Sime~Gen Roleplaying: District Controller's Office Scenario
Episode #19: Shackled to the Prisoner (4/14/99)
Nick lies in his bed staring at the ceiling.
Nick is slightly disappointed in the healing progress that the Tecton channels made, having been spoiled by the constant attendance of a work-starved Farris channel.
Nick is, however, made somewhat more optimistic by the presence of his pants, draped across a nearby chair.
Arat pauses outside Nick's door to regain his composure. Arat still has no specific plan for how to approach this issue with Nick, aside from letting his condition speak to Nick's presumed Donor instincts, but he does now have significant personal incentive to succeed, above and beyond the simple coup of getting Nick to work for the Tecton.
Nick hears a signal and says, "Come in."
Nick is hoping this is the tea he ordered, or at least some company.
Arat enters the room.
Arat: Hello, Nick, how are you doing?
Arat is obviously still in need, in fact moreso than before.
Nick raises an eyebrow. "Well enough. You look peaked, though. I'd have thought you'd have had transfer by now."
Nick, however, would not have ascribed great competence to Pylor.
Arat sits down in the chair, carefully avoiding touching the pants. "May I?"
Arat does not know about Nick's pants fetish, of course; this is merely his natural fastidiousness showing.
Arat: Pylor was reassigned.
Nick's nager automatically reaches out to block the worst of Arat's need.
Nick: Reassigned? I thought you were already overdue.
Nick is now thoroughly convinced that the Tecton assignment system is absolutely nuts.
Arat: It was assumed that you would rather serve transfer than have your field taken down.
Arat leaves unspoken the many other assumptions that were implicit in the reassignment.
Nick can't entirely contain a spark of interest at Arat's offer.
Nick: Wouldn't you rather have an official Tecton Donor?
Nick's lack of knowledge of Tecton protocols had become glaringly obvious during his transfer with Kenmore.
Arat: I would, but I was ordered to transfer with you, if you wish it. And it isn't as if you are less qualified to serve me than the alternatives - quite the contrary.
Arat appears calm and dignified, although the handling tentacles halfway out of their sheathes advertises his need (which is also, of course, perfectly detectable by Donor of Nick's caliber).
Nick: Aren't you Controller here?
Nick had rather thought the Controllers were responsible for the transfer assignments.
Arat: Yes, I am Controller for this District. However, there are other Controllers who supervise the movement of selyn over District and Regional boundaries, and I am subject to their management. My Donors are assigned to me and if I, or my assigned Donor, is urgently required elsewhere, I must accept the change as being for the best.
Nick can't help contrasting this attitude with Snake's possessiveness.
Nick looks at Arat, trying to deduce whether Arat would prefer the proverbial Gen in the Pen to the Tecton potluck.
Arat has the typical intense look of a Farris in hard need under significant self control. Arat is clearly studying Nick both visually and nagerically.
Nick steps up his support marginally.
Arat 's expressive Farris features betray hope.
Nick deduces from this that there is not enough time for the Tecton bureaucracy to find another Donor before Arat cracks.
Nick knows that a Farris channel cracking is not a pretty, or safe, sight for anyone.
Nick: Is there anything special that you will require?
Arat lets go of what was an incredible knot of tension at the change in Nick's nager. (It's a little late in the month to feel incredible relief, but give them a few minutes.)
Arat: No, it should be fairly straight forward. We are a close enough match, and I will be controlling.
Nick remembers how routine and straightforward his transfer with Kenmore was supposed to have been.
Nick: You do realize that I am used to... somewhat nonstandard requirements?
Nick thinks that at least he now knows the Tecton signaling system, or at least its Zeor variant.
Arat: Yes. This should be relatively easy by comparison. We can go over the details beforehand to make sure everything is clear and you are comfortable with the procedure.
Arat would, in fact, be more likely to be the uncomfortable one, but phrasing it this way is habitual for him.
Nick nods, tightening up on his support to allow Arat a few more minutes of semi-rationality.
Arat: I think that, under the circumstances, it would be appropriate to do it here. Is that satisfactory?
Arat is aware that Nick is not used to transferring in an actual transfer suite. Arat also figures the odd location can be explained away using Nick's injury and travel ordeal as an excuse. It also skips a possibly time consuming step!
Nick: As long as the insulation is sufficient, and we aren't likely to be interrupted.
Nick figures that they aren't likely to be interrupted by whoever was supposed to be bringing him his tea, at least.
Nick is, of course, well aware that Arat is doing the Farris need-denial thing, but judges that there is time for a briefing before the situation gets critical. And if not, he is confident of his ability to end the conversation as necessary.
Arat: The insulation will do. [Read: Arat is not exactly thrilled with the insulation but he isn't going to make an issue of it] I will alert the staff to not interrupt us. [Arat is not worried about anybody disobeying that one.]
Arat: Now, as for the transfer itself, I shall control at all times. I have read your file and am aware of the difficulty you had during your transfer with Kenmore Farris, and the subsequent training you received. I am prepared to use the same system Kenmore taught you, rather than the Tecton variation, if you feel confident in your knowledge of it.
Nick: I remember it well enough.
Nick is still not completely sure what Arat requires in the way of style or attitude, but remembers that Kenmore, too, seemed to think that this was irrelevant.
Nick wonders if this is the standard Tecton approach to non-satisfaction, or if this information is contained in a channel's file.
Nick has never actually had a chance to read a Tecton channel's file before having to give transfer, and it appears that he won't have the opportunity this time, either.
Arat zlins Nick. "Are you sure?"
Nick: About the signals, yes.
Nick actually found the Tecton signals both simpler and much sketchier than the system Snake had taught him, which allowed her to direct him during training without allowing their clients to guess that he didn't know what he was doing.
Nick: About what you mean by a "normal, standard" transfer, no. And I work best when I know what to anticipate.
Nick is not really enthusiastic about admitting the gaps in his training, particularly to a Tecton official, but is even less enthusiastic about having another disaster like his transfer with Kenmore.
Nick also supposes that with Snake gone, there is less reason for him to appear better trained than he is.
Nick experiences a pang of ~~ grief/loss ~~ at the thought of Snake, then sets it aside by an act of will and concentrates on Arat and his hopes that this transfer will be at least adequate for both of them.
Arat finds it reasonable that a Gen trained by a rogue pain-addicted Farris would require some guidance as to what a normal transfer is.
Arat however finds the train of thought this leads to rather disturbing. It takes him a few moments to compose an answer for Nick.
Arat: The Tecton standard transfer is, briefly stated, one in which the channel controls the rate of delivery and the Gen delivers optimism, hope and joy. The Gen's attitude should be professional, yet attentive, throughout.
Nick: I think I can manage that.
Nick judges that Arat really shouldn't wait too much longer for transfer, and starts letting up on his intil-control, without dropping support.
Nick, of course, is unfamiliar with the Tecton regulations regarding starting transfers at a particular, Controller-dictated minute, whether or not this is optimal for the two individuals involved.
Arat's control shows visible signs of decay.
Arat: I will inform the staff that we are not to be interrupted.
Arat gets up and leaves the room, returns shortly. Very shortly.
Nick greets his return with welcome and ~~ bounteous selyn ~~
Arat flits over to the bed in a manner a bit more hunting-Sime-quick than his ordinary movement.
Nick sits up, not at all dismayed by Arat's predatory attitude.
Nick: Ready?
Nick holds out his hands, letting his nager link with Arat's. ~~ ready and willing ~~
Nick is, of course, unaware that Tecton transfers usually involve at least half an hour of preliminary sitting around combined with careful semi-denial exercises, while waiting for the appointed moment to arrive.
Nick is more used to transfers which are snatched as quickly as possible in case some opportunity for work should happen to show up.
Arat is nonplussed at Nick having taken charge of the timing of it. He is also aware, however, that they were issued no specific time to do the transfer, and that his instructions were to convince Nick to serve him, and to do it in Nick's own time.
Arat reaches for Nick's arms, trying to psych himself into the calm and ready state that leads to the better transfers on considerably shorter notice than he is used to.
Arat is, of course, used to forcing himself to take transfer off people he doesn't like, doesn't trust and knows don't really match him.
Nick notices Arat's hesitation.
Nick: Is something wrong?
Arat: I'm... used to taking a few minutes beforehand to prepare myself mentally.
Nick is aware that Arat's intil is a bit less than he's used to in Snake, as there is no sign that Arat is about to pounce.
Nick therefore makes the understandable, if erroneous, conclusion that Arat means that he takes a few minutes to shed the inhibitions which build up under a month's worth of Farris-style self-denial.
Nick: Let me help.
Nick goes to work on Arat's inhibitions, at the same time making sure his nager zlins open, willing, and high field enough to provide all the selyn Arat could possibly desire.
Nick's goal is not to cause Arat any unnecessary anxiety, after all.
Arat knows momentary panic as Nick's nager makes a hash of his self control.
Arat has enough sense not to struggle with Nick, whose nager is clearly equal to his own, since that would only create the opposite effect to that which he'd wanted.
Arat then has to decide whether to say anything in correction, and reasons [his logic being perhaps one of the few things becoming increasingly, rather than decreasingly, inhibited at this point] that seeing as how his assignment was to convince Nick to have transfer with him, and to keep Nick feeling positive about the experience, he should allow a certain amount of deviance from his usual routine. After all, Nick can always learn the normal Tecton transfer procedure some other time.
Arat therefore reaches out for Nick's arms instead of worrying about his state of mind.
Nick takes Arat's hands gently, offering ~~ welcome ~~
Nick pauses, having noted Arat's distress, and the resistance it is causing. Nick is unsure of the cause, but guesses that the normal Farris paranoia about possibly harming an unknown, untested Donor might be part of it.
Nick: There's nothing to be afraid of; we're well matched. ~~ confidence/reassurance ~~
Arat: Yes.
Arat's tentacles wrap around Nick's arms, a grip that is not at all tentative. [Arat's confidence scarcely requires encouragement even in the worst of situations, so Nick's projection pushes Arat past recovery from surprise into what is probably overconfidence.]
Nick relaxes into the grip, letting go of the remaining bits of control he was keeping on Arat's intil factor.
Arat's laterals extend as he bends over Nick to take a fifth contact, irreversibly committed to the transfer.
Arat's draw begins, sure and powerful and clean, seeking not resistance or pain, but release from Need and the gift of optimism and uplifting joy that can only come with transfer.
Nick lets his selyn pour out, carefully following Arat's lead, but adding his own ~~ bubbling Gen joy in transfer unmixed with the Sime's living nightmare of need ~~
Nick thinks that this is not unlike his transfers with Briel and Riyyh, except for the more adequate speed.
Arat's draw speed increases smoothly, inexorably, until it begins to push Nick, exceeding Snake's top draw slightly while remaining pure of any taint of savagery or bitterness.
Nick can't quite decide whether Arat is just trying to avoid being shorted, or if he's seeking the edge of pain the way Snake did. Nick has never gotten into the pain bit, except as it was required to satisfy his channel, and besides, Arat had specifically requested optimism, joy and hope.
Nick therefore feels free to simply lower his resistance as much as he can to allow the fastest rate of selyn flow possible, and enjoy the transfer as it is offered.
Arat 's draw peaks at that level and then slows deliberately for the final moments as Arat minds the difference between their capacities.
Nick experiences ~~ complete fulfillment ~~, despite the unfamiliar difference between this more gentle climax and Snake's all-out attack style.
Arat ends it, lingering for a moment in the transfer position and indeed, in the moment itself.
Nick holds still, waiting for Arat to release him, not quite sure whether the channel was satisfied.
Nick had been used to judging the quality of the transfers he gives by whether or not Snake tackled him directly afterwards, but suspects that Arat is not likely to indulge in such behavior--at least not with him.
Arat lets him go, and opens his eyes.
Arat: Thank you.
Arat does not tackle Nick, but appears significantly less stressed out and more... open? vulnerable?... than before.
Nick is glad that at least Arat lacks the glazed, dull look that Kenmore showed after their inadequate attempt at transfer, but on the other hand, Arat isn't showing the extreme reaction that Riyyh displayed, either.
Nick: You're welcome. Are you all right?
Arat: Yes, you were very good. As good as I could have expected.
Arat: But I should... I should go now.
Arat looks vaguely worried; it's because he has just realized that he isn't going to get out of this room before his post reaction hits, much less back to his private quarters.
Nick sees the worry and instinctively reaches out to place his hand on Arat's wrist in comfort.
Arat loses what tenuous hold he had on the frustration, loss and apprehension he'd been stuffing for the last two weeks, and starts crying.
Arat doesn't bawl faucet-style like Riyyh, fortunately; he bows his head and tries to wipe his eyes with his free hand.
Nick snags a disposable handkerchief from the bedside table (thoroughly explored during the long wait for tea) and hands it to Arat.
Nick: What's the matter? [softly and sympathetically]
Arat: I didn't mean for you to see this.
Arat a few moments later has apparently reconciled himself to the situation though, or maybe he just can't hold back.
Arat: This last two weeks hasn't been good. My... best friend was sent away and nobody has told me why. [Stops short of whining about Beni also, since he can't risk making the Tecton sound bad to Nick] I think the Regional Controller is trying to teach me a lesson, but I just don't understand some of the things he's done to me lately.
Nick (perhaps fortunately, given Arat's Tecton-recruitment orders) focuses on Arat's sorrow about the missing friend, rather than what is implied about the arbitrary nature of Tecton personnel management.
Nick: At least he's still alive and well.
Nick's eyes tear as it is rather forcefully driven home to him that he will never have a transfer with Snake again. ~~ grief and loss ~~
Arat realizes that Nick is thinking about Snake and that there is not much that he can say to that.
Arat: I'm sorry.
Arat actually has many reasons to not be sorry about that, but it's impossible to survive as a channel without being at least a little compassionate.
Nick starts crying for real, although his tear flow rate, in a fortunate twist of genetic dominance, appears to have been inherited from Prunida rather than Riyyh.
Nick: She was... She was....
Nick is unable to complete the sentence, perhaps due to the inappropriateness of terms such as "psychotic", "paranoid" and "homicidal" in such a context.
Arat wipes his eyes again, not because there were more tears, but because his many days of lost sleep are suddenly catching up with him.
Arat extends handling tentacles to briefly return Nick's touch on his wrist.
Nick's fingers cling to Arat's tentacles as he continues to cry.
Arat tilts over (fortunately toward the bed, and Nick) as slides into his first sleep of any kind since Beni was sent away.
Nick, thoroughly distracted from his mourning by this, barely manages to catch Arat before he hits the bed.
Nick: Arat?
Nick assesses the situation quickly, determining that Arat has not suddenly died from a vriamic node malfunction or so such.
Nick awkwardly kicks the covers off with his good foot and wrestles Arat onto the bed beside him. He restores the blankets to their accustomed position and settles back in what little bed space is left to wait for Arat to wake, or for a staff member to come looking for him.
Nick: And I never did get my tea.
see note 1
Arat, some 36 hours after his transfer with Nick, and a thoroughly Jeniard-less post spent almost entirely sleeping jammed onto Nick's uncomfortable bed next to Nick's comfortable nager, is back in his office doing - what else - paperwork.
Seruffin signals at the door to Arat's office, showing intense ~~ curiosity ~~.
Arat: Enter.
Arat stands as Seruffin comes in.
Arat: Controller Seruffin.
Seruffin: Hajene Arat.
Seruffin zlins Arat eagerly.
Seruffin: Well, I zlin that you persuaded Reckage to cooperate. How did it go?
Arat: It went very well.
Arat has obviously had a decent transfer and a good night... and day... of sleep. Anything else is difficult to zlin since his neutral showfield, which had begun to fray badly before, is now back as informationless as ever. Arat's expression is of course restrained and respectful, given who he is talking to.
Seruffin makes an encouraging gesture with two tentacles by way of demanding a more detailed account, and settles down in a chair to listen.
Arat hands Seruffin a copy of the report he has prepared, then proceeds to summarize.
Arat: Nick is clearly a Donor of top caliber, with excellent training. He would require some retraining, possibly as little as two or three months, to become acquainted with Tecton regulations, procedures and protocols. I believe he might be persuaded to work with the Tecton if he were handled with sensitivity and patience. At this time I have not talked with him about it in depth.
Seruffin scans the report briefly, making no effort to downplay his ~~ approval ~~
Seruffin: This is excellent work. I do hope, though, that you have Reckage under guard? He really can't be permitted to slip out of our tentacles after such a promising beginning.
Arat: I cleared a hallway and have him in one room and the staff assigned to him have set up an office in the room across. They are instructed to maintain awareness of his condition and mood at all times, and to make sure he is comfortable. There are also guards, of a less medical sort, at the end of the hallway.
Arat made this arrangement in order to keep Nick under guard without his knowledge, at least for as long as possible.
Seruffin: How soon do you expect that he will be recovered from his injuries, at least well enough to be mobile again?
Arat: I expect he will be able to walk with crutches, on a limited basis, almost immediately.
Seruffin: What is his mental state? Is he likely to try to escape as soon as he is able to leave his room, or to injure his guards if they try to prevent him from doing so?
Seruffin is eager to be able to claim the coup of rehabilitating a rogue Donor, but is well aware of the risks.
Arat: He has behaved calmly enough so far, but in my judgment we should continue to handle him with caution.
Seruffin nods.
Seruffin: You appear to be dealing with the man effectively. I'd like you to continue to work with him personally. Start the retraining, but in a casual fashion, at least until you have his formal agreement. When you judge that he's ready, have him help you in your daily work. It won't hurt to let him get an idea of what his future will be. I'll see that he's officially assigned to you, on a provisional basis of course.
Arat's mind boggles as he tries to envision personally keeping Nick occupied 16 hours a day and still accomplishing all of his duties as District Controller.
Arat assumes this means there is not to be a real Tecton Donor assigned to him, which while it has its advantages, would leave him feeling terribly insecure, particularly with Jeniard gone.
Arat is not, of course, blind to the honor attached to the assignment or to the consequences of either refusing it or failing it.
Arat nods, looking as if he'd like to massage the spot directly between his eyebrows.
Arat: Thank you. Will you want a daily report sent?
Seruffin considers.
Seruffin: At least at first, until it becomes clear whether the approach will work.
Arat nods.
Seruffin: I'll expect your first report tomorrow. Do be certain to note any changes in your assessment of Reckage's abilities, as you outlined them in here.
Seruffin rests a tentacle on Arat's report on his transfer with Nick.
Seruffin ruffles the pages.
Seruffin: I notice that you didn't include Reckage's own report on the transfer.
Arat: Nick is not used to forms or reports. I do not think it will be wise to ask him to fill any out until he has had some time to adjust to his situation.
Arat: I should be able to discuss the transfer with him in detail within the next few days, however, and I will fill out the report myself.
Seruffin is a touch ~~ dubious ~~ at this suggestion, assuming with some justification that Nick might not feel free to discuss any unsatisfactory elements of the transfer directly with Arat.
Seruffin is, however, forced to admit that Arat's caution is equally well justified.
Seruffin: I suppose that will have to do.
Arat nods.
Arat: Were you... [hesitates]
Seruffin: Yes?
Arat: When you spoke to Controller Neptude, did you happen to learn any more about Jeniard?
Arat feels an unaccustomed timidity as he asks the question.
Seruffin: His services are proving very valuable, and he will be released when they are no longer required.
Arat 's heart falls as he finds Seruffin is not the ally he'd hoped for.
Arat nods once, maintaining a disciplined nager.
Seruffin stands.
Seruffin: I'll leave you to your work, then.
Seruffin leaves.
Notes:
1) As is stated in the next line, some 36 hours pass between these two scenes. [return]