The Cold Trail

Zas left the others upon making it back to town and headed straight for the school house. After learning from Ebony that the remaining girls had likely fled town by carriage, the Silent Strider was ever eager to learn as much as he could about his foes as they knew far too much than was comfortable about the rest of the pack.

Upon entering the abandoned schoolhouse, the Philodox nodded upon seeing the school room more or less as it had been the last time he'd been here. He went to one of the desk tops where the letters had all been burned into the wood and ripped the top portion off with little effort and carried it with him back to Hears the Song who seemed to be getting tired as she could be seen yawning.

"Zoe, I know this may be difficult to determine currently given where we are, but does this device reek of the wyrm too? If it doesn't I'm thinking of bringing it with us as a tool. If it does, I want to show it to Red Oath to let her know the type of powers and forces we are dealing with."

Zoe took the desktop from Zas and focused carefully. She turned the wooden board over and back again. After a few minutes of close examination she handed it back to him and shook her head.

"Best I can tell there's nothing all too unusual about it. It's interesting that the girls had somewhat customized their own boards, but communicating with the spirits in this way is not in and of itself evil. Roach Eyes actually uses such methods herself. As far as taint is concerned, you picked this item up out of the Wyrm crap pile known as Zavala, so yeah, it's gonna stink. Whether it is the source of any of the darkness around here, I think not. A thorough cleansing of the item would likely make it safe to take back to the caern, but it doesn't really prove anything concerning the nature of the beasts we've dealt with."

Zas nods once after Zoe completed her examination. "I think cleansing this would be a good idea, but perhaps cleansing this after we leave this place would be best. Though this may not prove anything to Red Oath, I think you and I can both appreciate having more information to work from-and who knows, maybe she will be able to glean more about our foes from how it works."

He pauses after re-gripping the desktop and draws a shallow breath, "You know Red Oath perhaps better than any of us and you and she both have the mindset of the same tribe. Why do you think she sent us after this machine of Morse's? I realize this is our test to earn the rank of Adren, but why do you think she chose this task?"

Zoe laughed and shook her head. "Far be it from me to ever know why Red does anything that she does."

Realizing she was talking to a Philodox about her elder and sept alpha she bit her lip.

"Not to say what she does doesn't make sense. I just mean that she and I don't really discuss much, you know?"

Looking toward the Lodge Zoe smiled slightly. "As far as why she chose this task for our Adren challenge, I couldn't say, but I certainly understand why she'd want this machine. On the surface it allows for communication with humans over long distances, which formerly had to be handled via mail or messenger. Sure, we Garou had our ways to communicate faster than that, but not with humans, seeing as how most Garou don't care to communicate with the so-called apes. Now that we know some of the spiritual implications of this device, which I believe Red Oath had already suspected, it is even more desirable to our tribe."

Her brow furrowed momentarily as a thought crossed her mind.

"With this device it would appear one could communicate with and summon both the spirits and the dead. Again not something unheard of in our society, but dangerous - as we've seen here - in the hands of humans."

Zas nods in understanding of the theurge's explanation of her relationship with the sept alpha and the logistical reasons to have the device.

As she says here last few words Zas shakes his head in full agreement, "Yes, it is very dangerous if left in the wrong hands. I am troubled by that same thought, and therefore I ask myself: in whose hands would the device not be dangerous? With all the benefits this device can bring, and the power one would be able to wield...is this truly something anyone mortal or garou should have?"

Zas curls his lip as he says, "I do not see Red Oath going on any warpath or having committed any blatant evil acts but, were she to do so, having such a device would make her a dangerous foe.

Don't misunderstand, I don't say these things with any intention of causing dissension or doubt of her leadership, but the fact remains...whoever has this device will have the potential to be very dangerous regardless of their intentions. I'm not certain keeping this device is a good thing."

A smile crept across Zoe's face as she regarded the Philodox. "I can understand your hesitation, brother, regarding new technology. I can imagine that when guns were first invented, many of our kind balked at the idea of such a device being brought against us in battle. But the gun itself is not evil, nor were you suggesting that Morse's machine is inherently evil, but I don't believe a tool should be destroyed simply because someone may be able to use it for nefarious purposes."

Zoe scratched her head and gave Zas a significant look. "To be honest, there's at least one other machine already out there not-to-mention Morse's blueprints. This technology is out in the world now and I think it best we study it and learn its uses and potential weaknesses in case we do come up against someone else using it for evil."

Zas's face begins to grow grim as Zoe explained her stance. "Something being new does not mean it is good. I'm not entirely sure this device isn't inherently of the wyrm just yet. Everywhere it's been that we've learned of-there is a blood trail."

Zas shakes his head, "You would also suggest to combat others who use this that are already corrupt, with the very device that may be the source of their corruption; risking becoming touched of the wyrm yourself. That seems reckless dangerous and unwise."

The philodox looks at the theurge and says, "The Wyrm is nefariously crafty and can use even the most seemingly mundane and innocent things for its purposes-as we saw here with the children. Even studying the Wyrm can lead to disaster. One of the main tensions that even now lurks in the minds of the Garou nation is that perhaps the Uktena have been tainted by the Wyrm in their study of it. That is why we are called to destroy it per the litany...wherever it dwells."

Zoe eyed Zas critically. "Hold on just a minute there, Zas. You have no evidence that points to this machine being inherently evil. It's like I said in my example about the guns, the weapons are not evil in and of themselves but can be used in evil ways. Domesticated horses can be used to carry heroes in a war against an oppressive foe or can be used to carry murderers to their next kill, but that doesn't make the horse inherently evil."

Zoe paused to think for a moment, clearly weighing an idea or two in mind before putting words to them.

"You said that bloodshed seemed to follow this machine wherever it went. Well, you know what else was everywhere this machine and that blood was? People. People who chose to act in evil ways to acquire something that wasn't theirs. You can't blame a piece of technology with a cockroach-loyal spirit inside of it for what has happened here. We don't even know what part it played in this whole mess."

"You parallel studying this machine with studying the Wyrm, and I must protest that suggestion. As far as we can tell, aside from the same level of Wyrm taint that poisons this entire town, the machine is not of the Wyrm. I could be wrong, and I intend to do a thorough investigation of the machine before presenting it to Red Oath, but I do not believe it is our place to have the machine in hand and refuse to bring it to our sept alpha per her request."

Zas takes a slow breath as he sees that his point is not being understood, "You spoke of guns and how they were not viewed by our kind as a threat when they first came about...yet they are a very real, potent and lethal threat now. This device may seem like no threat to you currently...but whose to say it won't turn out like the gun."

An additional thought comes to him, "Let me ask you this: Does having a gun save you from someone else who shoots at you? No-then how does having this device save you from others who have it and seek to end our kind?"

Zas turns to the door and looks out, "You are correct-blaming a random piece of equipment for everything that's happened would be foolish, which is why I suspect that there are other foul or sinister forces at work here that remain hidden and beyond our detection but still they surround this device and wreak death in its wake."

Zas then turns back to Zoe, "Red Oath did not send us here to bring this device back with us, but asked us to find out all we could about it. Bringing it to her was just a bonus. This device is a threat, as are those who know of it and use it. We know it is both dangerous and foolish to meddle in forces we don't understand or control, and that being the case here, the smartest thing to do is for this to be destroyed."

Zas looks into Zoe's eyes and with a pleading stare says, "We serve Gaia-not the weaver or its creations. Please don't let the temptation of the "new" distract you from our original calling of the mother."

Zoe's brow furrowed as her former smile faded to a scowl.

"And how many of Gaia's foes have Mocks, Rends, and I defeated using our guns? Guns are just as lethal of a threat to our enemies and we would be foolish to stop using them just because they could do us harm. Why willingly choose to be at a technical disadvantage when the ability to be the forerunner in this field is literally within our grasp?"

Zoe shook her head and laughed. "Zas, this is a machine. A bunch of pieces of metal hooked onto a piece of wood, capable of communicating across some wires. It is not 'forces we don't understand.' Sure, it has a spiritual component, but we know the spirit - Metal Noise - and we know he serves Cockroach, not the Wyrm."

Zoe was on the verge of angry tears as she spoke her last words. "You can't just go around destroying things you're afraid of just because you don't understand them! Just because you grew up in the middle of nowhere with your most advance technology being a bow, that you don't even know how to use properly, doesn't mean you can come into the modern world and piss on all our advancements and innovations."

Zoe glared at Zas, taking shallow breaths through her nose.

At first Zas tried to argue, "A serpent has no master, and we don't know who all is a player in this field. There are too many unknowns here-..."
Zas's pleading stare and argument die off as his eyes turn dark as Zoe continues and deals out her insults. The Philodox turns back to the door and says, "If building a world based on corrupted technology of the weaver is the price to pay for living in your modern world-you can keep it. I would rather live in the middle of nowhere with my broken bow honoring our true calling than serve the Wyrm."

He turns back to Zoe as a tear falls down his cheek, "I didn't realize...I didn't want to see the hold the weaver had on you and your tribe-that you would surrender yourselves willingly before the Weaver despite knowing that it's workings maybe in service to the wyrm."

Zas then turns and walks away saying, "I now see why the Pure are different from the Garou nation-they still remember their purpose. White  skinned men and white skinned wolves are alike. Scents the Lies was right."

Zoe was outraged and her face made that abundantly clear.

"You're trying to malign something that is completely amoral. It's a communication device. It's like condemning letters or voices because evil things can be communicated using them. The Wyrm does not create new things. The Wyrm destroys and causes chaos. The Wyrm can take good things that the Weaver or the Wyld produce and use them for its dark purposes, but that doesn't make those things worthy of destruction."

"If it were clear that this machine was the source of the corruption in this town, I would destroy it fully without question. The Weaver has not blinded me at all. I am fully capable of serving Gaia. Unlike the Pure I choose to use whatever means are provided to me, whether that be tooth and claw or technology. But fine, if you want to remain at a disadvantage while our foes grow in strength through their adoption of new tools, be my guest. But I will not follow you back into the Dark Ages."

As Zas turned to walk off, she hollered after him. "If you're really gonna swear off all things Weaver, you better leave your tomahawk and bow, which were new inventions at one point in time!"