Sime~Gen Roleplaying: District Controller's Office Scenario
Episode #167: Frisson (3/4/00)
Neptude breaks his recent habit by dropping by Arat's office instead of summoning him, at least partly to avoid having Lexus as a witness.
Neptude is also unwilling to risk Arat observing the increased oversight from Seruffin's office which he has been plagued with recently.
Arat therefore has no idea Neptude is coming.
Neptude is not at all happy about the way in which Seruffin found out, or that Arat made no effort to cover Neptude's posterior when reporting recent events.
Neptude signals at the door, twining his tentacles impatiently.
Arat is quite alone, and indulging in a cup of tea when he discovers who is on the other side of his door.
Arat puts the tea down hastily.
Arat rises to open the door.
Arat: Controller Neptude.
Arat stands there looking rather defensive.
Arat: This was... unexpected.
Neptude: Arat. You've been rather busy since we last spoke, I'm given to understand.
Neptude is ~~ not pleased ~~
Arat moves to let Neptude in, although it can't have been high on his list of things to do that day.
Neptude strides in as if he has the right to dispose of anything in the office at a whim--which he effectively does.
Arat closes the door behind Neptude, and then reluctantly turns his back on him to get him some tea.
Neptude seats himself in the most comfortable guest chair.
Arat was not pleased to learn the hard way that Neptude had been hiding things from Seruffin, and even less pleased to contemplate how Seruffin might treat Neptude and what Neptude might do to Arat in retaliation.
Arat hasn't had much cause to expect Neptude to do anything but make Arat's life harder.
Arat pours hot water over leaves, and returns to present the cup to Neptude.
Arat's nager is carefully neutral.
Neptude takes the cup with a nod, and raises it to take a careful sip.
Neptude grimaces in irritation at the taste.
Arat passes around his desk to take his seat.
Neptude: I've never understood why you don't get a better grade of tea.
Neptude: Being a Controller does have its privileges, after all.
Arat's preference for the #3 is based upon a lifelong attempt to fit into the letter of the Tecton regulations, and he isn't about to deviate from that now, particularly with Seruffin worried about Audnes uprisings.
Arat nevertheless nods in acknowledgment.
Neptude sets the cup aside, hoping that Arat will take the hint and have something better for his next visit.
Arat sees Neptude set it aside and belatedly wonders if there is anything else in his stash. It would have been put there by one of his Donors, of course. He seems to recall Nick serving him some of the other, the previous day.
Neptude: And one of those privileges ought to be the expectation of some minimum degree of loyalty from those he supervises.
Neptude: ~~ anger, well controlled ~~
Arat's nager goes from neutral to stone impenetrable.
Arat looks at Neptude with an expression best described as "batten down the hatches, here it comes."
Neptude: A District Controller ought to report to the Regional Office, and not go behind his own Controller's back.
Neptude: Your comments to Seruffin were unnecessary and out of order.
Arat stares at Neptude.
Neptude: I realize that your background does not dispose you to taking orders from a designated authority, but this is too blatant to overlook.
Arat had not gone to Seruffin, of course; Seruffin had surprised him here in much this same way.
Arat doesn't like surprises, and he's liking them even less as this week progresses.
Neptude: A Controller ought to be able to manage his area of responsibility without having to worry about sabotage from below.
Arat thinks, or above.
Arat of course doesn't say such a thing.
Neptude: What were you thinking of?
Neptude glares at Arat in ~~ aggravation ~~
Arat was then, and is now, thinking of the best way to keep his own keester from getting blown up while navigating the minefield his two (nominal) superiors have been dancing about laying for him.
Arat: Seruffin approached me. I had no choice but to answer his questions.
Neptude is not mollified.
Neptude: You didn't have to volunteer as much information as you did.
Neptude well knows that Arat brought up the issue of the Snake-Pylor debacle, since Seruffin knew nothing about it from Neptude.
Arat: I had not been informed that you intended to keep certain incidents from his knowledge. I assumed he knew of them already.
Neptude grimaces as Arat's point strikes home.
Neptude: The Regional reports aren't due for two weeks after the District ones.
Neptude: Besides, matters of discipline involving channels and Donors are usually handled at a lower level than the Assistant World Controller's office.
Arat thinks that is none of his problem.
Arat is glad there is something around here that is not his problem.
Arat has been kept on the hustle between the District Report and trying to keep personal tabs on Snake, and this was supposed to have been a few moments of peace.
Neptude can't zlin Arat's response per se, but the Farris face is not known for its utility during poker games, either.
Neptude: ~~ increased irritation ~~
Neptude: I can't afford to have a Controller working under me who goes behind my back.
Neptude: Particularly not one whose District is subject to such failures.
Neptude is actively seeking a remedy for this problem.
Arat knows perfectly well that the failures were all directly related to Neptude's piling weird assignments on his back, but his Farris responsibility-fetish still gives him a private stab at the words.
Neptude: Have you at least made some progress dealing with the latest disasters?
Neptude dislikes Arat and everything he stands for (for instance, greater competence as a channel and administrator), but knows Lexus would be hopeless at damage-control of this magnitude.
Neptude therefore can't quite afford to get rid of Arat until he's managed to get rid of the other problem staff as well.
Arat: I have been working with Wise Snake personally as much as possible. The others are unassigned, pending your decision regarding Pylor.
Arat obviously can't trade Nick away without knowing where Pylor is going to be.
Neptude: How stable has he been, lately?
Arat frowns, having hoped that Neptude would be reading the reports he'd insisted Arat deliver on the subjects of the "disasters".
Neptude has been scrutinizing the reports carefully, for the "official" story, but assumes as a matter of course that the official account doesn't contain everything, because of course, if he had written it, it wouldn't.
Arat: He has not done anything dangerous, but he remains emotionally disturbed.
Arat does not prefer to think of a heavy sulk as Pylor's "normal state".
Neptude frowns.
Neptude: He's still useless as a Donor then?
Arat looks wary, as Neptude has been making all the decisions regarding Pylor for quite some time now, and often without particularly considering Arat's input. Also, any decision made now could affect Pylor's future usability dramatically.
Arat: I had thought you would prefer to make that determination yourself. [finally]
Neptude is not happy at such abrogation of responsibility by Arat.
Neptude a) doesn't want to deal with a possibly deranged First Order Donor whose nager almost certainly could overpower his own, and b) wants Arat to assume the responsibility and blame for whatever decision gets made, so that he doesn't have to do so himself.
Neptude: Well, if training him for Farris use is no longer possible--and it sounds like it's not, at least as far as you and your daughter are concerned--
Neptude looks at Arat for confirmation.
Arat looks at him deadpan, not easy for a Farris.
Arat isn't going to give him anything.
Arat has not appreciated being stuck (in every sense of the word) with repeated failures as Neptude experimented from afar.
Neptude: --then we might as well find him some other position where he can be of some use.
Neptude has in mind a position far away from Seruffin's area of responsibility.
Neptude: He does have enough control back to handle a non-Farris First, doesn't he?
Arat thinks Pylor is going to require therapy, possibly very heavy duty therapy, after what happened, and is appalled. It sounds as if Neptude intends to simply park him elsewhere and let him work his problems out on his own.
Arat: I might suggest you evaluate his condition personally before reassigning him.
Neptude: Personally?
Neptude: ~~ alarm ~~
Arat thinks a lot of trouble could have been avoided if Neptude had been doing that from the start.
Arat: It is traditional, when a problem arises with a Donor. [points out]
Arat's manner is extremely formal.
Neptude: Well, yes, that's true.
Neptude: Although this is hardly the usual sort of problem.
Arat would rather not speak to Neptude about this at all, but he's professionally obligated to make sure a patient gets proper care, if it's in his power.
Neptude really dislikes being presented with problems he knows he's not capable of dealing with, particularly when he suspects that left to himself, Arat could handle them.
Neptude wonders if that penal institution could use Pylor, as they would be unlikely to complain about any irregularities in his behavior, and if there were problems, he'd already be locked up safely.
Neptude is pretty sure he couldn't get away with giving Arat such an assignment, more's the pity.
Neptude: Well, perhaps you're right. A second opinion is always valuable in difficult cases.
Neptude would value a second opinion on the best way of removing Arat from the 53rd District without undue repercussions, for instance.
Arat's expression betrays a slight incredulity at the phrasing of Neptude's response, but he simply nods.
Neptude: Your daughter's excesses have been curbed, I hope?
Arat: Yes.
Arat thinks, for the time being, but only if she is watched every moment.
Arat finds it very discouraging, and Neptude will obviously be of no help.
Neptude knows it will be hard to get rid of two Farris channels at once, but it is obvious that Snake is too much for Lexus's inexperienced tentacles to handle.
Neptude: Has Sosu Nick shown any further signs of unreliability?
Arat: His unreliability is only an issue when he has to choose between loyalty to Snake and behavior as a Tecton Donor.
Arat: There have been no incidents, but as I have noted in my report, he should be reassigned away from her for best results.
Neptude frowns.
Arat's look becomes shadowed as they are discussing sending away Farris-grade, or nearly so, Donors.
Neptude thinks that getting rid of Arat and Snake will be a great deal more difficult if he can't send a Donor or two along with them.
Arat doesn't want to be stuck with below-grade fare (especially as Neptude is likely to get a good trade deal on someone with a history of some kind of problems) but then again he does have Nick's best interests in mind, and he believes Nick will have a happier and more successful Tecton career if he's not being torn between it and Snake.
Neptude notes Arat's unhappiness, and misinterprets it as uncertainty that sending Nick away is a good idea.
Neptude was not happy at being asked to provide another Farris Donor for Snake by the end of the month.
Neptude: I haven't gotten any responses yet to my request for an additional Donor for her.
Neptude: She really requires a specialist; it's obvious that a normal Donor can't handle her, even one who's a decent match for her nager.
Arat: I can maintain her for a short time myself.
Arat would not want to have to try to handle Snake after more than two months on channel's transfer, however.
Neptude: What would that do to her control?
Arat: Physically, there would be little problem.
Arat is more concerned about the displeasure factor.
Neptude: Yes, but one gathers that a large portion of her problems are psychological.
Arat can control a displeased, insane, out of emotional control Snake, but it is not on his list of favorite things to do, nor is it easy.
Neptude: Would she become even more dangerous to herself and those around her?
Arat can't really imagine that is possible, but never say never.
Arat: It is theoretically possible.
Neptude is not a Farris, and thus the frisson of alarm in his nager is imperfectly controlled.
Arat: However, that could happen in any case. [points out]
Arat: Wise Snake is not stable unless kept under close supervision.
Arat: As I said, I have arranged to do as much as possible myself.
Arat: Perhaps some improvement will be seen with the increased supervision, over time.
Neptude: I suppose that's the best solution, at least for now.
Arat's worry is that the improvement will be only while he's standing there, a sticky problem. Unfortunately, a common one with animals and humans that have been badly handled in their first year.
Neptude is thinking more and more that incarceration until she dies of entran complications might be the only long-term solution to the Snake problem, but he doesn't quite have the nerve to suggest it to Arat.
Neptude stands.
Neptude: Well, I'm sure you have matters requiring your attention.
Neptude: I will be in touch if I get any responses on another Donor for Snake.
Arat nods once.
Arat does not appear, all in all, to be more impressed with Neptude than he was to begin with.
Arat in fact is now sans the worry about Neptude's motive that he'd felt when Neptude had first walked in, as well.
Neptude has found the conversation edifying, and he is already making plans as he leaves Arat's office.