He nodded when she finished speaking. He had heard this all before and nothing about it surprised him. The two would never agree on vision so there was no point in trying.
“My terms…” he stood while speaking and looked at each of the prisoners, “is for someone to step up and supply me with information. There are secrets in your brains that I will find useful. How useful? Well… that would depend on how quickly you want this to end or how painless you want this to be. What you know about pending actions against groups within this city. What you know about secret projects and campaigns. Anything and everything that I might find of use.
Understand thisÂ… whether you willingly tell me this information or whether I have to remove it from your minds with force, I will learn what you know. The difference being is that if we have to use forceÂ… there will be little left to send home when weÂ’re done. HellÂ… if one of you gives me something good enoughÂ… IÂ’d probably take it as being enough and send you all home.
You want to go home; I would like to send you home. It can be done if someone steps up and makes this simple.”
He turns to Alana.
“As for honoring the agreement. Contrary to what you’ve been trained to think about Revolutionaries… I always keep my word. If I say you’re free to go… they’ll take you home. If I say resisting will be painful… again, I’m not lying.”
He took out several pieces of paper and charcoal pencils and dropped them in front of each cell.
“Shall we begin?”
New Blood, Old Blood
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*Selebius
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- Joined: Thu Jan 01, 1970 12:00 am
She looks at the man, the sheet of paper, then the other hostages.
"I will not help you as helping you will only lead to innocents suffering.
Of course I might break under your torture before I die but then you will no longer know which part of what I tell you is the truth and what not."
Glancing at the other hostages she says: "This is my decision and mine only. If you want to cooperate and want to go home it is fine. You do not have to share my fate."
The others seem to be moe than willing to cooperate, yet some are obviously ashamed that they cannot follow their leaders example- but given the choice between freedom and pain their decision is obvious and they seem rather willing to share what they know.
"I will not help you as helping you will only lead to innocents suffering.
Of course I might break under your torture before I die but then you will no longer know which part of what I tell you is the truth and what not."
Glancing at the other hostages she says: "This is my decision and mine only. If you want to cooperate and want to go home it is fine. You do not have to share my fate."
The others seem to be moe than willing to cooperate, yet some are obviously ashamed that they cannot follow their leaders example- but given the choice between freedom and pain their decision is obvious and they seem rather willing to share what they know.
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*Selebius
- Posts: 1073
- Joined: Thu Jan 01, 1970 12:00 am
It is mostly schedules and timetables for shifts, a few names of Harmonium officers, a crude map of some parts of the barracks and one adds the adress of some place in the deeper Huve that has been scouted and might be used as a future forward base.
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*Darkrob
- Posts: 1097
- Joined: Thu Jan 01, 1970 12:00 am
“Interesting…” he said to himself as he looked over the pages. “About what I’d figure I’d get from Notaries. Good work, boys.” He nods to them then turns back to the measure.
“As you can imagine, Measure Two (now reverting to her rank), patrol itineraries and a few names are of little value to me. Maybe some of the rowdier cells who enjoy stirring shit up, but not me. So… that leaves you.”
He sits back down on his stool, positioned in front of Alana.
“You are their commanding officer. Their safety is your responsibility. So… tell me Measure Two… Which one of them dies? The information gleaned isn’t good enough to sustain our deal. I need something better. So I offer you this choice. Give me what I want… what you know that others don’t… or choose a body for the ditch.”
He leans his head towards the others
“Unless one of you has remembered something you might have forgotten earlier?”
“As you can imagine, Measure Two (now reverting to her rank), patrol itineraries and a few names are of little value to me. Maybe some of the rowdier cells who enjoy stirring shit up, but not me. So… that leaves you.”
He sits back down on his stool, positioned in front of Alana.
“You are their commanding officer. Their safety is your responsibility. So… tell me Measure Two… Which one of them dies? The information gleaned isn’t good enough to sustain our deal. I need something better. So I offer you this choice. Give me what I want… what you know that others don’t… or choose a body for the ditch.”
He leans his head towards the others
“Unless one of you has remembered something you might have forgotten earlier?”
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*Selebius
- Posts: 1073
- Joined: Thu Jan 01, 1970 12:00 am
Her eyes stay on his as she answers, her voice showing her contempt.
"I never forgot anything- nor did I choose to lie. However it is more than understandable that these concepts are hard to understand for you.
You lie and you betray- all you do is to hide behind an holier than you attitude and high ideals to veil your rather low and base motivations, your urge to play with lives, your hunger for power and destruction, your vanity.
Now tell me- after what we just witnessed, after you lied to us... how can we trust you?
As far as I know their lives- my life- are forfeited. And be it only because that I - we- now know these things about you."
She perhaps provokes him on purpose but part of him feels that she mostly only speaks her mind- and he also feels the change in her squad.
Where they were were hopeful, cooperative and felt there may be a way out of this not long ago they are now ashamed, depressed, some even angry and hostile- with a certain fatalism attached to this.
"I never forgot anything- nor did I choose to lie. However it is more than understandable that these concepts are hard to understand for you.
You lie and you betray- all you do is to hide behind an holier than you attitude and high ideals to veil your rather low and base motivations, your urge to play with lives, your hunger for power and destruction, your vanity.
Now tell me- after what we just witnessed, after you lied to us... how can we trust you?
As far as I know their lives- my life- are forfeited. And be it only because that I - we- now know these things about you."
She perhaps provokes him on purpose but part of him feels that she mostly only speaks her mind- and he also feels the change in her squad.
Where they were were hopeful, cooperative and felt there may be a way out of this not long ago they are now ashamed, depressed, some even angry and hostile- with a certain fatalism attached to this.
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*Darkrob
- Posts: 1097
- Joined: Thu Jan 01, 1970 12:00 am
"There was no lie. The deal was you give me information about pending actions against others groups or campaigns and projects currently undertaken by your faction or important information I can use. You have," he turns to the rest, "none of you have, supplied me with such."
He looks at the papers and drops them on the floor.
"Officer names? Patrol routes? You think we don't already have these? How do you think we found you?"
He turns back to her.
"You called me terrorist and then proclaimed I would not change your view. Why the sudden surprise now, hm? The false outrage, the moral indignity. No, Measure Two... it is you who refuse to uphold our deal. I told you refusal to cooperate would bring pain... you challenged me on that so here we are on that stage. Pain. Oh... I have no intent on torturing your men. They did make an effort, albeit just enough effort to attempt to fool me into letting you go for nothing. For some reason they feel I'm naïve enough to be happy with mundane reports.
No, Measure... our deal isn't fulfilled. You want me to respect our agreement... then I need what I asked. If you refuse to give it to me.... the pain brought will be on you and it's doubtful the pain will be physical."
He walks over to the door and bangs on it twice. When it opens, and thugs enter, he leans and speaks quietly to them. He then hands them rope, a gag and a small bag to place over one's head. He points to one of the soldiers;
"That one..." and steps aside.
He looks at the papers and drops them on the floor.
"Officer names? Patrol routes? You think we don't already have these? How do you think we found you?"
He turns back to her.
"You called me terrorist and then proclaimed I would not change your view. Why the sudden surprise now, hm? The false outrage, the moral indignity. No, Measure Two... it is you who refuse to uphold our deal. I told you refusal to cooperate would bring pain... you challenged me on that so here we are on that stage. Pain. Oh... I have no intent on torturing your men. They did make an effort, albeit just enough effort to attempt to fool me into letting you go for nothing. For some reason they feel I'm naïve enough to be happy with mundane reports.
No, Measure... our deal isn't fulfilled. You want me to respect our agreement... then I need what I asked. If you refuse to give it to me.... the pain brought will be on you and it's doubtful the pain will be physical."
He walks over to the door and bangs on it twice. When it opens, and thugs enter, he leans and speaks quietly to them. He then hands them rope, a gag and a small bag to place over one's head. He points to one of the soldiers;
"That one..." and steps aside.
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*Selebius
- Posts: 1073
- Joined: Thu Jan 01, 1970 12:00 am
As the guards drag him out the chosen namer does not go without making troubles- what has he to lose? He kicks and punces and curses and it takes three men to drag him outside and another four with weapons to keep the rest of the squad in check.
The Measure stays silent, watches with distant eyes, not bothering to anser Phoenix but her contempt is hard to miss.
Soon the sounds of the struggling outside end with a yelp and a muffled cry of pain.
There are whispers among the namers and the tensions in the room are raising and perhaps only a sharp glance from the measure prevents the hostages to try anything 'stupid'.
"What do you want to know?"
The Measure stays silent, watches with distant eyes, not bothering to anser Phoenix but her contempt is hard to miss.
Soon the sounds of the struggling outside end with a yelp and a muffled cry of pain.
There are whispers among the namers and the tensions in the room are raising and perhaps only a sharp glance from the measure prevents the hostages to try anything 'stupid'.
"What do you want to know?"
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*Darkrob
- Posts: 1097
- Joined: Thu Jan 01, 1970 12:00 am
"You are a measure Two. You're privy to internal planning meetings and forward campaign sessions. The Harmonium is predictably orderly... nothing happens without extensive discussion. I want a list of what you know about current campaigns against groups in this city, secret projects being conducted by the Harmonium and anything else that is intentionally hidden from the public."
He kicks over the paper he dropped on the floor
"Let's keep the rest of your stay less... problematic for your unit. Your cooperation is appreciated"
He leans against the wall near the door while he waits.
He kicks over the paper he dropped on the floor
"Let's keep the rest of your stay less... problematic for your unit. Your cooperation is appreciated"
He leans against the wall near the door while he waits.
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*Selebius
- Posts: 1073
- Joined: Thu Jan 01, 1970 12:00 am
She takes a stack of papers and some of the coal, turns the sheets around to write on the empty back sides of the now somewhat crumpled sheets.
One of the namers wants to protest but another glance of her silences him before he gets started.
There is no need for her to think long about what she writes, her lawful nature ensuring she learned everything important by heart, now being able to reproduce everything thoroughly.
Phoenix learns a few interesting things:
-the most current cypher used by the Hardheads to communicate with the troops- staying valid for another 5 days.
-the Hardheads are preparing to raid a Cell on the Lady's Ward that uses a small liquor store as a safehouse.
-the Measure heard about a Harmonium Reeducation camp that was recently opened on some Demiplane- it purpose unknown to her.
She finishes, scowling at him as she pishes the papers towards him.
One of the namers wants to protest but another glance of her silences him before he gets started.
There is no need for her to think long about what she writes, her lawful nature ensuring she learned everything important by heart, now being able to reproduce everything thoroughly.
Phoenix learns a few interesting things:
-the most current cypher used by the Hardheads to communicate with the troops- staying valid for another 5 days.
-the Hardheads are preparing to raid a Cell on the Lady's Ward that uses a small liquor store as a safehouse.
-the Measure heard about a Harmonium Reeducation camp that was recently opened on some Demiplane- it purpose unknown to her.
She finishes, scowling at him as she pishes the papers towards him.