|
|
Post by Flare on Feb 26, 2023 5:25:42 GMT -6
Quest #31
"Greetings,
There's something strange going on in my lovely garden. Could you assist me at your earliest convenience?
Sincerely,
Alura"
Apparently, the shopkeeper at Herbologist's Delight needs some help in her garden. The note she left is short and lacking in detail. What would someone like her consider 'strange'? Perhaps it would be best to head over to her shop and ask her yourself.
Once you arrive and mention the quest note, she cheerfully leads you out into the back garden. She hastily explains that some of her Nyssa saplings appear... strange. It's up to you to figure out what's going on and clear it up.
The Quest
Help Alura identify and remove the impostor creature that is pretending to be a Nyssa sapling.
Post Requirement: 15
Prizes
First Completion: 3 QP and a special sapling
2 Completions: another special sapling
3+ Completions: no prize
**FIRST COMPLETION FOR FLARE**
  |
|
|
|
Post by Flare on Feb 26, 2023 5:26:47 GMT -6
"Here dear." a chilled fabric bag of ice is placed across his pained shoulder. A grunt of thanks as the tumaian tries not to move from being splayed on a bench in the side garden of the kindly garden shop runner. Or her assistant. He's too lightheaded to think. "The ice should help bring down the swelling. Now, I'll bring you a snack and some juice for your little issue." Which one, he wants to be smart about his reply, the 'floating on cloud high' he was experiencing, or his low blood ...something? The unusual wrapping with a jab is around his good arm, no longer tight as it went to a box that spat out numbers that made the old human voice 'frown'. He can hear grumbling as his baakir chomps on grass out of a trough.
At his feet is a square little cage with... a ...very wrong-looking toy orbaru? Like its fluffy plush body had shrunken in the wash and is much more... wrinkled looking. Thick chrome flaked ball on its tail... with spikes.
The fuzzy fabric of its paws punctured by loose wires, curled like claws.
1
96 8.20
|
|
|
|
Post by Flare on Feb 26, 2023 5:27:57 GMT -6
At the toy's feet is a fuzz covered portable radio. He doesn't remember specifically gathering it, or the toy itself or even the cage... was the cage from the old human who had found him crashed out in her alley, keeping a grip on its tail?
wh¥?
He's heard that tingy sort of boop that makes the radio crackle and express noises that he can understand...
'...I used to be ugly too.' the red optics glance upwards through the cage roof, as its all bars, no solid top. 'I... felt bad for you...'
Human ugly? Does not compute. The toy, deeming now Rags, has its torn wrinkle of a mouth fall in a frown. Human has tail... tail equals ugly? Other toys had tails too? So did ugly thing on 4 legs with white dirty leg fabric.
She comes back out with a plate of shortbread cookies and a juice box, already impaled with a straw. "Eat up dear. You'll feel like yourself once you've got some food and drink in you."
2
|
|
|
|
Post by Flare on Feb 26, 2023 5:28:34 GMT -6
Several silent minutes went by of the crunching of cookie and slurping of juice box. Finally the plate is carefully discarded and he sits back, letting the effect of eating and drinking ease the weird highness in his head. The exhaustion in his bones. Ugh...
"I gave some leftover roughage from pruning my nyssa to your creature outside too." he hears next, as shuffling footsteps come closer on one direction or the other. He nods without opening his eyes yet. If there's one thing he learned about 'highness', is that a painful low is soon to follow. "Do forgive an old woman for asking, but the gossip says that there was an explosion earlier today in the shipyard?" ...was that still today? "Something about a crazy man being found surrounded by unfinished toy orbaru."
"Pructin errr." He mumbles half to himself. Expressing the boom with his hands blooming from being overlapped from each other.
3
|
|
|
|
Post by Flare on Feb 26, 2023 5:29:12 GMT -6
The chill of the ice is making the pain in his shoulder lessen but taking a deep breath spurns it anew. Did he crack a rib? Hope not... ugh... he just got away from that human doctor who seemed very keen on making money off him. "qust."
"Oh-" he can hear the doubted surprise in old human woman voice. "Well that makes sense, that paper that takes up the most entirety of the board had to be finished sooner then later." He can't shrug, so a wispy sort of wave will do. "In fact... once you are feeling better dear... I have a quest myself that I just added to the board." Hm? Well he's a captive audience, gesturing for her, them, to continue. There's just something 'off' about the voice he's hearing. Or its the grunted steps of an upset herbivore on the other side of the wall from where he was sitting out. At least he can feel the top of his head now.
4
|
|
|
|
Post by Flare on Feb 26, 2023 5:30:09 GMT -6
The speaker mentions of no rush, just sit there as long as he needs. They'll replace the ice in a bit and get him some more juice. A little more watered down, no need to cause any spikes. Spikes? He doesn't get that... as the tearing of fabric on fabric happens and the pokey in his good arm is taken away and something taped over the hole it had jabbed in his arm. The footsteps fade and he's left alone to his thoughts, and the slow realization that he is being able to come off of cloud high. Ugh... this will be a migraine later, won't it.
hüm@n i$ n0t u©l33
Oh. Almost forgot about the reject toy in a cage. Do something about it too. The elemental tumaian considers what he knows already. He knows nothing about the damaged metal puppet under the ruined fluffy body, but the tears and such could be mended... right?
5
|
|
|
|
Post by Flare on Feb 26, 2023 5:31:11 GMT -6
There's a seam... at least he thinks its a seam, running from the top of its head to the tip of its tail. To split the seam's thread is child's play. A sharp stick or rock or even a snippy set of claws could do it. If the tears are mended would that make the toy not ugly anymore?
Does someone ask about a Penny for his thoughts? He seems to be deep in them. more shuffling footsteps, and the chill over his shoulder is peeled away. Ah, that's cold.
"Toy. Fix?" at least he could create basic words with his mouth again instead of somewhat making sense.
"Hmmm" The cage is dragged away from his feet and by the 'OOF' noise, lifted up past the waist. Clatter, its on a table or a bench of sort. The screech of metal on table is enough to know without opening his eyes that the cage is being twisted around. It needs at least some mending, yes. Someone didn't wash the stuffing properly. The rattle and clatter, no, don't open it, the toy is evil?!
6
|
|
|
|
Post by Flare on Feb 26, 2023 5:33:02 GMT -6
Being a toy, Rags isn't processing its surroundings like previous, when the non-rejects expanded its views beyond what its two optics can see. Processing. Human. Female. Old. Hands? The old human is removing it from the cage, and setting it on the table. Turning Rags over and examining every inch.
They don't believe the inside of this toy is too damaged, but alas they claim to be no expert on metalmade toys. To ask the kapper up the street, but they can help with finding this toy a new stuffing to fix." Human female is no longer touching Rags, but turned away. Rejected? False. Fix? True?
They'll make him a deal. If he helps them/her with the task that they just put up in the board, they'll help fix up this metalmade toy of his and can take it up to the kapper up the street who deals in metalmakes and we'll be square.
'Deal'. It sounded reasonable enough for him. To the specific point, although he's feeling slowly better, he'd rather be internally rid of the evil toy now at his face level as the broken toy is examined. Flare knows nothing about metal made toys or even machines. If he's able to function an alarm clock, that might be his max. So living out in the garden with basic tools and such is more then enough for a low tech lifestyle for him. A warmth inside... his elementalness feels the same. Ground is good. Metal not so good.
7
|
|
|
|
Post by Flare on Feb 26, 2023 5:35:04 GMT -6
'Keep Toy in cage. Evil.' He manages to express. She giggles. He can hear crunching of leaves and branches in the distance. Was that the smell of cedar? Was his baakir eating cedar?
They mention had that mindset once in their life. Metal makes were very upsetting to work with, but... thet have an agreement now, he and her. He can't see it, but she pulls out a small set of sturdy work scissors. Asking Mr. toy to hold still.They're going to fix it, but can't wear its fuzz while they do. Snip. Snip. Snip.
It gives Flare backwards memories of being given his first haircut while experiencing life as the walking dead in a ssashirk's body, hearing the snips, even when they aren't near him. Brr.
Soon after, she declares finished of removing its fuzz, and has put the now fluffless toy back in the cage. It looks rather monstrous under its fluffy body, like a dinosaur and a pachee got glued together with a lightbulb at the end of its tail. There is some damage.
8
|
|
|
|
Post by Flare on Feb 26, 2023 5:35:41 GMT -6
There's wires sticking out of its paws, and a bend to its left leg, and who knew what else. She doesn't need to be a genius to see THAT.
Does he feel up for moving now? Shielding his eyes, the elemental sits up slowly, bracing the back of the bench in case ...woo. The blood rushed to his head then, making the world spin briefly. He sits there, carefully moving his hands up to cover his ears. Inward breath, hold... exhale. Inward breath, hold... exhale, And one more time to inhale, hold and exhale. Focus on the soft sounds his body made. Once he removes his hands from his ears, the rushing feeling is gone and he can hear properly again. Can see the old female properly too. A careful nod. She passes him a walking stick.
'Thank you.'
"Don't thank me yet dear, you've yet to see what's gotten into my garden recently!" she laughs.
9
|
|
|
|
Post by Flare on Feb 26, 2023 5:36:36 GMT -6
Its a hasty explanation, like she's afraid of something as she leads him to the back garden. Leaning on the walking stick more then he should, just in case he faceplants from an involuntary trip, he follows. The giant walking trees "nyssa" roam out here. There's a fenced area full of shaking branches. There's an imposter here, and he needs to find it. Even an expert in nyssa is having trouble finding the 'imposter' among the saplings. If he could take it and remove it, that would be perfect and worth his while. She leaves then. ...and appears again on his right side. With a substantially more 'chaotic' scent.
{Hello Loki.} Flare greets the chaos elemental as he finds his baakir enjoying the old human's compost pile. Specifically the cedars. He does like the scent. Nice smell.
{You caught me on faster then I thought}. The elemental drops his shifted light disguise, back to the coffee skinned being with a blue-green snake mask. No cocoa in sight now.
10
|
|
|
|
Post by Flare on Feb 26, 2023 5:38:13 GMT -6
{What, no thanks for saving your magic-waned butt from being discovered at the scene of the crime?}
{You were the one who dropped me here...} no, he wouldn't thank the nosy elemental who is ALWAYS in his business somehow.
{Well yes. Everyone local knows the human who runs the shop is a granny who always has cookies, juice and a first aid box for anyone who needs it. And you were not good.} Loki admits. He's done the disguise of a human child who wants a cookie and a juice box before running off to a potential pair of humans that could match his disguise's looks and charm them on touch to take him 'home' and he would leave them once out of sight, the spell breaks and everyone's the same again. He doesn't come close to this group of shaking baby trees.
You'd think that a nyssa would be potted as a sapling... nope! The taiga doesn't care as long as she has more food to eat. bottomless pit.
Truth be told, Flare has never actually interacted with the species of 'walking tree' that he had recalled being told about previously at another trip to the garden shop. His garden plot isn't that big, so he never looked for one. So these creatures were specifically new to HIM.
A shadow looms over him, like a giant cloud, but much bigger.
The tree walks, and it walks like a gorilla. And its MASSIVE.
11
|
|
|
|
Post by Flare on Feb 26, 2023 5:38:44 GMT -6
Instinct tells him to hold still while it investigates him first. The thing isn't acting aggressive... was it used to human exposure? Its large woody head slowly moves past and down, taking in his scent. His look? He doesn't see eyeballs, but more of a glowing knot in a divet.
DO YOU SPEAK FOR THE TREES?!
He doesn't 'hear' the sound that reverberates when it howls at him, but it resonates with his elemental bloodedness. This creature is similar, or related even, to the giant tree snake of the grove deep in the magical mansion.
{I do. I can speak for the trees.}
YOU BEAR THE MARK OF OUR MOTHER TREE. MARKED ONES SPEAK FOR THE TREES.
The nyssa howls again, and the rest of the trees that sparsely mark the territory out here, and this garden is nursery sized BIG. They join the sound.
MARKED ONE. THERE IS A SICKNESS AMONG OUR SAPLINGS. ROOT IT OUT AND DESTROY IT.
{Even your human caretaker couldn't find it. What do you expect me to do? I've never seen your species?}
MARKED ONE, YOU ARE BORN OF EARTH AND SAND. USE IT.
He doesn't understand the specific reasoning, but the baakir beyond him is not enjoying all the screaming. Her ears flatten to her head as she mrrghs annoyedly. Stubbornly trying to ignore it.
12
20.20 Lv 97
|
|
|
|
Post by Flare on Feb 26, 2023 5:39:29 GMT -6
Doubt. He's still not in control of the magic inside him, and it comes out at both opportune and inopportune times. More when he thinks of something then when he commands it.
{Thoughts are commands too. Its how spell shaping works.} says the very annoying Loki, who seems to read his thoughts, or his face, too well.
{Spell shaping?}
{Yes. For the length of history in this world that the leylines existed, magic is usually brought forth by thinking about it first. What you want it to do, and how.} He describes a spell of making something lost turn up found, or creating a way to walk on water when there is no land. {Express what you want, and how you want to do it.}
{Ok... I want to find the imposter sapling... without touching it. I want to see it with my eyes.}
{Good, you have a want, and a how. Focus now...}
He thinks about it, and thinks hard. Concentrate... concentrate... a warmth is building in his chest, and travels upwards this time... And promptly falls over.
-Flare casts Scry-
13
1.20
|
|
|
|
Post by Flare on Feb 26, 2023 5:39:57 GMT -6
That wasn't what he expected to happen, Flare decided when he found himself standing, over his own body. It's breathing, thank the Sun, but he doesn't feel connected right now. Could he move? Take a step... it's like walking on a cloud, and he doesn't feel achy or sick at the exact moment. It doesn't sink him into the ground.
'Well that wasn't what I expected either' Loki seems to be able to see him just fine, standing here. 'Don't waste your time, these spells that separate mind and body do have a limit and you want to be back with your body shortly. Go check those saplings. and don't dawdle, your animal is getting antsy because she saw you go down.'
So he walks right through the fencing and has to will himself downwards about up to his waist in the dirt because these saplings are short.
Its a sea of rough wood hewn faces. He sees the saplings have specifically two double leaf 'branches' sprouting from their heads, with a big underbite, and large hind feet with two juts for toes. They're not that big either. About knee height. Their arms though, are very twiggy.
14
|
|
