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Post by Ashe on Sept 6, 2019 23:21:24 GMT -6
"Let's go see what we can find at the Mansion, eh?" Ashe asked his companions, nodding toward the big house up ahead. It changed every year and was weird and funky, but it was the best place to go, besides the Beyond, to explore and have adventures. You never knew what to expect when you went there! It would be a simple boring quest, or it could be a maze you started to believe you'd never find your way out of. It was thrilling. The trick was deciding which pets to bring with you on the outings. Sometimes it was better, more comforting at least, to bring brawny pets. Usually, it was better to bring smaller ones, in case you needed to make a quick getaway or travel through a small door. Ashe sort of wanted to bring an Equillion with him this time around and just go riding on the grounds, but he wasn't sure how well that would go over. Could he even find treasure on the grounds without going in?
Inyala and Charon abandoned the apple, deciding that Ashe was right and that they had better options for things to do right now. They walked and floated along after Ashe on the way to the Mansion, with Charon doing cute little spins.
Ashe: 0 9/20 Inyala: 0 4/5 Charon: 0 4/5 - Loyalty
September Post 4
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Post by Ashe on Sept 7, 2019 0:08:11 GMT -6
They wandered through the orchard a little while longer, occasionally with one of them getting distracted with something and wandering off and the other two having to follow along behind, off of their desired path. This time, it was Ashe who saw something and he veered suddenly. Inyala, being in tune with her master of course, caught on and moved with him almost the same instant, but Charon continued to swim through the air like he wasn't about to stop. He did a flip and a twirl and then spun around - and realized he had no audience to speak of. Concerned, he cast about looking for his friends and when he found them, he zipped right back over to Inyala's side.
Meanwhile, Ashe had found what he was looking for. It was old and rusty looking, caked with dirt that would need washing off, but it looked like an open ring of iron. Which was weird, he hadn't seen anything like this before. He'd heard they were good luck, but why would one be here? He hesitated, then decided to take it with him. "Just in case. Who knows, this could bring us good luck. And we need all the good luck we can get out here!" He turned on his boot heel and walked back in the original direction.
Ashe: 0 10/20 Inyala: 1 0/5 Charon: 1 0/5 - Loyalty
September Post 5
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Post by Renathan on Sept 7, 2019 7:25:16 GMT -6
Not too far away, a staff just drooping with reddish berries leans up against a tree... What is it a symbol for? Beneath it appears to be some sort of eye... No, a marble, right?
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Post by Ashe on Sept 8, 2019 17:51:19 GMT -6
They were walking back toward the Mansion's front entrance again. The weird iron trinket was hooked through one of Ashe's belt loops and nearly forgotten about; little did Ashe know that you should keep horseshoes upright or else all the luck might fall out of it... He was pretty good at turning bad luck into good luck, though, so maybe the reverse horseshoe would work just as well for him. Inyala scurried along the ground, climbing up and over fallen tree branches, if they happened to encounter one (they'd found two), and seemed to have engaged in a short game of tag with Charon. It was short lived, because the amulet spirit didn't understand fairness and it just floated out of reach whenever he didn't want Inyala to tag him. The Imp tried to flap her wings hard enough to take off and fly with him, but her wings could only let her hover just above the ground, it took too much effort to actually fly with them. Too bad she couldn't float! She ended the game by snapping her fingers and sending a small ember soaring toward Charon, who dodged but appeared disgruntled and insulted. He flew back to Ashe to, figuratively, lick his wounds. Ashe murmured softly to the little spirit and scratched under its chin.
Ashe: 0 11/20 Inyala: 1 1/5 Charon: 1 1/5 - Loyalty
September Post 6
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Post by Ashe on Sept 15, 2019 16:49:56 GMT -6
It was Ashe who first noticed that there was something leaning up against a tree. It looked like a large stick, with something hanging from the tip of it that looked like berries. Ashe was sure there was a God of Wine in some ancient lore's text, that had that as a symbol for his worship, but he could neither place the time nor location of such a myth, so he dismissed it. Unless maybe it was one of the Gods present in this mansion during this month? He walked over and picked it up. If nothing else, it would be quite entertaining to swipe at poor unsuspecting Imps and Amulet Spirits with this thing!
As he picked it up, he saw something lying behind it. It looked like a simple glass marble, and he quickly picked it up. Looking it over, it reminded him of the eye of a Salaves, forever etched in glass. It was a pretty trinket and Ashe hurried to put it away in his pocket, before he accidentally dropped it.
Seeing his interest in things that weren't them, Inyala and Charon made their way over to Ashe, curious and ready to snoop or play, whichever came first. Inyala eyed the staff from the ground, checking it out, while Charon flew up.
Ashe: 0 12/20 Inyala: 1 2/5 Charon: 1 2/5 - Loyalty
September Post 7
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Post by Ashe on Sept 26, 2019 18:44:38 GMT -6
Ashe idly dangled the staff over Inyala's head, watching the Imp swipe at it good naturedly. Charon floated around the top of it, investigating and just trying to dodge the swinging stick.
It didn't take long for Ashe to get bored of this, and Inyala in turn, though it appeared Charon could easily continue toying with the end of the stick for the foreseeable future. Such a cute little dragon, still exploring the big wide world, not often out of his amulet these days. Ashe felt bad about that, but he was out now and they had a lot to explore. He tucked the staff away and started back toward the mansion. They still weren't to the front door yet and already finding stuff! The air was crisp and fresh and he found that he, and Inyala (since Charon floated), all seemed to have a little pep in their steps, most likely from the weather. No longer scorching hot, not yet too cold for Ashe to venture outside besides going from barn to barn on the back of a fire horse (to keep his butt nice and toasty of course!) It made him want to wear flannel and drink some cider. Maybe hard cider. Maybe the Panther would stock hard cider...
Ashe: 0 13/20 Inyala: 1 3/5 Charon: 1 3/5 - Loyalty
September Post 8
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Post by Ashe on Sept 26, 2019 19:05:23 GMT -6
A gentle breeze blew through the orchard, sweeping Ashe's hair back and making his nose a little cold. It was fresh and crisp, but it was also a hint at what was to come, and Ashe wasn't that thrilled about the cold weather coming one day. He was a summer man, preferring the hot sun and warm nights. Though, if he was being honest, crisp nights for bonfires and roasting marshmallows would be fun. Come to think of it, maybe he could find some marshmallows here and start a fire somewhere in the orchard. Inyala and Ashe could roast some balls of sugar together, and share with Charon... Yes, he decided that would be pretty fun, once the sun went down!
Ashe hoped they could explore a little inside the building first before they got settled for the night. He hurried the last few yards to the door and walked up the steps to go inside. Charon floated along merrily behind him, and Inyala scurried along on the ground. Occasionally, she found something that required extra attention and she would run off, only to appear suddenly in front of Ashe and keep up with him. The first time she did it, she startled him into stopping! But by the third time, he expected it.
Ashe: 0 14/20 Inyala: 1 4/5 Charon: 1 4/5 - Loyalty
September Post 9
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Post by Ashe on Sept 29, 2019 16:15:03 GMT -6
They finally reached the doors of the mansion and Ashe fumbled with the door handle. It felt stuck at first, and he gave it a wiggle, which caused it to click open finally. Weird, that had never happened to him before. It usually felt like the Mansion was welcoming him with open arms and almost pulling him inside. Oh well, they were able to enter now. Ashe opened the door carefully, making sure Inyala had time to get out of the way without getting hit. She danced around behind his legs and came at the door from the other side, darting inside as soon as she could. Charon followed her, floating along behind, his head twisting this way and that to get a good look at his surroundings. To see above, he even rolled onto his belly, claws curled cutely against his fur. This was a big place! But also weird and different and... Magical. It was easy for a creature of magic to sense other magic ; hell, Ashe was able to sense that there was magic here, though what kind and where at exactly remained a mystery to him. No, magic was all around them, making it near impossible for a mere mortal to distinguish one from the other.
Ashe: 0 15/20 Inyala: 2 0/5
Charon: 2 0/5 - Loyalty
September Post 10
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Post by Renathan on Sept 29, 2019 16:23:38 GMT -6
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Post by Ashe on Sept 29, 2019 17:22:59 GMT -6
Inyala scurried inside, her little feet touching the hard wooden floors. They were softer to the touch, and easier on the feet, than concrete, but not as soft as the dirt. However, they were more slippery and harder for her to grip, so the instant she lost her footing, she slid into the wall. She hadn't been going fast enough to hurt herself, which was a relief, just enough to hurt her pride. She hopped back up, dusted herself off, and looked around to wait for her master. He was still in the doorway, looking down at her first with concern and then with amusement. He chuckled a bit and shook his head at her antics, and she scowled at him. Well! At least one of them was getting some entertainment out of the other's discomfort! She muttered something under her breath and hurried down the short hall to the first door.
Ashe walked along behind her, taking his time. He wasn't about to make a mistake like his little blue girl had done!
Ashe: 0 16/20 Inyala: 2 1/5
September Post 11
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Post by Ashe on Sept 29, 2019 17:23:26 GMT -6
When Ashe had opened the door and Inyala had went running inside, only to crash into something, Ashe had reacted immediately and recalled Charon to his amulet. The dragon had protested but was sucked back into the amulet with a hiss. Ashe then rushed inside to check on his Imp, but she was looking all embarrassed and Ashe was, honestly, glad that she was feeling well enough to feel embarrassed more than anything else. He didn't know what he would do without Inyala by his side. There were always murmurings going on, about owning sentient pets and whether or not it was slavery. When Yamase had given her to him, even back then the dragon had referred to her as a slave, and Ashe had bought her anyway... Was it wrong? Hey, far as Ashe was concerned, she was living a good life. She was a lucky one. She still did his bidding, but she wasn't like... whipped or abused. That counted for something, didn't it?
Ashe: 0 17/20 Inyala: 2 2/5
September Post 12
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Post by Ashe on Sept 29, 2019 17:23:52 GMT -6
They were quickly reunited, and Inyala noted the absence of Charon immediately. She cocked her head and asked, in her language, where the dragon had gone. Ashe understood her, the same way anyone might understand which bark means "I need to potty" and "I want food", the same way mothers understood the secret language of their own infants. He gestured to the amulet he wore, explaining that he had gone back inside. "I thought you might have gotten hurt, so I pulled him back to stop him from getting into anything while I attended to you," He explained further, with a shrug. It seemed silly now that he saw Inyala was in one piece, but back then (moments ago) it had seemed like the best option for them all. He had had images dancing in his head of Charon getting into stuff, getting lost, or also getting hurt, all while he was trying to set Inyala up and see what was wrong.
Ashe: 0 18/20 Inyala: 2 3/5
September Post 13
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Post by Ashe on Sept 29, 2019 17:24:21 GMT -6
Luckily for them all, Inyala hadn't gotten hurt, and Ashe was there now. "I'll bring him back out in a little bit," Ashe promised. He knew Inyala liked his company well enough, but also knew that she liked the company of other small creatures whenever he brought them out. Sometime soon, he thought, maybe for a Vai Min Mur event, he would have to get out the Mortlings and let Inyala play with them. He thought that they would all have a nice little play date and maybe he could sneak some training into the mix as well. For now, it was just them. Inyala gave him a nod of understanding, apparently accepting this explanation. She would get to play later, right now it was time to hunt for treasure! That was the goal here, after all - find all the treasure you could, before the Mansion changed its shape and, erm, location again. It was a weird set up that was for sure.
Ashe: 0 19/20 Inyala: 2 4/5
September Post 14
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Post by Ashe on Sept 29, 2019 17:25:03 GMT -6
The mansion was always here in the same place, but Ashe suspected that it was inter-dimensional. It always seemed to change a location, once you stepped on the grounds, and each month it would be different. How else did you explain the tide pools, the palm trees, the graveyard, the orchard? How did you explain the dreamscape that happened in the earlier months? It made more sense to Ashe that the plane of existence was just different than the rest of the city. He wished he knew, he wished he could harness all the wild magic that there was out there, or at least unravel its mysteries to figure out how it worked. But that was the beauty in magic, wasn't it? You didn't know?
Ashe and Inyala made their way into the first room, looking around. It looked like a kitchen, but the kind without an island or a table to actually sit down and eat food. That didn't stop Inyala from hopping up onto the counter, though.
Ashe: 1 0/20 Inyala: 3 0/5
September Post 15
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Post by Ashe on Sept 29, 2019 17:25:34 GMT -6
The Imp looked around the kitchen as soon as she had entered, and she thought she saw something sparkly. She hopped up onto the counter to get a better look and found out it was one of those odd marble things, like the one Ashe had found already. She picked it up in her hands and turned it over this way and that, looking it over with interest. But it was useful only to Ashe, she figured, so she should have it. She handed it over and the man took it from her with a thank you. He pocketed it to make sure it would stay safe, and he got to looking around as well. "What kind of kitchen doesn't have somewhere to eat, even?" Ashe muttered to himself. But he started to smell something, almost like he could feel the smell tickle his nose, entering a nostril. It was very much like an old cartoon where the smell picks someone up and drags them.
Ashe: 1 1/20 Inyala: 3 1/5
September Post 16
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