Shopping Encounters

Jezreel makes a face at that. "Not exactly one of mankind's better creations," she says with obvious distaste. "Though they are *almost* palatable if you drown them in enough peanut butter and honey."

With that, the young Seraph leads the way into the supermarket proper and begins looking for her mother. She'll start in produce because even if she doesn't find her mother there right away, she always finds cool things in the Fiesta produce section. And besides, she still wants to look for rhubarb.

As Fury and Jezreel cruise along the length of the store, peeriing down the aisles for Dodai, when, out of the corner of her eye, Fury spys a man in his late forties. He has greying hair, blading slightly, is a bit overweight, is wearing a sweater-vest of good quality (with leather pads over the elbows) and currently is slightly bent over and is fingering the carrots, searching for a good bunch.

Fury's Ofanite of Fire Attunement knowledge

[Jezreel]
OOC: Ut oh, the thick plottens ... but the real question is did Jezreel find her rhubarb? <g>

[GM]
OOC: Oh, sorry, I thought her chief goal was to seek out her mother.

[Jezreel]
OOC: I was mostly teasing... Finding Dodai was her main goal, though she was looking for rhubarb in the produce section along the way...

At approximately the same time, Jezreel spys her mother down the aisle, looking at a box of Soy Milk with that "shall I get it or not?" look to her face.

OOC: And the GM uses tried and true divide and conquer tactics... :P

IC: Making a face, Jezreel hurries over to her mother's side. "No, Mom," the young Seraph says with the same distaste most teens would show towards the healthy but nearly flavorless liquid. "Get the *real* stuff..."

Dodai shakes her head, "I dunno, I was told that this stuff is really good. Or, was is the Rice Milk?" She reaches over and picks up the box of Rice Milk.

Jezreel is not quite sure why her mom has suddenly gotten on this health food kick; it's not as though it makes any difference to their vessels, but she earnestly wishes her mother would get off of it. Jezreel is all for experimentation and trying new things, but some of the foods Dodai has chosen recently are just plain nasty.

[Dodai]
"Tell you what, we'll get normal milk this week and next week, after I remember whether its Rice milk or Soy milk that's good, we'll get that. Ok?"

Fury narrows her eyes and heads for the gentleman in question. Shes moves as quietly as possible, and only when she's directly behind him does she crack her knuckles
right
behind
his
neck.

The man freezes, his right hand buried in carrots.

"Carrots aren't meant to be used like that," she whispers, menace fairly dripping from her voice. [OOC: Essence effect.]

Fury can literally see the hairs on the back of his neck rise.

"You thought we wouldn't be able to find you, didn't you? Too bad you didn't disguise your latest excursion well enough."

Trying to maintain his composure, the man turns to face you, saying "I'm . . . sorry, might I ask what you're talking about?"

[OOC: though Fury could probably easily restrain him and prevent him from turning around.]

Nearby shoppers seem worried by Fury's actions; some try to ignore her, others move away, such as the elderly who steers her riding cart away from Fury quite quickly.

There still are plenty of people within earshot of even moderate tone of voice.

"I think you know," hisses Fury, very very quietly. "It's time you paid for what you did to those children... I should call my friend Christopher right now, but he'd kill you on the spot, and I want you to suffer as much as your underage 'friends' did."

With a Mother's trained ear, Dodai hears the name Christopher mentioned even over her daughter's protest.

"Stay here, Jezreel," Dodai says. Then deciding she'd rather protect her daughter from the violence which seems to be in the air, she adds, "Better yet, go and get the milk that you want."

Then she starts walking towards Fury and her unknown target. When she is close enough to be heard by both Fury and the man when speaking in a conversational tone rather than by shouting, Dodai, the local representative of Children, asks almost casually, "What is it that Christopher should know?"

At her mother's suggestion, Jezreel starts for the dairy aisle, pleased to have won this round at least. But when the man dodges, obviously intent on fleeing, the strange nature of the whole scene finally sinks in, and the young Creationist stops dead in her tracks.

"This man," hisses Fury, in a voice so low that -only- someone with superhuman perceptions could hear her, "has abused children - so many that I can barely imagine that he has time for anything else - both sexually and emotionally - for years upon years. He runs a website devoted to serving pictures of these children in various displays of blatant pornography, and he often does the violating himself." To many, it might look like she's reading the man his rights.

The rage and outrage on Dodai's face seems almost out of place on a Mercurian. For half a moment, it appears that she might actually step in and physically attack the man herself. But instead, she says only, "Do what your must, Fury..." She pauses a moment. "Or, if you prefer, maybe we can call on our new friends from Judgement. Even in prison," she says with a hateful look at the sex offender, "Child rapists are scorned, and often learn first hand what they have put their victims through."

Thoroughly scared out for his life, the middle-aged man suddenly dodges to the left, trying to get away from the crazed figure before him, this figure who knows the impossible truth and who wants to hurt him very, very badly.

"I - dammit!" shouts the Ofanite as the guilty man runs off. Furious, I give chase.

[GM]
[OOC: Is the Mercurian too upset to think to use her Resonance?]

[OOC: Fury, you going to let the man flee a bit and get out of the store to catch up with him before he can get to far, or are you going to prevent him from leaving, or do you have something else in mind? Yes, Fury would probably be aware that this is starting to become a scene.]

OOC: Which way does the man run -- in relation to Dodai and Jezreel, I mean. I know he goes left... If he runs towards Dodai, she will step in front of him, not offering any harm, but getting in the way of his flight... at least until she knows what's going on. Jezreel, for her part, is mostly watching and waiting, trying to glean for herself what is going on that the two older Angels don't seem to want her to know about. She's trying to solve the mystery, as it were... :)

OOC: Yeppers... So, Perry, which way does the fiend try to run?

[GM]
[OOC: He's ducking to his left, towards the entrances/exits of the store.
The elderly woman is going to be in his way, though.]

+ + + + + **** **** *|
+ + + + + **** **** D *|
+ + + + + **** **** FM*|
EW *|
============= ***********|
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| |~~~~~~~~~~~~~| |~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
main^exit main^entrance

D Dodai
F Fury
M Man
EW Elderly woman on her rider-cart.
* produce on display
+ check out lines (yes there are people in line)
= help desk (yes, there are people behind it)

Fury streaks after the man, her boots pounding against the linoleum floor. For several moments, time slows down for her - each step seems to take about thirty seconds, her heart feels like it's stopped, her lungs only need breath once an hour - as she nears the man, her perfect Ofanite speed reacting the only way it can inside such a limited vessel. "Only gotta touch him," she thinks, stretching her arm out and balling up Essence inside herself.

The elderly woman suddenly looms in the man's path, and, still panicked, he grinds to a halt before dodging around her. Unfortunately for him, that's all the time Fury needs; time snaps suddenly back to normal and she grabs him by the shoulder, spinning him around. "You can run, you bastard," she hisses, "but you'll never hide from me."

[Chris OOC]
Celestial Song of Attraction, performed on the man in question, with two Essence spent on the target number and two spent on increasing the duration. Which leaves me with four, right?

[Perry OOC] Sounds about right to me. Wait, does that include the Essence gain this morning?

[Chris OOC]
Oh, no it doesn't. 5 left, then.

H. Song of Attraction; TN=8 <clatter of dice> 3, 2, CD1
Duration : 3x2= 6 hours>
Disturbance : 2+2+1(essence) + 1(cd) = 6 points of disturbance

[Chris OOC] I suck at check digits. :P

"And even if you could, Professor Jarvis," Dodai says in a very calm and reasoned tone, "We know who you are now. We know where you work. We know who your friends are, even those whom you carefully only meet on the web. It would be in your best interest, Professor, to turn yourself over to the police who are even now on their way and to confess your crimes to them." That last is really as much to let Fury know the police are coming as to intimidate her target. "I assure you, they will be far more merciful than we."

As Fury catches up with the fleeing man, and her mother moves in to face him as well, Jezreel decides to approach. Whatever is going on, they may want to question the man and be sure of the Truth of his answers.

As Jezreel approaches, her superhuman hearing picks up the sound of quick footsteps of someone one aisle over (to her right).

"Fury, watch out!" Jezreel calls out and moving to see who is coming. "Someone's coming down the aisle to my right!"

[GM]
Fury, roll for initiative!

[Chris OOC:] Wouldn't you do that? ^_^

Man - 1d6 + agility => 9 gee . . . I wonder if Fury can beat that.

Fury's initiative roll : CD3, 3+9=12

[Chris OOC:] Would you call this an Agility-based roll? If so, I'd like to use my resonance to boost it. ^_^

okay, resonance roll : TN=7, 2,5, CD1 (that's three ones in row, should we call that divine intervention? [I think not] -darn- )

Okay, rerolling initiative, 9+1+3(cd)=13. Yup, she's still got the upper hand.

I guess it didn't really matter. If I'd rolled a 6...

Order of action declaration will be lower numbers declare first, but higher number's are given precedence (from DC Heros). Thusly, Fury will see that the man is putting his hand beneath his jacket.

[OOC Perry]
Well, the man rolled a total of nine. Fury had to roll 1d6 and then add that to her agility: nine, so she has the intitiative no matter what. She happens to have a 13, much higher than his nine.

So, what does she do? The man is reaching beneath his jacket as Dodai beings to speak. Is Fury waiting to so see how he reacts to what she has to say?

On a sidenote, wouldn't Dodai be /lying/ here, since she's using "we" but only /she/ knows these things? Certainly, a case could be made for the use of the royal "we", but still . . . Jezreel's sensitivity might pick up on such an inaccuracy.

Charybdis OOC: That last is your call, Perry... As far as Dodai goes, she's not really thinking about her daughter's innocent, unworldly Seraphim sensitivities just now. Dodai is pretty angry right now, for this sake of this man's victims, but she also senses a good deal of violence is in the offing. If he surrenders himself to Judgement without a fight, both of these uncomfortable things can be resolved. Dodai is a Mercurian, after all, not a Seraph. And she is experience enough to see the value of both putting up a unified front and seeming to know more than she really does. Besides, at the moment (until Jezreel yells out to Fury), Dodai thinks Jezreel is off getting milk as she was told to do.

OOC2: As for Jezreel, she is not actively resonating at the moment. She had planned to offer her services to help interrogate this man if Fury and her mother needed her to. But she hadn't activated it yet. So, the question is, does her *passive* resonance pick up on her mother's little white lie. Just let me know... If it does, I'll have Jezreel react accordingly.

<thinking> nah, Jezreel's too excited to be paying attention. that's it

OOC: Works for me... :)

Before Jarvis's hand can even make it all the way under his coat, Fury is on him, blazing with righteous fury as she slams his hands around behind his back. Then, letting her momentum carry her, she whips around, dragging him with her, to face Jezreel's aisle, skidding to a stop a few feet from where Jarvis had been standing.

And the room stands still. Well, that it except for Jezreel who's fast approaching, as well as tall, broad shouldered gorgeous blond man [wearing grey trench coat and heavy boots] who turns the corner from the aisle next to Jezreel. He's carrying a full basket of stuff, and the expression upon his face gives proof of his concern for the current situation. He stops and looks on.

"What is the meaning of this?!" says Dr. Jarvis in a very loud tone of voice so as to be sure to attract the attention of everyone within earshot. "I did not come shopping expecting to be assaulted by . . . by . . . " he struggles for words . . .

. . . "such unstable persons are yourselves!"

He's visible trembling, though whether from fear or anger, one cannot tell.

The glaring nature of the Lie assaults Jezreel sense even though she's not actively Resonating at the time, and the takes herself up as if sapped. Intent now on helping Fury and her mother, Jezreel runs to their side...

[Perry OOC: Lie? What lie? The professor *does indeed* believe Fury and Dodai to at the very least emotionally unstable, he's WRONG (maybe), but he's /not/ lying. He was struggling how to state it, rather than search for anything to say]

Charybdis OOC: My bad... I assumed that the Professor knew what Fury was talking about

Perry OOC he does, he hasn't said anything yet to specifically deny anything (and therefore lie) unintentional on my part, its in the character.

and was trying to cover it up by turning the tables on them... I guess I just assumed that Fury had real reason for her righteous anger

Perry OOC: she does

and that since Dodai knew he was hurting children that the professor knew good and well why these people were talking to him about it... So I just assumed it was a lie...

[OOC: woah woah woah, assumed /what/ was a lie? "What is the meaning of this" is an exclamation that he doesn't understand why he's being assaulted by a /complete and total/ stranger or how they could know such things. Doesn't mean he hasn't understood what Fury's been saying, but that doesn't mean he understands what the hell is going on, either. And, yes, he believes that obviously Fury is unstable, and most likely Dodai, too, by association. Obviously, since they're attacking him in public, which is just irrational in his eyes.]

"No," says Fury in an equally loud voice, "you thought you'd covered your tracks well enough, when you went to those motel rooms with those twelve-year-olds. You thought you had your servers full of the pictures you took in those motel rooms safeguarded enough. You didn't expect that anyone would be able to find you. You didn't expect that you'd never get to use those cucumbers on little Timmy."

Jezreel's resonance picks up immediately upon Fury's words regarding "little timmy" as Fury does not believe that this person does, in fact, exist. (OOC: If she does, then she must serve Fate)

Now Jezreel is really confused... Fury is reacting in anger at something she does not herself believe, and her mother seems to be agreeing with her...

Jezreel's reasonance picks up that Fury is lying, because she is speaking words /without a basis of knowledge/ In particular, the statement regarding Little Timmy is a _bald-faced_ lie.

Fury does believe that this man has violated chilren and that he needs to be punished, but her statements of accusation based upon what the professor himself thought are spoken without true knowledge and his interior knowledge, thus they are lies and a black tar of unholiness upon God's once unstained cloth.

Stunned beyond belief that Fury would use a *lie* as a tool to confront this man for his sins, the young Seraph just stands and stares for the time being. Part of her wonders if her mother realizes that Fury has lied not only to her victim, but also to the crowd around them who are listening... The horror of someone's punishment pivoting on a lie disgusts her... And slowly Jezreel's shock slides to revulsion and right past indignation into out and out anger... How dare she!

"I assure you, Randall Jarvis," Dodai says, "That no matter what you chose, your time of hurting children has ended, and your life -- if you keep it -- will be different. I am sure that Dr. Malay," she says, naming the head of Jarvis's department at B.C.U, "Will be hesitant to keep a monster such as yourself on staff once the extent of your perversion is known. I urge you to accept God's Judgement and turn yourself in, rather than facing His righteous Fury."

Her voice lowers again, to the kind of hiss that only she, Dr. Jarvis, and probably Dodai can hear. "You have sinned in the eyes of the Lord our God, Professor Jarvis. The time has come for His retribution." She pauses. "And He has decided to be merciful. You have a choice, Professor. You may spend the rest of your life in prison - and trust me, I will see that it is so - or you may invite me to visit His Divine wrath upon you, here and now. Which do you choose, Professor?"

[Jezreel] Given that she is not half so sure that the human is lying, and that she now knows that Fury is, no... She will still activate her Resonance on the man, but she will not say anything to him... She's too confused... and angry... She is not really sure how to handle this anger given the situation and her mother's apparent acceptance of Fury's actions.

Resonance roll: <clatter of dice> 1, 5, CD4 Whoo-hoo!

Blantantly ignoring Fury's whisperings, as well as Jezreel's words, the professor tries his best to stand tall <clattering of dice> and speaks very loudly :

"Dear God, you are revolting, to think that you could ever consider doing such a thing to another human being is positively horrific. You are disturbing the peace with your insane rants and assaulting innocent persons such as myself. I am a disinguished professor, I have received mentions and rewards for my community service," His face is becoming redder and redder with outrage. "and this is slander, public slander of the worst kind! I will not stand for this abuse! Now, unhand me at once or face even more severe criminal charges!"

The on-lookers stand still in shock, their grocery shopping interrupted, the courses of their lives perhaps changed forever by this celestial intervention. Their eyes remain glued to this emotional scene, their attention held perhaps by some innate knowledge that something is happening that was not planned, the unconscious sense that a change in God's plan is taking place before their very eyes.

The figure with a full basket glances at his watch, then turns around and walks back down the aisle he came down from.

Fury nods. "You have made your choice. Very well, Professor Jarvis."

[OOC Fury is using Whispers of Inspiration on the closest "entranced" shopper who looks reasonably intelligent and receptive to communicate the following message:

"I am the Fury of God made flesh, and I deliver His will."]

<note>
As the scene focuses in on their two faces, Fury's on the left, the woman's on the right, the sound of Fury's voice has an eerie echoing sound, as though the words are repeated over and over again, but as whispers. </note>

The woman blinks and takes it in.

[Fury]
The angel takes a deep breath and steps away from Jarvis, moving around so that she can see his face. She stands erect, her body tense, face impassive. "Professor Jarvis, you are charged with cruelty to children and evading justice. You have fallen afoul of an agent of the Lord our God, and His Will is that you be punished. Your cruelty must end here. Since you do not intend to come peacefully or submit to arrest, the Lord's justice shall be carried out here, now, by I who am imbued with the power and purpose to exact His vengeance."

It takes more time to blink than it does for Fury to draw her handgun, a massive affair that looks as though it belongs in the hands of a drill sergeant. Her arm is straight out, John Woo-style, the Desert Eagle pointed dead-center between Jarvis's eyes.

"I will give you a final chance to allow God into your heart and receive His mercy. Repent your sins now - kneel before the holy wrath of our Lord - and you will be saved forever. You hhave five seconds."

"One."

Dodai turns her head away as Fury draws her weapon. The Mercurian's own feelings are nearly as conflicted as her young daughter's. Her own anger at the atrocities Jarvis has perpetrated against innocent children borders on outright rage. The fact that his perversion is so much a part of him as to define his very relationships sickens her beyond measure. It's almost enough to challenge her Mercurian abhorrence of violence -- almost.

Had Fury not been present when Dodai learned of Jarvis's twisted tortures, she would surely have contacted Christopher and begged him to send in some Malakim to handle the situation. Professor Jarvis clearly deserves Fury's Divine Wrath. And yet, is death the only choice? Wouldn't Judgement have some better way to handle things...

Dodai's desire to see revenge for the innocences shredded by this Jarvis's vile deeds wars with her innate desire for a more peaceful resolution. For the moment, she stands nearly as motionless as Jezreel. But, not wanting to be witness to the slaughter of even the most vile of humans, she turns her head so as not to see.

Hoping to potentially diffuse the situation enough that Jarvis can meet his well deserved retribution in a more civilized manner, the Mercurian of Children says only two words: "Choose wisely."

Upon seeing the gun, the crowd /freaks out/ and begins to scatter rapidly (remember that hand-guns in Canada are very rare and very, very illegal), even the woman Fury whispered to.

The professor promptly wets his pants and kneels, saying humbly "Very well, my maniac friend, if that's the game you want to play, then so be it."

Jezreel can tell that the professor believes very strongly now that Fury is obviously very insane individual, and that he fully intends to play along with the crazt woman's desires, not because he intends on honestly repenting, but because he has gun to his head and he feels he has no free will about the matter.

Her anger at Fury's lie still burns though Jezreel's soul. And though this man's actions are a mockery, he has at least admitted to it. He did tell the lying Angel that he would "play the game..." Jezreel holds her tongue for now, not trusting herself to speak.

Now kneeling, the professor closes his eyes and places his hands together in a very Hollywood prayer position, palms flat together, all fingers standing straight up.

Jezreel can tell that the professor is going through the motions that he has no intention of believing a single word about God or wrath. Obviously, in the professor's mind, he is the victim of an insane vigilante who has decided to take the law into her own hands, who appears to have a God complex and somehow believes herself to be somehow allowed to kill with impunity, without proof of innocence or guilt. He had thought better of humanity.

So far as Fury can tell, the professor is honestly praying.

A beat. A second. Then Fury raises her gun. "We will wait for the authorities." She pauses. "If you are lucky, they won't be the ones I expect."

As Fury forbears to shoot the kneeling man, Dodai breaths a small sigh of relief. Jarvis will be brought to justice after all... and maybe even to Judgement. This is a far better outcome than she could have hoped for.

To Fury, the Mercurian says, "Shall I call the authorities we'd prefer and see if they can get here first?"

[Fury]
Without removing her burning eyes from Jarvis: "Yes."

Dodai whips her trusty cell phone out of her purse (OOC: What self-respecting Mercurian would be without one ) and hits the speed-dial button which she programmed with the number that Detective Ross gave her when she let Jezreel and Damien go with him to the station...

Cut to the phone call

As the scene quiets at least marginally, Jezreel finally grabs a hold of her anger. No good has ever come of a secret... or a lie... and two still stain this whole affair. She simply cannot remain silent any longer. But she is aware, very aware of the crowd around them. They have made the lies that much the worse. And she knows that Fury is hair-triggered. She does not want to see the death that could result for her Revelation as she makes them.

So carefully, oh so carefully, the enraged Seraph thinks about and chooses her words before finally offering them up. Jezreel uses every ounce of every lesson with her Mercurian mother to decide just the right way to present this.

(Were her mother not so wrapped up in her own thoughts, she would likely be remarkably proud of the care and deliberation her Seraphim daughter is using to think before acting, with great care for the consequences of her words.)

The human first, Jezreel finally decides. His lie is easier... And must be settled first to keep him from saying something else which might set Fury off.

Turning to the kneeling man, Jezreel says, "You ought not make a mockery of your plea to God. No matter what madness you may think these women bear, you know upon your very soul that you have committed the sins of which you have been accused. And when facing retribution, you should be honest at least to yourself and admit truly that the punishment which may be mete out here today is fitting. And admitting that, you should send your prayers to God in earnest."

[GM] Professor Jarvis looks up to meet her eyes with his own. He swallows his instinct to roll his eyes at her words upon seeing the honest face of the child who speaks to him. He pauses in uncertainty.

Charybdis OOC: Wow! And without the Song yet even... Go, Jezreel, go... :)

(OCC: Child Molester being told this by a child, a child with a very innocent face, obviously speaking what she believes to be the truth . . .)

[Fury]
Now Fury is hesitant, her hand wavering. She lets a beat go by before adding, quietly, "The girl knows of what she speaks. Be heedful of her warning lest you feel its consequences."

And to be sure that this sinner really gets the point, Jezreel invokes her newly learned Song of Nimbus to impress upon him from whence the message comes. Using her Song far more deliberately now than when she stumbled upon its use in the hallway with the vampiric Mr. Henderson, she purposefully spends 3 essence to help insure her Song's success.

Fury wishes she had access to that song. As it is, Corporeal Healing isn't terribly impressive as angelic powers go.

OOC: Actually, I'd imagine that the ability to heal nigh-instantly would be pretty impressive. Remember in The Crow when Eric's hand heals from when he was shot at point blank range? And also, a Song can have special effects that make them even more impressive. They /are/ miracles after all. :)

TN=2(Corp)+3(Song)+3(essence)=8 <clatter of dice> 4,4, CD5+1=CD6

(OOC: Could someone look up the disturbance for me? I'm at my girlfriend's house and don't have Liber Canticorum with me.)

OOC: Disturbance? We don't need no stinking Disturbance....<g> Actually, I think it's pretty high... <sigh> Oh, well, she is in Service to Revelation, right? :)

OOC2: Degree of Disturbance = check digit + the performer's Forces in the Realm of the Song... So that would be 6 for the check digit plus 2 for Jezreel's Corporeal Forces = 8. Of course, the nagging little Seraph is pointing out that the Essence spent always plays a role in Disturbance, so that adds 3 more for a total of 11... Oops... I think our little Seraph may just have had her Celestial coming out party... :)

As the Song takes effect, Jezreel is lifted into the air slightly, the breath of God rises around her like a wind, the Holy Spirit outstretches her arms and the purely holy white light of truth pours out from her heart and surrounds her with its glow. Her feet meet the earth once more yet the Halo remains, revealing to the world that she is, in fact, an angel of God.

(Perry OOC: Sorry, a lot of Sailor Moon in my diet of late.)
Charybdis OOC: That's okay, I was gonna say, "Coool..." :)

(OOC: Well, I'm not totally ripping off Sailmoon, if /that/ were the case, Jezreel would have been naked for a moment while her costume changed and she would twirled around more and there would have been make-up involved. So, you can still say its cool. /I/ thought it was cool.)

Professor Jarvis tries to get up suddenly, but stumbles back and shields his eyes. Tears of joy and sorrow fall from his face as he realizes that what he believed to be true was a lie and what he thought to be a lie is true. He then kneels and weeps for his sins against a God he had tried to forget, and begins to honestly pray that God might see fit to straighten his twisted heart and forgive his soul.

(Gasps of surprise, confusion, fear, and hope escape from the gathered crowd. The manager says "Oh, dear lord," drops the receiver to the floor, kneels and begins to pray. The woman Fury had whispered to promptly faints.)

Charybdis OOC: And again... COOOOOOOOL! Go, little Seraph, go...

As the Holy Light of God surrounds Jezreel, Dodai turns back to face the scene once more, and she herself is filled with no little awe. For her, though, it's not so much the proof her God's grace or the sight of the Song being sung. It's more the simple, incontrovertible proof that her little girl is growing up. The tears that reach her own eyes are no less joyous than those of the humans in the crowd witnessing the spectacle.

For the moment, the awe, pride, and joy is enough to banish the thoughts of the reprisals which Jezreel may soon face for revealing herself so openly and publicly.

(OOC: Heh heh heh, oh yes.)

[Fury]
"Do you see?" The angel smiles, and the Desert Eagle vanishes. She reaches out, lays her palm on Jarvis's head. "Sometimes our Lord does not work in such mysterious ways."

Whirling then on Fury with barely controlled anger, Jezreel goes on. "Perhaps it was made harder for him, though, Fury, to honestly admit to his guilt and truthfully unburden his soul when *you* tainted this entire affair by *lying* to him and to all who heard you when you mentioned the particulars of his supposed crime." The revulsion and loathing the engaged Seraph pours onto the single word lying is the sort which most reserve for the foulest of depravities. "The fact that he is, in fact, guilty of atrocities of the type and nature you described does not give you the right to wreak vengeance upon him for a specific act which never occurred. If he is to be punished, let it be for one of the many crimes he *really* committed and not for some shadow of a lie conjured out of *your* twisted imagination."

The angel blinks, stunned by Jezreel's wrath, then reaches out and takes Jezreel's shoulder, pulling her gently but with unyielding grasp toward the Ofanite. "You," she whispers once Jezreel is close enough to hear, "must learn the difference between a lie and an illustrative metaphor, my young friend. I will speak more of this to you later." The words ring with pure honesty.

[GM]
(OOC: Assuming that Jezreel even /lets/ Fury touch her.)

The habits of a lifetime of obedience move Jezreel to go along with the elder Angel nearly unthinkingly despite her current rage. But something in her bearing makes her yielding to Fury's touch seem more the gracious acquiescence of a Queen rather than the natural submission of a well-mannered child to a respected adult.

"Were your words anything but a vile blot staining the fabric of the Universe, the Symphony would have told me so." I answer back in Celestial. The rage has faded mostly now to a quiet, controlled anger. "That was not the case. Your words stood out as jarringly as any unholy lie I have ever heard. You knowingly and deliberately spoke a lie where Truth would have served..." The conviction in my tone is absolute... OOC: Ah, the absolutism... the pure black and white vision of youth... :)

OOC: Sigh, how I miss the good old days. Damn you! post-modernists bastards!! (sorry)

The Ofanite responds in kind. "You mistake the singular word for the larger context, Jezreel my friend. Softly, Most Holy. I will explain in time. I promise."

OOC2: ahh, if only Damien were here. Speaking of people showing up . . .

[GM]
The sound of police sirens can be heard in the distance.

Still convinced the Fury is wrong for the lie, Jezreel nevertheless nods her acceptance. The words 'Softly, Most Holy' have an almost immediate and automatic calming effect. It's clear she's been raised to at least pause and listen when they are uttered. And Fury's promise to explain, spoken in Celestial, is clearly binding.

"I do not think your words can change what the Symphony itself has told me," I say in a far more reasonable tone of voice, still in Celetial. "But I will wait, and we may address this issue again later..."

It is clear from her words that Jezreel fully expects for the conversation to make Fury see the error of her ways and not the other way around. But true to her word, the young Seraph drops the subject for the time being

Turning to look at the now truly repentant Jarvis on his knees praying, Jezreel lets go of the last of her anger and smiles slightly. She feels a real sense of pleasure at the sight. It's not pride, exactly, which fills her soul because she knows that she herself was not the reason for Jarvis's change of heart, that rather it was the Divine light of the Symphony itself which has moved him to contrition, but still, she feels a certain sense of accomplishment that she was the Symphony's agent in this transformation.

Turning back to Fury again, the young Seraph speaks calmly, in English. "He repents honestly, now," she says. "All he needed was the chance to see the Truth of the matter..."

Fury nods. "You have done well, young padawan." Beat. "Idiom."

At the mention of 'young Padawan', Jezreel stares at you with a blank look, clearly not getting the reference. When you add the word 'idiom,' the young Seraph nods slowly. "A phrase which means something other than what the words would seem to say," she says, having been told what an idiom is at least. Dodai has been trying to teach her about figurative language, as has Eli himself.

Sounding confused, she says, "I'm not familiar with that one, Fury; what does it mean?"

"It's a Star Wars reference, Jezreel. You need to get out more." Fury smiles.

"Star Wars?" Jezeel asks with obvious distaste. "As in the science fiction film?" The emphasis on fiction might be telling to the trained ear...

"Y-ah," Fury replies hesitantly. "We'll have to talk about that too."

Not quite sure why Fury would want to, but willing to at least talk it out, Jezreel says, "If you wish..."

[GM] The old woman in her motorized cart whirrs over towards Jezreel. She looks at the girl, their eyes level with one another and says, "Angel, I have been praying years 'bout my legs, but they haven't gotten any better, only worse. Has the Lord abandoned me?"

The crowd stands still in shock and curiousity. Jarvis is still on his knees. The manager is still praying.

At the old woman's question, Jezreel's self-congratulatory smile slides from her face replaced by a momentary glimpse of panic. How should she answer this? She can't really. Her eyes dart over to her mother, seeking some guidance from someone who knows now to talk to humans, but Dodai seems preoccupied with listening to the sirens.

Taking a slow breath, still not sure what to say, the young Seraph replies the only way she can -- truthfully. Very slowly and very deliberately (and perhaps just hoping that inspiration will strike or that either Fury or Dodai will step in to help her), Jezreel says, "Honestly, ma'am, I don't know what role your injury plays in the Symphony. The ways of God are ineffable even to His Angels. What I do know, ma'am, is that Heaven wants for all humans to reach their Destiny, and in that, you have not been abandoned."

The woman looks confused, lost in Jezreel's words.

"Tell me, ma'am, are your legs the whole of you that the loss of them would mean the loss of yourself? Or is there perhaps something within yourself which might reach higher if you had to overcome this obstacle?" And Jezreel switches her Resonance to this woman, hoping at the Symphony might give her a hint here when she hears the Truth of the woman's words.

OOC: RESONANCE CHECK! Resonance check! reSonance check!
Resonance, not echo, shut it!!

-sorry-

<clatter of dice> 5,4 CD3 No dice, you lose.

OOC: <whining> Gads, Perry, don't send our young Seraph any hard ones or anything... <g>

"Hold, Jezreel," says the Ofanite softly in celestial, kneeling beside the old woman.

Jezreel flashes you a grateful, relieved smile as she steps aside to do as you ask. She continues to watch the woman to see her reaction.

[Fury]
"My friend," she says in English, "represents the Revelation of God; I am like unto the purifying Fire of Heaven. Will you accept the purity I offer?"

The old woman, bathed in the glow of cool light radiating from Jezreel, peers at Fury with a serious look on her face.

"I accept. Anything's better than these legs."

The crowd watches, except for the manager, he's busy praying.

Out of the corner of her eye, Dodai sees the male figure carrying a heavy basket peer around a corner, watching the situation.

Watching the man closely since he stands out, Dodai tries to make out what's in the basket. Also, for good measure, she invokes her Resonance trying to see where his connections lie.

View Dodai's Resonance results

Fury nods, then closes her eyes and bows her head over the woman's legs.

(OOC: Corporeal Healing, maximum possible Essence directed toward the TN.)

OOC : Hrm, how much Essence does Fury -have- left?? 5, right?

TN = 7+1 for xtra time <clatter of dice> 3, 3, CD2+5=CD7
Disturbance : 7+11=18 (don't worry about it)

OOC: my apologies, Chris as I take some liberties with Fury's actions here.

[IC]
Fury rubs her hands together in preparation for the Song, charging them with the Essence to be used in its singing. Her hands are warm with life-energy as she places them on the woman's legs. Fury bends her head down, focusing herself on the Symphony and the effect she desires. The Symphony's power flows through Fury like an unstoppable tidal wave of passionate love, unfettered inspiration, and seemingly unexhaustible energy. Fury's hands begin to glow a fierce forest green as they take upon them God's healing touch. The woman's eye go wide as she feels this God-force move within her body, touching perhaps her very soul with its presence. Stoic as she may wish to be, she cannot stop her emotions now.

The old woman's thin naked legs begin to expand as new muscle is added to them, the tendons are replenished, the hidden cancer in her lungs dimishes significantly, the arthitis in her hands and knees is cleared. A spark of youth and a newed interest in life appear behind the woman's eyes. The walls around her heart melt, if only momentarily. As the song comes to completion, the woman's head flies upward, mouth agape, and a brilliant shaft of pure green light pours down in from the heavens, filling her body. A slight breeze teases the hair of the on-lookers. Professor Jarvis stares in awe, and even the manager pauses his prayers to look at the sight.

The shaft of light descends into the woman, who's mouth snaps shut and her head snaps back to where it had been.

"I feel fifty years younger," says the woman, her eyes open, pupils dialated with interest. She holds her hand out, as though wishing to rise form her seat

(assuming Fury helps her)

Taking a step on the floor of the Fiesta Mart, her eyes light up and she grins wildy. "I can walk again!" she yells triumphately, just as three police cars close on the outside door of the supermarket, police run out and cover the entrances and exits.

"Nobody move!" shouts one of the cops.