all I want when I’m not studying?”
L*~Even if Hyougo’s a witch with amazing power, she’s still a kid. Given Lyubov’s prior experience talking with Hyougo and her knowledge about Hyougo’s life and situation, it’s obvious she’s looking for a face-saving excuse to have a big sister figure/friend hanging around all the time.
L*~So Lyubov opts to study only the minimum required, and instead spends most of her days with Hyougo, talking to her, being friendly, and playing with her. There’s far too much material to realistically study in a time period measurable in units smaller than years without some sort of magic learning aid anyway, and Hyougo’s in a genuinely trying period of her life.
L*~Give Mom a call as soon as possible... it turns out to be Wednesday before Hyouugo runs out of excuses about the phone. Lyubov will strongly suspect that Hyougo is constantly monitoring, and will take it into account (i.e. say nothing that Hyougo would find upsetting).
L*~Lyubov meets some einherjar visiting Hyougo for assignments. Odin lends promising groups of them to her to help with policing the yōkai. And, how interesting, each and every one of them shows signs of using the runic programming interface built into the einher seed. Also Lyubov gets to see an example of a completely magic telephone.
L*~As long as Lyubov has run of a witch’s house, she will keep working on her magic detection and interpretation skills, including studying wards and available examples of mortal and other magics.
L*~As the week goes on, talk to Placid, Armas, Hillevi, Silja, Zhenya, and Svetlana by phone. Learn about Svetlana's strange gift.
L*~When Armas and Satai arrive with a plan to get Lyubov through the training quickly, consider things carefully (including Tesla's stance on it).

Matvey
M-Given Igor's current predicament arose from not only his lack of social graces, but lack of knowledge on proper social etiquette involved with approaching the various supernatural creatures in a social setting arrange for both Labombard and Gianni to provide a basic education on the subject for those who have not already sought out the information themselves. Ask for them to spend additional time to cover how to act in a dwarven marriage ceremony like Igor's so that we do not offend his fiancee's clan.
M-With your suspicions on the nature of one of the magics Armas employs confirmed set begin setting a preventative measure against any issue that could result from having cannibal magic floating on the property. At Labombard's recommendation purchase piping and then fill that piping with salt, burying an unbroken circle of it in the ground around your home to prevent magical radiation from leaking.
M-Keep making attempts to pry the code phrase to Gianni's professionalism from Labombard.
M-Take comfort in Zhenya and at her urging earlier in the week begin the process of contacting your family, starting with a phone call to your parents.
M-Play fetch with Ohotnik, talk to him about growing up.
M-Retrieve your armguard from Lyubov's room, with her absence you no longer have anyone dedicated to working on it. It seems she never consulted Armas or Sake, so bring it to the weasel. Given a prior conversation about how boring you are casually invite the weasel to fix that by working on the gauntlet so you can be more fun.
M-While sharing drinks with Ito and others, discussing his renewed youth, have a brief encounter with the man named Jack Churchill. As you tersely and cautiously talk to the monstrously powerful swordsman and oddly amicable bearer of Excalibur find that his very straightforward offer for a friendly duel in the future has been inscribed on your bioarmor with a seal. Do in depth follow up research on Jack Churchill while referencing and looking over Svetlana's data compilation task before bringing it up to Armas later in the week.
M-Continue referencing Shuhadaku Zayin as you devote this week's training to finally bursting through the barrier to Cutting that you have been working towards for weeks now.

Iosef
I-Watch Rostislav's dogs for him while he makes an outing somewhere, man it's awesome that little one can't rip out chunks from you anymore.
I-Shop around for good base launchers, Labombard said he could make you something awesome if you got the right parts. Ask Vlad for his advice.
I-Try out different gyms in the city with Karma, ask if he knows about any cool ones.
I-Discuss the Church with Karma while pumping iron, you've never been religious-far too much effort to go to church every week, but it's kind of interesting.
I-Begin actively avoiding Satai when possible.
I-Test out some more rituals for Johan.

Super last second addendum: Armas should text the following to Camella: 'Lyubov got taken by Japanese Witch but is safe for now. Just letting you know because you're my second.'

Pheonix fountain does not work that way, please visit IRC (#Golemquest) and ask Bob about that for clarity

>>478375
>Some riff-raff Vampire Fledgling has begun visiting the house. He's one of Ito's students, and a friend (of sorts) of Bagga's.
>He's offering his services to anyone that asks, and is currently spending nights collecting insects for Gianni, and frankly doing far, far worse than the dozens of golems programmed with all the entomological the Italian has on the job, but hey, he's trying, foot in the door and all that!
>>480774
>Bagga continues blindly focusing on book learning, further bulking up his strength as his weakness-that is, common sense and people skills continue to stagnate. Go-go fundamentally flawed teen vamp! Perhaps he can eventually just be That Guy that people go to for irregular trivia and esoteric questions-a kid can dream!
>Find horticultural pursuits soothing.
>Have absolute nature of ceiling on Lizard footwork reinforced as, mentalist packages or no, that lack of a tail for balancing still utterly fucks him. On the plus side, Bagga's beginning to develop a sense of how one is supposed to use a tail to shift directions with great vigor-even if he doesn't have one to practice with.
>>480811
>Boris' plan to hand out free meals to children on occasion is beginning to backfire, as parents send children to hunt out meals in their stead, and child-sized brawls of vicious nature break out-all for the sake of his delicious foods.
>Find it nigh-impossible to actually take a hit in profits-some people are… VERY dedicated to acquiring his food, so the money isn't really capable of stopping.
>On speaking with customers, be politely reminded he's far and away the best cook in town-otherwise, why else would every eatery in town have standing offers to employ Boris? …It's hard to be the chef-king.
>Find out that Camella is… oddly proud of him falling behind, as it his lack of Chakra focus came with the gain of increased culinary focus, which has clearly suited him. Be gently reminded face to face combat isn't SUPPOSED to be the go-to for problem resolution. …Find self pondering how to make delicious meals that, while not POISONED, would… suppress, let's say, the magical nature of the consumers. Have very strange dreams involving chains of meat restraining dragons that night.
>>481706
>Zhenya attempts to hang with Arkvad-learns the fellow is vacationing in Hawaii at the moment-Maui, specifically.
>Feel that muscles need a good rubbin' to feel better. Pay Baki a visit for platonically orgasmically amazing massage. Wow, that guy's hands are good. Also, 1k for that was NOTHING!
>Be disappointed Dávgon does not know anything personally useful about Name Magic.
>Find out Duke doesn't think he could finish Zhenya's training for her… unless she's capable of regeneration comparable to Armas or Labombard. …Hah.
>>482206
>Igor keeps on, keeping on. Gotta pound that… anvil!
>Patere continues to wage war against his luddite nature and his phone in particular, and Igor finds himself absorbing some Dwarven customs whether he wills it or no.
>Svetlana does her thing, and worries. This is not aided by the fact that Dávgon corrects her understanding of magic: ALL magical exposure contaminates, the contamination itself is the basis of the majority of magical growth.
>Find Labombard exceptionally helpful in making her chakra exercises more efficient and rewarding.
>>382284
>Lyubov realizes kidnapping Witch is crazy lonely and really wants friends and/or surrogate family members-attempt to apply meddling method to situation.
>Meet Spirit Einher in golem bodies: ALL of them do that soul programming stuff Armas' cousin is working on.
>Immediately become quite lax in academic diligence. Not like that matters right? Right? …Right?
>Give mom a call Wednesday, allay almost no fears.
>>482328
>Matvey attempts to rope Gianni and Labombard into… giving a lecture. Both entities seem averse to the very concept, and Labombard weaves a touching tale of how lectures killed his best friend. Just when Matvey's getting irate at the rigmarole, Labombard mentions Satai lifted that information from his brain already-maybe Matvey should check with the company mentalist, and get some memory packets going?
>Labombard laughs theatrically at Matvey's attempts to secure the coveted safe word that makes Gianni be serious and not salacious. Curses, foiled again!
>Oh right, reclaim that Armguard Lyubov said she'd work on! Taunt Sake into filling armguard with expendable TRICKS! Success!
>Meet Jack Churchill, feel not-so-hot that his listing in the AORB database actually has a full list of all Artifact swords stored in Excalibur. Holy fuck, 19 Artifact swords. Thank god he didn't set a date on that proposed fight. Also: Why does owning a magic sword mean you get swordsman challenging you all the time!?
>Have a breakthrough in Cutting! …While Shaving! Neck now sports an impressive looking scar with a frankly shameful origin. On the plus side: Cutting! You did it once! Working on consistency now.

For some ineffable reason-
>[SB]"How is your propensity for trollish rebuttals ineffable?"
FOR SOME INEFFABLE REASON, I find myself briefly entertaining the notion of rendering the entirety of the nation of Japan wholly invisible by inscrutable means, in recompense for this slight.
[Sake]"While that'd be totally hilarious and I'd be laughing for weeks, not even top of the line gods can do that: There's too much density of-"
"Of magical creatures, particularly of Divine format, for such comprehensive Ownership to be claimed, but… mm. I find myself wishing to express my displeasure over this, and simultaneously stymied by the power gap."
>[IT]"I will note that, unless he has kept it from my-which is entirely possible-old man Rabbit has eschewed attempts at unilateral reprisals to Japan for exactly this reason."
"Ah, fuck it. I'll look at comeuppance in a month or three: At the rate my company and I have been acquiring power, we could have new options on the table by that point."

>>482574
After abandoning that idea, I text Camella.
[Armas]Lyubov got taken by Japanese Witch but is safe for now. Just letting you know because you're my second.
Of course, she calls me within a few seconds of receiving the text.
>[Camella]"Which Witch?"
"Hyougo."
>[Camella]"…That's the adolescent one, yes?"
"With the kitsune breeding family, yes-did Owner tell you about them?"
>[Camella]"He did. Is there anything I can do to assist in retrieving her?"
"Not currently: this is the very definition of a sticky situation."
>[Camella]"…I see. Well, if that changes and I can be of service, you would of course let me know, I trust."
"No, actually I was planning to let my hypercompetent and slightly snooty-"
>[Camella]"Armas-"
"-second in command idle in the dark, and never ever use her."
>[Camella]"Haha. Well… best of luck, then."
"Thanks."
*CLICK*

>>478381
>>479093
>Lev gets back into wood carving, once again rather ashamed of how shitty he feels he is. Maybe he'll get good enough he feels comfortable showing others someday soon.
>Adds bodybuilding to routine, not at all cognizant that this is wasted effort with his hybrid nature and the form of Reinforcement he uses-and even putting those aside, he has a strength enhancing biosuit.
I distract myself from the currently quagmired thoughts vis-à-vis Lyubov's abduction… by reading a book. Certainly, at face value such a decision is… eclectic, to say the least, but the particular tome I chose to peruse is a bit more important than the average text: That aged, mysterious book that the Ghanem Heir had been so invested in acquiring is finally comprehensible to me. Oddly, it does not seem, at all, to be a book of curses: Instead, it's an age-worn epic about a night of Europe of times past, a monstrously powerful warrior clad in green scaled armor that fought not for honor, glory, king or country, but instead sought battle solely for his own entertainment. A tale of an unfathomably powerful warrior that sought to alleviate boredom titanic enough to swallow the world by engaging in contests wherever he could. I was just getting into the fourth such challenge, where he engaged not in a contest of arms, but a contest of song against a town's beloved minstrel, when there is a polite knock at the door that I recognize as being Svetlana's doing.
Putting down the book and throwing on a leisure suit with alacrity, I open the door to find Svetlana looking even more serious than normal, her magically youthened face struggling to settle into the frown lines lost weeks ago.
>[Svetlana]"…Mister Laine, can we speak in private?"
Oh, I do wonder what this could be about.
Inclining my head at the request, we march through the house to an unoccupied room, and the moment we're seated she speaks.
>[Svetlana]"Is my daughter in Japan under the custody of Hyougo the witch?"
"She is."
>[Svetlana]"How is she going to be removed from the witch's custody?"
"Frankly, I do not yet know the how. Japan is one of the most magical places in the world, and a normal Witch has more than enough power to obliterate our entire company herself, if she so chose. My default response is largely useless here. I need to know more about the witch in quwestion so I can persuade her."
Looking uncomfortable with her next question, Svetlana struggles to maintain eye contact.
>[Svetlana]"Aren't you capable of being… magically.. persuasive?"
"I am, and I've already exercised that on Hyougo. I do not wish to gamble on whether she took the time to render herself immune to my method. A far more… reliable retrieval method is desired-which, in this case, means collecting enough data on Hyougo she could be persuaded without having to use magic, as there is no way I can escalate in magic as much as she can."
>[Svetlana]"And… how do you propose to learn more about her? I already checked AORB, and they have hardly anything about her-"
I tap my ice-shrouded, metal and paper wrapped eye with a grim smile, even as I bump the total number of souls watching Lyubov-and Hyougo-up to forty.
"I'm Watching her, observing her mannerisms, predilictions and innate inclinations. Barring an unforeseen complication, the simple passage of time should provide me what I need."
The older woman that doesn't look so old crosses her arms uncomfortably, looking off to the side with pinched lips.
>[Svetlana]"I do not like her being forcibly held, even for a few days."
"While I am aware it is no consolation, be aware that Hyougo has decided that Lyubov is her friend-it would strike me as more than passing strange if Hyougo would let anything of ill repute befall your daughter."
Unsurprisingly, she still looks immensely agitated, but doesn't seem to have further queries-so it's my turn.
"I do admit to curiosity: How did you learn of this so promptly?"
With the faintest hint of color in her cheeks, the as-of-yet stone-faced Svetlana mutters her response.
>[Svetlana]"…Labombard."
Well now that is interesting-given the timeframes, that means he effectively detected the teleportation as it occurred. Good to know he's that perceptive-I'll have to remember that.
"I see. Well, If you happen to find anything of substance regarding Hyougo in your own research, don't hesitate to let me know."
She nods at my request and, after a brief hesitation, heads out the door after thanking me for my time. I try to get back into the book, certain there has to be a reason the Ghanem heir was so obsessed with it… but I can't seem to focus.

So instead, I make my way back down to the Golem workroom, and rejoin Dávgon, Gianni and Placid in working on integrating the Conceptually attuned Giant's corpse into my burgeoning golem. I swap my way around working as a conduit and enhancer for Dávgon and Gianni alike, while doing all I can to grasp just what it is Placid's doing to forcibly integrate such a complex set of matter into an already overstuffed system. Over the course of the day, I've born witness to, and been a part of integrating Conceptual biomatter into a body as a graft for… well, everything, save the head. Shoulders, arms, legs, feet, hands, bones, organs… all of it is frankly monstrously difficult to accomplish, and is only possible with masterful finesse…. or… massive amounts of raw power to force the event. More importantly than that, though, I get another chance to witness Placid working on what Gianni is no longer powerful enough to provide for the golem: The War Walker harmonizes the disparate portions of the golem, slowly but inevitably reducing the conflict-and with it, the magical pressure-within the golem. It's still positively frankensteinian to my senses, but I can now at least fathom a day when it feels like a singular cohesive being, and not a hodge-podge as it is now.

By the time that the four of us have finished our work (with BC having briefly stopped in to provide some assistance to Dávgon as he worked on the soul seed command core-it's exceptionally late at night-in fact, it's already the next day. I stagger upstairs, feeling out of sorts from maximally channeling my Winter bloodline for an entire day nearly non-stop, and barely notice the arrival of a package from my parents, waiting for me in the foyer. At SB's insistence I pick it up and take it with me to my room, but after tearing it open and revealing the photo album within… I can't seem to make myself peruse it's contents. Simply put, I'm far too distracted-and so I leave it for another time as I fall into a dreamless sleep.

TUESDAY, MARCH 15th, 2011
PERSONAL FUNDS: $7,936,660.00
BUSINESS FUNDS: $9,242,094.00
CASH: $0.00
SHADOW PATIENCE: 55%
WINTER ENERGY: 160
SUMMER ENERGY: 60/60

>>479106
The first thing I do on waking is, of course, check with my Allview souls. Unsurprisingly, there's nothing new-not of substance, anyway-to report on Hyougo: I'll need several days worth of analysis to properly break down viable approach methods. A pity. While I'm focused on the Allview's operation, I assign the souls not working on Elwen or Hyougo, to hunting down and 'marking' as many Endman bodies as possible.

The next thing I do (after the morning duties of showering, dressing and the assorted boringly mundane contrivances) is decide to rampantly experiment on myself!
>[SB]"Armas-"
Hah, kidding! I'm just going to optimize myself for Thunder Shouting-that stuff was great, but the whole 'rip my throat apart to use it at anything other than low-output levels' really bugged me.
>[SB]"And just how, precisely, do you plan to address that?"
Oh you know, just generally larger lungs, tougher tongue, stuff like that.
>[SB]"You already wasted your jocularity on that opening gambit."
Did I? Blast. Well, while I can't yet fleshcraft myself into a replica of HB-
>[HB]"Do not feel humbled that you cannot reach my heights: Few can."
Right-so, while I can't do that yet, I CAN alter existing organs to function more like avian ones. And wouldn't you know, with the air sacs and unidirectional flow of air, just converting my lung format from simian to avian should let me massively upgrade my Thunderous voice, by simple dint of rendering circular breathing not a learned trick, but an innate function, and one vastly superior to the learned method, at that. Of course, I am going to be reinforcing my throat in general to handle the newer, higher-output system, but in general that's it, really. Hah, can you imagine if I was just making my lungs larger and tougher?
>[SB]"Yes, yes I can."
Haha, right, well you keep being mister killjoy there, I'm going to get busy with fundamentally redefining my physiology, okay?

While SB grumbles, I methodically, meticulously shift my lungs, adding supplementary air sacs as I go, and work to render my throat capable of swallowing a jet engine's roar a dozen times over. While the process is ultimately not that time consuming… I don't stop with just the one transition. I shift back to my birth lungs… and then perform the enhancement again. Back… and again. Over and over, I do this, well past the point where I've irked out the last bit of structural efficiency I can lay claim to. Long past, in fact, the point of utter familiarity with my new respiration. No, I keep doing it umpteen times so that I can transition between the two as easily as breathing. Once I've finally reached that point, I take a moment to pat myself on the back, go have a minotaur liver and kelpie filet sandwich, and….

Once again, find myself unoccupied, and immediately becoming refocused on the state of a certain-

Pushing that out of my mind again while the Allview's occupants continue their trawling, I idly note the time to be somewhere in the early afternoon after my thousandfold practice, and look at what else I can occupy myself with.

>>482206
Ah. Hatred, lacking in potency or no, is an excellent distraction! With Lo Fang denied Labombard's services and my own power having grown considerably, it's time, I believe, to begin preparing to take him out in earnest. And to that end, I hunt down Svetlana and Labombard, finding them together, with Labombard correcting Svetlana on her methodology with a handful of new chakra excercises that I frankly don't care about since they're non combat-relevant. On my arrival, the Loup looks my way with an inquiring eye, and I lay out just why I'm there.
"I need the two of you to put together a general packet about the Triads, specifically detailing what the current known issues in attempting to remove Lo Fang are, as well as a few general suggestions of how to optimally approach the situation."
>[Labombard]"Ways to avoid getting Lo Fang's Sugar Dragon involved, hm? I can work with that."
>[Svetlana]"Have you learned anything new for-"
I put up a hand to forestall her.
"I'm still collecting data on her: As of yet, she has not handed me any sort of holy grail for manipulating her to get Lyubov back."
>[Svetlana]"I see. …When do you need this by?"
"There's no deadline on it, but I'd like periodic updates if it goes for more than a couple days."
>[Labombard]"Before we begin, I wanted to verify: You want to remove Lo Fang specifically, and not the Triads as a whole, correct?"
"That's so."
>[Labombard]"…More challenging, but we'll work with it."
"Great."

With that cued up, I get on with another time-occupier: sparring. Not just any sparring though, oh no: This is Conceptual training with Duke.

….Long story short: Between my regen, my pain tolerance and the past lesson status, six hours in it happens: I don't just use Strength to boost my physical acumen beyond the boundaries of logic, magical or otherwise-I do it on purpose. It only took being forcibly torn apart a few thousand times-but hey!

[NEW CONCEPT LEARNED: STRENGTH]
[Known Concepts: Today, Strength]

Duke 'helps' me get some reliability out of the process, and by the end of it, while I certainly can't match my erstwhile instructor's ability in exploiting the Concept, I CAN demonstrate strength well above and beyond what the Doonongaes I fought earlier in my career displayed, and can treat just about any mundane material, no matter how durable, hardened or otherwise, like wet cardboard if I so choose. I'll need to get in more practice to get accustomed to applying it to wholly magical defenses, but for now, Strength is comprehensible to me.

SUMMER ENERGY: 0/60

This time, I get to leap alongside Duke as we climb our way back out of the Undersewers-and while I'm nowhere near as accustomed to leaping-based transportation, I manage to keep up. On our return Duke heads off for his version of prayer-that is, drinking-while I find myself being bothered by a prior finding of the Allview: The presence of a purportedly living and wholly human May Lee. I grab Labombard away from his conversation with Svetlana in front of the company computer, and give him the skinny. He's completely on board with helping me divine just WHAT is going on here, and after I quickly confer with the Allview, I find the Marked May Lee and we're off.

Interestingly, she's at a Korean food stand when we find her. From across the street Labombard flares his nostrils, frowning as he does so.
"What's the verdict?"
>[Labombard]"That… is May Lee… but not. What are you getting?"
"I never saw the original May Lee's soul so I can't say for certain, but her wholly unmagical soul seems very out of place."
>[Labombard]"Yes-I can't scent any chakra, charms or anything on her-in fact, I doubt she's had much exposure to magic at all."
"So what do you think we're looking at here: Twin, template that the May Lee I knew was built off of…"
>[Labombard]"I do believe we'd have to speak with her to be more certain, here."
"Fair enough. Both of us or just the one?"
>[Labombard]"Both of us: How's 'generically horny tourists hitting on her sound?"
"I can work with that."

So, with nothing else to stop us from it, we approach her-both of us noting that she oh-so-coincidentally turns to face us before we've even crossed the street.

Rather odd for a mundane, I'd say.

On sighting the appreciative smiles festooning our faces on our approach, she smiles back with a combination of affable politeness and a hint of curiousity: Clearly, she isn't averse to our presence. As we finally reach her, I push aside the jarring wrongness of a coquettish May Lee, and attempt to devise some conversational prompts and attempts that might reveal what I desire to know: Just what the fuck is going on here.





What do I say to the May Lee before me?
How do I plan to tease out the information I need?
(Soul-bulking practice queued for after May Lee Conversation)
Please focus on conversation for the moment.