Mokley

Ragtag: Steampunk treasure hunting.

Bahaha love it. ;)

Welcome back everyone! Hope your holidays are going well!

Ragtag: Steampunk treasure hunting.

A compliment! A real, honest, well-deserved compliment! Simnia grinned and she held herself proper with pleasure -- that is, until she felt a breeze over her head where the good captain had whiffed an open hand. For a moment she stood like a dummy, wondering what that was supposed to be, if he'd been trying to smack her and missed; or maybe it was some gesture that meant he was being sarcastic; or maybe there'd been a mosquito buzzing over her head and he'd smacked it. But there was no explanation offered, and before she could even thank him for his compliment he had his back to her, which really made her think he'd been fishy. He was a fishy sort of man. She made beady eyes at him, but she'd liked the compliment all the same. She'd let him slide. This time. What he said next didn't quite help her opinion.

"Everyone out?" The dwarf frowned, and she glanced between the captain and the gathering crewmates, whose safety she was beginning to believe wasn't remotely a part of this captain's concern. That'd be why he had everyone sign those papers.

"Now -- now WAIT A SCREECHIN' MINUTE," Simnia hollered, loud enough for the whole ship to hear. She hiked up her skirt and stomped up to Maithien, and she tipped her head up and glared at him. "Now before we go traipsin' down into a city we don't know nothin' about, I think you, sir, have a little explainin' to explain. Like who were those people tryin' to kill us? What is this treasure, EXACTLY, that we're huntin' for? What's in Braelv? Why do ALL of us need to get out if you're just picking something up? WHO IS DRIVING THIS BLEEDIN' SHIP?" Because that last was her biggest concern. She was down in the engines with no clue what was going on outside, with blind hope that they weren't going to crash into a mountain. "I think your crew would appreciate a little communication from their captain . . . SIR!"

She puffed her chest, planted her feet, and glanced around at the other crew members. Surely she wasn't the only one demanding of an explanation!

Where the Sky Meets the Mountain

"All right, kid!" crooked-nose called after him with a laugh. "You tell us! We don't know nuffin, don't need ya either. Have a nice rest o' yer life!" Baldie chuckled with him, and the two of them -- proud of having twisted around the kid's dreams for a laugh -- continued their earlier discussions, to quickly forget him. The kid was just like all the others, after all: big talk, no follow-through.

The sun was beginning to set; the sky was turning shades of pink and purple, yellow and orange, like a painting behind the furled sails and the waving flags and streamers. A cloud was descending upon the city, gently frosting the distant buildings, though it threatened to grow thicker. People on the streets seemed little more than shadows. A fire truck whistled by in the distance. Seagulls spiraled overhead, fighting over the last remains of the festival. The janitor had stopped working, and was leaning on the rail staring out into the blazing sky thoughtfully. A thin black dog with a glimmering collar raced after the seagulls with a growl and a jumping bark and began to devour the leftovers for itself.

Something whizzed past Nils' ear and grazed his hair. It was a little flighty thing, looked like a red and black bat at first, flapping hard toward the dock. When it screeched it sounded like a chirruping squirrel -- and when it slowed, it looked like a snake with wings and claws. It swung around and beat at the languid sailors' heads where they sat on the dock, scratching at their hair and snapping its little jaws. Baldie and Crooked-Nose flung their arms at it, shouted at it to get lost, until the little creature circled again and flew up and over the rail of the ship itself, where it began tormenting the sailors onboard. A few minutes passed, and finally the creature appeared again, chattering, and it soared and circled round and round the docked ship.

Lantern

Is anyone waiting on me for a post? XLegs are you around? I can post for Zealous, if not.

Whoever's got writer's block, anything I can do to alleviate it? I could totally edit in some more story stuff specific to your character. ;)

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Zealous! Damiann! Thundercat! Yandere! So glad to see you're alive and well!

Scullyosis, that sounds like a nightmare. :(

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I suppose it's high time this other (sort-of) NPC is introduced, since almost everyone has met it at this point:

That Meddling Owl

Name: ?
Age: ?
Appearance:


Personality: Likes chasing people, dragging people around with its claws, terrorizing old ladies and being sneaky. Hates wolves. Thinks fireflies are yummy.

Profession: Staring Contest Champion

History: ??

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Starbuck said Curious, Starbuck cautiously approached the tree, warily eyeing the hole in the bark, its darkness impenetrable. She reached out a hand, and oh-so gently touched her fingertips to the bark.

It took a few moments -- indeed, by the time a reaction presented itself, Starbuck was already under attack -- but soon the bark of the tree twitched and shuddered where her fingers had pressed against it. The shudder rippled through the tree; the branches twisted and bright green leaves fluttered down all around. The lantern swayed slightly. And then, again, beginning where her touch had been, small runic writing etched itself into the wood, as if carved out from the inside. The writing spread out, twisting along the gnarled bark, and wrapped around the trunk and the roots and the branches. The tree continued to whirr and click steadily in the light of the red lantern.

Talan said It didn't matter because in the next moment he had tackled the woman to the ground and pinned her down.

Starbuck's head hit the platform with a dull, hollow sound. With her ear so close, she might hear ticking far beneath her.

His hand -- where it was wrapped tightly around Starbuck's wrist -- grazed the metal platform beneath them. Though it was covered in moss and vines, a very small shimmer of light might be seen if one looked carefully. Further investigation might reveal that one of the runes etched into the metal, which Talan had accidentally touched, had begun to glimmer like precious stone in the light of the lantern, where it had certainly not done so before.

Talan said "Why did you bring me here!", he yelled . . .

While the two roared in argument, a rustle moved in the trees at the edge of the clearing, beyond the reach of the lantern's light. A brown owl fluttered out of the woods and flopped quietly into the grass, keeping silent and low so as not to be seen. It eased its wings closed and it shuffled forward carefully, closer and closer to the platform, between weeds and flowers and mossy stones. Its big shining eyes were set eagerly on the little silver box.

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Randold said Randold spoke up, "I think it is a bad idea for me stay behind, its best to stay together. The water has helped I believe I can manage just fine, besides it would be better to use the light source so that everyone can see." Randold held the light berry high in the air.

The boy ducked and skittered backward as Randold stood up, suddenly frightened of the huge man; Randold's powerful presence was made frightful by the glow of the berry in his palm, which cast an eerie shadow on his bearded face.

"Yes, of course, of course," Tyaelaem stammered, crouched low so as not to incur Randold's wrath. "It was only an idea to leave you behind, but I'm usually full of funny ideas. Please, please, this way then. This way." He shuffled backward a little, bowing low, and grasped the princess' hand again -- not quite because it was necessary, now that Randold was with them (and Tyaelaem didn't dare to take the berry from him, so frightened was he now of approaching him), but because he simply liked holding the princess' hand.

Anise said She looked at the "nightstick". On it were runes she didn't understand, which she found disappointing as learning to read was something she had been taught at an early age. She ended up taking the boy's hand. She felt odd leading the way in a place that she was completely unfamiliar with. What happened if she got them lost? That was a silly thought considering she expected to be getting guidance from Tyaelaem. She waited for everyone to take a hand before she started walking down the only path she was aware of.

The hallway was as wide as ten people across, and twice as tall as Randold. It was a wide, arched corridor with ancient, smooth stony rivulets that shimmered in the light in Randold's hand; this hallway had been carved out long ago by centuries of running water, and seemed untouched by human hands.

As they walked away from the pool of healing water -- and away from the subtle glow of Hania's sunken rosary -- Anise's vision began to fail. First, the distance ahead faded and darkened; then, everyone around her seemed dimmer, illuminated only by the light that Randold carried. Her nightstick had stopped working, and she could only see as far as anyone else. Soon enough, the stick was just a stick. No one else who touched it would be able to make it work again.

The hallway went on through a few twists and dark turns, while precious gems shimmered in the walls and above them -- until they could hear the sound of rushing water ahead.

"We're coming near the rootwind falls," Tyaelaem whispered, and he clutched Anise's hand tightly. "Watch out for pirates."

The corridor ended, and they emerged out of the bottom of a sheer rock face and stepped out into lush grass, softly illuminated by the stars above. The thunder of falling water roared in their ears.

To their right was a rock face curled with vines and moss that reached impossibly high. Something alive was flapping and circling high above in the darkness, but it was impossible to see.

To the left was a thin path that led through a grove of thick dark trees; glowing fruit, like the one in Randold's hand, grew like mushrooms on these trees: they were nestled in the crevices of their trunks and branches, and shone brightly in small clusters.

Straight ahead was tall grass, and two more of those dark trees. Five yards ahead of the mouth of the corridor, the land ended abruptly and dropped into a bottomless chasm. This is where the sound of a waterfall was coming from.

One would have to walk to the edge of the chasm and look down in order to see the colossal waterfall surging below. The dark trees stretched their roots out into the waterfall, as if drinking from it.

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Hi DarkTemplar! Great character - approved! Check it though, I assume Taken is an autocorrect for Talan?

If you want you can go ahead and post under Red team in response to my latest post and Scullyosis' - you'd wake up after her post in the same place, in the same manner she did. Or you could wait til after my response.

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I thought I'd have the energy/brainspace to come up with something fantastic to prompt the continuance of these stories, but I've failed. This week is being hard on all of us, it seems! Soon, soon we will have many glorious posts! But today is not that day.

I am so loopy tonight. Cookies and pumpkin pie for all!