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Post by Nerius on Sept 10, 2021 18:59:50 GMT -6
[196]
The gem dragon was on to something, and after a few moments of searching, Nerius felt a pulse of excitement from the gem dragon's side of the link, as she started digging into the floor. Nerius walked over, looking over her shoulder; at first, he couldn't see anything but ordinary stone, but after a bit of digging from Ice, he could see a vein of green tracing through the rock.
Ore, by the looks of it, which meant it would probably take a bit for her to dig it all up. He'd likely get in the way more than anything, so Nerius left the gem dragon to dig, as he explored the small chamber. There really wasn't much, it was smaller than his living room, and really the only thing of interest was the scattering of loose stones. Lacking anything else more captivating, Nerius decided to investigate the loose rocks littering the floor.
(Nerius: 16/20) (Ice: Lv 58, 291/295 | Lyl 58, 291/295)
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Post by Nerius on Sept 10, 2021 19:07:15 GMT -6
[197]
They were scattered at first, but were denser near the wall, and on closer inspection it appeared that the small bits of rubble had fallen from a small hole in the wall. It was much to small for someone person sized, but would have fit a gem creature quite well. There could be something there, said critters tended to horde gems, and there might be something in the hole or in the rubble. Nerius checked through the scattered stones first, in case anything had fallen out. It was a more exposed area, and easy to spot, so he wasn't too surprised when he didn't find anything but dull chunks of grey rock.
Ice was continuing to dig, and had exposed a decent chunk of the ore. Her small claws had far more dexterity than a pickaxe, and she was able to delicately scrape away the stone from the vein of ore.
(Nerius: 17/20) (Ice: Lv 58, 292/295 | Lyl 58, 292/295)
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Post by Nerius on Sept 10, 2021 19:13:26 GMT -6
[198]
The hole itself was a better bet, and Nerius knelt down, shining the flashlight up into the hole. It was clogged with bits of rock, it looked like the little tunnel had at least partially collapsed, and not seeing anything hazardous, Nerius reached in a scooped the rocky bits downward. They clattered loudly in the small cavern, and though at first Nerius didn't see anything of interest, after a few scoops he spotted something pale and blue glimmering from the pile. He paused, picking up the stone to examine it. Definitely a gem, probably aquamarine, nothing remarkable, but it was something, and the first gem of the day.
Though technically, Ice had found the ore first, she just hadn't fully excavated it yet. She was nearly there, it wasn't a terribly large vein, though compared to her it was a big chunk, and would have been difficult for a creature her size to move.
(Nerius: 18/20) (Ice: Lv 58, 293/295 | Lyl 58, 293/295)
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Post by Nerius on Sept 10, 2021 19:19:56 GMT -6
[199]
She wouldn't have to though, and after a little more digging, she let out an excited 'scree' to let Nerius know she was done. He looked up at the sound, putting the blue stone away in a pouch before heading over to the gem dragon. It was an unusual color for ore, and he might not have noticed it if not for Ice. "Good job Ice," he told the gem dragon, giving her a pat on the head, before picking up the chunk of ore. It was elongated and lumpy, but it fit in his backpack well enough, even if it was heavy.
He went back to the hole in the wall after that, and lacking anything else to capture her attention, Ice followed him. She was interested in the gem creature sized hole as well, and since Nerius had already cleared some of it out, scampered up into the little tunnel.
(Nerius: 19/20) (Ice: Lv 58, 294/295 | Lyl 58, 294/295)
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Post by Nerius on Sept 10, 2021 19:27:05 GMT -6
[200]
The loose stones were easy for her to dig though, and a small avalanche of pebbles tumbled out as she worked. Ice was quicker at it than he had been, and Nerius picked through the stones as the gem dragon dug them out. So far, it was just more of the stone the walls were composed of, and not anything of interest. It was also making quite the mess, but it was a natural tunnel, not the inside of his house, so it didn't really matter.
Still, it was getting hard to tell which rocks he'd gone through already, and which ones he hadn't looked at yet, so Nerius decided to shovel the looked over rocks further into the cavern. They were quite small, and at least wasn't too heavy work. The tumble of stones from the tunnel was slowing down as well, Ice was probably getting though most of the rubble.
(Nerius: 20/20 +Added!) (Ice: Lv 59, 295/300 | Lyl 59, 295/300)
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Post by Jack on Sept 10, 2021 19:29:59 GMT -6
It held a stone in its clawed hands and beat its strange wings against the air for a moment, glancing around. It was the boss down here, and it heard something... Curious, it went to investigate and then stopped abruptly when it spotted the man and its gem dragon. Hmmm, not the best chances here, but it would still attempt to see what was going on.
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Post by Nerius on Sept 10, 2021 19:50:18 GMT -6
[201]
Less stonefall meant Nerius was able to clear out stone faster than Ice could send them down, and he'd made good progress separating the stone piles. He was facing the tunnel that led further into the mines, and though he hadn't been watching it intently, he did notice movement out of the corner of his eye.
He looked up, and paused; the bronze colored creature hadn't been what he was expecting. Nerius had heard of gargoyles before, but he'd never seen one in person before. It didn't seem hostile, maybe a bit wary? He wasn't an expert of this type of creature's body language. Slowly, he set the shovel against the wall, not wanting to seem like he was holding a weapon at the creature. From what he understood, they were rather intelligent.
Ice, thankfully, was still interested in the hole, and hadn't yet come out to investigate. She didn't always have the best manners, and Nerius was trying to be friendly. "Hello," he greeted the creature. He wasn't entirely sure what to say, but he doubted it could understand him anyway. It was holding a stone, and so he asked, "Are you looking for more gems?"
(Nerius: 1/20) (Ice: Lv 59, 296/300 | Lyl 59, 296/300)
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Post by Jack on Sept 10, 2021 19:53:06 GMT -6
Tilting its head, it then bowed a little and straightened up. Intelligent as an average person, its sharp eyes took in the person for a moment before standing forward and rolling the stone toward him. It could have help, if it befriended this one, it would seem.
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Post by Nerius on Sept 10, 2021 20:02:16 GMT -6
[202]
The gargoyle seemed to bow in response to his speech, though Nerius couldn't tell if the gesture meant the same thing for the creature as it would for fleshier people. Still, whatever the specifics, it seemed to be a friendly greeting, and he bowed slightly in response.
He could still hear Ice digging in the small tunnel, too small for the gargoyle, probably, and every so often a bit of stone tumbled out.
Then, once again, he was surprised, as the gargoyle rolled its gem toward him. Huh, making friends by offering stones was usually his strategy, he'd never encountered a creature willing to give up its gems. "Thank you," he told the gargoyle, picking up the purple stone, before taking out the bit of aquamarine he'd found earlier. "Would you like to trade?" he asked, a gargoyle was a far more interesting find than the little stone, and he set the blue gem out for the creature, before taking a step back.
(Nerius: 2/20) (Ice: Lv 59, 297/300 | Lyl 59, 297/300)
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Post by Jack on Sept 10, 2021 20:17:34 GMT -6
It was confused for a brief moment before remembering. Ah, yes, a trade then. It stepped forward and reached for the stone with a nod of its head before sitting back on its heels and staring at him. After a few moments, it glanced to the side where the dragon was and shook its own head. A few steps and it sliced through the rock with ease, setting aside several large chunks of the wall in front of the man. They could work together, could they not?
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Post by Nerius on Oct 22, 2021 18:10:08 GMT -6
[203]
For a moment, Nerius wasn't sure if the gargoyle was going to accept the trade. There was a pause, but he was relieved when it did reach for the gem, and he made no moves to stop it. Then the gargoyle was staring at him again, and Nerius wasn't entirely sure how to respond, he knew sentient creatures could communicate better than base animals even without words, but that wasn't something he was skilled in.
But then the gargoyle moved to dig, effortlessly carving through the stone, setting the results in front of him. Well, clearly the 'goyle wanted some kind of collaborative mining, but Nerius wasn't entirely sure what. Maybe it wanted the larger chunks broken apart? He had a chisel and mallet, and set to work cracking open the large stones the gargoyle set out.
He did have to pause for a moment to tell his gem dragon, "Ice, don't be a jerk." The gem dragon had poked her head out of the wall, and had been eyeing the gargoyle suspiciously. She listened though, and after giving the gargoyle another suspicious look, went back to picking through her pile, putting herself between the gargoyle and the stones.
(Nerius: 3/20) (Ice: Lv 59, 298/300 | Lyl 59, 298/300)
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Post by Nadia on Oct 30, 2021 11:32:36 GMT -6
Ah, yes! A team effort. The gargoyle seems pleased to see you get to work alongside it, and continues in its efforts to carve chunks of rock from the wall. It even appears to be avoiding doing so too close to you - no chance of hitting you with loose rubble. It must be warming up to you.
[Congratulations, you have successfully tamed the creature!]
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Post by Nerius on Oct 31, 2021 16:42:20 GMT -6
[204]
Though the gargoyle was happy with the arrangement, as was Nerius, Ice was not so much. She was jealously scooting her little pile of (perfectly plain) stones away from the gargoyle. The 'goyle either didn't notice, or didn't care, far more interested in carving chunks of stone from the wall. Nerius noticed though, and wasn't surprised. Ice had always been particularly protective of 'her' stuff, and common mining wisdom was that you didn't bring multiple familiars at once.
Clearly Ice was jealous, and it would probably be best to cut the trip a little shorter than intended, or at least, to not go as deep into the mines as he'd planned. They were getting along okay so far, but he didn't want to push it. Besides, the gargoyle was doing an effective job here, digging away at the walls. Cracking open the stone chunks wasn't the most interesting work, but it did mean he was working with stone that other miners couldn't have touched.
(Nerius: 4/20) (Ice: Lv 59, 299/300 | Lyl 59, 299/300)
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Post by Nerius on Oct 31, 2021 16:49:39 GMT -6
[205]
With any luck, there'd be veins of something in there. Though, it did mean there was less of a chance of finding a familiar's horde, unless of course the gargole dug into another tunnel. Which was quite possible, Nerius already knew of one familiar tunnel off the cavern, Ice had been digging out the loose rock. She'd paused, instead focused on sifting through the pile of rubble to make sure there wasn't anything shiny that the gargoyle might take if she left it unattended.
But, finding nothing, she'd scampered back into the tunnel. The debris were tumbling out more slowly now, clearly she was having to dig through solid stone, rather than clearing out existing rubble. Nerius couldn't actually see what she was doing, or if the small tunnel narrowed or ended, it was far too small for him to fit in. Hopefully there was more to the tunnel, as that meant there were more places for a familiar stash to be hidden.
(Nerius: 5/20) (Ice: Lv 60, 300/305 | Lyl 60, 300/305)
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Post by Nadia on Oct 31, 2021 18:52:02 GMT -6
What a beautiful marquise.
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