Stalling
Michael
Sophie and Jo are hanging out with David, Catherine, and Elias back in Dufton, trying to keep the GRAIL TABLE team occupied for as long as possible before getting back into the tanks. And to that end, Sophie decides to engage David on the simulation.
"When we go back in this afternoon," Sophie says, "it's likely going to be a moment of truth for the El Dorado team, with the convention happening. What exactly are you hoping this tells us?"
David responds quickly, "I've my eye on the grain blight and the famine in Asia. That to me is more important than even the instability of the American political scene. All the trends we've seen in America over 2019, before you got here, and in 2020 have been the fulfillment of an increased division between urban and rural, rich and poor. It seems mad to imagine that this election won't light a lot of that tinder on fire. So what happens after November is just as important as the signs we're picking up on before."
Sophie continues, "And past simulations? How do they compare?"
David: "The breaking point always happens between 2020 and 2040 and it usually has to do with stresses placed on the system from material or psychological impetuses. We've been over this." David seems almost tetchy, impatient with Sophie, and from what Jo can tell also eager to get back into the simulation. He's looked at his watch twice during this spiel.
Leonard
"What's the hurry, David?" Jo asks. She'll make some perfunctory comment based on psychological theory about artificial time constraints spoiling the results -- basically stalling for time, and saying 'the cart seems to be driving the horse' without actually saying that.
Michael
Iiiinteresting. Psychology roll for Jo, with her +1 to her skill from Sensitive?
Leonard
>> SUCCESS by 0
Michael
"I'd like to be in the sim to witness what exactly happens at the convention. There's a confluence of factors that seem to be indicating that the convention will be a pivotal event." David visibly wipes sweat from his brow; both Catherine and Sophie look at David with concern. "If we go in any later than 1 pm, we stand to miss eye-witnessing it thanks to the sim's internal clock."
Leonard
"Understood. I just have some ... concerns about keeping proper operational controls, you see, for the sake of the integrity of the experiment." At this point, she'll excuse herself to go powder her nose, signaling subtly — if that's possible — for Sophie to join her.
Michael
Given that GRAIL TABLE all know ASL, I wouldn't use that, but I would say that given we planned all this ahead, we can have a high sign that designates Sophie needs to attend to Jo or vice versa.
Leonard
Fair enough.
"Sophie," she'll say as soon as they're out of earshot, but with the knowledge they're probably being bugged, "I have very little confidence in this point in David, and by extension the integrity of the experiment. Given what we saw inside the simulation, and my experience on the hike this morning, I think we at bare minimum should ask for a postponement of the simulation until Archie, Roger, and Charley return, and at most a halt to and external review of the program. But you know him better than I do and can probably predict his reaction, so I'll defer to you on how we should handle it. Are you with me? We need a united front on this, I think."
Michael
Sophie looks very sad all of a sudden. Sad and distracted. "A united front, of course." Her fingers fidget while she gathers up what she's trying to say.
"I agree, the presence of Anunnaki glyphs in the simulation and in the physical area around the experiment make re-entering extremely dangerous. But if we are going to pull rank and ask GRAIL TABLE to stop their project, the project David's spent the last half-decade of his life on, I think we need to just tell him what we've discovered. Everything. And that's probably best done with the whole group. Especially if they're able to find something in the data records about the revulsion glyph. But to keep him here, away from the castle, while Charley and Archie and Roger try to do that ... we're going to need to tell David something. He's going to want to get in those cars in 15 minutes and head to the castle."
Leonard
"I understand. Any suggestions? You know him. I'd be willing to take the social bullet — I can tell him I'm sick or having a reaction to medication or something like that to stall, or, hell, I'm still assigned to the ASA, I could bluff a recall or a check-in or something. I'll have your back no matter what you decide, but I feel like you should make the call how we approach this."
Michael
Sophie will concede that Jocasta is better at doing the bluffing; not only is Sophie concerned about her ability to do any kind of fast talking with her Low Empathy, there's also an added problem given her past with Sophie. But Sophie can use her knowledge of David to advise Jo on the best bluffing strategy to use. I'm going to make an Intelligence Analysis roll with a +2 to reflect David and Sophie's past and that will either aid (or not aid) Jo's roll.
"I wish Charley were still here, I would have her fake a communique from Tavistock or Granite Peak or something. Because I do feel like we need to bring the weight of SANDMAN down on David, implied or otherwise. I think that's the only thing that will dissuade him. If you think you can bluff him, I can provide you with … reasonable-sounding protocols, code phrases, and names of contacts at Granite Peak telling him to halt or pause the experiment. If he or someone else on the GRAIL TABLE team calls that bluff... well, then we can think about what comes next."
(Sophie's offering a +2 to Jo's Fast-Talk effort to get GRAIL TABLE to put a halt to their experiments by invoking SANDMAN protocols. Basically she's saying that Jo should pose as, like, SANDMAN Internal Affairs or counterintelligence to try to get them to temporarily shut down.)
Leonard
(I think that's what she'll go with — basically, saying this operation is a joint effort of SANDMAN and ASA, and the latter has 'concerns' about the procedure. She'll try and frame it, in an attempt to keep David's sympathy/throw him off if he's suspicious, as kind of an eyerolling 'hey, you know how it is, the Army and its dumb bureaucracy and jurisdictional pissing contests' apology, but make it clear that they need to put everything on ice at least until she, as the ASA rep, and Archie, as the SANDMAN field director, can dot some i's and cross some t's. If that works for you — and for Sophie — then let's just assume I'm roleplaying that way, and let me know when to make a roll.)
Michael
I really like that. Give you another +1 for the good description. So +3 to your Fast-Talk rating.
Add Appearance bonus too, actually; David is attracted to Jo, for sure.
Leonard
>>> SUCCESS by 3
Michael
David looks to Catherine hopelessly, then to Sophie, and then, quite significantly, to Elias. Both Catherine and Elias have been quiet this entire set of conversations. When Jo comes out of the other room with Sophie, it seems clear to the GRAIL TABLE team something is up. And when Jo spells out, quite calmly and believably, that SANDMAN needs to hit the pause button on this project, David listens. He's scowling through most of it, and Catherine looks a little frozen, but he nods curtly at the right moments and looks Jo square in the eyes. "That's fine. But I want to speak to someone at Granite Peak as soon as possible to get this straightened away. If I can get back in by tonight I can witness the election first-hand and I want to at least do that much. Where's Archie?"
Leonard
"He and his family were doing some sightseeing earlier, but now I believe he's in communications with URIEL agents stateside. I assume they're already doing whatever can be done to sort this whole mess out," Jocasta responds. "Sophie and I can go fetch him and Roger and we'll be back directly."
(Note that I don't think Jo has any idea where Archie and Roger are, but she's eager to get away and put her head together with Sophie to figure out their next step.)
In fact, what a perfect opportunity with Charley deep in the computer banks and Archie tossing the GRAIL TABLE offices for Jo to call the castle and have Roger pick up (pre-arranged).
Bill
Roger: "Sitrep: on site, search in progress, timetable unchanged. Over."
Leonard
"Roger, Roger. [Couldn't resist] Need to regroup and review GRAIL TABLE status; situation has escalated."
Bill
"Confirm received. Timetable change? Plan change? Over."
Leonard
"Stay on current timeline, we've started delaying action. But meet in safe rooms ASAP." She'll also give as quick and concise a statement of her bluff as possible and suggest Archie calls in to back it up when he can.
Bill
"Roger, wilco. Will speed up extraction, report call request to lead." Roger will also get across bluff used to get in: simple early entry request, in case stories cross.