1??????????Soul Bound
1.2????????Taking Control
1.2.4??????An Artful Carnivale
1.2.4.2????Why is there a red explosion hazard warning triangle on your coffee cup?
Vessel-Kafana was sitting on her bed in the Sanctum with Vessel-Alderney, who was polishing a tiny hammer with a small cloth. She sang a brief harmony melody and touched Wellington with her green gem, before entering Wellington’s mind.
Vessel-Kafana: Hey Self! Wellington tells me this is the most time efficient way to tell you stuff. He’s going to make recordings for the others too, but this is just you and me. *joy*
Thank you for the letter you wrote me on Droday. Would it be ok if us Vessels went along on the adventure to talk to Nomia, when that’s arranged? If we bring along a bull, it should be pretty safe. I’ve never seen an undine. *longing*
We’ve been keeping busy. On Racday we accompanied Captain Lelio on a patrol to improve our horse riding. At noon I fed them lunch and we taught them volleyball. I think Lelio must be facing some serious problems, because he really had a lot of anger to take out. Poor Fandorin was nearly knocked out by one of his spikes. *memory*
On Racday afternoon I spent time developing food to cure diseases with Columbina. We came up with some bread wafers, but they take a lot of mana to empower. While I was getting the mana back she insisted I practice what she calls ‘knife techniques’, chopping and skinning things, faster and faster. As a result, our level in Cook has increased and she says “Now you won’t shame me, I will send you to the Bruno Banquet Master, that at least once in your life you can experience the full grandeur of gastronomy.” *giggle*
Racday evening I went with Tomsk and Alderney to the zoo. Spirit-Tomsk flipped in and carried on his initiation into the Hunter’s Guild with a gruelling test involving tracking a poisonous giant spider through a dark trap-strewn forest and returning with its fangs. Alderney and I had a much easier time, petting nocturnal animals while guided by Faispeu. *images of beautiful luminescent flying jellyfish-bats*
Zerday morning I slept in a bit, and then helped out the priests doing healing in Basso. The wafers worked! *triumph* I’ve really managed to improve the level of our sleep debuff, practicing on patients who’re in pain. There were quite a few of those in the healing station near the border with the Arsenal, beggars with sores, malnutrition and even missing limbs. The priests can’t keep up. I know there are some other adventurers who have joined the sanctum. You’re going to be away for 5 days; would it be ok if I tried to encourage their vessels to help with healing during downtime? *pleading and a vision of rows and rows of groaning kids on stretchers with blood seeping from lesions on their skin, being put to sleep by Kafana’s lullaby*
Zerday afternoon was the big crafting ritual that we all voted for in the schedule. We’re getting good at working together, I think. Tomsk’s drumming has really improved. Even Rudolfo praised us, and despite his looks he has very high standards when it comes to crafting. Doctor Johannes was there, but only spoke to Wellington. We’re not interesting to him, apparently. I guess I’ll forgive him though - he’s been working as hard as any three priests on healing plague victims, and he helped me work out how to cure disease upon more than one patient at a time. *technique*
Anyway, where was I? Oh, yes, the ritual. Alderney took that massive hammer she got from Wibano and replaced the ‘of maiming’ enchantment upon it with one copied from Rudolfo’s own hammer, using ‘A fine mattresses’ process devised by Wellington. It took three teams of mages holding the projections and, apparently, the consent of the hammer itself! I didn’t really pay attention; I was too busy rushing between groups, keeping them all buffed and hoping they wouldn’t explode. This is what we ended up with:
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Tianzi (EPIC)(UNIQUE)
Shrinking Mountainous Lump Hammer of Legendary Forging
Forging - may be used to complete a ritual sealing an enchantment to an item
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Legendary Forging - +25% chance of critical success when forging
Mountainous - Concentrate for 5 minutes to gradually adjust this item’s weight
Shrinking - the item’s size corresponds to its current weight
Requires 2 STR for every 5 points of base damage
"Created when the patriarch of the ogre mages snapped off a mountain peak and compressed it."
Durability: INDESTRUCTIBLE
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She’s really pleased with it, and tried badgering Johannes to come up with a way to make it fly but he fled, pleading an appointment to see a man about a dog.
Oh, one last thing. I dropped off the mittens at Signora Moda like you asked. You didn’t specify what you wanted them to add, so asked them for enchantments to help Alderney with petting animals. Looking forward to being us tomorrow.
Your Self. *hugs*
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She made it to the table just as Heather was transferring a pan of rather crisped bacon onto a plate containing two enormous slices of toasted bread slathered in fresh butter. A moment later three fried eggs followed them, one egg with its yolk intact, and a liberal amount of garlic. Garlic for breakfast? Nadine could see Ketah wincing slightly, from the screen on the wall.
Nadine decided to ignore the new scorch marks on the ceiling and projected calm into her voice. Gorana could scrub it off, later.
Nadine: “Hey Heather. Thanks for cooking. How’d it go?”
Heather: “S’no problem. Just apply heat and motion, right?”
Nadine: “Right. My vessel self showed me the forging hammer they crafted. Looks like you and Wellington have cracked the enchantment thing. Everything looking good for tomorrow?”
Heather happily munched her egg and bacon sandwich, bits dripping from the sides, and answered between mouthfuls.
Heather: “They did? Awesome! I’m going to use it to do some jewellery crafting with Harlequin and Gustav, then concentrate upon armour. The penalties for dying get really nasty once you reach level 40, and skill progression also slows down.”
*munch*
Heather: “Mythoi are go. We’ll spin around the village doing repairs in the morning, maybe look in on the drone sports training, then high tail it out of here to watch the local Mythoi launch, and sight see along the way.”
*munch*
Heather: “I’m going to have to spend most of this evening doing media stuff, though, to fill the release queue in advance. Anything you want us to focus on?”
*crunch*
Nadine: “My vessel self suggested she spend some of the time teaching other vessels, and also wants to go on a trip to do the Nomia quest if there is one. Think you could persuade Hachiko or Omobono to go along, and make learning how to work with your vessel be a selling point for Burrow participation?”
Heather: “Sure. Hachiko is too polite to refuse, and Omobono owes me one - I tipped him off about the Mythoi launch in Sikasoko.”
Nadine: “Hey, no pressuring Hachiko! Nice behaviour should be reciprocated, not taken advantage of.”
Heather: “Not even for the greater good? You’d never make it in Nanshan. C’mon, we’re diving into the Arsenal. Let’s see if your milk of human kindness survives until the end of the day.”
Nadine felt taken aback, then spotted Heather’s attempt at coffee, left almost untouched beside her plate. She grinned.
Nadine: “You’re really not a morning person, are you Heather? Did you try to get your coffee faster by adding extra heat?”
Heather: “Awa’ ‘n bile yer bawbag, yer wee doaty nyaff.”
Nadine: “Tsk tsk, don’t bite the hand that feeds you. I was about to offer to make you a proper cup and bring it up to you while you get everyone started, then swap in while you swap out to drink it…”