Viv Learns the Game
Bill
At some point later, while continuing her observations of the people in the room, Viv would have a chance to see Agent Martin coming back in the room. I'd think it fair she gets a check to see if she spots him first, and if she gets a chance to check his body language and emotional demeanor.
Mandy
(lmk what rolls you want Mike)
Michael
Yeah, let's start with a Body Language roll from Genevieve.
Mandy
>> SUCCESS by 9
So that's by 9.
Michael
Bill, that's a pretty exceptional success so if you wouldn't mind giving Genevieve an idea of how Roger looks like he's doing emotionally after that extended period as Kalfu, I would love that.
Bill
He's wearing his FBI badge clipped on a lanyard around his neck, hanging to the center of his chest. He also has a "Hello My Name Is" sticker on his left side, over his heart, reading in clean block letters: "SP. AGENT MARTIN F.B.I." with thick, circular periods after every letter of FBI.
(The "comma, Motherf*cker" is implied.)
Genevieve, looking out for his return, caught sight of Agent Martin just outside the doorway of the ballroom, as he quickly and subtly, he thought, arranged himself to come in. She saw the before, and the immediate after, and that made the before more clear. After, his body language is standing tall and straight, at attention, the intimating agent of the government, the power of the state, whatever the dress. But before, he wasn't. His head was bowed, he was moving his lips silently, maybe talking to himself, maybe nervous. At the moment he put away his prior state, it felt like he was maybe ashamed of something, literally pushing it down; his hands came to his sides in a snapping motion, rather military... He is definitely putting on a show of strength, hiding, well, not fear, since he did come in. But he's pushing himself on with duty when he'd apparently rather be maybe apologizing to someone? One last clue, as she watches him catch her in his eye, and start resolutely towards her. At the moment he started to march towards her, he paused, just for a second. Like, he was a bit afraid to be too eager to take the commanding position he was stepping into. It might strike her that he's recently been pushy, commanding, and for some internal reason, he didn't like it, and he's still not fully comfortable putting on that skin. He touched the jacket on his arm, maybe making sure something was safe in the breast pocket? And then he made a beeline.
"Ms. Abielle. I hope you have recovered. I will need you to come with me."
Mandy
(wow)
Genevieve looks over at her delusional wards and uncrosses her arms. "Agent Martin, of course." Roger can perhaps sense that Viv has a bit of experienced hesitancy in her, like she would be more militant and suspicious of the FBI under different circumstances but this is an honest to goodness emergency, and she is worried about Andy... and it seems like this agent is having a rough day.
Bill
"This way." He motions back towards the front desk. "I'm taking you to call in to my superiors." Picking up on her cooperative spirit, he adds, "I believe you will be able to check in with Mr. Krane; I understand he is eager to talk to you."
"You need to set someone to watch over these folks. We cannot let them go wandering." He looks right at her: "We. Cannot."
Since Viv is picking up on body language, she may notice: Martin grips the jacket he's holding, unconsciously. It looks familiar.
Mandy
Viv flags over her colleague from the con committee and puts her in charge of monitoring the afflicted, stressing that the FBI wants to keep the event contained, and she follows Martin "Oh, thank goodness; Andy must be losing his mind." Taking a closer look at the jacket as she follows behind … Any sense where she recognizes it from?
Bill
It's the black costume jacket, one of the ones the two "agents" were wearing. A quick glance over at the catatonic Richie no longer wearing his makes the origin clear.
Agent Martin leads her to a small private office with a phone. He motions to her to sit in the chair, closes the door, and then, breathes out a deep breath. "Thank you." That bit of an apologetic look comes back into his face. "Ms. Abeille, before we call in... I feel I should..." He pauses, looking a little stumped. "I feel someone should let you know more." He continues, rapidly. He seems to be talking more to someone else, and some of his Hoover-soldier-boot-polish comes off. "Look, we are in a bad situation here, and you don't know how bad. I know how bad. A man has died. Worse, he's still walking around, dead. And everyone in this hotel could end up like him." He stops, suddenly. "Do you believe in souls, immortal souls?"
Mandy
Emphatically, but also surprised, "Yes, I do." Viv's eyes are narrow, but not suspicious... she's processing what you're saying
Bill
"The man who wore this jacket, one of the attackers? He's gone. His soul is lost. That body, walking around in the ballroom; it is just a shell now."
"I am sorry for you, I am, but you can't escape this now. No rationalizing this away. You get the short end of the stick, like so many of us have."
"Your soul is in danger. That's the truth. That's the truth that's out there" he points around.
Mandy
Michael, Genevieve would have gotten a chance to look at the catatonic individual when she was monitoring the group, do I have any sort od roll to see what she sensed vibe wise back when she was scoping him out? I'd also like a roll to get a read on Agent Martin's sincerity and the gravity of the situation... Her decades of friendship with Andy have left her aware that this is the exact axis she is vulnerable along, and she had that surveillance detail at her house the other night... Is all of this related? Is this guy sincere? Is the answer to both questions yes?
Michael
Yeah, two rolls here in that case: both your Esoteric Medicine and First Aid are a 16, so that will be your roll to diagnose Rich physically and metaphysically. The second roll to analyze Agent Martin's sincerity is a Detect Lies-18.
>> SUCCESS by 7
>> SUCCESS by 8
Okay, looking at the young man, medically he does seem in a state of catatonia. His vital signs are steady but he does not react to any sensory stimuli, at all. On the metaphysical level, using esoteric medicine, Genevieve attempts to sense the flows of energy in his body. Spring boarding off of the elements of the diagnostic First Aid attempt, such as feeling for his blood flows, respiration, and other vital signs, Genevieve tries to sense his chakras and inner energy flow. Each individual chakra is not only completely closed, they also seem... mortally atrophied. They're not completely gone, though, or at least that's what Viv believes. Genevieve actually holds out a vague hope that somehow, someday, this young man's soul might find its way home … but they're long odds.
Regarding Viv's assessment of Agent Martin: whatever vague paranoia or apophenia that Viv might have had about Mrs. Smith and her daughter's visit to MRI, the weird feeling around the Ballard house last night, meeting up with Dr. Redgrave's disciples here of all places, and Andy now being missing and involved with this set of weird circumstances at the con … Viv feels like this Agent Martin is being sincere and that what's happening here today goes beyond the normal, beyond the everyday, but that Agent Martin is not unfamiliar with such circumstances. All this really is a bit like one of Andy's most paranoid fantasies/nightmares come true. You always had a feeling that, despite his underlying rationalism, deep down Andy was a magus, and it sounds like he wrote one of his own stories to life without any sort of conscious intent. Now that is the sign of a powerful magus.
Mandy
"I believe you are being sincere, Agent Martin. That man looks as if his soul were squeezed out from his body … nothing but a tentative connection left. I'm not sure what it could take to call him back in to this vessel." Viv's wheels are turning, a whiff of obsession at this puzzle, something that needs to be metabolized more thoroughly before she judges it. "You're saying that could happen to ANYONE in the hotel?"
She's catching up with what she has heard
Her hand goes to her chest and she takes a deep breath. It is uncommon for her to feel shaken. "How did it happen? How do we stop it?"
Bill
“Anyone who tries to leave, maybe. All of us eventually.”
“How it happened? Those two, this place, it slipped from history. How do we stop it? Well, that’s something I’m hoping my team works out. You are, I guess, more prepared than I knew. Maybe we get on the line, unless you have more questions?”
Mandy
"Can you explain what you mean by 'slipped from history'? I'm …. well, as a sci-fi writer you'll find me the most amenable to the possibility out of anyone, but what does it mean here, right now, to the FBI?"
Bill
“I’m not the brains, you see. Me, I’m just an agent. But the short version: there’s a really bad history out there, always trying to be ours. And it’s filled with very powerful gods and demons, and we can just barely hold them off.”
“Your friend, those two kids, they’re trying to bring Atlantis’s history in, but the bad gods come with it.” (edited)
“Sci-fi? I wish.”
Mandy
Viv's eyes widen and then narrow, she purses her lips and looks maybe like she's going to say something more before shaking her head "You know what? Let's call in. You said they'll probably let me talk to Andy?"
Bill
“Yeah, well, supervised. Let me dial up.”
Roger will call, confirming the line is the same as before. He’s very by-the-book in his turns of phrase as he’s transferred to Archie.
“Martin reporting in with Ms. Abeille, as requested.”
Rob
"It's good to hear your voice, Roger. I'm here with Andrew Krane. Are you OK? Are you … feeling back to your old self?"
"And are you somewhere you can speak freely for a few minutes? You and Ms. Abeille, I mean?"
Bill
“We’re as private as it can get here, given this is now hostile ground.” Roger pauses. “Archie, sir, I’m sorry if I caused you and the team some trouble. That was not exactly how I would have done that on an ordinary day. But it’s not always up to us, and, sir, well, we need allies here. Now. Like Ms. Abeille here.”
Rob
"Well, you're right about that, Roger. In fact, we're going to loop Abeille in, a bit. Put our cards on the table, so to speak, as much as we can without putting her in additional danger."
"I'm hoping the two of you can work together in trying to contain this, protecting the minds of the people inside. What we're asking you to do may sound a little funny, but, well: desperate times. I don't suppose you have a second extension there … can you put her on the line?"
Mandy
"Hello, this is Genevieve Abeille; to whom am I speaking?"
Mike, I'm going to want a roll when Archie starts talking to see if I recognize the voice of the guy I overheard talking to Andy at the party.
Michael
I actually think Acting should give you a chance at discriminating between tones and timbres of voices, we'll slap a -2 on there to reflect the fact it's over a phone connection, so Acting-14.
>> SUCCESS by 2
I'd say unless Archie is planning to disguise his voice you nailed it.
Rob
(laughing at the thought of Archie disguising his voice)
Michael
Dude, he's got SKILLS for it!
And 20+ years of experience!
Rob
(that's true, that's true — he could speak in a puppet voice)
"Good morning, Mrs. Abeille. My name is Archie Ransom. We've got you on speakerphone; there's someone here who wants to say hello to you." (invites Andrew to speak)
Michael
"Hi Viv. Uh … I hope the con's going okay." (Possibly the worst stupidest thing to say but that's our Andrew under pressure).
Rob
"How are you holding up, Mrs. Abeille? I'm happy to say we got Andrew to safety before everything went a little cuckoo at the St. Francis. I'm sorry we couldn't get you out of there too."
Mandy
"Mr. Ransom … from the con reception. And those were your people outside my house as well, I assume? You've been trying to prevent this, uh." Roger sees her gesturing as she searches for words "event?" Viv is not really asking so much as she's letting you know she knows. "Andy! I'm so glad you're okay … have they told you anything?" Out of generosity, Viv ignores his dumb question. "You can be straight with me. what they've told me is the very definition of unbelievable. And … I think I believe it. "
Michael
"Okay, Viv. I will be straight with you … and I am sorry that you're stuck there. But yes, they have told me enough to make me very nervous. Apparently all the times fans have approached me asking 'Where do you get your ideas for the Atlantis Risen books?' I should have been answering, 'Unconsciously channeling through latent psi abilities a secret war between agents of the US government and demons from outside reality and history.'"
"I believe them, Viv. And what's more, these … entities thrive on belief, they feed off it, which makes a hotel full of a thousand sf fans a veritable feast for them."
(I won't say more because that feels like the minimum operational intelligence Archie and Marshall would have shared during the conversations at Livermore.)
Mandy
"Andy, what does ‘outside reality and history’ mean to you right now?"
Michael
"That … that might be a better question for Mr. Ransom. I'm not sure if I understand it all myself right now."
Rob
"It might be best if we set aside the why's and wherefores of it for now, Mrs. Abeille. The simplest way to explain things might be that all of you at the St. Francis are under the influence of … a very dangerous delusion."
"I don't mean that you are deluded. I mean that a delusion is spreading. As it does, you may see or experience things that are frightening, things that you cannot easily explain."
"Andrew here speaks very highly of you, and it sounds to me like his confidence is well placed. I'd like to ask you for your help in containing this event, and getting you, and all the other folks in the hotel out of this safely."
Mandy
"Right. Of course, I'm sorry, Mr. Ransom, I'm just trying to understand what I've seen and experienced. What you're saying makes this sound like … A toxic algae bloom from inside the minds of individual participants which had contaminated the entire group subconscious. What I have witnessed is a physical boundary that endangers the human soul. What I am sensing is a qualitative change in the environment. Your agent told me that we have been attacked by a powerful secret history of Gods and Demons. If you had asked me yesterday if the FBI collectively believed in such things, I would have told you no." She clears her throat, and has a bit of a commanding edge in the next thing she says. "Clarity on this issue will help me act correctly in this situation. The truth is Mr. Ransom, your explanation is far, far more comfortable for my existing ontology. It slips in effortlessly. But if this hotel is being metabolized by an alternate timeline, if something is pulling us in or pushing itself through? You want me to have your best model to work from when I help you."
Michael
(Andy shoots Archie a look as if to say, "See?")
Rob
"I — well. Fair play to you, Mrs. Abeille. I suppose I was trying to protect your, ah, existing ontology. I don't want this to be any more distressing to you than it has to be. But, yes, you could call what is happening an 'alternate timeline.' It is an infectious, opportunistic delusion, and the more people at the hotel believe in it, the more its effects will manifest in the physical world."
Mandy
"Do you know the mechanism by which that structuralization, that is the movement from the opportunistic delusion into physical boundaries and changes, takes place? You have to admit a hotel seems like a pretty arbitrary boundary for reality if it's spilling out from infected people … Is there something that anchors it?"
Rob
"To be honest, some of these questions are … above my pay grade. Certainly we think ground zero for this effect was your sci fi conference, and some folks that took Andrew's books here a little too seriously, and the device they got hold of. But there may be other anchors, or agents, at play."
"We have other agents on site, and more on the way. They're going to try to cordon off the hotel, keep the delusion from spreading, and identify any other sources of contamination. But in the meantime, to keep everyone safe, we need to give the folks in the hotel, especially the sci fi buffs, some narratives they can believe in. We need to give them a kind of, mental structure? that they can use to absorb these frightening circumstances, without sustaining permanent damage. That's where you and Agent Martin come in."
Michael
Andy signals to Archie to ask if he can speak.
"Viv, the idea here is that these things feed off belief. So we obviously don't want any of the fans there to get... well, seduced by them. What Mr. Ransom has explained to me here is that we can counter that susceptibility to the blandishments of these demons with an alternate narrative. One that uses the strengths of the sf community—imagination, playfulness, a sense of wonder and adventure, and teamwork, a "we're all in this together" vibe—to keep these beings at bay until the aforementioned agents can work their own magic." Andrew is just freely using words like "magic" now that Viv always tried to get him to use but never could.
"The idea here would be to use some of the narrative structures from the Atlantis Risen universe — MARPA agents and Atlantean followers — in the format of a play-acting fantasy, a game, if you will, where MARPA and Atlantis are forced to join forces against a greater threat: the aforementioned demons from outside reality and history. This way, you get both kinds of fen — the ones who'd align with MARPA and the ones who would align with Atlantis — working together, instead of at cross-purposes. In the process you not only protect them from dangerous delusions but prime them to resist the … antagonists."
"You have to admit the costume kiddies would love it. I think it would work a treat."
(Dangerous bohemian Andrew H. Krane sounding more and more like corny Archie after being stuck in a sweatbox with him for an hour is entirely intentional)
Mandy and Rob, can you each roll 3d6 please?
>> 3d6 … 10
>> 3d6 … 6
Thank you.
(That's all, please feel free to continue )
Mandy
"Level with me, Andy; is this what a paranoid episode feels like?"
Michael
"Are you asking for me or for you? I mean, Viv, for the first time in my whole adult life … I don't feel paranoid anymore. It's all real and I feel, well, a huge sense of relief!"
Mandy
Viv actually laughs out loud, a bubble of tension popping "No! For me! You know what I think about timelines, how we can shape them, how we can court them, how we can surf them … But this?! "
"A dimension of gods and demons is bleeding into our reality endangering people's souls and the only way to save it involves using my particular gifts to puppet the con goers through a transformational awareness scenario that serves to both distract and inoculate them? I — I'm going crazy. I got hit with the gas and this is a delusion. Except absolutely nothing tells me that's true and I have never had difficulty distinguishing my levels of consciousness or lucidity, so … It's? Real? Fate? Destiny?" This is what Viv's version of freaking out looks like. It's very low key. Andy has seen it maybe two or three times.
Michael
Andy looks thoughtfully at Archie, holds up his hand as if to say, "I have a little more to say." "If you're asking me, Viv, it does seem to indicate that your gifts are desperately needed by a world that, while not perfect, is the only world we've got. Or the only one we'd want to have. We've always believed that stories have power. It's always been true, and it's more true than ever now. If this isn't fate, it's merely the world telling you and I how much of a responsibility that is."
"You told me while tripping that one time to go with the flow, to accept where the experience took me. I'm repaying that guidance now. You're who those kids need. Can you imagine the state I'd be in right now in that hotel? Fate put you there for a reason. Go with the flow."
Bill
Roger, barely understanding half of what was just said, gets this much. “Ms. Abeille, when gods, demons, saints, and angels are involved, I can speak from experience: they will have you where they want you. I think it’s the better sort that may have guided you here. You hear them, sometimes, I think. Only listeners come to their call.”
“If you’re in the right spot at the right time, that was you just as much as it is Them.”
Mandy
Viv covers the receiver and whispers, "I knew that part about ‘not being the brains’ was a well practiced line; you see things clearly." Roger's reply is perfect, I was writing that Viv was finding dissociation tempting but ultimately irresponsible. But Roger's response grounds her. A world of living agency beyond normal sensory perception has placed her here, and it's go time. "Okay Andy, Mr. Ransom, you can count on me to do my part. Is there more of a plan, or is this an improvisational situation? Does the hotel have a mimeograph? We're going to need signs. We can get someone on that right away"
Rob
"Andrew and I are working on the narrative scaffolding right now. We're going to give you some marks to hit, some sticky ideas to let loose in there, but there's no real script for this sort of thing. You'll both have to do a lot of improvising in your roles."
"Roger, you're, well, you're 'the Man from MARPA.' Kind of a James Bond type, a suave secret agent with magical powers. Mrs. Abeille, you're his opposite number, on the Atlantean side. Now, both of you are fighting for freedom, as you define it. That's important."
Bill
“Do I get a suit? Please say I get a suit.”
Rob
"We can get you a suit. A sharp one."
(I think Archie is relieved he doesn't have to cast Mitch in all this)
"In the shadow play, the two of you are leaders of opposing factions. Like team captains. People should gravitate to you, look to you for guidance and answers. In reality, of course, you're working together. Remember, it's not necessary that people believe the game is real. It's more necessary that they believe there really is a game." (Not going to try to describe Picnic Blankets A,B,C over the phone …)
Bill
“We’ll need some compliance from the hotel staff. They could be tricky, given they think this is a real situation. I have something of a contact there, but it will need exterior back-up authority. Can you call that in?”
“There’s a worker shift change at 2pm to try to control, too.”
“Dale Lyons is … malleable. But I’m not sure I can run your game and him. Not without the kind of help from my ‘friends in other places’ that makes you rightly nervous.”
Michael
(If I can explain part of the zone of the reality temblor that Roger would have gleaned from his horrifying doom-Oracle experience plus having had Rich having gone through the barrier against his will: people will decide of "their own free will" not to leave the old building of the St. Francis hotel... even if, say, their hotel room is in the new tower, they'll get to the door leading out and say, "Oh, I can stay a couple more hours" and rationalize it to themselves. Pretty soon the doors in will also be blocked thanks to the FBI so no new victims will end up walking into the temblor as well.)
Rob
"We'll backstop whatever cover story you need. For hotel staff, and guests who aren't part of the conference, the basic narrative level is: the hotel is full of oddballs playing a weird game. But they can get pulled into the adjacent narratives too."
"Jocasta will be outside the hotel soon. She's going to try to seal the entrances off discreetly, but that may not last. The cover stories will all need to evolve in real time as events unfold."
Bill
“I think a financial incentive for the staff might be in order.”
Mandy
"Speaking of incentive … there's going to need to be one for the game. This isn't what people expected, now Andy is missing, and, Andy, you're going to hate this but I think your time, one on one with a lucky fan is a motivating incentive for a lot of the attendees who might be too cynical to play otherwise."
Michael
Andy looks straight at Archie, eyes glassy, lip quivering, but voice sure and strong as he says to Viv on the phone: "If you need me, Viv... to sell the game to the kids, I mean … I'll go in."
Mandy
"No, no, I mean after!" She swells though. "That's very brave of you! No. I think the game is to look for you, isn't it? while holding off the invasion. And the person who solves it … they get to spend an entire day with you, one on one."
Michael
Andy chuckles, "Looking for the 'author' of the story as a final hunt, that's good, Viv, that's very good. One lucky fan will get to meet God, eh! I like it, and I think given what we're going through, I can afford to give a day of my life to the fan who wins the game, as it were."
Mandy
"On the Atlantean side Andy, we'll call you the prophet, on the MARPA side, the … informant? Both teams are trying to locate him before the other, but they have to work together at the same time to hold off the invasion. It explains Andy's absence, the inciting event everyone experienced … "
Rob
"Looks like we have another natural at this. Outstanding!" Archie's enjoying this, in spite of himself, or almost. Like spit balling with Jack Ogilvie.
Mandy
"If the primary goal, game notwithstanding, is physical and ideological containment... is this added layer of fictionalization sufficient to keep the alternate worldline from spreading?"
Rob
"There's going to be more than one narrative level in the persuasion space." Archie tries to sketch out his three 'belief surfaces' concisely. He also tries to avoid referring to anyone as an ant. "So it's a closed loop, or at least as closed as we can make it."
"And then our other agents will be working to identify and isolate any additional, ah, vectors of contamination, but of course you both need to keep your eyes open, stay safe, and let us know what you see."
Mandy
"Okay, so, if I'm understanding it correctly, the move would be to bring in the con committee and maybe a few key actors and tell them that this was a Communist plot, that it is believed the terrorist is still in the building, and that's why the FBI need us to keep everyone occupied. We give them the plot for this game, and some structure, we create a few layers to the story, zones of restriction and plot intrigue in the building. We could also alert the hotel staff, a no-alarm response, Nobody in or out because you need to catch the spy. Then no specific person needs to hold that layer of the story, it will hold itself and, as you said, catch anyone who doesn't want to be enchanted with the game or isn't enticed by the prize, boundaried in the space but without the psychological pressure of feeling trapped or hunted themselves. That's really smart. So is the working together/across themes while still keeping people atomized toward a goal. Normally I wouldn't support that sort of social pressure in a group setting but it is how to control people. "
(honestly, thank goodness people could still smoke inside??)
Rob
"Why, Mrs. Abeille, I think you missed your calling." Archie manages to avoid calling anybody an insect, but the esmology jargon he's been tossing around does imply a whole field of mass psychology, prediction, and manipulation, that's clearly related to mid-20th-C behaviorism but also grows off it in a weird, deterministic direction. (Or maybe Viv is used to hearing people talk nonsense like this.)