>>1541639
>Go see Caiah
Good to see you Smiley!

>>1541639
>Go see Caiah

Hey Smiley.

>>1541639
>Go see Caiah

>>1541639
>>Go see Caiah

>writing

After a quick check to make sure everything is on right, you leave the room get Coral to lead you down to Caiah's room.

"So what'd you two get up to last night?" You ask the little sprite.

Coral puts a finger on her chin, then makes a 'sleeping' gesture, resting her head on her hands.

"Just sleeping?" You ask.

Coral hugs your shoulder.

"... snuggling?" You ask.

She nods.

"I thought that might be it..." You say. "I wonder what her sprite was like"

Coral shrugs.

You chuckle and scratch her head. "Maybe I'll ask her"

When you arrive at Caiah's door, you knock.

"Yuu?" Caiah asks.
"Yep" You reply.
"Come in, I could use a hand..." She says.

You walk inside to see Caiah midway through getting her armor on.

"With what?" You ask.
"Strap over her is giving me trouble" She says, pointing under her right shoulder. "Would you mind?"
"Sure" You say.

>Ask how she's getting to Leon

>Ask how she usually does this without help

>Other

>>1541788
>Ask how she usually does this without help
>Ask how she's getting to Leon

>>1541788
>>Ask how she usually does this without help
Hey, Smiley

>>1541788
>>Ask how she usually does this without help
>>Ask how she's getting to Leon
>Ask how her sprite was

>writing

You lean down and grab the strap under her arm.

"Alright, I need you to loosen it" She says. "It's too tight right now, and I can't move my arm all that well..."
"Like that?" You ask.
"That's much better, thanks" She says.

"How do you usually do that without help?" You ask.

Caiah scratches the back of her head and chuckles. "I uhh... don't take this armor off very often" She says, as she picks up another piece and startsputting it on. "It's comfortable to wear, but it's a pain to get on and off..."

"Why wear it then?" You ask, as you step forward to help her with the task at hand.
"Because I have a bad tendency of trying to power through hits instead of dodging them" She says. "My old instructors used to hate it. It was Demitri who suggested I start wearing armor. He even made me a suit"

"Is that this one?" You ask.
"No, I lost the one he made..." She says. "I was pretty sad about that, it was a good suit. Used to put itself on and everything"

"It put itself on?" You ask. "How?"

Caiah frowns. "Uhh... magic" She says. "Earth magic. Stopped working when I became a Chaotic"
"Oh, that's too bad" You say. "I might wear armor too if it put itself on"

"If you do, I'd stick to something lighter than this" She says. "The way you fight, you need to stay as mobile as you can"
"But mobility can only get me so far" You say.

"There may be ways of getting around that you haven't figured out yet" She says.

>Like what?

>Ask her about her sprite

>Ask where she got this suit of armor

>Other

>>1541892
>Like what?

>>1541892
>>Like what?
>>Ask where she got this suit of armor

>writing

"Like what?" You ask.

"Tell me: how do you usually use your Soul?" She asks.
"Well, I raise my hand and-"

"Stop" She says. "Your mistake is thinking that the hand is the only way to cast spells"
"It's not?" You ask.
"It's the easiest spot to channel from for learners, but as you get into more advanced channeling you'll find that just about everywhere works" She says.

"So I could shoot chest beams?" You ask.
"That's... not what I was getting at. But yeah, you could" She says. "I was thinking more of your feet"

"Like... kicking someone and shooting a bolt at them all at once?" You ask.
"Like jumping and shooting a soul wave out of your foot to either go higher, or change your direction" She says.

"That sounds much more useful" You say. "I'll have to practice that"
"It's well worth learning" She says. "I myself am still coming up with ways to use the warp to my advantage, so there's bound to be things you haven't thought of yet"

You get the last piece of her armor on and step back.

"Your other one may have been nicer, but this one is still pretty good" You say. "Where'd you get it?"
"From a smith in Leon" She says. "The lady there may look young, but she does good work"
"I'll have to go by there" You say.

"You should" She says. "But for now, we both have business... shall we?"

You nod, and the two of you head out.

As you head to the stairs, you pass your room. Out of curiousity you peek inside to see what's taking Derrick so long.

He's still in bed. He must've rolled over and gone back to sleep after you left...

>Wake him

>Leave it be

>Other

>>1541982
>Wake him
>Other
With a wet willie

>>1541982
>>Wake him

>writing

>>1541982
>>Wake him

"Hang on" You say to Caiah, as you step into your room.

You step up to Derrick's bed, put your finger into your mouth to get it nice and wet, and then stick it in his ear...

"GWAH!" Derrick shouts, as he jumps out of his bed and takes the covers with him.
"Good morning!" You say.

"Ah, damn man what the heck was that?" Derrick asks, as he wipes his ear.
"A wet willy" You say. "What happened to 'I'll be along in a minute'?"
"Shit, I must've dozed off again..." He says. "Did she already leave?"
"Nah, I was helping her get her armor on" You say. "Get dressed, we'll wait in the lobby"

Derrick chuckles. "Guess I can't roll over and go back to sleep now..." He says with a sigh. "Alright, I'll be right down"
"I'm holding you to that" You say. "There's more wet willies where that came from"

"I get it, I get it..." He says. "Go on"

You nod, and head back out to meet Caiah.

"What did you do?" She asks.
"Oh, just some gentle encouragement" You say.
"That didn't sound too gentle" She says. "You guys probably woke half the inn..."
"I'm okay with this" You say. "Let's go wait in the lobby"

>1/2

You and Caiah chat while you wait, until Derrick finally comes down.

"Hey, sorry about that" He says, as he rubs the sleep from his eyes.
"Not a problem" Caiah says. "I didn't think anyone but Yuu was going to see me off"

"I offered to, but then I fell asleep again..." He says. "That armor suits you well, by the way"
"Thank you" Caiah says.

"Hang on..." Derrick says, as he leans in to get a closer look. "Was this made by Cybel?"
"It was. You have a good eye" Caiah says.
"I recognize the trimming. The Commander's armor was made by her as well" He says.

"So how are you planning on getting to Leon, anyhow?" You ask.
"I've got a nice, bulky raptor in the city's stables" She says. "A horse would carry my armor better, but a raptor moves faster off the roads"

"Smart" Derrick says. "I guess you're giving Contique a wide berth?"
"There's about to be a battle there" She says. "I think everyone is giving Contique a wide berth"
"Everyone but us" You say.
"Everyone but you, yes" Caiah says.

>Anything to say before she leaves?

>>1542118
Good luck finding Terry. Contact us if you need help.

>>1542118
>How was your fairy?

>writing

"Now, you take care of him, okay?" Caiah asks Coral.

Coral salutes, causing Caiah to giggle.

"Those two get along pretty well" Derrick says.
"Coral stayed with her last night" You say.
"Why?" He asks.

"I had a sprite just like her when I was little" Caiah says. "Well, minus the soul. But she was very similar"
"Like Coral?" Derrick asks. "Here I thought she was pretty unique"

"This sprite was curious, and playful, and she had a tendency to mimic the expressions of people around her" Caiah says. "Like what Coral is doing now"

"She is?" You ask, as you look down at your shoulder.

Coral puts on her best innocent face, so you look away... then you snap back, only to find her looking innocent again.

"You didn't know she does that?" Derrick asks. "She's mimicking your face pretty much all the time"
"Is she?" You ask. "Huh... I never noticed. Why though?"

Coral shrugs.

"I guess I shouldn't have expected an answer there..." You say. "But anyways, Caiah has to get going"
"I do" Caiah says. "Good luck with the war effort"

"Right back at you" You say. "With finding Terry... not the war"
"I figured" She says.
"Be sure to call on us if you ever need help" Derrick says.
"I will" Caiah replies. "I hopefully won't anytime soon, but once you guys take over Leon I'd appreciate it if you could check the dungeons for me... in case my break in attempt goes sour..."

"We will" You say. "See you around"

Caiah smiles. "Take care" She says, shaking your's and Derrick's hand, before slinging her stuff over her shoulder and heading out.

"At least the rain's stopped" You say, once she's out of sight.
"One bit of good news" Derrick replies, as he turns to the clock. "We've got a while before anyone else is up... what do you wanna do now?"

>I have letters to write

>Head to the barracks to see if Mom's there

>I'm going back to bed

>Other

>>1542260
>>I have letters to write

>>1542260
>>I have letters to write

>>1542260
>>I have letters to write

>>1542260
>I have letters to write

>>1542260
>>Head to the barracks to see if Mom's there

>writing

You stretch and let out a yawn. "I've got letters to write" You say. "Stella and Ilica haven't gotten proper replies yet, and I want to let Fran know about Cheska personally"

"I get you" Derrick says. "I'll leave you to that. I'm gonna grab us some breakfast"
"Good idea" You say. "And thank you in advance"

Derrick waves you off and heads for the door, leaving you to go back upstairs.

You walk up to your room and head in, grabbing a pen and some paper so you can get to work.

As you lean back in your chair and spin your pen in your hand, you figure you'll write-

>Ilica's first

>Stella's first

>Fran's first

>>1542386
>>Ilica's first

>>1542386
>Fran's first

>writing

You figure it's a toss up between Ilica and Fran... Stella doesn't seem too urgent, since you've already sent her something.

You decide to write to Ilica first. Despite the fact that you're not doing it in person, telling Fran about Cheska isn't going to be easy. So you think you can put it off for a little while...

With that in mind, you sit up straight, put pen to paper, and start...

>Dear Ilica

...

A lot has happened since you last wrote... where exactly do you start?

...

That could work.

>A lot has happened since I last wrote, so I'm not quite sure where to start.

>The others and I went south from Bell's Run to the Inquisition's stronghold, expecting a fight. But when we got there, they had all been transformed into monsters.
>Caiah was also there, and she helped me when we first got in. She's real, by the way. You owe Derrick 20 silver.

You continue writing about your encounter with Terry, the fight against Arlen, your discovery of the caverns, and all the other things that happened there...

>Then Mom sent us down to Otuna to talk to the lady there.
>Turns out the lady there is a 348-year-old Kitsune with the power to protect the entire town using illusions.
>She also has the FLUFFIEST tails, and she told us each our fortunes. I won't go into detail on that.

>I'm in Sherton now, because the fighting here was over by the time we left Otuna. Mom sent me north to find some missing scouts. I ended up letting Cheska go while I was up there too... hopefully she's doing okay.

>On the upside, I have an apprentice now. A siren named Ava. I'm supposed to teach her how to focus, so she can keep her feathers the same colour.
>I also got to see Caiah again, as she stayed at the same inn that we did last night.

>Sounds like we'll be leaving for Contique soon, and I'll try to get another one of these out before that happens.

>Keep up the good work over there. If you stay focused, I'm sure you'll be hitting nothing but bullseyes in no time.
>Give Vivi some scritches for me, and take care of yourself.

>Signed
>Yuu Gallant.

You hold up the letter and look it over. It's a bit longer than the other ones, and you could probably cut down on the details a bit... but it's probably good.

You set this one aside, and pull up another page...

>Write Stella's now

>Write Fran's now

Also

>Anything to add to Ilica's?

Can't believe I catched this live

>>1542611
>>Write Fran's now

>>1542611
>Write Fran's now

>>1542611
>Write Fran's now

>>1542611
>>Write Fran's now

>>1542611
>Write Fran's now

>writing

>>1542611
when are we going to meet up with llica,fran and stella again?

You pull up the second page and give your pen a twirl. Now that you're in letter-writing mode, this should be a bit easier.

>Dear Fran

...

Damnit...

Alright, this isn't easy at all. You have no idea how to go about this.

Leading with the bit about Cheska would get it out of the way, and then you can ask about the stuff you sent her. But if you do it like that, then she might not read the rest...

>Ease into it

>Lead with Cheska

>Only tell her about Cheska. Leave the rest for another time

>Other

>>1542762
>>Lead with Cheska
Rip off the band-aid

>>1542762
>>Lead with Cheska

>>1542762
>>Lead with Cheska

>>1542762
>Lead with Cheska

>>1542762
>Only tell her about Cheska. Leave the rest for another time

We can wipe our tears with the discarded letters

>writing

Okay, here goes... where were you.

Ah yes.

>Dear Fran

>Cheska left.
>We were on a mission up north to make contact with a scout that had gone missing, and after we deatl with the problem, she told me she wanted to go.

>After all that's happened, and everything we've learned, I figured it was best to let her.
>I figured I should be the one to let you know.

>She was trying to write you a letter before we went on that mission. Not sure if she finished it. I'll look for it in the cart and see if anything is there.

>On a better note, have you gotten the information we sent along?
>The time we spent at the Stronghold and Otuna let Madelaine and I figure some stuff out. I hope you guys can make something of it.

You lean back and look over the letter... it looks good like this. You'll have to see Fran in person at some point, but this will do for now.

>Anything else to add?

>>1542908
Hugs for the tiny devils

>>1542908
>Anything else to add?

>I believe letting her go was the right choice, and I have the feeling that we will see her again

>>1542908
Add >don't worry too much about Cheska, she can take care of herself

>writing

>That's all for now. Let me know what you think of the stuff we sent.
>Give the girls lots of hugs for me, and tell them they're awesome and I love them.

>Signed,
>Yuu Gallant

>P.S. Don't worry too much about Cheska. She's more than capable of taking care of herself.

You nod and put down your pen, leaning back and stretching yourself out before realizing that you still have another letter to write...

You take a deep breath, let it out, and pick your pen back up. "I have too many friends that are too far away" You say, as you start thinking of things to say to Stella. "This writing stuff is boring... half the fun of talking to Stella is the snuggliness. You can't snuggle with a letter, or scratch its ears, or do anything..."

You smile, and start writing.

>Dear Stella

>I'm starting to see a problem with writing these...

That's all for tonight!

Next thread will likely be on Wednesday.

I meant to do a post or two on the weekend, but I ended up being busier/more hungover than I thought I'd be. Apologies for that, didn't mean to get your hopes up for nothing.

As always I'll be sticking around for question/suggestion time.

>>1543025
Thanks for the thread smiley!
Also no problem, you update often enough that I do not mind.

>>1543025
Thanks smiley

>>1543025
Thanks for Running Smiley

>>1543025
Another good thread Smiley!
Recently caught up reading the archives and it's been an entertaining read thus far, keep up the stellar work.
Shame I live on the wrong side of the world and can rarely vote live, but I'll take what I can get.

Stella best girl

Once you're done with Stella's letter, you set your pen down again and read it over.

It starts out with how much you miss seeing everyone in person, and that paper is a poor medium for the things you enjoy about people. Then it goes on into what you've been doing, and you end it by asking how the garden's going, and asking her to give the little bunnies hugs for you.

You have no doubt that she'll do that last part whether you ask her to or not, but you figure you'll ask anyway.

With a smile, you fold all 3 letters up and make a mental note to take them to that jumping spider later.

...

Where the heck is Derrick? Wasn't he getting breakfast?

You get up from your chair and head out of the room, figuring you'll check and see if he's with the girls. When you reach their room, you give the door a knock.

"Who is it?" Madelaine asks.
"Me" You say.
"Oh, come in" Madelaine says. "I was hoping you'd be Derrick..."

You tilt your head.

"He was bringing us breakfast" Madelaine says.

You look around the room. Everyone is still in their pajamas. Emi is currently brushing her hair, Madelaine is doing stretches, and Ava is sitting in a chair with a sandwich in her feet...

>Where did Ava get that?

>Ask Madelaine why she's stretching

>Ask Emi how long that usually takes her

>Other

>>1549494
>>Where did Ava get that?

>>Ask Emi how long that usually takes her

>>1549494
>>Where did Ava get that?

>>Ask Emi how long that usually takes her

>writing

"Where did she get that?" You ask, pointing at Ava.

"Get what..?" Madelaine asks. "Aw, dangit Ava. That thing was supposed to be his!"

Ava smiles with a mouthful of food. "I hab commameemim" She says.
"Chew. Swallow. Then talk" Madelaine says.

Ava does just that, smiling the whole time. "I have commandeered it" She says.
"Oh...? That's a pretty big word. Where'd you hear that one?" Madelaine asks.

"From a ship captain!" Ava says cheerfully. "It seemed like the right word to use"
"I think 'stole' is the proper word" Madelaine says.
"I didn't steal it. Yuu didn't even know it was his until you blabbed" Ava says.

Madelaine and Ava start bickering, so you decide to ignore them andturn to Emi.

"That looks like it might take a while" You say.
"I take my time with it" Emi says. "Brushing my hair helps relax me for the day to come"

...

She's probably going to have some trouble relaxing with those 2 fighting...

>Stop them

>Ask Emi what the plan for today is

>Maybe I should start doing that...

>Other

>>1549598
>>Ask Emi what the plan for today is

>>Maybe I should start doing that...

>>1549598
>>Ask Emi what the plan for today is
>>Maybe I should start doing that...

>writing

"Maybe I should stat doing that..." You say.
"You'd need some hair to brush first" Emi says.

You reach up and feel the top of your head. Your hair is still really short... just how long does it take to grow, anyway?

Then you turn to Emi. "Can I borrow yours?" You ask.
Emi smiles awkwardly. "M-maybe some other time" She says.

"Dang..." You say, as you turn to Coral. "Maybe I could get a tiny brush for you, then"

Coral reaches up and feels her head, looking like she's just now discovered the little bun her hair is tied up in.

"Can you even release that thing?" You ask.

Coral shrugs.

You put the sprite in your hand to see if there's anything actually securing her hair, when Derrick walks in.

"Hey guys I'm-... man, I leave for 5 minutes" He says.
"Yuu started it!" Ava says.

>She stole my breakfast

>I did not

>Ask Derrick how sprite hair works

>Other

>>1549673
>>She stole my breakfast

>>Ask Derrick how sprite hair works

>>1549673
>>She stole my breakfast

>writing

"You stole my breakfast" You say. "The least I could do to get back at you was let Madelaine fight with you for a bit"

"I feel used..." Madelaine says.

"Now give me a hand here, I'm trying to figure out Coral's hair" You say. "Where does it even begin? Head, head, hair... it's like a line between red and slightly darker red"

Derrick stares at you for a moment, and then hands you a bag. "Breakfast" He says. "It's too early for this..."

You sit down and pull your breakfast out of the bag, tearing a piece off the sandwhich to give to Coral, before eating the rest yourself.

As you eat, you continue to examine Coral's hair. Eventually, Derrick chimes in...

"You know, sprites are born with a hairstyle" Derrick says. "It never really changes"
"Really?" You ask. "What if she gets bored of it and wants a new look?"

"Then she might be out of luck" Derrick says.

You and Coral exchange a glance.

>I've found my new research project

>Do they make sprite wigs?

>I should ask Jade about this

>Other

>>1549770
>>I've found my new research project

>>I should ask Jade about this

>>1549770
>I've found my new research project
>I should ask Jade about this

>>1549673
>I've found my new research project
>I should ask Jade about this
Is it really even hair at all?

>>1549770
>>I've found my new research project

>>I should ask Jade about this

>writing

"I've found my new research project" You say. "You think Jade would help me out? She has a lot of sprites"

Derrick sighs. "It's too early for this..." He says, as he walks back over to Emi.

You turn to Coral. "You'll help me though, right?" You ask.

Coral smiles and gives you a thumb's up, earning her a pat on the head.

After that, you quickly munch down the rest of your sandwich, leaving the last bite for Coral because she's been so good. Then you walk over to Derrick and Emi.

"So what's the plan for today?" You ask.
"Not sure yet. I got the impression that the Commander wanted to start marching on Contique today" Derrick says. "If that's the case, then we may be leaving"

"Already?" You ask.
"We're trying to get this done ASAP, remember?" Derrick asks. "Anyways, we should head down to the barracks and confirm. Plus you have those letters to send"

"Ooooooo" Ava says. "Who's he sending letters to?"
"Probably his girlfriends" Madelaine says.
"He has girlfriends?" Ava asks.

>Let's go

>They're not my girlfriends

>Yes

>Other

>>1549884
>>Let's go

>>They're not my girlfriends

Soon Stella

>>1549884
>>Let's go

>>They're not my girlfriends

>>Is polygamy even a thing?

>>1549884
>Let's go
>Yes

>Other
Technically it's girl friends so yes it is. Technical correct is the best correct

>writing

>>1549901
Unfortunately Yuu's done that joke before, way back when Ilica was teasing him about Stella.

>>1549931
Damn it Yuu

"Let's get going then" You say. "And they're not my girlfriends"

"Right. You're just thinking about them all the time, and writing them love letters and all..." Madelaine says.
"Those are regular letters, and I don't think about them all the time" You say.

"So what else do you think about?" Madelaine asks.
"How Coral's hair works, to start" You say.

Derrick starts heading to the door. "Come on, Yuu. These 3 still need to get dressed, and it's still too early for this conversation" He says.
"Kay" You say. "We'll be next door"

The two of you head out, leaving the ladies to whatever it is they do in the mornings, and head back to your room.

"Make yourself comfortable, they may be a while..." Derrick says.
"Why?" You ask. "They're just getting dressed"

"From experience, it takes them much longer to do that than you or me" He says. "Plus there's the chance that Madelaine and Ava could start bickering again"

>How do you want to pass the time?

>>1550010
Figure out the mystery that is Coral's hair

>>1550010
>mage blade training

>>1550010
Cats cradle

>writing

Rolled 9 (1d100)

"So where do you think we'll be this time?" You ask, as you draw your mageblade.
"In Contique?" Derrick asks. "We'll probably be a part of the vangaurd... once the gate is open. Unfortunately that's the tricky part"

"Getting through the gate?" You ask.

Derrick nods. "Always the hardest part of a siege" He says. "City gates, especially for fortified cities like Contique, usually have repair and reinforcement devices. I've seen our siege weapons, and I know they can pack a punch. The problem will be breaking the gate and keeping it broken long enough for our forces to actually enter the city"

"Then we get to deal with the actual soldiers" You say.
"Yep, then the fighting begins" Derrick says.

You smile and hold up your blade. "Well I'd best get some practice in now then" You say.
"Go ahead" Derrick says. "I'm gonna read for a bit"

Derrick walks over to his bag, pulls out a book, and sits down. You activate your mageblade and focus...

>Roll 1d100 with focus

Rolled 37 (1d100)

>>1550145

Rolled 40 (1d100)

>>1550145

Rolled 61 (1d100)

>>1550145

>writing

Looking over the blade, you can see how much room for improvement you have.

You remember the first time you saw Terry use his mageblade... it was like night and day. Yours looks like a simple energy stream, whereas his looked like red steel.

Wondering if you could manage that yourself, you decide to try it...

Tighten up and straighten out the edges...

...

No good. The energy still scatters, giving it the 'softer' look that it as now. You can tone that downa little, but you can't stop it... not yet anyway.

Still, it looks better this way. So you decide to practie activating it into this form, and then do some basic bending, splitting, and stretching, until the girls finally show up...

"What took you guys so long?" You ask.
"Do you have any idea how hard it is to put clothes on without hands?" Ava asks.
"I could see that being difficult, yeah" You say. "Ready to go?"
"Should be" Madelaine says. "Got your pants on the right way this time, squawker?"

Ava squawks at Madelaine in response...

"I've made that mistake too, don't worry" You say.

>Anything else before you go see the Comomder?

>>1550275
Commision more pants with lots of pockets.

>>1550292
should we invest in pocket sand?

>writing

The 5 of you head out. Well... 6, if you count Coral...

Which you do, so the 6 of you head out. Along the way Madelaine stops to make sure the adults are getting out of bed, saying she'll catch up with the rest of you.

"At least the rain's stopped" Derrick says.
"Hopefully it stays that way" Emi replies.

"I'm fine with a little rain" You say. "Just remind me to get my hat"
"You have a hat?" Ava asks.
"Yeah! It's a big, floppy hat that my friend Lance gave me last time I was in Contique" You say.

"No, that hat got crushed by the Dangol" Derrick says. "The one in the cart is the replacement you got in Locke"
"Oh yeah..." You say. "I lose my clothes a lot"

"Suddenly feeling like being around you is not less dangerous than being a field scout" She says.

>I promise not to let you get crushed

>I promise not to lose my clothes

>Other

>>1550357
>>I promise not to lose my clothes

>>1550357
>>I promise not to let you get crushed


I wouldn't make any promises about these clothes.

>>1550357
>>>I promise not to let you get crushed
>I wouldn't make any promises about these clothes.

>writing

"I promise not to let you get crushed" You say. "Unfortunately I can make no promises about the clothes... that's always an unintended consequence"

Ava stares at you for a second. "I think I need an adult" She says.
"Closest thing we have here is Emi" Derrick says.

Ava looks at Emi and squawks, flapping her wings and taking off.

"Where's she going?" You ask.
"To the barracks... I think" Derrick says.
"You think?" You ask.

"Well she won't make it very far if she doesn't go around that-... tower" Derrick says.

You look up just in time to see Ava fly face-first into one of Sherton's big towers...

"Nevermind. Is she gonna be okay?" Derrick asks.

>Run and try to catch her

>She'll be fine

>Other

>>1550465
>"Nope"
>>Run and try to catch her

>>1550465
>>Run and try to catch her

>>1550465
>Run and try to catch her
>I think you need an adult too! Fortunately, I'm here!

"Nope" You reply, as you break into a run.

She's high up enough that you think you might be able to catch her... which means she's also high enough that she could get seriously hurt from the fall...

As you both start to reach the point where she'll hit the ground, you realize that she's winning this race... so you dive, and just barely manage to catch your stupid apprentice before she hits the ground.

When you skid to a halt, you relax. "Safe" You say. "I thought we talked about watching where you're going when you fly"
"We never talked about that" she says.

"Oh... well..." You bonk her on the head. "Watch where you're damn well going when you fly"
"I'm sorry..." She says. "And uhh... thanks..."
"Don't thank me, just make sure I never have to run to catch you again" You say.

You get up from the ground, setting the Siren back on her feet.

Your clothes are nice and muddy now... you'll probably have to wash yourself off too, but otherwise you're fine.

"Are you guys okay?" Emi asks.
"We're good" You say. "But this one is grounded"
"What do you mean grounded?" Ava asks.

"I mean literally grounded" You say. "no more flying for the time being"
"And who's gonna stop me?" She asks.

>Bring out the shackle

>Emi is

>You can either stay grounded or get reported or insubordination...

>Other

>>1550465
>Run and try to catch her

>>1550578
>Bring out the shackle

>>1550578
>Emi is

>>1550580
Whoops

>>1550578
>>Bring out the shackle
Around the leg with you

>>1550578
>Emi is

>>1550580
Whoops. Ignore that

>>1550578
>>Bring out the shackle

>writing

You reach into your pocket and pull out Cheska's old shackle. Yours is still on your wrist, since you didn't bother removing it... and you've gotten used to it at this point.

"Wh-what is that?" She asks.
"This, is what I used to keep my last partner in line..." You say, as you bend down and clip the shackle to her leg.

Ava squawks and tries to pry it off to no avail.
"There. Now, no more flying" You say.

"Come on! You can't clip my wings, man!" Ava says. "If I can't fly, I'm just a person who does everything with their feet because their arms are useless!"

...

"She has a point" Derrick says.
"It's not forever" You say. "You're going to learn some spacial awareness, and how to watch where you're going. Then you can take to the skies again"

"I am perfectly spe-spashially aware!" She says.

You raise an eyebrow at her, and then turn to the tower she just hit.

...

"In my defense, it is a very stealthy tower" She says.

"Hey guys, the adults are coming" Madelaine says. "What'd I miss... and why are you guys standing out here... and why is Yuu all muddy?"

>1/2

When you're finished filling Madelaine in, she looks at Ava, and then smacks her in the head.

"Heyyy!" Ava says.
"Yuu's right. You should learn to pay attention to what's around you before you start flying around the city" Madelaine says.

Ava puffs out her cheeks, and her feathers turn orange. "Stupid sneaky tower..." She says.

"Let's get going" You say. "I wanna see the comomder, and get back to the inn to get changed before I have to do anything major"

"You don't wanna like... wipe some of that off first?" Madelaine asks.
"I'm good for now" You say.

The 6 of your walk the rest of the way to the barracks. You notice that the closer you get, the more movement you see.

Soldiers, messengers and sprites are going every which way. Something big is happening...

At the front gates, you see Marybell standing alone.

>Go inside

>Ask Marybell what's going on

>Go send your letters

>Other

>>1550741
>Go send your letters

>>1550741
>Ask Marybell what's going on
We getting ready to ship out?

>writing

>>1550741
>Ask Marybell what's going on
>Go send your letters

>>1550741
>Ask Marybell what's going on
>Delegate someone else to send our letters since this seems important.

You walk up to Marybell. "What's all the commotion?" You ask.
"We're moving out soon" Marybell says. "Commander wants us marching within the hour... so naturally everyone is panicking"

"No kidding..." You say, as you watch everyone running about.

"What happened to you?" Marybell asks.
"Oh, the mud?" You ask. "Long throw in the final quarter. Had to dive for it"

...

"What?" Marybell asks.
"Ava smacked into a tower and fell. Yuu had to catch her" Derrick says.

"Ah... how did she manage that?" Marybell asks.
"I like to watch the ground when I fly, okay?" Ava asks. "Sometimes that lands me in tough spots..."

"It hits you in tough spots, birdie. You don't land" Madelaine says.

Ava squawks, flapping her wings to get up and claw Madelaine. Madelaine laughs at her, deftly dodging the Siren's clumsy punches...

"Aaaaaaanyways. You should get inside. The Commander's been waiting for you" Marybell says.
"Good call" You say.

That's all for tonight!

Next thread will most likely be Sunday. I'll do my best to do a test of those single, long post things in the meantime, so keep an eye out on Friday. If it goes up, it'll go up at ~7:30pm, and voting will end at the same time on Saturday.

As always I'll be sticking around for question/suggestion time

>>1550867
Thanks for running Smiley!

After prying Ava off of Madelaine, you head inside to see what the Comomder wants you to do.

Along the way, you pop in and leave your letters with the spider-mail-lady. Then you continue on down the hall.

...

Mom could have picked a closer spot for her office... making this trip every time you want to talk to her is getting tiring.

Whoever designed this thing must have had a thing for long, straight lines. You see no other reason to make the building so dang long...

When you finally reach Altea's office, you knock as you usually do. "It's me" You say.
"Oh, good. Come in" Altea says, waving you toward the chair

Derrick comes in behind you, shutting the door and taking the other chair.

Altea relaxes, slumping in her seat and sighing. "So what's new, you two?" She asks.

>Is now a good time for chit-chat?

>Everyone looks busy

>Caiah showed up

>Ava is grounded

>Other

>>1563955
>Ava is grounded
>Caiah showed up

Give the comomder some slice-of-life before jumping into heavy plot.

>>1563955
>Everyone looks busy

>>1563955
>>Ava is grounded
>>Caiah showed up
>Give the comomder some slice-of-life before jumping into heavy plot.

>writing

"I had to ground Ava" You say.

Altea raises an eyebrow. "Does this have anything to do with why you're covered in mud?" She asks
"It has everything to do with that, actually" You say. "She flew away and ran right into one of the towers, so I put Cheska's old shackle on her"

"Not permanently, I hope" She says.
"Nah. I figure I'll leave it on for 1 day, 2 at most" You say. "Just so she learns her lesson"
"Where is she now?" Altea asks.

You look around. "Ah, she's nearby... probably" You say.
"Glad to see you're taking your new responsibilities seriously" She says. "Anything else?"

"I got to see Caiah again last night" You say. "She stayed at the same inn as us, so I actually got a chance to talk to her"

Altea looks over at Derrick.

"It's true. She was actually there" He says.

"So she is real..." She says.

"Why did everyone think she wasn't real?" You ask.
"You have to admit..." Altea says.

"It sounded farfetched..." You say. "At least you didn't lose money on it like Ilica did"
"That girl has a gambling problem" Altea says. "At least Pip thinks so"
"That's because Pip keeps losing to her" Derrick says. "She'd have no problems if she were winning"

"So what was Caiah doing here?" Altea asks.

"Well..."

>1/2

"Onto Leon, huh?" She asks. "You should've asked her to bring you with her. We could use some people inside that city..."

"Not looking forward to Contique?" Derrick asks.
"Contique is going to be a lengthy and grueling siege" Altea says. "It will cost us resources we can't afford to waste, time that we cannot afford to lose, and personnell that we will direly need in the coming days... so no"

"No chance they'll give it to us like they did with Sherton?" You ask.
"King Dein might have lost his wits, but he's no fool" Altea says. "He knows we're using borrowed time. Every day we waste sieging Contique, the point where we have to turn back to Locke's defenses draws nearer..."

"So no chance of them even coming out to meet us" Derrick says. "What kind of siege are we packing?"

"50 heavy lances, 8 long range batters, and 1 Dragon's Breath" Altea says.

...

>What are those?

>Is that a lot?

>Could we get the hunters to bring the Pride?

>Other

>>1564087
>Could we get the hunters to bring the Pride?
Aerial superiority~~~~

>>1564087
Have we considered geomancy to insert through tunneling?

>writing

"Could the hunters send the Pride?" You ask. "Its big gun did a pretty good job at Mortifas"

"I spoke with Mr. Lepol about that at length while we were planning this operation" She says. "He feels that the Pride is best used in Locke as a deterrent, and in the end it is his airship"

"What if I asked nicely?" You ask. "Maybe they could try and bank a shot from back in Locke"

"All the way from Locke?" Derrick asks. "It'd never hit"
"But could you imagine if it did?" You ask. "They'd never see it coming!"

"Boys, could we please talk about things that are actually feasable?" Altea asks. "Castor says the Pride stays in Locke, and as we are partners in this I have to respect his decision"

"Alright..." You say. "How about tunnels? We must have enough geomancers to get under the walls"
"That might work... if they didn't have just as many geomancers as we do" Altea says. "As history has proven, time and time again, tunneling under a city is asking to get said tunnels collapsed on top of you"

"That's happened before?" You ask.
"Countless times" Altea says. "I believe the most effective use was by... Hephaen, roughly 150 years ago. Up until then tunnels were collapsed as they were found. Hephaen feigned ignorance of them until the bulk of the enemy force was already inside. Then he brought them down"

"Where was this?" You ask.
"It was a war between Antolia and Yrag" Altea says.
"Never heardof Yrag before" You say.
"That's because they were conquered by Antolia" Altea says. "That tends to happen to nations that lose half their armies"

"Convenient way to lose them though... at least they didn't have to dig any graves" You say.

Altea covers her face with a hand. "That is... one way of looking at it, yes" Altea says. "I would like to avoid losses, though"

>Any other suggestions?

>>1564165
The only other thing I've got is getting some weather magic going on to bring the army in under the cover of fog at night/early morning. In fact, early morning might be preferable if we approach from a direction where the sun will be striking the enemy's eyes.

Getting close and establishing dug-in positions in a seige is important, and seems like one of the hardest parts.

>writing

"What about if we made fog or something... to cover us while we set up" You say.

"That might work" Altea says. "They'd know we were out there, of course. But without vision they wouldn't be able to bombard our weapons before we can get our shielding up... where'd that idea come from?"

"I remember fog working pretty well for us when we were on our way to Locke" You say.
"That was technically steam... but same deal" Derrick says.
"Oh?" Altea asks.

"Emi and I smashed a ball of fire and a ball of water together to make a makeshift smokescreen" Derrick says. "Worked like a charm. Those raiders never knew what hit 'em"

"Literally. Pretty sure we ran one of them over" You say.
"Oh, what a tragic loss. What ever shall we do with one less raider" Altea says. "I'll run the fog idea by the Mage-Captain, see if we can make it work"
"Awesome" You say.

"When are we moving out, anyway?" Derrick asks.
"Two hours from now" Altea says. "I was about to send a sprite to your group, but I guess you beat me to it"

"I was up pretty early to see Caiah off" You say.

>Ask if you can help

>Go pack your stuff/clean up

>Other

>>1564243
>Ask if you can help

>>1564243
>>Ask if you can help
>continue being the best son

>>1564243
>Ask if you can help
Wonder what the mage-captain is like, probably pretty fuckin knowledgable

>>1564243
>Ask if you can help
normally i would recommend we pack up. But with the rook we can catch up to the main force pretty quick. The slowest part would be working our way through our own force actually, packed roads and stuff.

Ya know....i wonder if we could get the rook to fly....how do airships stay up there?

>writing

>>1564278
Using wind devices powered by an on-board mana generator, usually. Rook's not quite big enough for that, but that doesn't make a chaos airship impossible.

>>1564264
Their job mostly involves knowing the level of magic each of the different elemental troops can pull off, and where those abilities would be best used.

So yeah, pretty knowledgeable. As they need to know about every element.

"To defend their homeland, Gideon the Israelite raised a volunteer army of 32,000 to battle the Midianites (interlopers who were trying to move into Israelite turf) according to the Biblical account. But he only needed 10,000. Actually, the most powerful part of his ruse required significantly less. Gideon had 300 of his soldiers surround the Midianite’s valley encampment on three sides, every side but the east (that’s where he put the other 9700, waiting in ambush). He equipped them with hundreds of horns (the kind individual armies sounded before charging), torches, and incendiary pots. Then late at night, all at once, he had the 300 blow the war trumpets, light the torches, hurl the pots into the encampment and scream, “'A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!” The Midianites had no idea how many violent religious zealots were descending on them, but if the horns were any indication, it was all of them. They panicked and ran to the only side of the valley without torches and terror, the east. There they were promptly slaughtered by soldiers, who were waiting with their swords for the Lord and Gideon. "

Historical tactics are a fuckin riot sometimes, man. If we ever have to overtake a large war-camp, we definitely need to try this one out.

"Anything I can do to help?" You ask.
"Actually yes" She says. "I figured you'd want to wash off that mud first, but... there is a bit of a snag"

"Whereabouts?" You ask.
"Siege master's tent" She says. "Somebody fu-... screwed up while loading our lances for transport. A good portion of the people who were supposed to do the hauling were injured. They're being treated now, but there's no personnel to spare in the mean time..."

"You want me to go haul some lances?" You ask. "Sounds simple enough"
"Heavy Lances" Altea says. "They earned that name"
"Still, it's just lifting" You say. "I can handle it. I managed to lift Rhea with no issue"

Altea looks to Derrick again. Derrick shrugs.

"Just be careful" Altea says. "This is already a mess. I'd rather not have it get worse"
"Got it" You say. "Anything else?"

"I'll come find you before we leave. There's something I have to give you" Altea says. "Other than that, you can get going. I need to speak to Derrick about something"
"Okay" You say, as you stand up and wave to the two of them. "Catch you later"
"Yeah" Derrick replies.

After getting directions from Altea on how to get to the Siege master's tent, you head out and start on the long walk back out of this place...

>1/2

When you finally get outside, you see your Rook still sitting outside the building. Someone made it a little stone outcropping to cover it from the rain, so it looks like it was untouched by the storm.

"That was nice of them..." You say.

"Yep, just as you left it" Rhea says, as she claps you on the back. "I figured you wouldn't want it getting soaked"
"You made this thing?" You ask.
Rhea nods.
"Oh... thanks then. I forgot all about it last night" You say.

"You better take care of this thing. Fastest cart on the continent makes it a military asset" Rhea says. "But I won't rib you too much. Where're ya headed?"

"Siegemaster's tent" You say.
Rhea nods again. "Goin' to clean up that mess?" She says. "You're probably strong enough to haul one of those on your own. Just remember to lift with your legs"
"Lift with my legs... got it" You say.

>Where did Ava go?

>Any other tips?

>Wanna come help?

>Other

>>1564409
"Have I been lifting wrong by using my hands this whole time?"

>writing

"One question" You say.
"Yeah?" She asks.

"Have I been doing it wrong this whole time?" You ask. "I mean, if I'm supposed to lift with my legs, is it bad to use my hands?"

Rhea sighs. "That's... not what I meant... look" She says, as she squats and lowers her hands to the ground. "When you're lifting something heavy, don't bend down. Bend your knees, and-"

"Ohhhhhhhh!" You say. "I thought you meant just using my legs... that would've looked silly"

"It probably wouldn't have worked either" Rhea says. "Anyways, good luck out there"
"Thanks" You say.

Rhea claps your back again and heads inside.

Looking around, you see Emi and Madelaine still hanging around at the front of the building a little ways away. But you still don't see Ava...

>Ask them where the bird went

>Start looking

>Ask Coral where the bird went

>Other

>>1564495
>Ask Coral where the bird went

>>1564495
>Ask Coral where the bird went

>writing

"Coral, where did that stu-... where did Ava go?" You ask.

Coral floats off your shoulder and looks around for a second, before pointing back over at the barracks...

You look over and see her perched on the roof of the building, around halfway down its length. You wave to her to try and get her attention, and in response she flaps her wings and squawks.

Then you raise your arm and point to the brace, and point down the road. She reluctantly flies back to you.

When she lands, she huffs and treads the ground. "I want this thing off" She says. "You forgot about me"
"I thought I said no flying..." You say.

"I couldn't keep up with you on foot!" She says.

>Fine, I'll take it off...

>Let's get going

>Other

>Let's get going

>Other, "If you're good today I'll take it off."

>>1564569
>Let's get going
You can't rely on only your strong points, trust me.

>Let's get going

>writing

"Let's get going. I've got work to do" You say. "If you're good today, then I'll remove the brace"

Ava squawks.

"... not making a great case for yourself..." You say.
"Fine" She says. "I'll stay grounded and stop squawking. Anything else?"

"I'd say cut back on the sass, but that might be pushing it" You say. "Come on"

You head over to Madelaine and Emi to let them know what's going on.

"Have fun with that. I've seen those. They're heavy suckers" Madelaine says.
"I thought they were heavy lances" You say.

Madelaine sighs. "Nevermind" She says.

"I'll go back to the inn and get all of our stuff packed up once Derrick comes out" Emi says. "That way he can swing the cart by and we can just leave when we're ready"
"Can I bathe first?" You ask. "I don't wanna be muddy all day"

"Shoulda thought of that before you offered your services as a lifter" Madelaine says. "We've got the rooms all day though, so you don't really have to worry about that"

"Awesome" You say. "See you guys later"

You head back to the Rook and mount up.

"We're riding that thing again?" Ava asks.
"Well... yeah" You say. "It's a bit of a trek to get to the Siege Master's tent"
"I dunno... after last time..." She says.

>It'll be fine

>Whose fault was that?

>I guess we could walk

>Other

>>1564649
>Whose fault was that?

>>1564649
>Whose fault was that?
>It'll be fine

>writing

"Whose fault was that?" You ask. "It's a smooth ride when the passenger doesn't jump off"

"I couldn't help it..." She says.
"Well... help it" You say.

Ava's feathers turn orange, and she puffs out her cheeks.

You sigh. "It's just a short trip. I'm sure you can manage it" You say. "Alright? I'll try to go slow"
"Fiiiiiiiine" She says, grumbling as she steps over to the Rook.

Ava sits behind you, and holds onto you with her wings as you ease the Rook into motion.

Ava keeps up the grumbling throughout the whole ride. It's a short ride, sure. But it's still impressive.

The Siege Master's tent is easily recognizeable, as Mom told you 'by the big hole burnt through the roof'.

...

She wasn't kidding. That hole is impressively large. You wonder what caused it.

You park the Rook out front, next to the heavy cart that you assume the heavy lances were being loaded onto, and head for the tent.

Pushing aside the front flap, you step in and look around.

"Hello?" You call out.
"Heya" A voice responds.

You look down and to your left, where the voice came from, and find a very short, pointy eared, green skinned woman looking back up at you.

"You here about the mess?" She asks.

>Yes

>You're very small

>Where's the Siege Master?

>Other

>>1564792
>Yes
>Other
"What caused the hole?"

>>1564792
>Yes

>writing

>>1564792
>Yes
>Other
What caused the hole?
>You're very small

"Yes" You reply. "You're the Siege Master?"

"That's me" She says. "I may not look like much, but nobody's better at handling heavy equipment"

The small green woman starts walking further into the tent, motioning for you to follow.

"I'm Gretchen, by the way" The green woman says. "And that last comment was a sex joke"
"The one about your name, or the bit about heavy equipment?" You ask, as you follow her in.

"The heavy equipment bit" She says.
"Oh... I don't get it" You say.
"Me neither" Ava says.
"That's fine. I don't get payed to joke" She says, with a wide grin. "I get payed to pound holes in things, and make things that pound holes in things"

"Holes like the one in the roof?" You ask.
"Like the one in the roof, yes" She says. "I didn't actually get payed to make that one, but it's a good example... and that was also a sex joke"

"The bit about the roof, or..."
"The pounding of holes" She says. "Come on, man"

...

>I hope you're better at your actual job

>Fake a laugh

>Where's the mess?

>Other

>Where's the mess?

>Other, ask her what kind of creature she is.

>>1564892
>>Where's the mess?
Goddamn goblins. Always thinking about sex.

>>1564892
>Ask how she usually deals with heavy equipment, given her size
Hue
But actually I'm genuinely curious how she's supposed to deal with this stuff if she's too small to move it

>>1564892
>>Where's the mess?

>>1564892
>Where's the mess?
>Other
Look, I didn't even know what sex was until a short while ago, so you're not going to get much out of me.

>writing

"Where's this mess, anyway?" You ask.
"That bad, huh?" Gretchen asks. "Back here, behind that uhh... tent-wall... whatever those are called"

You walk back behind the wall, and see a cluttering of large metal tubes all over the floor. They're each about 2 feet taller than you are, and about as think around as your head, with 4 rings around each along the length, and a handle-looking piece.

"So these are heavy lances, huh?" You say, as you lean down and examine one. "How do they work?"

"You've got a solid steel spike inside the tube, and a mana connector in the handle" Gretchen says. "Feed it energy, and the 4 rings make an explosion inside the tube in a precise sequence, sending the spike out at a suuuuuper high speed"

"Sounds like it'd be good for pounding holes" You say.
"Not my greatest creation, but definitely the most easily produced" She says.
"You made these?" You ask.
"Technically yeah" She says. "I improved upon an older design, made it smaller, easier to transport, but kept every bit of the power"

"Wow" You say. "That's pretty impressive"
"I am pretty impressive, yeah" She says. "Unfortunately they're still heavy as hell, and I'm not personally built for work like this"

"How do you usually handle heavy equipment like this?" You ask.
Gretchen smiles. "By getting big, strong guys like you to handle it or me" She says in an almost seductive tone, as she walks her fingers up your chest.

"That makes sense" You say. "Why don't I get started?"

You lean down, bending at the knees like Rhea showed you, and lift up one of the lances. They aren't all that heavy... you could take 2, maybe 3 at a time if you wanted to speed things up.

>Take it slow

>Get this done quick

>Other

>>1565043
>>Take it slow
Delicate stuff. No miss fires here. Do try to keep up the pace though.

>>1565043
>Take it slow
Talk with the Siege master, maybe see if something from where Yuu used to be might come to mind, like flechette rounds.

>>1565043
>Take it slow
These things sound wicked awesome. Kind of want a soul lance.

>>1565043
>>Take it slow
Even Rhea respected how heavy those things are. Maybe near the end we can see if we can lift more than one, but we should start out with that.

>>1565043
>Take it medium. Don't worry, I can handle several of these lances at once.
>I wonder if we could make a bigger tube that could fire the rook out of it.

>writing

You heft the lance in your hand and put it over your shoulder, seeing how the weight feels when you put it this way.

"Hey there, careful where you point that thing" She says.
"Relax, they run on mana" You say. "I couldn't activate it no matter what I did"

Gretchen gives you an odd look. "Huh..." She says.
"So these all just go out to the cart in the front?" You ask.
"Oh, uhh... yeah" Gretchen says.

You hold the lance over your shoulder and head back to the cart, set it down with the others that are already there, and head back.

This time you grab 2, testing the weight before going to haul them off.

"Hey there, big guy. Take your time" Gretchen says. "Last guy who tried to impress me with his big muscles caused this whole mess"

"They aren't that heavy" You say. "I can do 2 of them fine"
"You don't look all that bulky, but here you are showin' up those other meatheads" She says. "What's your secret?"

"My... secret?" You ask.
"I could use some workout tips" She says. "If I could be as strong as you, and still keep my girl-ish figure, I'd be set"

>You probably don't want to be strong like me...

>It's a simple, 5 minute workout called 'some dude ripped out my heart'

>Is the height a part of having a girlish figure?

>Other

>>1565170
>It's a simple, 5 minute workout called 'some dude ripped out my heart'

>>1565170
>It's a simple, 5 minute workout called 'some dude ripped out my heart'
>Cardio kills gains, you know

>>1565170
>>Other, Well, i don't really remember the details, but it involves getting your heart ripped out. Hey, you think you could make one of these that worked using soul?

>>1565170
>Is the height a part of having a girlish figure?

>writing

>Tfw goblin qt is 'mirin and we're too awkward to address it
I'm just waiting for you "Y-You too"

>>1565170
>>It's a simple, 5 minute workout called 'some dude ripped out my heart'

"I had a guy tear out my heart" You say. "I didn't think it'd work, but it did wonders for my strength and stamina"

"Oh... OH!" Gretchen says. "You're that guy! Yuu! The Commander's kid"
"That's me" You say.

Gretchen laughs. "I just spent the last 5 minutes telling a prince bad sex jokes..." She says. "Sorry for being so vulgar"

You shrug. "I don't mind" You say, as you shoulder the pair on lances in your hands. "Maybe if you keep telling them, I'll eventually get one"
"Alright... just remember that you asked for it" She says.

You chuckle, as you carry the two lances back to the cart. Then you return for another two.

"So what's the commander doing sending her kid to do menial labour like this?" She asks. "We so shorthanded that the prince has to get his hands dirty too?"

>They were dirty before I started"

>It was either this or do nothing for 2 hours

>This isn't so bad

>Other

>>1565252
>>It was either this or do nothing for 2 hours

>>1565252
>Everyone gets their hands dirty in a war
>But actually, I was already covered in mud thanks to my apprentice, so that helped with the decision

>>1565252
>They were dirty before I started"
>This isn't so bad
>Other
Ask here to explain the fine art of the sex joke. Im sure it will come in handy eventually.

>writing

"Everybody else is" You say. "Besides, it's not like they were very clean in the first place... I was a bit dirty already thanks to an emergency mud-dive"

"I did notice" Gretchen says.

"Plus it was either this-" You say, as you lift up 2 more of the lances. "-or do nothing for 2 hours"
"You plannin' on going all the way to Contique all muddied up like that?" She asks.

"Nah, I was gonna bathe after I finish here" You say. "Even if I take to long and lag behind, I've got the fastest transport around so it'll be easy to catch up"

"What kind of transport?" She asks.
"A prototype cart that the hunters were working on. Runs on a chaos engine, so-"

"You mean the Chariot?!?" She asks.
"Well, it's called the Rook now. But-"
"Can I see it?" She asks. "Pretty please!?"

"Well... yeah. It's right outside" You say.
"I mean like... look inside" She says. "I promise I won't break it!"

You kinda want to say no... but with the look she's giving you it'd be like kicking a puppy...

>I dunno...

>As long as it still works after

>Look, but don't touch

>Other

>>1565327
>Look, but don't touch
"Only one person has any real idea how to truly maintain it, and they aren't here."

File: 2dd.jpg (14 KB, 300x300)

14 KB JPG

>>1565327
>As long as it still works after
I can't resist a short qt goblin, that's not playing fair smiley

>>1565327
>Look, but don't touch
Responsibility!

>writing

"You can look, but don't touch" You say. "Come on, I'll put these on the cart and show you where the Rook is"

You take Gretchen outside, laying the lances down on the cart and leading her over to the Rook.

"Ooooo" She says. "It's much smaller than the original tests... presumeably because it now lacks both defensive plating and a storage device... which makes sense, considering its rider doesn't need the plating and can effectively replace the storage device..."

Gretchen continues to examine the Rook, as you head back in to grab a few more lances. When you put those on the cart, you look back over at the Rook, but you don't see Gretchen...

Until a tugging at your shirt draws your attention down.

"What is it?" You ask.
"There's an access panel that I wanna take off so I can see in" She says.
"Which one?" You ask.

Gretchen takes you back to the Rook and points out the panel.

"That one" She says. "If I'm right, then peeling that bit off will reveal all the nibbly bits"
"Nibbly bits?" You ask.
"Sex joke" She says. "All the important stuff is in there"
"Oh... I guess so, just-"

"Look, don't touch" She says.

You nod.

>How do you know what's under there without looking?

>You need a 'sex joke' sign or something...

>Ask what she is

>Other

>>1565457
>How do you know what's under there without looking?

>>1565457
>>How do you know what's under there without looking

>>1565457
>>How do you know what's under there without looking?

>>Ask what she is

>writing

"How do you know what's under there without looking?" You ask.
"by looking at the size and shape of the parts you can see, you can almost always guess what's in the pants" She says.

...

"Sex. Joke. Come on, man. That was an easy one" She says. "Anyway, the smallest chaos engine in existence is the Kestrel type, which is what this one has. Given the rough thickness of the casing, I'd say that it sits right here... with connectors to the old storage unit here... and the actual device that turns the energy into movement... here"

Gretchen pretty much just pointed out every piece perfectly...

"Wow" You say. "You sure know your stuff"
"Some have called me a genius in the past" She says. "I'm inclined to agree with them, as there's really no other explanation as to I became siege master at 16"

"You're only 16?" You ask.
"Yeah, I look a bit older" She says. "That's a Goblin thing. We look about 20-ish from the age of 14 to around 45, then the old age hits us like one of my inventions."

"How's that?" You ask.
"Hard... luckily there's not much on me that'll sag" She says. "Anyways, I'd better get my tools if I'm gonna get these panels off!"

Gretchen hops back into the tent, and you follow to grab some more lances.

If she knows all this stuff, then she's awfully smart for someone her age. Ava could learn a lot from her...

...

Just where did that bird get to, anyway?

>>1565528
>Just where did that bird get to, anyway?
Isn't she still shackled? She must be going through hell right now if she didn't keep up.

That's all for tonight!

I'm going to be moving around a bit in the coming months, so I'll be fitting in threads where I can. Also one of these days I'll actually do one of those long posts I keep talking about...

As always I'll be sticking around a bit for question/suggestion time!

>>1565539
Thanks for the thread!

>>1565539
Thanks for Running Smiley
Good luck with the moving around
I swear I will have time to catch these threads live again one-day