Past Tense, the second IC

Resisting Drain from 2 Spells (includes -2 sustain penalty on 2nd roll)(
got a glitch on the first roll)

Magic Fingers Drain: Force 5 divided by 2 +1 = 4
DV 4 minus 2 (Resist roll) = 2 Stun

Levitate Drain: Force 5 divided by 2 + 1 = 4
DV 4 minus 0 (Resist roll) = 4 Stun

Bishop takes 6 total Stun
(Darkon, I used the maximum Force (Magic 5) for each spell since I failed to specify in my earlier post.)

Bishop was relieved to see the guards reach the girl so quickly. His first casting attempt had resulted in pulling the girl's hands away from the railing instead of the intended effect of firming her grip...a slip which the dark elf contributed to the suddenness of the situation coupled with his need to remain unnoticed as the girl's benefactor.

With the emergency resolved, in addition to the guard's suspicious scanning of the surrounding passengers, Bishop calmly turned and resumed crossing the deck towards his original destination - Twitch.

Though his steps were sure and steady enough, Bishop massaged his right temple with the fingertips of his right hand and a tense, pained expression marred his face. The effort of focusing his psionic will to help save the girl had left him somewhat drained. The headache would subside in time, but he would have to exercise caution in the meantime. Overexerting himself could not only jeopordize his usefulness on the job, but if he pushed himself too far, could literally 'burn out' his talent.

Approaching Twitch, Bishop abruptly put a hand to his mouth as if about to retch and leaned heavily on, and over, the railing. This bit of pantomime was to deflect any scrutiny by the guards and/or other passengers.

To Twitch, sotto voce: "Just act like you're concerned for a fellow passenger...any sign of Soren?"

The big boobed baby babbled bothered. "Are you ok? Wow that poor girl almost fell off. The bodyguard came to her rescue just in time."

One of the body guards was talking to the thin air. One could assume he was using AR to communicate with someone. The kids were all very tense now, the playing and fooling around had stopped. And the teachers were herding the children in the middle of the deck, well away from the railings.



Somewhere else, Ashe was walking through the corridors of a big house. She was searching for something or someone. But she couldn't remember for who or what exctly. The corridors changed their appearance every now and then.
First they had looked like her own homes walls, then like a subway station. Now they were blank concrete of an industrial facility. The next moment they might become the walls of an old, well maintained mansion.

When Ashe turned around a corner, there was someone. A female figure, floating just above the floor. She seemed to be wearing a translucent, blue dress. Her hair was blue as well. And she seemed to have butterfly wings. "Ah, here you are. I found you. Good. My master wants to talk to you and you should talk to him too because he can give you credits and an adventure to talk about to your friends. If you have friends. But if you don't have friends you could make friends with my master." Her voice came out like a steady breeze on a cliff at the sea. The figure seemed to radiate a certain calmness, paired with curiosity. And she was obviously pleased to have found Ashe in that corridor. Without as much as taking a breath, the blue, floating girl continued: "But my master can't come here, so you have to go to him. It would really be the best for you to go see him. I'll leave that paper here so you can read the words.

She dropped what looked like an old fashioned envelope. The splatting sound it made when it landed on the floor was what finally let Ashe wake up.

- I need... The thought started to come out, slowly.
- I... It continued trying. There was a figure, floating just in the hazy part of her mind's eye. She couldn't quite make out who it was, or what...
"Just here, around this turn..." Ashe mumbled quietly, turning yet another corner, leading in to yet another set of varied but still indistinguishable halls. This one, however, immediately became distinguished from the others, when Ashe found herself face to face with a faerie.

"Oh!" She said, startled. She would have continued with "I didn't see you there..." as an exclamation, and would have followed that with a greeting. In fact, in her mind, those things had actually started to come out. But as she opened her mouth to allow the thought to translate in to words, well, the thought was interrupted.
"I..." She started to respond, but was unable even to return the greeting which had planned to start with. This would have been followed with something along the lines of "Of course I have friends." and would have added something like "And of course I would be delighted to meet your master!" But, again, as the thoughts formed in her mind, the delightfully energetic Pixie simply steamrolled over her responses with her message. Interestingly, it was at about this time which Ashe realized what was really going on. She didn't attempt to respond again as the Pixie finished up speaking, and chose, rather, to listen attentively, making certain to hear and record everything being said.
Ashe then reached for the message as it fell, not realizing that she was not meant to catch it.

*SPLAT*

"Ughhhh..." She said, sitting up.
"Henri, are you there?" She said, addressing the Personality in her Commlink. The name was pronounced with a french accent, in order to help distinguish the much more likely "Henry" in this part of the world from the much less likely "Henri" for the purposes of making due with somewhat less money, and a less intuitive Personality programming. Ashe would have liked to have the money to afford the kind of Commlink which might attract a genuine AI; but she didn't have that kind of money... Not yet, anyway. And for the time being, she was doing the best she could with what she had.
"Baht ahv caurz, Ashe, my deahr." He responded, the french accent in his voice making Ashe smile, as she normally would.
"Mmmmm, good." Ashe purred contentedly. She knew she had something to tell him, an appointment to arrange for, but she was just so enjoying his french accent at the moment that she had forgotten what she needed to say. Instead, she got up and headed for the shower.
"Please see to it that the hot water is running properly, and start up the shower for me?" She said, lazilly wandering away from the bed, and her commlink on the bedside table.
"Eet ees dunn, Ashe, my deahr." He responded, the sound of the shower starting to spray water was further music to her ears. Ashe allowed a small sound of pleasure to escape her mouth as she closed the shower door behind her. Remembering one further detail, she stuck her head back out.
"Would you please also remember to run the coffee for me?" She asked. Not being a technophile, Ashe didn't really realize that she could have simply programmed Henri to take care of those things for her automatically each morning. In fact, she could have programmed him to do those things, and then remind her, cheerfully, that they were done, and ready. And goodness, if she thought she was happy with the current arrangement... But, digressions aside, Ashe was really enjoying the warmth of the shower water cascading down over her tired eyes.

When Ashe comes back from the shower, she notices an envelope lieing on the floor next to her bed. Where did it come from? Ashe can feel a light draft and could find an open window, or maybe an airduct slit, that might have been the way of delivery.

If she opens it, she finds a hand written letter.

“Dear Ms. Ashe

You are hereby invited to attend a business meeting this afternoon at 3 o'clock in the Shen Long Palace winter garden.
In case a satisfactory agreement about the run can not be achieved, you accept by your attendance that any information given during the meeting is confident and will not be used or sold.

The general topic will be archaeology.

Show this to the gardener and you will be lead to a particularly picturescue corner of the winter garden.
You will be compensated for your expenses.

Sincerely,
Johnson”

The paper looks old with a yellowish colour. And it's thicker than the paper you usually know. The ink isn't black, but rather purple. All in all, one could call it old fashioned. A quick glance on the astral tells Ashe that there is something magical about the ink. She can read the letter as easily on the astral as she can with her mundane eyes.

( More information would require hits on a logic+magic theory roll. )

"Huh..." Ashe mumbled quietly, rubbing the thick, textured paper between her finger tips. She read the message slowly, then walked over to her closet to select the outfit for the meeting.
Peering in to the closet, Ashe first considered her dress collection. She pulled out a full-length flowing summer dress with a floral print on it. - This one is nice... she thought to herself, before rejecting it. - Better for a meandering stroll in the park; I want to be "professional" for the meet. She reminded herself, returning the dress to the closet and selecting another. This, a green knit sweater-dress, would be perfect with some yoga-tights, and tall leather boots.
"Henri, what's the weather projected to be this afternoon?" She asked over her shoulder, enjoying the patterns of the front of the sweater dress. It really was a nice piece, and could be just the thing for a winter-garden meet.
"Ahh, allow me to check," He opined, while his databases searched the matrix for a weather prediction. It didn't take long...
"It appears to be a nice day zis afternoon. Zere is a minimal chance of rain." His french accent again putting a smile on her face. She turned back to her closet, pulling out two similar sweater-dresses, and the remainder of the outfits. - I'll just have to try them on and see.... She thought to herself, letting the towel drop to the floor, and gently laying the green sweater-dress onto her bed while pulling a similar brown one over her head. After much deliberation, Ashe eventually settled on the brown sweater-dress. It had a well-designed interchange of brown colors, with some roping along the shoulders, as well as an included belt. To make certain that she didn't attract too much attention, she wore matched intimates: brown lace. For her stockings, since the brown sweater-dress was a bit longer than the green one she didn't need to wear yoga pants, she wore green lace tights and a pair of tan leather boots. Her outfit finally complete, Ashe happily reviewed her outfit in the mirror.
"That's perfect. She said, smiling. She grabbed her purse, stuffed her "public" commlink inside; the one with Henri installed on it, and headed to the meet.

The Shen Long Palace is a mix of mall, spa and fun park, with a distinctive chinese setting. The winter garden itself is a well groomed park under a transparent dome.

Everything looks natural on first glance, but Ashes experienced eye can see the feng shui shimmering through. If she would peek into the astral, she could notice a harmonic vibe in the floating energies that makes people feel comfortable and at home here. An info stand at the entrance advertizes an AR app for mundanes to 'experience the special astral space in this unique enviroment'.

Ashe shares the park with couples striding along the paths hand in hand, families with young children, and a few worn out salarymen winding down on a bench near a strategically placed fountain.

It doesn't take Ashe long to find gardeners. They all wear traditional chinese clothes and wide brimmed straw hats. Their tools seem to be traditional as well. None of them look powered by anything but muscles. One gardener in particular is noticeable. A chinese dwarf with a long, thin, white beard. He is currently working on a little plum tree and radiates serenity.

Ashe wanders about for a bit, enjoying the relaxing environment. - I really wish I could have a place like this in my living room... she muses thoughtfully, appreciating that the astral environment is every bit as relaxing as the physical one. Obviously, Ashe knows little about VR, and doesn't realize that she might just be able to have a place just exactly like this in her living room. Of course, VR doesn't account for Astral...
Seeing the particularly noticeable Gardner, Ashe slowly works her way over in his direction. He was precisely the sort of picture of a life-long Gardner for a place just like this. Ashe smiles as the picture of him tending a bonsai pops in to her mind. He, bent over a particularly tortured specimen, perhaps wrapped about a rock "outcropping" and dangling down a cliff. He snips at a leaf or two. The he looks up and winks at her.
Ashe gasped slightly and stands up utterly straight. She realized, at that moment, that once again her vision, or daydream, had merged, slightly, with reality itself. The serene dwarf had turned to face her, likely winking as he did so. And the wink had managed work it's way in to her little vision.
"Pardon me," Ashe says softly to the dwarf, approaching him. She had never seen a dwarf his "age" before, and wondered whether there was a such thing as Immortal Dwarves, as there are Immortal Elves. Because, with the life expectancy of a dwarf numbering in the hundreds of years, a Dwarf born on the absolute beginning of UGE would still only be 60, or so; and not nearly old enough to have a white beard. At least, not white from age. - He could be SURGEd... Or it could be cosmetic... She told herself, noting that either solution was certainly reasonable. - And only I would find a way to be startled in this place... She thought wryly, continuing to address the dwarf.
"But I have the strangest of questions..." She took a deep breath, steadying herself before continuing.
"Do you happen to tend Bonsai?" She asked. Shocked, she took a seat on the bench next to the Dwarf. She had managed to surprise even herself with that... Wondering where the question had come from, and how it had managed to escape her lips, she looked at the Dwarf and attempted to gauge his reaction, and listen to his response.

The gardener looked at Ashe with a look of surprise. "Matter of fact, I do." He seems to scrutinize her appearance for a moment. "I can show you of my less horrible specimen. If you can wait a moment." He turned back to the plum tree, binding the branch he had worked on with a string of bamboo fibers, tying the ends into a small knot. "What you have started, you must finish. Or all is for naught." He said, probably more to himself.

When he collected his tools and put them back into the basket standing near the little plum trees trunk, the movement happened with a calmness that seemed to emanate infinite patience. Or rheumatism. But that was unlikely.

"What brings you to the garden?" The dwarf asked. "Common interest in botanic or a date with your destiny?"

"Oh, of course I can wait a moment." Ashe responds as cheerfully as she can. She blinks her eyes once or twice, forcing her gaze to wander about the garden. She desperately needed to relax the surprise she had in hearing those words come out of her mouth, at least, slightly. As the surprise drained out of her consciousness, she returned her attention to the gardner, as he worked on a specimen carefully. It was more than a moment, but certainly time well spent. Ashe appreciated the art and care with which he was shaping his living artwork.

"Hmm? What was that?" She asked, intrigued. She heard him mumble, slightly, something about finishing things that you start. Given the context of the situation at the moment, Ashe would not have been at all surprised if she had imagined that; though, again given the context, it would be equally probable that, once imagined, it came to life in reality. Ashe was somewhat shaken up by the events of the day: the dream, the day-dream of the gardner working bonsai, and then the wink... It had all been quite unnerving.
To further the relaxation, Ashe took a few moments to study the bonsai specimen carefully. She noted the angle of the branch, as well as the little she could actually tell of the plant.
"It's a coniferous." She pronounced quietly, with absolutely no notion of which kind of coniferous tree it might be. She likely wouldn't have known the difference between a white pine and a juniper; and this could be either, or any other of a countless myriad of varieties.

"Well, strangely, I am not convinced that the two cannot, or rather, do not happen to coincide. It would seem that my date with destiny has something to do with a previously unexplored interest in botany of mine. Though, today, I was invited for something specific. Perhaps you can assist me?" She responded, carefully. She smiled, pulling out the note and handing it to him.

The gardener took the letter and examined it. Then he folded it with great care and put it into the basket. "Come with me please." He bowed before Ashe, holding one fist cradled inside the other. "My name is Shen. It is a pleasure to meet you."

At first, they walked on the paths meandering throughout the whole park. In a quiet voice, the dwarf asked: "You are one of the gifted. Can you look beyond the skin?" He smiled serenely. "May I humbly ask for a little favour? Please tell me how Shen Longs Garden looks for you?"

He waited for an answer patiently, walking next to the tall, at least for him, lady.

At a hedge, he stopped. "This way now." He stepped into a gap in the hedge, nearly perfectly hidden by clever arrangement of the branches. Behind the hedge, Ashe found herself in front of a small hut. It meticulously yielded to the style of the whole garden, being of a chinese design. The windows made of a filigrane framework and the roof was curved at the corners. In front of the hut, there was a circular piece of lawn. At one side, a small fountain sprayed its mist into the air. Adjacent to it, a conifer bonsay was planted into the ground. Next to it, a lantern flickered, standing at face level on a pole. To it's right, a big rock laid half buried. It seemed to be the only thing in its natural state in this garden, yet everything together created a perfect harmony. A golden dragon statue completed the circle.

Shen let Ashe take in the whole scene before saying: "Just wait here, your destiny will arrive soon." The dwarf similed. It didn't stop at the corners of his mouth, but also reached his eyes, draping them in wrinkles.

Ashe stood, a little disappointed that the conversation was coming to an end. She had been astonished by her opening question, and intrigued by the direction of the conversation. - Well, it's not too late... Ashe said to herself as the Gardner began leading off.
"Master Shen, it is a pleasure indeed. Please, let us take our time while walking? I am so enjoying the Gardens, and your company, I would that this passes slowly." She said, returning his bow. She was both pleased and disappointed. She was pleased that she seemed to have control over what she was saying again; but disappointed that her timing cut short her chance of getting to know the Gardner, and exploring this situation she seemed to have been destined to bring about.

3 Successes

Being that the Gardens had a carefully managed appearance, both in the physical and astral, Ashe had been switching frequently to Astral for her own enjoyment. The joys of being Awakened were beyond description, and well worth the dangers inherent in the gift. Ashe had always been in awe with regards to magic, and the magical world. But places like these Gardens reaffirmed her awe with a vigor.
"It is difficult to describe the other side in any context, but I shall do my best. If you will: picture the Gardens on a misty day. No rain, only mist, but not thick mist. Enough so that seeing the floor is a little difficult, because the mist settles a bit." Ashe paused, trying to pull together the physical picture in her own mind. The correlation was reasonable, in this situation, because of the way that the energies of the Garden were being managed.
"Ok, now think of the mist as being alive, and benevolent. It wraps itself around you, lightly warming the back of your neck and your forearms, where your skin is uncovered. It's "trailing" effect seems to reach out before you, rather than behind you, pointing the way down the paths so that you don't lose your direction, despite that you have some difficulty seeing the actual ground. It clings to the larger trees and more carefully manicured horticultural creations, outlining the effect of the work you have done here in the Gardens. And it damps any of your thoughts and feelings which don't contribute to your relaxation and enjoyment of the Gardens here." She said, smiling. While the description would have been more appropriate if there were an actual spell doing the work, the effect of a very well managed energy is not unlike a spell. This effect could be seen more clearly in "negative background count" areas, but "positive count areas" also existed, like Shen Long Gardens, where the energy was actively managed to be beneficial.

Shen nodded and smiled. "We have all the time in the world." He sat down on a bench in the huts shadow. "Please have a seat." He offered. From all the garden, I like this place most. Everything is in perfect harmony."

His words couldn't have been truer. While Ashe appreciated the astral choreography, her gaze fell on the circle of lawn. It hummed with energy. A whirlwind of power surrounded the five components of the circle. It looked like a ward, or like a lodge.

"I am glad you enjoy my work." Shen looked around himself. "It is but a humble effort to make this world a better place. The way you describe it, I think it works." His showed a smile of satisfaction.

When Ashe looked at his aura, just for a moment, she could see it vastly different from the mundane one she had seen around him when they met first.
It was as if a dragon had wrapped itself around him. And his whole aura sparkled with magic.

"Hmm..." Ashe's entire body was humming with the energy of the place, and the sound was a verbal extension of her body's current state. It was at once calming, relaxing, and at the same time energizing and uplifting. It was exactly the same sort of thing Ashe had felt when she was in areas with a negative background count; except this was the reverse - it enhanced everything, rather than reducing it all. Ashe sat next to Shen, in awe of the space.
"Well, thank you. It was the best that I could do under the circumstances." She said, allowing her gaze to shift from physical to astral, and back again, enjoying the harmony of the two planes in this place.
"There is a concept among magicians which we refer to as "Background Count". Mostly every magician knows about it; I would consider it basic training. But there are not actually many places that have it; it's quite uncomfortable in most situations, because it's almost always a negative background count. The thing is, a positive background count is theoretically possible; but I don't think I've ever heard anyone talk about one.... I think that what you've done here, through careful and meticulous work, is you've created a positive background count. Which basically means that anyone who is in harmony with your garden would feel a moderate beneficial, almost benevolent, energy seeping in to them while they were here." She said, moving on from her analogous description to the actual magical theory behind what she thought was happening here.
"And if I'm right, you've done something absolutely astonishing. And I can understand why anyone who knows about it would choose not to share..." She said, a large smile on her face. Ashe was still engulfed in her appreciation for the gardens, and for his astonishing success with managing the background count, and therefore chose not to react to the Dragon aura that surrounded Shen momentarily. Because if it was what she thought it was: that meant that he's a powerful initiate, and able to hide his aura from her.

"Oh yes I know." He smiled. "Thank you for your opinion about the garden. I feel honored." He looked at the circle. "It was worth the hard work. This is the center of the whole garden. It's heart." He leaned back and looked at the dome. "Almost as if we were under the open sky. Though the weather is always better."

He seemed to wait patiently for Ashe, be it to ask questions or to give her opinion about things.

Ashe laughed.
"To be honest, modern life has made being wet inconvenient. But forgetting that for a moment, the truth is that "bad weather" is only a social designation. Weather actually can't be bad - it's almost the definition of neutral." Ashe quips. Her smile remains, while her eyes continue to wander, now more slowly than before. She'd taken in the broad-details, and now she was giving herself the time to appreciate the intricacies. - Wait, how did we end up talking about the weather? She asked herself, realizing that the "old fallback" of "So, crazy weather, huh?" had just ended up creeping in to their conversation.
"Well, as much as I would enjoy spending all day here, I do believe I should meet with the people I came to meet with. Would that be alright?" Ashe asked, after realizing that the weather discussion indicated, to some extent, that it was time for her to get on with her business, and allow Shen back to his. Ashe made a mental note, however, to return here as soon as possible. Then she gasped in surprise.
"Oh my goodness! I just realized that I haven't even returned the most basic of pleasantries... Please forgive me! My name is Ashe. And if it pleases you, you will be seeing me again." She blushed deeply, holding out her hand in an extraordinarily delayed recognition of his introduction of himself.

Bishop looked around surrepticiously for Twitch, who had not responded to the dark elf's question. Twitch was gone. Puzzled, Bishop scanned the deck of the ferry, taking in the whole scene rather than specific points.

What he saw was disconcerting to say the least: the guards were tense, watchful, on high alert; the once-laughing children were now crying and huddling in close with their teacher; other museum-goers were looking around

in wide-eyed alarm; and, last but not least, Miss Wiggle was eyeing him with what appeared to be growing concern and not a little suspicion.

What had he done. His impulsive action to help the endangered girl had seemed the only possible course at the moment, but had it been? His use of his powers had always seemed to be the result of his own will - his need to

exact his will on the world, to prove his dominance over the course of his own life. But was it? Could it be that he was not in control as he'd always believed?
And, abruptly, another thought hit him...was there another 'force', some other entity driving him to use his power? This idea both alarmed and dismayed him. Had he already jeopardized the mission? Soren's words returned

to him from the meet with the Johnson: 'I hope you're not going to be throwing magic around all the time...' Those may not have been the ork's exact words, but the gist was the same. And Bishop had assured him - all of

them - that he could, and would, be circumspect... but he had not.

He was fast becoming a liability to the team. He had to get himself under some kind of control. He didn't think the mission was a failure...yet. And he could be an asset...he knew he could. But until he had a firmer grasp on

his powers, and the use of them, perhaps it was best that he focus on his mundane skills.

Turning back again to the railing, Bishop leaned against it, peering out over the water. Right now what he most needed was to become as inconspicuous as possible. Maybe...just maybe...if he kept a low profile until the ferry

reached the island, as well as afterwards, he could do a slow fade from the public awareness and achieve some anonymity...or as much anonymity as a dark, furry metahuman could in a crowd of 'normal' folk.

"Ah, weather can be bad if it damages a garden." Shen replied to Ashe. "Other than that you are right. There is no wrong weather, just the wrong clothing to wear. He took the offered hand and shook it with a warm and firm grip. "It is an honor to meet you." His smile seemed genuine. "If you'll excuse me now. You want to meet your destiny, and I will not stand in the way of that." Like an afterthought, Shen added after a second: "Do you prefer jasmine or green tea?" After receiving an answer, he put his fist in his hand and bowed, then left this hidden garden through another hidden gap in the hedge.

After two minutes of solitude, a tall figure came through the same gap. He wore a long black coat over an elegant suit. In his hand he held a staff with a raven head. "Hello miss Ashe. Nice to meet you." He smiled charismatic, a neatly trimmed van dyke beard framing his mouth. "I think it would be appropriate if you call me Johnson. May I sit with you a while?"




The girl on Bishops arm looked at him concerned. "Hey, are you ok? You look a bit seasick."

The bodyguards kept looking around and the children were huddled together. Though their chattering seemed to relax again.

Fortunately only a few minutes later the ferry arrived at the kay of the museum island. The gangway was lowered and the passengers could walk off the ship and onto the island. It was roughly 200 meters long and 100 meters wide. A paved path of maybe 40 meters lead up to the actual building. Huge banners hung off the front wall of the museum. "Celts, ancient warriors."
The school class just had unboarded when on AR a bulk of celtic warriors ran down the path, yelling and thumping their spears against their shields. They wore checkered trousers and tunics, and also checkered cloaks pinned around their shoulders. Just meters from the first visitor, they vanished.
It caused most of the children to scream startled before they realized it had been a display. Given their still somewhat nervous predicament, the reaction was only natural.

A man, clad in a white tunic came out the main entrane and approached the class. "Welcome to the historical museum. I'm Cartobratus the druid. And I'll lead you around for today. Don't worry about my tribesmen, they like to prank our guests." He laughed, before noticing that the children weren't amused.

"Jasmine, or green..." Ashe was bemused by the question, and took a moment to ponder a response. The truth was that she didn't prefer one to the other; they were different enough that they wouldn't replace each other functionally. Given the earthiness of the garden, Ashe decided that she would prefer a more earthy flavor, and aroma, to accompany it.
"I think I would prefer Green tea, at the moment. Though, if Oolong is an option, I believe it would be more appropriate." She responded, adding a deep nod to Shen after he gave his Shaolin bow.

"Of course you may," Ashe responded to her destiny. Or, at least, the momentary destiny.
"Pleased to make your acquaintance Mr. Johnson," Ashe responded, noting the elegant suit, and the cut, as he sat at her side. Ashe carefully smoothed her skirts over her legs, unconsciously ensuring that there were no wrinkles. She then carefully tucked her hands in to her lap, waiting to see what the newcomer had to say. While waiting, Ashe took a quick peek in the Astral, assensing the gentleman to get a feel for his aura, and how well he interacted with the Garden.

2 Successes

"Likewise miss Ashe." He responded in a friendly manner. His Aura looked mundane. But that staff did gleam. It obviously was a focus.

(Do a magic theory + log roll please.)

The Johnson looked at her with a smile, then looked around at the hidden garden. "A wonderful place, isn't it? It has a calming effect on people." He leaned back and looked over the hidden garden again. After a few minutes, Shen came back with a tablet. Hot tea steamed from an iron pot.
"Sorry for the wait. But good tea takes time," Shen said while he poured each of them a cup. It was oolong tea.

"Thank you Shen." The J exclaimed when he received his cup, inhaling the aroma.

Shen nodded. "I will be around. But I think you have a lot to talk about." Then he went around the hut to work on his bonsais. Just out of sight, but certainly not out of eavesdropping distance for a conversation at normal volume.

"Ah right. My job offer." The well dressed man grinned. "First of all, thank you for attending to this informal meeting," he started. "I have laid eyes on a certain figurine in a certain museum. I did assemble a team... twice. But each time they seemed to unravel before actually doing anything. I'd like you to join what is left of the last team and get things done. Your reputation claims you don't leave jobs unfinished, which I deem promising."

Composure check (Cha 5 + Will 5)
The girl on Bishops arm looked at him concerned. "Hey, are you ok? You look a bit seasick."

Bishop opened his mouth to respond without the slightest notion of what he might say, and was saved when the 'Celts' appeared and began their stampede. Though his initial reaction was just as the children's, due to his wariness

at having come close to being discovered by the guards on the ferry, the dark elf was able to keep a firm grip on his composure and even managed a small grin at the performance.

Laying his hand over the smaller hand 'Miss Wiggles' had placed in the crook of his elbow, pressing his arm and subsequently her hand against his side as they walked, Bishop kept an even pace towards the main museum

building...just as any couple would do in expectation of the awaiting displays of art, history, and culture.

Without contact from his teammates, and unable to make contact at this time, the night one could only proceed with the recon mission on his own and gather as much intel as he could. Using the facade of being 'just another

tourist', it should not prove overly difficult to get an idea of the interior scheme of the museum, including security (personnel as well as electronic,) the location of the artifact in question, and whatever else he could find out

about the situation. He would have liked to coordinate with another team member, but scrubbing the chance at this point would be both unwise and suspicious. Therefore, with his 'decoy' in hand, Bishop kept his ears, eyes,
Analyze and Scan programs open, recording, and on full alert.

Miss Wiggle kept pace with Bishop. She had let out a small shriek when the warriors had 'attacked'. But now she had calmed down. As did the children. You were able to enter the museum ahead of them as the 'druid' was giving them an introductional speech about the celts. The entrance has a small garderobe where people can hand in their coats. There is also a souvenir stand on the right side, selling trinkets, chips and even a few real paper books about celts and archeology.

(You can roll an extended intuition + perception roll. If Bishop stays half an hour, you can roll four times and count the hits together. Also, if Bishop has any knowledge skill about security, you can roll that and logic once and add the hits.)

Extended Perception Test (Intuition 3 + Perception 4) x4
9 hits

Security Knowledge (Logic 3 + Security Systems 2)
2 hits

9 + 2 hits = 11 hits

Outside, Bishop can make up a few movement sensors, mainly along the path leading from the kay to the entrance. While you walk up to the entrance, miss wiggle exclaims: "Oh by the way." She giggles. "I'm Erica."


The interior has a small entrance room with the farderobe, then the big exhibition room with all the artifacts on columns and under Glass.
There is another door into the souvenir area, which also holds a snack booth and the doors to the toilets. In the north western corner of the big exhibition room, there is a spiral staircase leading to the upper floor which, as Bishop remembers, holds the offices.

Large windows let in the light from the outside, some of them are hanged with banners, which filter some of that light.

While Bishop strolls through the rows of artifacts, he notices a few things:

There are a few Cameras throughout the building, covering up much of the area. Although there are a few blinds spots, all the doors on the ground floor are covered.
The entrance door and the door to the exhibition room are secured with maglocks. The door towards the souvenir room is not.
The windows are wired for the alarm system. As are the glass hoods for the artifact columns. Bishop can get a good look of the statue you intend to steal. It's in one of the middle rows, seemingly nothing special.

While wiggle and Bishop slowl walk from column to column, the class is lead in by the pretend druid. They all more or less pay attention as he shows them the artifacts, explaining about their past and what modern science thinks they were about.

The girl on Bishops arm looks at the exhibition with interest. "This stuff is so ooold. Look at this. More than 2000 years."

Looking about like any gawking tourist, but in reality marking the locations of the various security devices, Bishop was momentarily taken aback to see the subject of Erica's curiosity was the very artifact the team was after. To cover his startlement, he slipped his arm around her waist and, giving her a warm squeeze, said:

"Pleasure to meet you, Erica. Call me Jon."

He let his hand rest on the small of her back, just above the firm swell of her hips, hoping to distract the girl from scrutinizing his reaction. If anything, he thought, she'd probably contribute it to my recent 'illness.'

"Over two thousand years, you say?" he feigned interest but only vaguely. The last thing he needed was for the girl to note any undue fascination about this particular object. Glancing around, he caught sight of another display; one of several earthen sculptures depicting extinct animals - a topic most girls seemed all too ready to lament over - and called it to Erica's attention. He gently reinforced his desire to move away from their current position by guiding her with his encircling arm.

As the two drifted from exhibition to exhibition, Bishop kept a running feed of the interior layout so the team could review later while hashing out their plan of attack.