Log:Harvestmen Meeting Jun 2017

Harvestmen Meeting Jun 2017
Participants Byron, Apollo, Maddox, Leo, Paige, Dielle, Rorscach	5 June, 2017 Official Harvestmen meeting. promotions, Hollow discussion, pointing out pains-in-the-butts. Fun for all!
Location Stoneheart - Broken Hearth
The Broken Hearth tends to be neglected most of the time, and it shows it, usually abandoned and quiet. Tonight, however, Byron actually got here about an hour before the meeting was to start, with an obligatory growler and a couple cansters of bar snax (tm) that he plunks down in the middle of the table he claims, then starts to work on his notebook while he waits for people to arrive, whenever they arrive. The location hasn't been really dressed up...things are still broken and wet in places from leaks, maybe intentionally left that way to give impetus to people making a hollow decision? Hmmm. Manipulative Autumn. Dielle shows up a little early. Not an hour early, but early enough to set out her gallon of sweetened iced tea where the refreshments are, and a bag of diced, dried pineapple in a bag. "Hey, Byron," she says to him, and gets herself some of the tea and some of the bar snax in a bowl with some of the dried pineapple. Weird mix of food forever! Paige showed up early as well, carrying in a cooler full of a couple types of beer and she sets it down before smiling entirely too brightly at Byron. "Hi! How's it going bossman?" she asks, moving over to a spot to sit and perching on it, rather than properly sitting. "How's everyone doing?" she asks, beaming at, well, everyone. Oliver arrives wearing his top hat and his long black vinyl rainslicker. His hair has been plaited into cornrows and braids ending in amber beads. His well-made but unfancy longsword is sheathed against his back. He treads onto the floor in his high-heeled knee glossy black knee boots and yet he's still not nearly as big and tall as the other gargoyle in the room. His purple lips parts revealing a magnificent bright smile. "Hello everyone. What a delight to see you all." An autumnal brisk breeze with the scent of leaves and woodsmoke wafts around him. Leo is dragging Maddox. Not literally, but almost. "It's ok Maddox, c'mon, it'll be alright. I promise." He's not -entirely- pleading with the man, but almost. Still, they're here, Leo leading the way, the door held open for Maddox. His hair is filled with stars, sort of almost but not quite in the shape of the constellation he shares his name with. It flickers with colors as he looks around, swirling slowly as he examines everyone, lifting his hand up. The constellation slows and goes back to a dull yellow as he steps in, "Hey, uh. Everyone. How's it going? We heard it was cool if we showed up, maybe?" Apollo is a little late. The Bloodbrute enters in with a nod to Byron and then the Winter stands off to the side while everyone files in. His Mantle is one of the more powerful ones so it's probably a bit chilly and a bit depressing to be around him. There's a look to Leo and Maddox when they come in and a nod when Leo announces what they are here for, "You'll wanna see the Boss." he points to Byron. Maddox is grumbling the entire way. "Do you know how much I have to fucking do? Do you know all the /shit/ I /could/ be doing? Like fixing those goddamned lights? Like putting some Wards up so no more of those sneaky little fucking ho..." And then he's drug, nearly literally, across that threshold. "I dont' see what the whole purpose of this is. I could be out /doing my job/, and you're hear talking about taking on more jobs? I'm gonna just..." And then Leo's stepping forward and greeting them. Other people. Maddox scowls and glares at the people he greets. He grumbles to himself. That said, his crackling gaze shifts towards Byron, and he tries to act as if he's not at all curious. Yet he's bad at acting, and he's curious. Aside, to Leo, he growls, "So who is he and why am I supposed to be impressed and shit?" He apparently tuned Leo out for most of the journey. "Do they /really/ help people?" Byron looks up as people start to ease in, offering a warmer smile to Dielle and Paige, then slowly lumbering to his feet. The stubby little wings flutter for a moment with his movement, then settle back down, as if he was disturbing a sleeping pet, before straightening up and placing one hand lightly down on the table he was sitting at. Lingering his gaze on Leo and Maddox, he looks curious for a moment before rumbling, "Now I know you two aren't one of us, but anyone that wants to join is welcome to sit in and see if this is something you really want to be part of. The key phrase there is /want/. We're all volunteers here and this doesn't get you much in the way of bennies." He looks a LITTLE amuzed at Maddox, then addresses the group, "Have a sit or stand, or hang from the cieling, whatever gets your rocks off. We have a few things to discuss. We need to decide where we are going to take over so finally establish our Hollow, then I have a couple of position changes to review, and then some problem People we need to discuss, then any questions people have. We all good with that?" Paige glances over when new people arrive and she beams at them too. Someone got into the happy pills. "Hi guys!" She looks back to Byron when he starts to speak, remaining perched on the arm of a couch. Harpies man. So weird. HEr head tilts a little, and that, too, is birdlike, but she keeps smiling as she nods to Byron. "Sounds good to me." Oliver studies Leo and Maddox a moment and then goes to take a seat not far from them, being also relatively new. He's a recruit but he is still getting acquainted. He takes a pack of Players cigarettes from the pocket of his coat and lights one with a matte black zippo. Silver rings sparkle on his slender fingers. "It's all good, darling." he tells Byron. Leo huffs just a little in embarrassment, his constellation winkling with purples and blues for a second as Maddox keeps on. "I mean, they're the Harvestmen. And we're gonna find out dude, it's ok. Just hang out a little bit, and we'll see." He says, waving over at Byron, "Thanks, we're gonna sit in. Real excited to be here! Both of us, real glad to be a part of things. Thanks again." he says, brightly, before this-time-literally dragging Maddox over to a couch, his grip on Maddox' sleeve firm but not angry. Dielle finds a seat and gives Byron a thumbs up. The new folks get appraising looks, although Oliver gets a wave, as does Apollo. Then she starts eating bits of pineapple, one at a time, intermixing them with pretzels or nuts. Maddox's attention shifts from Byron to Leo as he's tugged over to the couch, and likely shoved down into a seat. Electricity crackles around him and he glares at the other Lost. He opens his mouth to say something, then just glares some more, "Fucking asshole. I could be working." Yet he's not fighting as much as he was before. He's actually sitting, although he looks as if it's almost painful. He fidgets, he squirms, he crackles with electricity. His gaze is on Byron, curious, and it's clear he wants to know more, but he's distracted easily. He takes in the others as well, each of them, and then back to Byron, and then he's growling to Leo, "How long do these things fucking last, because I have a goddamned schedule to keep." His own. He looks back at Byron and just calls out, "I'm fucking new. What the hell are the Harvestmen? Like, what's the goal? Leo said some shit about helping people, but it sounds like a militia, and those can get so... unfocused." Or he could have just waited, and it probably would have become clear. Apollo stays silent for the time being. Winters aren't really talkative and the big guy doesn't seem to be either. The recruit gives a look over to Byron when he starts talking and there's a nod. "So I heard we're still in the market for a hollow?" the Greek finally asks. Oliver scuffs his boots on the rug and stealthily leans over to touch Maddox with the tip of his finger. There is an audible crack and a bright blue spark stings the gargoyle. He yelps, not expecting to get shocked to smartly, then scowls at Maddox. Paige grins at Leo and Maddox, watching them for a moment before focusing on the latter. She starts to speak then pauses, looking over toward Byron. "I'll let the boss explain. Unless he wants to delegate," she says, tone a little teasing toward the gargoyle. Then it's hopping up for her, and heading over to the cooler to snag a beer. Byron taps his stone knuckles on the table as if that made an agreement and keeps his voice down, "A'ight. So first order of business. We've scouted out about 5 places in the looptrod for good places to take over. Some have really sucked, and some aren't half bad. You need to check out the reports on them (OOC AKA, read the logs linked to http://fatesharvest.com/w/Plot:Real_Estate) and let me know..." He pauses there and arches a brow at Maddox, "If you don't want to be here, you know the way out. We are protectors of the Freehold's people. Guards more than a militia, but give it whatever label you like. We keep an eye on threats and attempt to make sure the Hedge and those working for Them stay where they are." He takes a moment to pause there, before offering the rest of his first thought, "Get back to me before midnight tonight which one YOU are interested in, and if you have any skill to volunteer...or know someone who does, that can help us acclimate a space and set up doors and the like. Dont get something to me by midnight? You forfeit your bitching rights if we don't pick something you wanted. If there's something still there and it's not friendly, yes, that means we will be forcibly extracting them. Any questions on that?" Leo is nodding rapidly, speaking in hushed tones, "Yeah, hey, I know you've got stuff to do. I promise I'll help you with the light thing later. And I'll spend all day. Trust me. This is a -good- thing." He says rapidly. Byron explains, and Leo whispers, "See, this is like, what you get forced to do all the time. So maybe it'll make it easier. Just let's watch and listen for a minute, ok?" His tone soothing, his constellation shimmering with a cool blue light. The Leo's attention shifts back to Byron and he nods, beaming a smile, his constellation shifting to a sunny yellow before it fades back to its typical white-ish-yellow, and then he glances sharply over to Oliver, pursing his lips and looking to Maddox for his reaction. When Oliver pokes at Maddox, he snarls at the man and bats his hand away, but not after a bit of a flash-spark. "Careful, asshole, you don't do that without permission." Yet there's a curious look at the man's gall to even do it in the first place. He looks towards Paige as she speaks, then shifts his gaze to Byron. He narrows his gaze, studying the man. And then, finally, he's relaxing into his seat. Well, as much as a man that's crackling with electricity and reeks of Summer can really relax. Hot asphalt and exhaust surrounds him. He looks at Byron and growls, "I want can protect people." That's all he offers, watching Byron. He just got back to him. He looks at the man, intently. It's hard not to be when you're half electricity. And then he nods, as if the deal were done. He glances at Leo, "Yeah, yeah, yeah, shut up." Yet, despite his words, and his gruffness, there's a comradery there. He looks back at Byron, keeping both Leo and Oliver in his peripheral vision. He growls, "Ok, I'm interested. I'm not gonna wait until later to say so. So where do I sign up, so I can see if it's true. I'm a Squire, so I hope it doesn't involve me being here /forever/ and shit. Although, rate this place is going, might be." "No questions, but I will say that I'd rather we /not/ have to forcibly extract anything," Paige says. "Just because we clear something out now doesn't mean it won't have friends. And I'd rather our time spent fighting be spent fighting for more than to keep our claim on our hollow," she says, opening her beer and taking a sip. Maddox gets a long look before she moves back to the chair arm where she was perched before. She doesn't state any preference she has as to which site they pick, however. Oliver winks at Maddox. "Ok, Sparky. I guess I won't charge my cellphone on your back then." His glowing milky blue eyes shimmer with humor as he turns his attention back to Byron. Dielle says, "I think we should use the cave where Kerrigan died. Given that we've already burned the place out. Just seems like a good tribute to her." Her words are quiet and terse, but hey, it's a vote, right? Leo nods at Maddox, relaxing visibly when he's told to shut up. He relaxes into the couch as well then, reaching his hand up to scratch lightly at his temple, eventually unplugging then replugging in one of the wires, adjusting it with a fiddle and then finally he reseats it to his satisfaction, and his hand falls to his lap. "No comments yet, but I'm on board too." He glances at Oliver again, then over to Dielle before relaxing finally to just listen, his 'hot summer night' aura rippling in concert with Maddox' asphalt and exhaust, the two of them reminiscent of a downtown parking lot. Rorschach came in overly theatrical today with thick black shadows rolling around the shadowed Roachman, his mantle a dark, sanguine red and, for the life of him, he had a very faint noxious glow to him. He was irradiated and that imemdiate aura around him was just noxious and volatile to be near for long. Ther was a long, artereal red armoured coat shich he zipped back up to teh collar that helped dim some of that. Because clearly a lead lined coat was eafer...somehow. He'd been out and about the hedge for a bit it seemed and tended to root back to his nature as he did so. There was a few flicks of his fingers that were greeting enough. The mood was...curious with a wave of his antennae. People? People was good. Byron mmms at Maddox, "We can deal with that at the end. If you want to join, you'll need to know the rest of this information anyway, so staying and hearing it all wont slow you down." He takes a moment longer to glance around the room, fishing for feedback and questions, merely nodding slowly along with Paige, "Anything that's still alive out in the Hedge is either there because it breeds fast, it hides well, it has dangerous friends, or it itself is dangerous." He holds up a finger, "If people want to discuss the merits of each, we can do that after we've covered everything else. I know some people have very...passionate...views on this subject and if we start, Im never getting you folks off of the subject...." He even offers a faint smile at that, before continuing on, "So. Positions. Right now, Paige and Yorik have been the only real active Lieutenants. I'm not supposed to be leading a squad anymore, because I have my hands full making Crown happy and dealing with all of..." He guestures around, "This. So effective right now, Beau and Thorn are back to being Privates just like everyone else, and if they want to lead again, we just gotta talk about it. Im giving Inkblot Lieutenant over the irregulars, so if..." He smirks as Rorshach walks in and mutters, "Good fucking timing...", then continues in a normal voice, "...so if you're a sneaky bastard, a scout, a Hedge guru that's not necessarily a combat monster, you might want to talk to him about being on his squad. Yorik will remain a Lieutenant for now, but I'm looking to find at least one more person willing to stick it out with leading. As a Lieutenant, you take responsibility for the squad. Training is up for you to arrange. If you get assigned something, its up to you to decide how to use your squad to handle it. You can always ask others to come with, but you SHOULD be involving your squad primarily in things. If that interests you, then come talk to me privately." Paige spots Rorschach and positively beams at him, quickly signing, to him before she focuses on Byron again. "Oh, congratulations Rorschach!" she tells the roach with a quick grin. "Speaking of squads...if you're interested in being on mine, lemme know. Doesn't have to be right now. And probably best if it weren't," she says, glancing around, before she again grins at Rorschach. Yep, she got into happy pills for sure. Maddox glowers at Oliver as he makes that quip. "I'll fucking short circuit your goddamned phone." He's not overly friendly, it seems, at least a first. He looks at the others, then shifts his gaze to Leo. He frowns as the man /actually/ shuts up. He'll have to work on that. In the meantime, he's rubbing off on Maddox, and the Elemental is keeping his mouth shut, for at least a few moments. Just a few moments, "Yeah, we want in, we..." He does actually pause as the new positions are announced, if only to look towards any folks gestured at. He tilts his head slightly as he studies them, tucking it all away for later. At the mention of looking for scouts and the like, he simply zones out for a moment, focusing on studying the others. And then he hear's locking fore. He shakes his head, enthusiastically, and growls outloud, "Oh, no, fuck that, I want nothing of leading people and shit, I got enough to deal with, I got a goddamned job to do and fuck that nonsense." Nevermind that no one actually /asked/ him. And he's not even a member. He's just making that clear now. He jabs Leo in the ribs with his elbow, and not easily. to Leo, he growls, "Oh, we fucking agreed to support them and all, can we fucking leave before they start having expectations and shit? I got a goddamned seige engine to build." Rorschach didn't so much raise an eyebrow as an antenna. Really, little screamed scout more like a darkling you couldn't find in the god damned dark. Still though he didn't quite see that comming. There was a look tossed to trak though, Yorik. Curious. There was a skeletal grin from his scarred lips that was... well if someone could look positivly touched while smiling with mandibles in their cheeks it'd look like that. High wyrd, kids, worse than drugs. Best avoided. He let a rattling clack go off towards his Sister in Entitlement to translate for him. The Inkblot signed, <<A good scout knows the information we gather is top priority. People rely on that intel being accurate and to get back to them to keep them alive. Our best soldiers are informed so they can make strong tactical decisions and know that we can swing the environment into their favour. Way I see it? If we encountered the enemy and had to fight or got seen? We've already failed. Fighting is what we are here to support, not do. You got skills to help me get us that info, want to learn to navigate in difficult terrain and use it to our advantage to support Paige and Yorik's teams? They sure as shit won't be ungrateful. It's not fun. It ain't glorious. We don't get awards because people never know we ere there. It is important though and it ain't easy. Hit me up later, I generally don't bite>> Oh boy. Bug humor. The Roach seemed, well humbled by that. Pleased. He signed back to her <<Have something for you too. In case. Grats on getting front line! That's bad ass! Catch up after this?>> Dielle translates Rorschach, pretty much automatically. She goes word for word, then lightly punches his arm. "Congratulations, Brother. Couldn't happen to a better bug." She looks pleased as hell and the sparkles in her eyes glitter brightly. Talk of siege engines captures Oliver's interest and he resolves to speak to Maddox about it later. In the meantime he pushes off the bench and heads over to get a beet for himself. "I'm happy being a grunt for now and I'm there for anyone who needs me." He grins when he sees Rorschach and grips the roach's shoulder with an affectionate squeeze before returning to his seat. "I don't really have an opinion on the hollow site. As long as it's not too bug. I mean big." He looks at Rorschach. "Sorry." Leo glances sidelong at Maddox as he starts, lips pursing slightly. He watches and listens, the elbow earning a sudden wince. Then he nods, rapidly, "Hey, yeah, we'll definitely do support. What if you went back for us now, 'cause I know you've got some stuff you're working on and I'll.. maybe stay a little bit? See what it's all about, get all the info and I can tell you later?" He's speaking in a hushed, rapidfire whisper. "That sound good? I'll help you with the lights later tonight." He says, actually reaching over to lightly pat the man on the arm. "Or if you need me, I could come now too." He says, supportively, offering a lopsided grin that's reflected in a subtle yellowing of the constellation hovering in his hair. Paige grins at Rorschach and nods. <<Absolutely!>> She nods agreement with Dielle. "You're right. And I don't know anyone more spy-esque than him either," she says, smiling. Leo and Maddox get another curious look before she takes a drink of beer and looks back to Byron. Maddox is being offered an excuse to leave? He takes it. He pushes himself up and glances around. A look to Leo and he grunts, "Thank fucking god /someone/ sees sense. I got shit to do, shit that'll help people a lot more than sitting around and talking about helping people and shit. Fill me in." He looks towards Byron, "I'm down to help. But I'm not for being told what to do and shit. I know what I'm doing, and it's helping. So I'll be a goddamned ally, a consultant, whatever. I'll help you out." He points at Leo, "He knows where to find me. I got shit to do." And then he's giving Leo a punch to the shoulder and heading out. The other new folk get curious glances, even nods, and then he's gone. Leo just kinda sheepishly waves if people look at him after that. Dielle looks like she's biting holes in her tongue, based on her facial expressions. Multiple holes. Byron gives an extra moment for the unicorn to translate for the roach, rumbling under his breath for a moment, "Its important to get things moving quickly, because of...and here we are at the last thing I need to cover, the problems." He sighs and takes in a deep breath, "The first is the Soundless. If you don't already know about them, the Cliff's Notes are: They're a freehold close by that waited for a year and a half to now say we're encroaching on their turf. We've bluntly told them to fuck off, and so now some of their individuals are lurking around, hovering like they are waiting for someone to screw up so they have some sort of justification....for what, I don't know. Short answer: If you run into one and they try to bait you, don't take the bait. If they DO anything, send it back and let people know, because if they finally get aggressive, we'll do something about it. Right now, they're acting like that fucker in 4th grade that would hover near by and singsong, 'Im not touching you! Im not touching you!' until you finally haul off and punch his nose in. DON'T punch his nose in." He smiles for a moment. Which brings me to our Problem Children. We have a few people that seem to not understand why you need to keep your mouth shut around unpledged folks. Oberon is number one on my list. Kerrigan's brother. I've warned him once about making a scene in public around Haruki and told him if I hear about him doing it again, I was done with him...so if you see him talking about Freehold business in front of non pledged folks or mortals? text me immediately. /I/ will drag his ass to Pook by his ear, and enjoy every moment of it." Maddox has left. Paige nods at Byron. "Sadly, he's not the only one. And there was also mention of someone doing a thing online." She pauses, then looks around hopefully. "Anyone really good with computers who can track someone online? Name's Revelator. If someone can check that out, that'd be awesome, too." "NOt me, but I've got Samantha Whitaker's phone number," offers Dielle, off-handedly. "Byron, I'll send it to you after the meeting, when we're back in the real world, if you want it." Apollo's been listening to everything and everyone. The Winter lived up to being quiet and observant. He takes in the behavior from some of the others and then focuses back to Byron as he talks on people. "The Winter Court is aware of Oberon, I've been watching him. Hopefully he won't do anything else stupid." the Blodbrute states in a chilly tone. Leo nods once Maddox is gone, actually relaxed fully. He leans forward slightly, elbows on his knees, and he listens in. He has nothing to add seemingly for the time being. Rorschach signed to Apollo, relying on Dielle for translation really, <<Yes but not all WinterCourt is Freehold, however some of their hackers are? We might reach out to them and CUutodians and see if there's opportunity there. Oberon's been quiet. I HOPE. I hope. I'd be happy to follow up putting my ear to the street. Honestly? I want to meet with Custodians. A TONG of folks went missing in teh 60's. I'm wondering if somehow they're not gone and back. Do we even know if the Soundless are loyalists come to claim turn and harvest people? No. We don't. What we do knowis they are a great deal better at keeping their citizens quiet than we are.>> Byron nods slowly and offers Dielle a thumbs up in acknowledgement, taking in a deep breath before offering, "I don't like being thought police, but godsdamnit, if you start talking about the Freehold around normal people and they end up thinking about it in their dreams, one of Them might catch it, and then we're fucked. I consider that a threat to all of us, and I will not hesitate to smack a bitch that can't exercise some discetion." Okay, maybe there's a little Summer mixed in with the Autumn. He nods at Rorschach and offers, "I'll tell Ashe you'd like to talk to her or one of her folks, when I get home. The Custodians have been doing a lot of research, so it might help to get a review from them and bring it back to us, if you can? I try not to spend every moment I'm around my girlfriend talking about business." Dielle does, in fact, translate, and it's a precise translation, no paraphrasing for her. Then she frowns. "Gisa said she used the Contract of Potential on Samantha and she's waiting for us to fuck up as a freehold. Not Gisa. Samantha." She looks over at Byron and nods at him in response to what he just said. Apollo's hands move, signing <<I am Freehold though.>> he replies to the bug. There's a smile to Dielle when she translates and he signs thank you to her as well. "And the Soundless sound like a bad thing waiting to happen. We can be on our toes just in case." he nods to that, his hair going everywhere as it does. Rorschach nodded back to Byron signing back <<Yeha Gisa and I have been researching a bit to see what we cna arm them with. Custodians have some good stuff we can work with. I've been working with a couple watchers to see what the weird dreams mean, but that's nothing we can hit with a stick here. Sadly. Working on that.>> He dug out one of his notebooks and signed back to Byron <<THis report? I have some of the notes we been compiling. THey've been good enough to keep me in the loop.>> He turned to Apollo and warmed a scarred grin <<Right on. I didn't mean you though. Clearly you're freehold. You're here.>> "Samantha told me that they only reason they're trying to "help"," and Paige says that with airquotes, "is because if we fall it'll wash over them. If it weren't for that, they'd let us burn," she says, shaking her head. "She also seems to have a temper. No surprise there, she's Summer, but still. It's something to consider." Byron grunts softly and nods, "So just watch your asses. They're waiting for us to fuck up. Might even be trying to slip a foot out to trip you up...wouldnt put it past them. With that said, that's everything I needed to cover. Does anyone have unanswered questions they want to ask? Now's your chance, and if I dont know the answer, I'll find out if I can." Leo shakes his head a bit, pushing to stand up. "Uh, not until it's over, no. But afterward, maybe a little bit?" He says, indicating Byron then Paige sort of vaguely with his hand, having watched the sign language back and forth, as well as the interpretation, making sure to keep track. His eyes scan around the room once he's said it, then move back to Byron. Apollo pushes off the wall and shakes his head, "No questions, Captain." he tells him. "I have to head out though, I've got paperwork to finish up at the station." he tells them. "You guys be safe on the way home." he tells them before he starts to head out. Rorschach finally signed, curious, <<I want to meet her. Like by proxy. Okay I want to stalk the shit out of her and see what she's up to.>> His head tilted to the side. There. He said it. Leo, however, was new new. Sure he looked like the Predator and some teenage goth edge lord drew him up, but he wasn't without curiosity. He wiggled a hullo before turning to Apollo signing back <<Safe paths. Walk lightly.>> Dielle tips her hat to Apollo as he leaves. She's keeping quiet, mostly because she has no questions right now. Paige shakes her head. "Nope, no questions from me," she says, before cocking her head at Leo. "If you have any questions for me, I'm easily found. I own Cyclone, the bar." She watches Rorschach's signing then grins. "If anyone could, it's you," she says before calling out to Apollo, "Night!"