GLoG 93: Something something something babies

[Morty]

[Daycare]

Reelshka sighs and kneels down in front of Manja, careful not to make sudden movements.

"It's okay, Manja. No one's going to hurt you. Why don't you lie down for a moment?" she asks. The baby is too young to understand her, but she hopes the soothing tone of her voice will do the trick.

[The Woods]

"One of my uncles is a carpenter, one is an accountant and the third one is a beetle wrangler. So yeah, apprenticing under a dragon-slaying lady does sound kind of badass. Well, and Uncle Pathfinder is a shaman who summons spirits and stuff, so there is that," Brinika admits. "Comics are neat, though. My cousin and her boyfriend are really into them."

[Rebonack]

[The Woods]

"My dad used to do adventuring stuff a lot. I don't think he ever fought an evil dragon but he DID defeat some evil giants with the help of his friends," Khannie says as she hoists her staff skyward. "I hope I can be just as much of a hero as my dad is. That's part of why I'm learning illusions. It's fun and I'm good at them, but I'll be able to use them to be a hero some day."

Technically she already does some heroing with the whole Magical Girl thing but Khannie KNOWS that she and Zebes will figure out a way to get her back to normal and she won't be able to do any of that stuff anymore. All she can trust in is her own talent and strength! And of course the skills of any great friends she makes along the way.

Life is one big adventure to Khannie.

"What's a beetle wrangler like?" Khannie asks curiously. That isn't a profession she's ever heard of before.

She knows what wrangling is (like with cows?) and what beetles are, but she's having trouble putting those two concepts together.

And then?

Comics!

"Yeah, like Batman! Batman is really cool! I think I like some of the older ones where he does more detective stuff. But my big favorite is Captain Marvel! He's such a cool super hero. See normally he's a just a kid like us but when he says SHAZAM! he turns into Captain Marvel!"

It should come as no shock that Khannie is fond of that idea.

[Ironsmith]

[The Woods]

"One of my uncles is a carpenter, one is an accountant and the third one is a beetle wrangler. So yeah, apprenticing under a dragon-slaying lady does sound kind of badass. Well, and Uncle Pathfinder is a shaman who summons spirits and stuff, so there is that," Brinika admits. "Comics are neat, though. My cousin and her boyfriend are really into them."

[The Woods]

"My dad used to do adventuring stuff a lot. I don't think he ever fought an evil dragon but he DID defeat some evil giants with the help of his friends," Khannie says as she hoists her staff skyward. "I hope I can be just as much of a hero as my dad is. That's part of why I'm learning illusions. It's fun and I'm good at them, but I'll be able to use them to be a hero some day."

Technically she already does some heroing with the whole Magical Girl thing but Khannie KNOWS that she and Zebes will figure out a way to get her back to normal and she won't be able to do any of that stuff anymore. All she can trust in is her own talent and strength! And of course the skills of any great friends she makes along the way.

Life is one big adventure to Khannie.

"What's a beetle wrangler like?" Khannie asks curiously. That isn't a profession she's ever heard of before.

She knows what wrangling is (like with cows?) and what beetles are, but she's having trouble putting those two concepts together.

And then?

Comics!

"Yeah, like Batman! Batman is really cool! I think I like some of the older ones where he does more detective stuff. But my big favorite is Captain Marvel! He's such a cool super hero. See normally he's a just a kid like us but when he says SHAZAM! he turns into Captain Marvel!"

It should come as no shock that Khannie is fond of that idea.

[The Woods]

Arthfael frowns. "I'm... not familiar with that one." He shrugs. "But, okay, yeah. Whatever floats your boat." He sighs and picks up a rock from the ground, tossing it a distance, listening to it clatter along the leaves and roots and undergrowth. "It's not like it really matters." And with that mildly existential sentiment, he sighs and sits down against a nearby tree.

Ha. Khannie was sitting out here in what would make a gorgeous landscape painting and talking about how awesome it would be to be killing giants some day. Something about that struck him as humorous. Ironic, really.

[Morty]

[The Woods]

"A beetle wrangler is someone who raises big beetles from when they're just eggs. Then they train them to carry riders. It's not easy, because big beetles don't like people. Then they're used to carry goblins through tunnels. Iknika really wants to ride a beetle someday. She says it's the right mount for a goblin knight." She takes a seat herself on a rock. "Beetles aren't usually big enough to carry goblins. I'm not sure what happened to those to make them so large."

[Rebonack]

[Woods]

"Captain Marvel was basically THE most popular super hero for a while! He was the first super hero to get his own movie," Khannie explains excitedly. "But then DC sued and said he was a copy of Superman which is totally untrue! Superman copied stuff from Captain Marvel, not the other way around. At first Superman was just strong and tough and could jump really far and had, like, super senses. But he couldn't project energy or fly or anything like that. He copied all those powers from Captain Marvel."

Khannie is definitely a Captain Marvel apologist.

Then?

She frowns a little.

"What doesn't matter lots of stuff matters," she retorts. Was he talking about comic things or vampire things? She isn't clear on that.

And then?

Beetle-talk.

"So they're like horses but for underground?" Khannie summarizes. "Do people make saddles for them and stuff?"

If these beetles are sized for goblins to ride on Khannie is pretty sure she would be way too big.

[Ironsmith]

[The Woods]

"A beetle wrangler is someone who raises big beetles from when they're just eggs. Then they train them to carry riders. It's not easy, because big beetles don't like people. Then they're used to carry goblins through tunnels. Iknika really wants to ride a beetle someday. She says it's the right mount for a goblin knight." She takes a seat herself on a rock. "Beetles aren't usually big enough to carry goblins. I'm not sure what happened to those to make them so large."

[Woods]

"Captain Marvel was basically THE most popular super hero for a while! He was the first super hero to get his own movie," Khannie explains excitedly. "But then DC sued and said he was a copy of Superman which is totally untrue! Superman copied stuff from Captain Marvel, not the other way around. At first Superman was just strong and tough and could jump really far and had, like, super senses. But he couldn't project energy or fly or anything like that. He copied all those powers from Captain Marvel."

Khannie is definitely a Captain Marvel apologist.

Then?

She frowns a little.

"What doesn't matter lots of stuff matters," she retorts. Was he talking about comic things or vampire things? She isn't clear on that.

And then?

Beetle-talk.

"So they're like horses but for underground?" Khannie summarizes. "Do people make saddles for them and stuff?"

If these beetles are sized for goblins to ride on Khannie is pretty sure she would be way too big.

[The Woods]

Blah blah blah nerd talk blah blah. Arthfael silently rolls his eyes at Khannie geeking out over the finer points of comic book heroes. Like, geez, kid. Dial it back a bit. They're neat, yeah, but not something to, like, obsess over.

...Although those beetles did sound kind of interesting. "Is there any way we could get to see them?" He asks, with a small amount of uncharacteristic enthusiasm. Forget whether goblin knights rode them, he just wanted to see a big bug up close.

[Rebonack]

[Hawthorn Cabin]

There's a knock at the cabin door.

Metal on wood.

Heavy and strong.

The sort of forceful, insistent knock someone might expect from an Inquisitor who will shortly be letting themselves in if the door isn't answered promptly.

The sort of knock that Sekhmet likely never, ever wanted to hear.

Should she open the door?

She'll find a little human girl who looks around twelve or thirteen wearing a purple and lavender tabard over a silvery under-suit. On her hands and feet are exquisitely crafted silver grieves and gauntlets with little amethyst crystal spikes in the knuckles. Considering how frilly the hem of the tabard is and how HUGE the purple bow holding up her pony tail is this child looks like anything BUT an inquisitor. In spite of all that she's wearing a very unchildlike expression of seriousness.

[bc56]

Hawthorn Cabin
Footsteps approach the door.
Everything silver on Khannie's person begins to warm up and glow brightly. Considering how much silver armor she's wearing, this probably means she shines like a lighthouse beacon.
Cautiously, the door opens. Behind it is a strange-looking woman. She has crimson skin, black eyes and lips, and metallic black hair that hangs in a long ponytail down her back. She's wearing a long blue dress that doesn't fit quite right around the chest and hips, but she doesn't seem to mind. She also has on some simple jewelry, a necklace with a shooting star icon, and a gold ring on her left hand. She gives a forced, frightened smile. "Uh, hi?" Anyone who brings this much silver gear to her house can't mean her well, she's sure, even if they are a preteen girl.

[Rebonack]

[Hawthorn Cabin]

Sekhmet is studied long and hard by eyes that have seen plenty of battles. The eyes of someone who has had to make split second choices that were the difference between life and death. In those eyes, Sekhmet will see a conclusion drawn.

"Lucy said you're a witch," the little girl says. "But I don't that you're a Witch."

The emphasis there suggests that the girl is talking about two totally different things that share the same name.

"But just to be sure, you haven't ever eaten people before have you? Or hexed someone so they do things to hurt themselves?"

She has to be sure.

While she's pretty certain the grownups wouldn't let anyone into GLoG that's a danger to the children she has to be certain.

Completely certain.

Because beating up evil Witches is sort of her job.

[bc56]

Hawthorn Cabin
"Uh..." That was a strange question from this kid. "No, I, uh, haven't eaten anyone." The second part though. She didn't 'hex' them, but she did do that to some of her mother's cultists. Sekhmet leaves that question unanswered.
Ellie, Sekhmet's "dog" skitters up behind its mistress and peers with yellow eyes at Khannie suspiciously.

[Rebonack]

[Hawthorn Cabin]

Khannie picks up on the unanswered question instantly.

"So you HAVE hexed people to make them hurt themselves?" Khannie asks a little more insistently.

No a good sign.

This lady definitely seems more coherent than Witches normally are, but that just might be the Nexus being weird.

Or it could be that this is unrelated.

Khannie wants to be certain.

Then?

The 'dog' arrives.

Khannie eyes Ellie right back.

"Is that your familiar?"

[bc56]

Hawthorn Cabin
"Uh, yes? Sort of?" Sekhmet guiltily answers. She shuffles back away from the door. "I had to, they were hurting me and my friends."
She seems grateful for the change of topic, however. "Ellie? No, she's just my, uh, pet." Sekhmet apparently has strange tastes in pets.
She does have something like a familiar, but it's immobile and lives roughly 45 minutes away from the camp on foot.

[Rebonack]

[Hawthorn Cabin]

"Okay," the girl replies after a few second of silence after BOTH questions.

It's easy to see on the child's face that's she's assessing Sekhmet's answers, weighing her options.

"Two more questions. Are you in any way connection to a bad emotion? Like despair or something else?" the child asks, ticking off one finger. "Have you got a pocket universe all your own that twists itself to your will and is a source of unearthly power for you?" she continues, ticking off a second.

Wow.

These are all some reason weird questions, right?

Very weird, very intense questions.

Though based on the child's expressions and body language it will be clear to Sekhmet the reason why she's asking them.

Because she, too, wants to make sure no one will hurt her friends.

[bc56]

Hawthorn Cabin
"Uh, what? What does that even mean, connected to a bad emotion?" Sekhmet doesn't understand that. "Uh, and I guess yes to the second one? It's not really a 'pocket' dimension though." Hell would never fit in anyone's pocket.

[Rebonack]

[Hawthorn Cabin]

First answer?

Good.

Second answer?

Less good.

"Show me it," the girl demands.

Yes.

Demands.

That was not a request.

[bc56]

Hawthorn Cabin
"It's dangerous to, uh, mortals. Are you sure?" Sekhmet complies anyway. She stretches out her hand and reality tears. A circular rift opens onto a hellish landscape of ash and magma. "Uh, there. Happy?"

[Rebonack]

[Hawthorn Cabin]

And as soon as the girl sees that blasted, hellish landscape?

The tensions eases out of her shoulders, her fists relaxing.

"Okay that definitely doesn't look like a scrapbook that got barfed up by a kaleidoscope," she says before reaching up to the little stud in her ear and touching it. In a flash of glittery purple sparkles her raiment has been replaced with a pretty unremarkable school girl's clothing.

That means all the silver is gone now, too.

Thankfully.

"Yeah, you've definitely got some weird stuff going on but you aren't a Witch. I just had to make sure."

She offers her hand to Sekhmet to shake.

"I'm Khannie Vallarm, Magical Girl. I come here to GLoG to see my friends and do my homework but when I heard there was a witch here from Lucy I had to make sure everything was okay."

[bc56]

Hawthorn Cabin
That was thoroughly weird. So it's not very remarkable compared to most of Sekhmet's days. "Uh, Sekhmet Brignole, uh," Should she include her title? It seems like Khannie did. "Queen of the Scorching Depths." That doesn't sound too pompous, does it? She hopes not. She hesitantly shakes Khannie's hand. "Uh, what was all that about?"

[Rebonack]

[Hawthorn Cabin]

Khannie's expression flickers with a hint of impatience.

"I just told you. I had to make sure you weren't a Witch, so I asked a bunch of questions about Witch stuff."

Nice simple explanation.

Just asking about Witch-stuff.

"It's the job of Magical Girls to fight Witches so they don't eat regular people."

This is a very important job, in Khannie's estimation.

"I guess technically other people could fight Witches but they aren't made for it the way Magical Girls are. So basically you have some magic things but you aren't a Witch. Which means I don't have to fight you, which is good! What's up with your dog how come he's so weird?"

Khannie asks, pointing at the 'dog' in question.

[bc56]

Hawthorn Cabin
"Uh, she's not a dog." Sekhmet explains. Ellie skitters away, confident the danger has passed. "She's, uh, more like a bodyguard." Not that Sekhmet especially needs protection after her mother was killed. But there are still demon hunters like Ilpholin out there who will kill her on sight.

[Rebonack]

[Hawthorn Cabin]

"Oh," is Khannie's somewhat truncated reply. "I saw she was wearing a dog collar and thought..."

That she was a dog.

There are some really weird dogs in the Nexus so that isn't unreasonable.

"So are you like a reformed villain or something?" Khannie asks, puzzled. "Or one of the counselors for reformed villains?"

As far as she knew there wasn't much villain reform going on here these days.

Just child care stuff.

Which is why SHE is there.

Or rather, she's here because of her friends and because the campground is fun. But THEY'RE here because of child care stuff.

[bc56]

Hawthorn Cabin
Dogs aren't the only ones to wear collars, Khannie!
"Uh, neither? I just live here." Sekhmet is pretty sure anyone can just live at GLoG. She's been doing it for years. "Uh, are you going to keep standing there?" She steps back from the door. It's an invitation to either come in or leave.

[Morty]

[The Woods]

"Like horses, yeah. But they're bigger for goblins than a horse would be for a human. I think." Brinika isn't very familiar with horses, all in all. "There are special saddles for them. They're neat." She looks up at Arthfael. "You'd need to get to Underside. That's our colony here. They don't let kids near the beetle hatcheries, but you can see them scuttle along tunnels."

[UncleWolf]

Spoiler

Show

Moonwell

"Wait, you don't even live here." Dom blinks in surprise to Anika.
And hire what-now? Sounds intimidating.
"I'm still not even clear on how you found out about the place. Did scary demon guy tell you about it? Because you seem to have gotten here awful fast." Dom's very much confused on how all of this works at the moment.

Moonwell

Anika leans closer to Dom and whispers. "Don't worry, I'm just saying that to get them off your lawn."

But if she wanted to be subtle, the imp lord is sadly staring right at Domhnall at the moment. "Okay, first of all, calling someone 'creepy' is a pretty offensive. It makes me feel like you think you can call us whatever you like since you think we're 'demons' or whatever." Then the imp turns to Sophie. "Secondly, yeah. Of course they told us about this place and we gated in here to investigate it. It thought that was pretty clear already, so what about it?" He raises his hand. "Oh, and 'gated' means teleported, as in 'instant transportation'. That's how we got here so fast. I mean, how else would we have done it? But hey, if you like to speak to Jaccalish I can give you a direct line to them. They're probably pretty busy but they probably have a unit that could confirm my side of the story."

Finally, the imp turns to Pathfinder. "And please, don't involve any lawyers. We can take the clue that we're not wanted."

[Moonwell]

Sophie sighs deeply. The imps just keep trying to deflect.

"We can talk to this 'Jaccalish', but not here and not right now. Pathfinder can safeguard the well and then, if we decide it's safe, you can come back. There's still a lot that's unclear about it. Too much when we're talking about a well of magic power not far from a place filled with children."

Moonwell

Pathfinder claps his paw-like hands with a smile to break the tense moment and to draw attention. "Then it is decided. As we all seem to be in agreement for this Jaccalish to be spoken to, I will place a safeguard. Debate can be had then, plans worked out, and I can at least use something less than predatory to protect this place." He explains as he draws a flint and bone knife from his waist with one hand and a handful of seeds from a pouch with his other. "Oh, if you're shy of blood, I recommend looking away." He warns before dragging the knife across the palm holding the seeds without flinching. "The way of a shaman is learning that life, death, and spirits are all one big cycle of giving and taking. And sometimes, you must give a little." He clenches his hand tight and kneels down to place the bloody seeds against the ground to whisper. There's no big flash of light, no weird omens or the like. He simply kneels there and whispers. Seems like it might take a little while.

[Deathkeeper]

Moonwell

"Uh, yeah. Sure." Diplomacy isn't really Dom's strong suit.
He does flinch at the blood-drawing but not because he's squeamish. Doesn't that seem really unnecessary? There's so many places you can cut that bleed without bleeding as long and as painful as a palm-cut. Maybe that was the point? The ritual needs it to be a sacrifice so it has to be painful and impractical? Seems unfortunate to him.

[Rebonack]

[The Woods]

"I got to visit the dwarf town one time, I wonder if dad would let me check out Underside," Khannie wonders aloud. "How big are the tunnels and things? Humans are way bigger than goblins, no offense."

How much stooping would there be?

Maybe a lot!


[Hawthorn Cabin]

She just lives here?

Khannie didn't know people did that...

"No, I was just stopping by to make sure you were a badguy. I still need to do my homework," Khannie replies, pointing back toward some tables were several books are left open. "I just heard from Lucy that you were a witch and now I know that you aren't the bad kind."

She'll take a few steps back and waves.

"Sorry for bugging you! Hope your day is nice!"

[bc56]

Hawthorn Cabin
"Uh, okay?" That's a bit confusing. But at least Sekhmet isn't in danger of being pummeled by silver fists.
"Bye!"

[Ironsmith]

[The Woods]

"Like horses, yeah. But they're bigger for goblins than a horse would be for a human. I think." Brinika isn't very familiar with horses, all in all. "There are special saddles for them. They're neat." She looks up at Arthfael. "You'd need to get to Underside. That's our colony here. They don't let kids near the beetle hatcheries, but you can see them scuttle along tunnels."

[The Woods]

"I got to visit the dwarf town one time, I wonder if dad would let me check out Underside," Khannie wonders aloud. "How big are the tunnels and things? Humans are way bigger than goblins, no offense."

How much stooping would there be?

Maybe a lot!

[Woods]

Hm.

Underground colony, away from the sun, full of fascinating beetles and where he'd likely be the tallest person in the room.

Arthfael is sold.

"How soon can we go there? Can we go now?" He asks, sounding a little more excited than he usually is.

[Morty]

[The Woods]

"The tunnels are bigger than you'd think. We might be small, but we like having some space." Brinika then stops and blinks, her ears twitching. Arthfael's sudden question took her by surprise. That, and his being mildly enthusiastic about something. "Well... my sister and I were going to stay here until evening, then our parents would come pick us up and take us back."

[Rebonack]

[The Woods]

Khannie is pretty impressed!

Arthfael seems to actually be interested in seeing Underside!

Gunna be frank Khannie kind of wants to see Underside, too. But that isn't a decision that she can just make on her own. After all, she's just a kid.

"I can call my dad and ask if it's okay for me to have dinner at your house?" Khannie suggests.

It could be fun!

She could see Brinika and Cheasadh house! And their room! And lots of goblins and giant beetles!

It would be cool, definitely.

In the mean time they can keep having fun in the woods. Or at least she and Brinika could keep having fun while Arthfael keeps complaining about everything.