Risa knew he was right that the subject was not the best in a public place, but at least he did not seem of ill intent. He told them they could count him as a supporter and even a friend. Then he stated what he stated. Maybe it was a combination of having an awful few days, or the stress of trying not to let her feelings get in her way, but it really ignited something in her. She barely heard what Kyran had said as she thought over his words, "...You support me yet you have so little faith in us so early on without ever knowing our plans." She said slowly as if tasting the words. She shook her head and furrowed her brows, her expression changing completely, as she leaned in and said lowly, for only him to hear, "Failure is not an option when people are suffering and dying under Aklenroth. Once we gather an army to back up and to protect our humans as they slay Aklenroth, we will have a great chance of success and I believe that with all of my being. I am not asking you to have blind faith, of course. However, if you are going to be my supporter, then you cannot go into this situation with no faith either. Running into a battle, expecting to lose, will ensure that you lose. "
Risa leaned back in her chair. Truth be told, she wished there was a peaceful way to handle all this, but she knew in her heart that was childish thinking, which was something she did often and was also something she needed to learn to let go of. Children had no place in a war and she had no place acting like one in her position. Dionaea, Cloud, and Jean-Luc had all died for this. Helio had been turned into a monster of a man. Who knows where her parents even were. Everyone and everything was on the line and that had been sinking in lately more than ever.
Still, perhaps she was being harsh preaching to Valaeon. They had only just met and she did not know him enough to know the intentions of his words. She met Valaeon's gaze once more, "You can feel however you like about all this, but I will not take support of those who do not have faith in this nor motivation to be involved. I want to minimize the amount of death as much as possible and I don't want to see you in danger if you are not willing to be there."
The waiter brought over the potato cakes and some extra vegetables for her soup. She picked up an avocado off the plate and handed it to him, "Don't worry. You have a friend in me no matter what you decide."
Bowyn had shivered in her arms during their hug. He felt so cold. She frowned and let go. A fairy that could control ice, still shivered and chattered his teeth when he was freezing. She supposed it made sense that even he wouldn't be immune to it. She had figured out pretty quickly that using even her own magic expended her energy. It always made her feel like she needed a long nap. But poor Bowyn's ability seemed to have a much worse effect.
Her gaze fell down when he called her a human. They definitely realized and knew what she was. However, no one had moved to kidnap or hurt her. He even said that he wouldn't ditch her, so perhaps they did not have a negative view on humans. Her previous company had made it seem like no one would want to be associated with her. Bowyn and Kenia did not seem to feel that way about her as far as she could. Still, she couldn't ask them to sign up to be involved in the rebellion if that's not what they wanted. Even being seen with her could be dangerous.
As she was thinking things through, she had been paying half attention to Kenia fiddling around with a dragon scale. With closer inspection as she finished her work, she could tell Kenia had picked out the prettiest one she could find and then engraved it in order to make a little memorial for Boreas. It came out beautiful and the engravement was touching. If she were to be honest, she hadn't seen anyone do something as brave as Boreas did. She wasn't sure she could stare death in the face and fly right toward it. It was incredible and she was sure he had done it to help Bowyn. She knew animals could be loyal, but this was a new level.
She shut her eyes and prayed for Boreas, hoping there was a wonderful birdy heaven awaiting him with all his favorite treats. Kenia's pretty singing reached her ears as she was imagining Boreas hopping around with all kinds of birds in the clouds, the sun shining on them. She liked listening to her sing; it reminded her of the music she missed listening to so much on Earth. Clara liked to sing too, engaging in her school choir and singing in the shower on a daily basis, which she considered to be very valid experience.
Once the singing concluded, Bowyn suggested they harvest parts of the wyvern for amas and move on. Clara got back on her feet and undid the clasp of her cape. She unwrapped it from around her and outstretched her arm toward him, cape in hand, "Good idea, but please try to warm up before you do anything! You felt so cold." She gave him a smile and then addressed all of them with her next statement, "I'm sorry I had to lie to you guys. After everything we just went through, you guys deserve the truth at least. My real name is Clara and I'm a human, obviously. I'm eighteen and I honestly have never harvested organs from a dragon. Not really a common pastime on Earth...As you probably know, humans aren't really a crowd favorite in Avalia right now and I'm not the safest company to hang out with. I can tell you're good people and probably not aligned with the evil skeleton guy, but my goal is just to find the rebels who need me. If it's okay, we can travel together just to the port and then I swear I won't drag you guys into the crazy war stuff."
Helio squinted his eyes as he watched a carriage come toward them in the distance. "Look at that gaudy thing. Gotta be an elf." He commented and lounged back with a grin, looking up at Azriel. "All from every town shall come bearing gifts for the great fairy king. " After adjusting his crown, he watched as a man just as gaudy as his transportation came out of the carriage. "Oh what is that."His amusement was impossible to keep off his face as a mischievous look overtook his expression.
It introduced itself as Terneus Andros and he made a noise as he struggled to confine a burst of laughter from leaving his lips. If he had been drinking something, he might have spit out water everywhere. He knew that name. "Oh wow."He straightened up in his throne and leaned over, peering at him.
The asshole governor who spends outrageous amounts of time at every event, staring at himself in the mirror!
Helio could recall his mother telling him she heard a rumor that he'd even kiss the mirror. He was absolutely obsessed with himself and all of Avalia knew of how terrible a governor he was. He paid no mind to anyone in the Sun Elf Village, and spent all his time grooming himself and buying ridiculous, tacky elvenwear.
He started to laugh at both the governor's reaction to the fairy and the randomness of this event in general. He was unable to help himself. Oh he hates the dying fairies! And the smell!
His laughter slowly died down as he got control of himself and he got to his feet. "Lord Teeeeerneus Androooos!"He bellowed dramatically as he addressed him, grinning at him. "All the waaaay here in the River Kingdom. The finest! The handsomest! The most generous governor of all of Avalia! Oh you have no idea how welcome you are, good sir! If traveling arrangements is what you need, then traveling arrangements is what you'll get! The great king Helio would never offer you any less. " He jumped to his feet. "An amora can be arranged and at your disposal, however, I do encourage you to stay and relax a little with us. You look weary and like you could enjoy a good meal."
He anticipated that Azriel was going to be either angered with him or also take part in wanting to mess around with the governor. It was no secret she hated them. Helio couldn't say he was a big fan either, but this was all just a joke to him that he wanted to spend more time laughing at.
Time: Afternoon, Day 2 Location: By a spring, closer to River Port Interactions:@Helo@Potter Outfit:Outfit from the Ball Inventory:Sword that's sheathed, Bow and quiver of arrows. Then: 2 hankerchiefs, liquid body cleanser, wayfinder, toothbrush, travel-size hair and teeth cleansers, small round of rope, small amount of disinfectant and bandaging: all in a fanny pack that's facing behind him, hidden behind his cape.
Malachi nodded when Belladonna thanked him as he tried to hurry them through the woods. The invisibility wore off and he glanced at the two of them as they came back into view. Belladonna seemed enamored with the owlbear and her spirits lifted. He smiled a little bit to himself. She seemed as young as Corvina and Rei. He was sure this was all difficult for her, so he had to admit it was nice to see the girl not look so on edge for once.
His gaze moved to Valok. His mood was a lot harder to read, but he was sure the man was in pain. "Hey. You doing alright? You were brave, Valok. Just hang in there a little longer and we'll get you some help."
The wyvern had weakly tried to buck Kenia off its head to no avail. Agony swelled in her eye as the world went black around her. She screamed in agony and blindly moved forward, trying her best to charge at her attackers. They had to die with her! Pain exploded in her mouth and she could not even cry out this time. When she tried to unhinge her jaw, it would stick in place. She became increasingly aware of the coldness in her mouth. She knew the fairy was using his ice against her still and she wanted to stomp him to death.
Then, her own head suddenly slammed into the ground without her permission, hard enough for her to see stars despite being blind. She began to slump at this point, in too much agony to keep moving. The pain soon traveled to her chest but this time, it was only momentary.
She felt nothing. All of the pain that had weighed her down was gone. The wyvern was no genius but she knew her time was up. She had lost. With reluctant acceptance, she let go.
Clara grimaced as blood splattered a little on her face, but did not waste time wiping it off. The tail was flying at them and she needed to stop it in time. Just as she went to maneuver rocks in front of them to block it, a shield of ice appeared in front of them. The tail knocked into it, cracking the ice with its force, and then plopped on the floor. She glanced over at Bowyn, thinking it was him who had made that move at first, but soon realized it was Zephyrin who had the expression of concentration. "Nice going, Zeph! Totally nailed it!"
She didn't expect Kenia to suddenly run at the wyvern and swing herself upon its back for a rodeo. As Kenia made its way up to the wyvern's head, the creature bucking wildly to try to throw her off as she stabbed its eye, causing it to cry out in fury and agony. She's badass. Clara thought with admiration. Kenia then called for them to finish it. Her gaze slid to Bowyn, but he was not available to take a call. His eyes were locked on the wyvern and he looked like he probably wanted to stab it, set it on fire, then bring it back to life and repeat the procedure at least forty-two times.
Bowyn screamed right back at the wyvern, sending ice at its wings and its mouth too this time. Clara wasn't surprised to see he was trying to freeze its mouth shut, but her eyes actually widened at the sight of it slamming its own head against the ground. After the hard hit, it looked like the wyvern was struggling to survive at this point. It was losing a lot of blood. She felt slight sympathy for the creature. It was a shame it had to have come to this, but it was them or her. The best thing she could do was put her out of her pain.
Clara raised her hands upward, raising some of the rocks in the area. The elves had taught her she could manipulate the shape of rocks, but it was a feat she had yet to pull off. Still, Bowyn had inspired her to try to do so. She hoped she'd be able to just conjure material in the shape she chose just as he did soon. She concentrated on sharpening the edges of the rocks and it took a moment, but surely enough with some struggle she achieved some success. The small rocks each came to a sharpened edge as pieces of unneeded material fell off them to the ground.
She sent the rocks right for the wyvern's chest as fast as she could. The rocks plunged into her chest like knives. Clara even pushed them in deeper for extra measure, blood oozing from the punctures. The wyvern's muffled cries lowered in volume as its legs unbuckled and she dropped her head to the ground. Clara sighed in relief.
Clara was quiet for a moment as she thought everything over. They most likely knew she was a human now and she was not sure what that meant to them. She wanted to do something regardless of what they thought of her. She moved over to Bowyn and slowly moved to give him a hug so he had time to step back if he so did not want one. She was a stranger and she was sure maybe her comfort wasn't wanted, but the pain in his eyes had been evident. She had thought Boreas to just be his pet, but it was clearer than ever by his reaction that Boreas had been way more special than that to Bowyn. Once he had either stepped away or accepted the hug, she moved over to a spot by a nearby tree and set down her flower crown. Kneeling down on the ground, she closed her hands in prayer position along with her eyes.
The seagull had immediately taken off, grabbing the piece of bread that had come with Risa's soup as he made his departure in reaction to the loud crash. Risa gripped the sides of her chair and glanced over toward the beach. There was a dragonborn in a speedo posing. Some people had sighed in reaction. At first, Risa thought he was just a dramatic local that did this often, but then he spoke up. He turned and faced directly toward them as he grinned and moved toward them. Risa blinked when he declared he had come for her. Huh? She had never seen him before and she wasn't sure how the dark elves or even Aklenroth would have found out where she was located so fast. Risa supposed normally she would have been frightened, but part of her felt emotionally drained still.
Then to make things stranger, he seemed to want to dine with them. Perhaps he wasn't a threat. Potato cake fans were those of good intentions in Risa's experience. But, there was only one way to find out. Before she could vocally question him, Kyran was in his fox form and pointing at Valaeon with his lance, demanding information from him.
Risa slowly stood up out of her seat and came to lean on the fence of the patio. She gave a smile and spoke softly, "Hello Valaeon. It's nice to meet you. Please excuse him, we've been through a deal of trouble lately. You're welcome to come eat as many potato cakes as you like with us, but it would be nice if you could give us some context as to why you've come to see me."
Time: Afternoon, Day 2 Location: By a spring, closer to River Port Interactions:@13org@Helo@Potter@Eviledd1984 Outfit:Outfit from the Ball Inventory:Sword that's sheathed, Bow and quiver of arrows. Then: 2 hankerchiefs, liquid body cleanser, wayfinder, toothbrush, travel-size hair and teeth cleansers, small round of rope, bandaging, and disinfectant spray: all in a fanny pack that's facing behind him, hidden behind his cape.
Malachi watched Mathis trip over the rock with a glare. The man took too long getting to his feet in regards to a life or death situation. He had a few questions and thoughts about it but ended up with a simple concluding thought:he's a moron. Finally, the slowpoke got around to cutting the bear's arm off. He glanced over at the owlbear Belladonna had been fighting and lifted his eyebrows. She had done an impressive job. It was clear she knew what she was doing.
He was still pissed at her though.
As his attention had been stolen for the moment, he hadn't noticed the scythe moving in his direction. Belladonna's water hit him with force powerful enough to push him off to the side, causing his stomach to ache from the hit. "Ah! For fuck's sake! Watch it!" He yelled, under the impression at first that she had misaimed her blast. His angry expression melted into a perplexed one as he watched the scythe move back in its momentum in Mathis's grip. He supposed it could have been a mistake but the way Belladonna moved to create spheres around himself and Valok right after, and not Mathis, left Malachi with a bad feeling in his gut.
Malachi said nothing and gently put his hand on Valok's shoulder as he had been moving to attack. The one that had lost his arm was dead now and Myra had jumped on the owlbear now and was finishing it off. Valok's attack had helped in finishing the female off, "Valok. It's okay. You can take it easy..."
Myra was vicious in attacking and victorious. He let out a sigh of relief once it was all over. He glanced over at Belladonna, noticing her wound as well. He immediately began taking out his bandages and disinfectant spray. "Don't move. Don't waste time protesting either." As he had been bandaging each of them up, he whispered in their ears to stay close to him once they started walking again.
Belladonna was a bit reluctant and Valok hadn't seemed overly happy about it, but they allowed him to spray disinfectant on their wounds and apply bandages.
A sudden whimper made him glance back over at the corpses. A young owlbear was now laying his head on top of the mother. The look in his eyes was heartwrenching. He stared at the owlbear, his expression softening as a voice echoed in his mind:
"I can't wait. To see all their precious little smiles...I just wish I could protect them all. Give them all a safer world to live in. It's a dream of mine."
"Ah damn it."Malachi said with a sigh and gestured to Belladonna to grab her attention as he was aiding Valok, "Try to comfort it and feed it if you have a little something. Let's see if we can help it out."
It took him a few minutes to make sure Valok was patched up enough for the walk. He turned to Myra and Mathis, "If you keep going this direction,"He pointed north, "You'll reach the port town in two hours if you're quick. I am going to rush Valok up there with Belladonna. Walk along the beach if you're afraid of more attacks. It'll be easy and fast travel. Be safe and good luck."
Malachi put his arm around Valok to help keep him steady and quicken his pace, nodding to Belladonna to help out. The owlbear cub clumsily ran after Belladonna, confused and scared. He glanced backward at it and sighed. "Guess you're coming too, huh? ... I need to focus to do this, so I won't be talking much." Malachi concentrated deeply as he focused on bending the light around all of them, including the cub to make them appear invisible for a short while. This would keep them safe from enemies in their vulnerable state."Try not to crunch leaves and such. It'll make the whole invisibility thing a waste of time."
The sun was setting as father and son walked down the path, lighting the world in its pink hues. Flower buds decorated the grass all along their way as they began to bloom in the wake of spring. He accompanied the boy on his walk home from schooling every day. Malachi dressed more simply during this time, wearing a simple, white button-down with a vest over it. His son looked like a miniature version of him. "Did you learn a lot today, Gael?"Malachi asked him with a smile as he looked down at the ten-year-old.
"Yeah! I learned about the stars." The boy replied, glancing back up at his father with a wide grin, "Did you know they're actually really big?" He stretched his arms outward to better describe their side, puffing his cheeks up, "This big! Huge. And the sun's pretty big too. Way bigger than it looks."
Malachi laughed and stopped walking to bend down to his size. "Wanna know something else?" Gael nodded enthusiastically in response to the question. "Some of those big stars are so far away that the light we see takes so long to get here, that we're looking sometimes years into the past."
Gael's eyes lit up with interest. "Like a memory glass. It's just an old moment in time." He mused and stared up at the sky in wonder. It was too early to see the stars, but Malachi had a feeling he was imagining him anyway.
"Precisely." Malachi agreed, straightening up on his feet. His movements slowed as an Amora began to pass overhead them from behind.
Gael inhaled and bent his neck backward trying to look upward at it, "Look at it, pa... Do you imagine one day we could ride one of those to the stars?"
Malachi's gaze stayed on his son with amusement. The boy had gone running outside daily whenever an Amora could be heard in the sky. He had a fascination with them. "I don't know... Maybe. Your grandfather used to tell me when I was your age, that I should go lay down and ask the stars whenever I had a question that couldn't be answered. He would say they're better listeners than we could ever be."
Gael listened to his words and pouted at him, "Well I'll ask them tonight if you're going to ever take me into an amora. I can't wait until we get to ride one."
"Well they certainly won't take you to space, Gael." Malachi told him, "I will take you in one when your mother and I start making more amas."
"I don't even want to go anywhere in one! I just want to see one up close and go all the way up in the sky!"Gael's excitement grew with every word and he slid down a hill on the path they had been walking on and jogged forward to stand in a spot where he could see the Amora leaving in the distance.
Malachi's smile faltered a little. They had been down on their luck when it came to amas and amora rides had become quite pricey in the tense atmosphere of Avalia. They had moved from the middle-class district into a lower class area to save enough just to get by. Voices nearby made him turn his head. There was a stall selling old toys and random junk. It was composed of a long, wooden table with a small, propped up over it as a roof. Only a few people were gathered. His eyes locked on a small toy ship. Malachi glanced over back at his son. Their house was just down the way. "Gael go home. I'll be right there!"He called to him.
The following night, Malachi stayed awake all night after Gael had gone to bed. And the night after that, and after that one too. Caralia had not been happy with him, but she was used to him staying up working on strange inventions and whatnot. Finally one day, Malachi led Gael out into a nearby field with his eyes closed.
"And... Open!"
Gael stared down at the miniature amora that was placed in his hands. He beamed at it, "Oh this is so nice! Thank you, papa!"He immediately started running around the field of flowers, waving the ship in the air, trying to make mechanical noises with his mouth."Swooooosh!"
"Wait. That's noooot all of it!"Malachi called in a singsong voice, taking out a small remote with a smile. Gael paused and looked over. Malachi grinned as he pressed a button on the remote and the amora's fans began turning.
Gael let go of it as it started to fly into the air. He was rendered speechless. Malachi moved over to him to place the remote in his hand. "Control it with this."He placed his fingers gently on the proper handle. He stepped backward after and watched Gael chase the toy around the field while he flew it around. It was something out of a painting to behold.
A hand fell on Malachi's shoulder. He recognized the gentle touch without having to turn around and took the dainty hand in his hands, pulling it to his mouth to kiss it. "That's incredible. Caralia said softly in his ear as she took her hand back to wrap her arms around his waist and lay her head on his shoulder. "He's never gonna put it down, you know."
"Not as incredible as your beef stew."Malachi snickered at her comment, moving his arms on top of hers. "It was the least I could do. He dreams so big and sometimes I feel like I can only give him so little."
"No... You give him the whole world." Malachi could hear her smile as she spoke and it warmed his heart. "But you know... What you created is genius, my dear husband. You could make a lot of other children very happy."
"What are you suggesting?"Malachi asked her with a raised brow. He turned to face her and retook her hands.
"Well. With my painting skills and your engineering, we could open a toy store filled with all sorts of refurbished toys. Not only would we do a little better with amas, but the children here in Sun Elf Village might start smiling more."
Malachi's expression lit up, "Oh Cara that's a brilliant idea! We could start selling right outside our house or by the school then maybe one day buy an actual shop!"
She smiled at him, squeezing his hands, "I can't wait. To see all their precious little smiles..."She drew off, drifting into her mind. In a dreamy tone, she told him with a sigh, "I just wish I could protect them all. Give them all a safer world to live in. It's a dream of mine. "
"Welcome to the Gadgets and Conveniences Shop of River Port. I'm Jordo. We have all most necessities you could ever need along with some fun items or whatever. My sister Hanai works over at the Odds and Ends shop. Let her know I'm aware she ate my fish this morning and I'm pissed. "
Please ask specifically for pictures of these items if you want to see them. There are too many for me to put all at once. I will post pictures of what you purchase.
Hoverboards - 500 amas Jumping shoes - 200 amas Zoomies - 300 amas Pedaler - 600 amas Portable Fira - 200 amas Portable Cold Box (Think cooler) - 400 amas Cooking pot - 5 amas Location Senders - 400 amas Portable Solar Box (Think PSP version) - 900 amas Cast Spheres - One black and one white combo for 100 amas, each additional white sphere is 30 amas. Memory Glass - Mirror 50 amas, 3D shape versions 130 amas Teeth Cleanser - 5 amas Hair Cleanser - 20 amas Hair Softener(Think conditioner) - 20 amas Body Cleanser(soap) - 2 amas Hair Brush - 3 amas Shower Tube - 30 amas Armpit Fragrance - 5 amas Birth Preventers - 2 amas Eye Color Changer - 500 amas Hair Color Changer - 500 amas Timeteller (a watch) - 10 amas Palm Warmers(put in gloves) - 5 amas Darksight Glasses - 40 amas Eye Protectors (sunglasses) - 2 amas Water Purifier - 3 amas Travel Shelter (Think tent, but square) - 100 amas Portable bed (Like a sleeping bag, but thicker bottom to lay on) - 50 amas Pillow -3 amas each Blanket - 10 amas Wayfinder (compass) - 10 amas Fire starter kit - 20 amas Light maker - 5 amas Lantern - 3 amas Umbrella - 3 amas Fishing pole - 10 amas Net - 10 amas Animal trap - 20 amas Standard Backpack - 50 amas Flask - 5 amas Rope - 1 ama by the meter, 15 meters/50 feet for 15 amas
Time: Afternoon Location:Port 10 Interaction: @Alivefalling Outfit:What she's wearing Inventory:Bag for her belongings(It's along her belt behind her cape and not a backpack). Inside that bag: ama pouch, small water flask, plant seed pouch, small bag of berries, small flowery perfume, small knife, thin nightgown, and Risa has transferred some of her hygienic supplies into small, portable bottles: hair and teeth cleansers, hair softener and armpit fragrance.
Risa smiled at Kyran and squeezed his hand back. The waiter soon walked over and he took their orders for them, making it easier for her to keep her head down and lay low. Once the woman had left, the sound of a low shriek nearby her made her glance over at the couple she had seen earlier. A seagull was under the woman's chair, pecking at the food she had dropped. The bird scurried away in fear at the sudden shriek. "Ohh what a pretty bird. Ever meet one, Kyran?"She patted her knees and leaned over, giving a soft whistle to catch the bird's attention.
I was just hungry! Why YELL at me? The seagull looked over and began scampering toward her.
"I'll get you some food my lovely."Risa gently picked up the seagull on to her lap, getting looks of disgust from the couple. She petted its head gently with her finger. "It's okay... Shhh..." Risa pulled her bag over and began taking out some of her berries to feed one by one to the bird. "Did your parents teach you how to hunt?"
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