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Part 45a: Flipping through the Rolodex
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Part 45a - Flipping through the Rolodex by Luke
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Hmmm. Who would be useful for this sort of circumstance?
As usual, the Underflow was dark for Luke - dark as the void between
stars. That didn't matter, for he brought with him his own light,
as he did everywhere. Light was, after all, at the core of his
creation, whatever his later issues.
Now, Chance - that one might be perfect for this. He
should at least be able to better get along with the others than
I. A poor job I'm doing with Dorian. Likely as not, he
won't be tempted to strangle that little monster of James, either.
The irony, in both cases, still drew a chuckle from the being.
Him, being told of the necessity of setting aside his pride. How
many times had he heard that throughout the millennia? How many
times had he failed? I'll try, Dorian. That's all I can say. As for that new creature, she had a dangerous outlook on things, one he might have shared not so long ago.
But destroying to create. Even I know that is
a spiral out of which one cannot climb. The girl believes so
strongly in that path. I wonder what she would do if, a thousand
years from now, she looked back and saw the trail of destruction in her
wake? Saw the results of her attempts to 'do good'? Good as
she believed, in any case.
Dorian knows this, I am certain. Much as I, myself. He avoided thinking about Berd. That revelation had hurt.
Now, if he were Chance, where would he be? His spirit pierced the
gloom of the Underflow, a blazing ray in search of its target - an
agile, slippery mind. Sometimes it was like trying to grasp
water, finding Chance.
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Re: Part 45a - Flipping through the Rolodex by Chance
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Chance whistled a lonely tune as he walked down the dusty road, which
stretched rigidly behind and before him without any interruption. A
fading cloud of dust still lingered in the still air, remnents of an
automobil that had sped past minutes ago and finally disappeared over
the horizon.
As he walked, he plucked slowly at his guitar, thinking of the places
he wanted to go. It was a slow, careful process, wandering the worlds.
He had learned all to quickly that if he tried to hurry he would end up
in the worst gutters of the universe. So the notes came slow, as did
the changes around him, but he liked the road. The song was mainly
about the road.
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Re: Part 45a - Flipping through the Rolodex by Luke
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Without preamble, Luke joined Chance, simply walking beside him as if he had been there all along. "I've been thinking," he began, as if continuing an old conversation, "that
a certain group of people in dire need of assistance could use your
help. Now, one might ask the question: why doesn't Luke give them
aid? The truth of the that answer would be I do, and they don't
like me."
Pausing, he turned to glance at the other man. "Hello, Chance."
"They don't like me with a fair amount of reason, though there has been
enough back and forth that I can convince myself it isn't wholely my
fault. I joined them, originally, in an attempt to keep their
group together." He grimaced. "It
seems to have worked a trifle too well - they are united, now, in
mistrust of me. Well, I do have that effect on people."
He grinned, suddenly. "That's why I came to you, Chance. You'd dance with the Devil, then sit down for supper with God."
Pausing, he listened to the music. "Nice, by the way. Your own?"
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Re: Part 45a - Flipping through the Rolodex by Chance
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Chance jumped a little when Luke started talking. It wasn't like it had
not happened before, but it was always so sudden. A note on the guitar
came out wrong, with a jarring twang.
"Nope," he responds. "It belongs to the road. I just it play
it and the road takes me where I want to go. I like that 'dance with
the devil and sit down for supper with god' bit, though. That's nice--
maybe a song in there."
He stops playing, assuming he isn't going to need to walk much longer.
As he shifts the guitar it transforms into a guitar case, which he
slings across his back by a heavy strap.
"Well, as luck would have it, I wasn't headed anywhere in particular
anyway. So I guess I'm free. Now exactly what kind of help do these
sods need? I'm guessing it isn't dance lessons, right?"
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Re: Part 45a - Flipping through the Rolodex by Luke
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Luke blinked, frowning. "Manners. MY manners. Apologies, Chance. I'll explain, and quickly, then..." He grinned. "Evidence
to the contrary, I'd like to hear about how things have been going for
you. And if you can make something out of that little phrase, I'd
love to hear the song." The grin widened. "You might get plenty of material soon."
"Dance lessons...again with the satanic allusions. Dancing with the Devil, perhaps." Now he became serious. "There
are creatures out there, through the Myriad Worlds, who are plotting to
take over through destruction. They're looking to obliterate the
stability of the Worlds, shatter everything that is, so that they can
reform it in their image. Holy Terraforming, one might say." The smile twisted. "And
they are many, potent, with well-advanced plans. Realistically
speaking, we hold little hope of stopping them at this juncture, but we
have to try."
"And so I thought...why not put a little Chance on our side?" A weak joke, but Luke smiled anyway. "Let
me fill you in on the details...I won't tell you much about the people
involved, because I don't want my own issues with them prejudicing
you. Not that it would, anyway." Over the course of
their long walk, Luke took his time explaining as much as he knew about
the situation in as much detail as he could. He didn't hurry,
making certain to go over the fine points.
OOC: Luke explains pretty much everything to Chance,
or everything he knows. This is not to say Chance will remember
everything.
"And that's where we stand. Unfortunately, the
group suffers from a regrettably lack of focus which I have to admit I
haven't helped. I have become an instrument of disorder, which is
both unplanned and unwanted. But given your own genial nature,
and the fact that I'm rather certain you'd be happy to throw your hat
in the ring...." He rubbed his jaw, thoughtfully.
"Questions? Comments? I have a few other
things to go over, important things, but that was the gist of it.
I thought I'd take a break here, see if you had anything to bounce off
me."
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Re: Part 45a - Flipping through the Rolodex by Chance
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Chance becomes more somber as the tale is spun. He kicks at rocks and
pebbles as they walk, watching the ground in front of him more than
Luke. "Well, just so you know," he sighs. "You
had me at 'destruction of everything'. I mean, if you ain't got a road
to walk on, what have you got? Anyway, I don't know how much I can
help, but I can be one hell of a cheerleader, if I have to be. Count me
in."
He walks a little farther, mulling over the details. "So these
bad guys, these wannabe angels-- It seems like these friends of yours
are kicking against thorn bushes-- no offense intended there. But even
if you whack a few, they're going to keep coming, right? They'll
probably keep coming until we're all dead. I mean, it's good to slow
them down, but more than anything-- it sounds like we need a plan-- a
good long term one."
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Re: Part 45a - Flipping through the Rolodex by Luke
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Luke was silent for a time, listening to Chance. Finally, at the close of Chance's comments, he nodded. "A
plan indeed. As you say, we need to find somewhere to exert
pressure, not merely chop off limbs. This is a hydra we battle, a
hydra grown far out of control. Finding its heart is necessary."
"And no offense taken." A mirthless grin. "I doubt any of them consider themselves my friend, which is a shame...I like them, warts and all."
"But I believe that they, and you, can find that heart. That you
can find a plan skipping past their fortifications and lunging directly
to strike at the source of the problem. The traitor in
Amber...their leader...I know not which would be easier to find, easier
to slay. Yet." He passed a sidelong look at wanderer. "In
this, force of arms is less necessary than a keen intellect and a large
dollop of common sense, both of which you possess despite your best
efforts to look otherwise." A grin softened those words. "And
a cheering section is what they need. Recently they lost their
diplomat who seemed to soften all of their hard edges. Now those
edges clash and cut. We don't need that, Chance, not with all
that is at stake. And I know you can help give them that focus,
sand down some of those edges."
Luke coughed, coming to an uncomfortable part. "As I said, I'm a little to blame for that. I'm off my game, Chance. Not thinking well. It's my father." He shot the wanderer another look. Luke's father, against whom he rebelled and fought a war. "He's with them, and we're working together." One foot kicked savagely at a rock.
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Re: Part 45a - Flipping through the Rolodex by Chance
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"Well, you can't choose your family, now can you?" Chance shrugged. "I
know it's never simple, but trust me you'll do a lot better if you
forgot that fact about him. Fatherhood is a sin not easily forgotten by
the sons, if you know what I mean. Having something of a past with him
is another matter-- You'll both need to forget that, and that's not
easy.
As for the rest, the cheerleading and the sanding, well, like I said,
I'll do my best. Not for you, mind, but for the road. This road has
taken me a lot of places. It's about time I did a little something for
it."
He stops walking, looking up and down the road they're on with a regretful expression. It was a good road.
He takes a deep breath.
"Well, I'm ready. Let's go meet these heroes, then."
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Re: Part 45a - Flipping through the Rolodex by Luke
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"I love your uncomplicated view of the universe, Chance," Luke said without sarcasm or rancour, his voice wistful. "It's
clean, true, and gets rid of a lot of stupidity like 'dragging
guilt'. You're a lot like him, in some ways. Funny how I
never noticed it before."
"As for sin, there's plenty of that on both sides. While I'm reasonably certain he started it, I'm no longer 100%. Dammit. I treasured that righteousness...." Luke shrugged. "I
probably shouldn't have stormed the gates of his castle; almost burned
the place down. Ah, well. What can you do?"
"And it's good you'll be doing it for the Road. Very worthy of
you. Just remember - when dealing with roads, it's best to
consider the age-old problem of 'Good Intentions', and where they take
you. With a grin and a wink, Luke reached out toward Chance, then paused.
"Heroes. I suppose they are. No wonder I've never fit in. But I think you will." And the Underflow beckoned.
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