Chapter One Sample, part 2 - Touchstones (Patreon)

Touchstones

Deviant souls burn white-hot — like the reactor cores of nuclear power plants. Touchstones act as coolant systems that, as long as they are functioning, leech away the excess heat of the nuclear reactions. Without them, the fire of the Broken’s soul reaches a temperature that exceeds its metaphorical melting point. Unlike a nuclear power plant, however, his soul has no reactor shielding and no failsafes to shut down the reaction if it gets out of control. In the absence of steady coolant pressure, this meltdown causes further damage to the Remade’s soul (Instability) and can lead to a catastrophic meltdown (the End Stage Condition).

Not all Deviants rely on the same coolants or cooling systems. They have many different ways of expressing Conviction and Loyalty, and they have a wide range of options in whom (or what) they choose as their Touchstones.

Self-Expression

A Deviant does not need to express her hatred of a Conviction Touchstone with immediate and outright murder. Nor does Loyalty compel her to constant acts of self-sacrifice in the name of protecting her Touchstones from harm. In practice, both scenarios are rare compared to less drastic interactions.

Expressions of Conviction

Deviants aren’t necessarily murderers. True, they only heal major Instability by destroying a Conviction Touchstone, but even that doesn’t always mean “kill”. Remade need their Touchstones, and killing a Conviction Touchstone at the earliest possible opportunity is usually wasteful. After all, choosing and affirming a new Touchstone takes time, and eliminating all the Broken’s Touchstones permanently worsens their damaged state (making them Ferals). Unless the Deviant is suffering from extreme (major) Instability, small acts of defiance, opposition, and sabotage can soothe her soul’s injuries for a long time. Some Remade grow so dependent on a Conviction Touchstone for their Stability that they maintain their quiet animosity for years — regularly needling, harming, or inconveniencing the target of their rage.

If the Broken’s actions set off a chain of events that leads to the Touchstone’s death or permanent incapacitation, this still heals a major Instability, even if the Deviant isn’t the one who pulled the trigger or plunged the dagger into her heart.

The Deviant also heals a major Instability if he places the Touchstone into an apparent certain death situation, such that any reasonable person would presume they had died. If a Conviction Touchstone later comes back from the “dead”, the Broken may immediately replace an existing Touchstone (either Conviction or Loyalty) with the returning Touchstone, who is not considered Wavering, although this counts against the limit of naming one new Touchstone per chapter.

At the Storyteller’s discretion, the Deviant may also heal a major Instability if he completely transforms the Touchstone or irreversibly destroys his victim’s life. Forcibly subjecting the target to the Divergence or sabotaging her intended Divergence so that it does not bestow the desired benefits or imposes much worse disadvantages than expected often qualifies. Inflicting an injury sufficient to change the victim’s personality, or one that permanently bars her from her chosen vocation (cutting off the hands of a professional pianist, for example, or destroying the eyes of a sniper) may also suffice. Certain kinds of scandal can likewise drive a politician, financier, or government worker from their professional arena and prevent them from returning to it. For some Remade, alternatively, so thoroughly reforming a Conviction Touchstone or convincing him of the error of his ways that he wants to leave behind who he is and make amends for his past crimes can also qualify.

Below are 15 ways Deviants might express their Conviction without resorting to killing the Touchstone in question. Taking action to oppose a Conviction Touchstone should take some amount of gaming-table time to heal Instability. Locking a Touchstone in your basement and taunting (or torturing) him off-camera shouldn’t count — although it’s certainly something a Deviant might do — but foiling his escape attempt or convincing the cops not to come inside to investigate the screams the neighbors reported coming from your house usually will.

Bully: The Remade gains professional power over the target and uses this position of authority to make the Touchstone’s life miserable in ways small or large — from setting unrealistic goals to creating an unpleasant working environment to levying unfair punishments for perceived failures. While most bosses don’t wield life-and-death power over those who report to them, if the Deviant does and he uses it to get his Touchstone killed (such as a commander who can order a soldier on a suicide mission), it can permit the Broken to heal a major Instability.

Dehumanize: The Remade causes or forces the Touchstone to suffer some indignity. This often has a physical component (a bucket of pig’s blood poured on the victim, for example) but it’s primarily a psychological attack. It either makes the victim act in ways that are contrary to his self-identity (committing cannibalism, for example, or killing a friend in order to save his own life) or embarrasses him in front of either a large group of strangers or a smaller group of people he wishes to impress.

Discredit: The Remade targets the Touchstone’s professional or social reputation. Because of the Broken’s intervention, the children’s entertainer is shown to be a sex predator, or the academic’s papers are works of plagiarism, or the preacher is caught on camera laughing at how he has fleeced his clueless flock to make himself rich. This usually heals a minor Instability, although it can heal a major Instability if it leaves the target’s reputation so badly stained that he can never participate in a field or mingle in a social circle again.

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Expressions of Loyalty

Although the mere fact that the Remade relies upon them for her survival often puts Loyalty Touchstones in harm’s way — forcing her to protect or rescue them — Deviants express Loyalty in many ways, any of which can restore their Stability. As well, the intensity and social acceptability of their behavior depends on the individual’s personality and often how much Instability they have accrued. Broken who have few Touchstones are more likely to resort to desperate means than those with many, as are transformed who have a lot of Instability.

Most expressions of Loyalty can look like perfectly healthy gestures of friendship and love. This doesn’t change the fact that they are critically necessary for the Broken. The Remade don’t just feel lonely or suffer mental and physical health issues if deprived of opportunities to engage with their Touchstones. They manifest increasingly terrible and numerous Scars until their powers go nuclear and kill them. Maintaining and deepening relationships with Touchstones is of deadly importance to them. Stripped of their Integrity, Remade are naturally less retrained in their behavior, so it isn’t so surprising that they sometimes take things too far.

Some Deviants can count on their Touchstones to initiate meaningful contact with them. Maybe her best friend invites her out for dinner and drinks almost weekly, like clockwork. Most Remade must engage in a bit of give-and-take. That same friend starts dating someone she’s really into, and while she’s sometimes free on the usual night of the week, the Deviant needs to make plans with her at other times to continue getting her fix. Broken who get desperate may resort to manufacturing circumstances to ensure that their Touchstones spend time with them. The Remade in the other examples, jealous of the one who she feels has taken her friend away from her, secretly sabotages the relationship or, in a worst-case scenario, kills him so that she can have her friend to herself. Oftentimes, jealousy is an expression of fear and neediness; the Deviant needs regular contact with at least some of her Touchstones and is afraid that if they forge bonds with someone else it might mean they have less time for her, or that they will abandon her entirely.

Similarly, some Deviants express Loyalty with no strings attached. They give of themselves because they want their Touchstone to be happy and healthy, seeing this as its own reward. Such unconditional love can leave them open to exploitation, however. Other Deviants try to get as much out of their relationship as possible. They trust in their Touchstone’s good nature or lack of less toxic relationships to ensure that they continue to meet the Broken’s needs. What little they give back they use as emotional leverage to prove that their Touchstone should do more to meet the Remade’s needs. Sure, he’ll lend you money, but whenever you argue about anything he’ll remind you of all the times he’s lent you money as evidence that you should let him have his way. Most Broken need to learn to balance these two approaches — sometimes giving freely, and sometimes expecting (or at least asking for) something in return — but this can be difficult for them, especially those whose shrunken number of Touchstones and/or rising Instability make them desperate for their Touchstone’s continued attention.

Below are 15 ways Remade can express their devotion to a Loyalty Touchstone. Each includes both benign and toxic versions. As with taking action to oppose a Conviction Touchstone, deepening one’s relationship with a Loyalty Touchstone should take some amount of gaming-table time to heal Instability. Going to bed with your Touchstone lover for the first time certainly counts, but sharing a bed with them for several uneventful weeks — and presumably having sex some of the time — shouldn’t. It isn’t that it must put either of you in peril or cause you significant injury (although Renegades can regain Willpower if they take risks or suffer harm in doing so), but that the event should further the story of your relationship or, at the very least, set the table for events that will threaten or alter it.

Accompany: The Deviant participates in a social activity with his Touchstone — anything from a fishing trip or sporting event to a stake-out or heist. The key is that it gives the Remade an opportunity to share an experience with the Touchstone. This becomes toxic if the Broken invites himself along on activities when his Touchstone doesn’t want him there, particularly if he stalks or stows away to stay close to them long enough to find an opportunity to insert himself into their activity.

Depend: The Touchstone takes care of the Deviant. This can range from tending her injuries or posting her bail, to picking up after her or insisting that she take better care of herself. This becomes toxic if she intentionally puts herself in harm’s way so that he can care for her when she gets hurt, or if she defers simple maintenance tasks until they come to his attention so that he can perform them.

Finance: The Broken gives the Touchstone money or pays her way. This can become toxic if the Deviant expects to be repaid or demands some non-monetary favor in return, especially if his “charity” is something that will place the Touchstone deeply in his debt and so gives the Remade leverage over her.