TUBA - The Underground Bakers' Association

[Darth Woodrack he/him]

Dusk walked in, with Walker in tow.

"Is this about Plasma Tech," Dusk said, "If so, I need to know how to prepare my mine, and citizens for the inevitable massive fallout."

"Why did you mention your mine first?" Walker asked.

"Well, if I lose my mine, I can't support my citizens, can't provide a source of millions of Christs to TUBA, and can't help the poor citizens of Alleycity. So, mine comes first," Dusk said.

[Sherlock Holmes he/him]

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Dusk is savage and I love him.

 

[+Ark1002]

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I DON'T

I mean I kinda sorta totally went to war with him

 

[Voidus]

Sudiov watched the two new figures enter and anxiously craned his neck, looking to see if more were on their way. That warning had seemed pretty loud, surely more people would come right? Or should he take care of this himself? No that would be terribly rude to his hosts.

"Plasma Core?" Sudiov asked, clarifying the question. "A possibility, I'd rather not leave any of myself there to check exactly who is involved if I can help it though."

Sudiov's mustache twitched as his mouth narrowed into a line and he stared off into the distance. His eyes glared with anger towards whatever it was he was looking at before he blinked and brought himself back to the present.

"And no, I don't believe this is the beginning of any kind of direct attack. But it could be something worse."

He could sense the unnaturalness even without trying, but determining the intent of those who were causing it was more difficult. But even with the best intentions in the world, given what they were interfering with this could be catastrophic for them all.

"Someone is interfering with something, something that they shouldn't even be able to touch at all let alone pervert it into this."

His eyes narrowed as he stared off again, eyes seeming to pierce through one of the surrounding walls before he once more shook his head and regained his focus.

"I couldn't say what their goal is but either through accident or intention what they're doing could have dire consequences for us all. I won't deny that I'm particularly invested in stopping them, what they're doing has a very real chance of harming or killing me. But more than that it poses a risk to all beings living in the Alleyverse."

[AonEne he/him]

Deteca walked into the room, raising an eyebrow. "Nice job getting it on the second try," she said quietly to the young boy, then turned away. Despite her smile to him and her worry over the situation - because if all of TUBA was being called in, it must be a situation indeed - her eyes showed no emotion. She hid her fear like this, as she knew those in charge must, and she was very frightened after last night. She remembered his words. She remembered the other's smirk. She remembered her frantic words through a spanreed. She remembered the blank page that had stared up at her then, while she waited. And kept waiting. And woke up suddenly in the chair she'd unwillingly fallen asleep in, still waiting for a message, a word, anything to appear on that blank page.

She closed her eyes for a count of five and opened them again, walking deliberately past TUBAists as they entered. Which bakery was this again? She'd spent much too long away from her guild these last years, but it had had to be done. She was here now; it would be enough.

Smiling at those she passed in an attempt to calm the tense room, she reached Sudiov, who was staring at the wall in a vaguely panicked way. She slowed as she neared him, wishing she knew his motivation for approaching TUBA for help. How much influence did the Dark Alley's leader have over a separated piece of his power, sapient or not? And Voidmaking - that was something Deteca didn't even want to think about. The ability to neutralize Investiture in seconds like that was unnatural. She told herself to trust Sudiov, though, and spoke. "What's happening? Is it Voidus?"

[Voidus]

Sudiov's eyes locked onto Deteca's, his expression horrified. The unnaturalness of whatever this was was enough that he'd never even considered that Voidus might be behind it. Could it be Voidus' attempt to get rid of him once and for all?

His eyes darted around as he thought for a few tense seconds before finally shaking his head.

"No, I don't think so. It's as bad for him as it for me." Sudiov replied, though not entirely confidently. "It's... wrong. Something's trying to use the Void, the power we both use. But it's all twisted. They're not feeding Investiture into it, they're trying to draw something out."

The concept horrified him on many levels, the idea of trying to twist the power like that in itself bordered on lunacy, it was like trying to make water that burned or air you could swim through. It just didn't make sense. But further than that, what were they trying to pull out? Power? Something sentient?

A shiver travelled down Sudiovs spine before he managed to control himself. His mustache bristled once again as he let out a small cough of apology and continued.

"I couldn't say when exactly it will happen but this can't end well. Best case scenario they pull out whatever they're trying to pull out without accidentally releasing enough energy to level the city worse than the war did, and then we have to contend with whatever they pull out. Whatever it is I can't imagine it's going to be good."

[AonEne he/him]

Worse than the war did. She blinked. Wow... "I can't say I know much about this Void, but if it's that bad, then of course we've got to stop it. How would you suggest we do so?"

[Voidus]

Sudiov pulled his hat off for a moment, allowing him to run his fingers along his hair. Given that he was only semi-corporeal the gesture didn't carry the tactile sensation that he was hoping for, failing to provide an outlet for his stress.

I need another cookie. Sudiov lamented.

"I'm- I'm not entirely sure." He said. "I suppose we could just charge the location but without any additional information that seems foolish."

Could he try to look there himself? It was a dangerous feeling, he could feel whatever it was tugging still pulling at the Void in that strange manner. If he got too close to that it could start pulling him in instead, using Sudiovs own body in place of whatever current connection it was using. No, looking there himself was too dangerous.

"This should concern everyone I would think." Sudiov began to pace as he spoke. "Maybe we could work with the other guilds? Or some of them at least. They likely don't know as much about the nature of it but some of them might have more information that we don't? We should gather more information, maybe send a small group to investigate for the time being. Find allies."

This would affect everyone in the Alleyverse, if they could convince others of the danger then they should have allies aplenty. Some of the other guilds might be at odds with TUBA on occasion but for their shared survival they could work together surely?

"The entire world could well unite against this." Sudiov said, halting his pacing and looking Deteca in the eye once more. "Once we convince people then I doubt there's anyone out there who wouldn't be on our side. Even Voidus probably wouldn't... wouldn't..."

Sudiov trailed off, lips curling up into a grimace that almost looked pained.

"Oh dear." He eventually continued. "One other thing to consider I suppose, Voidus isn't going to like this anymore than I do. The DA might be about to move in force, and I'm not entirely sure how much they'll care about evacuating people out before they start destroying the city to find whatever this is."

[AonEne he/him]

Deteca's eyes narrowed. "Well, we certainly can't let that happen. But if they're against this for certain as well..." A thought occurred to her: could it be his group, doing this from the place she'd found? She filed that away as she had an idea. "The DA might not go crazy if we joined forces," she mused. Deteca didn't like the concept, but they'd stood with the DA before, and the good of the Alleyverse came first. Well, the short-term good; spiking fit into the long-term category. "Forgive me, but do you have a way to contact Voidus - through the Void, or by virtue of...er, of being..." She waved vaguely, embarrassed. "You?"

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Oh, a disclaimer, Deteca's views aren't necessarily my own. Thought I'd say it even if it's taken for granted.

 

Edited July 4, 2019 by AonEne
only noticed the first person months later hah

[Voidus]

Sudiov stiffened as he heard Deteca's proposal, his brow knit together with tension as he gazed sternly back at her.

"You want to join forces with Voidus and the DA?"

Sudiov's cheeks twitched as an array of emotions washed over him in turn. He simply stared at Deteca for a moment before continuing.

"I swore loyalty to this guild, that I would never betray your secrets, do you any harm or fail to support you. However I attached a single condition to that oath."

He would not support an alliance with Voidus, that had been his one and only condition. It had seemed to be a moot point at the time, TUBA and the DA being as opposed as they were to each other. But now this was being seriously considered, and he couldn't exactly blame them for it either. Should he try to ally with the DA for this? They both had an incentive to put a stop to this after all, possibly the only situation where their goals would ever align.

He sighed, the stiffness faded from his posture as he spoke again.

"Would you trust them?" He asked. "If we work together then there may be a time where I'm distracted or weakened. A time he could take advantage of. Even without that, he could bring the entirety of the DA with him this time. Last time I ambushed him with a single other member of the DA and I only just managed to get away, what could they do with dozens? With hundreds? Maybe thousands? I can gather his attention here, maybe communicate if he'd listen. But whatever they promised, do you really think we could trust them?"

His eyes focussed on her, peering intently and waiting for her answer.

[Darth Woodrack he/him]

"I would trust the DA to not let the world be destroyed," Dusk spoke up, "And then I would trust them to use this opportunity where we have over extended ourselves to annihilate us in our moment of weakness,"

"From a purely military standpoint, align with the DA would be an excellent idea," Walker replied calmly, "But from a moral, practical, and future thinking standpoint, it is not a very good one. With the DA with use, we would have difficulty limiting collateral damage, not to mention our drastically different morals. How do you expect TUBA members, who have thrown off Hemalurgy, and view it as varying levels of evil, to go into battle side by side with the DA? We would have to watch our back the entire time, and that would compromise our combat effectiveness. Not to mention the point Dusk put out. We can't trust them not to stab us in the back." NPCs erupted in agreement, and Walker yelled over them, "BUT," They quieted down, "If the fate of the entire world is in the balance, DA and TUBA untied would be so strong that any drawbacks that come with it, would be washed away. If the world will end if we don't do this, then what does it matter if TUBA will be betrayed after it ends? If they destroy our guild after we saved the world, at least we saved the world. We will finally have done something to help the people of Alleyplanet, not exploit them. And, either way, guild ends. We need to take this chance to save the world, while we still have it. I support an alliance with the DA, if it is the only way to save this planet, and all the people on it."

20 hours ago, Sherlock Holmes said:

Dusk is savage and I love him.

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*Wipes away tear* That's probably the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me on the shard.

 

[Sherlock Holmes he/him]

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...I feel bad now.

 

[+Ark1002]

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I HATE DUSK

I'm a terrible person but shut up

The spren watched, absorbing the information.

[Sherlock Holmes he/him]

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3 minutes ago, Ark1002 said:

I HATE DUSK

He's so snarky and adorable, though.

 

[+Ark1002]

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He's too snarky and adorable

Tho in the Duskbent ship...

 

[Sherlock Holmes he/him]

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Just now, Ark1002 said:

He's too snarky and adorable

No such thing exists.

Just now, Ark1002 said:

Tho in the Duskbent ship...

I wish this had actually happened. 

 

[+Ark1002]

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I'd pay for it

 

[Sherlock Holmes he/him]

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Me too. Let's bribe Woodrack together.

 

[+Ark1002]

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I'm in

 

[Sherlock Holmes he/him]

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We even have a spare Hellbent.

Let's make this happen. 

 

[+Ark1002]

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*Cracks knuckles*

 

[AonEne he/him]

Deteca nodded absently, still thinking. "I'm not saying we adhere to their methodology, and it's unlikely that we'd be able to fully trust them. But despite their amoral practices, I'm certain they want the world gone as little as we do. The DA is homicidal, not genocidal. We should at least try." She looked at Sudiov. "We won't ally ourselves with them forever, and you don't have to fight by them if you don't want to. There have to be other ways to help." She stepped closer and lowered her voice. "If Voidus attacks you, he'll be attacking all of us. TUBA fights for its own." No matter how confused I am about you.

[Voidus]

1 hour ago, AonEne said:

Deteca nodded absently, still thinking. "I'm not saying we adhere to their methodology, and it's unlikely that we'd be able to fully trust them. But despite their amoral practices, I'm certain they want the world gone as little as we do. The DA is homicidal, not genocidal. We should at least try." She looked at Sudiov. "We won't ally ourselves with them forever, and you don't have to fight by them if you don't want to. There have to be other ways to help." She stepped closer and lowered her voice. "If Voidus attacks you, he'll be attacking all of us. TUBA fights for its own." No matter how confused I am about you.

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Come on, he has a mustache what's there to be confused about?

Sudiov grimaced. His eyes wandered the room, searching for some kind of other solution before finally they focussed on Deteca again just as she whispered to him. Slowly, mechanically he gave her a slight nod.

"If that's what it takes." He agreed. "Shall I call him then? He might see what's here as well, would that be a problem?"

Decision made he returned to a polite expression, and asked to confirm if contact should be established yet.

"I'd just need to try to feel where..." His voice trailed off as his eyes narrowed, focusing in on Deteca once again.

He regarded her silently for a moment before shaking his head, seeming to dispel whatever thought had distracted him.

"Apologies." He said, breaking the eye contact and hoping it hadn't been too rude.

[Darth Woodrack he/him]

Walker received Tena's email and left. Dusk stayed behind to participate in this meeting.

[Sherlock Holmes he/him]

Kii reached the site of this meeting and floated around, eventually finding Deteca. "We're hosting another meeting in the Alleycity, so we can act immediately," he said to Deteca.

@AonEne