Adventurer
IS OFFLINE
24
Renown
Human
15 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Emil Arneson on Mar 4, 2023 22:05:22 GMT -5
Some people wake up to birds singing, some to sunshine, and the dwellers of the Gold Port, Sol City woke up to a blood-chilling howl, followed by the outburst: "Ah, you little bastart! Come back, I'm telling yah!" A thunderous yell shattered the walls of a little two-story building in Seafarers' Alley. It was so strong that it sent shock waves throughout the neighborhood and the echoes of it made many of the good neighbors shiver. Soon after, the whole building shook, and something fell. Smash! Crunch! Crack! Tinkle! The good people of Gold Port started gathering on the street. The stood in groups discussing something in hushed but excited voices:
"I bet 50 solars the laddie won't make it! The crabs these days get hella nasty!"
"Nah, Emil is a fine lad! Has nifty fingers! I'm tellin yah! You gotta see those muffins! bet 100 on him!"
"Stap yer gibberish, Patrick! Emil?! That clutz? Old Rory will kick the shite outa him, just ya wait"
The bets were rising and more and more people joined in. At first, the crab invasion spread panic and havoc among the capital citizens, but these people were made of sterner stuff. Soon they adjusted and even made use of the crabs they caught. Although crabs still were a major nuisance, people quickly found their own little joys and catching crabs became a daily routine. Well, Seafarers' Alley Daily Crab Chase looked more like a mix of a bloody battle and Point Spread Betting. It had its own champions and was utterly dramatic. The good people of Gold Port soon discovered a passion for gambling and got pretty hooked on it.
A couple of moments later the brattle and clamor seized. The onlookers got quiet, staring at the entrance of the building for a long while. Finally, the doors swung open, and soon, from under the brass metal sign of "The Rolling Scones Bakery" emerged a hulky young man with flaring red hair. He looked round furrowing his brow, cleared his throat, then grinned from ear to ear, raising both hands in a victorious gesture. In one of them, he held a hefty hideous crab, wiggling waggling, and trying to get the man with his huge pincers. The crowd roared its approval. Many neighbors approached him patting him on the shoulder, laughing, and joking. The man wiped his forehead with the hem of his apron and tossed the crab in a big canvas bag he'd been carrying in his pocket. "That'll teach yah, ya minger! Dancha eva sneak inta me bed again!" He was about to go back in, when the even greater yell pierced his ears: "EMIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIILLLLLLLLLLLL! Get yar ass back right here! Clean up the mess will ya......." All the good neighbors, only seconds ago congratulating him with all their hearts (and pockets), now burst into laughter. And beetroot-red Emil, feeling like he had an egg on his face, hurried back in.
|
|
The Tinkertons
IS OFFLINE
26/53
Renown
Dragon's Cradle
We're gonna get Zarius back.
1,869 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Mar 5, 2023 17:14:05 GMT -5
It’s certainly a strange sight to see Sol City overrun by hundreds of crabs. Astrid overheard the guards complaining about it, and while part of her didn’t want to help the guards, she does like to help regular common folk. Besides, these crabs sure are nuisances. It’s hard to walk through the streets, and if she didn’t have greaves to protect her boots, she’d be concerned about her toes. Given that it’s early morning, she got some directions to a bakery, hoping to find some breakfast. Instead, she finds a rowdy crowd shouting about placing bets about the capabilities of someone. It's hard to tell exactly what the shouting is about as it all just kind of bleeds together. She just catches the end of the morning event before the crowd erupts in laughter and starts to disperse, which is helpful as she’s short and wants some baked goods. Finally muscling her way into the storefront, Astrid takes a deep breath and looks around. It smells wonderful inside. “Mornin’!” she says. “Bit of a crowd out there, weren’t it? What’s got ‘em all up in arms? Must be a tasty treat or two in here if they’re that excitable this early, eh?”
Quest Name: Catching Crabs Participants: Two or more Location: Sol City Post Requirements: 3 post per person, 200 words per post Reward: +1 Renown Description: Over the last few weeks a strange occurrence has been plaguing the capitol. Some bizarre phenomenon has caused thousands of sea crabs to infest the city, covering the entire island and causing a terrible nuisance to the locals. Whatever the disturbance was has passed, but thousands of the sea creatures still remain, trapped in yards, homes, businesses and other places they have no reason to be. We need you to come to Sol City and help us remove the crabs! You can use any means necessary as long as the crabs are no longer here!
|
|
Adventurer
IS OFFLINE
24
Renown
Human
15 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Emil Arneson on Mar 9, 2023 6:21:26 GMT -5
Morning fuss came and gone, Emil had his hands busy full. Having returned to the cafe, he tossed the crab bag into the corner of the kitchen. After all the mess he'd caused earlier was cleaned, he took his place at the counter. At times they were busy as hell and at times not a single customer in hours. This time "The Rolling Scones" was filled to the brim with grannies and aunties. Many came for the hot buns, more for the social. There, surrounded by delicious cakes, they could vent about life, gossip to their heart's content, and freely observe Emil at work. Yet these days one would hardly hear any saucy rumor or spicy detail of someone's private life. The only thing everyone was concerned about was the crabs' invasion. They infested houses, were found in barns, on steps and under the steps, in beds, and - quite a traumatic experience - night pots. They had been being caught daily but never seized in numbers, making the whole community shudder.
Emil was listening to the usual buzz with half an ear. His big rough hands quickly moved over the cups and plates, he was humming a song, swaying and bouncing a little. Despite all the odds he was in a perfect mood.
“Mornin’!” - he heard behind him. The voice sounded unfamiliar: too young and bustling with energy to belong to any of the dames in the room. “Bit of a crowd out there, weren’t it? What’s got ‘em all up in arms? Must be a tasty treat or two in here if they’re that excitable this early, eh?” He turned around and finally saw the owner of the voice. His eyebrows slowly arched upwards in utmost bewilderment. "Hmm?" - was all he managed to come up with. Right in front of him was a short girl clad in armor. The red horns on her head vividly contrasted with her blonde hair. Heavy metal gloves and pink ruffled skirt completed the look. 'The kid is no stranger to fashion, huh...' - he thought, scratching his beard. Suddenly it dawned upon him, he never answered! So he cleared his throat and said:
"Hey, kid. Walcome! Pay no mind to thae gawkers, thae might be loud but thae are all good folks. Ah, it's been rowdy here, eh? Damn those keavers! Irking us to no end! Haven't seen you around, kid, are you a traiveler? First time in Rory's Rolling scones, mhm? Here. Try this one, it's on me" - he handed her a big hot scone and froze. He leaned slightly backward folding his big bulky arms across his chest. He simply couldn't wait to see her reaction to the first bite. This time the recipe was his own.
|
|
The Tinkertons
IS OFFLINE
26/53
Renown
Dragon's Cradle
We're gonna get Zarius back.
1,869 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Mar 16, 2023 19:38:44 GMT -5
"Aye, they're rowdy, but I don't mind," Astrid says with a gap-toothed grin. "Keavers? Ya mean the crabs?" Looking around at the various baked goods, she notices a crab scuttling and hiding behind a bread basket. "Where the heck did they all come from? I'm tryna help clean 'em up." Finally, she approaches the counter.
"Aye, it's me first time in here. Figured if there's a crowd outside, it must be good, eh?" It comes as a surprise that Emil offers her something for free, and the half-dwarf with a bottomless stomach is never one to turn down food. "Oh, thanks!" She takes the hot scone, juggling it between her hands until it cools enough to bite into. Her face lights up. "MMM! That's good! Yeah, I'll take a dozen of these, if ya don't mind."
Another crab scuttles across the window sill. Whoever cursed Sol City with crabpocalypse must have thought this place deserved it. Which...to be fair, it does. Astrid doesn't like this city too much. "Don't s'pose ya have a few baskets on hand fer collectin' all the crabs, do ya? I'll bring 'em back. Maybe ya could boil 'em up an' make crab pastries out of 'em?"
|
|
Adventurer
IS OFFLINE
24
Renown
Human
15 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Emil Arneson on Mar 24, 2023 2:16:47 GMT -5
Having heard the question, Emil scratches his beard thinking. His eyes linger on his left hand with two deep red scratches left by the pincers. His eyes notice a movement near the trays with baked buns he left out for display earlier. One more sturdy invader has already occupied the windowsill bathing in the morning sun. Emil frowns and opens his mouth to say something. But suddenly one of the customers shrieks upon finding a crab in their bag of freshly-baked bread. Unfortunately, that happens to be old Mildred Mc Fergusson, the infamous rumor-monger with a voice of a vuvuzela. Emil's face turns sour, cause he knows he's going to hear it all. " Emil? What's the bogging shite hole is that place? I have paid for no +1! Bet old fool Rory doesn't train you well enough! Humpf!" - she turns as red as a crab still wiggling in the paper bag. It looks like there's more to come, yet the crab has its own plan. It reaches far with its claws and ends up pinching Mildred's fingers. Mrs Fergusson couldn't be called an exceptionally alluring woman, yet her fingers seemed to wiggle right up the crab's alley. They hear an unfeminine roar and a flow of dirty cuss words follow. Emil reaches out and covers the kid's ears. He can't help but smile though, so he turns his head away so that Mildred won't see it. The enraged lady storms out of the bakery, and Emil removes his hands from Astrid's ears. He gives a sigh of relief.
"Buckets ya say. Wait on.. " - he turns around and soon after returns with two huge rusty buckets, a rope, and two pairs of heavy metal baking tongs. He hands one bucket and a pair of tongs to the kid but leaves the rest to himself. Then he rummages under the counter and retrieves two well-worn aprons. He hands one of them to Astrid and puts one of them on himself. "There, kid. I nae gonna let ya hunt the keavers all by yourself. The place looks like a cat dragged in, ya see. Hunting the bastarts does ma heid in. Won't refuse ya help! So where do we start?".
|
|
The Tinkertons
IS OFFLINE
26/53
Renown
Dragon's Cradle
We're gonna get Zarius back.
1,869 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Mar 24, 2023 17:22:48 GMT -5
The conversation is interrupted by the woman shrieking about the crabs. She’s so intent on yelling at the man who’s not responsible for the whole mess, that when the crab snatches her lovely fingers, Astrid considers not helping her. It’s funny to her when Emil covers her ears, so she pretends like this prevents her from moving forward to assist. When the woman finally leaves and her ears are uncupped, Astrid looks at Emil with a smarmy grin.
“I’ve heard worse, ya know,” she says. The girl throws a quick glance over her shoulder before she continues, “Rude lady, weren’t she?” Then she shrugs and looks back at Emil as he ponders her query about buckets and returns with some supplies. Those tongs look especially interesting, and the aprons are thick like those of a smith. Anything to protect against heat.
“Oh, that’s a good idea, ain’t it? Bit of reach with the tongs an’ some protection from the apron!” Astrid laughs as Emil puts it over her head. Nevermind that she’s wearing armor, gauntlets and all. She’s especially kitted out for collecting crabs now, and she loves this guy's enthusiasm. Taking the bucket, she looks around. “Maybe let’s start with collectin’ all the crabs harassin’ yer customers? Oh, I'm Astrid, by the way. Forgot about the pleasantries."
|
|
Adventurer
IS OFFLINE
24
Renown
Human
15 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Emil Arneson on Mar 30, 2023 20:34:37 GMT -5
"Astrid, huh? Hearty walcome! Name's Emil." - he wiped his hands with an apron, grinned, and ruffled the kid's hair. Then he turned around to observe the hall. Even the most passing glance would reveal that there were a bit too many crabs for comfort. Even though at present their little cafe seemed to exuberate, the ugly morning scene would definitely repeat itself. They had to take measures. "Hella yeh, let's start right here." - he nodded with a light frown.
It took several minutes to explain the situation to the remaining visitors. They seemed even more enthusiastic than he was, patting him on the back and giving him thousands of invaluable pieces of advice. Finally, all of them were gently nudged out, and the rusty sign "Sorry, we are closed for maintenance" was placed on the front door. It was his chance to show his uncle just how capable and reliable he was! Emil rolled up his sleeves, nodded to Astrid, and the crab hunt commenced. He tried picking the crabs with the tongs, yet, they turned out to be too flimsy. Soon he tossed the tongs aside and went on using his bare hands TM. They might not have been made of metal (most probably not), but they were so callous that served as natural protection from any pinching and stinging he received. The crabs were tossed into the bucket with a satisfying thud. There turned out to be quite a bunch of crabs hiding behind the chairs and panels.
They were in the middle of work when some movement in the kitchen attracted Emil's attention. He popped his head into the tiled, slightly cramped room and saw a couple of especially big ones sneaking behind the upper shelves. Emil cursed under his breath: the common hall was one thing, but the kitchen was his sanctuary. The bastards were clearly challenging him! Suddenly, he remembered that his uncle used to hunt avianbears when he was young and he still had his grappling hook stored in the closet. Apparently, it was a heart-warming memory for him, since old Rory kept it well-oiled and removed dust from it every now and then. Emil's face lit up and he quickly ran off to get it. It hardly took him a minute to return to the battlefield. Trying to be as stealthy as a 6 ft tall man of his build possibly could, he entered the kitchen, aimed at the shelf and shoot the hook. Uncle Rory would definitely be proud of him: the assault went smoothly, pinning one of the crabs to the wall, leaving another one dumbfounded. Almost none of the property was destroyed. Well, maybe a couple of flour sacks got busted. Never mind, the kitchen really did look pretty in white. Suddenly, it felt like winter. Uncle Rory would be proud of him. Right?...
Bare hands Grappling hook
|
|
The Tinkertons
IS OFFLINE
26/53
Renown
Dragon's Cradle
We're gonna get Zarius back.
1,869 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Mar 31, 2023 18:38:44 GMT -5
“Aye, sounds good ta me!” Astrid says with a chipper attitude. Without much regard for the visitors in the bakery, she goes about collecting crabs to the best of her ability. Like Emil, she quickly finds that the tongs make things a bit difficult, and she ends up mostly using them to snag a crab and pull it into the open. Snagged crabs pinch and claw at her to the best of their abilities, but Astrid’s wearing a handy pair of gauntlets that protect her from the minor pinches. It doesn’t take long for her to start grabbing crabs fearlessly, dumping them into the bucket.
Then she notices Emil making a ruckus in the hall and kitchen, and when she carries the crab bucket into the hall, she sees the results of his attack with the grappling hook. It takes every ounce of self control for Astrid not to break down laughing seeing the state of the flour-dusted kitchen. “How’d ya bring winter back, huh?!” she teases.
Spitfire Gauntlets
|
|
Adventurer
IS OFFLINE
24
Renown
Human
15 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Emil Arneson on Apr 13, 2023 4:20:10 GMT -5
“How’d ya bring winter back, huh?!” - he hears right behind him and that makes him jump, which probably isn't a very good idea, considering the circumstances. It's not like his assault wasn't successful. Rather than that, lots of things got smashed and smothered across the tiled floor of the kitchen, making it rather slippery. One thing led to another, and without any further ado, Emil... has slipped on the tiles and got himself stretched on the floor, flailing his arms in a desperate atempt to stand up. Finally, after some time, he manages to get up, leaving a beautiful outlines of a snow flour angel behind him. "Auch.." - he sighs rubbing his sore back, stealthily looking at the kid. Will she laugh? His face turns maroon. Last time he was as embarrassed when he wet...actually, let's not remember that one. He mutters something and stomps out of the kitchen, heading to the inner yard. There uncle Rory usually keeps some supplies and tools for their makeshift garden - a couple of ancient apple trees.
" Welp, time waitin for nae man and work'd betta be done. Let's go kid. I have a cleaver offer! Haw'baut some crabmeat pies as a hefty thank you? All ya can eat! All ya can eat, I'm telling ya! Haha..." - the laughter sounds a bit tense and unnaturally loud, as he tries to cover his embarassment. He's trying his hardest to preserve the remnants of his dignity, which is hard enough with his back and rear as white as first snow.'Dealt with it as an adult. Well done I say' - or so he thinks, opening the door outside. He is faced with a dozen or so of crabs going about their crably business. Some of them try to pick fights with each other, while others are just swarming and pinching whatever they get their claws on.
|
|
The Tinkertons
IS OFFLINE
26/53
Renown
Dragon's Cradle
We're gonna get Zarius back.
1,869 POSTS & 0 LIKES
|
Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Apr 26, 2023 18:59:48 GMT -5
Setting her bucket of crabs aside, Astrid helps Emil to his feet. There’s no point trying to dust the man off. It wouldn’t change anything about how floured up the place is. She collects her bucket of crabs and follows him out to the yard.
“Crab meat pies?” Astrid asks, her eyes lighting up. “I’ve never had nothin’ like that, so I’m happy ta try ‘em! Bet yers are pretty good!” Though, Emil makes one sore misstep: he severely underestimates how much the seemingly small child can eat. “I’ll take ya up on the offer fer sure, but I warn ya, all I can eat might put ya outta business!”
Seeing the yard totally full of crabs, Astrid looks around. “Welp, I s’pose the crabs are makin’ feedin’ a hungry kid easy enough, ain’t they?” she jokes. Then she hurriedly gets to collecting the crabs in the yard so Emil can start cookin’ ‘em up!
|
|