groovygamers.com

Sylvia declines Sammy's offer to take her to the ground.  Jack's physical training has disabused her of her last shreds of acrophobia, and she finds the roof a good, quiet, private place to think.  Something needs to be done about Torrance, no question, but Colin has a point in that no one out there enforces lawful behavior in mentalists.  Sylvia wonders again what she can and should do, and as always she asks herself who could help and advise them.  She doesn't know.

She searches for Torrance, doing her best to listen for eavesdroppers before she reaches out to the cool and soothing mind of Logan Darklighter.  Logan, she whispers, be careful of Torrance Shipman.  She can read your mind and has the means to make herself unnaturally persuasive.

A moment later Sylvia's mobile phone rings.  The caller ID says it's Logan.

"I'm calling to check on the validity of a recent experience."  he says.

She presses her phone to her ear and huddles on the rooftop behind a retaining wall.  "Are you hearing voices?  It wasn't all in your head.  I promise."

There's a change in her when she talks to Logan, especially under the stress of fresh conflict.  She exhibits a kind of brooding poise that she won't fully express until she has the faith, trust, and pixie dust beaten out of her.

"In my head is a matter of geography and not sanity.  So it was you that sent the message, not someone else pretending to be you.  Why don't you meet me for hot tea and tell me what you know.  I have some insights that might be helpful for you and your group in other endevours"

"Certainly.  Where?"

"Caribou Cafe.  Go during lunch.  I'll even spring for food.  They have really good sandwiches."

Sylvia leaves campus without a problem, moving inconspicuously through the lunchtime throngs and escaping onto the sidewalk that runs past campus and toward the free world.  Caribou Cafe exudes the enticing smell of fresh-baked bread and soup made of real stock, and the even more alluring and forbidden scent of fresh-ground coffee.  Sylvia slides in through the doors and looks around for Logan.

Logan occupies a small booth in a corner.  He sees Sylvia and smiles, waving her over.  "So, young Ms. Shipman is a psychic.  That makes so many things make sense."

Sylvia seats herself, doing her best to look not like a freshman truant.  The thought becomes a glamour.  The girl across from Logan looks less like a high school student and more like an unusually poised college co-ed, maybe a literature major with the pencil tucked behind her ear and the pilling hand-knit coat.  "Has she approached you?"

"I've been making myself hard to find lately.  Congratulate Colin next time you see him.  He takes excellent notes."  He waves over the slim pretty waitress and orders tea and a club sandwich.  He lets Sylvia order then waits for the waitress to get out of earshot.  "So what happened?"

"She homed in on Sammy, cornered her in the hall and tried to provoke her into some kind of display.  She has abilities like mine, telepathy, a subtle sort of mind control.  She knew I was trying to read her."  She pauses, looks at Logan like he might be able to make more of the tidbit of information than she can.  "But she didn't use her powers on Elrod when they were in the parking lot of Tasty Dog.  Either she chose not to, or she couldn't for some reason."

"Tainted fruit?"  he says absently as the waitress arrives with their drinks.  "Or some people are immune.  Or."  The word is drawn out as his focus shifts to a point on the horizon of his thoughts.  Sylvia notices that he only seems to do this when they talk.  She's seen him have countless conversations with other people, and he rarely looses focus, and never drifts off.  Except when the two of them are alone.  "Maybe she did use them.  Maybe she can't make someone do something they're not inclined to do.  Or she hasn't learned how to reliably yet."  He digs into his ever present bag and hands her a manila folder of news paper clippings and police reports.  "She used to live in Sunnydale California.  Only child or wealthy parents.  Dad has always kept her in public school.  She wasn't very popular growing up, because of her epilepsy.  She had a few seizures in grade school and was labeled a freak.  Got surgery at a neuro-surgical clinic when she was a Freshman.  Fixed her epilepsy, but I'm guessing gave her mental powers.  Right around that time she had a round of plastic surgery, and was suddenly the most popular girl in her school.  Pep squad, student government, clubs."  He takes a sip of tea.  "If you're wondering, I have not had plastic surgery, nor do I have mental powers that I am aware of."  He puts in another sweetener and stirs the liquid.  "Her Junior year had the highest suicide rate the school ever had.  Eleven girls killed themselves, and on top of that there were almost twenty violent fights resulting in injuries on campus.  I think she was learning what she was capable of."  Sylvia notices a copy of Torrance's transcripts in the folder as well.  She went from being a B student to being an honor student right around the time her powers likely developed.  "All the girls were friends of Torrance or girls she knew directly.  The police thought she might have been killing the girls and making it look like suicides, but could never make a case.  The family moved here recently, no particular reason since dad's business is international and he works from home."

Sylvia digests this information with a pensive sigh.  "Colin brought up the point that nothing she's done so far is provably illegal, and I'm not sure who polices this kind of thing anyway.  She's dangerous, though.  This is escalation we're seeing, like a serial killer warming up to his spree.  She tried to persuade me that people like us, her and me, should have whatever we want, and she makes a compelling argument.  Everything she's done, I've done.  It might have been with a different agenda, but did that make it right?"

"Don't go down that path.  If Greg were here he'd use his Yoda voice and say something about the dark path and how if you go down it your lost forever.  I'm a little more realistic.  It's a tactic she's using on you.  She'll play on your doubts.  So focus on the goal, stopping her form hurting people."  Food arrives, and Logan give Sylvia a little time to eat and drink some tea before he goes on.  "By now she knows who your allies are.  Next she'll look for your enemies.  It's highly unlikely she'll act directly against any of you.  Not to say that she wont use you if she can, but direct confrontation is not her style."

He takes a notebook from his bag.  "She had something to do with the Howell's moving.  It's part of the equation I'm working on, but it doesn't make complete sense yet.  There are still parts I'm sorting out, but she arrived here too late to be the Mastermind.  She's moving towards that spot though, and it doesn't look like anyone is trying to stop her.  Which is odd."

"If there is a mastermind behind everything, he's too smart to refuse such an easy decoy."  Her eyes narrow.  She, too, is lost in thought, as if thinking clearly becomes easier with Logan around.  "Her weakness is probably mine.  If someone loses patience with her, she's an easily neutralized target.  Maybe all I need to do is make sure the right people know that she can control them.  If they're on guard, she'll have to bear the consequences of her actions."

"For some of the other players the stakes are high enough they might make her permanently disappear.  Just be sure you can sleep at night knowing that."

Sylvia nods once, knuckles brushing her lips as if to bar the exit of dangerous ideas.  "Yeah, it sucks to be the good guy.  I'm getting tired of talking about ethics, though.  Ethics are for people who have control of a situation.  When you're fighting off constant attacks, direct and decisive action can eliminate a threat, and ethics can get you killed."

"Then let me pass the word.  I can mention the fact that she has powers to a few people, maybe we can put some of the less aggressive but resourceful camps at odds with her.  This way you get to sleep at night and I might get to see who else ruffles in the wind."

"You'd do that?  Doesn't it jeopardize your neutrality?"

"She's a threat to the ecosystem.  Besides, mentioning she has powers is not the same as taking out a hit on her.  A few of the irregulars here are scary smart.  They might find a way to take care of the problem that is subtle, efficient, and painless.  Like neutering a pet."

Sylvia thinks about Smith and how easily he could probably throw the switch in Torrance's brain and make her harmless.  "Colin tells us there's a kind of internal policing system for magic users.  There are people who go after the bad ones and a kind of overall system of karma.  What you do comes back to you three times and all that.

"I've been trying to figure out who keeps mentalists in line, and the more I think about it, the more Darwinistic it seems.  He who has the most juice--"  She taps her temple.  "--makes the rules.  I don't know if I can force Torrance to behave.  I don't think I can neutralize her.  I don't think I'm stronger.  But she's killed people, it looks like.  She's done terrible things.  If your irregulars can't come up with a way to stop her, we may have to do something more drastic, and sometimes I'm not sure that's wrong."

"She's not who I'm looking for, but she threatens my chances of finding the person I am searching for.  So she'll either stop being a threat or stop being.  I'll talk to some people.  If your camp finds a way, then let me know to call off the dogs.  Otherwise, I'll let you know when they have a solution.  I wont tell you what it is unless it's benign though."  He waves the waitress over, "More tea please."

"Ignorance isn't bliss," she tells Logan.  "Are you doing it to protect them or protect me?"

"Both."  he says as the waitress sets down another pot of tea.

She nods thoughtfully, then glances up at his face.  "What do you plan to do when you've found this mastermind you're looking for?"

"We have a policy of complete honesty.  And, I like to think that will always be the case with us.  So, before I answer.  Do you really want to know?"

She really does think it over.  Then she looks him square in the eye and says, "Yes."

"If you and Colin are right, and this person used me as an agent in the death of someone I considered a friend, then I'll probably systematically take their life apart until they're destroyed.  It'll depend who it is, what they hold dear, what they have to loose.  Whoever it is, they're going to regret involving me in their little game, and more importantly they're going to regret using me to kill one of my few friends."

Sylvia feels the calm methodical intent from him.  It's not murderous, it's something possibly worse than that.  Logan isn't a sociopath, but he's normally very emotionally low key.  Right now, she's glad her tea is a bit tepid.

"I'm sure I should feel something about that," she says, "but I can't think of an objection.  Whoever this person is, he's entertaining himself with the orchestration of suffering.  If we can find evidence to put him away, great.  If we can't. . . .

"There's an evil in letting someone like this run free.  I don't care for the idea of revenge, but whoever this is, you know it's just the start.  He's warming up.  He's playing games.  I can't object," she says, depressed by the bleak pragmatism of the proposition.  "If you find him, let me know.  I'll help you."


She finds that oddly comforting, oddly clarifying.  Donnie makes her giddy.  Logan makes her sane.

"Don't be upset by this, but I'd rather you didn't.  This is between me and whoever is responsible.  I'd rather not involve other people, because there might be serious consequences depending on what happens, and I'd rather not be responsible for someone else getting in trouble, even if they want to help.  Besides, if I have to commit a crime, the fewer people that know any details the harder the crime will be to solve."

Sylvia looks at him for a long time before she speaks.  "You know, when I first met you, it was because we thought you were behind everything.  We thought you were Vandross.  Now I know you're just someone else who's lost a friend because of him, and while I have every respect for your intelligence and your discretion, I don't want you winding up on the casualty list.  Vandross, whoever he really is, has considerable technical and political resources behind him.  Colin, Donnie, Sammy, Sarah, and I may not be superheroes, but at least we have the means to defend ourselves.  You think it's wise to go it alone?"

Logan smiles.  "Your concern for me is really touching.  I appreciate it, I really do."  He takes a sip of tea.  "I may not have super powers, but I'm also not a threat to him.  Unless he's one of you, no one even has a clue I'm looking for him.  If I play this smart, and take my time, he'll never know until I want him to."

She nods, pressing her lips together over any further insistence.  "I wonder, after this, what college will be like."

OOC: I'll close this one here, okay?

[Sounds good.  Is the following day lunch with Smith?]