Psi
Full Member
Posts: 627
|
Post by Psi on May 12, 2008 19:08:39 GMT -5
Zionix, entering first only entertained the thought of what the beds might look like, and a simple geometric shape of all the items in the room. figuring the width shape and depth of the room. She slid past the old man with ease, and gave a fleeting glance to him, her pitch black eyes scanning him over before darting to the next thing.
She finally sat at the bar, waiting for her companion.
|
|
|
Post by Teh Donut on Feb 2, 2010 20:58:25 GMT -5
((Alrighty Nin, we'll give it one last go...))
*Stonebreach*
The aging man behind the counter slapped a heavy hand to his face, before running it down to his graying black beard. "Bones," he growled in a sandpapery voice akin to Louis Armstrong, "stop standing in the doorway like that; you'll hurt someone, and we'll be out more business!"
The short and skrawny man aptly named Bones flicked a quick glance to the massive barkeeper, the last remaining greasy stands of white thread on his deeply creased forehead flinging limply about as he did so. He quickly thrust the "menu" parchment into the hands of Janis then half ran/half skuttled behind the counter, where he crouched, only his eyes and nose visible above its level edge.
The Barkeeper stood a full bust height (roughly 1.5 to 2 feet) taller than Janis, making the glass in his large hand look diminutive as he took his hand from his beard and went to polishing. Both his bald head and his gold eye glowed in the firelight as he studied the newcomers intently for a second before dismissing them with a shrug.
"Welcome to the Blood 'n' Bones Tavern, dimension hoppers. M'name's Tobias Blued. Pronounced 'blood.' Friends calls me that, too. This here wretch beside me," Blood stated boredly as he made a quick sideways nod to his hiding partner, "Is Bones, obviously. Now, what can I get you, tow beds, two meals, and directions?"
*Kegan*
Igashu clutched at his chest in mock agony and heartbreak with one hand, and swung the other about in wild, exaggerated Elizabethan theatrical strokes as he stumbled to the exit. If All eyes were going to be on him anyway, then he might as well play it up.
"Ack! Oh, Constance, how could you...how could you wound me sooooo...I thought we had something special! I thought you loved me..." His expression of anguish and hearbreak could barely contain the raging laughter boiling inside him as he opened the door for his companion.
|
|
|
Post by Ninmast on Feb 2, 2010 22:09:42 GMT -5
*Stonebreach*
Janis' bright blue eyes flew open wide at the terms by which Bleud addressed them. "Forgive me, what did you call us?"
He had no imagining that if this world had any concept of alternate dimensions, a mere bartender would know of them, much less be able to pick out a pair from one such dimension so easily. Hopefully, there would be no trouble from such.
*Kegan*
Constance chuckled as he finished the last of his ale and set the mug back down. "I guess we'll be back for our rooms later," he told the bartender with a wave of his hand. He had been expecting conflict for the evening, which was overly typical, and the heady ale didn't really take the edge off of that, so he was looking forward to the festival events.
Heck, they might even have some sort of Harvest Brawl.
|
|
|
Post by Teh Donut on Feb 3, 2010 21:07:59 GMT -5
*Stonebreach*
"Dimension hoppers," the bartender repeated. He looked up from his work long enough to notice Janis' expression. Shaking his head slightly, he put away the glass he was holding, then stooped to lean against the counter, putting them on level height for the conversation. "You seem confused. Surprised..."
"They smell like death," muttered the voice of Bones from behind the counter.
"You say that about everyone-"
"EVERYONE SMELLS LIKE DEATH!" Bones jumped up and shouted. He immediately slipped back out of sight behind the bar counter amidst chuckles from a couple of the patrons, and Blood's exasperated sigh.
*Kegan*
As soon as they left the inn, and before they went anywhere, Igashu reached into his pouch and ripped out a strip of gauze. He handed it to Constance and said, "Here, put this on over your eyes. As fun as the circumstances might be, I really don't want to go through another instance of you forgetting you have your eyes closed."
|
|
|
Post by Ninmast on Feb 4, 2010 16:41:48 GMT -5
*Stonebreach*
Janis blinked in surprise at the outburst, but refrained from comment as the skinny old man disappeared from sight once more, instead turning attention back to the bartender. "Um ... you were saying?"
*Kegan*
"Yeah," Constance agreed without argument, wrapping it around his eyes and tying it behind his head like a blindfold. "Where do you think we should start? These are your lands, you know the events likely to be held."
|
|
|
Post by Teh Donut on Feb 6, 2010 10:42:42 GMT -5
*Stonebreach*
The bartender simply shrugged again. "Eh, was just saying how ya look surprised and confused as to how the big bald muscleman behind the counter serving drinks and beds to travelers and yokels would possibly know anything about something as complex as dimensional mechanics. Buuuut, it doesn't much matter anyhow." Blood finished with a dismissive wave of his hand. "Explaining everything about myself would probably take all night, you probably don't care much for an old man's tales anyhow, and it's already past Bones' bedtime..."
"...death, death, death, death..."
"...as you can tell. I can probably amuse you with some stories, and it looks like you could use some helpful information about this realm you find yerself in, but perhaps you'd like something to eat or drink first, eh?"
*Kegan*
While they were in the inn, festivities had apparently begun, and several stalls were already open and attracting customers. Most of the fare was pretty standard as merchants from near and far sold wares of use for the upcoming harvest season, and a few tents provided various kinds of cheap and easy entertainment for all manner of folks. Many farmers opened the last of their cart stalls to sell the last of their stock before the next season's stock was harvested. Being a border town was, though, there were more than a few merchants with curios and trinkets both from within the kingdom and from far-off lands, and there were more circus/dance/wandering troubadour groups than one would probably find in any in-kingdom town...so much so that unless one stood next to any one group, the collective "music" meshed into a kind of harmonic background hum to the din of the crowds.
Igashu scratched his head as they began walking into the crowd, then shrugged. "Honestly? Before I began traveling, I hardly left the palace, much less cared about any kind of common harvest festival, so this is all more or less new to me. Not like I had much time to chum it up with the citizenry anyway before Nevina and I were- Oh hey, look, they do have a yale roast!" Igashu quickened his pace, almost leaving Constance behind, and made his way toward a big tent near the square, where a large yale was roasting over a fire on an oversized spit. From what Constance could see, it didn't look like there were any brawls brewing...
|
|
|
Post by TrueBlue© on Feb 6, 2010 16:30:51 GMT -5
No trouble, no great wrongs to right, not even a brawl brewing.
The thin frame of Rush Delta, fourth Guardian of the Gates of Pyra, was quivering. The ferocious cold (perhaps a record-smashing sixty, Fahrenheit) nearly chilled her to the bone, but she was a tough girl, and besides, there was shopping to do.
She perused this booth and that kiosk, examining bracelets and rings. She'd already bartered off most of her uniform—being fireproof was a selling point in this land—and now she was confident in her "disguise." The black leggings were filched, and the chocolate half-sleeved and hooded robe had been lifted from where it was draped over a table, but her new gloves—glorious black leather gloves that went nearly up to her armpits! Joy of joys!—had been traded for her jacket, and the gold, jangling bangels for her shirt. Her pants were folded up in a crate, now, and she'd gotten a scarf for them.
Now her cobalt skin was well covered, the lower part of her face masked by the scarf, and her eyes reasonably hidden by her hood. All that remained were her white boots, and she wouldn't surrender those so easily, even though they didn't match her outfit, which was almost unbearable. But a girl's got to run, she reasoned, and Rush didn't fully trust this realm's level of shoe craftsmanship. She still had her belt, too, slung around her middle because she felt the shapeless robe didn't compliment figure well enough, and she ought to keep some of her indentity.
Anyway.
The Guardian tried to keep vigilant. She glided through the crowd, from vendor to vendor, proud of her new jewelry, looking for trouble. That was the way these little vacations worked, after all. Rush had suddenly appeared in this realm—in a haystack, actually—sometime that afternoon, and she still hadn't found any tyrannical kings to dethrone or uncovered any sinister plots, and so she set about enjoying the country. The sights had held her interest long enough, but now the smells were beginning to hit her. Even as she turned a ruby pendant over in her hands, she was thinking about raw meat, and burnt meat, and their tastes and textures and blood. Her glowing eyes kept flicking over to the nearest spit where a big, unknown animal was roasting, its skin blackening over the gentle caress of hissing flame, turning, cooking slowly. Her stomachs were hollering at her, and she set the necklace down, wondering how much food, if any, her belt buckle might get her.
Rush left the booth and strode too quickly toward the rotating carcass. Oh, Mogg, she could smell it, oh, she might very well starve to death if she didn't get something soon, oh oh oh, so cold, so hungry. She hugged herself tightly, watching her boots and thinking so intently on roasting mammal that she never noticed Constance until she nearly tackled him over. "Oof! Che, Subu-!" She started to swear in Northern Imperial, but caught herself. "-I'm so sorry, are you alright?"
|
|
|
Post by Ninmast on Feb 6, 2010 17:55:07 GMT -5
*Stonebreach*
Janis nodded in agreement as she glanced to Xionix before turning back to the bartender. "Actually, right now, we're looking for my brother. Tall, pointed ears frayed at the tips ... Usually keeps his eyes closed?"
*Kegan*
Fortunately, given the prince's tendency for getting distracted, it was difficult to lose the Half-Rentisian, even when running through a crowd. Some had even referred to his effective combination of senses and physical refinement as a disturbingly hunter-esque result. Igashu had hardly taken off before Constance had moved to follow, drawing closer to the roast. His own senses took in the smell with a smile. "Hard to believe anything could smell so good when we just ate. So that's a yale, huh? There aren't any in Rentis."
It was then that the newcomer ran into him from behind, though it seemed to disturb him little and budge him even less. He turned his head to glance down at her, she who was nearly two whole feet shorter than he. But that mattered little. The surges of energy that pulsed and circulated throughout her body were off. Cycles that he associated with organs were misplaced and in some cases duplicated, and there were other pulses that were altogether foreign. She also seemed to have a rather high internal temperature. The weather, pleasant as it was, must have seemed absolutely frigid to her.
He nudged Igashu to get his attention on what may have been important as he turned entirely to face the young woman. "I'm fine," he finally answered blankly. "Igashu," he asked his traveling companion, "are there any breed of people in your land that are from extremely hot climates and possess two hearts and two stomachs?" He didn't anticipate the prince having a positive answer.
|
|
|
Post by Teh Donut on Feb 6, 2010 20:24:10 GMT -5
*Stonebreach*
As Janis gave the description, Blood took two crystal cups from a shelf, filled them with water, and set them before the two new visitors. He scratched his chin/beard as he then pondered, "Don't believe I have, no. I fairly certain I'd remember such a person, too. That don't mean he hasn't been around these parts, of course, just that he hasn't been in here. Tell me more about him though, and I might eb able to give you an idea of where to look; do you think your brother would be living around here? Would he be going somewhere?"
*Kegan*
"Hm?" Igashu looked back over his shoulder at Constance, though his eyes almost immediately to the more womanly shape of the new stranger with whom Constance seemed to be talking. Constance's question seemed rather odd to him, and he tured slightly and scratched almost involuntarily at the day-old stubble under his chin; though he knew it made him look more like the 'serious ranger' he was, after a life of being a clean-shaven prince, it still itched like hell.
But at least now he could pass off scratching it as if he was actually deep in thought.
"Possibly," he responded, then crossed his arms in mild annoyance at his companion's otherwise handy ability. "There's all manner of different...beings. I personally know none as you describe, but if I've seen a civilization of hyper-intelligent, armour-wearing, oversized telepathic bugs, and if I've traveled these past few months with a blind swordsman who sees in energy, then I suppose anything's possible. In either case, don't you think it's rather rude to speak of other species in terms of breeds when a fine feminine example is standing, not only within earshot, but right in front of you?"
((Igashu's vocabulary expands by an order of magnitude in the presence of the opposite sex. Regardless of species, apparently.))
|
|
|
Post by Ninmast on Feb 6, 2010 20:33:15 GMT -5
*Stonebreach*
Janis leaned back somewhat and tapped his lip in a gesture that unconsciously fit his feminine appearance. "Well, I doubt he'd just settle down. He tends to get into fights wherever he goes. If he's traveling, he's probably trying to find any sort of reference to Rentis, our homeland."
*Kegan*
Even if he hadn't been wearing a blindfold, Constance's flattening of his expression couldn't have been plainer. "Of course," he answered. "Pardon my choice of words. Nevertheless ..." He turned back to Rush and she would have the odd impression of being stared at despite the man being blindfolded and his eyelids shut behind it. "Just how far away are you from?"
|
|
|
Post by TrueBlue© on Feb 6, 2010 21:04:10 GMT -5
If Rush was, indeed, all that offended by the verbal vivisection, the only sign of it was the sudden jerk of her head, like she'd been hit. You don't just talk about other people's organs like that. But then she felt a twinge of homesickness at the thought, though she hadn't been gone even a few hours. Lucubro said things about people's organs all the time.
Cautiously, she lifted her hood to get a look at the men talking about her. Her eyes narrowed in scrutiny—the one she'd hit was wearing a blindfold. "Indeed," she scolded. On her homeworld, the blind were usually children born to a wealthy family, but with grey eyes, and so the child's eyes were removed. Her expression relaxed, and she pulled the scarf away from her lips to be heard clearly, though she tried to guard her barbaric teeth as she answered Constance. "I'm not sure how far it is. I'm looking for-" she caught herself again. I'm looking for a wrong to right. Commander might have said something like that, but not Rush. "...for... I'm going over there. I'm hungry." Nice save.
|
|
|
Post by Ninmast on Feb 6, 2010 21:17:26 GMT -5
*Kegan*
Constance turned his head to follow her motion and see her indicating the yale roast. "Indeed? That was our destination, as well. I believe, in my companion's present mindset," he glanced toward Igashu, "he would not permit you to approach further without allowing him to pay for your share."
|
|
|
Post by TrueBlue© on Feb 6, 2010 21:42:39 GMT -5
*Kegan*
"Would he?" The woman's eyes lit up with sparks and hope as she whirled on Igashu, more than willing to take monetary advantage of complete strangers. "That would be so kind of him! And I don't even know your names!"
|
|
|
Post by Teh Donut on Feb 7, 2010 6:47:20 GMT -5
*Stonebreach*
Blood nodded his understanding. "Of course. That makes it simpler. If he's trying to find knowledge on how to get somewhere or do anything, then he will eventually head to Eryif. the archives there are massive; if you need to know anything, you'll most likely find what you're looking for there. However, if he's trying to head somewheres and already knows where, then he'll most likely head to Medst. Lucky for you, Medst is on the way; unluckily, Eryif is about as 'other side of the kingdom' as it gets and is at least a month and a half's travel by foot from here. You have a map?"
*Kegan*
Igashu smiled and nodded. "I'm Igashu. The grumpy blind one's Constance. He doesn't like delicious foods anyway, and since he so kindly volunteered to use his portion of my funds, I will gladly pick up the tab for you!"
|
|
|
Post by Ninmast on Feb 7, 2010 10:50:33 GMT -5
*Stonebreach*
Janis had to shake his head. "No, we have no map, nor way to know where which place is located. I came to this city by a friendly ride, while my companion arrived more recently."
*Kegan*
"Psh," the "grumpy blind one" scoffed. "Tightwad. You know you were going to offer, anyway. Besides, you keep all of our funds, even the ones that are mine."
It was true, but it had been a matter of necessity for Igashu to be the moneykeeper of the two of them. Constance's eyesight prevented him from being able to distinguish coin types.
|
|