|
Post by Emery on Mar 19, 2024 13:41:30 GMT -6
Move on to where though, she couldn't say for sure. "Away from the stream" was vague. She didn't want to follow it further- she could feel the slope increasing past this point and had the feeling that she wouldn't find another flood plain like this again. Plus, if the jade wyrm managed to crawl its way out, it was probably going to sit by the shore for a bit to dry off and get its bearings before it moved off again. And if she found it, well, it wasn't going to be happy. So it was better to move on to better grounds. Emery glanced behind her- the way back was still clear, the tunnel didn't have any weird splits in it that she didn't notice. So even if she went a bit further into this untread ground, it would still be easy enough for her to find her way back.
Emery 11 Moxie 42.1/42.1 41
|
|
|
Post by Emery on Mar 19, 2024 13:48:36 GMT -6
With that decision out of the way, Emery tied the mine cart back to Moxie's tail again, getting him ready to go. He croaked a bit with confusion, but ultimately let her do it- Emery's actions were inscrutable to most, he was no different. The cart was a bit heavier by now. Emery had actually managed to fish a decent amount of valuable rocks out of the stream. Not just gemstones, but softer materials like turquoise and amber. They would fetch a pretty penny in The Underground, but Emery wasn't quite satisfied yet. The mine cart was heavier now- perhaps heavy enough now that Moxie actually noticed its presence. But Emery still felt like she needed more to make this trip worthwhile. So far all she had found was tiny, slim pickings. Enough to get a decent handful of change, but nothing that really wowed. It felt like... work, not an adventure.
Emery 12 Moxie 42.2/42.2 42
|
|
|
Post by Emery on Mar 19, 2024 13:54:33 GMT -6
Emery hardly wanted to admit that she needed or wanted an adventure. Instead, she rationalized it like she normally did. It was normal to want to feel like a trip was worthwhile. This much manual labor was likely going to take a toll on her body in the upcoming weeks. Her legs and back were tired already, but not to a dangerous degree. She was going to have to replace her heart meds. So even if she had technically garnered enough gemstones to get some money for some milestones she was aiming at, how much extra was this trip going to cost her in the long run? She had to think long term here. So yes, it actually made perfect sense to want to find something big and flashy- she had extra expenses she needed to account for. With that out of the way, she snapped her fingers. "Moxie. Follow." She commanded.
Emery 13 Moxie 42.3/42.3 43
|
|
|
Post by Emery on Mar 19, 2024 13:59:15 GMT -6
Moxie followed along like a loyal dog, adjusting himself to the new weight he was dragging behind him. It wasn't much, but it was noticeable. She wasn't expecting him to do anything so drastic as throw it off or refuse to move, however. He had had to deal with similar things during his gym training sessions. Emery had strapped several weights to him to increase his stamina a few weeks back, so this probably felt like more of the same to him. She couldn't help but think about his gym training more. He had performed quite admirably through the whole process, putting up with far more torments than Emery ever would. All of their efforts had finally come to fruition though. Moxie was a gorgeous specimen of his species. Tall, muscular, and full of fight and vigor if not brains. Frankly, he was the exact opposite of Emery in every way.
Emery 14 Moxie 42.4/42.4 44
|
|
|
Post by Emery on Mar 19, 2024 14:05:27 GMT -6
That was part of why she appreciated him though- his ability to protect her. To make up for her more... physical failings. And in addition, it would make them a lethal pair to deal with in the fighting pit. Where Moxie failed in intelligence and wit Emery could make up for it, giving him careful commands and strategies that would make him a force to be reckoned with. She had no doubt that they were going to succeed, though she was sure they would end up meeting many challenges. She had heard that a lot of other people were joining the tournament as well, and she had no doubts that they were going to put just as much effort into their training. She had trained Moxie as well as she could to sidestep common pitfalls and strategies that others came up with, but she could only hope it would be enough.
Emery 15 Moxie 43.0/43.0 45
|
|
|
Post by Emery on Mar 19, 2024 14:09:40 GMT -6
At the end of the day, she was going to have to rely on him as much as he relied on her. She had no reason to believe he would fail her so far, but... perhaps it was best to keep an eye out. Speaking of keeping an eye out, Emery gripped down on some of the leaves on Moxie's back, having unwittingly been using him as a balance this whole time against the rough cave floor. "Moxie. Stop." She commanded curtly, and turned her headlamp towards the glimmer she had just seen in the gloom. A bit of anxiety welled up inside her, and she quietly hoped it wasn't a gem wyrm again. But no- it was a glimmer of bright pink. She hadn't heard of any of the living crystal creatures down here coming in such a color, and besides that it didn't seem to be moving at all.
Emery 16 Moxie 43.1/43.1 46
|
|
|
Post by Emery on Mar 19, 2024 14:17:02 GMT -6
In that case, this was probably a good sign. Emery walked a bit closer, pulling a chisel and small hammer out of her pocket. She couldn't manage much physical effort, but if this was a big enough crystal she could probably make it work. She tapped at the wall with the chisel- and nothing happened. Right. She needed to put more effort into it than that, even she knew that. She sighed and kept tapping. It was odd to her how impatient she felt. It was like that itching in her chest kept getting worse. She tried to pinpoint it as she kept working, little bits of stone falling to the ground beneath her. She gave a preventative "Moxie. No." To keep him from trying to eat any of it, the brat. What WAS that feeling? This wasn't the first time she had felt it- once before she found the stream and... after?
Emery 17 Moxie 43.2/43.2 47
|
|
|
Post by Emery on Mar 19, 2024 14:20:28 GMT -6
Now that she thought of it, it WAS a little odd that she had moved on from the stream but kept exploring. Normally she was more pragmatic than that. There hadn't been any particular reason for it either. Sure she had found something NOW, but at the time she had no reason to think she was getting a reward. Had something been... drawing her down here? She glanced back at Moxie. He didn't show any signs of nervousness or distress. So whatever it was wasn't affecting him... or perhaps he was just too dumb to notice. Or too trusting of her. Emery shook her head. She was being paranoid. There was no known record of anything in the mines that could do anything resembling 'mind control'. That was something out of a storybook... or perhaps the eccentric's mansion. She could see something like that happening there, but that was because it was drenched in magic.
Emery 18 Moxie 43.3/43.3 48
|
|
|
Post by Emery on Mar 19, 2024 14:25:29 GMT -6
The mines had no such reputation. Sure it was POSSIBLE to find magical objects down here, but for the most part it remained restricted to the usual laws of physics. So then... what was happening? She thought about it for a few moments longer, chipping out the crystal. It was large and pink- she didn't recognize the type, but anything this size likely had SOME value to it. Could it be... she thought back to when the gem wyrm attacked. Her heart monitor had gone off and injected medication to make sure she didn't go into cardiac arrest. Could that be it? A poor reaction to her medication? Or, perhaps, lingering effects of adrenaline making her behave poorly. She would get different alerts if there was something in the air down here, so it was the only reasonable excuse she could think of. And yet, it wasn't quite good enough.
Emery 19 Moxie 43.4/43.4 49
|
|
|
Post by Emery on Mar 19, 2024 14:29:57 GMT -6
She already knew all the effects of her medication, for one. She should know, she was the one that constantly had to take them. Plus, the wyrm attack had been nearly two hours ago. The adrenaline had long since worn off. So that lead her back to the original point- something magical in origin. She had been studying magic quite a bit more as of late- could that be the cause of it? She was simply more sensitive to magic? It was enough to give her pause- were it not for the fact that the crystal she had been digging out chose to fall directly into her lap. She picked it up, and finally recognized it for what it was. A mind crystal. Not powerful on their own, but they did provide a variety of interesting effects when plugged into existing magical circuits, like an amp on an existing electric guitar.
Emery 20 Moxie 44.0/44.0 50
|
|
|
Post by Emery on Mar 19, 2024 14:34:10 GMT -6
It wasn't one of the more popular or useful shapes. Namely, the rounder mind crystals, the ones shaped like orbs or ovals could be used as a physical adhesive of sorts to put together nodes- powerful magical batteries used by spellcasters. Emery was no caster- not yet at least. Not without a node. But this one could do no such thing. It was too sharp, too jagged, too inefficient for the storage and maintenance of magical energy. What a shame... but there were other uses for it, if you knew what you were doing. Emery would simply have to do more research. It was an excellent find overall- nothing to cry about. And yet... she still felt unsatisfied somehow. The itching in her chest grew stronger. She knew she should resist, that it was logical to just stand up and go home right now. She wanted to go home. But she didn't, didn't she?
Emery 1 Moxie 44.1/44.1 51
|
|
|
Post by Emery on Mar 19, 2024 14:44:49 GMT -6
Instead she kept moving, tapping wildly with the hammer and chisel. On some level, she knew this level of effort was going to hurt in the morning. On some level, she knew that she didn't know where or what she was trying to dig out. But some other part of her knew exactly what was going on, and wanted to see this through. Ultimately, Emery was a stubborn woman and so she relented to that force- she was already here and digging, after all. So she kept going, and soon her chisel punctured something interesting. One more chip and yellow light poured from the hole she had made. She paused for a moment before a ping of recognition went off behind her screen. She knew what that was. Emery continued digging with renewed fervor, all of herself now aligned in her goal and excited to reach it. This was a big find.
Emery 2 Moxie 44.2/44.2 52
|
|
|
Post by Emery on Mar 19, 2024 14:47:14 GMT -6
Moxie watched carefully as Emery dug around in excitement, her actions unusually swift. She had to restrain herself from working TOO fast, or else she might risk breaking it. Within a few minutes however, the job was done- the wind elemental crystal fell into her lap. She reached out to gently touch it, and the 'itch' in her chest instantly went away. That's what that was. Her increased affinity for magic meant that she was picking up on elemental crystals where she never had before, and she wasn't familiar enough with the sensation to know what that was. Well, she knew now. She mentally filed away that sensation for later reference so it wouldn't catch her off guard again. Then, she turned the crystal back and forth, watching as the light radiated out of it. It was a big one too- there were people who would bend over backwards to get their hands on one of these.
Emery 3 Moxie 44.3/44.3 53
|
|
|
Post by Emery on Mar 19, 2024 14:50:58 GMT -6
And here she was, holding one for free. Amazing. These crystals were made of quartz or any other crystal, no. Technically, they were made of pure concentrated magic, where the leyline had changed course and its remnants had condensed into a solid lump. The resulting crystal was of no recognizeable element, no microscopable structure. It was pure magic. This one she clearly recognized as a wind crystal- just touching it conveyed the sensation of wind across her face and hair, a sensation that she hadn't actually been capable of feeling for several years. It made her feel... a way. Such a crystal could be used in a variety of way- socketed into a golem, turned into a node, used to power up an elemental golem. Things like this were among the rarest and most valuable items you could find in the mines, and she had gotten incredibly lucky to stumble upon it.
Emery 4 Moxie 44.4/44.4 54
|
|
|
Post by Emery on Mar 19, 2024 14:53:09 GMT -6
Or had she? She had followed her natural instincts to find it, and mined it out with her own two hands. She and Moxie had had to fight off a monster to get this far. (Well, mostly Moxie.) She had put in quite a lot of work today, actually. Now that she had claimed the crystal, the exhaustion she had been putting off arrived in full force. She HAD put in a lot of work. She sighed deeply and put the elemental crystal in the mine cart. That was the find she had been looking for- the big one that told her she could go home. It would be a long (and she was just now realizing UPHILL) walk, but it was one that she had solidly earned. "Moxie. Follow." She said, but instead of him following behind her, she slung an arm over his strong neck to balance herself. Now all they had to do was return to the surface.
Emery 5 Moxie 45.0/45.0 55
(Emery takes Moxie and leaves the mines.)
|
|