6-24-01
TBE-01
Like a Phoenix, I am reborn from the flames of my past. Death, they say, is often only a minor inconvenience at best. That, and it is damn hard to kill a number.
Now, the question on everyone's lips must be, "who lit the match?" Typically, an advantage of arson is that it leaves little evidence behind. But I find it all too convenient that I would be set ablaze only to have my most talented baristas stolen away by the Indigos. Seems like corporate espionage to me. Sure, it is a baseless accusation, but I find it hard to believe three of my previously most trusted allies would find themselves in the murky, not entirely blue, not entirely violet waters of the Indigo Organizations.
To my knowledge, Nick Langley has gotten himself tied up with the North American branch, Astoria 23. Sahir Bali has found himself in the South Asian chapter of Yaksha. And Salenna Whitaker has somehow managed to end up working for the Ozhog Morozil'noy Kamery, also known as the Freezer out in... well, somewhere in Russia. While I have lost track of Aelan Analu and Alex Gálvez, I doubt either of them is working for IRIS, the European branch of the Indigos. That leaves only Nicole Langley and Felix Blackwood. Nicole has been seen "performing" at a local palmistry place here in L.A., and Felix, well, last I heard, retired. However, if that was just old coffee, I think we all know where he would go if he were to return to the Indigos. If he could return to the Indigos.
So, where does that leave me? Well, there isn't much I can do on my own. Not yet. Not like this. Well, to say that I am entirely alone, that wouldn't be true. I do have a co-owner of sorts. Well, a co-owner and an investor into our renewed operations. Though as I understand it, our investor prefers to stay hands-off. And my co-owner is not too keen on picking fights either. So it would seem that my next move would be to find some new employees who don't mind getting their hands dirty. Or some old employees. If... well. Maybe not. Maybe some fresh faces could be nice. Needn't pick at that wound.
Yours again,
Infinitely Turning Sideways
6-25-01
TBE-02
I think saying that I don’t want to pick fights is a bit of an exaggeration. I’m all for picking fights. Though, with the current state of things, it just might not be a great idea. That being said, there is a fight that seems all but inevitable at this point. With my brother’s... what would you call that? Imprisonment? Punishment? Restraint? Removal? It’s created a bit of a power vacuum. And knowing my siblings, they’ll be eager to fill that vacuum as soon as possible. Of course, only three of my siblings can actively fill this vacancy. But only one of them has already established a foothold in L.A., my older sister, Asmi. Though I suppose in the previous establishment, you knew her as Mistress?
In any case, she’s been busy. Very busy. Then again, I guess she is the hardest working in our family. Always trying to prove herself. Middle-child syndrome. While the last Cafe was busy dealing with my brother, she was carving out quite the network here in L.A. Of course, the last Cafe made a deal to stay out of her business but that Cafe burnt to the ground, right? So I think it’s time we put a stop to her plans, whatever they might be. Speaking of... I don’t actually think I know what her angle is here. I mean, location-wise, taking control of the West Coast makes sense. But, Asmi doesn’t really need the extra real estate. Not in the same way my brother did. So there has to be something else going on. My sister wouldn’t make more work for herself without a good reason.
Plus, we still need to figure out who struck the match. 8 is pretty sure it’s related to the Indigos, but I can’t help but feel like this is the work of one of my siblings. Or, more specifically, my brother’s followers. Putting him away was a net positive, obviously, but he does have a rather vicious friend group who’s probably not too happy with what we did to him. Even if they weren’t the ones who struck the match, they certainly fanned the flames. And we haven’t seen the last of them yet.
-Lucy
6-26-01
CD-TBE-03