Participants
Date
16/2/2018
Log
Today, a meeting was scheduled in the Library. The skunkettes who live here never had many visitors before, and certainly not a big group armed fighters. Needless to say it was surprising that Sabella managed to talk them into giving him the library for the day.
It was a bit early right now, but that did not stop a stream of individuals from arriving and taking their seats. The table was currently occupied by Dr. Long and a couple others influential militia leaders. Sitting next to Dr. Long was an adorable kemo-usagi boi clad in a military uniform, awww he is playing at being a soldier as well, and the seat next to this rabbit is empty, presumably for Sabella himself.
The rows of seats next to the tables were filled a bit more, with the RSX delegation reserving a corner in the front for themselves. There is even a single Prommie master with two handlers there. Zephyr on the other hand did not bring anyone, not even an offer to sell weapons, odd.
Standing away from the seats themselves was a certain kemo-okami that a number of citizens in Fairhaven would recognize. Miru had set up a nice little corner for herself, away from the direct action. Her little drone was on the ground currently, but it's lens were still active and filming.
The leader of the K9 arrived at the scene as well, and the kemo-kitsune walked straight to the table. Vari gave Miru a small nod and a smile on the way there. Then she took a seat next to the empty seat that would probably be for Mr. Sabella, and waited. She looked around, trying to figure out who all of the people were, and if she recognized any dangers. Then again, once more she was prepared.
Ebreus arrives early to the meering in his Hellhound form wearing his formal suit. He strides confidently to the front of the meetingplace. He takes one of the empty seats in the front row. He takes note of those who are already present and who is not as he waits.
It was a beautiful, dull, sully day... but for one jackal it would be a calm one. Thank the stars for that as well, Otto was not feeling so hot, or rather his arm wasn't. Bandaged to hell and stained crimson, the wounds thereupon were definitely not old, nor were they light if actual bandaging was needed in this age of nigh-instant healing. Still, the hound carried himself with a wide stride and a smile on his face, a light bounce to his step and a song in his heart. What discomfort he harbored was put aside, aches and whines fruitless in his mind, while the meeting he was headed to seemed quite interesting indeed...
So, they were looking for craftsment and soldiers, free fighters against the oncoming scourge that was the Old World Order? Snarling silently under his breath as he remembers certain events that'd pushed the hound to resent the Order, Otto steps into the room and surveys the area. His gaze wanders over the mutants present, spotting a few familar faces for now, though not many... Stepping towards one of the front row chairs, he plants his fuzzy arse down upon it and leans back, then crosses his arms and awaits the first signs of activity.
Phosphorus showed up in uniform -- relatively unarmed, it seems, but the last time there was a meeting like this, Phos had demonstrated what sorts of things she's hiding in the rucksack. She was largely here to protect the event, with little interest in the politicking that would surely happen over the following few hours. She offers a nod to the rest of Vari, Long, and the rest as she takes a set at the table, folding her hands up and resting them in her lap.
Cameron entered the room, though she was very quick to move to the side of the door to avoid getting in everyone's way. The kemo kitty taking a moment to look about the reserved room, her eyes and fingers gracefully flitting from book spine to spine. And silently hoping the books she touched didn't just poof into a cloud of nanite eaten dust. Though her attention is only given to them for a few long moments before it is once more upon the gathering mutants at the table. Her gaze getting a little curious as it flitted over the broken computers. The cat tempted to take one home to fiddle with, almost. Instead she moved slowly towards the front of the room along the wall. Still trying to keep out of everyone's way. The kitty against the RSX wall, seeming to wish to stand, though mostly so she could get a better look to see what was happening at the table.
Edel was no stranger to the library, after all, she was an affiliate of the crafting branch here. She was not, however, affiliated with any of the other groups present at the meeting. She represented her own interests, and was seated accordingly- Wherever she darn well pleased, and that changed from time to time. Presently, it was perched atop a tall shelf, keeping a clear view over just about everything.
Agent-dark was running a little bit late today. He knew nothing about this old world order buisness he just saw it, as another job. After a few day of bad luck that made him feel like shit all over again. He took job, after job, after job, just try to get what happened off his mind. When he arrived at the lobby. He walked over and sat in one of the many couches in the room and waited for breifing. He tried to do that quietly, so maybe no one would notice he's late.
Fenris is dressed in the yellow and orange robes of a buddhist monk, with heavy prayer beads on his wrists and around his thick neck.
The burly tanuki has seated himself on the floor, leaning against a convenient bookshelf beneath Edel's perch. While he is armed with both a sword and a short spear, it looks more like he just happened to be in the library than that he was here for any meeting. He seems to be perusing a book about traditional Chinese costumes. And hiding a bag of cookies behind a stack of similar books so the librarians don't catch him.
The wreck of an agent that was Naiko walked into the library lightly armored this time. Her drones, as usual, would accompany her inside. Craftsmen. Sure, she was associated with Zephyr, but the Order really got to her that last time.
She looked tired, weary and perhaps a little battered. Nevertheless, noticing the familiar faces around, she gently nodded towards them before planting herself down on the nearest front row chair.
Narwen wanders in a couple of minutes late and looking somewhat harried, catching dirty looks from the library skunks. He peers up and down the dense rows of chairs, shakes his head, and pads right to the front, standing on all fours in the middle of the aisle from where he has a fine view, tail arched up comfortably. This lasts about ten seconds before the people behind start poking and shooing at him. He settles down on the floor; the grumbling intensifies. Eventually he is waved off to the side of the room where he is only slightly in the way.
Kelly-imber was laying on one of the couches, sipping a cup of coffee. She had arrived about 2 hours ago to meet a friend for coffee. She was a little drowsy, because she stayed up all night the night prior, as she was the one that had watch duty for rsx. The poor shark girl could just about fall asleep on the very couch, she was sitting on.
Agent-dark was running a little bit late today. He knew nothing about this old world order buisness he just saw it, as another job. After a few day of bad luck that made him feel like shit all over again. He took job, after job, after job, just try to get what happened off his mind. When he arrived at the lobby. He walked over and sat in one of the many couches in the room and waited for breifing. He tried to do that quietly, so maybe no one would notice he's late.
Agent-dark was running a little bit late today. He knew nothing about this old world order buisness he just saw it, as another job. After a few day of bad luck that made him feel like shit all over again. He took job, after job, after job, just try to get what happened off his mind. When he arrived at the libary. He walked over and sat in one of the many chairs in the room and waited for breifing. He tried to do that quietly, so maybe no one would notice he's late.
Kelly-imber was laying on two of the multitude of chairs, sipping a cup of coffee. She had arrived about 2 hours ago to meet a friend for coffee. She was a little drowsy, because she stayed up all night the night prior, as she was the one that had watch duty for rsx. The poor shark girl could just about fall asleep on the very couch, she was sitting on.
Kelly-imber was laying on two of the multitude of chairs, sipping a cup of coffee. She had arrived about 2 hours ago to meet a friend for coffee. She was a little drowsy, because she stayed up all night the night prior, as she was the one that had watch duty for rsx. The poor shark girl could just about fall asleep on the very chair, she was sitting on.
Things were picking up now as more and more agents arrived, and settled into their seats. Only a few corrections were made in the seating arrangement, especially when a certain skunk barged in and blocked everyone's view.
As most of the invited guests arrived, some guards were sent to the main entrance to stem the tide and ensure that no curious souls wandered into the library right now.
There was a bit of increased now as various groups talked among themselves in preparation for the main event.
Edel leans forward, legs folded, an arm on her leg, and her chin in her hand. It was a very lazy and relaxed posture, for someone dressed in regal silks like a court lady from ages past, in lands far from here. "I still do not know what I am going to do," she muses aloud to herself.
Vari still looked over the people that arrived, and the guards that were guarding the library. She herself had officers positioned in the vicinity as well. It wouldn't befit the Leader of the K9 to come without security measures herself. She leaned towards the Panda sitting next to her, and whispered something to her, still waiting for the actual host to show up.
The hound surveys the scene, his eyes darting from here to there as he takes in the various new arrivals. Seems he wasn't the only one curious to know about these things, nor was he the only one eager to kick some xenophobic ass either.
Ah, there she was. Seven hells, Otto wanted to talk up Phosphorus, but every time he seems to make an attempt at forming some sort of a connection, someone gets shot or something blows up. T'was a conspiracy!
Crazy ideas side, he flashes the other Hellhound a smile, preferring to keep his voice down for now. Armed with a few new tools, Otto kept most of them hidden away, though he was eager to put them to the test. So... why not tempt fate again?!
He rises from his chair and quietly makes his way towards the red panda woman, clears his throat and greets with a simple, nonchalant and honest "Hello, there."
Fenris does not look up from his book, but discreetly raises a cookie high above his head toward Edel. "I am listening," the tanuki says thoughtfully, "Then, maybe I will make a decision. Or maybe I will wait some more."
Cameron reached into her hoodie pouch, a smile on her face as she felt the freshly printed cards in her hand. Her gaze looking out over those who hand arrived in the room, giving each agent a curious looking over. Pondering who and why each and everyone was here. And wondering if she might be able to recruit any to G.E.M. Should be some potential recruits here if crafters had decided to join right? For now however she elected to stay by the wall, wondering where this meeting might go, and mostly to stay out of everyone's way as she was likely the shortest in the room.
Ebreus grins as he spoes Otto taking a seat nearby and Narwen tries to find somewhere to sit. He shakes his head as Narwen is shooed off. He momentarily glances at those who shoo at him then shakes his head and sighs. He skips one seat to the side so as to be seated closer to Otto. "Hi Otto. Here for the politicing?" he asks, slightly amused at the question.
"Perhaps. In the end, I will do whatever I please, as usual," Edel says, a tentacle slithering out of her robe to claim the cookie, before snaking back up to deliver it into the dog girl's waiting hand, before the tendril returns to non-existence. "Should be interesting, at the very least." She bobs her paws lightly in the air.
"Fuck politics. I'm here to see if I can sell a few guns." Otto huffs under his breath. "That and I am eager to get my knuckles bloodied on some xenophobic skulls. You should have seen what those cunts did to one of my friends..." the hound shakes his head and growls deeply, recalling the event.
"I'll leave the uh... whatchamagallit, negotiations, or whatever... to you. That's your schtick anyway, and I'm not looking to step on your toes. Not like I can anyway. I don't know any of that political gobiltygook." Otto shrugs idly and sighs softly, before turning his attention towards Phosphorus once more.
Narwen hurriedly shuffles into place -- and waits. When it becomes clear that nothing's going to happen for a while, he shrugs off his pack and stands up again, stretching out, and looks more carefully at the panel and audience. He sees a few faces that he recognises and nods to them. For Edel he flashes a grin and waves a forepaw, mouthing "hallo". Or possibly "artshow".
Ebreus nods and grins a little at the response his friend gave. He replies, "I'm hopin' to turn some of this talking into skull crushing. I haven't seen it but they've caused enough trouble." quietly enough that his voice shouldn't carry much further than Otto
Fenris munches a cookie of his own, continuing to pore over his book. "If we are being honest," he says, "I was just sort of hoping there would be t-shirts or something. Or drinks. Drinks might be nice." He holds up a colorful photo of a man playing a large drum in a traditional costume. "What do you think of that one?" he asks.
The robotic kitsune flashed a faint smile towards Otto and Ebreus as they talked. It didn't take too long for Naiko to remember the Hellhound from one of his sales. She leaps over to a chair near him, trying to strike up a conversation with the rather busy hound as well.
"Hey. Otto, right? Are you the one who made the tear gas devices?" Naiko asks politely, swaying her tails lightly around, inspecting the hound and his friend.
The hound crosses his arms and cups his forehead. "Yeeeeah, but now the K9 are up our asses about it." he glances over to the silent and stalwart woman "No offense." A sigh given and a shake of his head, he goes on to add "Well, at least shit's being done. Remember the Children of Tahoe? Sometimes I wonder if Zephyr ever gave a flying fuck to start with."
Once he hears Naiko's cheery voice, he turns to face her and flashes a soft smile. "Hello there. Uhh... the, yes! Actually, yeah. That was a while ago, wasn't it?" he shrugs idly "It's still a bit rough, given that I was just starting with implementing chemicals into warfare, but hey... I haven't really come up with anything since, so... I guess that works, right?" he snickers quietly "Pleased to meet you, by the way."
Cameron gave a little smirk at seeing how popular Otto was at this gathering, not too surprised either. Glancing away from the gathering her gaze settled upon the table and the seated delegates. Wondering what the reason for this meeting was and why they seemed so insistant upon crafters joining them. Though she supposed she would find out soon. A hand grabed one of the computer chairs and spunit around, the cat then promply sitting down and leaning against the wall. Her gaze looking about for who had called this meeting.
Kelly-imber rested her eyes a bit, as she waited for the event to start. She layed there in the two chairs rather peacefully holding her coffee. She wagged her tail just a little, as she napped for a bit. she wasn't really intrested in talking much in fact, she almost completly forgot about the mission.
Agent-dark leaned in a bit near otto listening in a bit, as he sat calmly in his chair. He didn't have much freecred only about 55,883, but he could use a new gun. He wagged his tail a little, while he calmly said to otto "Whats for sale?" He didn't see why otto would be calling the old world order xenophobic, as He was very found of the old world and the saftey it provided... He liked the most about it not getting attacked constantly, by just about everything... If they were xenophobic this may cause a few problems for the long run.
Edel offers a polite wave to Narwen in return- She assumes he's trying to communicate the former, given there's not much art being shown around here. "I think it looks nice enough," she comments, leaning forward again to peek around her legs at what Fenris is showing. Otto gets a wave, too, from her book shelf perch. She remembered him.
Phosphorus leaned back over to Vari, whispering something back to the kemosune, before shifting back to a more upright sitting position.. The panda fidgets with her hands, a bit, feeling like she should be cleaning her weapon, or something. Keeping a lookout over a crowd is an important task, but she's always a mite dissatisified by having only one view angle over the place.
Ebreus nods, "Yeah, so how about setting the government hostile to them?" he replies in the same quiet tone. "Get some K9s in on the skull crushing with us." he says. He then turns his attention to Agent-Dark. He keeps his attention on the unfamiliar Genrman Shepherd for a moment before leaning back in his seat.
Seeing as things don't seem inclined to start in a hurry, Narwen pads back over towards the little gaggle in the middle -- Ebreus, Cameron, Otto, Naiko -- somewhat more relaxed about being in the way this time. "Hullo," he calls in a stage whisper, probably not audible from outside the room. "Hey Otto, hey folks. I feel really dumb asking this, but-- what kicked this all off, anyway? I got this vague but urgent message from-- about this meeting, then when I go outside there's gunplay in the streets. And not just from the squirrels! It's like they actually mean it."
Vari nodded at what Phos said to her. She ran her eyes once more through the crowd, spotting at least a few people she might have seen during the first time she met with Mr. Sabella. She leaned back and whispered to the panda one more time. The kitsune then looked at Miru. She wanted to talk to her, but thought that now might simply not be the best time...especially handling such vital informations. She sighed.
"I'm pleased to meet you too, Mr. Otto!" Naiko flashes another smile. "Sorry for intruding on your conversation, it's just that I heard the name and I thought I should pitch in a little something interesting."
"After the unfortunate events with the Order, I pulled a couple of strings and got some people to re-engineer your device. The modifications applied to it have rather.. Interesting effects for crowd control, if you want to hear more about them." Naiko adds, before cheerfully waving towards Narwen and the others, greeting them.
"Sorry, what?" Feeling a bit boxed in, the hound glances over towards the shep and raises a brow, "For sa-no. No no no, no sales here. I mean, not... like the vendor type deal. If you'd like something just look me up in the crafters union, my rates are low and I tend to deliver within the day, depending on how fast the courier comes to pick it up ofcourse. Now, if you want something custom-made, then... we'll need to speak privately, and another time." he flashes a soft smile the shep's way, his glance wandering over... wait a tick. Was that Cameron? Ah... perhaps he should call her up sometime soon, damnable Order and their nonsense keeping the hound busy... well, seems officer Phosphorus was too enthralled in looking stoic and serious to converse.
He sighs and turns back towards the rest of the folks. "Like I said Eb, that's on you. I'm here to learn where to sign on to get shit done. I'm done just... sitting idly by in Arborwatch. I had my ass down in the sanctum for too long, and..." he waves a hand and scrunches up his nose in frustration. "Good luck... comrade." he flashes Ebreus a smile and pats him on the shoulder "Be nice if we didn't have to deal with the law on our asses. That's true."
He turns towards Naiko and nods along, "I did design it with flexability in mind, so... absolutely! I'd love to hear what you've come up with!" he clasps his paws and flashes a smile, though raises one immediately after "Ah, but... later, okay? Kinda need to tend to the matter at hand right now."
Blinking a few times, he identifies Narwen by scent and nods, "Heya Nar. No need to feel dumb, it... kinda happened really quickly. A lot of folks are dazed and confused, I myself am still miffed and uneasy about it all. There are a bunch of xeno-hating fucks calling themselves the "Old World Order"" he airquotes "...they're basically old RSX on roids, looking to eradicate the mutants and restore the world to what it once was. Zealous to the Nth degree... dangerous, hostile folks. We're here to mount movements against them." he shrugs "Or, that's the gist of it, from what I can tell."
Kelly-imber started snore a little, as she slept peacefully on the two chairs. She was just going to take this time to nap for a bit. She twitched her shark tail every now and then, as she slept.
Ebreus directs his attention to Narwen when he aproaches. "Hey Narwen, nice to see you again." he says. He takes a breath as he thinks of how best to consicely describe the situation. At Otto chimes in he nods, "Yeah, so pretty much as we're gettin' a government together we started getting domestic terrorists." he says with a sigh. He pauses for a few moments before continuing, "They're not the greatest threat we've had to deal with by far... hopefully that means we can just deal with them and be done with it."
Cameron gave the hound a little wave when she noticed his eyes upon her, but stayed off by the wall, a fair bit away from the growing crowd around the hound. Mainly so she couls see what was going on and wouldn't be underfoot of the much taller people present. Though the talk of this new order business did get a frown from the kitty. She hoped this meeting wasn't a call to arms against this group. Cause she knew if they were met with violence it would just add fuel to their hatred and only make their cause grow even more. After a moment her head lowered so she could rub the bridge of her nose, the cat hoping the leaders gathering had decent heads on their shoulders.
Naiko gently nods towards the Hellhound, adding. "No worries! You're probably a little too overwhelmed now, so I'll leave you be. Plus, it seems you have a customer." She glances towards the german shepherd, snickering. "Anyway, just making sure we're on the same page. I want to make those fanatics pay probably just as much as y'all do."
After that, Naiko sits quietly on her chair, awaiting any official word, either from Vari or from Mr. Sabella.
There is less murmuring as more and more heads turn towards the most recent arrival. A jovial, chubby alpha husky sauntered massed the gathered crowd towards his seat on the table, sporting his usual self-satisfied grin.
The guards now sent a couple of their own outside the library before closing the door signing that the meeting was about to officially start.
Sabella gave a nod to everyone he recognized in the group before finally taking a seat, ruffling the hair of the kemo-rabbit bit sitting next to him, "Everything in order, carrot?" He could be heard whispering.
"What, did we reset the counter after ten years or something?" Narwen rubs his face with a paw. "Geez, what a mess. Kind of surprised that Zephyr and RSX aren't on top of it -- but maybe this is one of those object lessons. 'You want to be independent? Fine, be independent.'" He looks at Ebreus a little more closely when he's greeted by name. "Hey there... oh, Ebreus, hi! Didn't recognise you, sorry. So, are you too in a gang now? Brothers in-- ack, sorry, looks like it's starting. I'd better get outta here. Nice to see you guys." And with that, he lumbers back to his spot.
Vari smiled as the husky entered the room too, nodding at him. This time it was sure that he would have more trust towards the K9, what with the announcement the last time the two met. Of course she would remain silent for now. After all, announcements had to be made. The vulpine crossed her arms, only reaching up once in a while to readjust her glasses.
Cameron gave the chubby husky a very curious glance. Huh, would have figured an alpha would be quite fit especially if like most he had his own harem. With a shurg she settled back against her chair and the wall and opted for waiting to see what might happen now that the meeting was about to start. Her legs curling up beneath her as she made herself comfortable, she figure it was likely to take a little while and so should settle in for the long haul at least.
The hound chuckles softly and nods to Narwen, before shooting a glance towards Edel in the distance. He casts her a nod and a little wave, albeit a little late, before turning his attention to the others in the group. "Looks like it's starting, excuse me folks." he shuffles towards his chair, casting a glance back at the German Shepherd on the way "We'll talk later, okay?" before finding his seat at the front, and leaning back into it, his legs fanning out a tad, and his arms dangling loosely to either side of his body. For some reason... he already felt tired.
"I must say, I didn't take you for a fellow weaponsmith," Edel chimes over to Otto, before giving a quiet chuckle. "Always nice to see, though. Although... Were you the one that was trying to design... Something or other for those marines, a while back? I think I recall someone doing it, but I don't remember if it was you..."
Ebreus raises an eyebrow as Narwen suggests he's in a gang though as the event seems to be starting and he moves off to where he was shooed to he doesn't get the chance to ask what he was talking about. He retakes his seat in the front of the room. When Edel chimes in suggesting it was Otto he shakes his head, "You may be thinking of me." he comments, "I recall you took a look at a grenade launcher design I gave them for use with a chemical cocktail I'd provided with it."
Fenris looks up as Sabella makes his entrance, and sets his book aside. The burly tanuki remains seated, but it is no hardship to see what is happening at the table. He folds his hands in his lap and his ears perk up as he sets himself to listen.
"Sorry Edel. It wasn't me. If I design, it's for payment, not charity." the hound states his stance. "I have no idea who it was, so I'll take Eb's word for it that it was him." he shrugs and straightens up a touch in his chair, then turns to the side to glance at Cameron once more. Aiming to catch her eyes, he mimes the "call me" gesture, a thumb held out against the ear and his pinkie in front of his muzzle, before returning his attention to the conversation at hand, and the speech they are about to hear.
Aaron just barely misses her chance, a little grimace appearing as she realizes just how late she's running. "Oh, my fur and whiskers...I'm running late for a very important date!" she murmurs under her breath once she can catch it; she's been running to make it, and it looks like she just barely missed her chance. Addressing one of the guards, she politely requests, "I don't suppose I could sneak in just after the last second? Name's Aaron. Mr. Sabella might want me here." Quick and to-the-point, likely fueled by both desperation and shortness of breath.
"Ah! So it was, so it was. I remember the grenade launcher, yes," Edel says, smiling gently. "I remember when I designed for payment. I still do, for... Particularly pricy orders. Unless someone wants to provide supplies for me, in which case I'm a bit more lenient on such. Of course, no judgement here. Everyone has to make a living somehow, right?"
Kelly-imber wakes up while she laid in a chair and realized she had a pie in the oven at home. She then got up and bolted out of the room in a hurry. Leaving without saying a word.
The hound sighs lightly, "That we do. The thing is, pricy gear is in high demand these days. I mean it's nice that folks are mobilizing to make a change and be able to defend themselves, but salvage doesn't grow on trees." he pauses for a moment, gaze wandering off into the distance as he asks himself "Or... does it?" No, it doesn't. The hound snaps back to and shrugs. "Stock gear is simple enough that freebies to the needy are doable, I guess. My grandson is terribly underpaid... he works as a doctor, and... ever since Z backed out of the deal, yeah..." he sighs deeply. "One does what one can."
Firecracker was flying around in the area when she noticed someone in a hurry to get to somewhere! Of course, if someone's going somewhere, something must be happening! And so, the puny pink pegasus zips right on down and into the library right behind the bunny to enter into the room with all the others. After taking a moment to stop in a hover and look around, she chirps out, "Wowie! I didn't know there was a party in here! No wait I know! This is that meeting thingy, isn't it?"
As everyone diverted their attention to the now full seats on the other side of the table, Sabella whispered some more to his companion before looking up at the assembled crowd. "Greetings ladies and gents. I hope you all thank the Skunks for lending us their library for today. A nice neutral place for all of us to meet and talk about the next step in defense of our forming civilization." He says as he eyes the group.
"Our first order of business today is an introduction from all of you of course. I see a lot of individuals here who seem to represent some small interests or even just their own. Also, be kind enough and mention if you have any benefactors. I will personally be very cross if any of the crafters here was a front for Zephyr and didn't say so." Sabella added again in his jovial, making it hard to discern if that was a threat.
The guards idly look Aaron over before opening the door, "If you say so. Don't cause trouble you two." She says as he looks at the tiny pegasus as well.
The kemo kitsune clad in a police uniform stood up first. "First, I would like to thank Mr. Sabella for this invitation. We...really haven't had the best first introduction. But this is something I hope to remedy today. My name is Vari Fiona Arak'Than, leader of the K9 Unit, who currently have donned the mantle of the police force in Fairhaven, trying to get the streets safer for everyone." The woman adjusted her glasses. "While we were affiliated with the Prometheans in the past, we have since cut those ties, as we want to keep the neutral integrity needed for such a role." She sat back down.
Ebreus nods as Sabella gets down to business. He clears his throat and speaks loudly enough to be heard by everyone when it is his time to speak, "I am Ebreus. Just Ebreus, no family name. I have an on-papper affiliation with the Prometheans. It's just that, on-papper. I'm a do a lot of things but to summerize them I've worked as a field agent longest and have been on missions for each of the big three. I've also worked with the governments of Hairtown and Eureka generally keeping the beurocracy from collapsing and negotiating with other organizations. I've sold a few of my own creations but I wouldn't call myself a professional crafter." He explains quickly then takes a breath and adds, "Here to do what I can to help the new government form and run smoothly."
The hound takes a deep breath, then rises from his seat and turns slightly to the side such that he could look at both the crowd and the husky. "My name is Otto. No last name given, or even remembered." he starts off, his voice booming and confident. "I stand with the Prometheans, I value their ideals... to an extent, and I work with them to our mutual benefit. I do not come here as a representative of them today, however. Today I stand to speak for myself and the rest of Arborwatch's residents."
He pauses for a moment and gestures towards Ebreus. "My companion here is far better versed at diplomacy than myself, so I trust him to represent us well when the time comes." the hound clasps his paws and goes on "So far I've opted to keep the gates sealed and my territory neutral to the ill fate that has befallen Fairhaven. However, a few days ago I was quite sorely reminded that so long as the Order has a foothold, none of us are really safe. I've heard my share of worrying reports, and I dread the day they might set foot in my quiet patch by the river, or Maplewood where a multitude of families simply wish to live in peace. While I have no reason to believe that this has yet happened, I worry."
He takes a brief moment to collect his thoughts, before resuming "I am an inventor and a crafter, three years deep into the trade and still going. My specialization is armaments, weaponry of various designs and purpose, armors with differing protective properties, combat stimulants, incendiary devices, explosives, pocketables and many... many more. I come in the hopes that I could be of use both in the field, and at the crafting station. My goal is simple, do whatever it takes to crush the order, before they hurt someone else I care about again. ...thank you." he gives a light bow, and sits back down.
Cameron gave those present a curious look as they each gave an introduction. She then smiled before shrugging and standing up. "Hello all, I am Cameron. I am an RSX crafter, doctor, and leader of General Equipment Masterworks. And much like everyone here am friendly to whose changed from the nanites." The cat then pulloing out a stack of card with the info for her group for anyone interested in taking one. Shamelessly self promoting a little bit. "Much like Otto, I am capable of making most weapons and armour, though have found my talents leaning towards those of more of a regenerative and healing nautre. Like armour that fixes you and its self up. And I have shown up today to see if I might be able to help with the Order, either with gear or something as simple as patching people up." With her piece said the cat once more resumed her seat, unless people wanted some GEM cards of course, which she was all too willing to hand out.
"... To an extent, some salvage grows on trees," Edel says with a little grin. "Fortunately, I got in on the salvaging before the city was picked clean. I've been riding high on my scrap throne ever since," the shiba says with an idle wag of her tail. "A grandson though. NOw that's something I don't have. ... I think. I hope. If one of my daughters has had children without my knowing, I need to have words with them." She falls quiet, though, when Sabella starts to speak. Introductions? She could do that. She would stand, but seeing as the small dog woman was already seated in a high place, she was visible enough.
"I am Edel. Shrine priestess of tanuki, and proprietor of the tea house in the east forest. Weapon and armorsmith of near five years now, specializing in bladed weaponry, and self-proclaimed guardian of the city. I am operating entirely as an independent. I have long since eschewed any support from the corporations. Not that I particularly need it these days."
Fenris smiles pleasantly and raises a fat paw in greeting. "I have a nametag that says Chubbs," he says as if it was some sort of introduction, "And another that says Fatty. I represent Lord Tanuki, the Big Leaf. I mean, I do that all the time, so this isn't special, but I am definitely a tanuki." The big coon-dog frowns a little and looks down at himself, then smiles again. "Yep! Tanuki!" he affirms.
"Very well." The mechanical.. Being.. Thing, fox, kitsune, whatever stated, before rising up and bringing both palms together, introducing herself calmly to the crowd with a calm, synthetic-ish tone. "For as long as I can remember, people call me Naiko... Of course, I stand with Zephyr, as you've probably noticed."
After a brief pause, Naiko continued, "I'm aligned with a small branch of Zephyr and non-Zephyr researchers with a common goal, the betterment of our society. While I might not represent Zephyr's interest in this matter, I have accompanied your efforts to rebuild, to protect and to teach and our group finds them very noble of you. We understand that you wish to stay neutral in the endeavours to defend Fairhaven against the menace that is the order and we understand if you refuse our aid because of our affiliation.
One of the kitsune's many drones twitch before Naiko catches her breath and adds on "...However, the goal we have in mind is simply to not have them have a chance in crushing what all of you have built so far. With or without the Z."
"Neutral place my ass," Narwen mutters when Sabella makes his speech; the skunk's shorts do indeed show signs of minor shotgun damage. He listens quietly through the introductions, then speaks up when his turn comes. "Narwen, Skunk Beast Technologies. I get contracts from Zephyr but not marching orders." He pauses a beat. "And how 'bout you, Mr Sabella? You have any benefactors?"
Noting she should probably take a seat somewhere, Firecracker looks about for a few seconds before flying over and up in order to perch atop Otto's head. She spins about to face the rest of the group then plops her rump right on down. After a little squirm to adjust her booty into a more comfortable position, and perhaps for another reason, she raises a foreleg up in a wave and greeting. "Hiya peoples! I'm Firecracker! I like Pina Coladas and dancing in the rain, I'm into yoga, and I'm pretty sure I have half a brain!" She pauses a moment to think about that statement, then nods to herself in approval of the words. "Yeah! Definitely. Oh uh, what else, I really like cooking and then eating the cooking and I'mma pegasusus and I live in room sixteen one eighty nine in the big ol' Z tower and I can do this!" As she finishes speaking, she closes her mouth and pushes her tongue out, which lengthens pretty abnormally far out of her mouth. Her golden eyes cross as she focuses on its tip, curling upwards and bending backwards upon itself until it makes contact with the end of her little nosey. "Tuh daaaah~!" she announces with a flourish of forehooves and wings, tongue still attached to her snout before it retracts back into her mouth where it belongs.
Aaron hurries into the room and takes the first convenient seat she can find, panting softly. "Aaron." she breathes, her introduction short and to-the-point, though many in the room already know her. "Sorry I'm late. Ah...currently affiliated with me, myself and I, though Cat Town has made overtures to helping me out. No real benefactors to speak of. I mostly just want to help out as best as I can, using the Maison and my two best buddies, Lefty and Righty." She holds up one fist, then the other. "Though I'm happy to offer more help, if I can. This is way overdue." So many people here...she quietly wonders to herself if she'll get lost in the shuffle! "Oh, and the OWO can kiss my ample butt." There, just for effect. And yet...Narwen has a good question, so she perks her ears for the answer.
"Call me Phos." The panda says, rising to her feet smoothly, purposefully from the table. She adjusts her clothing, to rest more comfortably. "I am part of the aforementioned K9 force, signed on as a tactics specalist. My work primarily has to deal with small-scale, mission-to-mission planning and execution, and large-skill campaign planning. I also work with RSX, as an operative, but this has severely tapered off since I joined the K9s. Largely, I help ensure that any resources that we recieve will be used in the most efficient way possible in the field, with missions that I plan will help maximize the efficiacy of every piece of armor and weaponry provided, and ensure that the officers that use it will go into a mission safely."
Agent-dark sits queitly in his chair, he sat there listening to all the introductions. His tail stood stiff and emtionless. He then calmly decided to introduce himself. "I go by the name dark. I lost many things since the begaining of this new world. My real name i have long since abandoned for there is no piont in hanging onto a world that we've lost. I understand, how these people would feel, But Feeling is something that you can't afford to let run your life. If look only at what was lost it will break you. You can wish for things to go back the way things were, but that path contains great evil in its simplicty." He sighs, as he looks down "I'm only here for work to be honest. I have no personal grudge against these men, and thus they will need to be terminated."
The room is all a hail of introductions now, most of the people in the crowd are independent crafters, leaders of small groups of independent - some deluded enough to call themselves militias, and various people offering auxiliary services like medical aid. Two stand out from this crowd, a representative of a group of fishers by the name of Guv and a group of a sizeable group of armed survivors who had just arrived from Woodfield, called Shanks.
"I am Samuel Franklin, and I am here to offer RSX's help in this new coalition of yours to fight against the Americanists." A man clad in a suit says before receiving a couple of boos from the crowd, looks like people still remember Richardson joining the order.
Now it was the time for Sabella's colleagues to introduce themselves. First stood the kemo-usagi boi. "I am Sergeant Carrot." He said in a high pitched voice, earning him a good amount of sniggers which he ignores, "I am the leader of the militia group - Steel Claw, serving Mr. Sabella, and currently one of the main groups standing against the Order." With that he took a seat, allowing a much more intimidating, and muscular, human to stand up. "I am Commander Sanchez. I work with Dr. Long and we have merged our armed followers together to form the Fairhaven Shield. We are the third main group currently holding the line with the K9s and Steel Claw." The human said before sitting down again.
The last person, an arc demon dressed in a three piece suit, and going all in with the accessories, stood up. "Sal Khanig, I represent the interests of the Commercial Association, we are but a humble group of independent scavengers and craftsmen who have been recently supplying Mr. Sabella with weaponry and equipment for his militia at a very low profit for ourselves. All for this fair city." He says and sits down, needless to say it appears that you do not need to work for Zephyr to come off as the kind of person who might sell his mother's ashes if there was profit in it.
"Now that this is done..." Sabella says as he grins, "Let us move on to proper business. First, I have no benefactors, unless you count the people who trust me in this city. Otherwise, I find that being the benefactor is a much better position to be in. I like sending people contracts and claim that they are not marching orders." The husky then winked at Narwen. "Needless to say, I have made my opinion clear before. I do not think we need RSX or Z, or even the Prommies, to trouble themselves with our issues. We can definitely supply ourselves. After all, the K9s have secured their own independent crafters, the PIK, right? Point is, why give those corps another hook to attach to us? I say, we have enough independents here that we can hire. Buy from the community and give back to it, and all that jazz." With that said, Sabella sits downs and lets the others discuss the issue.
"I think we can always accept a degree of help from the corporations...after all, they can still offer some decent equipment that we can use to our advantage." Shanks says with a grunt.
"I have a different proposition. Why don't we form our own scavenging expeditions and salvage the various factories and warehouses outside the city. The two corporations regularly send out their expeditions to get their hands on old technology. Clearly, we need to do the same, it will be much cheaper for us, no?" Khang said with a smile, probably imagining the kind of salvage he can secure for his group.
Vari closed her eyes. The kitsune listened, and thought. She looked at her subordinate, and then at Sabella. "I agree with Mr Sabella, that we can supply ourselves, and don't need to have the outside help from the corporations. And in the upcoming government, this is essential for the future." The kitsune shook her head afterwards. "There are other matters that make me concerned as well, we are looking into a certain case..." She looked at Long as she said that. "But, for the time being, I am not foolish enough to simply disregard help.
Ebreus smiles as Otto leaves negotiation on behalf of Arborwatch to him. He takes mental notes on each additional person as they introduce themselves. He nods in aproval as Sabella states his opinion on buying and hiring from the community and the opinion is eccoed by Vari. "It's a good place to start, with the community." he says. He takes a moment to compose his thoughts, "Doctor Arak'Than does have a point though. We can't focus entirely on salvage at the moment as there are very pressing issues to deal with. I am certain noone here needs to be reminded that our government is not forming without opposition."
Militia? What? Otto huffs and flicks his mane from one side to the other, then flinches softly once he feels something familiar and warm plop down on his head. Ah, yes... tiny pony ass. A light grin tugs at his lips as he recognizes the aspiring headwear that never seemed to run out of energy. "Hi Fire. Your rump is as lovely as I remember it last time you had it planted on my head." the hellhound snickers and casts an amused glance towards Edel.
His smile soon faded though, well... as soon as the others started to introduce themselves. Not the agents, for he knew the lot of them, but rather those self-proclaimed militia people. Turning to face the ones speaking, Otto casts a subtle glance of disbelief, his piercing gaze lingering but for a moment, before passing over Ebreus, as though weighing the mutant's own thoughts on the matter.
Turning back around, he lets loose a soft sigh and reaches into his pack to pull a laptop out. Opening it up, Otto goes wide-eyed and rapidly hustles to close the open image browser he'd left on-screen from his last session, the image of a blissed out and rather familiar bunny boi thereupon for a moment, a very lewd photograph of his rear, gaped and leaking a certain seminal fluid.
Phew... hopefully nobody saw... he plays it off and opens up a word document, then starts to take notes of everything that'd been said, tossing in some thoughts as well. Gods knew his memory was not as sharp as it used to be before P-Day. At the same time, he keeps an audio recording program running, taking audio logs of the events as well.
The ideas were presented, and Otto chymes in, "I've attended such salvage operations in the past, I know the locations of a few buildings that may interest you. I also keep in touch with the transport technician Zephyr has hired to carry their teams around outside the bubble. Maybe I can do something with that." the hound shrugs. "Which reminds me that we had best secure a mode of transportation. Going on foot would mean a single salvage operation would take days if not longer. Either way, I'm good with my hands and could do something about that if you'd like. There are plenty of parts at the Hell Forge, maybe with the help of the rats I can snag us a working jeep or two. That is, if transport is at all an issue." he raises a brow and casts an inquizitive glance towards the others."
Once Vari speaks up, he glances her way and speaks his mind "I'd rather we remain independant from the big three. Especially Zephyr. The moment they offer us help, they'll likely consider it a contract and us as their debtors. Just between you and me, I'd rather not have that happen." Though the hound was honest, he spoke a half-truth, his personal beef with the three remaining unspoken. "I feel it best that we keep a low profile such that we can operate more efficiently. If we need to salvage, then we do so, without the enemy or the big three knowing we've got men out there, and not here where they can act if called upon."
"My question is, can we get high-quality gear out of our crafters and this salvage? We need weapons that're reliable, efficient, and go 'bang' and not 'click' when you pull the trigger." Phosphorus says, critically, glancing at the salvagers, the crafters, with a raised eyebrow. "Not saying I doubt any of you, but. Some missions are high risk, high reward. A firearm jamming at the wrong moment could spell death for the operator. Bad salvage could lead to bad construction, so it's important that... everyone is careful, I think." She sighs, shaking her head and cracking her fingers. "As for the big three... I'm of the opinion that it'd be best to regard any help they offer with a heavy grain of salt. But, yes, it'd be foolish to reject them outright."
Cameron didn't have much of an imput at the moment. So for now she just remained silent, ears twitching and turning to face each new speaker in turn. Her eyes though moved about the room, making note of ech and every person's introduction and their opinions as well. The cat taking notes of who was what and who did what. The cat was definitely quick to notice the naughty picture upon the large canine's computer. Having been paying attention to those present in the room. A hand raising up to conceal a smile and a quiet chuckle as well.
"I am always up for salvaging efforts. It's the lifeblood of our trade, after all," Edel says with a nod towards the demon. "As far as corporate help, I do not mind it, but I do agree that it should be limited. We should be proving- Not just to ourselves, but to the populace at large, that we can take care of our own problems. That we can organize well enough to push back against an organization that threatens us in turn. That is why I am here offering the support of me and mine. If it were a corporate interest, I wouldn't be here. But it's a problem for the people, hmm?"
Fenris shakes his head. "I've never really made or scavenged much more than I need for myself," the tanuki confesses, "There has never been much of a community for me to support so far. But I suppose I am in favor of anything that brings a little peace and order." The tanuki scratches at his expansive belly, then leans forward to listen to the others talk. There was bound to be some opportunity for adventure somewhere in all this politicking.
Naiko didn't seem to care about the militias, judging them rather.. Ineffective, after all, raw force is just going to be met with raw force. Or at least she believes that. Glancing around the crowd of agents introducing themselves and listening to them attentively, after a brief pause, the robotic kitsune stated, "My apologies. I understand you do not wish to create any more hooks with the corporations, especially regarding the contracts and all the numbers. I'm just worried. Worried about what's going to happen to all the beings we've been helping so far. Worried about what might happen to them and their young ones, should we fail. Even I have been teaching them the history of our world and even more topics to them."
"Perhaps I need to reformulate. What I'm offering is just the occasional extra crate of supplies. No contracts, no hooks. Courtesy of a kitsune with a couple of extra resources which could be put to better use." The robotic kemo kitsune's tails swayed around lightly again as she finally added, before sitting back down on her chair, "That is all, thank you for listening."
Narwen looks squarely back at Sabella "Here's the thing: I don't really understand what you're asking. Do you want us to sell you gear? Give you gear? Make you gear? Who will it go to, and what do they need? What will happen to it after this is all done with? Because here's the other thing: I don't know you. I've never met you. Until a couple weeks ago, I'd never heard of you. Right now there's a crisis an' it's all hands to the barricades, I get that. There's fifty guys I'd send my inventory to in a heartbeat, but you're not one of 'em. Right now you're just a guy looking to -- how did you put it? -- send me a contract." He sighs out through his nose. "Now, the K9s I do know, an' if they say they need help, I'll help. I don't like that they're fighting pitched battles -- not a good way to learn community policing -- but, crisis. But, 'far as I'm concerned, everything goes through them. Their responsibility. Oh, an' one last thing, since it seems I got the floor. You may not like the big three, but you better be talking to 'em. Zephyr and the Promethians live here too, an' RSX was talking about moving here. The absolute last thing we need is a five-way firefight."
Agent-dark just sits there listening carefully, waiting for his instructions. His tail remains still and emotionless. His face is a bit cold and emotionless. he isn't going ask many questions on the subject, yet he isn't going to interupt the others either. He taps his foot silently, as he calmly waited.
Aaron draws in a deep breath before speaking. "Well, if you're asking me - and you're not - I think the best answer is actually somewhere in the middle." Rising from her seat, she begins to pace as she elucidates, tail twitching behind her while she ruminates on the possibilities. "Does the new government need to be fundamentally free and not beholden to corporations? Absolutely. That's a basic building block of independence. That said, I don't think we need to cut them out of our lives completely. The real problem hasn't been that the Big Three have been helping is, it's been that we're *reliant* on them. Corporations and for-profit interests need to exist at our pleasure, not vice versa." She sounds rather firm in that belief; it'd be hard to shake her of it.
"With that said, it'd be foolish to ignore the fact that the Big Three - and other scavenger groups, militia, and the like - have a lot to offer. Independence and partnership are not mutually exclusive, Mr. Sabella. There is something to be said for the knowledge that we benefit from these groups' presence, but could persevere on our own." Ebreus receives a firm nod at his reminder of the resistance to their efforts, and she notes, "With a government that exists with a mandate from the people, the OWO will remain marginalized and decreasingly effective, assuming we can provide for peoples' needs. To this end, the Maison is open to all forces resisting the OWO, offering food and shelter and respite as needed. It's also open to the populace at large, with the understanding that there can be no safer place than under the watchful eye of the militia and the Maison's own guards."
A moment is allowed to pass before she addresses all present in a very serious tone. "Just keep in mind that we need to balance liberty and safety. Too little of either is bad for you." Finally, she moves to sit back down, waiting for the reactions of others to her monologue.
Firecracker looks down to the doggo under her and responds, "Thanks! I do have a cutie patootie, don't I?" She giggles at her little claim then goes back to listening to the others. When Otto takes out his laptop and reveals a rather lewd picture, the pony is in a rather prime position to get a peek! Her wings extend at her sides with a little *pomf* as she goes "Ooooo!" and then "Awwww," as the image is quickly removed. "He had a cutie patootie too!" she comments before going back to listening.
As the others go on, she notices a common theme going around the room and realizes this is the wrong kind of party for her, a political party! GASP! "Hey... You guys are all talking about fighting and boooooring stuff! I really don't like hurtin' people or people getting hurt or boring stuff! Lemme know if ya need help with somethin' else that's not that though! I like helping people!" With her offer given, the pegasus hops off Otto's head and back into the air on her wings. Before she goes, she looks over her shoulder to him and adds with a wink and a rump wiggle, "Or if ya wanna do somethin' like what was on your compy." And now that she's done with a second, considerably more lewd offer, she flaps her way towards the exit to depart from this borefest!
As the comments come in, the overwhelming support against corporate interest seems to leave the RSX delegation silent, and simmering. "Indeed, indeed! It appears we are in agreement. Besides, the more we salvage, the less the Order gets. After all, it would be foolish for us to think that they are not sending out their expeditions, no? And we will happily accept any donations from independent citizens looking to help us out against the Americanists." The arc demon says with a smile. "In fact, Otto, was it?, does bring up something that I am interested in. I will of course talk about an expedition to secure transports after this meeting." With that, Sal goes silent.
"Well, this brings up a very good point! Turning the city exit into a neutral zone that we discussed before." Dr. Long quickly interjects as she suddenly stands up. "If we can agree with the order not to attack each other there, then we can send out salvage expeditions more safely."
"That's secondary right now we have a more important issue." Sabella responds as he eyes the crowd, "That is to do with our forces. The Order has the Minutemen, and no matter what you think of them, they are a lot more organized and are not a bunch of fractured groups. We need to do the same. The K9s, Steel Claw, and Fairhaven Shields are our biggest three groups in this fight, but we need all the smaller groups to work with them, and more importantly to have a clear command structure. To that, I propose that Dr. Vari, Sergeant Carrot, and Commander Sanchez act as a military council of sorts to organize a strategy in this fight. With any experts they deem important aiding them in devising their tactics."
Then Narwen's criticisms are voiced, loudly. To that, the kemo-bunny jumps up stares angrily at Narwen, "How dare you? Mister Sabella has been toiling day and night helping Fairhaven in its time of need, and a corporate-lackey like yourself comes and..." The rabbit boy is stopped by a hand on his shoulder. Sabella grins and pats Carrot before looking at Narwen and grining, "Doctor Narwen, no need for such a heated tone. You do not know me, and you do not trust me. I understand that, but you also need to understand that to me you mostly work for Z, a company that stopped sending representatives the moment they did not get their way. We can both correct that. Clearly, as is our arrangement with the Commercial Association, we will buy our equipment from independent crafters. We are not asking for hand outs, but we will not refuse it. And speaking of which, we will be honored to accept your offer, Aaron. I am not against the existence of corporations. I am simply of the opinion that the less we need them now, the less we will need them later. They can remain as suppliers, but only if it is without strings attached." Sabella then takes a seat, letting others speak.
Looks like with the support of this number of independent crafters, the new force is now focusing on discussing leadership. Some of the minor 'militia' leaders voice their doubt in being led by the three largest fighting forces for Fairhaven, others voice their wish to join any one of them.
During the whole time, Vari has been whispering with Phosphorus. Then she addressed Narwen. "I am glad that you would lend your help to us Narwen. However, you are mistaken if you think we only fight those...'pitched' battley you speak of. As I said, we have our hands in a lot of things now to keep the city safe. This ranges from holding the barricades, to simple crime investigations around the town." She sighs. "And as stated before, I also think that simply disregarding the other corporations is a bad idea. Yet, blincly trusting them is just as bad as well. Especially with some of the higher ups being..." She shook her head again, looking at Dr. Long again, and then at Phos. "At any rate, I would be honored to partake in such a council. And if people decide to support such efforts, then I will make sure this trust won't be disappointed." Her comm unit beeped suddenly. "Well, would you look at that. Something actually came up. I need to excuse me. Phosphorus will speak in my stead now." She stood up, and bowed down. Then she headed to the exit.
Ebreus grins as Sabella goes on, about in the way that would be most advantageous to him. He nods lightly as Sabella goes on about one good aspect of scarcety, that if you have more your enemies can't also have more. As his turn to speak comes up he says, "Well I am largely in agreement with you mister Sabella. We will need an organized security force. I would suggest some differences in command structure. Though as we do not have months to debate who should have what position, why, and how elidgability for positions should be determined I would instead like to share a plan I've been working on since the Americanists land grab. To make it brief a raid of their supply cache in their compound. To avoid security leaks I would share the rest only with security personel."
"Such idealism." Otto mutters as he listens to Aaron, then sighs and leans forward over his... wait... where was Firecracker? He snaps his glance upwards just in time to see her wiggle her rear and flutter away. Silly pony... though yes, her derrere was quite lovely. Anyway... the hound returns to the matter at hand.
"So what happens once we do liberate the occupied territories of the Order?" he asks out loud and crosses his legs. "If we do indeed accept Zephyrian aid, they will claim us as their militia and assert their ownership of the land. Do you really want that for us?" he furrows his brows a little "It's not beneath them in my opinion, and remember that Zephyr are very good at manipulating the truth. If we do back out and refuse to play by their rules once all this blows over, they could have us branded as traitors. It's not like they don't have their own forces to use against us, nor are they beneath stabbing their own agents in the backs." the hound sharply hisses, recalling the time Zephyr had lead him and his team right into a trap orchistrated by the Children of Tahoe.
"Now imagine if we accept Promethean of RSX aid... what happens then? Do you think big Z will be very happy a force supplied by their competitor is doing liberating in territory they've pretty much claimed as their own? Sure, we'll have a few extra crates of salvage... but is it worth the risk? I for one am skeptical." he glances around the room. "We are in the dark right now. We know next to nothing, we have a very, VERY faint picture of what's going on, and in my years as an agent I've learned that things never go only skin-deep. There is usually a catch, a twist... and what we know right now may well be a ruse." he waves a hand around as he talks.
"Looking at it short-term yes, by all means, let's soak in the salvage, implications and conseqiences be damned, right? Hm..." he shakes his head and grumbles "I agree that aid from the three should not be put off the table... but let's not reach for that dish just yet."
Phosphorus opens her mouth to say something, but closes it again, and shakes it, choosing to remain quiet for now. She rests her hands on the desk, glancing at the others,and emits a quiet sigh, changing tack, keeping her opinons to herself. "So, instead of debating whether or not we trust the coporations at the moment in time, I think we should try to recover the land, by ourselves, first. To cement our budding goverment as an independent force. What was the saying, 'Si vis pacem, para bellum'? 'If you seek peace, prepare for war?' I'm not advocating for violence, mind... And I don't suggest we go to arms-race level of preparation... but we must show that we're not a government that can be toppled over by internal or external forces. So, let us show that we can handle this, by ourselves."
Cameron now finally decides to stand up so that she might speak. "Some aid from the big three wont hurt, as long as it is all little. And if you do make any agreements with them get it down on paper so they can't twitst the truth later." She then gave a little sigh as she looked over to the one who had suggested attacking back so soon. "Attacking them is a bad idea, even if it is as something as simple as stealing their gear and supplies. All it will do is give them more cause to hate us. Strengthen their resolve to try and take back what they percieve as theirs. Violence begets violence." She then looked at everyone else for a moment. "I am not so naive as to think it wont be needed to defend ourselves, but we should look in to trying to talk things over first before we settle upon fighting them in all out war. As it will only fan the flames of hatred on both side till only one remains." Her pale blue eyes looking up at each person.
"I was a contractor for a branch of remnant military for a time," Edel says, looking towards Phosphorus. "And that was years ago. I have only gotten better with age, in that regard. I daresay I am up to the task of providing high quality and professional grade equipment." She lifts her shoulders in a shrug, after that, before brushing her fingers through her hair. "Organization is good. I would encourage it. I will help as I always have." She doesn't say it of course, but taking orders and listening to authority was totally not her style. She had her own way of dealing with things. "It is right, though, that the corporations are still full of people. People that also live here. Make of that what you will."
Fenris has, of course, been trying to get appointments for interviews with the K9 force for weeks now. He sat in their office for six hours yesterday. He had even worn his extra-spiffy uniform and polished his badge.
The burly tanuki considers Carrot Yojimbo, or whatever his actual name is. Maybe it was time to look in a different direction for ways to make a difference? He makes a mental note, then returns to his reading, letting the rest of the meeting wash over him.
The kitsune robot shrugs at Otto's comments on Zephyr, shaking her head lightly and wondering if she should state her point again. Yes. Perhaps reformulation was in order.
"While I agree that we 'shouldn't just reach out for that dish', I must say that if you fear Hive might want claim on those territories, it doesn't. Sure, if it gets to the point that aid from the big three is strictly required, I would recommend caution." She leans back on her chair, taking a deep breath.
"I have no interest in payment of any sorts for aid from my group. I know that what you're doing is a good thing for the people and that gaining the upper hand against the order is vital. For one, I would be simply honored to help in any way I can."
Narwen's hackles raise at the rabbit-boi's comments, but he manages to not escalate things further. In the end, he gives Vari a grin. "Don't worry, I know the work you do. 'S why I trust you. Also why I've taken contracts from the K9s, which I guess makes me a police lackey as well as a corporate one. Just... would like you to stay a police force an' not be a part-time army, is all. In an ideal world, with unicorns pooping rainbows an' so on." His smile fades as the discussion turns to how to get the best salvage, and whether a deal could be stuck with the OWO to enable it. "Yeah, I think I heard what I came to hear," he says, scooping up his pack. "Phos, let me know what you need. You can reach me directly or through Razz. Rest of you, stay safe." And with that, he pads out. His exit is spoiled somewhat by the bag search the skunk girl at the exit puts him through.
Aaron doesn't have those long ears just for show. "You're damn right, idealism." she tells Otto, casting him a sidelong glance. "All of this is all well and good, but if we don't remember what we're fighting for or why we're here, all of this is basically meaningless. As for Z, they can claim anything they want. And ultimately, if they decide to go after us, it's not a fight we can avoid. So the answer is to make ourselves impressive and non-threatening enough that fighting us is bad for their profit margin." She pauses a moment to tap her temple. "Remember, they're a corporation. They think with their wallets. If we make ourselves a bad risk for fighting, they won't even consider doing so."
A long moment of thought passes, her eyes half-lidding as she notes, "The OWO has something that we don't, right now: they're united in the name of a single cause. They act as one mind, and it empowers them." That gaze travels the room once more, and she notes, "If we're going to be able to beat them - or even keep up with them - we need to realize that while we have differing ideas on how to reach our goal, we all fundamentally want the same thing." It may seem obvious, but years of dealing with people have taught the doe that there's no such thing.
Aaaaand there's her comm. Taking a quick moment to check it, she utters a quiet, exasperated sigh. "Okay, *most* of us want the same thing. Some of us want to fuck in the maternity ward, as it turns out." Rising to her feet, she makes for the door. "Sorry about this. Maison business. Mr. Sabella, you have my comm info. Stay in touch. All of you, actually; the better we coordinate, the better off we'll be." And with that, she's out!
As the room goes back and forth with the talk of corporate support, it appears that the anti-corporate sentiment still holds. Then Vari and Narwen leave the room, and Fenris goes back to his own devices. "Well, Ebreus...I would be surprised if you even knew where that is right no; however, we will be working on a strike to cripple their supply lines...once we actually have a strategy to tackle them. Random strikes will not accomplish much." Sabella says with a nod as he looks around the room.
With no real opposition to the idea, plenty of the current militia leaders promise to support the cause, some more begrudgingly than others. "I do agree with Dr. Long to begin with some diplomatic overtures to secure a neutral zone. This will also be helpful for the people living in that area. As for military action, we can discuss that later during the council meeting." Commander Sanchez says as he looks down on some of his notes.
As the meeting reaches a lull of activity, Dr. Long stands up again, "So...regardless of help or not from the big three...I still do firmly believe that securing the City Exit as an independent zone is important. Not only will it prevent the Order from cutting us from Cat Town and Hare Town, it will show the populace that we are reasonable and willing to negotiate!" With her call for diplomacy again, the room begins murmuring again.
Ebreus can't help but smirk as Sabella doubts his abilities. 'Doubt is understandable. Though some do have the abilities to do what many would doubt is doable.' he telepathically says to Sabella. He looks over the group seated at the table as they seem to just go on with their plans. "Random strikes would be largely inconcequential, as you said, and I don't plan random strikes." he says but does not object to the current plan. He glances over to Otto then returns his attention to the pannel.
"Surely we'll be regarded as the saints of the world in the midst of bloody war with the Americanists. That's how things work in imagination land, don't they?" Otto sighs deeply and closes his laptop, muttering under his breath. He'd heard enough as well... so he goes silent and covers his face. He was really not good at this, was he? Diplomacy... his vision was marred by bitter memories of betrayal, knife wounds still aching in his back, and a slew of traitor titles slapped onto him by the various organizations he'd turned his back on after bad experiences in missions conducted by them.
No, Otto was no politician. He spoke out of spite and his personal interests rather than the interests of the people, and by now he'd realized what he was doing... so he casts Ebreus a helpless glance, and with a light sigh resigns himself to silence. *BEEP BEEP* Ah, seems he has a message on his comm unit. *flick* and his cheeks go crimson red as he spots a picture of his boyfriend, one very provocative, the bubble-butted usagi boi there in sexy lingerie striking a pose to show off his curves, winking slyly at the message's recipient. *FLICK* and the screen disappears as fast as it'd popped up.
The canine clears his throat and shuffles a touch uncomfortably, before rising from his seat. "Alas, I am needed elsewhere." he announces nonchalantly, before waving farewell and casting Ebreus a hopeful glance on his way out.
Cameron then gave a small shrug and began to walk towards the exit. The cat having said her piece to everyone present. Now it was just time for the big wigs to decide on a course of action on what to do. Looking up at one of the guards she gave them a large grin before handing them a stack of business cards. "Can you hand these out for me? If you do, first order from GEM is on the house." The kitty giving her best kitten eye look before she to headed off to home, it was getting late in the evening and she did have a shift at the clinic.
"I would appreciate it, too. Since I live near Hare Town, them controlling the exit does cut into my business a bit," Edel says, ears twitching. "It hasn't been a personal bother too much for me and mine- There are other ways in and out of the city, but it does make things a bit more complicated than they need to be. I would be pleased to see it resolved."
The Kitsune wisp accompanying Naiko booped her head a couple of times. The little green spirit ball was apparently trying to tell her something. "Oh?" She whispered, nodding slightly.
"Hmm.. I agree with Mister Otto. I hardly believe that we can reason with The Order. There were attempts and they were nothing but fruitless. They are too stuck up their brainwashed confederate minded arseh- Ahem.. Heads, to give peace a chance." Spoke Naiko, shaking her head lightly, right before flashing a smirk and adding, "However.. It would be pretty interesting if a certain project I'm working on found its way there should they meet you with hostile intent."
"I think... we should try to avoid lethal military action. The members surely aren't all evil -- they were attracted to the cause, and their hearts ache from memories of the old world. That's not unsympathetic. There's... nothing inherently wrong with missing America. I would bet that many of the members... didn't know what they were signing up for." Phosphorus says, sighing and rubbin gher forehead. "I would propose that, yeah, we negotiate, but if that fails, instead of a war that would surely cause scores of deaths, that we cut the snake off at the head. One, two, three precise blows. Then we re-integrate the rest."
"These people are... extremists. But, having actually toured when the wars in the middle east were still happening, the members aren't entirely unsympathetic. They were, again, attracted to a cause. In that case, they were angry at the americans trampling all about their towns, their cities, our unwillingness to let their culture be itself. Granted, their governments and such had severe issues, but our situation was entirely mishandled. In this case, of the patriots... well, there's a lot to be missed. Their actions are inexcusable, but we can pin that largely on the leaders, the officers. Let us not massacre the people who wanted nothing more than the families they lost in P-Day, the friends, the cities, the life." The panda stands up, slipping her rucksack over her shoulders. "I felt as if that was needed to be said. Many have left already, but... at least still, people heard it." Phosphorus moves to leave, slipping out the door.
With everyone's closing thoughts being said. Mr. Sabella stands up. "Well. I thank you all for coming today. This has been most enlightening, and I am sure we will benefit more from our newly found purpose. We will discuss integrating the minor fighting groups in our main forces on a later date. And it appears that a lot of you support Dr. Long's proposal. So we will discuss that as well." He said with a grin as always. "But for now, it is time for all of us to return home and get a hot meal!"
There is some final remarks being thrown around, and some murmuring among the attendees, but slowly most of them begin shuffling out of the library, or sticking around for more private conversations.