Home 23

[Gullara]

https://drive.google.com/uc?id=0B5bKlQSiirV-aXl0Yl8wRVNYWms

There's no place like home. Whether in the suburbs of Inside, a desolate mountain cabin, a dingy flat somewhere... this is where PCs live. This is a meta-location, as the houses themselves may be many miles apart from one another, or in separate dimensions.

If you want an address in this thread, please PM the creator of this thread and they will post the location in the OP.


OOC Rules:

1. Please post location tags on each post: It's important that there is a clear way to differentiate the locations in a meta-thread. Ex: [123 Generic Drive] or [Doe House]

2. The players who own each residence control what goes on within it: A residence cannot be godmodded. You can attempt to break in, burn it down, knock on the door, etc., but it is up to the player controlling the home to let you know what happens next. Players are permitted to make additional OoC rules, if they want, that apply to their own homes. By entering their property, you are agreeing to roleplay within their cosmology.

3. Play nice: If there are any disagreements between players please take it to one of the OOC threads or PMs.


Locations
154 Oceanside Drive Felandria
An abnormally large two story suburban house sits in the center of a large parcel of land, although depending on the whims of the owner, Felandria, the house may be larger or smaller than usual when you visit, she welcomes company, just ring the doorbell, if you can reach it.
Located in the Blue Zone in Inside.

Basil's Cabin UncleWolf, happyturtle
In an especially woody and remote area, some ways from the city, a cabin sits in the woods. It doesn't seem much different from any of the other hunting cabins one sometimes runs across, except that its scale is sized for minotaurs rather than humans.

Brendan's Upstairs Recaiden, Bushranger
The 'upstairs apartment' at Brendan's House of Hobbies. A fairly sizeable yet still cozy home for the proprietor, his wife, and their guests. Possibly infested with lionfish.

Hallowmere Lake happyturtle, UncleWolf
Several hours away from the city, with no roads leading there, is a small lake surrounded by trees. On an island in the lake is a cabin, well built from fresh lumber and brick and connected to the land by a small bridge. The entrances of the house face East and West, allowing anyone who sits on the decks to watch the sunrise or sunset. There's a garage attached to it as well, and further additions seem to be in progress. A small metal sign hangs under the mailbox near the front entrance. On it, a pair of names is etched in by ornate laserwork: Sunny and Carl

House of the Rising Sun Ashen Lilies
A Large house on a headland facing the Emerald Sea, which, by strange happenstance, borders both Town and Acronymia. Home to Natasha, Oracle of the Dawn, and occasionally Khiansa Daggerfall, adventurer, and Natasha's sometimes lover.
Anyone can drop by to seek the Oracle's wisdom, or rest in the gardens, or just to say hi and share a pot of tea, but please PM, as the player may not read the thread.
Further description. (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=7286792&postcount=7)

Intermission Beans
The divine realm of Carrie! The Intermission mostly consists of a great decagonal sort of tower, more wide than tall, filled with innumerable rooms for the deceased souls staying there until they move on to their afterlives. Also contained are the quartering complex for her "angels" the Sable Guides.

Jake Stevenson's Home happyturtle
In the Victorian sector of Inside, Jacob Stevenson lives above his watchmaker shop and shares the space with his alter-ego, Augustus Acre. The room is a combination living room / bedroom, with well made furniture. The bed is a daybed, meant to work as either a sofa or bed, but because of that, it's the equivalent of a single sized modern bed. It isn't really appropriate for guests, so he rarely invites people here. Most people who wished to encounter Jake would meet him at his shop in Inside instead of his home.

Julie's Place Slii Arhem
An apartment on the sixth floor of a fairly average apartment building. Julie Fiske, a succubus of moderate renown and very little esteem, lives here, leasing it from a dubious landlord.

New Rock Household blackouttwo, Artemis97
A nice place in the city's suburban area, just inside the walls. It was specially built to appear larger on the inside than it does on the outside. It has the works - white picket fence, work shed out back, spacious basement (with attached laundry room), a study, kitchen, bedrooms, guest room (with it's own bathroom), living room, parlor, dining room, entry hall, three bathrooms... Everything a typical suburban family could want, complete with a nice hardwood floor.
Darn shame Lucas and Lillith are turning the study into a room meant solely for displaying adventuring trophies, and Arthur's going to be using the workshed for his crazy experiments. The neighbors are going to complain, no doubt.

Silvery Ship Lost Deep
It looks like this field has been marred by a silvery teardrop of epic proportions. Easily fifty feet tall and about 90 feet long, it seems to have impacted the surface at a definite angle, leaving a long furrow behind it. This teardrop is covered in bumps and smooth protrusions, but the exact make-up can vary greatly from day to day. Doors, hatches, doorbells, cameras, and other things come and go on its surface. The inside is uniformly silvery, and the maze of halls, and rooms makes it hard to keep your bearings. Physics seems to stop caring, and looping hallways, physically impossible curves, and doors that open into the wrong places are the rule here. The entire ship is constructed of an amazingly durable material… No telling what it is, but it will take really, really strong weapons to break it if it can be broken. There is no evidence of weapons in the ship… but it’s possible they just haven’t been seen yet.

Skullfort Recaiden, LordDeathkeeper
A flying magical battlestation in the form of a giant black stone skull, looking down over a small farming town. Located over the hills not far from the Dancing Fox Inn. Home to the knight Leah, her squire Koshal, the mercenary Kestrel, and Mist.

Stormguard Tower Recaiden, Fenric, LordDeathkeeper
A five-turreted wizards' tower located in a forest clearing far from any city. The building is spatially impossible and the grounds are full of unusual plants and animals found nowhere else.
Anyone looking for help is welcome.

Archive
Home 22: Our neighborhood watch is extra vigilant
Home 21: Housebroken gazebos now permitted
Home 20: Refurbished
Home 19: Please Contact Your Friendly Neighborhood Realtor
Home 18: Where Everybody Knows Your Name
Home 17: Where you know all your friends and all your enemies
Home 16: Home is Where the Phylactery is
Home 15: A Fixer-Upper
Home 14: Oddly Squishy
Home 13: Insert Silly Title Here
Home 12: Home, Home and Deranged
Home 11
Home 10
Home 9
Home 8
Home 7
Home 6: Jiggity Jig
Home 5: Somewhere to take your family
Home 4: Plenty of Space
Home 3: Third Time's the Charm
Home 2: Home is where the cabinet is
Home 1

This thread is managed by Gulaghar. He will create the new thread when this one reached 50 pages. Please contact him for updates to the OP.

[Morty]

[Underside Entrance]

In one of the Nexus' mountain ranges, there's a plateau under a mountain slope. It's a busy place, as people come and go through a massive door in the rock face. There's a number of merchant stalls, food cards and other temporary establishments around, and near one of those, Iknika is waiting. She's dressed rather differently than the knight-in-training she appeared as in Mallside. Her hair is loose, and she's wearing a narrow skirt with a light green blouse.

[Gullara]

[Underside Entrance]

Claire strolls through the hustle and bustle, her head turning here and there to take in the new sights. If she didn't have a destination she might stop to take a few sketches. As is she's meeting someone, though.

Iknika will see the bunny girl approach. She's dressed in a skirt, leggings, and some kind of anime plastered tee shirt that Iknika can't read. She has a beaten up old backpack too. When Claire spots the goblin she waves and jogs the rest of the way over. "Heya! I found it." She says with a grin.

[Morty]

[Underside Entrance]

"Hi Claire!" Iknika says, waving. She peers at Claire's shirt, trying to read what it says. But it's some strange script. "Ever been in the mountains before? Or under them? The wolf pens are on another slope of this one, so we'll have to go through the tunnels."

[Recaiden]

Another day, another set of lessons. Today's swordfighting topic is 'how to survive when your weapon is stuck after running someone through'. As such Koshal and Leah are practicing with somewhat awkward training weapons where only the hilt really exists.

"Tell me about your adventure." his knight prods.

After all, what helps you learn like being distracted?

[Deathkeeper]

Skullfort

Koshal doesn't break rhythm as he talks too much. Leah's training has taught him to multitask.
"I met a guy and a wizard in Trog's and we went to save his town and we killed an evil bug wizard and we went to his tower and killed his minion and took his stuff.
Miss Cassandra had to identify all the magic stuff because I don't have magic. I got cool stuff like magic ring mail. Some of it wasn't cool, like this mirror that showed me as a girl." he explains.

[Recaiden]

Still, one mistake (even one he would have repeated without the need to multitask) and he'll be chided to "Pay attention!"

"An evil bug wizard, hmm? Well done. You know, this very fort once belonged to an evil skeleton wizard. You'll be a properly heroic knight yet."
Leah has to laugh at his reaction to the mirror.

[Deathkeeper]

Skullfort

Koshal doesn't like being laughed at.
"It wasn't funny Lady Leah! My horns looked so teeny and my muzzle didn't look right at all! Who would a mirror like that?

Do you really think I'll be a good knight?" he asks after he finishes sputtering his indignant response. He doesn't know all the proportions in the mirror since he was wearing armor.

[Recaiden]

"I would guess the mirror might interest someone a bit older than you, who's developed some curiosity about the opposite sex."

Leah nods.
"I think you will. You aren't waiting to go out and help people. That's what really counts."
"Practice is done! Take the rest of the day off."

[Deathkeeper]

Skullfort

Koshal's eyes go wide and bows.
"Thank you Lady Leah. I will use this time wisely!" he declares. Maybe he should visit the temple and thank Message for protecting him. He did that yesterday but she probably won't mind being praised extra...

[Recaiden]

Leah nods to him.
"I'm sure you will."
The knight hangs up the practice swords and heads off to the upper layers of the fort. She still has her own practices and lessons to see to before lunch.

It seems extremely unlikely that she would mind praise.

Outside the Fort, the town is going on as normal, if a little busy in preparation for the Spring Festival. The temple is still where it belongs. The observatory still watches the skies. People are at work in the fields and pterosaurs soar above.

[Deathkeeper]

Skullfort

Koshal hurries on his way to the temple where he can kneel before the altar of Message and thanking her for protecting him from evil bug wizards, disease, and telemarketers. He doesn't know what those are but his uncle says they are the worst. For his dry room and his wonderful Lady and the best dog ever. And for his day off!

Indeed.

[Recaiden]

You are welcome, Koshal.

Koshal isn't the only one in the temple. William, probably the best of those daredevil pterosaur riders, is seated beneath one of the pillars, lost in thought. Or possibly asleep. The High Priestess, completely concealed by her robe and headress and veil and nimbus of holy fire, is giving a lecture (a sermon, really) to a small group on the importance of generosity.

The altar seems particularly...awake? Present? The sense of the goddess is strong.

[Deathkeeper]

Skullfort Temple

Koshal starts but tries not to interrupt anyone else. Message has only actually spoken to him once before. It's startling!
Oh, hello Ma'am. Are you doing something important with Miss Alexis? You seem very...here . Are you uh, well? the teen prays. Does one small talk with a god? He can't just walk away after being spoken to.

[Recaiden]

Temple

William opens one eye to look at Koshal for a moment. Awake enough to notice the squire's surprise, at least.

Hello, Koshal. And Faye. Doing something important with Alexis? Yes, but not in the way you mean.
Quite well. I am More, recently, so of course I'm more attentive to this home.
You give thanks sweetly enough, but you don't really know me, do you?

[Deathkeeper]

Skullfort Temple

I know Lady Leah, who is your Charity. Koshal insists. So he was paying attention to that explanation.
And Alexis talks about you and I listen. But we have only talked once before. he admits.

[Recaiden]

Temple

Well, he isn't wrong. But that is only part of the picture.
Do you want to know more? You don't have to: it is enough to give thanks, and know that I care for you. But you are Leah's only squire.

[Deathkeeper]

Skullfort Temple

Koshal straightens up very officially.
"I know that as Leah's only squire I might be your only Knight that isn't also a Charity. I will do as much for you as I possibly can, Ma'am. I made my oath and I swear to it. he says resolutely. Or, thinks.

[Recaiden]

Temple

Perfect. There is something you can do to help.
For the first step, pray by name and ask to see me.
Some things are better done by formula.

[Deathkeeper]

Skullfort Temple

Koshal is confused but those are pretty easy instructions.
Uhm, Oh Lady Message, our protector, I ask to see you. he prays, hoping that he is doing it right.

[Recaiden]

Good enough.

Koshal should find himself vanishing from the temple, to another thread entirely (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?491651-Silly-Plots-2-Electric-Boogaloo&p=21970690#post21970690) in response to his prayer. Much easier to bring someone who asked than to just whisk them away. Even if you led them to do it.

[Gullara]

[Underside Entrance]

"Hi Claire!" Iknika says, waving. She peers at Claire's shirt, trying to read what it says. But it's some strange script. "Ever been in the mountains before? Or under them? The wolf pens are on another slope of this one, so we'll have to go through the tunnels."

[Underside Entrance]

"Nah, this is totally new. It's pretty crazy." Claire's never been this close to any mountains before. It's kinda intimidating. "We have to go under? That's safe, right?"

[Morty]

[Underside Entrance]

Iknika grins and tosses her hair back dramatically.

"It's totally safe! Those tunnels have been here forever. Besides, you've got me to show you around."

[Gullara]

[Underside Entrance]

Claire laughs. "Well when you put it that way. Go ahead and lead the way." Iknika's confidence helps with the nerves.

[Morty]

[Underside Entrance]

Iknika heads confidently towards the mountain gate. There's a crowd of people moving in and out of it, watched by bored guards. The passers-by are mostly goblins, but there's enough people of different species that Clarie doesn't stand out that much.

The gate leads into an enormous cave. It's circular, very tall and seemingly mostly transitory. There are three tunnel openings on the ground level, and three above them - the upper level is reached through massive staircases cut in the cavern wall, or from a pillar in the centre, and then a set of broad bridges. Iknika looks around, and heads for one of the side stairs, and then for the upper right exit. Which then becomes a wide, tall tunnel filled with pedestrians. It's faintly lit by bowls of some glowing, yellow substance, and opens up to smaller side-tunnels now and then.

[Gullara]

[Underside Entrance]

Claire gawks like an obvious tourist as they travel into the mountain. She walks pretty near Iknika. There's a certain sense of pressure that's stopping her from being entirely comfortable... "You know, my parents tell me that back where my family came from, my great grandparents used to live underground like this. Well, not quite like this, but you know what I mean."

[Morty]

[Underside]

Iknika's ears twitch.

"I guess that makes sense." Rabbits live in burrows, so rabbit people would live underground too, she figures. "So why did they move out?"

[Gullara]

[Underside]

"Well, they didn't; it was my grandparents. And they never really chose. It's the Nexus, you know. People randomly show up here all the time. Same thing happened to them." Claire explains.

[Morty]

[Underside]

Iknika nods.

"Yeah, it does that, doesn't it? Our family came here on our own. A lot of goblins did. And we built..." she gestures around her. "All this."

As she speaks, the duo enter another massive hall. This time, it's not circular. Rather, it's long, supported by columns in two rows, and with doors on each side.

"Hmm. The wolf pens are that way," Iknika says, picking a door to the right.

[Gullara]

[Underside]

"This is pretty crazy, yeah. This probably took years and years, right?" Claire follows closely behind, wanting to stay close to the one familiar person in a pretty crowded place.

[Morty]

[Underside]

Iknika's ears twitch.

"It did take a while. But a lot of those caves were here already. We just had to link them together. You'd have to ask a miner. They use some alchemy to make digging a lot faster than what topsiders do."

As they walk, the crowds thin out. This tunnel leads to the upper parts of the colony, near the surface and high above the ground level. The air gets a little colder, and a distant howl is heard.

[Gullara]

[Underside]

Claire jumps a little when she hears the howl. "That's them then, huh? How often do you hear that? It's pretty spooky." She laughs a bit.

[Morty]

[Underside]

"Not that often. I don't come up here a lot," Iknika says. "How's it spooky, though? It's a normal sound wolves make."

[Gullara]

[Underside]

"I don't know how it could not be spooky. It just sends shivers down my spine." Claire rubs her arms for effect, but she doesn't really seem all that perturbed. Maybe because there's light and plenty of people around.

[Morty]

[Underside]

Iknika chuckles and tries to slide an arm over Claire's waist confidently and squeeze, before stepping back.

"Well, fear not. Those wolves won't get you while I'm here," she boasts.

[Gullara]

[Underside]

Oh, that's unexpected. Claire blushes a fair bit, but she laughs it off. "Okay okay, I'm reassured."

[Morty]

[Underside]

Iknika grins, and leads the way further up the tunnel. The cold breeze becomes more noticeable as they climb, until they finally reach its source.

The tunnel ends in a wide, long gallery, opening to a dimly-lit cavern. This time, the light comes from the sun, not anything artificial. The cave has multiple large openings in it, leading towards the surface. Below the gallery, on the cave floor, are the wolf pens. The floor is covered in dirt and plants, and loosely divided into smaller areas with a set of fences.

Wolves mill about among them - male and female, adult and young. It's summer, so the winter's pups have grown up and are walking around on their own. The animals seem to have a surprising leeway in where they go, some even walking outside of the cave. Goblins in thick leather suits with masks are patrolling the pens, though, and observing it from higher ground. The wolves seem to ignore those that walk among them.

[Gullara]

[Underside]

As they enter the area, Claire 's head moves back and forth as she takes it all in. "There sure are a lot of them. Can we look closer?" She'd never ask that question if the fences weren't there, admittedly. "Why raise all these wolves anyway? Besides for riding."

[Morty]

[Underside]

"Riding is their main purpose. They're much handier in caves and mountains than a horse," Iknika says, peering down at the wolves below. "We can get down there and take a closer look. It's summer, so the pups have grown. Their parents growl at anyone who's not their handler when the cubs are still little."

[Gullara]

[Underside]

"Okay, cool." Claire looks down at them again. "Uh, we'll still be behind a fence when we go down, right?" She's not especially keen on being face to face with a wolf.

[Morty]

[Underside]

Iknika smiles a little. She gets why Claire is unsure around the wolves, but it's still a bit funny.

"Sure. And there's always handlers around. Let's go."

She leads the way to a small elevator, that takes them to the floor of the cavern. The smell is much stronger here, and a few wolves actually stop to glance at them. They're still a fair distance from the fence, though. Two wolf handlers peer at the girls suspiciously, but don't say anything yet.

[Gullara]

[Underside]

"Have you actually ridden a wolf before?" Claire asks as she's guided. She doesn't pay the handlers much mind. Iknika must know where they're allowed to go.

[Morty]

[Underside]

Iknika stops a little ways from the fence. It offers a good view of the pens. A young wolf with dark grey coat sits down and peers at them curiously, tongue lolling out. Her ears dip slightly, as she's about to tell something uncool.

"Uh, no. It's not something they let kids do. Wolves are still wolves, so a rider needs to be really confident they can direct it."

[Gullara]

[Underside]

"Pfft, did you try telling them you're not a kid?" Claire rolls her eyes, but then laughs good naturedly. "I guess that never works, does it."" Adults can be so lame sometimes.

[Morty]

[Underside]

Iknika smiles.

"No, it never does. Well, they do suddenly forget I'm a kid when I have to wrangle my brothers. Then they trust me to handle all four."

[Gullara]

[Underside]

Claire looks away from the wolves and raises her eyebrows at Iknika. "Oh, got a big family too, huh? Most people don't have even half as many siblings as I do."

[Morty]

[Underside]

"Don't I ever. Four brothers, and more cousins I can keep track of," Iknika says with an exaggerated sigh. "I was surprised that topsiders don't have that many family members. Sounds like you do, though. How many?"

[Gullara]

[Underside]

Claire laughs. "A few more than that. My family is huge. I've got eight siblings, fourteen nieces and nephews, and, uh, a lot of cousins." She'd actually have to think about that. It's so hard to keep track since she doesn't see all of them very often.

[Morty]

[Underside]

Iknika's ears perk up in surprise.

"That's a lot of siblings. And nieces and nephews. I've heard of families with seven or eight kids, but never met them. Must be crowded where you live."

[Gullara]

[Underside]

"Well kinda. We have a really big house, and these days most of my siblings already moved out. Now my sister's house..." Claire giggles. "That place is a madhouse. I've babysat for her before. Let's just say I'm happy that the oldest two are getting to an age that you can rely on them."

[Morty]

[Underside]

Iknika's ears twitch, and she grins toothily.

"I don't know. Kids that are usually the worst. They start getting ideas. Like my cousins. At least they no longer play this game where they bite each other to see who can keep quiet for longer."

Meanwhile, a young wolf is bolder than the rest, and gets close to the fence. Claire smells weir and he wants to smell her.

[Gullara]

[Underside]

"Oh my goodness! They actually did that?" Claire laughs. "That's terrible." She happens to glance toward the fence again and spots the wolf. "Oh, look. One's really close. Think we can get closer?" She glances at one of the guards.

[Morty]

[Underside]

"They did! It's called rakachak. They do it to prove they're tough," Iknika says, then looks around. The handlers are distracted by two adult male wolves going into a growling, heckles-raising dominance contest, which is how the little wolf got so close. "They're looking the other way. We can get close, if we're quick."

[Recaiden]

In clear violation of the instructions, someone shows up at Felandria's house directly, to see it for themselves.

Or, not see, exactly, because she(?) is wearing a pair of those dark glasses that photosensitive mostly-blind people wear, and carrying a cane that skips and sweeps across the ground in front of them. So it seems likely that however splendid the outside of Felandria's house may be, it's not making an impression. Besides that, the visitor bears a satchel over one shoulder, a pair of fox ears and tail, furred black, and is dressed in baggy shapeless clothes that seem designed to hide where exactly the person underneath them is.

Knock-knock-knock.

[Gullara]

[Underside]

Claire gives a wary glance toward the commotion and then nods. "Kay, let's go." She giggles and moves, quickly and quietly. Time to see the puppy (basically)!

[Morty]

[Underside]

The two girls make their way up to the fence, where the wolf pup is sitting. She seems to be paying more attention to Claire, since her scent is unfamiliar. She remains wary, though. A domesticated wolf is still a wolf.

[Gullara]

[Underside]

Claire has no intention of taking any unnecessary risks even with a pup. She just crouches down to get a closer look. "Aww! So cute." She coos.

[Felandria]

In clear violation of the instructions, someone shows up at Felandria's house directly, to see it for themselves.

Or, not see, exactly, because she(?) is wearing a pair of those dark glasses that photosensitive mostly-blind people wear, and carrying a cane that skips and sweeps across the ground in front of them. So it seems likely that however splendid the outside of Felandria's house may be, it's not making an impression. Besides that, the visitor bears a satchel over one shoulder, a pair of fox ears and tail, furred black, and is dressed in baggy shapeless clothes that seem designed to hide where exactly the person underneath them is.

Knock-knock-knock.

After a few moments, the door will open, Felandria is in her Wonder Woman jammies and fuzzy bunny slippers, holding a Felandria sized glass of wine.

She looks down at the newcomer.


Hi.

How can I help you?

Have you come about the room?

[Recaiden]

Is a Felandria-sized wine glass scaled up to Fel, holding about 2 liters...or the same size as Fel, holding about a thousand gallons? :smalleek:

The newcomer doesn't look up at Felandria, but her ears flick over at the sound of her voice.

"That's right. My current lease is up at the end of the summer, so we're looking around. And when heard the Felandria had put up an advertisement, I had to come."

[Felandria]

Is a Felandria-sized wine glass scaled up to Fel, holding about 2 liters...or the same size as fell, holding about a thousand gallons? :smalleek:

The newcomer doesn't look up at Felandria, but her ears flick over at the sound of her voice.

"That's right. My current lease is up at the end of the summer, so we're looking around. And when heard the Felandria had put up an advertisement, I had to come."

(The former, she saves the latter for special occasions :) )

Oh man, did she just say the before Felandria?

That's always good for the old ego:smallbiggrin::smallbiggrin:

Felandria swoons ever so slightly on the inside as she opens the door wider and steps aside.

You do flatter so.

Please come in, make yourself comfortable, would you care for refreshment?

[Morty]

[Underside]

The pup looks up at Claire. She hasn't heard such a sound from a two-legged thing before. She responds with a small, quiet howl. Iknika, meanwhile, grins. She's not sure if the puppy is cuter, or Claire... wait, what? Her confusion is interrupted by an older wolf, perhaps the pup's mother, noticing the sound. She pads over to her cub, eyeing the goblin and bunny-girl suspiciously.

[Recaiden]

(The former, she saves the latter for special occasions :) )

Oh man, did she just say the before Felandria?

That's always good for the old ego:smallbiggrin::smallbiggrin:

Felandria swoons ever so slightly on the inside as she opens the door wider and steps aside.

You do flatter so.

Please come in, make yourself comfortable, would you care for refreshment?

"Oh, no more than you deserve."

The visitor steps inside as indicated and...takes in the space in 154 Oceanside.

Just some water, please." Other things can hide the taste and composition of poison too well. "I'm Honeysuckle, pleased to meet you. What's brought you to rent out the space now?"

[Felandria]

"Oh, no more than you deserve."

The visitor steps inside as indicated and...takes in the space in 154 Oceanside.

Just some water, please." Other things can hide the taste and composition of poison too well. "I'm Honeysuckle, pleased to meet you. What's brought you to rent out the space now?"

Well, a number of reasons, for a while, my house served as an emergency headquarters for VIGIL, so the place was fairly bustling for a while.

And once everyone cleared out, I was enjoying having the place to myself, reinstituting Naked Time, the usual, but honestly, it's been a bit lonely since.

Plus, there is plenty of room, but don't worry, the furniture in the room I'm renting is your size, not mine.

As for the rest of the house, I have made accommodations for those smaller than myself.

In any case, Honeysuckle is a nice name, but I remember you saying "we"....

[Recaiden]

"Oh, no, it's only me. My current roommate is the one who saw the Wall-post, but she's made other arrangements since."

Assuming she gets that glass of water, she'll be sipping at it often enough. At Felanria's comment, she lifts a thoughtful finger up to smiling lips.
"It is a nice name, thank you. Perhaps you could show me the room. I didn't expect it to be furnished already."

"Then we can talk about the price. I believe you said it was 'reasonable' so I'm sure it will be for what it is, but..."

[Felandria]

"Oh, no, it's only me. My current roommate is the one who saw the Wall-post, but she's made other arrangements since."

Assuming she gets that glass of water, she'll be sipping at it often enough. At Felanria's comment, she lifts a thoughtful finger up to smiling lips.
"It is a nice name, thank you. Perhaps you could show me the room. I didn't expect it to be furnished already."

"Then we can talk about the price. I believe you said it was 'reasonable' so I'm sure it will be for what it is, but..."

Honeysuckle does receive a large glass of water, prolly a half gallon.

Oh, absolutely, I can show you the room, don't worry, it's on the ground floor.

We can discuss the price after you see it.

Felandria will escort Honeysuckle in the direction of....

http://img.homeportfolio.com/cms/122661/old-river-farm-master-bedroom-800.jpg

So, what do you think?

[Recaiden]

Of course it's going to be giant-sized. :smallbiggrin: She'll need two hands to hold that.

Once in the room, Honeysuckle stands stock-still, appraising the place.
"Ooh, those rafters! Hasn't seen much use recently, has it? And there's a lot of...glass. Very...open."
She seems nonplussed. On the one hand, it's a very fancy room, clean and well-designed. But on the other, it seems more suited to being looked at than being lived in.

[Gullara]

[Underside]

The pup looks up at Claire. She hasn't heard such a sound from a two-legged thing before. She responds with a small, quiet howl. Iknika, meanwhile, grins. She's not sure if the puppy is cuter, or Claire... wait, what? Her confusion is interrupted by an older wolf, perhaps the pup's mother, noticing the sound. She pads over to her cub, eyeing the goblin and bunny-girl suspiciously.

[Underside]

Claire yelps and stands up abruptly. She takes a few steps back and eyes the wolf warily. Sure there's a fence, but still! The pups are cute, but the adults aren't so friendly looking. "Heh, uh." She looks at Iknika. "It surprised me..."

[Felandria]

Of course it's going to be giant-sized. :smallbiggrin: She'll need two hands to hold that.

Once in the room, Honeysuckle stands stock-still, appraising the place.
"Ooh, those rafters! Hasn't seen much use recently, has it? And there's a lot of...glass. Very...open."
She seems nonplussed. On the one hand, it's a very fancy room, clean and well-designed. But on the other, it seems more suited to being looked at than being lived in.

Felandria looks around the room as Honeysuckle appraises it.

You.....don't like it, do you?

I mean, you can redecorate if you like.........

[Recaiden]

"It's just very...different." Honeysuckle says, trying to be diplomatic.
After a long draught, she sets the glass down on the coffee-table-sort-of-thing and flops experimentally across the bed, facedown, letting her tail swish back and forth.
Hmm. Lots of escape routes. At least three good hiding places. In an emergency, glass is often more of a barrier than a wall, but not by much, and there's still plenty of wall.
"It might do. Tell me, does this house have much of a history?"

[Felandria]

"It's just very...different." Honeysuckle says, trying to be diplomatic.
After a long draught, she sets the glass down on the coffee-table-sort-of-thing and flops experimentally across the bed, facedown, letting her tail swish back and forth.
Hmm. Lots of escape routes. At least three good hiding places. In an emergency, glass is often more of a barrier than a wall, but not by much, and there's still plenty of wall.
"It might do. Tell me, does this house have much of a history?"

Fel looks around the room.

Not really, I had it built a few years back, it's attuned to me physically, I can change size and if I change size it can change with me, I was afraid of accidentally growing in my sleep and smashing the place, but I don't have that problem these days so I turned that part off, so you don't have to worry about that.

But, yeah, not much of a history to speak of.

[Morty]

[Underside]

The mother-wolf pads over and grabs the pup by the scruff of her neck. The young wolf's paws dangle comically as she's carried off. This, however, gets the attention of one of the handlers. The older goblin's face is hidden, but the scowl is palpable.

"We should probably scram," Iknika says, trying to pull Claire along.

[Recaiden]

Fel looks around the room.

Not really, I had it built a few years back, it's attuned to me physically, I can change size and if I change size it can change with me, I was afraid of accidentally growing in my sleep and smashing the place, but I don't have that problem these days so I turned that part off, so you don't have to worry about that.

But, yeah, not much of a history to speak of.


"Hmm, okay. A place this grand should have a name, don't you think?"

Honeysuckle sits up and turns towards Fel.

"I am certainly glad to hear that it will stay the right size. Now, about the cost."

[Deathkeeper]

[Zaff's Baths]

Sobek transports Batu and Genghis to the upper-classman baths. Normally there would be people here, but Sobek conveniently closed the place.
Genghis will be spit out at the edge of the bathing pool, but Batu is spit out within it.
At some point during the ride Batu will have his divine blessing. Entering the pool he might feel secure, and in control. An odd sense of kinship. He'll also find the "Become Croc" button installed in his head, which until he can master might short-circuit and go off when he's submerged in water.
Like right now! Whether or not nothing happens, or he becomes a large nile crocodile or a more hulking, hybrid shape will be determined by his own willpower and if he gives in to it. Though none of his possible shapes will lose his cute hobgoblin tusks.

Other side effects of crocanthropy include a very slight increase in physical body mass (though it should also become easier to build muscle) and about 1cm more in height. Also sharp teeth, lethargy, carnivorous appetites, preference for warm weather, and other croc-thematic things.

[Morty]

[Zaff's Baths]

"What is-" before Batu can finish asking his question, he changes. His body grows, his skin turns to scales, a tail appears... before long, where a runty hobgoblin was now is a still short, but bulky humanoid crocodile, that still retains some features of a hobgoblin. Such as a bright yellowish green scale colour and large teeth in his lower jaw. "Mmmmm- I... ack!" He's having trouble talking through all those teeth, it seems. Genghis is fluttering around the room in a panic.

[Deathkeeper]

[Zaff's Baths]

Wow, that is surprisingly cute. Empty your mind, kid. You can still talk but you gotta stop thinking about it. Sobek says, lounging in the water beside him. Though as before, his figure is clearly made from water, having no substance below the surface.

[Morty]

[Zaff's Baths]

"Thish ish crazhy," Batu manages to say. As he calms down, so does Genghis, and sits down on his shoulder. "Dizhu haff to dump me in water?"

[Deathkeeper]

Zaff's Bath

Sobek rolls his eyes.
I'm a river god kid. My powers are based on water. So yes, yes I did. Besides, what's it matter? Look, you actually have abs now! says the god, pointing. Batu does, though he'll need to work if he wants them to be as ideal as the god's in front of him. Sobek also yanks on the crocathrope's tail under the surface.
Your tail is longer than I thought it would be. That's good, it's considered attractive by many species. Wait a second... Sobek fishes around at the bottom of the pool, an embarrassed grin spreading on his face.
Ok so I might have forgotten to undress you before I did this. he says, shrugging.

[Morty]

[Zaff's Baths]

Batu looks down at the sorry state of his wardrobe. His shirt is in tatters, while his jacket fared a bit better. The trousers mostly stayed on, but not everywhere.

"Shouldn't you know how thish worksh?" he asks indignantly.

[Deathkeeper]

[Zaff's Baths]

At least he doesn't need those shoes that have been thoroughly torn up by his claws by now.
How it works? Of course I know how it works! I didn't look at the size of your coccyx before you turned kid, I don't know your genetics. And if you mean the other thing, I just forgot alright? I don't judge but undressing guys ain't something I normally think about. Do you want me to replace them or something? 'Cause you're completely superior like this and you should consider using it fairly often to get used to it. Though you don't have to dress if you don't want to. Reptile. the god shrugs.

[Morty]

[Zaff's Baths]

"I don't want to look like a crocodile all the time," Batu insists. "Not just yet, anyway. So... please, replace my clothes. Maybe I can get something that'll fit my changing forms."

[Felandria]

"Hmm, okay. A place this grand should have a name, don't you think?"

Honeysuckle sits up and turns towards Fel.

"I am certainly glad to hear that it will stay the right size. Now, about the cost."

A name?

Never thought of that.

I'll have to think on that one.

As for the cost, I don't know, what seems fair to you?

[Deathkeeper]

Zaff's Baths

Sobek groans. You are by far the whiniest stepson I've ever had. But fine, I'm only doing this because I know how expensive those doohickeys are and I feel bad I broke yours. Sobek waves a hand and Batu will be spun around until his clothes have become an odd outfit consisting of a fine white shirt currently untied and open, a black jacket with green swirls embroidered onto it, and baggy pants. They're all waterproof and are oddly cool in heat. He'll also be wearing gold bracelets and one gold anklet because Sobek doesn't understand what peasant fashion is, really. Batu's wallet is unchanged, but his phone will have been repaired into a much more durable, waterproof model: a scarab version of the popular Beetle 7. (https://vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/hunterxhunter/images/d/dd/Beatle_07_2011_Anime.png/revision/latest?cb=20141201154833)
Okay? Are you happy now? Because you're not getting any more handouts. You get one outfit. You want me to zap the rest of your wardrobe you better make another deal. Sheesh.

[Recaiden]

"Well, I would say a room like this, but not quite suiting me, and you wanting a flatmate, and my being such a good tenant...."
"Probably about <surprisingly cheap price>."
If Fel just goes for it, great. And if she's a canny haggling landlord, don't want to start off too high and lose negotiating room.

[Morty]

[Zaff's Baths]

"Uh, I guess." Batu's head is still spinning, in more ways than one. "So what happens now?"

[Deathkeeper]

[Zaff's Baths]

Now YOU get to enjoy the gifts I've given you, and I get to be free of your incessant whining for a while unless you start praying to me. So yeah, go enjoy yourself, you'll probably figure out how to change back by tomorrow. Try manning up a little. Bye! With that, the god's avatar melts into the water, leaving Batu alone in the suds.

[Morty]

[Zaff's Baths]

Batu goes to slink back to his quarters. This really did not go well.

[Gullara]

[Underside]

The mother-wolf pads over and grabs the pup by the scruff of her neck. The young wolf's paws dangle comically as she's carried off. This, however, gets the attention of one of the handlers. The older goblin's face is hidden, but the scowl is palpable.

"We should probably scram," Iknika says, trying to pull Claire along.

[Underside]

"Uh right right!" Claire grabs Iknika's hand and runs off with her in a hurry. Once they put some distance between themselves and the handler, Claire starts giggling. "Did we get away?" She asks jokingly.

[Felandria]

"Well, I would say a room like this, but not quite suiting me, and you wanting a flatmate, and my being such a good tenant...."
"Probably about <surprisingly cheap price>."
If Fel just goes for it, great. And if she's a canny haggling landlord, don't want to start off too high and lose negotiating room.

Fel considers the offer.

Well, I'll be honest, I was thinking more around <the going rate for renting a bedroom in a nice house, minus about fifteen percent>

[Recaiden]

Giving an insultingly low offer was theoretically possible, but if she's read Felandria right, it was unlikely.

Honeysuckle responds with an innocent smile.
"Why don't we round that off to <an amount composed mostly of '5's and '0's that's ~6% less than Felandria's counter-offer>?"

[Morty]

[Underside]

One of the handlers shouts something after them, but everyone seems to forget about them once they're gone. Iknika grins and squeezes Claire's hand.

"I think so. Besides, what's the worst they could do? Tell our parents? I'd never do anything fun if I worried about that."

[Gullara]

[Underside]

Claire laughs. It takes a second for it to register that she's still holding Iknika's hand. Oops. She retrieves her hand, blushing fiercely. "I know right. And they sure have no idea who I am, so I'm doubly safe."

[Morty]

[Underside]

Iknika's grin grows a bit wider. She tosses her hair dramatically.

"So, how do you like Underside so far? It's not everywhere you get to see a wolf up close."

[Felandria]

Giving an insultingly low offer was theoretically possible, but if she's read Felandria right, it was unlikely.

Honeysuckle responds with an innocent smile.
"Why don't we round that off to <an amount composed mostly of '5's and '0's that's ~6% less than Felandria's counter-offer>?"

Fair enough.

When will you be moving in?

[Recaiden]

Fair enough.

When will you be moving in?

"I think next weekend I should have the time to get my things moved in."

Honeysuckle holds an arm out, offering Felandria a handshake.

[Gullara]

[Underside]

Iknika's grin grows a bit wider. She tosses her hair dramatically.

"So, how do you like Underside so far? It's not everywhere you get to see a wolf up close."

[Underside]

Claire laughs. "Pretty cool, pretty cool. But! Can they compare to the giant beetles?" She laughs some more. Moving right past the awkwardness. Perfect.

[Morty]

[Underside]

"That depends. They're not as cute. But they're a lot more impressive. Can you imagine me riding a beetle into battle?" Iknika asks. "We won't get into a beetle hatchery, and I don't think we'd want to, anyway. But finding an adult one shouldn't be hard."

[Gullara]

[Underside]

"I'm gonna be honest, I can't." It's pretty bizarre! Even riding something like a wolf is odd to her. "Not that I'd ever be riding to battle. Unless I could stab them with a pencil. Or maybe batter them with my paint brush." She giggles a bit at her own joke.

[Felandria]

"I think next weekend I should have the time to get my things moved in."

Honeysuckle holds an arm out, offering Felandria a handshake.

Felandria puts out her hand to gently shake Honeysuckle's, trying not to simply engulf her new roommate's hand in her own.

Welcome home.

[Morty]

[Underside]

"Then you won't get to draw me on one," Iknika says, pouting jokingly. "But maybe you could draw me without one."

[Recaiden]

Felandria puts out her hand to gently shake Honeysuckle's, trying not to simply engulf her new roommate's hand in her own.

Welcome home.

Oh, right, really differently-sized hands. :smallredface:

"Wonderful. Now, I believe you were going to show me the rest of the house. What's your room like, for instance?"

[Gullara]

[Underside]

"Well if we can find one of those beetles, I'm game for it still." Claire says. Just because it's weird doesn't mean it's a problem! "Think they'll stand still long enough. I'm not the fastest artist around."

[Morty]

[Underside]

Iknika ponders it for a while.

"I think I know where to find a beetle for you to take a look at."

She turns around and leads Claire down another series of tunnels and halls. Finally, they will reach what looks like a market. It's located in a large and circular, but fairly low cavern. Rings of stalls and temporary shops line it, selling goods of all sorts. Food, mostly, that Claire will likely not recognize. But what Iknika wants to show her is at the far end of the market. It's a massive beetle, with a gleaming shell and long, curved mandibles. Some goblins are loading packages onto its back, while another holds it by a strange-looking saddle.

[Felandria]

Oh, right, really differently-sized hands. :smallredface:

"Wonderful. Now, I believe you were going to show me the rest of the house. What's your room like, for instance?"

A bright smile crosses Felandria's lips.

Ooh, yay, totally.

Come on!

And Fel will escort Honeysuckle upstairs towards her bedroom.

http://idolza.com/a/m/s/small-master-bedroom-ideas-and-inspirations-traba-homes-luxurious-with-large-bed-also-chic-cabinet-comfortable-chair_small-master-bedrooms_xmas-decoration-ideas-how-to-decorate-a-kids-bedr_850x541.jpg

[Recaiden]

A bright smile crosses Felandria's lips.

Ooh, yay, totally.

Come on!

And Fel will escort Honeysuckle upstairs towards her bedroom.

Oh wow, look at this place! what a room! Those elegant recessed lights! The smoothly contoured desk! The long decorative vent with its air like a waterfall, the enclosed walls, the bouncy layered bed! If the room downstairs had been designed like this, the haggling would have gone differently.

Honeysuckle stands just inside the doorway, taking the place in. Hmm. Not the usual reason she's escorted up to someone's bedroom, is it?

"Do you get to spend much time at home?" she inquires. A demigoddess superhero restaurateur councilwoman must be pretty busy, right?

[Felandria]

Oh wow, look at this place! what a room! Those elegant recessed lights! The smoothly contoured desk! The long decorative vent with its air like a waterfall, the enclosed walls, the bouncy layered bed! If the room downstairs had been designed like this, the haggling would have gone differently.

Honeysuckle stands just inside the doorway, taking the place in. Hmm. Not the usual reason she's escorted up to someone's bedroom, is it?

"Do you get to spend much time at home?" she inquires. A demigoddess superhero restaurateur councilwoman must be pretty busy, right?

More than you'd think, I made some good hires, so The Olympian practically runs itself, and I'm still waiting for there to be a city council meeting.

Like I said, if this is more your style and you wanna redecorate your room, feel free to do so, you live here now, make yourself at home.

[Recaiden]

[154 Oceanside Drive]

"Really~?" Most places have such strict rules on modifying the place. Felandria is most hospitable. "I'm sure I'll get to that once I have a bit more time. You can help, if you like. Matching colors, and so on."
Honeysuckle frowns, and her tail whisks back and forth.
"Now though I should be getting back to the old place. Need to pack and clean and all - but I'll see you soon. :smallwink:" She can't actually wink properly, of course, but the emoticon should come across in tone well enough.

[Celticbear]

At the door of 154 Oceanside Drive

https://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/lovecraft/images/d/db/Migo.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20150816215922

... and it knocks on the door.

[Gullara]

[Underside]

Iknika ponders it for a while.

"I think I know where to find a beetle for you to take a look at."

She turns around and leads Claire down another series of tunnels and halls. Finally, they will reach what looks like a market. It's located in a large and circular, but fairly low cavern. Rings of stalls and temporary shops line it, selling goods of all sorts. Food, mostly, that Claire will likely not recognize. But what Iknika wants to show her is at the far end of the market. It's a massive beetle, with a gleaming shell and long, curved mandibles. Some goblins are loading packages onto its back, while another holds it by a strange-looking saddle.

[Underside]

"Crazy! How does a bug even get that big?" Claire quickens her step, nearing the beetle, her curiosity consuming her. "Can they move fast? They'd need to, right? If you ride them into battle?" She spins back to look at Iknika.

[Morty]

[Underside]

"I guess they just are. Maybe goblins bred them this way, at some point. Or just found them and domesticated them."

The beetle turns its head towards Claire, having picked up an unfamiliar smell. It chitters, in a high-pitched sound. Its handler shortens the leash a bit, but appears unconcerned otherwise. The beetle seems curious, but docile. It's also clear it relies on its sense of smell, for the most part. Not much in the way of sight.

"Oh, yeah. This one isn't that fast, because it's a pack beetle. But there's also smaller ones for single riders. They're still not as fast as wolves, but they can just crawl over obstacles. And on walls, even."

She clearly did some research on it.

[Gullara]

[Underside]

Claire doesn't get any closer to the beetle. She knows better than to get too near a strange animal. "Really? What does the rider to? Attached I guess?" Sounds disorienting.

[Felandria]

[154 Oceanside Drive]

"Really~?" Most places have such strict rules on modifying the place. Felandria is most hospitable. "I'm sure I'll get to that once I have a bit more time. You can help, if you like. Matching colors, and so on."
Honeysuckle frowns, and her tail whisks back and forth.
"Now though I should be getting back to the old place. Need to pack and clean and all - but I'll see you soon. :smallwink:" She can't actually wink properly, of course, but the emoticon should come across in tone well enough.

Fel nods.

Well, sure.

Of course, you'll need this.

Felandria hands Honeysuckle a key for to get back into the house.

At which point....

- - - Updated - - -


At the door of 154 Oceanside Drive

https://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/lovecraft/images/d/db/Migo.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20150816215922

... and it knocks on the door.

Oh, someone's at the door!

Excuse me a moment.

Fel bounds downstairs and opens the door.....

GAH!!!!!!!!!!

And quickly closes the door again.

What the heck was that thing?

Okay, deep breath, Felandria.....

*opens door again*

Uh, hi?

[Celticbear]

Oh, someone's at the door!

Excuse me a moment.

Fel bounds downstairs and opens the door.....

GAH!!!!!!!!!!

And quickly closes the door again.

What the heck was that thing?

Okay, deep breath, Felandria.....

*opens door again*

Uh, hi?


Greetings human. I am one named Unaabhi. I read your advertisement upon "The Wall" and have replied to it. Though the original room is no longer for sale, you mentioned others. says Unaabhi.

[Morty]

[Underside]

"They've got special saddles, yeah. But I've heard it can be hard to stay on. You need to practice a lot. So that's something I need to do before I can ride a beetle,'' Iknika explains.

[Gullara]

[Underside]

"Well the question is then, what do you wanna be drawn riding, a wolf or beetle?" Claire asks, giving Iknika an inquisitive look.

[Morty]

[Underside]

"A beetle," Iknika declares fiercely. "It's way cooler and more original."

[Felandria]

Greetings human. I am one named Unaabhi. I read your advertisement upon "The Wall" and have replied to it. Though the original room is no longer for sale, you mentioned others. says Unaabhi.

Felandria is visibly nervous.

Yeah, um, there is, uh....

I have a guest area in the backyard, I can show you if you give me a couple minutes.

She much more politely closes the door and turns around.

Honeysuckle, could you maybe entertain our.....guest for a couple minutes?

[Gullara]

[Underside]

Claire laughs. "Alright. I guess I can't get you actually posing on a beetle? Maybe I should take some sketches of this one right now and I can use that."

[Recaiden]

"Sure thing."

Honeysuckle, upon stepping up to the door, opening it, and welcoming the visitor in, does not recoil in horror. Possibly because she can't quite see Unaabhi and only knows there's some sort of odd mushroom-person here.

"She's not a human, you know. I realize we might all appear alike to you, but try not to assume, mkay?" She swishes her fuzzy tail from one side to the other for emphasis.

[Celticbear]

154 Oceanside Drive

My utmost sorrys. My species has sent me here for reasons as you have now illuminated. Many different cultures and species here, and some are not known. explains Unaabhi.

Again, I am sorry for my halting utterance of your language. I am incapable of relaying some of your words due to my anatomy.

[Felandria]

Whose House? Fel's House!

Meanwhile, Felandria goes out into the backyard, where there is a small second house, Felandria heard about how popular "tiny houses" are these days, so she bought one on a whim a while back, and she was expecting some kind of dollhouse or something, something she could put in another room and play with by shifting into a little pixie like she liked to do sometimes.

Honestly, it's pretty much the only other thing she really does with her shifting powers, she always means to play around with it more, and she will soon :smallbiggrin::smallwink:

Anyway, the house showed up and was only a little tiny, she could even fit into it, so she set it up in the backyard, it's nicely decorated....

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/97/7c/e2/977ce249f89e4463ce5dfc8febd2cb92--tiny-home-cabin-tiny-house-ideas-cabins.jpg

But there's one thing she needs to do first.

She pulls out a scroll and reads an incantation which is kind of a magic Scotchgard, coating everything with a thin layer of magic to keep everything neat and tidy, because Fel isn't judgy at all, but she doesn't know 100% what the being at her front door is, or what it might secrete, but she will be as hospitable as demigoddessly possible without actually letting it sleep in her house yet, especially since she has a roommate now, and she wants to keep her safe just in case.

And now she will make her way back inside

[Recaiden]

"You do kind of sound like you chewed up a dictionary." Honeysuckle agrees. "But it'll be okay."
"So you came to the nexus to learn about different species, and you need a place to stay?"
She ventures, trying to put the creature's sentences together.

[Celticbear]

154 Oceanside Drive

Correct. affirms Unaabhi.

This conflux of timelines which defies the natural order of things is of great interest towards my people. The study of this place could yield promising data.

[Recaiden]

"Think this'll be a good place? Tell me, what sort of things do your species need to live? Where do you naturally stay?" Honeysuckle asks, mostly just making conversation while Felandria does - whatever she's doing. But also, she doesn't know any mushroom-people, and is a little curious.

[Celticbear]

154 Oceanside Drive

Mi-Go species does not require air, food, rest, clothing, water, or nutrients to survive. Our people have rejected faith in turn for scientific achievement. We fly across galaxies collecting data until we conclude upon the common answer of life, why we are here, and who started it all. What I seek in lodging is a quiet place where work may done. answers Unaabhi.

Please do not tell me the answer is "42". Our species has heard this "joke" so many times that it has started to become... tiresome.

[Morty]

[Underside]

Iknika tilts her head, as if seriously considering it.

"I don't think we could get away with me sitting on a beetle. Sneaking up to the wolves is one thing, but this would make them mad."

[Recaiden]

Mi-Go species does not require air, food, rest, clothing, water, or nutrients to survive. Our people have rejected faith in turn for scientific achievement. We fly across galaxies collecting data until we conclude upon the common answer of life, why we are here, and who started it all. What I seek in lodging is a quiet place where work may done. answers Unaabhi.

Please do not tell me the answer is "42". Our species has heard this "joke" so many times that it has started to become... tiresome.

That...basically says it all, doesn't it?
"Oh, I wouldn't. I don't really concern myself with all that 'meaning of existence' stuff."
And she has no idea why '42' would explain the creation of life.

"If you're looking for 'quiet', you just might have come to the wrong place." It's a rare commodity in the Nexus.

[Celticbear]

That...basically says it all, doesn't it?
"Oh, I wouldn't. I don't really concern myself with all that 'meaning of existence' stuff."
And she has no idea why '42' would explain the creation of life.

"If you're looking for 'quiet', you just might have come to the wrong place." It's a rare commodity in the Nexus.

154 Oceanside Drive

By quiet I mean literal silence. Some of my technology is sound sensitive. replies Unaabhi.

[Felandria]

154 Oceanside Drive

By quiet I mean literal silence. Some of my technology is sound sensitive. replies Unaabhi.

At that moment, Felandria reappears next to Honeysuckle.

Well, then, I have just the place for you!

Come around to the back and I'll show you.

[Celticbear]

154 Oceanside Drive

This was a fine exchange of sounds, and I would seek to continue it later. says Unaabhi to Huneysuckle before turning his "head" towards Felendria.

Yes, I am eager to perceive this location. It is kind of you to allow someone so strange to occupy here.

[Recaiden]

Honeysuckle nods and continues on her way out of the house. Sounds like this odd ... person(?) will be staying with them after all. But the details are a concern for another time.

[Felandria]

Honeysuckle nods and continues on her way out of the house. Sounds like this odd ... person(?) will be staying with them after all. But the details are a concern for another time.

Fel waves as Honeysuckle exits.

Bye, see you soon, roomie!

Well, uh, Unaabhi, let me show you the space.

And Fel will escort Unaabhi through the front door and around the house to the back where the tiny house pictured above is.

[Celticbear]

Whose House?Fel's House! (At least tht was the tag used when Fel was in it.)


The space is furnished well. I also appreciate the size of the house, my species thrives in confined spaces. I have the final decision. What sorts of payment do you take, Fel-en-dria? asks Unaabhi.

[Gullara]

[Underside]

Iknika tilts her head, as if seriously considering it.

"I don't think we could get away with me sitting on a beetle. Sneaking up to the wolves is one thing, but this would make them mad."

[Underside]

"Okay. Here, let me get a picture first." Claire pulls out her phone and snaps a couple pictures of the beetle. "Uh, how about we sit over here for a bit so I can get a rough sketch?" Claire pulls her backpack off and opens it, rifling through it for her pencil and her clipboard.

[Felandria]

Whose House?Fel's House! (At least tht was the tag used when Fel was in it.)


The space is furnished well. I also appreciate the size of the house, my species thrives in confined spaces. I have the final decision. What sorts of payment do you take, Fel-en-dria? asks Unaabhi.

Gold, diamonds, cash, don't suppose you have any of those?.

[Celticbear]

Fel's House

The creature makes a motion in the air, and then sinks one of his crab like hands through some sort of worm-hole. He emerges with this.

http://www.topnews.in/files/gold-bar_2.jpg

I have more if the current amount is insufficient.

[Morty]

[Underside]

"Sure." Iknika looks around for a bit. "Do you want me to bring you something to drink? ...should be something around here for non-goblins."

[Felandria]

Fel's House

The creature makes a motion in the air, and then sinks one of his crab like hands through some sort of worm-hole. He emerges with this.

http://www.topnews.in/files/gold-bar_2.jpg

I have more if the current amount is insufficient.

Well, that'll work.

That'll cover the deposit and the first month, all right.

Fel produces the keys to the small house.

Make yourself at home.

[Recaiden]

Batu and Cleo arrive in a forest, at the edge of a meadow clearing. Far from civilization, the sort of place where you might get lost forever. Some mostly-nameless mountain rises in the distance to the north, and one can hear a stream babbling gently nearby. The grass is taller than Batu, and full of monsters (most of them friendly, though) watching the visitors.

And in the center of the meadow is a tower. It is difficult to make sense of: the eye sees contradicting images. But you can be sure that it's very tall, it splits into five outsized turrets at the top, and it's mostly stone, with some metal and a gigantic living tree involved as well.

"When everything is working right, there are five full Wizards of the order. But, right now, there are only two." It's a shame, very embarrassing.

[Morty]

[Wizards' Tower]

Batu's mind is racing, taking in the setting and the circumstances. What is wrong with that tower..?

"Will I become one of such wizards, someday?"

[Celticbear]

Fel's House

The creature hands over the gold bar, and then flies upstairs.

[Recaiden]

"Hopefully, you will."
It's not only up to Cleo who's chosen.
As she makes her way out back to the tower, the grass bends away to let her pass.
"We built this place at the most recent refounding of the order. If we did it right, it'll stand here forever. But all the spells bound up in it make it a little weird. Can't quite make out the details, right? Just the white stone, black iron, and the branches."

Up closer, the grass gives way to neat gardens (although most of the plants there, you wouldn't see anywhere else); an arched window to the west looks in on a humble kitchen, and a plain door stands right before them.

"You were right that we've been working with VIGIL, because the demons and those who're exploiting their power are such a threat. But our vision aligns more with the League; there are always second chances and ways for even the most lost to do good."

[Morty]

[Wizards' Tower]

"I've got a lot of chances," Batu admits. "Many people helped me get here. It's only right that I give some of it back."

[Felandria]

Fel's House

The creature hands over the gold bar, and then flies upstairs.

(Wait, upstairs of the guest house, or upstairs of the main house?)

[Gullara]

[Underside]

"Sure." Iknika looks around for a bit. "Do you want me to bring you something to drink? ...should be something around here for non-goblins."

[Underside]

Claire sits down and gets hself ready to draw. She's gonna be quick about this part. "Uh, what kinda drinks are for goblins?" That's a bit of a weird thing to say, right?

[Celticbear]

(Wait, upstairs of the guest house, or upstairs of the main house?)

((Guest house. The picture seemed to look like there were stairs.))

[Morty]

[Underside]

"They usually involve the kind of thing you find underground," Iknika says. "But topsiders do come here, so I should be able to find something." Her ears twitch. "You could try a goblin drink, but that's... kind of risky."

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Cassandra's Tower]

A platinum blonde woman comes walking easily up the road to Cassandra's tower, looking around at the scenery, before stopping at the tower itself and knocking on the door. Hopefully the owner is home; she hates to impose, but from what Fayyaad told her, Cassandra is just the person she needs to talk to. She waits patiently after knocking, a pleasant smile on her face. At least it's a nice day to be out for a walk.

[Gullara]

[Underside]

"Why though? I don't get it. Is it made of something super weird?" Claire asks, kind of amused by how cagey Iknika is being about it. She's started to sketch now, drawing broad shapes at the moment, trying to get the proportions of the beetle down.

[Morty]

[Underside]

Iknika gets a little flustered. The truth is that she wants to impress Claire, and giving her something that'll taste gross to her or make her sick would ruin that.

"It's mostly mushrooms, lichens and the plants that manage to grow underground," Iknika says. "Herbs and such. Berries."

[Gullara]

[Underside]

"That doesn't sound bad to me." Claire smiles broadly, as if at some joke. "I'll try it."

[Ashen Lilies]

[Cass' Tower]

((This is a reference post))

Standing in plain sight on a hill overlooking the village of Aelfisborough, a tall basalt tower stands like a foreigner amongst fields long left fallow by locals wary of the imposing structure's shadow. Once home to an alchemist with limited social graces and an unfortunate enthusiasm for kidnapping villagers and transmuting them into insectoid abominations to pursue his research, the tower is now home to the sorceress Cassandra, the previous tenant having been evicted by fire and sword. And also bullets.

Within the nearby vicinity of the tower, inside a wildflower meadow clear of the surrounding fields, are a greenhouse and a pond, where once grew valuable plants for an alchemist's practice. Under the sorceress’ oversight, the pond has been cleaned up and subject to significant landscaping, recessed and sheltered from outside view in an enclosure of decorated shrubs and a rock garden. The greenhouse is also currently under some form of renovation, with the rear wall having been knocked through completely, and covered with a tarp for the moment. The approach to the tower is a stone path, which cuts through a discreet ha-ha, leading up to the front door, with another path around the side splitting off to the greenhouse and the pond. The entrance to the tower itself sits well above ground level - a climb of nearly two meters vertically up a staircase that leads up to a sturdy wooden door. One gets the sense that whoever built this tower, they expected to be able to deny access to the tower as they please, though currently it seems easy enough to make the climb and knock directly on the door's prominent metal knocker, if they wished to do so.

The inside structure of the tower looks much the same on every floor - each floor consists of a single circular, open room with basalt walls and a wooden floor. Small windows dot the walls to let in some natural light, though for the most part illumination is provided by soft glowing magical spheres, which nestle inside small recesses in the walls and ceiling. The walls on every floor but the top and bottom are hugged by a staircase which snakes around the tower both up and down, granting access to floors both above and below.


This floor serves as both a general living space, and a kitchen, which takes up roughly a rear third of the floor

The forward space has been set up with a pale grey sofa and matching squishy arm-chairs ringing a glass-topped coffee table and flanked by a small bookcase. Most of the books, of course, are not in the bookcase, but rather tend to be scattered across the table, the arms (and seats) of the sofa, or on the floor. Behind the sofa, a large, well insulated reptile enclosure sits upon a low counter, serving as a home to Ptolemy and Alexander, Cassandra's pet lightning lizards. A curved flat-screen TV (Trismegistus brand, wide-screen HDTV, sorcerously powered) hangs on the wall opposite the sofa, close to the front door. The remaining space has been decorated with woodblock flower prints.

The rear part of the room is a functional kitchen with plenty of counter space, a refitted “electric” oven range, and most of the various modern appliances and amenities one would expect to find in a kitchen, albeit most of them seem to run on magic, rather than electricity. A double row of pegs above one counter is home to various knives and kitchen tools, within easy reach, and underneath some flying cabinets is a rack of hanging wine glasses.



Underneath the first floor, this bare, un-decorated room which sits half-above ground and half-underground currently serves as a larder of sorts. A number of shelves around the room hold stocks of dry and canned goods that didn’t fit in the pantry of the kitchen above, but most notable is the number of wine racks, as well as small casks, sporting a burgeoning collection of fine wines of various varieties, mead, cider, beer, and other booze.

Below that, a second room serves as a cellar, currently largely empty, except for a small number of chests and crates filled with whatever junk Cass didn’t want to have lying around.



The second floor room is a cozy library and study. The walls are lavishly decorated with a number of sorcerous-looking wall hangings and scrolls, giving the room an enclosed, warm feeling, with one side decorated with a large stone slab with the fossilized imprint of a squid sprawled across its face. Underneath this slab is a large writing desk, scattered with a few paper journals and a laptop computer, with a tall desk chair. The rest of the room is arranged with a number of bookshelves, filled with magical tomes, indexes, encyclopedias, treatises, and other intimidating looking books, though at least one shelf is instead partially stacked with a row of servers, connected to a pair of routers and an odd device that seems to be magically powering the whole set-up. In between the shelves is a very plushy armchair, big enough to curl up into, and a small side table, in front of a magical fireplace, completing the cozy atmosphere of the room.



This floor of the tower serves as somewhat of a sorcerous workshop. The back of the room is centered around a slightly raised platform, with a heavily smoothed and polished hardwood surface. A shelf on one side of the platform is laden with summoning supplies - chalk of different colors, tin boxes of dried incense and reagents, a set of iron tongs, and a small stool. A tall locked cabinet and some chests are filled with various magical devices and tools. More of them, including a number of magical artifacts looted from the original owner of the tower, hang from a pegboard, the way one might expect mundane tools to be. Below them, on the other side of the summoning floor, are a bunch of workbenches with some scraps and parts of magical items that she was making.



The next floor has been converted into something resembling a mishmash of an armory and a personal gym/training space. Hanging from the walls are several racks meant for holding weaponry. For the most part, these are currently occupied by several staves, some appropriately magical looking, and some not, but also several small swords, rapiers, and daggers. The middle of the floor is covered by a large mat, and a few pieces of physical training equipment, pull-up bars, weights, and the like, are pushed near the wall opposite the weapon racks.



The top floor of the tower is the only room which breaks with the otherwise, enclosed atmosphere of the rest of the tower. Here, large windows open up in four cardinal directions, allowing for both plenty of light and outside air to circulate freely through the room. It's pretty sensible, then, that this most pleasant of rooms serves as Cassandra's bedroom - to the back of the room is a large bed footed by a thick green rug, and the ceiling is decorated by stylistic tapestry with creeping wildflowers, perfect for tracing the eye across while anxiously awake at 3 am. Near the bed, a large chest, wardrobe, and small bookshelf and table carry a variety of personal belongings, and a small stand with a vase filled with dried flowers and herbs gives a pleasant scent to the room.

To the front quarter, opposite the stairs, a set of tall screens printed with wildflowers have been set up, dividing off a bathroom with washstand, large bathtub with a shower, and other necessary bathroom things. How plumbing works in a tower like this, it's probably best not to ask. The answer is probably 'magic' anyway.

[Ashen Lilies]

[Cassandra's Tower]

A platinum blonde woman comes walking easily up the road to Cassandra's tower, looking around at the scenery, before stopping at the tower itself and knocking on the door. Hopefully the owner is home; she hates to impose, but from what Fayyaad told her, Cassandra is just the person she needs to talk to. She waits patiently after knocking, a pleasant smile on her face. At least it's a nice day to be out for a walk.

[Cassandra's Tower]

The tower is easy enough to find, even if the village of Aelfisborough itself is a little remote by Nexus standards. Hard to miss a tall black structure sitting on a hill in the middle of an open field. Where did all this basalt come from, anyway? Assuming there aren't any quarries nearby, that's a long way to haul some volcano rocks for an aesthetic.

Electra will have no trouble getting up the stairs and using the knocker, which is shaped rather ostentatiously like a dragon's head. It takes a few minutes before there's an answer, though, the door opening inward to reveal a young elven woman with straight dark hair cropped at her jawline and pale grey skin with a slight bluish undertone. Eyes, typically, tend to be difficult to discern at many conversational distances that aren't intimately close, but Cassandra's may be noticeable for a striking lack of color - pale silvery irises blending smoothly into the whites to produce a disconcerting empty look.

Despite Electra turning up essentially unannounced, Cassandra doesn't look too caught off guard - she's managed to appear in a nice casual blouse and respectable trousers. If Electra knows anything about the habits of sorceresses, it's probably not too outlandish to believe she triggered some form of magical warning on her way here. No mysterious sorceress living at the edge of town ever achieved great notoriety receiving guests in a t-shirt and sweatpants.

[Recaiden]

"I've got a lot of chances," Batu admits. "Many people helped me get here. It's only right that I give some of it back."

"That's not something I hear a lot of people saying. Much less people cast out of their family. Who's helped you along your way?" Cleo inquires. Batu seems like such a nice kid. Maybe they should test him right away. Maybe he's just young and innocent and someday will be dragged back down by the real world. Hard to say.

Inside, the tower is much more reasonable to look at, no indistinctness or temporal anomalies. There's an entryway, a living room wrapped in a spiral staircase up and down, and littler rooms like the kitchen off to the side.

"What are you curious about? Anything at all?"

[Deathkeeper]

[Wizards' Tower]

A sweet smell wafts from the kitchen. Meanwhile, Spako trots down the stairs. He might look a bit odd, with his wizard's rod and Deck hanging from their belt on his shoulders, but dragon or not he wasn't about to stop carrying those around.
"Oh, Cleo. You brought a kid? What do we owe the pleasure?" Spako says politely to Batu, dipping his head slightly. Never know when someone's actually a super powerful angel or something disguised as a hormonal teenager.

[Morty]

[Underside]

Iknika scurries off, as gracefully as she can. She returns with a glass of a green drink that smells of strange herbs.

[Wizards' Tower]

"There was Cessie Mithar, who directed me to her brother. He sheltered and taught me, then sent me to Zaff's. The people there were helpful too... well, some of them. Then there were the people in the temple of Inari. And Inari herself. The god who made me into a were-crocodile... jury's still out on him," Batu decides.

"Oh, um, hi. I'm a new member of this order. I think."

[Felandria]

((Guest house. The picture seemed to look like there were stairs.))

((Gotcha))

Felandria waves him goodbye.

Enjoy your stay!

And Fel heads back into the house, and grabs herself some fruit juice.

[Recaiden]

Hmm. Maybe crocodile god will be trouble. Probably something to look into eventually.
"An apprentice. He's still learning his magic. Batu, this is Spako Highclaws, the Brass Wizard. Spako, Batu. I think he'll be fit to wield a staff once he's further in his education."

[Deathkeeper]

Wizards' Tower

Spako clicks his claws excitedly.
"Oh, an apprentice! Are we your official extra-curricular activity now?" he asks in good humor. He's heard of Zaff's.
"You want a ride while we give you the tour? You'll fit right in. The Stormguard isn't supposed to be reptilian but somehow the place ended up with two- err, one kobold, three dragons, four hatchlings, and now a crocodile." he laughs.

[Morty]

[Wizards' Tower]

"A were-crocodile," Batu corrects. "But a crocodile all the same, I suppose. A ride... as in, on your back?"

[Recaiden]

"It's, well, it's not coincidence, but it wasn't intentional! Back in the old days all the Wizards were more or less human. It's just that you start to notice dragons more, and people come to you with questions about dragons, and they field you for all the dragon-problems, and before you know it-"

But for all that, Cleo remains in her mostly-illusory human guise, shaking her head. "Go on. Spako used to be very small, you know. Likes to show off now that he can. Here in the main tower we have common things, the infirmary and enchanting room and library, and up at the top each wizard has their rooms. Down below there's a nice ordinary cellar. Below that are secrets. None of us told everything we built in the roots and foundations, so now it's left full of mysteries."

[Deathkeeper]

Wizards' Tower

"Well half of the critters here are your family Cleo so it might be a little intentional." Spako says, flicking his tongue at Cleo blabbing his secrets he made no move to actually remain secretive about.
"Very secret, since my little tower is part of my wing and not the main tower. You can see mine if you'd like but I don't think we should surprise Keiko. Of course on my back. You can return the favor later sometime." Spako says jokingly.

[Morty]

[Wizards' Tower]

Batu shrugs.

"Might as well add riding a dragon to the list of weird things I've done lately. Will I get my own quarters, as an apprentice? And can I investigate those mysteries below?"

[Recaiden]

"On the one hand, we have a lot of space, but I don't think you can get into the three empty towers, and hmm, as long as you don't miss windows, we have a space you can stay. I'll set things up, you show him around, Spako."
Cleo nods.
"Sure, look around as you like. Just stay away from the lake."

[Deathkeeper]

[Wizards' Tower]

"It's not weird. All kids want to ride dragons. It's a very reasonable thing to do. But as for staying here, I can't move as fast as Cleo. You'll have to ask her if you intend on going from here to your school in the morning." Spako insists, lowering himself for Batu to hop on.

[Gullara]

[Underside]

Iknika scurries off, as gracefully as she can. She returns with a glass of a green drink that smells of strange herbs.

[Underside]

"Hey, thanks." Claire takes a drink, her eyes on Iknika as she tries it. "That's not bad at all. What were you worried about?" She giggles. She certainly doesn't seem to be putting on an act for the goblin's sake.

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Cassandra's Tower]

Electra's deep blue eyes flit up and down once, looking the sorceress over. The platinum blonde reploid has chosen to dress in her normal civilian attire, black cargo pants, a white tank top, and her brown bomber jacket, along with a pair of black combat boots. She's wearing her long hair up in a tight ponytail, but even so, the mass of it reaches the small of her back. The only indication that she might be something other than human are the white domes with blue lenses in their centers where her ears should be. Her pleasant smile doesn't waver before she speaks briskly.

"Cassandra, I presume? My name is Electra, my friend Fayyaad mentioned that you might be able to help me with a decision I'm trying to make. Might you have a few minutes to chat?"

[Murkus]

[Cloudy Castle]

Artie will receive a... knock? On the fluffy door to her private domocile. Azren is surely somewhere around, but he doesn't volunteer to answer.

When she does, there is a veritable crowd of men who look something like Azren standing outside. The whole party is carrying some form of furnishing, or a stack of boxes with their donations to Artie's house inside. Some of them are burly, some are skinny, most are in varying states of undress. All are tan of skin and dark of eye. All but one, the man in front, have a pair of antlers. The front Frescot only has a single pointy piece of bone jutting from the right side of his head. He wears a pair of the most primitive seeming spectacles one will ever see, hazarded together with what looks like a combination of leather straps, metal hooks, and two dirty lenses, one of which is cracked. A cigarette rolled from a dried leaf droops from the corner of his mouth.

"...Is this where Azren's staying?" He asks in a lean, naturally contemptuous falsetto. It's hard to approximate his reaction to Artie, but as the men around the door start to get glimpses of her she'll hear muttering and small comments begin to pass between them.

[Ashen Lilies]

[Cassandra's Tower]

Electra's deep blue eyes flit up and down once, looking the sorceress over. The platinum blonde reploid has chosen to dress in her normal civilian attire, black cargo pants, a white tank top, and her brown bomber jacket, along with a pair of black combat boots. She's wearing her long hair up in a tight ponytail, but even so, the mass of it reaches the small of her back. The only indication that she might be something other than human are the white domes with blue lenses in their centers where her ears should be. Her pleasant smile doesn't waver before she speaks briskly.

"Cassandra, I presume? My name is Electra, my friend Fayyaad mentioned that you might be able to help me with a decision I'm trying to make. Might you have a few minutes to chat?"

[Cassandra's Tower]

"Yes, of course," says Cassandra, opening the door wider. "Fayyaad did mention you when we last spoke."

She'll invite Electra into the living room, which Electra might note is undergoing the tail-end of a bit of an emergency clean-up, scattered notes and books and trash having been... gently persuaded to fly back into their assigned spaces or in the trash, whichever is more appropriate. She might also recognize that despite the rustic setting and the archaic aesthetic of the tower, Cassandra is no stranger to technology. At least, there's a laptop resting closed on the coffee table, charging cable hooked up, and the little blinking LED light of a wireless booster off to the side somewhere. Like the plumbing, it's probably best not to think of how the electricity works here either.

"Would you like a... uh.... do you drink? I have... water."

[Deathkeeper]

Cloudy Palace

Oh, dear. Artie would have worn her kimono if she knew there was going to be guests she needed to impress. Instead she's only wearing her top Azren picked out, and in her natural shape no less. She flinches, shrinking back from all the eyes on her.
"Um, yes, this is the place. Would you like to...come in?" she asks nervously. How did they even get up here, she wonders?

[Morty]

[Underside]

"Uuuuh." Iknika's ears twitch and dip awkwardly. "I just didn't want your first contact with goblin cuisine to be bad."

[Wizards' Tower]

"What do you mean, 'don't miss windows'?" Batu asks, awkwardly climbing on Spako. "And why should I stay away from the lake?"

[Recaiden]

"I mean it'd be underground. But Spako raises a good point. We're really quite far from Inside. Don't get a lot of guests, and they're usually in need of emergency magical help."
"As for the lake, it's not meant for you. Could end up disintegrated." Cleo then slips down the staircase. There might be times Batu is here for longer studies, and it wouldn't do to have him stay in the medical bay, or the kitchen floor, or anything like that.

[Deathkeeper]

[Wizards' Tower]

"Right!" Spako declares, and trots giddily up the stairs in a way that might be uncomfortable for Batu. If he's wearing shorts, it will likely be very uncomfortable as his legs rub against Spako's scaly neck.
"So this is where all the Wizards' doors are. That's mine, the brass one. And the other active one is Cleo's but we'll wait for her permission first because we don't want to surprise her wife. Never wake a dragon's brood too early." he warns, and opens his own door, leading to a cozy little study in what seems to be an entirely separate tower.

[Morty]

[Wizards' Tower]

Batu shudders.

"Underground, without windows? I couldn't live like that. So I guess I won't be staying here just yet."

He takes a look around.

"This looks comfy, though."

[Gullara]

[Underside]

"Uuuuh." Iknika's ears twitch and dip awkwardly. "I just didn't want your first contact with goblin cuisine to be bad."

[Underside]

"Well you know, where my family comes from, we used to live underground too. I bet there's a lot of overlap in the kinds of food." Claire guesses. "Just uh, skip anything with meat. Not a carnivore."

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Cassandra's Tower]

Electra's smile widens as she follows Cassandra in. She looks around, politely ignoring whatever remnants of the mess Cassandra was cleaning up might be about, then nods at the elven sorceress.

"Water is fine, thanks. This place is impressive, might I ask how you managed to acquire it?"

[Deathkeeper]

Wizards' Tower

"This was once the basement of my tower, so it doesn't have any windows. But the upper level does..." he says, going up those stairs to the small sitting room and dining room and kitchen that make up the first level.
"I haven't had a roommate in ages. Sadly I think the place is a bit small for you. It was built for a kobold and a bookwyrm, so probably not the right size." he admits.

[Murkus]

Cloudy Palace

Oh, dear. Artie would have worn her kimono if she knew there was going to be guests she needed to impress. Instead she's only wearing her top Azren picked out, and in her natural shape no less. She flinches, shrinking back from all the eyes on her.
"Um, yes, this is the place. Would you like to...come in?" she asks nervously. How did they even get up here, she wonders?

[Cloudy Palace]

"We sure would!" One of them pipes boisterously! And the small army of handsome men will start to file in, some tipping raggedy hats or hoods to her, some smiling and giving little waves or nods.

"We got your stuff!"
"What kind of place is this?"
"Did Azren snag a goddess?"
"Why would she need us if she were a goddess?"

And so the chatter goes. Their apparent speaker is one of the last ones in, and he remarks only as he passes, "You've made a terrible mistake."

[Morty]

[Underside]

Iknika brightens up.

"That's great. We can go get something to eat after you're done. It's the least I can do for drawing me on a beetle, right?"

She leans in to check how the drawing is going.

[Wizards' Tower]

"Probably. I don't do well in cramped spaces. It's in my blood, I guess," Batu says. "I mean, our family yurt wasn't very big, but we weren't all inside, most of the time."

[Ashen Lilies]

[Cassandra's Tower]

Electra's smile widens as she follows Cassandra in. She looks around, politely ignoring whatever remnants of the mess Cassandra was cleaning up might be about, then nods at the elven sorceress.

"Water is fine, thanks. This place is impressive, might I ask how you managed to acquire it?"

[Cassandra's Tower]

Cassandra heads to the back of the room, retrieving a couple of glasses from a cabinet and filling them with cold water.

"I'm not sure who originally built it. All the locals know is that it's very old. Its last occupant, however, was an alchemist who eventually took to kidnapping villagers for his experiments. So another adventurer and I killed him, and the locals were happy to let me stay."

The old "murder someone and take their stuff" maneuver. At least it can be reasonably claimed that he deserved it.

This time.

[Recaiden]

Here's a visitor!

Possibly, they are waking up in or around the bed inside. Possibly they have just climbed carefully up the ladder and let themselves in after traipsing through the forest just daring a giant spider to try something.

Either way, it's Alexis.

[Deathkeeper]

Wizards' Tower

"Oh, you're a plains goblin? Not many of those back home. Anyway, this might be the kind of place you get if you ever get your own Staff. I think Cleo's is bigger but hers wasn't stuck on manually and she has a family to fit in anyway. Still, think you can deal with it?" he asks, looking out one of the little windows. Impossibly, there's one on each of the cardinal directions, even the one facing where the main tower should be.

The Wode- 4th Princess' House

Normally Sarina keeps the silk ladder stowed, but Alexis knows just the way to retrieve it. Good for keeping out pesky non-spider assassins. Or so she's told, at least.
Sarina can be found snoozing on her web-hammock, wearing a very thin nightshirt. Her tree-house doesn't really have air conditioning. Alexis even gets to surprise her, if she so chooses. Ironically, the place is mostly clean and free of cobwebs except where they were obviously put there by the resident. Sarina isn't sure how people feel about her putting her own webs around. Is that weird? She feels like it might be weird.

[Recaiden]

Well, just look at Roth's house. Sure, she was weird, but not because she was a spider. Heck, Spider HQ was full of webs. Literally made of the stuff!

Alexis sneaks inside, takes a moment to admire the sleeping drider, and then makes her way over to the hammock, her aura slowly brightening like a rising sun to help wake her.
"Sarina!"

[Deathkeeper]

The Wode- 4th Princess' House

Sarina groans and slowly opens her eyes slightly, peering groggily through at Alexis and her miniature sun. Alexis' aura glints off all the little pictures of them and the town and the spiders that Sarina keeps around, plus the tiara on the shelf and the other glittery presents she's received from the other Princesses, the Queen, and Alexis.
"Ugh, Alexis? What's up?" she whispers sleepily, leaning back in her web.

Cloudy Palace

Artie mistakes the Frescot for disparaging Azren, and she momentarily forgets her shyness to turn up her nose at the spectacled deer.
"I don't know what you're talking about." she insists. Hopefully the Frescots don't trip over the 26 feet of floating snake-dragon that goes down the hallway.

[Recaiden]

Alexis dims a bit and goes to give the drider a quick kiss, snakes brushing her and softly hissing.
"Um, well, Alkania, Message, that is, thinks I should leave the town for a while. Like a vacation, that is. I'm sure she's plotting something but maybe it really is a good idea to get out for a bit and, uh, I thought you might come with me!"

[Deathkeeper]

[The Wode - 4th Princess's House]

Sarina smiles. "Oh! Well, then. Where are you going? Somewhere tropical, with a beach? I don't know if I actually own a bathing suit. I haven't gone swimming in..." she drifts off. Technically speaking she's been swimming once since her creation, and that was a ten minute thing while a wurm. So really, basically never. Not that it matters if Alexis is planning to go somewhere without water.

[Gullara]

[Underside]

"Sounds good to me." Claire's sketches are very rough. There are a few different sketches, all just broad outlines, a few harder lines starting to define the beetle's shape more firmly. "What do you think? I'm trying to figure out which angle will work best. I kinda want to shift over and see if I can get a different look at it."

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Cassandra's Tower]

Electra seems unperturbed by the manner in which Cassandra acquired the tower. She's heard the story dozens of times in the various taverns and bars by now; heck, she probably could have held onto that drone factory she freed the AI spirit in if she'd really wanted to, especially if she'd had the control over her electronic telepathy then that she does now, but ethics had won out there. She does chuckle appreciatively, though.

"I imagine they would be. Was your fellow adventurer not interested in keeping the place, then, or do they live here with you?"

[Ashen Lilies]

[Cassandra's Tower]

"No. I think he's related to another Merc member, actually. His nephew, or something."

Cassandra brings the glasses of water back over, and sits on the couch, gesturing for Electra to sit as well, if she hasn't already done so.

"I live alone, at the moment."

Well, except for the lizard in the cage over there.

[Recaiden]

Sarina smiles. "Oh! Well, then. Where are you going? Somewhere tropical, with a beach? I don't know if I actually own a bathing suit. I haven't gone swimming in..." she drifts off. Technically speaking she's been swimming once since her creation, and that was a ten minute thing while a wurm. So really, basically never. Not that it matters if Alexis is planning to go somewhere without water.

Alexis shrugs.
"I haven't really been anywhere but here and Inside...but I was thinking somewhere on the ocean. Or maybe deep underground somewhere. Far away and different. What do you think?"

[Deathkeeper]

[The Wode- 4th Princess' House]

"Well, underground is apparently a natural habitat for driders but I'm not actually that kind." Sarina is not part dark elf. Though that would match her purple color scheme better in theory. "I don't think normal spiders can actually swim though. And I don't really have much of a beach body anyway..." she says, getting all self-conscious about her plump figure again.

[Recaiden]

"You aren't a normal spider, are you? And what do you mean by that?" Alexis chides. She twists aside and wraps her arms around Sarina, her admiration and desire obvious in her movements. But that's probably useless. It's not about what other people actually think; it's about what you think they're thinking, and how you feel about yourself.
"Still, the ocean, probably. I was thinking this is my chance to do something of my own."

[Morty]

[Wizards' Tower]

"I'm a hobgoblin, not a goblin," Batu corrects. "I think I can manage to share this place with you. So long as you don't mind me turning into a were-crocodile sometimes."

[Deathkeeper]

[The Wode- 4th Princess' House]

Sarina smiles. She doesn't even object to Alexis hugging her when she's slightly sweaty from sleeping in this air condition-less treehouse. She really ought to learn how to do that with magic.
"Well...do you want to go now? I would have to pack, and shower. But you can check out a map, pick a place, get me a swimsuit from town while I do that. Meet up in an hour?" she proposes.

Wizards' Tower

The top level of the tower is a little bedroom. It's very warm, full of carpets and rugs and a normal looking plush bed.
"So, there's only one bed but I guess I could sleep as a bird. Or just buy another one..." muses the dragon, loping around the room. It's just big enough to fit Spako as he curls around, but not on, the bed with some movement room to spare.

[Recaiden]

Alexis nods.
"Today, certainly. Okay, I'll see you soon."
She slips back out of the treehouse and carefully descends the ladder. Sure, she could just float down, but that would be silly.

[Deathkeeper]

Skullfort Town

One (and a half) hours later, Sarina skitters into town cleaned and ready, wearing a little pack on her huge abdomen and a thin but modest blouse, and waits outside the Temple for Alexis to come.

Though considering she's late, Alexis might already be there.

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Cassandra's Tower]

Electra seats herself as Cassandra does and smiles, before taking a sip of the water the sorceress has brought.

"Huh, I wasn't aware there were families that worked for MERC. Though I suppose I shouldn't be surprised by that." She takes another sip, and seems to consider for a moment, her gaze seemingly fixed on something over Cassandra's left shoulder, before she blinks and her gaze fixes itself once more on the sorceress. "So, the two questions I should probably ask first are, how much did Fayyaad tell you about my situation, and why did you choose to join MERC full-time as opposed to just being a licensee?" No sense in beating around the bush any further, it seems.

[Morty]

[Wizards' Tower]

"You can turn into a bird, too?" Batu asks, momentarily distracted from other concerns.

[Underside]

Iknika shuffles over to Claire and looks at the sketches.

"I feel like it should be from the front, if I'm supposed to be riding it. We can go look for other angles, but I don't think its owners are used to someone drawing it," she adds with a grin.

[Deathkeeper]

Wizards' Tower

In response, Spako pops into his bird form, a pigeon-sized bird-of-paradise with red and swirling blues and greens and orange purples upon his breast, tail, and wings. And notably, the tall, ridiculous eyebrow feathers of a King of Saxony. He coos an affirmative sound and begins settling upon Batu's hair.

[Ashen Lilies]

[Cassandra's Tower]

"I don't think he himself worked for MERC - I just happened to recognize the name of his uncle when he mentioned it," Cassandra clarifies.

"Fayyaad told me that you were trying to make a decision - you were wondering whether you wanted to take a larger role with MERC, join Vigil, or... sign on with one of the governments in Southside? Is that correct? As for why I chose to join MERC full-time as I did, frankly I just thought the benefits and access were more than worth the difference in autonomy. MERC's organization seems loose enough that I can continue to carry on mostly as I have - I'm not exactly a free agent anymore, but I haven't been absorbed into a rigid hierarchy, either."

[Morty]

[Wizards' Tower]

Batu tilts his head.

"That's pretty impressive. I do have a pet bird, so I guess I'd bring him here if I moved in."

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Cassandra's Tower]

Electra nods at Cassandra's explanation.

"That more or less sums it up. I've been thinking about joining a larger organization more formally for a bit, and the job offer from the General is more or less prompting me to get off my butt and make a decision about it." She grins in a friendly manner. "I've been working as a licensee for awhile now, but I wasn't sure whether I wanted to take the plunge and become a full-on member, join another org, or possibly start something of my own. A former VIGIL member once told me I'd be a good candidate for them, but I'm not so sure. Some of the rumors I've heard don't really match up with what I think would be a good fit. I get along well with Dena and Fayyaad and a few other MERC people; they remind me somewhat of the org I served before I landed in the Nexus, though it was a government and not a private firm. The offer from the General is tempting because it's more or less open as to what position I could have, but I'm not sure I want to be locked into one portion of one city. Admittedly, I like living in Southside, and I want to see it prosper, but I'm not sure I'd be a good fit with the rest of the staff, since I've mostly only worked with the General herself." She sighs. "I do have an idea for an organization of my own, but I don't really have the resources to start it. Not yet, anyways."

[Recaiden]

One (and a half) hours later, Sarina skitters into town cleaned and ready, wearing a little pack on her huge abdomen and a thin but modest blouse, and waits outside the Temple for Alexis to come.

Though considering she's late, Alexis might already be there.

Alexis is already there, seated just inside the temple walls speaking to one of the angels. At Sarina's approach, the steward flies off to its duties.
For once, the gorgon is out of her uniform, wearing a long skirt of woven darkness, a button-happy purple blouse, and a short scarf with long tasseled fringes hanging down over her chest. A little backpack sits on the ground next to her, and the snakes are twining and twisting, marveling at the town. Even if the times they get to come out of the temple like this aren't 'none', they still are pretty rare.

"What...kept you so long?"

[Deathkeeper]

[Skullfort Town]

Sarina gives her a sheepish smile.
"I got halfway here when I realized that I forgot my sketchbook! And your seat." she admits bashfully. She also managed to forget to bring any sort of hat for the sun. Though her large deer-ears can make hats hard anyway.
"Did you pick me out something nice?" she asks, trying to change the subject.

[Recaiden]

Alexis is lucky that her aura protects her from getting sunburned.
"Well, alright. Here! We didn't have anything specifically for spiders, but that should be okay."
Sarina is presented with a ruffly swim top (white with purple stars), a cap shaped to fit around silly ears, and a set of goggles.

[Deathkeeper]

Skullfort Town

Sarina can at least protect herself from the sun. Still hasn't figured out air conditioning, though. She giggles at Alexis' choice.
"Is my abdomen really on your mind this often, Your Holiness? Aren't you supposed to be above such temptations?" she teases, sitting down for Alexis to take a seat, or possibly put Sarina's cap on her head.

Wizards' Tower

Spako stubbornly refuses to fall out of his new nest in Batu's hair. He twitters at Batu in draconic, and the hobgoblin's instinctive understanding of crocodile language means he might catch "yes" and "head back" indicating that he should return to the main tower.

[Morty]

[Wizards' Tower]

Batu is confused by suddenly understanding a bird's twittering, but he does head back to the main tower. Carrying Spako on his head. He figures it's only fair.

[Murkus]

Cloudy Palace

Artie mistakes the Frescot for disparaging Azren, and she momentarily forgets her shyness to turn up her nose at the spectacled deer.
"I don't know what you're talking about." she insists. Hopefully the Frescots don't trip over the 26 feet of floating snake-dragon that goes down the hallway.

[Cloudy Palace]

The bespectacled Frescot makes a 'tch' sound and walks past her, along with still more of the fresh woodland horde. Further down the hall, she might feel someone step on her tail, although not very hard, and a couple of others gently poke at it with their toes. Not seeming to realize what it connects to, initially.

On the bright side, a sturdy-looking antlered man suddenly appears on either side of her to pay her due attention! One is broad and thick, dressed in the drooping skin of some great lizard, and the other is muscular to a showy degree, with a mantle of pale white spots on the skin around his neck and shoulders. The first carries an old, well-used green lounge sofa over one shoulder at a jaunty angle, standing stock straight as if he were bearing no weight at all. And the second is... oh. He's quite naked, except for flowing rings of beads and leather weapon-straps wrapped diagonally around his middle.

"You must be Artie!" Blusters the first.
"Do you have a place you want us to put these?" Asks the second, and Artie might notice he's carrying bundles of tapestries or rugs under his arms with great long brass banisters.

[Recaiden]

Sarina can at least protect herself from the sun. Still hasn't figured out air conditioning, though. She giggles at Alexis' choice.
"Is my abdomen really on your mind this often, Your Holiness? Aren't you supposed to be above such temptations?" she teases, sitting down for Alexis to take a seat, or possibly put Sarina's cap on her head.

"What? No!" Alexis protests, flustered. One of the snakes hisses at Sarina disapprovingly.
But as she gets in the saddle she seems to find her feet, metaphorically.
"But as for being above temptations, mm, not at all. What kind of an example would I be then?"

[Ashen Lilies]

[Cassandra's Tower]

Electra nods at Cassandra's explanation.

"That more or less sums it up. I've been thinking about joining a larger organization more formally for a bit, and the job offer from the General is more or less prompting me to get off my butt and make a decision about it." She grins in a friendly manner. "I've been working as a licensee for awhile now, but I wasn't sure whether I wanted to take the plunge and become a full-on member, join another org, or possibly start something of my own. A former VIGIL member once told me I'd be a good candidate for them, but I'm not so sure. Some of the rumors I've heard don't really match up with what I think would be a good fit. I get along well with Dena and Fayyaad and a few other MERC people; they remind me somewhat of the org I served before I landed in the Nexus, though it was a government and not a private firm. The offer from the General is tempting because it's more or less open as to what position I could have, but I'm not sure I want to be locked into one portion of one city. Admittedly, I like living in Southside, and I want to see it prosper, but I'm not sure I'd be a good fit with the rest of the staff, since I've mostly only worked with the General herself." She sighs. "I do have an idea for an organization of my own, but I don't really have the resources to start it. Not yet, anyways."

[Cassandra's Tower]

Cassandra gives a thoughtful frown as Electra explains her situation - a frown that deepens slightly when Electra mentions Vigil, though that emotion is smoothed over quickly.

"All I know of the General are some of the circumstances of their invasion of Southside. It's been a while since there's been an active warzone in that area, but I don't think they'll be fully stable for a while. I know there's at least one other Faction that's trying to lay claim to the whole area, not to mention the dozens of independent actors who've used the chaos to carve out independent enclaves of their own. Adventurers and religious enclaves that don't want to be inside the jurisdiction of any other city government, mostly, but at least one of them is some kind of demi-goddess that's gained the title of "Empress", somehow. None of them would willingly recognize the General's rule or law, I'd bet. I don't doubt she'd treat you fairly, if you chose to work for her, but still - I'd be cautious of tying yourself to that situation too closely."

"As for Vigil... well, I'm not up to date on all the most recent rumors." The place had always seemed to attract quite a lot of them.

[Deathkeeper]

[Wizards' Tower]

Batu is confused by suddenly understanding a bird's twittering, but he does head back to the main tower. Carrying Spako on his head. He figures it's only fair.

Wizards' Tower

Spako reverts to kobold shape once they're back down the stairs, just so Batu knows what all three of his shapes look like.
"So, whaddaya wanna see now? Kitchen? Gardens? Bed?" he asks the hobgoblin.


[Cloudy Palace]

The bespectacled Frescot makes a 'tch' sound and walks past her, along with still more of the fresh woodland horde. Further down the hall, she might feel someone step on her tail, although not very hard, and a couple of others gently poke at it with their toes. Not seeming to realize what it connects to, initially.

On the bright side, a sturdy-looking antlered man suddenly appears on either side of her to pay her due attention! One is broad and thick, dressed in the drooping skin of some great lizard, and the other is muscular to a showy degree, with a mantle of pale white spots on the skin around his neck and shoulders. The first carries an old, well-used green lounge sofa over one shoulder at a jaunty angle, standing stock straight as if he were bearing no weight at all. And the second is... oh. He's quite naked, except for flowing rings of beads and leather weapon-straps wrapped diagonally around his middle.

"You must be Artie!" Blusters the first.
"Do you have a place you want us to put these?" Asks the second, and Artie might notice he's carrying bundles of tapestries or rugs under his arms with great long brass banisters.
Cloudy Palace

Since Artie is floating, it's more like being kicked. Artie's tail instinctively lashes out at being struck, likely whacking the curious Frescots in the face.
"Oh goodness I'm sorry!" she calls, bashfully shifting into the much more space-conscious doe-like shape Azren designed for her, though she's white and blue instead of the tan/brown he envisioned because of her stubborn shifting traits. Her short skirt appears now that she's biped but it's not enough to hide the spots on her backside and upper legs.
"Uh, you can put them in the foyer." she says, trying hard and failing at not staring and being conscious at being looked at herself.

"What? No!" Alexis protests, flustered. One of the snakes hisses at Sarina disapprovingly.
But as she gets in the saddle she seems to find her feet, metaphorically.
"But as for being above temptations, mm, not at all. What kind of an example would I be then?"

Skullfort Town

Sarina giggles. "It's fine, Alexis. I like that you love my stars. Gods know I'd be hard-pressed to find someone so interested in dating someone with a shape like this. You set an excellent example." she giggles, standing up with Alexis on top. "So where are we going? I don't know how far I can carry you but I will do my best."

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Cassandra's Tower]

Electra nods at Cassandra's assessment of the situation in Southside. Truth be told it was the info on the now-former Mayor that she and Dena dug up that made her start considering joining an org full time; the General's offer just spurred her into action on truly considering and making the decision. Normally, she'd have already made her decision, but since the Nexus is home to so many different factions, she wanted to make sure she was siding with someone she could work with for the long haul.

"Yeah, I'm not too keen on tying myself to the situation, but it is a very tempting offer. Most of the rumors I've heard about VIGIL are more general; that they're fairly hide-bound and stuffy, and from what I can tell, they really only show up when something serious is going on, and keep to themselves the rest of the time. Maybe you know a bit more about them than I do, like I said, I've only ever met the one ex-member, and everything else has come pretty much second hand."

[Recaiden]

"I'd like to go, um, everywhere. See as much of the world as I can while we're out. But first, the Seaside. Th-"
Alexis wavers a bit as Sarina straightens up. If it weren't for her magical balancing shoes, I'm sure she would have fallen.
"No reins?" she jokes, before wrapping her arms around and holding on tight.

She'll probably find that she can actually go pretty far, and fairly quick, with Alexis's aura shimmering around like it is.

[Ashen Lilies]

[Cassandra's Tower]

Cass can't help but smirk a little at the characterization of Vigil as 'stuffy'. That particular one seemed to have a life of its own. As the smirk fades, however, Electra might catch a quick flash of another emotion before Cassandra resumes her composure and takes on a more measured expression. Guilt.

"I know but only a little of their inner workings," she says carefully. "It's true, they try not to involve themselves too heavily in general politics or everyday threats. Not as an organization anyway, though some of their members do their own adventuring when time permits. The full focus of the organization is only brought to bear against truly world-ending forces." Like demons and liches and eldritch babies.

"Fayyaad was very complimentary of your skills when we spoke - they certainly have the room for talent. I don't trust any rumor about them to not be at least somewhat exaggerated... but the mission they have is a harsh one. They ask a lot of those who sign on."

[Murkus]

[Cloudy Palace]

There are some 'acks' and 'oofs' from behind Artie as Frescots are swatted away willy-nilly. Most of the battered just throw confused glances her way, though, and continue on with their donated items. The two nearest, however, jump back a little bit in surprise as she changes shape.

"Ah!"
"She's a changeling!"

The more... naked of the two bends toward her, switching his rugs over to a single arm and rubbing at his stubbly chin. "You look kind of like... us. Wow." He chatters something at his fellow in a tongue she'll be familiar with as one unique to the Frescot clan, and his brother natters back. They look at eachother, then at Artie, and share a laugh. The broader of the pair offers his hand to her though and a smile by way of a more proper greeting, laying a quick but firm smooch on the back of Artie's petite knuckles if she gives up her hand. That done, they both amble on.

She can hear the sounds of things being moved around, more chatter, and the clink of glass from the adjoining rooms in the manor.

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Cassandra's Tower]

Electra chuckles warmly.

"Was he now? I'll have to pay him for the compliment later, then." She grins for a moment. That will be fun, but business before pleasure. "But yes, I have an extensive service record, the gist of which is that I served a world-spanning para-military police organization for about thirty years before being trapped here in the Nexus. I survived three world wars as a special forces squad leader, and during peacetime, served as a special investigator, though the duties often amounted to intelligence work." A roundabout way of saying she was often a spy. She takes another sip of water, and looks back to Cassandra. "We often faced overwhelming odds, where failure might result in the destruction of the planet, or at the very least, the genocide of the race that created us, so I'm not exactly a stranger to those sorts of situations, though here, with the addition of magic and everything else, I'm not so sure I'd fare so well."

[Ashen Lilies]

[Cassandra's Tower]

Cassandra looks away awkwardly as Electra mentions Fayyaad, grappling with the unexpected shooting streak of envy that had suddenly taken root and bloomed in her mind. What a silly, messy, and utterly frivolous thing to have to deal with.

"An impressive record - you're probably more than qualified to be honest," says Cassandra, still a little off-handedly. "It's not like any of us were already experts in saving the world. Most of the time surviving seemed to come down to blind luck."

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Cassandra's Tower]

Oh dear. That's an interesting reaction, one Electra hadn't counted on. Cassandra has a crush on Fayyaad? Eh, there are more important things to attend to at the moment, but it might merit some investigation later. She smiles gently, leaning towards Cassandra slightly, fixing the sorceress with those deep blue eyes.

"I do thank you for the compliment, but now I'm compelled to ask: why did you leave VIGIL? I mean, clearly you were a member at some point, given what you just said. I think I should mention that the former member I talked to before was Adir Frescott. I know why he left; I asked him, but I'm curious as to why someone of your obvious talents wouldn't want to be putting them to use there as opposed to hiring them out to the highest bidder."

[Gullara]

[Underside]

Iknika shuffles over to Claire and looks at the sketches.

"I feel like it should be from the front, if I'm supposed to be riding it. We can go look for other angles, but I don't think its owners are used to someone drawing it," she adds with a grin.

[Underside]

"That's fine, I draw people all the time, and usually they're not used to being drawn." Claire stands up so they can move to another angle. "Usually they don't notice either."

[Morty]

[Wizards' Tower]

"I'd like to see the gardens, if you've got them," Batu says. "After that, bed sounds nice. This has been a long day."

[Underside]

"Well, I noticed," Iknika says, tossing her hair. "And I'm pretty glad I did."

[Deathkeeper]

Wizards' Tower

Spako chuckles nervously. "Uh, I think that Cleo should show you the gardens. They're uh, hers. And kind of...dangerous? Like, very? So yeah I don't recommend going there at your level." he tries to explain. If not for his scales he might have gotten stung by a few of Cleo's terrible science experiments.

Cloudy Palace

Artie allows the Frescots to stare, though she does a bit of it herself, and also continuing to blush furiously (she blushes blue, of course). At the first excuse, she gives a shallow bow, an "Excuse me!" and kicks off the wall to float into the room with the glass sounds in an effort to remove herself from these prying eyes.

[Ashen Lilies]

[Cassandra's Tower]

Oh dear. That's an interesting reaction, one Electra hadn't counted on. Cassandra has a crush on Fayyaad? Eh, there are more important things to attend to at the moment, but it might merit some investigation later. She smiles gently, leaning towards Cassandra slightly, fixing the sorceress with those deep blue eyes.

"I do thank you for the compliment, but now I'm compelled to ask: why did you leave VIGIL? I mean, clearly you were a member at some point, given what you just said. I think I should mention that the former member I talked to before was Adir Frescott. I know why he left; I asked him, but I'm curious as to why someone of your obvious talents wouldn't want to be putting them to use there as opposed to hiring them out to the highest bidder."



[Cassandra's Tower]

Cassandra curses inwardly. Damn, she hadn't been intending to give so much away. That's... unfortunate. I guess she just has to kill Electra now.

"Sometimes you're not lucky." She says blandly.

She comment or even seem to react to Electra's giving away Adir Frescot as her previous contact, merely meeting Electra's gaze with a neutral expression.

"Will that be all?"

[Morty]

[Wizards' Tower]

"You realize that you've only made me more curious," Batu points out. "But if they're dangerous, they're dangerous. I suppose I can go get some rest."

[Gullara]

[Underside]

Claire laughs. "Yeah you did. And why's that? Is it because you get a free picture?" She teases.

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Cassandra's Tower]

Electra's expression shifts slightly, a knowing looking that borders on comradely. While she hasn't actually died, she's come pretty close, and she has her own mental scars surrounding the experience. She hadn't been expecting on that sort of parting from VIGIL, and she hadn't been intending on potentially drudging up a potential mental scar for Cassandra, but the question was relevant. Judging by the circumstances, though, delving further into the subject is most assuredly not advisable. In fact, it might be a better idea if no one else knows what Cassandra just told her. VIGIL is ostensibly supposed to be the good guys, but considering they apparently abandoned her to die and someone else brought her back to life, there's probably a good reason to keep people in the dark, including herself.

"Yes, I think so. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring up a painful memory." She rises from her seat, but pauses, and fixes Cassandra with a grave expression. "For what it's worth, I swear on both my and my siblings' names that I won't tell anyone about your previous affiliation." A somewhat odd thing to swear on, but anyone who's gotten to know Electra knows she takes promises seriously. Her expression shifts to one of gratitude. "I do very much appreciate you talking with me about it, though. It's given me a lot of things to consider about my own situation, so, thanks. I'll get out of your hair now." She smiles gently again, then turns towards the door and heads towards it.

[Murkus]

Cloudy Palace

Artie allows the Frescots to stare, though she does a bit of it herself, and also continuing to blush furiously (she blushes blue, of course). At the first excuse, she gives a shallow bow, an "Excuse me!" and kicks off the wall to float into the room with the glass sounds in an effort to remove herself from these prying eyes.

[Cloudy Palace]

Here, a few of the stouter Frescots seem to be unloading crates, stuffed with hay and bottles of varying liquids. Which... they seem to be uncorking. And drinking. Hmm, that doesn't look like furniture. A few of them have started to sit on the overturned crates at least?

[Morty]

[Underside]

"Maybe," Iknika says, tilting her head and pursing her lips. Which looks a bit odd on someone with tusks. "Or maybe I'm very glad to have met the artist and got to show her cool stuff."

[Deathkeeper]

Wizards' Tower

Spako nods and will open the door back to his tower for Batu to pass out on his bed. Spako will work on getting a second one in the meantime.

Cloudy Palace

Oops. These aren't Azren.
"Uh. There isn't a cellar or anything. So you can just...put those wherever. I guess?
....have you seen Azren?" she asks bashfully.

[Ashen Lilies]

[Cassandra's Tower]

Electra's expression shifts slightly, a knowing looking that borders on comradely. While she hasn't actually died, she's come pretty close, and she has her own mental scars surrounding the experience. She hadn't been expecting on that sort of parting from VIGIL, and she hadn't been intending on potentially drudging up a potential mental scar for Cassandra, but the question was relevant. Judging by the circumstances, though, delving further into the subject is most assuredly not advisable. In fact, it might be a better idea if no one else knows what Cassandra just told her. VIGIL is ostensibly supposed to be the good guys, but considering they apparently abandoned her to die and someone else brought her back to life, there's probably a good reason to keep people in the dark, including herself.

"Yes, I think so. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring up a painful memory." She rises from her seat, but pauses, and fixes Cassandra with a grave expression. "For what it's worth, I swear on both my and my siblings' names that I won't tell anyone about your previous affiliation." A somewhat odd thing to swear on, but anyone who's gotten to know Electra knows she takes promises seriously. Her expression shifts to one of gratitude. "I do very much appreciate you talking with me about it, though. It's given me a lot of things to consider about my own situation, so, thanks. I'll get out of your hair now." She smiles gently again, then turns towards the door and heads towards it.

[Cassandra's Tower]

If there's anything worse than Electra opening up wounds, it might be Electra's reaction to the realization that she's opened wounds. Cassandra has never been the sort to take sympathy well.

"Yes, I have... sorcerous things to attend to." Very sorcerous things.

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Cassandra's Tower]

Electra nods, but doesn't reply, instead simply showing herself out, closing the door quietly behind herself and teleporting away once she's outside. Sometimes, you just rub a person the wrong way no matter what you do, whether you intend to or not, and in that case, it's best to just leave well enough alone.

[Gullara]

[Underside]

Claire blushes a bit, but laughs it off. "Well that's better I guess." She settles into her sketching again for a moment. "Well, I probably have enough if we wanna go somewhere for you to pose."

[Morty]

[Wizards' Tower]

Batu does promptly fall asleep on the bed. It's been a long couple of days.

[Underside]

Iknika considers it briefly.

"I think I know a place. It's... I guess you could call it a park. Under a big, glowing mushroom."

[Murkus]

Cloudy Palace

Oops. These aren't Azren.
"Uh. There isn't a cellar or anything. So you can just...put those wherever. I guess?
....have you seen Azren?" she asks bashfully.

"Yeah, we are on it," says one of the nearby lads, thrusting a thumbs up at Artie just before he takes a swig.

"Would you like some?" Asks a slender man in a loincloth with beads and braids shot through his tuft-y red hair. He wags one of the dark bottles at her.

"Artie? Artie!" Calls a voice from nearby. The boisterous Azren appears from behind Artie and puts his hands on her shoulders, raising his eyebrows. He looks concerned! "Artie, there you are. What did you do, invite them in?"

[Deathkeeper]

Cloudy Palace

Artie doesn't really know how to respond to all of this. Especially given her innate ability to feel any and all desire directed at her during the entirety of this encounter. She's starting to look nearly shellshocked by the time Azren arrives.
"I...I...yes? You said they might stop by some time, I thought. So..." she trails off, unsure of what to say.

[Murkus]

[Cloudy Palace]

"Yes, but the Frescots don't just drop by," Azren says, and gravely. "We've got to find a way to get rid of them that still ensures they leave their things... and..." The big stag pauses, cocking his head to one side and peering at Artie as he holds her shoulders. "Are you alright?"

[Morty]

[Isaac's Home]

A certain young goblin shows up at Isaac's place. She's wearing a simple dark blue dress, with a geometric pattern. Her hair is braided, and she certainly doesn't look like a knight in training.

[Deathkeeper]

Cloudy Palace

"Well, I could park the palace close to the ground and just open up the floors. I'm fine, Azren. Just...not used to the stares is all." so many manly men around! What is a girl to do?

Isaac's House

A slim blonde lady answers the door. She makes the correct assumption that she's one of her son's friends. She sends Iknika down to the basement after calling her four kinds of adorable. Isaac's door is painted with a series of bright, colorful runes.
Iknika may choose to announce herself.

[Morty]

[Isaac's Home]

Iknika bristles at being called adorable. She's not adorable! She's a knight in training! But it'd be rude to argue, so she keeps it down. She knocks on Isaac's door instead of barging in, as amusing as the latter might be.

[Deathkeeper]

Isaac's Home

"You can come in!" Isaac calls, voice coming from one of the little runes like a speaker. Isaac was quite proud of that one. He doesn't tell anyone how many tries it took him. He's really rather awful at magic that aren't his specialties, potions being an exception as he's ok at that.

[Morty]

[Isaac's Home]

Iknika slowly opens the door and steps in. She's curious what Isaac's room is like.

"Hi Isaac! It's me!"

[Deathkeeper]

Isaac's Room

Isaac's room is cluttered. In one corner is a weight set and a training staff. Magic homework projects and artworks scatter the walls and shelves. Large sketches cover the far wall featuring Isaac's family, a shy-looking teenager holding an odd sheep-like creature that grins mischievously, an extremely fat elephant-person in robes, and an exact recreation of the drawing Isaac made for Iknika the day they met.
A dusty suit of power armor hangs out of the closet, too small for Isaac to wear, and an entire shelf of comics has been deposited on Isaac's desk. Doctor Strange, HunterXHunter, My Hero Academia, and Unsounded. He certainly seems intent on drawing something, and he jumps with a start as he looks up.
"Iknika! Hi! How uh, are you doing?" he asks shakily. He was clearly not expecting her.

[Morty]

[Isaac's Home]

"Oh, I'm fine. I just wanted to see where you live, and you said I could come." She looks around. "You've got a lot of stuff in here."

[Deathkeeper]

Isaac's Room

Isaac slooooooowly covers what he's doing with a large hardcover.
"Yeah well, when you draw for a hobby on top of magic school you make a lot of things over the years. And my parents don't object to it so.... he trails off, before remembering himself and standing up and giving Iknika an awkward little hug.
"I'm glad you came. Can I uh, get you anything?" he offers.

[Morty]

[Isaac's Room]

"Thanks, but I'm fine," Iknika says, hugging back. It's a pretty powerful hug for someone her size. "You still have that drawing of me?"

[Deathkeeper]

Isaac's Room

The nice thing about a healing factor is that bruises don't last long.
"Well after I gave you the original I couldn't think of a better pose so I just drew it again. It wasn't hard." he says. Though since he did it from home with all the time in the world it's cleaner and more detailed. It's also very accurate considering he was drawing her face from memory.

[Morty]

[Isaac's Room]

"Well, I like it. You've got a lot of art here. Is that you?" She points at the elephant.

[Deathkeeper]

[Isaac's Room]

Isaac flinches, hands drifting to his belly.
"No, that's the Grandmaster of the temple who chose me. I don't...I don't look that fat do I?" he asks her quietly, clearly bothered by the comparison.

[Murkus]

Cloudy Palace

"Well, I could park the palace close to the ground and just open up the floors. I'm fine, Azren. Just...not used to the stares is all." so many manly men around! What is a girl to do?


[Cloudy Palace]

"Drastic, and we'd lose all our new things. We'll keep it as a last resort," Azren decides. And smiles. "I'll never cease to be surprised by that. You should be stared at longingly wherever it is you go." He leans forward and smooches her forehead. In a lovey-dovey whisper, he adds, "Now help me get rid of these idiots before they ruin everything and live here forever."

[Morty]

[Isaac's Room]

Iknika's eyes go wide, and she shakes her head.

"Of course not!" she reassures him quickly. "I just... don't see many elephant people. Sorry."

[Deathkeeper]

Isaac's Room

Isaac glances over to his door and shuts it with a wave of his hand.
"So anyway, don't let my parents hear about the elephant thing. They don't know and they'll think something is wrong with me. But anyway, I have been told by the villagers that I look like the Grandmaster when he was younger. And thinner. Except pale. So I guess. He stops by to help out sometimes and he usually has good advice. He treats me like I'm his kid sometimes, but I guess that's just part of the job of haunting your chosen one." Isaac explains with a shrug.

Cloudy Palace

"Well I am, that's the problem. But what can we do?
I really wouldn't mind having family around but if you say they're bad...and no sisters. Oh dear."
She can only imagine a home like that. How was his mother so serene after all that?

[Morty]

[Isaac's Room]

Iknika puts her hands on her hips.

"You've told me about your parents before. I won't tell them, don't worry. Your mom said I'm adorable. I decided not to argue."