Karlos: He strides in about half an hour before dawn, looking as confident as ever, but he moves like a predator. Smooth. Hungry. Hunting.

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: He's sitting in a chair, smoking a cigarette, waiting for him. He's got a different style to him now...bolder, more confident. Red button-down shirt, black slacks, black leather trechcoat. His hari's pulled back into a ponytail, and he's got a dart pistol in a holster on his side. "Karlos."

Karlos: "Jeremy," he purrs faintly, dark eyes flitting around the room before settling on the man. He strides over to him, standing over him, gazing down at him. Waiting.

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: He looks up at him, completely unconcerned. Smiling faintly, slightly amused. "How was your trip?"

Karlos: "Bearable. Deadly dull, but bearable." He shrugs, then leans in a little, moving in to kiss Jeremy's forehead.

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: He keeps his eyes on the man, not moving away, but tensing, ready to dodge and/or strike if necessary.

Karlos: He simply plants his lips on Jeremy's forehead, kissing his skin slowly, surprisingly tenderly, lifting a hand to stroke his cheek. "So tell me what it is you want," he whispers.

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: He looks up, raising an eyebrow. "That's quite a change from 'Call me Master, bitch' three hours ago." His voice is both intrigued and quite skeptical.

Karlos: He laughs a little. "Jeremy, you want to be a Master. Look at you." He leans back to look into his eyes rather than at his hairline. "You think you're the big I am, but you're scared of me. Because you know, deep down, you should submit to me. But you're afraid. You've touched power, and you think you like it. I'm willing to give you a choice. I'm not an unreasonable man. If you want, you can serve me. You're certainly loyal, and a great deal more reliable than that worthless stain Malcolm. Any Master worth his salt would appreciate a slave like you."

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: He leans back, taking a drag off of his cigarette, watching Karlos. "First, Karlos...I have touched power, yes. And I damn well DO like it. I've got it for the first time in my life. I'm not tagalong. Not some fucking kid. Second, you're damn right that any Master worth his salt would appreciate me. However, as I understand, you're still having some loyalty issues at the moment."

Karlos: He laughs, eyes sparkling. "No. No issues here. But you have some. I could help you with those. I can help you learn to handle the power you crave, rather than lose it the moment you get it. I've held the world in my hands. All you've done is beat up a child. I've been a lord of Hell. You've pussyfooted around. You think you can control others. You haven't got it in you, Jeremy. I can see it in your eyes. You'll reach for power, then you'll pull away from it because it burns. You haven't truly the stomach for it, so you tag along and tell yourself that's not really what you're doing. You're making your own choices, honest you are..." He leans in, whispering into his ear "But deep down, you know you're just a lackey. A right hand man. A little power, but not too much. A comfortable amount. And that makes you a slave, not a master. You are allowed to mete out power now and again, but all the really big plays are out of your league." He straightens up, gazing down at him. "You're nothing. Worse, you know you're nothing, so you try to pretend you're something. At least Malcolm accepts he's worthless. But you will get in our way. You will fuck this up for us. And I can't have that." He smiles a little.

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: He shakes his head. "No issues? Then something has changed in the last three hours, eh? According to the Doctor, you seem to consider yourself indomitable. And if you're not loyal to the Doctor, then we do in fact have issues." He smirks a little bit. "And as far as myself...let's see. I've managed to evade the Sept, the Body, and whoever the hell else is around. I managed to talk Guido into giving me the protoype back. I got Malcolm to see our side of thinking, which was directly responsible for you seeing our side of thinking. I ran fucking circles around Ingvar, even with his Truth of Gaia active." He grins. "And so on. Sounds like I'm shutting everyone else out. So tell my how I'm going going to fuck this all up. I'm not trying to say I'm top dog. But neither are you. And I only serve the top dog, Karlos."

Karlos: He nods slightly. "I think you'll find I am top dog. But I offered you the chance. Can't say I'm not fair." ((Rolling init))

Karlos: 3,

Karlos: ((9))

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: 5,

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: ((11))

Karlos: Jeremy easily has time to react to Karlos' hand darting toward Jeremy's own right arm.

Karlos: He reaches to grab Jeremy by the hand and jank him from the seat.

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: He lifts his legs up, intending to kick Karlos square in the chest and tip him and the chair backward, away from Karlos. ((Rolling Dex+Brawl...setting diff 7 for the awkward positioning. Sound good?))

Karlos: ((SUre))

Karlos: 7,8,2,8,9,4,

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: 7,3,2,7,

Karlos: Alas he grabs Jeremy's hand anyway, bringing his other up to Jer's elbow to force his arm straight ((Martial Arts technique Joint Lock, meaning Karlos gets a free roll to do this in the same turn since he succeeded in getting a grip on the arm)).

Karlos: 6,10,4,5,3,5,

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: 3,2,4,

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: And his kick is entirely uneffective, due to the awkward positioning, as he gets his arm yanked.

Karlos: ((Next turn)) He intends to twist Jeremy's arm around behind him, up into a come-hither grip.

Karlos: 3,8,9,6,3,7,

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: ((Spending 2 Rage, one to shift into Galbro, unless we're doing STreamlined Rules, in which case 1 Rage and auto-shift.)) He reaches for the dart gun with his left hand, bringing it to bear on Karlos.

Karlos: ((I don't think we're doing anything streamlined so far))

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: ((Cool, so 2 Rage.))

Karlos: Grip on Jeremy clearly unshaken, he applies pressure to the nerves. ((Withering Grasp, again within the same turn))

Karlos: 3,2,10,5,9,4,

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: ((Gonna have to let me know what that one does, though I assume it's pain-related.))

Karlos: ((3 successes causes enough pain to disarm, and since it's a soft style grapple, diff is 5))

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: ((Any resisted roll for it?))

Karlos: ((Nope, since it's an additional effect from a successful grip. Since you weren't avoiding the grip...))

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: ((All right.)) He gasps in pain and drops the gun, then balls up his fist to deck Karlos across the face.

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: 7,9,6,6,

Karlos: ((Next turn))

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: ((Oh, does the Withering Grasp make me lose any additional actions, too?))

Karlos: ((I wouldn't think so, but you didn't declare rage was going on additional actions, you declared you were spending 2 and shifting to Glabro. Since you didn't roll to shift, I presumed the rage was for shifting?))

Karlos: ((Ah and the whole half your rage pool thing, so. Jer shifts this turn, then I'll post Karlos' intended action, since Jer has a chance to react to it with his higher init))

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: ((Deletes last action, since Rage spend is half Rage pool. Next turn.))

Karlos: Since he already has a firm hold on Jeremy, he's going to throw him.

Karlos: ((Spending a WP))

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: ((Spending 1 Rage again, for extra actions)) He balls up his fist to deck Karlos across the face.

Karlos: 9,3,2,7,4,6,

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: 8,1,9,8,

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: 8,4,2,8,9,

Karlos: 2,8,2,6,1,1,3,

Karlos: Well, he does at least throw Jer across the room, just without inflicting any damage in the process.

Karlos: 8,6,2,

Karlos: And takes a bump on the nose.

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: He tumbles to the ground, and spends his second action getting to his feet and grabbing a chair, picking it up and readying it as a weapon.

Karlos: ((Next turn then))

Karlos: He dives on the gun, grabbing it, rolling onwards to avoid an incoming chair.

Karlos: 4,9,6,3,3,

Karlos: 1,7,1,7,7,

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: ((How far did his Glabro ass get thrown? Too far for him to get back and attack with melee?))

Karlos: He grabs the gun, and makes a fair attempt at dodging incoming chairs.

Karlos: ((Whichever you see fit. I'd say Karlos is out of arm's reach, but certainly within chair's reach))

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: ((All right, so he'll toss. Spending WP on this one.))

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: 4,5,

Karlos: That's one close-ass miss with that chair.

Karlos: ((Next turn.)) Of course, he fires a dart at Jeremy.

Karlos: ((Spending WP))

Karlos: 3,1,7,7,10,

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: ((Spending last Rage to take Crinos)) He shifts up to Crinos, smart enough to know not to fuck around with those darts, and dodges.

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: 3,6,7,8,5,

Karlos: Another close shave, this time missing Jeremy by inches.

Karlos: ((Next turn))

Karlos: Fires again.

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: Keep dodging, keep dodging. The thing only holds so many darts. ((Though I'm not sure how many that is. Spending WP))

Karlos: ((WP))

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: 5,7,1,7,8,

Karlos: ((It's six))

Karlos: 4,9,3,3,8,

Karlos: Smack. One darted Jeremy.

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: JESUS, that was close. He snarls at Karlos.

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: ((3 succ on both sides, right? Defender wins the tie.))

Karlos: ((Doh sorry, went blind and missed your WP spend. Yes, another close shave))

Karlos: 4,6,8,9,7,

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: He tries to dodge again, this time sideways through the door, into another room. He can play this game ALL night...

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: 10,9,10,1,8,

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: Or not.

Karlos: Apparently he can't.

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: ((Rolling Stamina...hope you know the specific diff and such for these things.))

Karlos: He keeps the gun levelled at Jeremy, waiting for him to fall, not willing to shoot him twice in case it kills him.

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: ((Oh, wait...gotta pierce the skin, first. Rolling Soack.))

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: 10,8,1,6,1,

Karlos: ((I don't. I've never seen anyone hit by one of these darts do anything but fall over immediately))

Karlos: 3,2,1,5,10,

Karlos: ((Okay, I think we're at the point where we need Singha. This is getting too confusing))

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: ((Yeah, pretty much. All I know is it needs to pierce the skin, Singha always asks for Stamina after, and then people invariably fall down.))

Karlos: ((Plus I've no idea of the damage of these darts, so no real concept of how many dice to roll for it))

Karlos: ((That was a roll for Terrence, BTW. Wrong room *G*. Shall we assume the dart does a base damage of 1? It's only a dart, after all))

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: ((That sounds right to me.))

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: ((If you want, we can wait for Singh at this point.))

Karlos: ((Okay, so 2 succ to hit, base damage 1, is 2 damage dice. Rolling.))

Karlos: ((Well I think assuming the minimum damage is a safe bet))

Karlos: 2,6,

Karlos: ((So, the dart gets caught up in Jer's fur, leaking the dosage all over his skin, but not injecting it into him. Which I believe will begin affecting his reaction times as the stuff is absorbed, but doesn't instantly down him))

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: The snarl continues into a growl. He's got to think fast, now.

Karlos: He backs toward the cabin entrance, gun still trained on Jeremy. Ineffably calm still. Gaze unwavering.

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: He glares at Karlos, torn between letting him go and hunting him down, and giving in. After a moment's pause, he shifts down to Homid, moving to a side table for his bag.

Karlos: He nods slightly, still gazing at Jeremy, then simply slips out the door and off into the cold morning.

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: He administers the antidote as quickly as possible, then walks to the open door, calling into the night. "I'll be waiting..." He bites his lip, pausing, before giving the last word. "Sir."

Karlos: Can I trouble you for the result of a per+subterfuge roll against Jeremy to see if he's bullshitting that "sir"?

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: Go ahead. It's not hard to see he's being honest. Karlos proved himself the better man in that fight.

Karlos: 6,6,8,2,9,9,

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: Oh, yeah. He meant it.

Karlos: Is Jer attempting to entice Karlos out of cover for a rematch, or any other such hidden motive?

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: No. It's an honest submission. He failed to make Karlos submit, and he accepts that.

Karlos: In that case, ten minutes later, Karlos returns to claim Jeremy.

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: He's standing in the room, still naked from the clothes ripping off in Homid. When he sees Karlos come in, he kneels, head bowed.

Karlos: He nods slightly, gun tucked away in his coat somewhere. "Good. Swear fealty to me, Jeremy."

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: He closes his eyes. "I...swear, sir. I shall be your loyal slave. I am yours to command, in as much as the Doctor allows me to be."

Karlos: "I defeated you in fair combat, Jeremy. I used nothing but my hands and your own weapons. You used your advantages, and still you lost. The Doctor has done no such thing. He has used only words and shown nothing of his honour or his right to rule you." He touches Jeremy's forehead lightly. "I respect your loyalty to him, though, and will not challenge it. It is something you must assess for yourself."

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: He purses his lips, flinching a little at the tough, as he didn't see it coming, his head bowed. Clearly, he expects reprisal for defying Karlos before. "Yes, sir. I will do so."

Karlos: "Master," he corrects calmly.

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: He nods meekly. "Master. I'm sorry, Master."

Karlos: He nods. "Where is Malcolm?"

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: "The Doctor has taken him to a remote facility. We are to follow him." He pauses, biting his lip. "...Ita is on her way there too, separately."

Karlos: "Where exactly?"

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: "I don't know. They left by helicoptor. I assume I was not told in case we were followed, I could not reveal the location while awaiting you. I can...ask the Doctor, if you would like, Master."

Karlos: "Well, how were we to follow if you don't know the location?"

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: "A car and driver will be picking us up."

Karlos: "I shall make this clear, just once. You have sworn fealty to me. I will never leave you. Do you understand? You are mine, and I take good care of my property. Malcolm has sworn fealty to me also. He is mine. I do not tolerate other people touching my things. Go back to the Doctor, and text me when you know where Malcolm is. Text me his location. Then I will willingly negotiate with Schondorf for both of you to be released from his service. I'm sure this whole misunderstanding can be settled amicably."

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: He purses his lips, and nods. "Yes, Master." He pauses for a moment, but remains silent.

Karlos: "I do not wish to harm him," he states. "I believe we can work together and both achieve what we want." He smiles a little. "But I want you and Malcolm, and I want to know where I can find you."

Karlos: ((And I so need to go to bed. Apparently Jer's computer will come on and schondorf will have words, too, but I so need sleep))

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: He nods again. "Master...I know I do not have the right to ask. But...I cannot help but do so. ...what about Ita?"

Jeremy "Dream" Thomas: ((Okay))