[center][img]https://txt-dynamic.static.1001fonts.net/txt/dHRmLjQ0LmE1OTc0MC5WbUZyYXcsLC4wAAAAAAAA/blowup-personal-use.regular.png[/img] [img]https://img.roleplayerguild.com/prod/users/adb01259-53a5-4c37-8dd0-07d9259d9823.png[/img][/center] Vakk was in glee, knowing that his mere words could break those who would be considered weak-willed like Li’Kalla. His crooked smile was as large as ever, the sickeningly joyous feeling coming from him was perhaps the most terrifying thing about him. However, his job was not yet done and now he could be found moving across Galbar, namely towards the continent that had arisen while he and that damned puzzle god secured his gateway from other gods. It was that riddle that continued to mock the Lord of Speech, allowing him to know that Eurysthenes could desecrate his home at any point. This thought angered Vakk, but not enough to overshadow the joy he had felt from watching Li’Kalla break. His reflection ended as came across the northern coast of that continent that had arisen so quickly. It was bleak, at least to him, the only notable thing that he had seen being the exit of the river that bore Seihdhara’s ichor, but he did not concern himself with the blood river quite yet. Perhaps it was time to add his own touch to this bleak and desolate place, however, he knew that he needed to make a proper ally in this realm that the Architect had crafted, and so he began to search upon the continent for any god that he thought he could convince to be on his side. Fortunately, in these early days of the universe, gods were cheap. The big worm was spotted from a long way away and the slapping of bare feet on beach sand rushed up to meet him. The newborn sun glinted off the edge of a huge, curved knife. [colour=wheat]“Way hey! What’s sizzling?”[/colour] Chopstick Eyes, too, was grinning fit to swallow a man. A floating lantern accompanied her. Vakk craned his head to face the god, silently staring at the being for a mere few moments before he broke his silence, [color=9d8618]”Ah, Chopstick Eyes, the merchant goddess. It is… good to see you.”[/color] His massive form moved forward, his neck lowering his head to where it was a few mere steps away from Chopstick Eyes, who ran, jumped, and promptly booped his nonexistent nose with a fingertip. They stared at each other, despite neither having eyes. [color=9d8618]”You are a strange one.”[/color] [colour=wheat]”I am? Huh.”[/colour] Chopstick smiled and shrugged. [colour=wheat]”Didn’t even know I was a goddess, actually. But that explains a lot.”[/colour] She stretched, looking out over the ocean, and cracked her knuckles. [colour=wheat]”Snazzy place here, ey Vakk?”[/colour] [color=9d8618]”It is a rock I have yet to explore,”[/color] he looked to the continent proper before giving a disgustingly, raspy grunt as if many people were doing it around the same time. [color=9d8618]”I do not care much for this boring rock, it hardly knows a good talk,”[/color] Vakk said, his gaze going back to the one wielding the curved knife. His wicked smile once more came back to him as he formulated his plan to ally this goddess. [color=9d8618]”You know, you and I share similar purposes within this realm, Chopstick Eyes. Did you know that? To beings meant to convince others into making the best deals.”[/color] [colour=wheat]”...I have a purpose?”[/colour] [color=9d8618]”Indeed, we all do, Merchant Goddess.”[/color] [colour=wheat]”Oh okay,”[/colour] she replied. [colour=wheat]”I figure… That was why I made the Bazaar. I just had to do it.”[/colour] She looked up. [colour=wheat]”What’s yours?”[/colour] Vakk allowed a grin to come across his face, his deep voice letting out a small chuckle, [color=9d8618]”I talk. A merchant’s best tool.”[/color] A tendril slithered forwards, out of the sand to boop Chopstick’s nose as he continued to grin at her. She leaned into the boop. [color=9d8618]”As such, I imagine that we can become close partners, yes?”[/color] he asked, his form circling the goddess, inspecting the blade that she carried. [colour=wheat]”Okay, sure! Ten hut!”[/colour] Chopstick snapped to salute. Then she clambered atop her newfound worm-steed until she found a comfortable spot, followed by her flying-lantern. [colour=wheat]”What’s our first project?”[/colour] [color=9d8618]”Well…”[/color] Vakk began by sending a tendril to wrap around Chopstick’s waist and pull her off of him, setting her on the ground gingerly. She let out a small [i]‘awwww’[/i]. [color=9d8618]”I suppose we can work on creating a bit of land, establish our branch,”[/color] he suggested before his head turned to the merchant goddess, [color=9d8618][b]”Or we could make something to proclaim our… association. Perhaps a forest to watch the mortals get lost in?”[/b][/color] Vakk’s words held a certain sway, making his suggestions seem more like the obviously right one while clouding other thoughts. The Lord of Speech grinned at his own suggestion. Chopstick thought it over. This didn’t take her long. [colour=wheat]”Okeydokey,”[/colour] she said. [colour=wheat]”Let’s do it!”[/colour] Whatever glaze of enchantment Vakk smeared over his words had quickly sunk in deep, and settled in so snugly that the merchant goddess did not even recognise that the idea was not her own. And then the moon exploded. Unholy fire seared Heaven, murking the blue air with broken stone and tar. The scream of a dying Sphere echoed down into their godly ears, and they watched, in slow motion, the shape of the rain of black rock as the cloudless storm of Verdax began. [color=9d8618]”...”[/color] Vakk looked to Chopstick eyes then back where the moon had been. She was silent. Only the flying-lantern remained, hiding in her shadow. [color=9d8618]”Is that the power of the Architect?”[/color] he asked, mainly to himself but terrified of the possibility that the one who gave them their power could destroy a moon with such power. His gaze refused to move from the position where the moon had been, and now he finally felt fear for the first time in this realm. [colour=wheat]”Don’t know, don’t care,”[/colour] said Chopstick Eyes. Her head was down. A slip of paper had emerged from her purse, and she was writing something, writing with a needle-sharp pen in black, black ink. Vakk hid an expression of pure shock that she could ignore such an event, a face of indifference to mask his true feelings, not that many could tell. Legitimately curious, the god gazed down upon the strange goddess and began to visually inspect her and the oddity that was her body. [color=9d8618]”You are not concerned that we could be vaporized within an instant?”[/color] he asked, poking her back as a part of his inspection. She wheezed a laugh, and slapped him off. [colour=wheat]”After all I’ve been through? You couldn’t vaporise me if you tried,”[/colour] she said, and folded the paper into an envelope. She fished through her purse until she found a fractal stamp, licked its back, and stuck it to the letter, where it iterated colourfully. She held the letter to the wind in the tips of two fingers. A great gust blew from nowhere. She loosened her grip just slightly, and the letter vanished. [colour=wheat]”Why does everyone else get to throw giant rocks,”[/colour] said the Market Lord, [colour=wheat]”And not me?”[/colour] [color=9d8618]”You can throw rocks, any being with the capacity to breathe can throw a rock,”[/color] Vakk commented, a bit of snark coming to his voice. He twisted his head to be in front of Chopstick Eyes to begin speaking once more, [color=9d8618]”If you wish to throw mere rocks, then do so. But that is an act by those who rely on their brutish nature, you and I are not such.”[/color] [colour=wheat]”Speak for yourself,”[/colour] said Chopstick Eyes. The wind became a gale, sweeping the long fronds of Chopstick’s hair out over the ocean. The little flying-lantern clutched her in dread. She folded her arms over her chest to keep from shivering as something passed over the sun. Kites, gliders, parachutes, airfoils of every kind, hundreds of thousands of them, swarmed on the wind and swooped into the stone rain. Some were as small as condors, others as vast as mountains, and each dragged behind them a huge net, woven from steel wire. One by one the shards of Veradax were caught by Chopstick’s gliders, and the gliders carried them home. Some were carried only a short distance, others far. But the kites were swarming, and as they swarmed they circled on a circular wind, depositing their stone in a wavering, messy, vast and solid pile, now here and now there, now in the ocean, now on land, until two great heaps of rock had arisen: a great mountain, towering up on the beach of Kirron’s Boast, and a little continent, a hundred times larger. Chopstick Eyes beheld her commission. She brushed off the flying-lantern, and smiled. Then she crouched, paused, leaped straight upwards, performed a perfect spin in midair, and, sounding her loudest kiai, struck the mountain with her foot. The stone exploded, and its remains shot into the new continent with such force that the hunks of rubble fused into a single, solid landmass. Chopstick landed back on the beach with a splat. Vakk watched intently, watching as this goddess performed such feats of power that he did not think gods were capable of. He did not believe that they could form continents in such a fashion, it was simply astonishing. The gaze went to Chopstick as he sent a tendril to help her off the sand. However, now he felt a need to do something, mostly in an effort to show that he was as strong as these gods. He snapped his jaws in frustration as his lower half began to dig into the sand of Kirron’s continent. [color=9d8618]”Rising ground, All around, A god’s power, All is bound, In this hour!”[/color] Suddenly, the ground underneath the newly formed continent began to rise into the air, making large cliff faces that towered above Kirron’s continent. Sharp rocks came between the two continents, some of them digging into the continent Chopstick had made, many ending abruptly mere meters from the older continent. Below the water, large jagged pillars held up the small continent, yet still allowing for small spaces to swim around. [colour=wheat]”Oh...”[/colour] murmured Chopstick. [colour=wheat]”Sweet.”[/colour] [color=9d8618]”Would you like to see what we have made?”[/color] [colour=wheat]”Yeah! Let’s go build that forest,”[/colour] said Chopstick, pulling herself up onto Vakk’s hide again. He grumbled as she did so, obviously not liking being a steed for her. Vakk launched himself into the air, arcing his way down to the continent, just on the edge of the cliff. A faint [colour=wheat][i]”Yee-haw!”[/i][/colour] was heard miles away. The new earth was rough, though hot and solid with the energy of Chopstick’s kick. The waters of the World Sea had yet to fully boil off, and it filled deep crevasses and little rock-puddles alike, scattered over the jagged stone. Dead kites lay sealed into the orvite, some still flicking little lines of silk into the wind. Spires and valleys made for an uneven ride, though Vakk managed to slither his way between the cliffs with ease. Chopstick looked at their work with some astonishment. Not a single tree to be seen, and already the land was hard to navigate. [colour=wheat]”Wotcha thinkin’?”[/colour] [color=9d8618]”I am thinking that you get off of me before I throw you somewhere else,”[/color] Vakk growled, twisting his head to gaze at her before he pulled her off with a tendril to set her on the ground. She whined. His gaze shifted to the landscape for a moment before indifference came back to him. [color=9d8618]”Not bad,”[/color] were the words he chose, though he probably would have liked it better if he hadn’t felt the need to raise the place up. However, it was fitting as this continent was clearly superior and thus must stand above the other. [colour=wheat]”You better believe it ain’t bad. It’s awesome!”[/colour] Choppy had recovered from Vakk’s rejection and was kicking rocks around a gully. [colour=wheat]”We need a name for this place! It’s too good not to market. Got any ideas?”[/colour] Vakk thought for a few moments, [color=9d8618]”How about Pāṟa?”[/color] [colour=wheat]”...I was thinking Rockville Jaggedton,”[/colour] said Chopstick. [colour=wheat]”Or maybe Chopstickland. Trademarks are very important.”[/colour] [color=9d8618]”Those are terrible names. At least try to be subtle, Chopstick Eyes.”[/color] [colour=wheat]”Rude!”[/colour] She stuck her tongue out. [colour=wheat]”Alright, fine, we’ll keep it simple. How about ‘the Kick’?”[/colour] Once more did the Lord of Talk think to himself, before speaking to Chopsticks [color=9d8618]”Very well.”[/color] His form moved forward, along the rocks and slopes to make it to a particularly high part of the continent. He tapped the rocks for a moment before speaking once more, [color=9d8618]”I believe this will be a good place for the forest.”[/color] [colour=wheat]”Perfect,”[/colour] said Chopstick, scampering around a spire with her lantern. Behind it lay several crates, some big saplings growing in canvas sacks, and two shovels. She threw Vakk one shovel, and cracked open a crate with the other. It was full of soil. [colour=wheat]”Let’s get to it,”[/colour] she said. Vakk merely gazed at the tool, letting it hit the rocks. He had no clue what it was or what it was used for, apparently the concept of a shovel was never present where he had come from. His head went back to looking at Chopstick Eyes before he finally spoke, [color=9d8618]”What is this… thing?”[/color] A tendril poked the tool, before he picked it up and smacked the wrong end against the ground. [colour=wheat]”Well, to call a spade a spade...”[/colour] said Chopstick, who broke down cackling. After poking the ground for a while longer, he eventually threw it away, annoyed that it didn’t do anything. Vakk then said, [color=9d8618]”While you use that, I will do what I can.”[/color] The god thrust his tendrils into the ground and from the earth erupted trees of rock, spiraling and splitting trees that in the end left a sinister mark on the land as they lurched towards the ground. He let out a sinister chuckle as his portion of the forest truly looked as if the trees would kill someone if they got lost within it. They cast long dark shadows against the sun that remained sitting in the sky, however, Vakk continued to tower above it all as the tree line continue to stretch along the uneven ground of the Kick. [color=9d8618]”Now this is beauty,”[/color] he said with an evil glee in his voice. Chopstick licked one of the trees. [colour=wheat]”...Tastes like rock.”[/colour] [color=9d9618]”That is because they are.”[/color] [colour=wheat]”Oh. Okay.”[/colour] She heaped another spadeful of soil onto the ground. [color=9d8618]”Too. Slow.”[/color] [colour=wheat]”Don’t rush me! All good things take time,”[/colour] said Chopstick, patting down the soil with her foot. [color=9d8618]”And yet, I have done much in mere seconds.”[/color] Chopstick stuck out her tongue and kept on shoveling. [hider=WE BUILT THIS CITY / WE BUILT THIS CITY ON ROCK AND ROLL] The Li’Kalla encounter has left Vakk incredibly smug, and he rolls around looking for new meat to swindle. Surprise! It’s Choppy. The two get to know each other. Vakk convinces Choppy to make a big ol’ forest for people to get lost in. It’s not hard. Maybe that’s because Vakk is getting really good at this. Maybe Choppy’s just an idiot. Then the moon explodes. Choppy gets jealous of all these other gods blowing things up and throwing rocks around. She hires a swarm of kites to catch falling rocks from Veradax and collect them into a pile, then fuses them into a landmass with a big kick. This also, hopefully, oxidises most of the orvium into its inert form. [i]Most[/i] of it. Not to be outdone, Vakk speaks a divine Word, causing the newly formed landmass to rise further from the sea, surrounding it with high and jagged cliffs, spikes and spires. Now it’s taller than Kirron’s paltry spit of sand! Choppy hitches a ride and they check out the new place. They argue about names for the continent. Vakk suggests Pāṟa, Choppy settles for The Kick. Then it’s time to build forests. Vakk raises giant twisted trees made of rock, making the terrain even harder to navigate and easier to get stuck or break a leg in. Choppy, uh… gets out a shovel. ------------------------------ [b]Vakk[/b] 6 Might, 23 FP -1 MP to convince Choppy that a gloomy forest is totally the right business model. [b]Unlocks Manipulation Portfolio for Vakk[/b] -5 MP to take Manipulation Portfolio. -8 FP to elevate the Kick, enlarging it and adorning it with high cliffs and spires. -4 FP to create the rock tree forest on Kick 0 MP, 11 FP ------------------------------ [b]Chopstick Eyes[/b] -8 FP to create the Kick, broken down into 4 FP to collect the falling rocks, adding 2 MP towards unlocking Kites, and 4 FP to fuse them into a landmass. [b]6 Might (Native) 12 Might (Age of Creation) Markets Kites (4/5) Knives (3/5) Lanterns (1/5) Cuisine (2/5) [/b] [/hider]