Chapter IV - Earthly Delights

[IamLEAM1983]

If anything, the Animate took to Tiara's blunt and fairly drug-addled approach graciously. Her frankness ripped a chuckle out of him that was a tad too warm to only be cold or polite in origin. Evidently, he'd been the object of other unconscious and clumsy insults before, and had learned not to begrudge those who landed them. "Nevertheless," he gently insisted, "I was told you looked ravishing with a clear pair of eyes, my dear. Something to go with your choice of hair color. Hold on to this bottle if only to please this dusty gentleman, hm? We'll eventually have to discuss how decent outside observers can assist you in your posting."

As far as George was concerned, kindness and congeniality were far more dangerous, when deftly applied, than any supernaturally-boosted threats.

Then came Preston's reply. The Toymaker excused Tiara's behavior a second time to assuage any doubts Hauser might've had, the mention of Vlastos driving him to pull out a small notebook he'd been carrying. It didn't seem to have been brought along for this specific purpose, however, as Preston would be able to glance at a few pages. They were covered in a mass of equations and sketched mechanism designs, along with what looked like the occasional errant cluster of absent-minded paisley doodles - random etchings of people and objects that had caught his more artistic eye. He wrote down the offered name.

"I regretfully haven't had the pleasure of meeting this particular gentleman," he confided. "Of course, the past few weeks have allowed me to learn that there is such a thing as people whose existence cannot be committed to memory. If this man is one such example, then the curse has had its intended effect and has robbed his name from my mind. I shall have to peruse my own notes back home, but I do believe my, erm, creditor is well aware of this man's predicament..."

He did a slight double-take. "Far be it from me to sound zealous or even somewhat religious, but the Architect has noticed the misuse of one of the Celestial Burdens, one of which could trigger similar or identical effects. I was redeemed from Amaxi's influence only to watch over this plane of existence's integrity; I unfortunately have no leave to wax Angelic, as it were, and rip the Burden from this poor man's chest with my own two hands. I would have attempted it, had it been possible."

His lips pursed together. "My work is rather grisly and leaves precious little room for compassion. Few are those Void Weavers I personally contact who prove worthy of joining my family. Bertram and Helena are blessed exemptions to a regrettable rule. I do hope, however, that your shared tribulations end equitably. Both this Vlastos and yourself deserve peace."

There was still the matter of their collaborating. "As for your sources, mister Hauser, I wholeheartedly understand. We might arrange for less public quarters to discuss your pick of the litter in due time. There is no real urgency on my side of things; Bertram administers what he calls a NAS from his and David's apartment: some forty terabytes of redundant storage, as I was told - all assembled using YouTube tutorials. Perfectly functional in the immediate. It is functional and is fairly secure by virtue of being kept offline, but the upload servers some of my sources have set up across the country suffer from crippling latency issues on those rare dates we set up a download run. Physical dead drops are sometimes difficult to reach, and then their contained data must be shipped here, ideally through some encrypted transmission the details of which elude me."

He chuckled a bit bashfully. "I am a tinkerer and a mechanic, you see - not a systems administrator, much less a proficient hacker. Hence my humble plea for assistance. Data acquisition should be swifter and at less risk of being intercepted by our common enemies."

In the meantime, Mary was subjected to what had to be cheer more appropriate of a graduation ceremony. "Aye, lass!" agreed Sam, arm thrown across her shoulders, "that's the spirit! Creakin' masts, spars speckled with sea foam, rain cold as death itself beatin' down on ye - and distant lands gleamin' with booty, beautiful nighttime 'spanses o' calm waters, the sunlight o' the tropics breakin' through to ye - all'a that waitin' for ye if you so much as push a little harder."

Samigina's eyes were gleaming, by now, and he closed them rapturously. "All that sweet calm, the lappin' o' the waves, the song o' the surf an' all the sea creatures singin' their songs in the deep... Salt on the air an' lazy afternoons spent usin' one o' the lifeboats like a hammock, the wind in yer ears all the while... Me bride's got dozens o' voices, miss Jameson, and they's all sweeter than the sweetest rum."

Something broke through his romantic reverie, making him scoff. "'Course, then the cap'n rouses the layabouts if the waters aren't becalmed, an' then yer stuck with the bosun's fiddlin'. That's when we'd see if ol' Tommy an' Arno would've had their heads screwed on straight. Two hundred years o' sea shanties is hard on some folks, it is."

He caught himself. "Not that they're in me fleet, though. They're fine, as much as I know. Settin' port Heavensward is kind of hard on me crew, unless Meris gives us leave to do it."

A few meters away, Helena scoffed amusedly at Meris' retelling. "Looks like Jack Sparrow here made you dodge one epic bullet," she said, side-eyeing Samigina as the demon turned lyrical in his praise of the open sea."Freeing slaves hasn't gotten any easier, though: the Internet's made it easy for loyalists to erect barriers of red tape in front of their cargo. Swap out the slave trade for sex trade or just fraudulent cargo manifests, and you have some sense of how they're carting bodies around. Lower tiers take care of reception duties, and they usually involve pretty solid fronts: talent or model agencies, biomedical research - that route.  A few ballsy types set themselves up as pimps, but that's the most obvious of all covers. The Rothchilds and the Gentlemen usually hit these pretty hard - with guns or land value fuckery. Buy the Loyalists out of town and you get a week or two to hit them while they're restructuring."

As for Naberius, he seemed preoccupied by Matriel's mention of the planes merging. "Yes," he said, agreeing, "but no amount of self-control will suffice in fixing the problem of lodging the untold droves of our respective planes on a planet that can support ten billion individuals if resources are spread thinly. Either this plane's physical laws are altered to account for this merger, or we somehow divvy up the neighboring celestial bodies. Earth to the mortals, Luna to Heaven, Mars to the collaborating Hellspawn..."

[TennyoCeres84]

Meris nodded affirmatively. "I'm well aware of how they obtain slaves nowadays. Harrison Arkham's a local Squid who's been swindling the Bucks for quite some time, but he seems predominantly concerned with real estate for the time being," she observed.

Overhearing their conversation, Aspasia returned her attention to Helena and Meris. "Astra Rothchild talked about him some. At some point, we're going to be looking into him and see what he's really up to."

[IamLEAM1983]

Helena nodded. "All I know is Arkham doesn't fit the traditional loyalist playbook. His employees are sane, there's no obvious ritual aspects to Poseidon, and he's working like anyone would if they owned an investment firm. We know he's demanding and expects extreme self-reliance from his sales team and his connections on the insurance and stock markets. Still, though, they're all sane. No nystagmus, no loss of cognition, no loss of personality... At the same time, he refuses to establish a contact with anyone related with us, or with loyalists."

She crossed her arms in front of her. "No polite refusals, no brushing-off - just nothing, even when it's loyalists extending a hand. We've seen him work with a few loyalists before, but his two-man projects usually end with the other guy leaving. They're either pissed-off or beaten raw. It's like Arkham doesn't want to compromise with anyone, even if that means going against Amaxi's grain."

Another ring from the rear, Dave slipping back to open the door, and in stepped Charles Wynn and Astra Rothchild, the rhino only slightly raising his eyebrows at George's sight. He was seen whispering something to his wife, the mulatto woman nodding in response. Maybe she'd given her husband a bit of a precognitive heads-up...

Bringing up the rear was another Squid, albeit taller than Helena and Bertram, with decidedly avuncular and patrician features. His tendrils extended well past his chin, old age a fine patina over his skin. Brown tweed waited under his black felt overcoat, a dark brown tartan flat cap resting on his head. He carried a small black case with heavy plastic snap-locks, his other hand gripping a length of polished driftwood rather tightly. His gait looked stiff and vulnerable, and he seemed as though a chair would save his life, but there was an undeniable amount of life and mental prowess in his slightly rheumy grey irises. Liver spots covered his bald pate, temples and the back of his hands the way they would have for an elderly human.

The tall Void Weaver whispered in a slightly wavering voice, another signature of advanced age. "Charles, could I possibly impose upon you that you...?"

The rhino seemed to have expected it and gave another look to his wife before letting himself lag behind. "Of course, Lucian," he said. "Here, hold my arm. We'll take that chair over there," he said, pointing.

[TennyoCeres84]

"For now, he's the riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma," Aspasia summarized with a sigh, shrugging. Upon hearing the doorbell ring, she cast a look over at the door and smiled softly upon seeing Astra and the elderly Void Weaver from the diviner's envisioned memory. As for Meris, she beamed fondly at seeing the old man again and ventured over to him. Once he would've been seated, she greeted him, "Hello, Lucian. I'm glad you could make it here."

[Karl the Mad]

"I'm not really one for taking orders, though," Mary replied seriously. "I much prefer giving orders, you know?" She sighed and shook her head. "I mean... it sounds wonderful, the way you describe it, but... but my heart belongs to the sky, not the sea. Sorry, Cap'n." She reached up and patted his arm, then gently extricated herself from his reach. "I'm a flier, not a swimmer. That's all there is!"

Preston nodded at Gammell. "I'd be happy to help out with that stuff, for sure," he offered, while Tiara sipped water and ate pizza. "Honestly, I'm not sure I'm up to taking over Hauser Cooling when this is all over. Tom said something to that effect once and I got mad at him, but he might be right."

"You should still try though, Preshton," Tiara insisted, poking him in the bicep. "Don't give that Elasti-Vlastic fucker th' satisfaction a' winnin'. He's a asshole and he oughta lose!"

"...you're absolutely right, my dear," the fixer deadpanned, rolling his eyes for George's benefit where she couldn't see.

When Lucian came in, Jenkins looked over, and did the same mental comparison he always did when faced with a strange squid-man. But this wasn't Azardad; this guy looked like he could wipe the floor with Azardad from three rooms away. He decided to introduce himself, and went to hover behind the others, waiting to be noticed.

[IamLEAM1983]

A smirk touched Helena's features as Lucian came in, and she crossed her arms on her chest. "For every enigma, there's people who don't put masks on. That's what I like about your world," she said, glancing at Aspasia. "You're honest, on the whole - even the creeps."

"Aww," the demon sighed, "such a waste, lassie - there's always room for more cap'n's in me fleet, ye know. I likes ta keep recruits on their toes for a while, see who's truly made for a command post, see? Y'ain't the first t'tell ol' Davey Jones they's captain material; and not all of 'em were honest with themselves. I'm sure ye are, but I canna' know fer certain unless I knows ye."

He shrugged lightly. "Same deal I gave yer friends, Jameson: you do yer things when ye need to, and ye keep ol' Sam close by for travel or fer smugglin' things."

His uneven teeth gleamed. "Or for fun... I's got a full cruise ship in me fleet," he said, his voice crooning. "Full casino staff, Big Band orchestra, twenty full-bore suites, a wee loop along the Carribbean - an' the most private nook in all the world once a year. Dry Tortuga. Me bride's got my heart in her clutches, but she be made to satisfy a man's appetite for adventure. Everythin' else, friendship or otherwise? Sea's lackin' arms for that, sadly - and a man still has appetites.

A man's got to parlay from time to time, exchange some laughs, slap some thighs, wipe some merry tears..."

As for Gammell, he parted with another chuckle of agreement. "Yes, well - everything in this world deserves at least the old college try - but facts are sometimes pointing us in different directions. You'll find us willing to assist you however possible, of course. If anything, I would suggest avoiding to resurrect what was; that usually ends in, oh, eccentric old beans like myself, neither quite alive or dead."

He raised a finger. "Instead, you find yourself in a unique position. You could take the best of what made your parents' entreprise and teach those who made me a decent lesson in creativity. Go back to the drawing board, bask in the opportunity to create, and not simply save; make something that would be truly, indubitably yours."

Then came a shrug. "Or if the material fails to ply or respond to your pokes and prods, set it aside and move to something else."

Something then seemed to inspire him. "Speaking of - I've always found things to fall into place while working over little cogs and pinwheels and my tools, waiting for what the back of my mind is suggesting to come to the fore. What would you say to some introductory watchmaking lessons, at a later date? Break down your quagmires into manageable chunks, lay them out flat - and see if a little music and the right visor cap gets them to fall together into something cohesive."

As for Lucian, he offered Meris a hug. "I could not have missed this for the world, my dear; even if my old bones kept saying otherwise.
- I told him I'd give him a rundown once I'd get back," supplied Astra, "but you know how he is," she said, smirking. 

The rhino's nostrils worked. "The cosmic idiots are being petulant lately, if Lucian's overall condition is any indication... He needed centuries to go from a clear complexion to liver spots, and now he went from leaning heavily on his cane to needing a walker in about a month. Amaxi or whoever else is trying to knock him out of the playing field."

The elder Rothchild looked oddly serene. "But I'm not out yet, Charles.
- Maybe, but no amount of London-time Anglican worship seems to have convinced God or someone else you deserved to sync up with Mother Nature. I'm worried you might not have enough time.
- There are other ways," he said. "Even if they fail, I will have given everything to the cause. Astra's ancestors can testify to it."

His rheumy eyes swiveled up to Jenkins, the corner of his lips behind his tendrils perking up. "Ah, mister Jenkins," he said, "as adventuresome as the newspapers are depicting you! And mister Zahavi - Shalom, my friend. Would that I could have coaxed some of the young ones to join us; I'm quite proud of my family. Welcome to you both."

Astra smiled. "Lucian's long considered Meris to be family, and you've joined her as her Stewards. That makes you family, too. We're glad you came," she said, extending a hand.

[TennyoCeres84]

Having remained to the side, Matriel quietly approached the elderly Squid, the human, and the anthro rhino and appeared within Lucian's line of sight. "If anybody deserved to have his telomeres adjusted to give him even a bit of additional youth, it would certainly be you, Mr. Rothchild. However, from a purely biological standpoint, that would be under the jurisdiction of the Architect, if we could wrest away the Others' hold over your kind. Hopefully, that will happen in the not too distant future," the Throne addressed with a vaguely gentle smile.

[IamLEAM1983]

Lucian smiled. "Matriel, Fountainhead of Creation... The one man without whom my Maker would have had no material to work with, despite a boundlessly gracious Creator. The Architect thanks you, of that I am sure - and you find me honored to make your acquaintance."

He almost imperceptibly smirked. "One day, perhaps, this plane's very Matter will embrace my kind. I am not one, however, to lament the vagaries of old age. I have bled, I have fought; I have laughed and cried and danced. I have known love and something of the glow of fatherhood, through the first of my family to have given birth to their own child in Dalarath. I have had a cause. My life has been a happy one."

Something to his eyes spoke of old pains he knew all too well. "No parent ever wishes to leave. No child wishes to see its parents die. Yet, I cling to the hope that you and your brethren will allow me to stand beside my wife in the end, as well as those my civilization erroneously considered to be my chattel."

Rothchild nodded slightly. "My family is waiting for me. Of that, I am certain."

The Squid then shook his head. "But I did not come here to drown you in soliloquies. In fact, I came bearing gifts for those of us here who must fight."

[TennyoCeres84]

The ghost of a smile turned more solemn. "Some of my overly self-righteous brethren may balk at the notion of a Void Weaver entering through Heaven's gates, but your worth to reside in the Plane of Bliss is wholly agreed upon by my lucid kin. If that were not the case, Hesediel would never have been appointed to Mr. Cuthbert." The angel eyed the rest of the attendance and gestured for him to proceed with whatever gifts he deigned to give.

[Karl the Mad]

"Shalom aleichem," Abraham replied gravely. "Thank you, sir." Charles nodded as well, but didn't say anything.

"I guess I can take that accord," Mary replied. "Who doesn't like to have fun now and then?"

The mention of lessons, at the behest of such a master as George Gammell, brought an eager smile to Preston's lips. But then mention of presents was made, so he nodded his acceptance and prodded Tiara into turning away from the buffet, so Lucien could do his thing. The others did likewise, gathering in silence for the reveal.