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Post by Emery on Jul 24, 2023 10:39:38 GMT -6
Emery didn't normally do "good times". Her spare time was spent either maintaining her body or studying at home- not having to leave the house, not having to get dressed up, not having to navigate stairs and sidewalks. She was normally fine on her own. But... she had met that strange kapper at the quest board the other day. Apparently, she was with WELP Corp. Emery didn't know the corporation well, but she knew it bore the height of the city's technological activity right now. The Magical Menagerie Labs had gone quiet for years, and the bright and shiny WELP Corp was happy to take its place. The technology they had, well... she envied it. Perhaps they would have some sort of display at the Incursion celebrations? She waffled over whether or not she was going for weeks, but eventually decided to take the plunge, bringing one of her pets along to blend in better. Emery 1 Price 4.1/4.1 1
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Post by Emery on Aug 4, 2023 14:01:32 GMT -6
Emery walked towards the bonfires, a lead tied around her wrist. She picked her way carefully over the ground, making sure she didn't stumble over the lumps in the earth left behind from the crop rows of the recently planted field. Price followed behind her quietly, his eyes gleaming with the reflective light. He wasn't normally so well behaved, but something about the strange sights and smells must have interested him enough to give Emery a break for once. His behavior was always bizarre and difficult for her to predict, however- hopefully he wouldn't be too much trouble tonight. She looked around at her options for tonight. Food stands, creature battles, dances- all things that Emery and Price couldn't really participate in. Although... she approached one of the stands, one that specialized in barbecued meats. "Hello." She said, sliding over some credits. "If you have any scraps for my salaves, it would be appreciated."
Emery 2 Price 4.2/4.2 2
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Post by Emery on Aug 4, 2023 14:07:37 GMT -6
A few moments of patience later, and she had a few scraps of meat for Price. Honestly, they were mostly fat- not very good for him at all. But she supposed it was a holiday and it would provide necessary enrichment for the salaves. "Here, Price. Feed. Be good." She said, and dropped the meat down to him. He sniffed it for a moment, little flickers with his tongue, before snapping them up in a flash. Before she could even bend down to pet him after he finished eating however, she was met with a loud "WOO!" behind her, and a moment later her screen was full of dust. Price hissed with displeasure, wrapping around one of her legs as Emery tried not to fall over, gripping the countertop of the meat stand with one hand while she desperately tried to rub off the powder with the sleeve of her other arm.
Emery 3 Price 4.3/4.3 3
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Post by Emery on Aug 4, 2023 14:10:34 GMT -6
The downside of having a large, electrical screen for a head meant that small particulates found themselves attracted via static to the screen- which meant that she was essentially blinded. "Oh, shit." She heard from inside the stand, the proprietor she had just spoken to. "I'm sorry about that- some teenagers have been running around like, throwing these powdered dyes at each other as part of a game. It's a lot of fun and pretty to watch... from a distance. They sure as hell aren't supposed to be doing it out here." Emery didn't respond, too angry to formulate a normal response as her air filters wheezed, trying to clear the powder before it made its way to her ACTUAL lungs. "...Do you have a wet cloth, by any chance." She asked, and after a few moments the kind shopkeeper managed to find a tea towel and wet it so Emery could properly clean off her 'face'.
Emery 4 Price 4.4/4.4 4
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Post by Emery on Aug 4, 2023 14:14:40 GMT -6
Once she could finally see again, Emery glanced down at Price. He was also covered in the powder, shades of purple and yellow, but writhing in discomfort as he tried to wipe it off on the ground. She gestured at her salaves while holding the cloth "Do you mind if I-" she said, but the shopkeeper held up his hand. "Keep it."
After a few words of appreciation, Emery led Price over to the nearest bonfire, sitting herself down next to it while a storyteller regaled the sparse audience with some manner of ghost story. Emery admittedly wasn't paying much attention and instead focused on wiping down Price. Eventually the rag was so saturated with powder that she was wiping just as much on as off however, leaving a few streaks of color on Price's forehead. Not knowing what else to do with it, Emery tossed the rag into the fire.
Emery 5 Price 5.0/5.0 5
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Post by Emery on Aug 4, 2023 14:18:39 GMT -6
To her surprise though, the fire reacted with the compounds in the fire just as the storyteller reached a crescendo in the story. The flames burst into a bright green color, causing the audience to gasp and applaud appreciatively. Emery couldn't help but jump with surprise... and a bit of sheepishness for not checking first. Still, it only seemed to help the man's case, and Emery couldn't help but fall in line to listen to the rest of the story while Price rested from his little ordeal. By the time he was finished however, her serpent was winding around her legs again, looking for something else to investigate. "...You get bored quickly, don't you." Emery said, knowing full well he couldn't understand her. Still, she glanced around- what else was there to do around here? Her sight skimmed over a few tents with various games and activities, making notes of which ones she could do easily.
Emery 6 Price 5.1/5.1 6
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Post by Emery on Aug 4, 2023 14:28:52 GMT -6
A cork gun gallery... she could do that physically, but Price wouldn't even be able to see what she was doing, so she'd probably have to deal with him acting up. That was out. Petting zoo- she didn't want to risk scaring anything with her machinery. House of mirrors? ...That might work, actually. She stood up, gently tugging on Price's lead. "Come, Price." She said, and began walking up to the house of mirrors. Apparently the event was free for bonfire night attendees, she found out after a brief conversation with the individual running the attraction. Their job wasn't to accept tickets so much as keep people from breaking everything. Apparently some people brought their more skittish pets in without thinking about it and had to be escorted from the premises after their seeker tried killing the "other seekers" int he mirrors. After assuring them she wouldn't, she stepped inside with Price in tow.
Emery 7 Price 5.2/5.2 7
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Post by Emery on Aug 4, 2023 14:32:45 GMT -6
The pair was immediately met with a suite of, indeed, very silly mirrors. Their proportions squashed and stretched, Emery supposed she could see why some people found this amusing- very, very young people that is. But Price seemed enraptured, pausing at each mirror and moving his head up and down, back and forth, and stretching out his webbing to see how it warped and rippled in the strange glass surfaces. Several people even passed them by as Emery and Price moved at a snails pace along the pathway. Emery wondered what it was he saw in there- salaves that looked like him? Most creatures weren't intelligent enough to realize that mirrors reflected themselves, instead thinking that they were looking at an entirely different animal. Emery had only done some brief research on salaves, but she knew they were the same. This was an animal fascinated by unique stimulus, nothing more.
Emery 8 Price 5.3/5.3 8
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Post by Emery on Aug 4, 2023 14:35:49 GMT -6
When they came to the end of the hall however, they were met by an unusual mirror. That is to say- a normal one, with no warping effect at all. A sticker was stuck to the front of it- "Feel free to take a picture!" It said, with some decals of tiny fires also stuck onto the mirror. A little photo memento spot. Cute. Emery turned to leave, but felt a tug on the lead- Price wasn't moving. Instead, she turned to find him looking into this mirror as well... and picking at a spot on his head with one of the spiderlike limbs that were connected by his gliding membranes. She looked closer, wondering what he was doing, when she realized. He was rubbing at some of the powder left on his head. He shouldn't know that was there- she had wiped it all off earlier, and he had long since stopped writhing with discomfort, which meant that for a while HE thought she had gotten it all off too.
Emery 9 Price 5.4/5.4 9
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Post by Emery on Aug 4, 2023 14:38:42 GMT -6
But when he had looked into the mirror, he had seen that little smear of orange on his reflections head and reached up to his OWN head to try and wipe it off. Which meant... "You can recognize yourself in a mirror." Emery said, stunned. Salaves weren't smart enough for that. They weren't... SUPPOSED to be smart enough for that. But here he was, carefully preening himself and using the mirror to look, tipping his chin up to look under it while staring straight in the mirror with one eye. "Well I'll be damned. What else are you hiding?" Emery said, leaning down to wipe off the lick of orange for him. When she came here, Emery wasn't expecting to have any fun at all. But as she walked away from the Incursion festival, she found herself realizing that this venture was worthwhile after all- she had learned something very important about Price.
Emery 10 Price 6.0/6.0 10
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Post by NPC on Aug 9, 2023 20:22:51 GMT -6
Congratulations, you have successfully completed the quest! Your QP will be added to the bank, and your prize will be sent out shortly.
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