[Chuubo's] Fortitude: The Glass-Maker's Dragon IC

[Geostationary]

Rinley sipped her hot chocolate, watching the passers-by and patrons of the cafe and thinking to herself.
"Doesn't the Archive have that sort of thing? If only we knew someone who knew their way around that place..."

[The_Snark]

Miramie can't help overhearing the rude boy and his friend talking. Really can't help it. Haven't they heard of indoor voices?

Well... maybe not. Maybe nobody's ever taught them to be polite, and they don't even realize that it bothers people. Miramie briefly considers withholding her help as punishment, but after that thought it seems mean-spirited. (Anyway, they'd never know what they missed.) So she rises and approaches the other table.

"Excuse me," she says politely, notepad clutched to her chest like a shield, "I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but I heard you wanted to look at some old records? I could show you around the Archive, if you like."

[Terraoblivion]

Jasper chewed away at her sandwich as Leonardo and Rinley talked. She'd been pretty hungry from all the running around and she hadn't quite gotten enough to eat the day before after money ran out, why were humans so obsessed with the things anyway?

She did, however, looked at Leonardo with a curious expression. "Why do you want to know about storms? Are they causing problems or do they relate to...Whatever you did to make that heart-powered device." Rinley was helpful at least, in explaining where the information might be held and it /did/ sound like something that might make sense, now that she thought about it.

And then another girl showed up, one that to someone who was more familiar with Fortitude than Jasper looked far more normal than either herself and Leonardo. "That sounds great. It'll help with whatever you're doing, right Leonardo?"

[Sanguine]

Gulping down that last of his hot chocolate Leonardo stood up and, his hair blowing in the wind despite there being no wind inside the cafae, spoke. "Why am I interested in storms? Because Jasper, for the last few weeks storms have been blowing into Town from the Outside with an alarming frequency; and they are only getting more frequent as time goes on. Something has riled up the Outside, and if whatever it is isn't stopped then the results could be cataclysmic! And nobody seems to care! But I do! And so I have taken it upon myself to deal with the riled up Outside." Not to mention that there was a not insignificant chance that he was in fact the cause. But they didn't need to know that.

Spoiler

Show

Taking the story xp for "Explicitly taking responsibility for dealing with the riled up Outside".

[Terraoblivion]

"...Does everybody here care that little about great threats?" First they refused to give him any credit for creating a new sun, now they ignored the greater activity in the Outside. Or maybe Leonardo was just bad at explaining himself?

Regardless of the answer, she instead went on to give him a bright, sunny smile. "No matter, if you started a new sun, I'm sure you can deal with this as well."

Spoiler

Show

And, yes, taking an xp for my basic quest there. I might not have dried people's laundry, but giving trust and encouragement is very metaphorically sunny.

[Crinias]

The rats smile gratefully and begin to eat with great energy, although Natalia can’t help but think that they won’t be able to entirely eat the rolls, big as they are.

The rats tell of many tales, all concerning Typhon, of how she killed Praksia the rat by breaking her neck; of how Beniamin and Mihai turned her away from their third brother by throwing away their courage and showing meekness; of how Typhon raged once against a party of heroic adventurers, of how she poisoned them, whipped them, and how only one was left alive, and other such stories.

"I should note that rat-lore concerning the Mysteries is often incomplete," says Palpatine as he nibbles through the bread. "They may have unusual abilities not known to rats, or similarly, unknown weaknesses."

---------

"Say, besides more knowledge about Typhon and maybe a blessed spear, what else would she need?" asks Pandora doubtfully to his companions.

"Searching out Madcap’s Nave would probably help," says Solo, "and so would committing to this struggle formally, you know, like with a declaration or something. I find that it tends to help with adventures."

This suggestion is met with sounds of general agreement.

"I’m afraid we only know rat weaponsmiths," says Palpatine with a straight face, "and you probably will not find any blessed spears lying around, or given to you by a dying friend, or gifted upon you by a powerful and holy being, or any other such ways, but if you find a regular spear, many of the local shrine families may help you with the ‘blessed’ part."

Pandora says in a wondering tone of voice: "This reminds me of the incident of the three sided die…"

Solo and Palpatine give Pandora a dark look. "I thought we agreed never to speak of that again?", asks Palpatine, somber.

"It wasn’t that bad!"

"Yes it was! Almost as bad as that one time we searched for that thing with the three holes!" says Solo, uncharacteristically upset.

"It was limited edition and I really wanted one!!!" yells Pandora. Everyone can tell that he’s touchy about that subject, and that he’s at his limit. Four exclamation points are the sign of a deceased mind, and Pandora just yelled with three.

After a minute or two of discussion, the rats calm down, and decide to leave the unrelated issue aside.

---------

"You know, it only just occurred to me, because we rats use our cunning and agility to fight the Mysteries, I had not questioned your desire to fight her, but… " says Palpatine, suddenly curious, "how are you going to fight Typhon? You certainly don’t lack the courage…"

"Oh hush," says Solo, "everyone knows that cave trolls are known for their great strength and endurance!"

""Solo!""

Solo laughs jovially, and softly, his huge sword rattling slightly against the roof. He grins straight at Natalia. "Just kidding. I’m sure whatever you face in the future, you can handle it, girl.”

Spoiler

Show

Sorry for the delay. See the OOC for further comments on Typhon.

Sanguine: Quick reminder that along with cutting XP costs for quests, we’ve also cut storyline XP by the same amount, so unfortunately you only get 3 XP for that instead of 5.

[Tengu_temp]

"I am afraid my strength cannot be compared to that of a cave troll." A pause. "That's because trolls don't exist. I could outwrestle a bear since I was little, though." Yeah, back then it was either wrestle a bear and win, or don't eat. Not very good days. Natalia stuffs the rest of her breadroll into her mouth and chews to make the memories go away.

"Thanks for your help." Natalia nods. "I'll make sure to remember all you told me, maybe aside from the parts about dice and holes." She takes a mental note to look for other sources of information too, just in case there's something the rats missed.
"I just have one final question. Where is Madcap's Nave?"

[Crinias]

The rats seem interested in Natalia's fighting prowess. "A bear-wrestler!" "See? She can handle herself." "I've never seen a bear before..."

Upon hearing Natalia's last question, Palpatine begins to speak, but suddenly cuts himself off: "Beyond the regular roofs, of cours-" is as far as he gets before stopping and slapping his head.

Solo's eyes widen considerably "Oh that's right, we didn't get to that part!"

"Oy vey." Pandora appears only mildly concerned, as usual. "Well... you know how if you go beyond the parts of Fortitude that you know and feel comfortable in, and go beyond to strange places, you'll end up Outside?" Pandora clears his throat a bit.

"A similar thing happens up here in the roofs: Sometimes, you'll end up noticing that you haven't seen the ground in a while, or that you took a wrong turn somewhere, but you won't be in the roofs of Fortitude no more. You'll find yourself in the Far Roofs," he says with great gravitas, "and there may you find a twisted reflection of Fortitude's heights, as such that these roofs would no longer be part of the houses of this street, but rather the Grey Crossroads or the Witchway or some other similar place. Madcap's Nave lies somewhere in the Far Roofs, although I'm not entirely certain where. Beware the Far Roofs, for Fortitude they are not, and the Mysteries lie there, and to pieces they shall tear you if you are not careful."

Palpatine looks at Pandora with praise. "You sure are reliable when it comes to this sort of thing. Indeed, it is as he says. Although Mysteries may spill out into Fortitude, their natural place of being is within the Far Roofs."

[Tengu_temp]

"Hmm..." More of this place's reality-bending anti-logic. Understanding the idea is easy enough for Natalia, but the irrationality of how all of this functions annoys her. And apparently some locals consider the real world, the one she came from, a part of Outside too? Ridiculous.
"I understand. Guess I will have to explore it myself one day. You don't have to worry about me - Fortitude is strange and alien already. The Far Roofs won't be different in that regard." She gets up on her feet, ready to leave. "Thanks for all the information. I owe you three one."

[Geostationary]

"It makes me think of a tale about an old sailor. Whenever Outside storms were brewing, he'd get this tinny taste in his mouth and an ache in the leg. While on a voyage, he warned the young captain three times that a storm was brewing, and three times the young captain ignored him, for he saw no storm. When the storm hit, the ship was not ready, and the old sailor was the only man who returned from the voyage."
Rinley sips the last of her hot chocolate after imparting this, then sets the mug down. She directs her attention to the lady who offered to help.
"Don't I know you? I swear I've seen you around in lots of cafes. It's Miramie, isn't it? I'm Rinley!"
She offers her hand.

Spoiler

Show

Can I claim XP for Storytime! and The Straw-Haired Kid, or can I only choose one?

[The_Snark]

Miramie takes the hand, thankful to have at least one normal person to hold on to. (Literally.) "Yes, that's me - I'm hoping to open my own cafe, so I've been going around taking notes on how they work," she explains. "It's nice to meet you, Rinley."

She turns her attention to the other two. Up close, the red-haired girl isn't as old as her clothes made her seem, but the boy Montreal remains imposing. He's taller than her, and loud, and... She decides to speak up before she works herself into a fret. "Um. Would you like my help, Mr. de Montreal? I don't know much about Outside storms, but I can show you where to look for records. The filing system is hard to make sense of if you're not used to it..."

[Terraoblivion]

Jasper immediately responded to introductions with a bright smile. "Hi. I'm Jasper Irinka...I'm new around here and I've been busy so I don't think I've seen you before, but nice to meet you, Miramie. What kind of café do you want to open?"

[Crinias]

In response to Natalia's words, Palpatine bows, Pandora smiles warmly, and Solo simply grins.

"Best of luck!" "Tell us how it went later!" "Try not to get horribly maimed, poisoned, or eaten!"
________________

And so, information was exchanged, and farewells were bid, and Natalia found herself wiser for it.

Spoiler

Show

Unless you have some last thing to say or comment, I declare this scene over.

Also, remind me to never create and introduce so many NPCs simultaneously, it's exhausting to roleplay them all.

[Tengu_temp]

"Don't worry, I will. Tell you, that is, not get eaten. I don't plan on that." Natalia jumps down to the street with the agility of a trained expert martial artist, and waves her hand slightly to the rats before leaving. She feels like her life here has a bit more purpose now.

Spoiler

Show

Aaand... End scene, I believe. Does that count as a shared action? And getting bonus XP (how much? 1?) for the Golden Snake of the Rooftops quest?

Also, I'm at peace.

[Sanguine]

Offering his hand to Miramie Leonardo smiles and says. "Nice to meet you Miramie, I would be glad for the assistance." After a moment the young scientist blushes and adds. "Not that this makes us friends or anything."

[The_Snark]

There, that wasn't so bad. Miramie shakes his hand, her smile going a little crooked when he blushes. "Well... okay. If you don't want to be."

She turns to Jasper. "There's an old manor down the street from the Archive - do you know it? I checked with the city council, and nobody actually owns the place anymore. So me and a few friends are fixing it up, and I'm hoping to turn it into a cafe. Or maybe an art shop - I paint, and do things in glass sometimes, and my friend Sakura makes these beautiful painted fans... Maybe both. The place is big enough, and I feel like those two things could really go together, you know?"

Her smile slips a bit. "If I can make it work at all, anyway."

[Geostationary]

Rinley looks at Miramie, a serious look in her eyes. "Don't doubt yourself Miramie. If it's something you love, something you wish for with your heart, though it may be hard, you can do it. Besides, it's not like you're doing it alone."
Rinley gets a large grin as she says this.
"You have your friends helping you out! And I'm sure that we'd all love to lend a hand with your tea-ventures in business, lest things become a cafestrophe."
She motions to Leonardo and Jasper as a vague, dream-like feeling of 'we can do this, even if we must do the impossible!' fills the room.

Spoiler

Show

I figure heart-reader would let me figure out 'oh hey this is important to her'. Using 'There's a Tree in the Way' to provide aura of plausibility, and I'd like to use 'There's No Turning Back Now!' to draw a helpful person/opportunity to her... eventually!

Tragic! I wish to slide The_Snark a shiny emotion XP, as I am assigning far too much pathos to that final line!

[Sanguine]

Continuing to smile, all traces of embarrassment gone, Leonardo says. "I would of course be willing to lend you my assistance, purely out of self-interest, you understand. There is a distinct lack of truly good cafes in the area."

[Terraoblivion]

"A cafe with art sounds like a great idea. I paint a bit and I'm sure there are other people who care about art while they eat too."

The fading smile was met with a slightly concerned, but also brighter, more comforting expression from the nascent sun goddess. "You can do it. And if you need it, I'll help you. I'm sure I can at least carry some boxes or similar...But why do you think you can't?" Jasper paused for a bit, her expression turned suspicious. "It's that money thing humans care so much about, isn't it?"

[The_Snark]

"... Thank you," says Miramie, a little bemused but mostly gratified at the response. They like her idea that much? Maybe it can work. "I'd like your help, all of you. I do need money, but I won't ask you for that - just time is good. There's a lot of cleaning and fixing up to do before the building is even ready, and maybe you can help me find supplies too. Even if I had all the money I needed, I don't know where to buy things like coffee beans, or paper napkins, or..."

"I'm sorry. You wanted to see the Archive, and here I am rambling on about myself. Would you like to go now, or would some other time be better?"

Spoiler

Show

I believe I'm going to declare this a Shared Reaction. Reaching out! Connecting! XP!

[Crinias]

And so it was with little fanfare that the unlikely group agreed to meet in the Archive the next day.

Though the young sun goddess never got her answer regarding money or any kind of currency, and the master of Nightmare Science later had brief nightmares about denying any connection with these people (and failing miserably), that moment stuck with Miramie whenever her thoughts wondered to the distant dream of making a cafe or maybe an art shop, which now seemed much closer. As for the youngest Yatskaya sibling, she couldn't help but feel that their group was missing something, or someone.

-------
And so it was that the next day, with the sun shining high with a few clouds on the sky, the group met in the Archive. The great brick building was perhaps four stories tall and at the end of a street, and it housed an uncountable amount of records, diaries, recipes and obscure information from all of Fortitude, such that at any time one might be able to see stacks of books through the great glass windows of the place.

Despite the need to clean up the Archive a bit and organize some of its bookshelves, Miramie manages to make the place seem inviting to strangers and prepare a general area for the group to talk and get comfortable. Meanwhile, Leonardo, Rinley and Jasper happened to meet along the way to the Archive, and make some small talk before reaching its door.

As for Natalia, the long walk from School would mean that going to the Archive would take a bit longer.

Spoiler

Show

In case you disagree and you did/are doing something different (i.e. Rinley is only just arriving to the Archive because she was riding a leaf in the wind, and it was difficult to steer), go ahead and say so.

Also, to get a general idea of what the Archive looks like I recommend checking out this neat fan art. It's not entirely how I visualize it (and it's not at the end of a street, as I describe it is here), but it's pretty close to how it probably is.

[Terraoblivion]

Jasper was in quite a good mood. She was meeting with people who kinda, sorta seemed to accept who she was, or at least was better at not brushing it off, and was doing something that actually seemed to matter to things and not just find money to keep fed. Not just that, it was a bright, sunny day which just made her even happier. Or perhaps it was a bright, sunny day because she was happy and made it so without realizing it, but she didn't know about that option.

"Hi. Slept well, you two?" She met Rinley and Leonardo with a big, beaming smile as they all headed towards the archives. "So what are we looking for? Just old weather records...Actually, how long has the Outside been there? I know it was created when dad shot mom, but I'm not sure when that actually was." Her expression faded slightly, though she still looked more thoughtful than downcast or depressed. It really was a good question how long she'd been falling.

[Sanguine]

Leonardo had not slept well and it showed. The young scientist had been tossing and turning all night plagued by the most ridiculous dream. He looked like death itself shuffling along beside the cheery Jasper. In fact Leonardo was so exhausted that he had not even had the energy to prepare a breakfast this morning, instead he had stolen one from his future self. And it served Future Leonardo right, after all it was always Past or Present Leonardo who did the hard work, it was high time that layabout started contributing.

When Jasper asked how everyone had slept Leonardo glared at her with all of his great glaring prowess, but then the Child of the Sun said something that caught his attention. Perking right up Nightmare's Angel to explain one of his pet theories.

"Jasper, Jasper, Jasper...Those are two entirely different questions. It is my belief that the Outside has always existed, the death of the sun merely bringing it to the forefront of human consciousness. The thing one must understand about the Outside is that it is more of a psychological phenomena than a physical one. A place that is part of the Outside for one person is not necessarily so for another."

"I theorize that that the Outside has existed for as long as sapient, or perhaps even sentient, thought has. It was there lingering at the edges of the world, in the Far and Sunless Land. And then the sun went out. People were terrified, they lost all hope, they had no idea how to live in a world without a sun. That fear, and hopelessness, and uncertainty, it pulled at the Outside like a magnet pulls on iron, and so the Outside rushed forth, drowning the world."

After taking a moment to catch his breath Leonardo says. "Of course this is merely a theory. They didn't let us out much back at the Evil Orphanage, so I'm not entirely sure what the world was like before the sun died. But the Shrine Families have magical traditions incorporating the use of Outside dust. Which doesn't make much sense if the Outside has only existed for the past eight years."

Spoiler

Show

I am going to claim an XP for natural scientist.

[Geostationary]

Rinley, on the other hand, had slept quite well. Well, slept is a strong word. By the time she wandered out of the local dreamscape of the Yatskaya temple, she had found herself in a local back alley and the savior of a small dream-kingdom of tiny porcelain men. She wasn't sure whose dreams they were from, but it was there.
"Hmm. I was seven when the sun died, but I don't really remember all that much changing once the sun came back. I mean, we've been burning the Outside dust in our incense for as long as anyone in the family can remember; and I can't recall any big changes. It's the same with the Susanovs and Vasili and other shrine families as far as I know. Do you think we... came with it? The Outside?"
Rinley looks mildly uncomfortable with this last idea; to call one's etiology into doubt is never a comforting thing.

Spoiler

Show

XP for theory about underlying situation? I should probably work more on my plot quest.

[Terraoblivion]

This was getting so weird. It didn't help that she couldn't really remember many details before landing. At least she got the answer of how long she'd fallen, which was pretty unsettling all told.

"I see...Maybe Leonardo is right. It does explain why mom dying would make it swallow the Earth...It did swallow the Earth, right?" Or had the stories she'd heard about that been false like how the Outside didn't exist before? "And I'm sure it stopped because of the new sun. Especially if the Outside is despair and confusion, because how can you feel that seeing that there is a sun after all?"

Spoiler

Show

And claiming an XP for talking about what was lost when Jade Irinka died. In this case, Earth.

[Tengu_temp]

"Earth, getting swallowed by the Outside? I doubt something like that happened." A voice comes from above, from the upper layer of the hill! "It sounds like something that's difficult to miss. I'd notice if it happened."

Natalia jumps up from above and lands on the grass close to the group with athletic discipline. She's wearing her school uniform like before, having recently returned from it (that's one more thing she can't get used to - what kind of place still uses school uniforms these days?), but also carries a large, mostly empty bag over her shoulder. She hopes to bring lots of books with her.
"...Hello, Rinley. Your friends, I presume? Are you going to the Archive too?" The Russian girl doesn't sound entirely comfortable for some reason. She also instinctively tries not to look at Jasper, though it might be hard to tell, especially since she doesn't consciously realize it herself.

[Terraoblivion]

"If it's like Leonardo says, then it's perfectly possible for it to be mostly swallowed and you just didn't notice." Jasper sounded surprisingly insistent for her. It just felt wrong to deny the significance of her mother's death like that.

It quickly vanished and she was back to her usual, bright self, giving the Russian girl a beaming smile and a small wave. "Hi, I'm Jasper Irinka. We were talking about the Outside and my parents...Is something wrong?" Really, why did that rather cool looking girl suddenly seem all awkward and uncomfortable?

[Tengu_temp]

Natalia hesitates for a second. What is she supposed to say? That there's something about the girl that doesn't feel right?
"...No, it's nothing. It's just that... The Outside is this big, scary crawling pool of chaos that's just outside the Town's borders, isn't it? I really don't think how anyone would miss if it suddenly engulfed Earth too. Life tends to be big and scary in different ways than that."
She pauses for a moment, maybe to add weight to her words, maybe because she forgot something.
"...Oh. I'm Natalia. Natalia Koutolika."

[Sanguine]

Jasper rolled his eyes at the new arrival. "And with that little gem of ignorance, you have proven that you have no idea what you are talking about, Natalia." There was just so much wrong with her statement. Of course the Earthlings wouldn't notice their world being flooded by the Outside! And her description of the Outside was only very superficially accurate. "I am the one and only Leonardo de Montreal, and we are indeed going to the Archive."

[Terraoblivion]

"Didn't you say that it was a state of mind? Earth could have been drowned in most senses and people who move out of that state could have clear memories of Earth. Or maybe Natalia just didn't despair." Jasper looked sternly at Leonardo for a bit, before giving Natalia a reassuring, comforting smile. "But something did happen when mom...Well, not died, she's still alive out there somewhere but...sorta died, I guess."