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SOME ALLEYWAY - MIDMORNING
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Strix: It is a fairly cool the previous night, but not enough to actually freeze over. Nevertheless, in a somewhat out of the way alley there was a thick coating of ice over the ground, and spreading up the walls, that at least was what visible from the main road if anyone were to look in, there was a distinct chill in the air, wafting out of the alley. Nothing dangerously cold, but certainly a good few degrees of anything around it, and even more certainly unnatural.
Brunilda is standing at the end of the alley, scratching the side of her head in confusion. "...what... the...?"
Narrator: There was a layer of water over the ice, suggesting that whatever had happened to the alley was no longer active, and so everything was starting to thaw out. Which was good! At least it wasn't spreading any further.
Brunilda gives the edge of the ice an experimental poke with her halberd, confirming that it is indeed just ice... far as she could tell, anyway. Admittedly her experience regarding the subject matter is relatively limited.
Narrator: It is just-ice! It was likely illegal, so probably not justice. Since she was closer, into the alleyway itself, she could see a little around the corner, and just the leading edge of some sort of metal contraption.
Brunilda steps over (very carefully) to see better. She frowns at the sight of the contraption, muttering to herself: "And what... is..."
Narrator: It looks like a metal ball on top of three metal spikes, driven into the ground, the entire contraption coated in a thick layer of ice. The culprit was, at this moment, unknown, but a strong 'clue' could be gleamed from a certain Prosthetic arm'd Kobold, who was next to the contraption, frosted over himself. That..probably wasn't good, but..reptiles had a hibernation response to cold...right?
Brunilda blinks at the sight, feeling a bit out of her depth. Almost slipping on the ice once or three times, she makes her way to the contraption and the lizard popsicle. She pokes Strix to see if there's any response.
Narrator: There is no response from the poke!
Brunilda frowns, shivering a bit at the cold: "I wonder..." She attempts to pick the kobold up, frosted as it is.
Narrator: He's very light! The metal arm isn't even as big of an extra weight as Brunhilda might expect. He's a little stiff too, but not unmanagably so.
Brunilda picks up Strix in one arm and looks him over: "...what by the Gods have you been doing here...?"
Narrator: Most likely something got to do with the machine that froze over the alleyway....
Brunilda sighs and shakes her head. She takes a step away from the machine... and promptly slips with a loud crash as pachyderm feet are not made for icy surfaces. Somehow, she manages to not break the lizard in her grasp as she falls. She gets up with a pained groan and more carefully makes her way out of the alley.
Narrator: Well, once out of the alleyway, the air warms up, but Strix is still frosted over, and conked out. At least Brun would be able to pick up some very shallow breathing from him. So he's alive!
Brunilda sighs in slight relief, setting the lizard down to warm in the sunlight on the street corner. She then stands back, scratching her head as she ponders what to do about... whatever that thing is in the alley.
Strix takes about thirty minutes to 'thaw out', at least as far as he warms up, and starts making soft sleeping noises. The machine..well, it was still there doing nothing.
Brunilda has, by this point gone out to the marketplace to locate some snacks, taking this chance for a 'patrol break'. She's sitting next to the thawing lizard, idly munching on a bunch of bananas as she waits.
Strix groans softly, opening his eyes "..Strix cold..Strix coldifier work....." He's still suuuper out of it.
Brunilda glances down at the kobold: "I'm glad to see you're alive, at least."
Strix: "Strix is strong.." He's trying to make big punchy statements, but he's waaaay too tired
Brunilda raises an eyebrow as she munches on another banana: "Before or after freezing yourself to near-death?"
Strix: "Both" He coughs a little
Brunilda gives a soft chuckle despite herself: "Fair enough. Be that as it may, I'm taking you to Doc once you can move."
Strix: "Strix does not need doctoring..Strix is fine"
Brunilda: I've heard all kinds of definitions of 'fine', but I don't think you qualify.
Strix: "Strix is alive, and what does not kill Strix, makes Strix stronger" He can't really object though, she's muuuch larger than him.
Brunilda nods: "Normally, I might even buy that, but it's kind of my duty to see no harm done to anyone. That includes mildly crazy inventor kobolds." She gets up, sighing as she does.
Strix: "Strix not mildly crazy" He's not even exclaiming! "Strix sanest kobold there is..Strix has cert.." He drifts back off, though it seems this time to sleep.
Brunilda blinks, then gently picks up Strix: "Yep, we're gonna go see what the Doc has to say." She muses as she starts walking: "Least it's easier when you're not conscious..."
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RESPITE FALLS - THE THIRSTY MINNOW - EVENING
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Nesseth saunters into the bar, having finished a hunt with Damina some time earlier in the day and now looking for a drink to cool off with.
Damina also comes along, looking awfully drunk for someone who adamantly remains sober
Doc Plume is sitting at the bar flipping through a book as they drink coffee and eat a late dinner.
Nesseth waits as Damina shuffles through the door, then helps her make her way over to one of the seats at the bar. "You're going to need to get some water in you so you don't wind up with a hangover tomorrow..."
Damina: "What? I'm perfectly sober!"
Doc Plume looks up at the sound of a familiar voice and nods to Nesseth and Damina. "Evening." As they eat their dinner of stew and bread, it's hard to miss the banadage that's wrapped around their right forearm.
Nesseth hums thoughtfully, but refrains from commenting immediately, instead ordering two big glasses of ice water, one for each of them, before turning to the counter's other occupant. He smiles upon seeing Plume, though his eyes are drawn to the bandage pretty quickly. "Oh, hey there, Doc. Good evening! Though, uh... did something happen?"
Doc Plume shakes their head. "Nothing serious. Just got clawed by a disoriented patient. It happens from time to time. Drew a little blood, but didn't need stitches or anything."
Nesseth winces. "Ouch... well, at least it wasn't anything too bad. Hopefully it heals up quickly."
Doc Plume swallows a chunk of bread. "Nothing I haven't been through before." They take a long sip of coffee before continuing. "And what about you two?"
Damina hides the manic smile she had. "Oh, uh, we went hunting. Got to use my giant crossbow. Didn't miss a single thing!"
Nesseth nods. "Yup. That crossbow's pretty powerful. After the hunt, we spent some time just hanging out and having a... 'few' drinks to relax the afternoon away."
Doc Plume laughs a little. "Interesting..." They finish their coffee and replace it with a sarsaparilla. "Shooting pests or hunting food?"
Damina thinks a bit. "...eh, I guess the only difference it makes is how disgusted you get when we eat it."
Nesseth smiles. "Hunting food today, both to help with the town's supply, and to gather up enough meat to make a good meal for Vix, Damina and Annika."
Doc Plume cocks their head. "The fox girl? She didn't strike me as the type to go for just-hunted meat."
Nesseth shakes his head a bit. "Well, no, but it's just a general meal for the three. Fish, fresh game, maybe some vegetables, all cooked and seasoned..." He shrugs, "Honestly...? I could use some ideas. I've not really cooked for anyone other than myself before."
Doc Plume ponders. "I'm not much of a cook. That's why I come here to eat usually. Sorry."
Nesseth shrugs with a small smile. "It's okay, I'm sure I can figure something out." He tilts his head a bit, "You don't really cook much, though?"
Doc Plume shakes their head. "Nah. Teenage rebellion led into being wrapped up in my studies, so I never really learned more than how to make tea or butter bread."
Damina sits down at the counter, watching the others talk while dragging her finger in a circle on the countertop.
Nesseth hums. "That's a little unfortunate." He chuckles after a moment, "I'm not sure how much my cooking compares to the bar's own cook, but if I don't accidentally poison Damina and the others, maybe you'd like to join up for a meal in the future?"
Doc Plume finishes up their dinner and laughs. "Sounds good." The look away for a moment, pondering. "I suppose it couldn't hurt to learn some basic cooking."
Nesseth grins at Damina. "So yeah, Damina, please let me know if my cooking is good or bad. I really wouldn't want to subject others to more torture if my cooking isn't up to scratch."
Damina: "Alright, but I'll have you know I have very low standards."
Nesseth chuckles. "In that case, I'll just make sure you and Vix don't end up turning green, and I'll call it a success."
Doc Plume lets out a little yawn. "Mmm... sorry... I guess the day has taken more out of me than I thought." The quickly drain their bottle of sarsaparilla before standing up. "I'll see you both around though."
Nesseth smiles at Plume and waves. "Well, have a good night, Doc. Take care!"
Doc Plume heads out for an early night, hating to have to be a bit of a party pooper.
Nesseth shifts in his seat a bit and turns back to Damina with a cheeky smirk. "So, are you sure you're still sober?"
Damina: "Yep! I just.. I get kinda thrilled when I get to shoot stuff..."
Nesseth chuckles. "The thrill of the hunt, huh? I could see that being a pretty big rush."
Damina: "It is quite exciting, especially when you got Ol' Repentance constantly kicking you back. Oh, that thing's like a mule, I swear."
Nesseth nods. "I've felt the heft on that thing. Seeing you shoot it, I can tell it's got a sizable kick with every shot." He smiles a bit, "And I guess that kick is part of what helps you get into the mindset of a good hunt."
Damina coughs a bit, her ears twitching. "Honestly I'm shocked that I can land shots in midair with this thing!"
Nesseth laughs a bit. "With training, one can get pretty fancy with their shots." He grins, "Though I think I prefer just sniping the target before they know I'm there."
Damina: "Well, of course."
Nesseth smiles. "Still, you cut a pretty awesome figure out there. A couple of times, I had to remember I was in the middle of aiming before your moves caught my eye."
Damina: "Huh! Well, thank you! Don't get many compliments..."
Nesseth tilts his head. "Really? That's kind of surprising, with skills like that." He pauses for a moment, looking like he's going to add something extra, but instead just takes a sip of water.
Damina: "Yeah, I just. Don't really get much accompaniment on my, heh, excursions."
Nesseth nods. "Well, if you happen to need any company, I'd be happy to help out if possible. I might not be a full-blown adventurer or anything, but I can hold my own if need be."
Damina nods, taking note of this.
Nesseth stretches with a yawn. "Anyway... if you're sure you're okay for the night, I think I should probably head back home. I need to start getting the food prepared for tomorrow."
Damina: "Welp, guess I'll be seeing you. It's been fun!"
Nesseth finishes up his drink and slides out of his seat after paying for both his and Damina's drinks. He smiles and waves, then turns to leave the bar, intending to head back home and get things ready for tomorrow. "Definitely! See you tomorrow, Damina."
Damina smirks and watches him walk out.
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NESSETH'S HOUSE - EVENING
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Vix lounges on the roof of what she's fairly certain is Nesseth's house, flanked by a couple small baskets full of herbs and spices.
Vix dangles her feet over his front door. "Hmm...maybe I should have gone to the bar..."
Nesseth wanders into view on the street below, having just left the bar a little while earlier. He stifles another yawn as he reaches into a vest pocket and extracts a key, not yet noticing Vix waiting up above.
Vix slips out of view and peeks over the edge of the roof at Nesseth, her yellow eyes shining in the night.
Nesseth doesn't really notice any movement, focused as he is on figuring out which vest pocket his house key is tucked into. He manages to find it just as he approaches the front door of his house, whereupon he quickly unlocks the door and wanders inside.
Vix picks up her basket of ingredients and slips in through the front door behind Nesseth.
Nesseth reaches a hand out and flicks on a light switch, brightening the main room of the house. It's decorated about as normal for Orelan tastes, which is to say dark wood wall panels, cushy (if perhaps a little threadbare) chairs, and several pictures of familiar locales and family members hanging from the walls.
Nesseth wanders further into the room, unceremoniously dropping his satchel in a pile next to the sofa, and placing his crossbow (much more carefully) upon one of the sofa's cushions. After that, he starts to make his way to the kitchen.
Vix hums as the lights turn on. "Ooooh, you have a nice house, Ness~!"
Nesseth jumps in surprise and staggers forward away from the voice behind him. His foot catches on an ottoman, and he goes tumbling over in a rumpled pile. "Gah!!"
Vix scampers over to Nesseth to help him up. "Whoops! Maybe I should have knocked..."
Nesseth is lying in a heap just on the other side of the chair, and only just starting to get his senses back in order. He groans a bit as he grabs hold of Vix's arm and slowly pulls himself up. "Ungh... How'd you... even get in here, Vix...?"
Vix shrugs. "I just walked in? You opened the door."
Nesseth clambers back up to his feet and dusts himself off a bit, giving Vix an odd look all the while. "You... followed me home?"
Vix sets the basket on the table. "Nah, I already figured out where you lived and waited here~"
Nesseth blinks at the basket, then takes a peek inside. After a moment, it all clears up. "Ah, right... The ingredients from the marketplace. So you found everything alright?"
Vix nods. "Got everything on the list! Does everything look right?"
Nesseth hums thoughtfully, then picks up the basket and carries it into the kitchen. "Well, let's find out."
Vix purrs as she follows Nesseth to the kitchen
Nesseth carefully sets the basket onto the counter and starts to rummage through it. "Hmm..."
Vix gets distracted by the other things in Nesseth's kitchen, and is soon snacking on some jerky she found.
Nesseth eventually finishes his inspection and dusts his hands, nodding in satisfaction as he turns towards Vix. "Yup, looks like it's all in order! Thank you, Vix."
Vix purrs a bit louder. "Glad to help~!"
Nesseth blinks, then smirks a little when he notices Vix munching on a bit of jerky. "Just helping yourself, I see. But I guess we can consider that an early thanks for running that errand while Damina and I were out hunting."
Vix hums. "It's pretty good jerky~"
Nesseth chuckles. "Just try not to eat all of it, though. It takes a while to make a good stock of it."
Vix chews thoughtfully. "Well, I was only gonna take one..."
Nesseth shrugs. "I'm just saying, if you like it, feel free to grab more, but just don't raid the whole stock."
Vix grins as she pockets two more pieces of jerky for later. "Will do~"
Nesseth tilts his head a bit as he moves the basket to one of the cupboards. "So... were you waiting outside the entire day, or something?"
Vix stretches, then makes her way to the sofa and flops onto it. "Yeah, I usually am! It was nice today~!"
Nesseth follows Vix back into the living room and leans over the back of the sofa. "I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long just outside my door, though, nice day or not."
Vix kicks up her feet and looks up at Nesseth with a smile. "Whatever, it was totally worth it to sneak in behind you~"
Nesseth rolls his eyes, but smiles. "Yeah, yeah, you got me good. Again."
Vix smirks. "Scaredy-cat~"
Nesseth shoots Vix a flat look. "Hey, not my fault I react like that when I'm surprised in my own supposedly empty home."
Vix sticks out her tongue. "Gotta make sure your shadow doesn't have a cute lil face~"
Nesseth laughs a bit. "Well, I'll be sure to watch my back every time I get home, from now on." He smirks, "At least, then, I can properly greet said shadow."
Vix: Hello~
Nesseth smiles and reaches out to boop Vix on the nose. "Hi, Vix."
Vix giggles. "Can I sleep on your couch~?"
Nesseth blinks and raises an eyebrow. "You don't want to sleep at one of your nap spots tonight?"
Vix: I'm always looking out for a new nap spot~
Nesseth shrugs after a moment, not seeing any reason to turn the cat down. "Sure, you're welcome to sleep here, if you want."
Vix stretches out further to claim the whole couch. "Yay! Thanks~"
Nesseth nods. "No problem, Vix. You already know where the kitchen is, and the bathroom is over that way, on the right." He points out across the living room towards a short hallway with two doors, one on each side.
Vix nods. "Mhm! Got it."
Nesseth gestures over at an end table tucked into one corner of the living room, near another chair and a small lamp. "If you feel like reading, I've got a couple of books from the Explorers Guild under that table over there, too."
Vix looks through the stack of books. "Digest...Almanac...Huh, I've never seen these."
Nesseth shrugs a little as he steps around the couch and wanders over towards the hallway. "Yeah, those books are usually just from the Explorers Guild. Nothing all that exciting, but it's something to read if you're really bored." He pauses as he opens the door to the bathroom, "Anyway, I need to take a bath after today's hunt. Make yourself at home, Vix."
Vix flips through the pages of a bestiary. "Thanks~~"
Nesseth heads into the bathroom and shuts the door behind him.
Vix skims through the book, more interested in the realistic illustrations than the book's information.
Nesseth opens the door about fifteen minutes later and takes a moment to peek out into the living room, just to make sure Vix isn't looking over at the hallway...
Vix appears to be engaged in her reading at the moment.
Nesseth strides across the hallway, trying to move as fast as possible without being too conspicuous. He'd forgotten one little detail partway through his bath, in that he forgot there was a guest currently sitting in the living room. He has a towel wrapped around his waist, so he has some of his dignity intact in case Vix looks up...
Vix glances up as she hears Nesseth stepping through the hall, finding herself staring right at him.
Nesseth pauses for the shortest of moments his eyes meet Vix's, then clears his throat and hastily steps through the doorway into his bedroom. He shuts the door just a touch too fast, however, and smashes the tip of his tail, causing him to mutter a string of curses as the door snaps shut properly a moment later.
Vix giggles. "No need to be shy! I've already seen it!"
Nesseth peeks out a few seconds later, now dressed in basic house wear. He folds the towel up and slides it back into the bathroom. He has a bit of a sheepish smirk on his face as he turns to look at Vix. "I thought you said you didn't want to talk about the bathhouse thing?"
Vix covers her mouth. "Eep! That's right!"
Nesseth finishes pulling his shirt straight as he goes and flops down onto an open chair. His smirk starts to get a little more confident again. "Or does your brain just gravitate that way?"
Vix: I couldn't help it! You were in a towel!
Nesseth can't help but laugh. "Okay, that was entirely my fault. I usually don't even bother with a towel, since I'm the only one here practically every day. I would have taken my clothes into the bathroom if I didn't forget you were right there, so sorry about that."
Vix blushes and hides her face in the book. "I-it's fine..."
Nesseth smiles a bit. "All the same, I should have remembered."
Narrator: The awkwardness soon fades as the two continue to chat about this and that.