Memoirs of a RAFian

[Cloak]

Yep. Three more chapters to go.

New chapter.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN:
Book Burning

"Broken, it's not working," Faerie said.

"It will! Give it time!" Broken insisted.

"Time isn't a luxury we can afford right now," Faerie said.

"That book might be problematic," Cloak said, seeing monstrous magical tendrils coming off it, in a rather malevolent display.

"It is a grimoire!" Faerie said.

Cloak was familiar with the word, but did not know much in-depth about it. He was still a novice in the terms of magic.

"Broken, it's exhausted her magical reservoir and is putting her life in jeopardy!" Faerie said, after just the merest moments of initial shock.

"D'you think I don't know that?!" Broken said, tersely. His frustrations were starting to show, and his statment brooked no protest. "This tea is useless while that book is still active! The more it replenishes her, the more that damned book will siphon off!"

"So, what? Close the book?" Cloak said. "Or just all-out destroy it?"

Broken appeared to be too harried to have heard properly. He would not allow this neophyte sorceress to perish like this. Not when there was something -- and there had to be something -- that he could do to prevent it. One could argue that this was a test of Broken's probity, but other could say that it was a test of his compassion.

"Cloak," Faerie said, in Broken's stead, "you're a Master of the Fire element, yes?"

Cloak looked a little aggrieved at this little factoid, still struggling with his pyrophobia, but also perplexed at why Faerie would ask. She already knew the answer. "Yes, but you know this already, Faerie."

"Yeah, I do know," Faerie said, in a snarky tone she reserved for only when she was stressed out. "Burn the book!"

Burn the book. It was almost sacrilege to a bibliophile. But Cloak was all too aware of the necessary implications of this. And so, despite his lingering pyrophobia, he acquiesced and complied.

The book burned, shrivelling into ashes at an unusually quick pace. Cloak grew suspicious at this, but didn't know anything to be done about it. Then the ash blew outside the open window into the February afternoon, whose clouds threatened precipitation.

But it no longer could siphon or leech off of Melissa anymore. Meaning tbat the herbal tea now could take, and replenish her lost energy a magical reserve.

[Cloak]

New chapter.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN:
Resuscitation and Familiars

"There," Broken said, "her condition is stabilizing for the time being."

Nikki leaped up on the bed, her red flea collar standing out against her midnight black fur, and she sat at Melissa's shoulder, her round, golden eyes were intelligent and aware, and she placed her left forepaw on Melissa's shoulder, as if to reassure her.

This was not lost on Broken, who instantly surmised what was up with Nikki. "Oh . . . she made a familiar."

Nikki removed her paw from Melissa as she huffed a silent hurrumph of disapproval, as if to say, If anyone's a familiar here, the girl is my familiar. But the silence spell was still in effect, albeit with a weakened range, limited to only the city block.

"Familiar?" Cloak inquired.

"An attendant animal or spirit," Broken elaborated. "They usually display an intelligence above a normal animal, and an attachment and a deep loyalty to a magic user. A single magic user. Sometimes, it happens without knowledge to the magic user, once they forge a powerful bond with an animal or spirit. An unbreakable bond."

"A human magic user," Faerie corrected dryly.

Nikki turn her head to the side, looking at no one, because even she knew that it was true, though she was born an ordinary cat. And born a stray, until Melissa found her and adopted her. Sure, the apartment was threadbare and very sparcely decorated, but it was a home when Melissa was there.

"Like Saberhagan?" Faerie said, flatly.

"That was a unique case," Broken said, "from what I know."

"Just because you're the Sorcerer Supreme doesn't mean you know everything, Broken," Faerie said, and Cloak was puzzled by this sudden hostility.

"I never said that I did," Broken said, evenly and calmly. This just seemed to irritate Faerie, though she said nothing more. She seemed to be just as huffy as Nikki was moments before, and Cloak couldn't imagine why, but he did not pursue the subject, though it did bewilder him.

Broken looked as if he may have pursued the subject, had Melissa not groaned, causing Broken to remark, "She's coming around now."

Faerie still looked a little huffy, perhaps because she was constantly overlooked in favor of Broken as the expert on various magicks? Possibly.

"What happened?" Melissa said, somnulent.

"Do not worry, you shall be fine," Broken said gently.

You might think that Melissa be concerned by three strangers in her apartment, with the door ajar. But she had recognized Broken immediately which immediately woke her up.

"I know you!" she proclaimed. Faerie glowered at this reaction, at the fact that evidently Broken had a reputation akin to Albus Dumbledore in the magical community. Could it be possibly envy or jealousy that motivated this reaction in the faerie? "You're the Sorcerer Supreme!"

Broken hesitated a bit, not really enjoying this semi-celebrity status, befoe replying, "That I am."

Melissa was beginning to gush, but Broken stopped her prematurely as Faerie crossed her arms and rolled her eyes, discontent.

"But there is something that needs to be done, Melissa," Broken said, having gotten her name from her gushing, "there is a spell that you may not have been aware of casting."

Faerie had left the room.

[Cloak]

New chapter.

CHAPTER NINETEEN:
Soundless No More

"What?" Melissa asked.

"You cast a spell of silence," Broken said, kindly. "My colleague and I weren't affected because of innate magical protections. My colleague in the cloak -- well, he is biologically magic-proof."

"I don't understand," she admitted.

Broken nodded, knowingly, "I know that there is much for you to understand, Melissa, but this is a spell only you can undo. You have unintentionally sealed it from being undone by anyone else."

"I did?"

"It's actually more common from magical neophytes -- those new to their craft -- than you might think, though the grimoire you were using had grossly magnified this."

"Grimoire?"

"The large, leather-bound book you were using," Broken explained. "It was siphoning off your magical reserves, then your life force after that was exhausted. We had to destroy it to save your life. It would have leeched every bit of life in you, and only stopping ehen there was nothing left."

"Oh. Thanks! I - I think." Melissa said. "How do I undo the silence spell? I don't even remember casting it."

"Did you say or do anything really passionate? Something really emotionally charged?" Broken asked. "Untrained magic is often linked to emotions."

Melissa's expression brightened with surprise.

"You remember something, I take it?"

She got up as music began. Clearly, the spell was breaking already.

"I thought I wanted quiet
I thought I could apply it.
But now that I have tried it . . .
I'm sick and tired of quiet!"

There was a silent BOOM, which was an odd experience that Broken did not seem too surprised about.

***

Cloak had gone after Faerie. She had gone outside, leaning over a railing.

"Go away," she said, upon his aprroach.

Cloak did not. But he gave her her distance.

"Please, Cloak," Faerie said. "Just go away."

"Not with you like this," Cloak said. "You are vulnerable."

"No, I'm not!"

"Faerie, I see through that bravado." Cloak said. "I see the struggles that are similar to the ones I've faced."

"Cloak . . . I'm . . ."

Cloak allowed her to go on at her own pace. He did not challenge or encourage her, as such things could have been easily misinterpreted, and she was libel to lash out in such a state.

"I . . . please, Cloak, just leave me alone," Faerie said.

"As you wish," Cloak said, wondering if he was doing right by her, "but, just allow me this one warning. Don't close yourself off to people. Don't close yourself off or distance from your emotions. It is very difficult to come bwck from that once you do."

With thst, Cloak left Faerie alone with her thoughts.

[guitarhero01234]

That ending . . . Man, you really know how to hit me in the feels.

[Cloak]

And now for an ending chapter that I think you're gonna like, GH.

New chapter.

CHAPTER TWENTY:
Who!

From that point on, Melissa became Broken's apprentice. He would teach her how to control, refine, and wield her magic. An offer she eagerly accepted. And, by doing such, she became a RAFian herself. Something else she was excited about, having heard about the heroic exploits of the RAFians.

And, being a RAFian, she got her own thread that she quickly moved herself and Nikki into. Nikki appraised it and found it only suitable. She was a hard cat to please.

***

Cloak was trying to meditate, when a bunch of ne'er-do-wells decided to do an impromptu concert to celebrate the end of silence.

"Can you watch me? Can you listen to me? Can you smell me? Can you hear me?!" a bad crooner sang, as his bad played on with varying levels of amateurish skill.

"Unfortunately, yes!" Cloak roared, crankily. GH was standing beside him, cigarette dangling dangerously in his mouth, looking perfectly at ease. "GH, what's the name of the group, playing on stage?"

"Who."

"The name of the group."

"Who."

"The group on stage."

"Who."

"The group playing on stage."

"Who."

"You're starting to sound like a Hoothoot, GH," Cloak said.

"Who is on stage!" GH insisted.

"That's what I'm asking you," Cloak answered, "who's on stage?"

"That's what I said!"

"You said who?"

"I sure did."

"So tell the name."

"Who."

"The name of the group."

"Who."

"The group on stage."

"Who."

"The name of the band on stage."

"Who!"

"You're doing the Hoothoot thing again!"

"I am not!" GH protested. "I'm just telling you Who is on stage!"

"So, tell me."

"Who!"

"The name of the group."

"Who!"

"The group on stage."

"Who!"

"That's what I'm asking you!"

"And I'm telling you the answer!"

"Wait, GH, let's start over." Cloak said, trying not to get frustrated. "Is there a band on stage?"

"Yes."

"Does that band have a name?"

"Yes."

"D'you know the name of that band?"

"Yes."

"Then tell me the name of the band on stage."

"Who."

"The name of the band."

"Who."

"The band on stage!"

"Who!"

"The band playin' on stage!"

"Who!"

"That's what I want to know!!"

"I'm telling you!"

"Who is on stage?"

"Yes."

"Who is?"

"Yes."

"Oh, so the name of the band is 'Yes.'"

"No, Cloaky, Yes isn't even at this concert."

"Then who is on stage?"

"Yes."

"Who is?"

"Yes."

"That's what I just said," Cloak said, "Yes is on stage."

"No, Yes isn't here, Who is."

"What are you asking me for?!"

"I'm not!"

"Wait! Let's try this again." Cloak said, mastering his frustration. "Do you see the band on stage?"

"No, I don't see The Band, that's a different group entirely." GH stated, matter-of-factly.

"On stage, GH. Look! See the band?"

"No, I don't."

"Get rid of that cigarette -- we'll be talking about that later --and look," Cloak said, insistently. "Now, look! See the band?"

"No, that's not The Band," GH disagreed, "The Band is preforming later on. Who's on stage."

"You tell me."

"Who."

"The name of the group on stage."

"Who."

"The name of the group!"

"Who!"

"THE GROUP ON STAGE!!"

"WHO!!"

"THE BAND!!"

"No, The Band is performing later, right now we're listening to Who!"

"THAT'S WHAT I WANT TO KNOW!!!"* Cloak shouted. Then he recinsidered, and said, "You know what? Forget it."

He stormed away to his thread.


*Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=Mdqv5xIsFLM

[guitarhero01234]

I know this is almost a word-for-word adaptation of the Animaniacs sketch, but I loved it so much I had to give karma. For the record, the song that I'm pretty sure they were parodying ("See Me Touch Me") is really the only Who song regularly played on the radio that I don't like. I do like me some Yes, though.

Also, considering that the Animaniacs sketch pretty obviously takes place at Woodstock, can we be sure that it was tobacco in that cigarette and not something else? Actually, that would explain a lot of my antics in Memoirs

No I have never smoked actually weed or done any illegal drugs, for that matter.

[Cloak]

Nah, just tobacco. It's a crazy enough universe.

New chapter.

BOOK CXIV:
THE BUREAU
CHAPTER ONE:
The Headless RAFian

At a bonfire, despite still being Februrary, Phoenix sang a campfire song:

"Just gather 'round and I'll elucidate
What goes on outside when it gets late.
Along, about midnight, the RAFghosts and Birdies,
They get together for their RAFly jamboree.
There's RAFians with horns and saucer eyes.
Some with fangs about this size.
Some are phat and some are grim.
And some don't even wear their skin.
I'm telling you, sibs, it's a frightful sight
To see what goes on RAFoween night.
When the RAFians have a midnight jamboree,
They break it up with foolish glee.
RAFians can be bad, but the one that's cursed,
It's the Headless RAFman, he's the worst!
That right, he's a fright on RAFoween night!
But when he goes a goggin' 'cross the land,
Holdin' his noggin in his hand.
Banned take one look and moan,
And hit the road for part unknown.
Beware, take care, he rides alone.
And there's no RAFians like a RAFian whose spurned.
They don't like him, and he's really burned.
He swears to the longest day he's dead.
He'll show them that he can get a head.
They say he's tired of his flamin' top.
He's got a yern to make a swap.
So he rides one night each year
To find a head in the hollow here.
Now he likes them little,
He likes them big.
Part in the middle, or a wig.
Black or white or even red.
With a hip-hop and a clippity-clop,
He's out lookin' for a top to chop.
So don't stop to figure out a plan.
You can't reason with a headless man!
Now if you doubt this tale is so,
I met that RAFian just a year ago.
Now, I didn't stop for a second look.
But made for the bridge that spans the brook.
FOr once you've crossed that bridge, my friend,
The RAFian is through, his power ends.
So when you're riding home tonight,
Make for the bridge with all your might.
He'll be down in the hollow there.
He needs your head, look out, beware --
With a hip-hop and a clippity-clop,
He's out lookin' for a top to chop.
So don't stop to figure out a plan.
You can't reason with a headless man!"

"Is that real?" Dpsb asked.

"Of course not," Cloak said, dismissively. "It's just a myth. Just a fable or a tall story."

"Doesn't mean it can't be true," Saffa said.

"You're just being contrary," Cloak said, stoically.

"Doesn't invalidate my argument," Saffa said, with an indifferent shrug.

[redtailedsaffa]

Goddamn, what gh said, that chapter really got to me. That conflict in the last few was played out very well. Turned out to be a great book, this.

And here's the PDF:

Also, new book title sounds like some George Orwell stuff. Very ominous.

[Cloak]

Thanks.

Though I don't know about this book being Orwellian, as it is loosely based on an episode from "Eerie, Indiana".

Anyway, new book ideas. And, yes, I know that they are more vague than usual. Some of them, anyway.

• Book DCCCLXXIX: "Hyper Time" -- An abusive boy finds a very special suit.
• Book DCCCLXXX: "Different Dimension Suit" -- A shy boy finds a very special suit.
• Book DCCCLXXXI: "Dream Dropper" -- A dreamer finds a very special suit.
• Book DCCCLXXXII: "An Old Foe" -- The RAFian reminiscence about dispelling a Mor-Taxan invasion nearly twelve years or so ago.
• Book DCCCLXXXIII: "Contentions" -- The RAFians are drawn into a conflict between the Highbreed and the Mor-Taxans.
• Book DCCCLXXXIV: "Cryog Me a River" -- A villainous foe of RAF tries to instigate a war between the RAFians and the Cryog.
• Book DCCCLXXXV: "Strength Suit" -- A bullying victim finds a very special suit.
• Book DCCCLXXXVI: "Sky Suit" -- A thrillseeker finds a very special suit.
• Book DCCCLXXXVII: "Sea Suit" -- A swimmer finds a very special suit.
• Book DCCCLXXXVIII: "Soil Suit" -- A dirty person finds a very special suit.
• Book DCCCLXXXIX: "The 'Porter" -- A flighty person finds a very special suit.
• Book DCCCXC: "Shadowed Man" -- An often overlooked prankster finds a very special suit.
• Book DCCCXCI: "Mnemonic Wanderer" -- An amnesiac finds a very special suit.
• Book DCCCXCII: "Silenced No More" -- A mute teen finds a very special suit.

Don't think I rehashed any plotlines, and all titles are subject to change at any time. At this point, it is quite easy to do. But as I've said before, I do intend to write all of these books, even though I don't make a dime off 'em.

New chapter. Sorry about the brevity.

CHAPTER TWO:
The Lost RAFians

After the bonfire, Cloak went to the archives. He was feeling a bit on the nostalgic side, and was watching old videos of older missions. Including some RAFians that were all but forgotten, and unknown to some of the newer RAFians.

"Who are they?" asked a voice.

Dspb, Saffa, and GH had joined him.

"That's Kelran, a RAFian gryphon. And traycon." Cloak said. "And Ken. And Anna."

"I don't know them." Saffa said, as Hylian Dan appeared on the archived footage.

"You wouldn't," Cloak said, looking at footage of CounterInstinct and RYTX having a spirited discussion, as RAFians are apt to do. "They were . . . lost, before you joined up."

"They don't have Marks." Dspb said, looking a footage clearly displaying Leafy's open palms.

"They were lost to us before the Marks came into being," Cloak said, as Taiyoh was discussing something, looking thoughtful.

"You keep saying lost," GH said, as Cloak snapped the footage off. "Are they dead?"

Cloak was silent for a moment or two, before replying, "I cannot answer that which I do not know."

"You could said, 'I don't know', too, Cloak." Saffa teased. "There's such a thing as being too cryptic."

Cloak said nothing, but that was because his mind was on the RAFians whose statuses were unknown. Gafrash, Ken, Anna, Kelran, tray, and the rest . . . they did not know whatever became of them. The old guard . . . Cloak remembered them fondly. . . .

"Cloak?" GH asked. "Are you okay?"

Cloak didn't like not knowing ehwt happened to them, these venerable RAFians. He felt guilt and shame never finding out what became of them. He had just assumed they moved on with their lives, and put the whole missions and such behind them. RAFians do do this from time to time.

But they never drop out of contact, off the radar, as these lost ones did. He and the other RAFians had gotten so busy, so obsessed with other missions of greater priority, that . . . eventually . . . they were forgotten by almost all. They were lost to RAF.

And, Cloak was quick to realize, no one was immune. He, himself, could just as easily be lost . . .

[Cloak]

New chapter.

CHAPTER THREE:
Well, That Was . . . Usually Unprecedented

The next day, Cloak was feeling particularly restless. He could not decide on anything to do, and paced around. He did not know the cause of this restlessness, but knew that he must excise it as soon as he could.

He left the forum, but told no one. They would all assume that he was in one of his moods, which was undeniably true. He left his thread, his footfalls quiet as his feline nature and physiology made them such. He did not head to the forest, to meditate. He would not search for Aniyu right now, as he knew that it would only end up in frustration.

So, he donned his ID mask, projecting his usual human image over his form, making him appear to be three feet shorter than he really was, and a whole lot meeker than he took truly was. He wasn't aware by affecting this appearance that he might be making himself into a target, because he had allowed himself to become comfortable with people giving him his space.

Thos was rather dangerous to Cloak, who had a habit of being guarded with things. It was careless and reckless of him. He was dimly aware of this, but he really didn't care. He was restless and irritable, as he manuevered around the city.

He passed an electronics store where Bern Bridges was on the television, which was odd because Cloak was under the impression that he had a radio show, not a tv show. He was spout off his usual bile-filled bilge which had no factual basis, thouh he pretended that it was unshakable proof of RAF's culpability in everything conspiratorially happening in the world. Not a word of truth in his entire spiel. But what angered Cloak most was the crowd watchingnit and nodding as if Bridges was presneting some good points when it was just vile vomit of thr most repugnant kind.

And people just chose to believe that as truth. They chose to believe it as truth because they wanted to believe it was true. Emotion over rationality, whereas Cloak's rationality usually always superseded his emotions, which were, at most times, kept under lock and key.

Cloak had stopped in an alleyway, to compose himself. To take a deep breath, and remind himself that not everyone was a slave politically to their emotions, and some cared more about actual facts rather the spin placed on them.

It happened with a single footstep. He had accidentally Earthsighted a network of tunnels beneath the city that he never "saw" before with Earthsight, all leading to a single cavernous room that seemed to be some sort of perverse storage depot. This shocked him, because he thought he knew everything about the city's geography, both abive and below ground. How could he have possibly this? It couldn't have possibly have been new. There could not be this much progress for this system of tunnels in a span of two months let alone one.

"Hands where we can see them, boyo," came a voice with a really bad Irish accent. Obviously, something to disguise their voice, and not very well, at that. "Obey and no one need get hurt."

He sounded as if he really wanted Cloak to disobey them. Cloak knew that these guys would immediately renege on this if he complied. And Cloak was really not in the mood for this.

"Now, now," the guy with the bad Irish accent said again. Cloak saw that he wore a yellow ski mask, where only his blue eyes were visible. Cloak found it very difficult to feel intimidated in this situation. "We don't want to get hurt, now do we?"

"Yes," Cloak said, indulging in the feline inclination to play with their targets. Not that he considered these would-be muggers food, or a threat. "I'd imagine that you'd really wouldn't want to be hurt."

"He thinks he's clever, he does," said one of the three would-be muggers, this onenin a blue ski mask, speaking with a dreadfully bad ****ney accent. "He isn't right in the head, this one."

"Let's see if he bleeds," said the one in the red ski mask. He spoke with a very poor southern drawl. "Let's see if he bleeds."

Cloak was irritated by these very bad accents, and yet, part of him was very amused by the fact that these three thought they could mug him. Granted, his ID mask hid his identity of being a nonhuman, but the fact that three had no idea with what and who they they were dealing with amused the Realm Walker, despite himself.

"Not yet, Larry," Yellow Mask said.

Larry? Cloak thought. That had better be a pseudonym, or these three are dumber than I thought.

"Lemme," he said, savagely in a deranged manner. He dropped the not-so-subtle southern drawl, that that he was trying to use to disguise his rather distinctive voice. Cloak could tell that this Larry guy had a sadistic, masochistic personality, and Cloak wondered about his sanity. "Lemme, lemme, lemme . . ."

"Not yet," Yellow Mask said, maintaining that pathetically bad Irish accent. Then he addressed Cloak, "Give us your valuables, pal."

Cloak's eyes glinted dangerously, but the three guffawing, grimacing idiots did not get this as a warning sign. "You really haven't any idea who you're dealing with, do you?"

[redtailedsaffa]

Forgot to mention this earlier, but now I read all of Bern Bridges' outbursts in JK Simmons' voice.

[Cloak]

Well, that's a bit odd, considering the person I based Bern Bridges on is a lot fatter and a lot more obnoxious than J. K. Simmons.

New chapter.

CHAPTER FOUR:
Suspicions

"So," Saffa said, as she and the others heard what happened, "what did you do then?"

Cloak recalled this. Recalled driving the three into the ground like tent spikes, and leaving them there for the police to figure out what to do with them. He was aware that there were some pro-RAFian cops, but, as logic would dictate, there were anti-RAFian cops as well.

"I grounded them," Cloak said.

"In what way?" Saffa asked shrewdly.

"Now, about the new tunnels that I Earthsighted," Cloak said, obviously deflecting the issue, "I find it highly suspicious."

"Cloak, I will not be dissuaded so easily," Saffa said, with a withering glower that would cause even the bravest men to quiver with fear.

"Isn't it possible that you just haven't noticed them before?" Abby said. "You are rarely in the city when not actively on a mission, and thus have your mind focused on the task at hand."

Cloak said nothing for a moment. Realm Walkers tended to be a prideful species, and Cloak was not immune to this facet. He replied slowly, "It . . . it is possible. I . . . I suppose."

Cloak realized how prideful he sounded, and he felt shameful for it.

"I think there is a bigger question here," Wild said. "The question isn't so much as how, but why. From your description Cloak, these tunnels are not natural in origin, and you said that you Earthsighted an underground depository of some sort, right?"

"That I did," Cloak said.

"What exactly is a depository for?" Wild continued, speaking rhetorically. "What is stored there?"

"Looked like junk to me," Cloak added.

"That just brings up the question of why have a depository for junk?" Aquilai chimed in.

"Geez, this sounds like the plot for a '90s kid show." GH commented. No one appeared to pay him any mind.

"There is just too little information for us to make any salient conclusions," Terenia said, thoughtfully. "Too little information to go off."

"Then the solution is simple," Dpsb said, " we're just gonna hafta investigate it ourselves!"

[Cloak]

New chapter.

CHAPTER FIVE:
Do or Do Not, There is No Try

Silence met Dspb's words.

"What?" he said, sounding a bit defensive.

"He does have a point, you know," Cloak said. "There needs to be an investigation on this."

"Why?" Sakki asked.

Cloak began to say something, but stopped when he realized he couldn't make a reasonable argument for going. Not one that he felt that was sound enough to suffice. He couldn't really say because he wanted to or because he had a hunch, he felt.

"Cloaky," Horse said, "there isn't a reason for us to investigate. It could, and probably would, be seen as us exceeding our authority."

"And god knows that our PR is in the proverbial toilet, thanks to Bern Bridges, the loudmouth whose more sourdough than man," Faerie said, dully.

Cloak remained silent, as he tried to conceive of a better argument than what he currently had. He did not know why this was so important to him, but he felt that it was a necessary excursion. Or maybe it was just his feline curiosity getting the better of him. Or maybe it was something else. Who knows?

"I actually think thst Cloak is right," GH said.

"GH . . ." Mr. Guy said.

"No," he said, more firmly. "I know you think that I'm just some lovable goofball -- and I am -- but I can be serious when the time calls for it. This happens to be one of those times."

"We can't just go and investigate," Mr. Guy said. "It may very well be outside our jurisdiction."

"And if it is? And if we don't act immediately on it? Even preemptively?" Saffa said. "No matter how you slice it, there is gonna be some political blowback. Regardless of action or inaction, we will have to foot the blame. I'm not saying that it's fair, by any means, but politics and public opinion are rarely fair."

"Saffa, such a decision isn't something to be taken lightly," Steph said.

"I'm not saying it is," Saffa said. "But I'd much rather be seen doing something, than doing nothing and being dismissive about a potential threat."

"But we don't know that it's a threat," Aquilai said. "We would get marred as interventionists."

"Not if this network of tunnels and storage depository is not perfectly legal," GH countered. "You're assuming that the existence of this actually is legal. What if it is not?"

"And if it is?" Aila asked.

"I doesn't matter what we do," Cloak said, "some people will always find it dubious. Some people will always choose to ignore the facts, a few with great gusto. We won't achieve universal popularity -- that's an impossibility. There will always be people who question our methods, our positions, our integrity, whether with or without reason to. Bern Bridges proves this daily."

Silence met the Realm Walker's words, as everyone appeared to mull this over.

"People will believe whatever they want to believe." Cloak continued. "There is no changing that. You might becable to convince some people of the truth, but there will always be those who resist, those who refuse to.acknowledge any legitimacy to it. But we cannot allow that to impede our goal of granting the people safety just the same. We do. Or we do not. Each choice -- as inaction is a choice as well -- has potentially detrimental political ramifications."

Silence again, but this time Cloak did not break it as it stretched on and on.

[redtailedsaffa]

Heh, chapter title.

Nice speech.

[guitarhero01234]

Really liked this chapter. Cloaky's speech was great, and Saffa and I just tore **** up. *High fives*