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Post by Renathan on Sept 26, 2019 11:23:32 GMT -6
A rare moment in the mines occurs, where a strange whistling noise emanates from beyond. It almost sounds like a person whistling, but there are rarely people down in the mines. Just what is that?
[Nothing Happens]
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Post by Leafy on Oct 20, 2019 18:00:13 GMT -6
The sound of whistling filled the air. It was concerning considering it sounded identical to the whistling of a humanoid and it was rare to bump into anyone within the mines. Faye froze, her ears flicking forward as she observed the strange noise. There didn’t appear to be anything out of place, but Leafy decided that they would both feel better if they tracked down the source of the sound.
“Don’t get too worried. If it’s dangerous we can always run away,” she informed Faye. “Though that would make us chicken! Be prepared to stand your ground!” Leafy teased Faye. She knew that she hadn’t known the familiar long enough for her to pick up on commands like that.
Faye listened to her words, allowing the sound of Leafy’s voice to drown out the strange whistling. Once the whistling stopped, there seemed little need to try to find where the noise had come from.
(Faye 6 1/5, 11 1/5)
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Post by Leafy on Oct 20, 2019 18:05:10 GMT -6
After all, there were many natural causes that could explain away the sound. The wind could sound almost human like in the right circumstances. Leafy had spent enough time down in the mines that not a whole lot surprised her anymore. She knew if she wanted that extra spark of danger, she would need to look for it. For now, she was content spending time with Faye, trying to find some gems and maybe make a little cash off of them. Faye might be a mining familiar, but she was a crossbreed and hadn’t been born naturally in the mines. She was descended from a Karzik, Rylan.
“Maybe I should spend more time with him. It’s been a long time since I’ve brought him out into the mines,” she mused.
Rylan was her second familiar. Her first had been a Wyrm named Carthamus. She felt a sudden pang of nostalgia. Faye looked over at her with curiosity.
(Faye 6 2/5, 11 2/5)
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Post by Leafy on Oct 20, 2019 18:11:01 GMT -6
The halfbreed was rather slow to warm up to her. Leafy tried not to get offended by that, she knew that Malii were rather wary creatures and Faye had Malii DNA in her. She felt pleased with how the cross had turned out. It had been an idea itching in her brain and the combination of her beloved pets had turned out nicely.
“You were expensive, you know that?” she asked Faye.
Faye didn’t respond, electing instead to sniff at a patch of mushrooms. She wasn’t worried about the creature eating strange mushrooms. After all, Faye had more carnivorous tastes. Curiosity was a much-needed trait in a mining partner. It would allow her to find more gems than the average familiar. None of her mining familiars were as much of an expert as Naieth was, however. Leafy had a soft-spot for her mining familiars. She usually spent a lot of time with them.
(Faye 6 3/5, 11 3/5)
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Post by Leafy on Oct 20, 2019 18:14:59 GMT -6
She wondered what kind of creature Faye would make if she was crossed with something else. Perhaps the reason Leafy was so obsessed with finding new mining crosses to fund was that she ended up spending so much time with them. She had many creatures and not enough time to nurture them all. She felt guilty about that sometimes, but she was much too greedy to ever give them up.
“At least we get to spend some time together, right?” she asked Faye.
The halfbreed glanced at her briefly before looking away. Even if Faye were capable of speech, Leafy doubted she would have all that much to say. Perhaps they could bond by finding some gems. If she really wanted to find gems, she was going to have to put in the hard work. First, they would need to find an area that looked promising. Then she’d be able to dig for gems.
(Faye 6 4/5, 11 4/5)
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Post by Leafy on Oct 20, 2019 18:23:43 GMT -6
It might sound odd if she were ever to tell this to someone else, but Leafy didn’t quite know what areas were the best to look for gems in. The whole process seemed mostly based around luck, though her mining familiars usually seemed able to navigate the system well enough. Quite often, the gems she found were collected in hordes by wild mining creatures. It was nearly impossible to predict where those would be located.
“I suppose that’s what I have you for,” she whispered to Faye. “Though I guess you’ll still be learning about finding gems for the duration of this trip. I’ll try to teach you what I know, but you’ll instinctively know a lot more than me too.”
Faye paused for a moment, indicating that she was paying attention. Leafy wondered how much common speak a non-sentient pet would ever be able to pick up. Certainly not enough.
(Faye 7, 12)
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Post by Jack on Oct 20, 2019 19:37:48 GMT -6
The dragon familiar guarded the sliver of silver carefully as it heard something coming. Rigidly it stared in the direction of the voices and hoped they weren't coming it's way.
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Post by Leafy on Oct 20, 2019 21:05:53 GMT -6
They carried on through the tunnel, searching for a place to settle down and work. Before they got very far, Faye froze. Leafy followed her lead, not quite sensing what the mining cross had picked up on. Leafy took the initiative, peeking around the corner that Faye refused to venture beyond. In the area ahead of them, a green Gem Dragon guarded a piece of silver. Leafy locked eyes on the ore, immediately planning how she could attain it. She supposed taming the creature would be the most efficient way to handle this. The familiar itself was quite valuable as well.
“Hello there, you have a very pretty chunk of ore there,” she spoke to it.
The familiar wouldn’t be able to understand her, but making it aware of her presence seemed like a good start. Sometimes the gem creatures could react violently, but other times they were eager to make friends. Faye stayed out of sight, not wanting any interaction with the creature.
(Faye 7 1/5, 12 1/5)
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Post by Jack on Oct 25, 2019 19:38:28 GMT -6
It stared at her for a moment and then nudged the ore forward before taking a few steps back. Maybe if it offered the ore as payment, she would leave itself alone...
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Post by Leafy on Oct 25, 2019 19:46:56 GMT -6
Leafy found herself very confused. Mining familiars tended to be quite protective of their stash. This one seemed happy enough to offer up the silver ore that it had in its possession. Did it want something from her in exchange? She didn’t have anything on her to trade and she couldn’t exactly trade away her mining equipment. She accepted the silver ore, not one to pass up an opportunity.
“Thanks! That was very kind of you!”
Faye tilted her head. Her eyes were narrowed, as though trying to calculate what the creature’s motives were. She was wary, but she slunk over towards Leafy. She settled in front of the girl, leaning up and sniffing at the silver ore clasped in her hand. When she deemed it to be of value, she clicked in approval. Faye had yet to meet another mining familiar. Leafy thought the meeting was going rather well, but she didn’t want to spook the wild creature.
“This is Faye. We’re here to mine, but we didn’t come here to steal anything from you.”
Leafy had learned a long while ago that most mining familiars weren’t intelligent enough to understand the common tongue. However, if she kept her tone calm and her body language relaxed, creatures might not find her so threatening.
(Faye 7 2/5, 12 2/5)
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Post by Jack on Oct 25, 2019 19:50:20 GMT -6
It backed up a little more and rumbled softly, unsure of what to do. Her voice sounded nice though, but she had taken the silver so readily, it was hard for it to decide what to do. Terrified, it rooted itself in place and rumbled again, this time at her familiar, wondering what they were going to try and do.
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Post by Leafy on Oct 25, 2019 19:55:56 GMT -6
The wild creature appeared to be rather frightened. Leafy didn’t want to scare it off. Admittedly it was a type of Gem Dragon that she didn’t have yet and she was always looking to add it to her collection.
“Hey, hey, it’s okay. We’re not trying to hurt you.”
It seemed to prefer it when she spoke, but Leafy knew that trust couldn’t be won on words alone.
“How about we look for gems together! Would that make you feel better?”
She needed to come up with a plan quickly. She stepped over towards her mining cart where all of her tools were kept. She grabbed the shovel, figuring that was the easiest way to convey what she was trying to do. Faye followed her, moving with purpose. She understood what the girl was about to do, even if the wild familiar wasn’t.
“Here, I’ll show you how I find gems! How about that?”
She kept a decent distance away from the critter, not wanting to startle it more than she had. She then took the shovel and scooped up a small pile of dirt.
(Faye 7 3/5, 12 3/5)
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Post by Jack on Oct 25, 2019 20:04:48 GMT -6
The shovel scared it too much, it almost ran away. But then it realized she wasn't going to hit it with the shovel, she stared to dig. It took a wary step forward and sniffed a little, tilting it's head a bit and trying to figure out what to do. It took a few more steps forward and then stopped, sitting down to watch her.
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Post by Leafy on Oct 25, 2019 20:15:04 GMT -6
Leafy cringed as the wild critter grew frightened of the shovel. She expected it to run away and was surprised when it remained. She really needed to come more prepared to tame critters, but she usually only ran into them when she’d already been mining for a while. When that happened, she could tempt them with the gems and ore she’d found. This one however, had appeared near the start of her journey.
“Are you interested in learning how to dig? It’s an easy enough job for me to do!”
She made a show of dramatically digging a hole. Faye sat back and watched the creature carefully, not quite trusting it. Leafy figured she was simply jealous, that seemed like a reasonable explanation. Thankfully, she wasn’t upset enough to try and drive off the wild creature.
“If we get lucky enough, we might find a gem buried in the dirt.”
She emphasized her statement by continuing to dig.
(Faye 7 4/5, 12 4/5)
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Post by Jack on Oct 25, 2019 20:18:14 GMT -6
Slowly, after it realized she wasn't going to hurt it any, it crept forward until it was at the edge of the hole. It sniffed inside of it, then backed up and started to dig it's own hole! It could do it better than she could...
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