As everyone filed into the Great Hall, they would be met with a view of the room. There was a long table that was covered with all sorts of things, a dress form that was sporting a uniform, and five chairs set in a semi-circle around a table, with a sixth chair set a small distance away. "Have a seat, guys, and we'll get started right away," Riley told them.

Taj was a little early. He'd even been nice enough to make coffee for those who liked it. Jin moved to the coffee and poured himself a cup before seating himself at the table. The others, Lucky the Spider, Neo, and David, seated themselves and exchanged some pleasantries before turning their attention to Riley.

She noted , as she headed towards that sixth chair and sat down, demurely crossing those stupidly long legs and smoothing her skirt down, that there were lots of trepidation in the looks cast at that dress form with the uniform on it. It made her smirk inwardly. "We'll try to keep it short tonight," she started. "I know you all have other places you'd likely rather be, other people you'd likely rather be with." She gave them all a brilliant smile. "But, I really appreciate you all being here and to prove it, there's a little stipend for you before you leave. Just a little token of my appreciation."

"It's no problem to be here, ma'am," Taj said. "What are we discussing tonight?"

"Let's start with introductions, shall we" My name is Riley O'Rourke," she paused and smiled. Like they didn't know that already. "I'm not a police officer, not a solider, never had any sort of training like that. But I am a lawyer and the Law and jurisprudence are my life's work. Justice is very important to me, as I'm sure it is to you, too." She glanced over at Taj and nodded to him. "Go ahead, Constable. Introduce yourself. Name, experience, stuff like that."

"Alright. Taj Kohli, formerly Detective, Anti-Crime Division out of the One-Two-Eight, New York Police and Security Department. Four years on the job there, six more in the Corps, Military Police."

Riley smiled and nodded, glad to hear it. Then she looked over at Lucky, nodding to him if Taj was finished with his introductions.

"Uh....my name's Lucky. Lucky T. Spider. Rhy'Din born and raised....well, not exactly raised up to as tall as I am now, it's a complicated story....but I suppose what I carry over to our grip is an impeccable record of pest control at the Red Dragon Inn. I've organized sting operations on termite nests so large it'd make your head spin."

Riley chuckled a little at that and grinned. "David" Your turn," she said, glancing at Constable Lo.

He nodded, looking around the table at the others. "David Lo. Ex-Police. Ten years in Chinatown, San Francisco."

A brow arched, and she hid a smirk behind a hand, disguising it as a polite cough. Such a way with words, that one. Then she looked over at Neo, indicating he should go next.

"I'm Neo Eternity. Leader of the Seraphim Knights mercenary team, whose three primary members have been part of the city guard for many years. I'm a high-ranking duelist in both Duel of Swords and Duel of Magic."

She nods politely after Neo's introduction and then looks over at Jin. "Your turn, Deputy."

He nodded to Riley, taking another sip of his coffee before setting it down. "Jin Mishin. Four years detective in The Last City of Eberron, three years Master Inquisitive. Detective for the Rhy'Din Watch and Deputy Minister of Justice."

Riley nodded her thanks and then stood, the heels of her red shoes - gotta love those red shoes! - clicking smartly across the wooden floor as she headed towards the table at the front of the room. She motioned for them to join her. The Watchmen assembled in front of her, all looking down with interest at the table, which was covered with two types of handcuffs, flashlights, collapsible batons, tactical knives, gloves, first-aid kits, and five sets of keys. She stood on the other side of the table, opposite the gathered troops and pointed with a slender, manicured finger at the first type of handcuffs. "This is your kit, guys. At the close of business tonight, you'll all be issued one of each of what you see here. You will treasure it and guard it with your life. Because it'll cost a pretty penny to replace and it'll come straight out of your pay." She paused to emphasise the importance of that before continuing. "These are just your standard issue handcuffs. No, you may not use them for...personal business," she says and winked at at Lucky.

David nodded, reaching out a hand towards one of the sets of cuffs. "May I?" he asked.

She nodded to David. "Go ahead." He picked up the cuffs and looked them over, clicking them closed and opening them back up. Nice and smooth. Sturdy, too. "Good," he said approvingly, setting them back down and looking at the other type.

Her finger travels now to the second type of handcuffs. "These are not your standard issue cuffs. These are specifically made to constrain magic users. Do not get the two mixed up." It would be difficult to - they did not look anything alike. The standard issue cuffs were made from steel and looked like...well, standard cuffs. The anti-magic cuffs were black and looked like they were sucking all the light around them straight into them, sorta like a black hole sucks light. David scooped up one of the second set of cuffs and examined it. He wasn't even sure what they were made of, but they looked intimidating.

The secondary cuffs are what drew Jin's attention. He reached down, but paused. "Triggers" Commands" What activates them?"

She picked one up and motioned to Neo. "Would you mind?" Neo offered her his wrists. She snapped the cuffs around them and adjusted their fit - not too tight, not too loose, almost like she's done this before! As soon as they click closed, though...that's when the fun starts. "Go ahead and try to summon that sword of yours." Jin watched Neo expectantly.

As soon as they're on and fastened around him, the effects are immediate, though they're more internal than external. He can normally feel the current of his bodily energy, and the mana in the air around him. He can also feel the Tower of Water's abounding energy through some unspecified dimension, as well as his sword, Hyperion. But once the cuffs are on, he can't feel any of them anymore. "I can't even feel it to try. I can't feel my own energy. I can't feel mana. I can't even feel the Tower of Water." He actually smiles, and quite big. "This is highly impressive."

"Well.....I'll be damned." The spider blinked.

"I don't think I can even bring out my wings....No, I can't even feel them inside me to try it." The smile grew further.

"So the trigger is simply to close them?" Jin nodded. He liked that, simple, easy.

Riley grinned and reached for one of the sets of keys, using one to unfasten the cuffs and place them back on the table. She glanced up, letting her gaze move over their faces. "So. Questions?"

"Okay. Now, then. The stuff you're all dying to hear - how to deal with suspects and witnesses." She stood up, and folded her hands behind her back, taking on a lecturer's stance. "There are two simple rules I want you all to follow at all times." She paused to make sure she had their attention before continuing. "One - Never Underestimate your opponent. Expect the unexpected.

"Two - Be nice. If someone gets in your face and calls you names, be nice. Ask him to leave, but be nice. If he won't leave, escort him, but be nice. If you can't escort him alone, call for back-up, and you'll both be nice." Her lips tug in a sideways grin. Yes, some of them might have heard this particular speech before, out of Patrick Swayze's mouth in fact. "I want you to remember that it's a job and ideally, you shouldn't take it personally. I want you to be nice until it's time to not be nice. When a weapon comes out, it's time to not be nice." She paused again, caramel-brown gaze moving over the men...and arachnid...giving them time to absorb all of this and to ask any questions they might have.

"Are we required to use non-lethal tactics even after a perp's started shooting?"

"I'll get to that in a second, Taj. I want to address how to talk to witnesses first, before I get to the heavy information.

"With witnesses, we have to remember that we need their help to do our jobs. They have the information we need and chances are, they won't be willing to give it to us, for whatever reason. Don't get frustrated, don't yell and shout at them. Remain cool, calm, and be nice. Try to understand why they won't talk." She began pacing slowly back and forth in front of them, falling into a rhythm now. "They may be frightened - they've just been witness to a crime, maybe someone's dead or bleeding all over the sidewalk. Take them away from the scene, try to make them feel safe. They'll open up then. Don't pander, don't talk down. Treat them like the...human beings...they are or they resemble." She stopped talking and stopped pacing, glancing at them, making sure everyone was on the same page.

"Be smart. Use their attitude to your advantage. If someone is shouting and screaming because he's just been shot at, play on that. Use a little bit of psychology. Let them know that we are there to help them get justice and to address their wrongs. But be nice.

"The information we need to take a useful statement is simple, really. Obviously, we need names, addresses, ways of getting in touch in the future. And also obviously needed is what they saw, in as much detail as possible, while remembering that chances are they won't remember what it is they've just been involved in." She gave them sort of a helpless smile. "Psyches have a way of blocking out trauma or changing it to make it easier to deal with. This is the perfect opportunity for you to be nice, be calming, be supportive. Help them remember by asking questions. If you can't get the information out of them while still on the scene, offer to take them to the Watch House. You're likely to get a more cooperative witness then."

She paused again. "Okay. Questions on dealing with witnesses?"

David shook his head. It was perfectly clear, and exactly what he'd been trained to do. The Chief clearly knew her stuff.

"What about violent ones?" Taj asked. "Or aggressively hostile ones?"

"I'll lump that one in with dealing with suspects, if that's okay?"

"That's just fine."

David came back over to Riley after wrapping up his gear. "Heading home?" he asked.

She nodded and sipped more of her coffee. "Yeah, eventually." She gave him a smile. "So what did you think?"

He sat back down, since she was still seated. "It was good. Clear. I'm relieved."

She chuckled softly, a lop-sided smirk tugging at one corner of her mouth. "Relieved" What, that we're not backwards and demanding you guys to stable your war horses on your own dimes?"

He nodded solemnly, though there was humor in his eyes. "Exactly," he said.

"Nah. That'll come later." She smiled and polished off the coffee before standing and dropping the paper cup into the bin. "Are you headed back to the Gardens, too?"

He stood, and nodded. "Think so." It was late enough that heading home was probably the best bet.

She nodded and moved to the door, tugging it open and holding it for him. "Want company on the way home?"

"Sure," he answered, moving out through the door and falling into step next to her as they headed to WestEnd.

((An image of the New Watch uniforms can be found here: New Watch uniforms

A bajillion thanks to the players of One Lucky Spider, Neo Eternity, David Lo, Taj Kohli, and Jin for being such awesome play partners. You guys really helped knock this scene out of the park and I appreciate all of your hard work with this very controversial story line. You guys are Princes among Men and you have my undying gratitude and eternal respect.))