Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library03/18/2018
After her talk with Albert, Beth decided to take a small walk, check the perimeter one more time, shake things off her mind a little. Grabbing her spear to use as a walking stick, she set off, floating close enough to check each camp fire but not enough to get drawn into conversations, ghosting around the edges. She soon found one fire and tent, set off on it's on, a solitary figure sitting around it. Curiously, it was on the far end of the camp from Rel To's tent, which gave her a clue to who the person at the fire could be.

"Hey, Vim?"(edited)
AccioIcarus03/18/2018
She looks up toward the source of the noise. A look of annoyance flashes across her face, but when she sees Beth her face softens.

"Hmm?  Oh, it's you. Hey."
March 19, 2018
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library03/19/2018
"Yep, I am me." she leaned on her spear, resting her feet a little. "How you holding up? Bit of a crazy rush with the coronation and us ending up out here."
AccioIcarus03/19/2018
She shrugs and glances out at the flickering flames.

"It's nothing I wasn't prepared for.  We're in a war, after all.  At least we're not being attacked by hellbeasts or anything. What about you?"(edited)
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library03/19/2018
"Ehh... took a few more hits then I would prefer, but anything you can walk away from is a win, in my book. This is the hardly the first time I have found need to fight my way out of an ambush... though... this one was weirdly sloppy and exceptionally well thought out, at the same time." She shrugged.
March 20, 2018
AccioIcarus03/20/2018
"Agreed."   She stays silent, and after a few moments her eyes fall on a leatherbound black book that's sitting near her.

"As if that wasn't enough, I can't seem to figure out how to get Albert's stupid tome to work for me."
March 21, 2018
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library03/21/2018
Taking a look at the cover, Beth slide down on a large rock sitting nearby, setting her spear horizontally across her knees. "What do you mean? Admittedly, my forte isn't in Dark magic, but don't you just open the tome and read out the spell?"
AccioIcarus03/21/2018
She lets out a dry laugh.  "Usually, yeah, but this one is possessed.  I could always use a regular tome, but I want to prove myself worthy of this one."

She sighs. "You made a good decision sticking to weapons.  Weapons don't talk back to you."
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library03/21/2018
Beth rolls her eyes. "What is it with you dark mages and always seeking a challenge, huh? Bella always wants to beat her magic into submission, Albert seems to go out of his way to make his spells harder then needed for research, and you... you want to prove yourself to a talking book? Magic is a simple tool, not a quarreling friend."

She chuckles, eying the the tome warily.
March 23, 2018
AccioIcarus03/23/2018
"Yes, but isn't that what progress is?  We can only get better if we push ourselves to our limits.  It's not just about using magic."(edited)
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library03/23/2018
Beth nodded, conceding the point. "I suppose that much is true, yeah. You cannot know your limits until you find them. Still, I find that dabbling in the dark just because you find the alternative boring or predictable is a good way to get burned."
March 24, 2018
AccioIcarus03/24/2018
"Well, I am a dark mage.  Dark magic is fickle and requires experimentation, but it can be some of the most powerful magic if used right."

She pauses and sits up a bit straighter. "Take my cousin, for example. He goes around duplicating himself just because he can.  It's hard enough tolerating one of him."(edited)
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library03/24/2018
Beth raised an eyebrow, surprised the other girl brought up what she had thought was an off limits topic. "He does seem to be... A most trying individual. Or duo? I find myself having difficulty deciding how one is to properly address him. Them? Whatever"

She sat back, looking over Vim for a moment in thought. "Is... That an art that is common in your family line? Can you do such a thing?"
March 26, 2018
AccioIcarus03/26/2018
She shrugs, oblivious to Beth's surprise.  From the looks of it, bringing him up in conversation was fine as long as it was bashing him.

"I've yet to try.   Until I can figure out how to duplicate Mar like that, I'd prefer staying in one piece.  Besides, i'd rather cultivate a different skill set than his."
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library03/26/2018
Beth nodded. "Yeah, that makes sense, I would hate to leave Dawnstar behind myself; what is a rider without her mount?"

"Different skills, huh? Is that why you are so set on mastering that tome? What did Albert even think to accomplish by giving it to you in the first place? Is it not his own?"(edited)
March 28, 2018
AccioIcarus03/28/2018
"Exactly."

She thinks for a bit, trying to come up with the right words for why she wanted to tame it.  "Kinda.  It was given in the middle of the battle, and it freaked out on me when I tried to use it.  I don't want to be in that position again, I guess."
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library03/28/2018
"It... freaked out, on you? That sounds like more then just a feedback loop or backlash..." Beth pursed her lips, thinking.

"Is that thing... possessed? Alive? Are you sure a demon is not hiding inside?"
April 15, 2018
AccioIcarus04/15/2018
(crap, completely forgot about this)

"I... I intend to find out.  I've been trying to reason with it."
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library04/15/2018
"Hmmm... I cannot imagine a creature like that to be one to reason with... But I wish you luck, I suppose. I have had a bit of experience deciphering more complex light tomes, perhaps at the end of the day this one is structured the same?" Beth leaned over to run a finger over the spine, noting how it differed from the ones she was more used to.
April 16, 2018
AccioIcarus04/16/2018
"Based on what I've seen, light tomes tend to be more straight forward.   Dark tomes like to speak in riddles and hold grudges."(edited)
April 17, 2018
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library04/17/2018
"Oh, I suppose you may be right! Light magic is hardly complicated. You merely need to memorize the sigil glyph associated with the spell, and be able to inscribe it both mentally and physically without distorting any of the structural runic lines but still know enough to change the target and distance ones to properly hit what you may be aiming at. You also need to know the correct phrasing, which might be anywhere from seven to seven hundred words long, and know how to enunciate it properly even if you are trying to be quiet and not actually say it out loud. On top of that, you must consider that some spells require specific hand or body motions to do, which must be properly adjusted if, say, you're on horseback or flying in combat, and..."

Beth stopped to take a breath. "Really, there is little to it. I simply do not understand why Bella seems to have so much trouble with it."
April 18, 2018
AccioIcarus04/18/2018
Vim listens for a bit, somewhat surprised, and shrugs after a few moments.

"...Alright, so that's a different kind of challenge.  We don't really tend to deal with many light tomes."
April 19, 2018
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library04/19/2018
Beth laughed a little at the word challenges.

"Oh it really is not so bad, honest. Still... What would hate to see you, or anyone else, get hurt trying to... Break in a new tome. I remember doing that much with Dawnstar there." She she gestured to here companion across the camp.

"If I can help somehow later with the process, feel free to ask."
AccioIcarus04/19/2018
She nods and thinks.

"Alright.  I might take you up on that.  What else is going on with you? Any cute....? Do you li.....Uhh.... I don't know what people are supposed to talk about when they're not talking about fighting."(edited)
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library04/19/2018
Beth blushed a little at the sudden change of topic, eyes darting to a tent in the camp before looking away, back into the fire.

"Ahhh... Well... I am a little worried about my sister, I suppose... She says she can handle herself, I guess that is technically true..." She sighed.
April 22, 2018
AccioIcarus04/22/2018
"...Yeah, I get what you mean.  Arjun fought pretty well last battle, but he's still fairly new to combat."
April 23, 2018
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library04/23/2018
"Oh, is that so? You two seem fairly well trained, I had guessed you had both seen combat before. You are a To , yes? Is he part of your House guard or... Something?"
April 25, 2018
AccioIcarus04/25/2018
"I'm trained, but all his experience before this was on the shooting range as opposed to a battle.  He's actually from... uh... Bachlumya, I think. He just kinda tagged along with me when I left to fight."
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library04/25/2018
"Oh, I see. Yeah tis a bit different once you get out here. We were dragged out to help out even when we were young, so i got used to all this early... I think Bella even enjoys the rush, to some extent." she sighed.

"Still, tis good to have a good friend tag along with you even if you hard asked him to."
May 2, 2018
AccioIcarus05/02/2018
"Agreed.  Except for that other guy, he's the only familiar face around here from before I joined."
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library05/02/2018
"That other guy? Afraid I do not know of whom you- oh, wait, never mind." Beth sighed, thinking of her fruitless chat with Rel To earlier.

"... And here I thought my family was annoying..."
May 8, 2018
AccioIcarus05/08/2018
"If it weren't for him, they'd probably be alright."
May 19, 2018
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library05/19/2018
(AHHHHHHH!!!! I can't believe I missed that I was up! Gonna end this one here @AccioIcarus , if you wanna pick this back up in the new homebase, I'm totally cool with it.)

Beth nodded, knowing the feeling. "Yeah, I get you there. Well, I suppose I should be off to my tent, who knows what the morning maybe bring. Goodnight, Vim."

Getting up, Beth wandered off into the night

= = = END = = =
😂
2
😢
2
💯
2
May 26, 2018
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library05/26/2018
After enjoying her early morning... was that date? That was probably a date, right? Whatever it was, Bella walked through town, observing what people seemed to be up to. A guy going into a butcher, a woman chasing a loose pet, a street urchin over by a food stall carefully slipping a baked good up their sleeve... everything seemed normal and cheery for the day.

Turning around the corner to the next street over, she suddenly jolted to the side, her hindbrain catching sight of the large man approaching quickly before her conscious mind seemed to notice. She snapped her hand to her head to hold her hat in place, calling out.

"'Ey dere, buddy! Watch where ya goin', ya yella be- Oh?"(edited)
June 3, 2018
AccioIcarus06/03/2018
Instead of the large man she expected, she turns to find a skinny brown kid.  Clearly not having anticipated any sort of social interaction, Arjun looks at her with wide eyes.
"....Yeah?"(edited)
June 4, 2018
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library06/04/2018
"... Oh?" Settling down, Bella reset her hat as she decided she probably wasn't getting in a fight here. A little sad, really, she felt like she could do with one right now.

"Ey, yah dat archer kid, ya? Ar... Jun or somethin', ya? Sis was talkin' wit' ya girlfriend or somethin' earlier, I tink she said..."(edited)
AccioIcarus06/04/2018
He nods.

"Yeah.  I'm Arjun.  You're... Belle... uh... Bella, right? Vim's not my girlfriend, but I think they were talking."
June 5, 2018
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library06/05/2018
"Oh yeah? Dats... what dey call me... in some parts, ya." She thought back. Was this guy at the Grove? That's what everyone in the Grove called her, but now she wasn't sure if she'd seen him there, or not... Stupid Felix, you and your stupid rule about not talking are stupid!

"You look a litta lost, kid. You tryin' ta look for someplace?"(edited)
June 6, 2018
AccioIcarus06/06/2018
He shakes his head, albeit a bit hesitantly.

"I... uh.. I'm just wandering the area at the moment.  I was trying to find a store nearby with archery supplies, but at this point i'm just exploring.  What about you?"
June 7, 2018
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library06/07/2018
"Oh, I'm just... Yah, explorin' some, I guess. Just need ta clear me head, thought I'd walk around a little, shop a little, maybe get in a fight, dat sorta ting." Bella sighed and looked around, trying to see what sorts of shops were in the area. Was there a blacksmith around? That who made arrows, right?

She didn't know much about archery outside of the way they hurt when someone shot you from a distance with them.
June 10, 2018
AccioIcarus06/10/2018
"Yeah, I know what you mean.  I was doing the same type of thing.  They don't have much around here, but it's pretty interesting."
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library06/10/2018
"Oh, alright. Well... I guess I dat makes sense."

She looked around, then her eyes noticed a food stall off on the side of the marketplace.

"Well, actually... I guess I could get somethin' for Impulse, ya ever helped feed a wyvern Jun? Wanna tag 'long wit me? Ya donna have ta, if ya busy."
June 15, 2018
AccioIcarus06/15/2018
"...A wyvern?  I... uh.. I helped feed VIm's horse once, so... kinda?  I wouldn't mind tagging along."

His eyes follow Bella's and he looks over at the food stall.  With any luck, there were some interesting options there.
June 16, 2018
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library06/16/2018
Bella laughs at his nervous tone, starting to feel a little better with herself at a situation she was more comfortable in. "Wellllll, I'm not sure its quite da same thing... Unless Vim's horse eats lambs and stuff."

She wandered around, listening more then looking, head cocked as scans the market. She grinned as she heard an animal stall...(edited)
AccioIcarus06/16/2018
His eyes go wide as he thinks about the logistics of it.

"You mean... Like... Entire lambs? That's insane."
June 17, 2018
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library06/17/2018
"Oh, well... maybe not an entire lamb. Just, like, da front half, or so. I usually get da leftovas tho, so if you wanna help out you can have some lamb chops den!"

She wandered over, behind the main row of street stalls there was a bored looking animal vendor with chickens, pigeons, ducks, and even a pig. No lambs to be found, however. Bella didn't look terribly happy with this development.

"But.... now what... argh, now what are we gonna feed her?"
AccioIcarus06/17/2018
"Have... you considered feeding your wyvern other animals? Or is your wyvern just a super picky eater? Mar mainly just eats carrots, so I don't usually have this problem."
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library06/17/2018
"I guess we could... Its just more hassle ta grab like five chickens ya know? And... uh... I don't tink wyverns like veggies and stuff. I know I don't, so why would Impulse? Ah well, nothin ta be done. Normally I take her out to the forest and scare up some critters, but with da... uh... fire... and da rebels and stuff dey don't want us wanderin' 'round too much."

She turned to the vendor and started to point out some likely creatures.
June 19, 2018
AccioIcarus06/19/2018
"...Yeah, fair enough.  How about  a pig? They're kinda similar in size to a lamb."
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library06/19/2018
"Hmm... Yeah? Guess if it's not too big... I donna wanna have ta drag da ting once it is gets an idea of what we're up to. Aren't pigs like smart and stuff? A sheep don't care where you take it."

There was indeed a smaller pig to be purchased, and she pointed it out and started to count out coin. She was a little surprised to see the prices on pigs seemed to be cheaper then lamb.

"Huh, guess ya get a discount wit dese guys, yeah...?"(edited)
July 1, 2018
AccioIcarus07/01/2018
"...Maybe they price them more since they could use the older ones for wool?  Works out in our favor, though. We can make ourselves some cheaper bacon.*

As he looks around at the different offerings in the stalls, he thinks.

"...Hey Bella, do you ever wonder why lamb bacon isn't a thing?  You never hear about bacon coming from lamb or...  or cows.  They go from pigs straight to turkeys."
July 5, 2018
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library07/05/2018
Bella was halfway to naming her new sacrifice friend when she stopped still.

Turning, her eyes widened as she considered the infinite horizons of taste that suddenly opened in front of her.

"Ya gots a damn good point! Why don't we got dat kinda thin'?!"

She whirled around, pointing at a random animal in a stall. "You! Shop keep! I want wanna... dat! We're gonna make bacon out of it!"

She was pointing to a chicken.
July 10, 2018
AccioIcarus07/10/2018
"...Chicken bacon.  Huh.  Should we get multiples? We might need to experiment a bit to get the fat to meat ratio right.  I'll take one as well."

Arjun looks over the various animals as he tries to imagine how bacon from each animal would taste.
July 11, 2018
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library07/11/2018
"Oh, yeah, you need a fatty one, huh? Maybe... maybe a chicken wouldn't work so hot den. Orrr.... ok screw it, lets just grab em and go, we'll figure it out, how 'ard can it be? Come on piggy, we got a wyvern to feed and bacon to make!"

Leading her newly purchased animals away from the stall, she heads back to the castle, aiming towards the side gate where the stables were kept.

"So you know much 'bout cookin', Jun?"
July 14, 2018
AccioIcarus07/14/2018
He thinks for a bit and shrugs.

"Yeah, I know a bit about it.  I like to experiment a lot when I cook.  What about you?"
July 15, 2018
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library07/15/2018
"Oh, well... uhhhh... I'm... I mean... I can cook! Who told you I couldn't cook! Sis eats me stuff when I make it for her!" She suddenly seems on the defense, and yanks the animals along to the castle. They were almost there now, just passing the gate.

"Dats... uh.... probably a good ting, yeah? I donna know much about cookin' bacon, figured we'd have ta take dese guys to the cooks or somethin. I can slaughter dem for us, though!"
July 17, 2018
AccioIcarus07/17/2018
Arjun nods.  In his hands, he holds a rather annoyed looking chicken, which squacks angrily as it attempts to wriggle its way out of his hands.

"Agreed.  I don't have much practice with it either, but I assume we'd just smoke slices of the meat so it gets all crispy and smoky when we cook it."
July 20, 2018
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library07/20/2018
"Ahhh... Dat don't sound so bad, yah? Lets get dis guy ta Impulse, den we'll try our new project!"

Dragging the pig to the pen that Impulse was laying with her head down resting. The wyvern perked up as she heard the noises of an animal coming closer, and stood up with interest as the pig was shoved into the pen.

Loud wet noises soon followed, while Bella looked slightly bored, clearly used to such things.

"Ya know anyone in da kitchens? Any maids or anythin'? We're gone have ta borrow an oven or smoker or somethin yah?"
July 23, 2018
AccioIcarus07/23/2018
"...I was hoping you knew them.  We should ask around, though.  We need to cure the meat first with the spices before we do anything."
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library07/23/2018
"... Ya know who might know? Dat Chey chick who works fer Albert. She's gotta know 'ow ta cook, she's like a maid and stuff, right? Or...somethin'?"

She grabbed the chicken she had set down to shove the pig into the pen, dashing quick and snatching it up as it tried to make a getaway. It squawked and pecked at her as she lifted it up again.

"Guess we should go find someone, though."
AccioIcarus07/23/2018
"Yeah, that could work.  I think she would be able to help."

He glances at the struggling chicken.  "Do ya know where she is? We should head over so we can get started."
Artemi☆, Unmoving Great Library07/23/2018
"I... think I remember where Albert's room is... Maybe she's up dere? Or at least he should know where she went, yeah? You wanna come with? Or stay here until I find her?"

Bella turned to leave, holding her bird with one hand.

If you're still having downtime issues, that's fine, I can duck out and have her  come back here, shouldn't take more then a couple days irl worth of RPs to finish up with that part and return
AccioIcarus07/23/2018
"I'll come with.  I'm kinda curious to see what his room is like, and it would be kinda boring just standing here."

Arjun turns to follow.