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Post by Fanged on Sept 22, 2020 20:12:16 GMT -6
Fanged felt the tension between the two gem familiars ease. Ral was an agreeable sort and liked playing most of all. The fact that the Wyrm had gathered so many gems was impressive to him and he was eager to find even more to help add to the pile! He quickly scouted around the area, trying to see if there were any gems close by that he could scavenge. Fanged suspected that this Wyrm had already found most of the gems in this area, but it wouldn't hurt to look around some more. Ral started by sticking his claws under a pile of ordinary rocks. He sorted through them, trying to figure out if any of them were actually hidden gems. The sight was rather adorable and Fanged decided to help him out as well. First, she retrieved Pachinko and waited for the Izer to hop onto the outstretched arm that she offered him.
"Alright Ral, let's see if we can help this Wyrm find some more gems."
She decided that she would search in the high places where the Wyrm wouldn't be able to reach so easily. She reached up into the crevices of the cavern wall, making sure the Wyrm could see what she was doing. Perhaps it would be okay with some extra help searching.
(Ral 5 3/5, 5 3/5 | Pachinko 9 3/5, 10 3/5)
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Post by Nadia on Sept 22, 2020 20:51:08 GMT -6
The wyrm watches, and watches. So you are gem hunters too? It can get on board with that. It begins to poke around in the rocks alongside you, cautious but optimistic.
[Congratulations, you have successfully tamed the creature!]
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Post by Fanged on Sept 23, 2020 13:13:06 GMT -6
Now that the Wyrm respected them, it was a lot more amenable to allowing them to gather up its gem hoard and take it with them. Pachinko perched on her shoulder, watching with interest as she worked. The shiny gems were amusing objects to him, but they didn’t quite provide the motivation he needed to try and find them himself. He much preferred food.
“Okay now that we have everything, I’ll need to take you back to the kennel,” she told the Wyrm.
They didn’t have enough trust in each other yet for the Wyrm to join their expedition. Besides, the amount of gems they had found was more than expected. It would be a lot of work to lug them around the mines! The duo hadn’t gotten very far into the mines. Theoretically, it shouldn’t be difficult to find their way back. Pachinko clung to her shoulder as the woman gathered up her two mining familiars to lead them back the way they had come. She was glad she had put in the effort to teach Pachinko not to be afraid of small spaces considering they had to backtrack through that small tunnel. Before long, they had reached the entrance again.
(Ral 5 4/5, 5 4/5 | Pachinko 9 4/5, 10 4/5)
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Post by Fanged on Sept 23, 2020 13:21:17 GMT -6
She had taken the time to return to her kennel, dropping off the tamed Wyrm and the collection of gems that they had found. Now she had zipped back over to the mines with Pachinko and Ral in tow. She had enjoyed the dynamic of this group and was eager to take them out for a full expedition. When they arrived at the entrance to the mines, Fanged was prepared to take a different path in order to change things up. She waited for Ral to pick one, deciding to let him have that honour. Pachinko watched him with an eager gaze, waiting to see where they would end up going. Eventually, the familiar chose a tunnel that appeared to be lit with old lanterns.
“Well at least we won’t be traveling in the dark,” she remarked.
Pachinko appeared at ease with the choice as well. He settled in snuggly on his favored perch which just so happened to be her shoulder. Ral raced into the entrance of the tunnel happily, checking back briefly to ensure that the woman and her Izer were both still following. He glanced back and forth between the tunnel walls, searching for signs of hidden gems.
(Ral 6, 6 | Pachinko 10, 12)
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Post by Nadia on Sept 23, 2020 14:12:31 GMT -6
A healthy chunk of ore awaits.
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Post by Fanged on Oct 16, 2020 17:31:52 GMT -6
Ral managed to find a piece of ore and was quick to grab it in his mouth. He brought it over to Fanged and dropped it gently at her feet. She leaned down and picked it up, inspecting it briefly before putting it in her bag. Ral seemed pleased with her actions and dashed off to scout ahead. Pachinko was content to perch on Fanged’s shoulder. The Izer was used to being underground now. She didn’t know if he would ever be properly acclimated to the terrain, but he was certainly much calmer than he had been before they had done some training.
“I guess you’re the canary for us in this situation. Though I wouldn’t dare put you in the same amount of danger that those little canaries get put into. I wouldn’t want your health to be at risk to be a warning system. We’re all in this one together,” she mused aloud.
Pachinko liked when she spoke. She knew he couldn’t really understand her, but she wondered what her words sounded like to him. Birdsong sounded like nonsense to her, but the sounds were still pretty and she knew that the song had meaning to other birds.
(Ral 6 1/5, 6 1/5 | Pachinko 10 1/5, 12 1/5)
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Post by Fanged on Oct 16, 2020 21:51:35 GMT -6
Fanged paused for a moment and considered where she wanted to head to. She didn’t know what purpose she had in mind for this expedition, so she would try to take things as easy as she could. That would ensure that they could travel further. Pachinko acted as their lookout from his perch on Fanged’s shoulder. Fanged felt herself settle into a routine as she followed Ral further into the tunnel. The quietness was welcome for once. With silence came safety and Fanged had enough trust in her ears to hear if anything were to sneak up on them.
“Keep up the good work, Ral!” she called out after him.
Ral paused for a moment to look back at her as she spoke to him. If he could grin, Fanged suspected that he would in that moment. She followed him, aware of the consistent weight of Pachinko on her shoulder. His weight was comforting, a reassuring presence. The tunnel around them was rather plain. It made her wish that something exciting would happen. If she wanted to find excitement, she’d need to seek it out herself. The trio moved steadily through the tunnel. They took their time to ensure their safety.
(Ral 6 2/5, 6 2/5 | Pachinko 10 2/5, 12 2/5)
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Post by Fanged on Oct 17, 2020 18:24:55 GMT -6
The mines were not something that Fanged felt she would truly get used to. Even in the serene silence, there was still this sense of dread sitting in the pit of her stomach. She felt better knowing that Pachinko was close to her. Though the Izer wasn’t trained any battle moves, she knew he had quite a few interesting moves hidden up his sleeve. It would take her time to properly train him, but she intended to get around to doing so. For now, they would stick with bonding and basic trick training. She felt a bit better after recognizing the power packed into Pachinko’s small form.
Ral picked up the pace once he realized that Fanged was actually managing quite comfortably as they traveled. She kept an eye focused on Pachinko, just to ensure that he was still comfortable in the space. She wasn’t fond of the claustrophobic feeling that overcame her when she wasn’t paying enough attention to what she was doing. There was always a risk of a tunnel collapse, but it should be avoidable as long as she remained focused. The mines around them could be pretty, but for now she was surrounded with rather boring dirt.
(Ral 6 3/5, 6 3/5 | Pachinko 10 3/5, 12 3/5)
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Post by Fanged on Oct 17, 2020 18:59:02 GMT -6
She found herself suddenly enthralled at the aspect of coming across something more exciting during her trip underground. She wished she was better at this sort of thing, but that would likely only come with experience. She took a deep breath, calming herself as she prepared to venture further into the mines. Ral was happy enough to go along at her own pace. Fanged suddenly felt more confident in herself. She followed Ral, trusting the gem dragon to lead them to the wonders of the mines that she wanted to see. Pachinko was content to remain perched on her shoulder and she wouldn’t complain about that. She liked his presence. Perhaps she would take him to the mansion in the future for further exploration. It was easier to train her pets in the mansion. There was more space and the environment was a little more varied.
She followed Ral as he turned around the bend. They continued on for a while. Gradually, Fanged noted a drop in temperature. The sensation felt unusual. It was expected for the underground to be cooler than the surface, but this felt a little more extreme than that. The only way to find out why would be to investigate.
(Ral 6 4/5, 6 4/5 | Pachinko 10 4/5, 12 4/5)
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Post by Fanged on Oct 17, 2020 19:22:52 GMT -6
It was slow going, but Fanged didn’t mind heading down at a slower pace. Pachinko flew off of his perch and decided to take a look around. He was more at ease in the area. There wasn’t much space for him to move around. When he was done looking around, he returned to her shoulder. His talons dug into her shoulder as he landed and she was slowly getting used to the feeling. The descent steepened and Fanged was glad that she was starting to get a feel for navigating in the underground. Ral kept close to her as they went down the path ahead.
“The tunnels seem sturdy enough at least?” Fanged ended her observation in a question, not quite trusting her sense for this sort of thing.
Ral pressed onwards, checking on her every few minutes just to make sure she was doing okay. They continued like this until the area around them changed even further. The air grew even colder and patches of ice formed on the walls where water had dripped down from above. She touched a finger to the ice, testing to see if it was actually ice. It melted immediately under the warmth of her skin, making her a bit uneasy.
(Ral 7, 7 | Pachinko 11, 14)
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Post by Jack on Oct 17, 2020 19:24:47 GMT -6
That's a cool jade, and does that amber have bugs in it?
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Post by Fanged on Oct 18, 2020 10:20:19 GMT -6
Ral stopped suddenly, his focus shifting to a gem that was on the ground. On closer inspection, Fanged decided that it was a piece of jade. Next to it was a gem that she hadn’t seen before. She retrieved it quickly, surprised to see that it was filled with something. Bugs maybe? She would have a closer look later. Preferably with a book of some sort she could use to identify the darned thing. She placed it away in her bag with the other things she had found. Pachinko leaned down to get a closer look as she did so.
“Hopefully this bodes well for the future spoils of this tunnel,” she remarked to him.
Ral went on ahead and Fanged was quick to follow him. The coldness of the tunnel was offset a bit by all of the walking they were doing. She had dressed fairly warmly, knowing that the underground would be a touch cooler than the fall weather of the outside world. She had dressed in an inconspicuous hoodie and jeans. The perfect disguise from prying eyes. She didn’t expect to see anyone down on her expedition, but if she did she was fully prepared. They continued on.
(Ral 7 1/5, 7 1/5 | Pachinko 11 1/5, 14 1/5)
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Post by Fanged on Oct 18, 2020 15:30:22 GMT -6
Ral was a touch hesitant to proceed when the temperature around them dropped even further. He looked back at Fanged for confirmation that the woman wanted to keep going. When she nodded back at him, he carried on without worry. Pachinko snuggled in closer to her as the air grew frosty as they ventured deeper into the tunnel.
“Well if it gets too cold, we can always turn around. But hypothermia usually takes a long time to set in,” she remarked.
She appreciated Ral’s enthusiasm as he darted forward. Fanged was a little slower than him, but she was excited to check out a potentially new type of tunnel. She was used to dealing with dirt and rock. If she saw some more ice that’d be a real change! She smiled to herself as she went further. She was excited at the prospect of finding even more ice. It appeared like she was going to get her wish. The dirt underfoot gradually began to clump together as ice formed across them. She didn’t know what the source of the moisture was, but clearly water had leaked in from somewhere. It was a bit difficult to walk on, but Fanged had boots on.
(Ral 7 2/5, 7 2/5 | Pachinko 11 2/5, 14 2/5)
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Post by Fanged on Oct 18, 2020 20:00:25 GMT -6
Her hiking boots worked quite well for crossing the underground terrain. Ral didn’t need any extra equipment considering her was designed to thrive in this area. Pachinko might not be a natural fit for the mines, but she had taught him to be okay with the area. As they continued walking, the patches of ice grew thicker and more frequent. She wanted to investigate some more, but in order to do that, she would need to head even deeper first. Ral trotted forward, on alert for any sign of further changes in their environment. Pachinko was curious and remained firmly perched on her shoulder. There wasn’t much room for him to fly around, so she didn’t blame him for staying safely in place on his perch.
The tunnel was twisty and difficult to keep track of. If it branched off in different directions, Fanged was sure that she would lose track of where she had been very quickly. The formations within the cave gradually changed from the regular dirt and rock to finely ground blue dust, giving the tunnel a colourful appearance. Fanged leaned down and grabbed a handful of the strange, blue dirt. If it had been valuable at one point, it was certainly worthless now.
(Ral 7 3/5, 7 3/5 | Pachinko 11 3/5, 14 3/5)
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Post by Fanged on Oct 18, 2020 20:55:35 GMT -6
“I guess it must take a long time to break down gems into a dust that fine,” she remarked.
Ral was enthusiastically darting over the new terrain. He shoved his snout into the dirt, looking quite silly as he explored the immediate area. His joyous mood was infectious and Fanged found herself wanting to explore as well. Even Pachinko had perked up as he observed the sparkling blue ground around them. He flew down from his perch, landing on top of the blue dirt. He scraped the ground with his talon before hopping along after Ral. The two pets played chase with each other for a while.
Fanged watched them patiently, glad to be able to have a bit of a break. She found a rock that was large enough for her to rest on. When Ral and Pachinko were done playing, they rushed over to her and climbed up onto the rock as well. Together, they rested up. Their journey would be a long one and it was better to be prepared for it. When she felt ready, Fanged stood up and brought Pachinko back up to her shoulder where he resumed his perch. Ral then led the way forward.
(Ral 7 4/5, 7 4/5 | Pachinko 11 4/5, 14 4/5)
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