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Post by Mimi on Aug 24, 2024 18:42:17 GMT -5
Her eyes were drawn skyward by the sound of powerful wings beating. Mimi glimpsed the drake as it ascended to a nearby rooftop. Hopefully, it would settle down there and avoid causing any further trouble. But that was a concern for later. Right now, more pressing matters demanded her attention.
Her gaze followed the direction from which the drake had come, landing on Everett, who stood amidst the wreckage of broken carts and a now-torn harness. When their eyes met, Mimi gestured toward the pair of horses that were still entangled. She'd certainly need Everett's help to deal with that one.
Navigating through the debris-strewn street, Mimi wove her way around shattered pieces of wood and scattered wares. Her heart ached as she silently hoped that the unconscious horse beneath the toppled wagon was merely passed out and not beyond saving. She climbed onto one of the wagons to gain a better vantage point. The sight was heart-wrenching: a wagon had collapsed onto a wooden harness support, pinning one horse beneath it. Its dappled grey coat was marred with flecks of blood, and its body hung limply in its harness. Mimi fought back tears as she tried to process the grim scene.
A soft whinny drew her attention to the still-conscious horse. The weight of the toppled wagon and its unconscious companion pressed heavily on its shoulders, causing it to sway precariously. It was clear that the poor creature was struggling to remain upright. Freeing the trapped horse wouldn't simply be a matter of cutting it free from its harness. Not with all that weight pressing down on its shoulders.
Mimi spotted Everett and signalled urgently. "You reckon there's a way to lift that toppled wagon?"
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Post by Everett Reykas on Aug 27, 2024 20:57:54 GMT -5
Everett is quick to join Mimi once the drake is no longer a threat to the people around it. Some folks have started to crawl their way through the wagons despite the guards trying to make them wait. It couldn't be helped, they needed to clear this before someone did something reckless and made the situation worse.
Seeing that two horses were still in a dire state meant they didn't have much time left to waste. He takes a quick glance over the situation then nods to Mimi.
"I can lift it," Everett asserts.
If he hadn't already proven that he has magic, one might be skeptical of the validity of such an assertion given his lack of arm. Still, he'd have to be careful not to put any more unnecessary stress on the pair of horses if they wanted to have any hope of saving them both.
Pulling the threads of formulae arcanum woven through the air itself, he casts a spell to gently lift the wagon off the two collapsed horses.[1] It takes a lot more concentration and finesse than the spell usually allows, but he manages to get the pressure off enough for Mimi to dart in and unbuckle the harnesses. A few guards rush to help her try and get the two animals out from under the wagon, especially the unconscious one.
Once everyone is clear, Everett carefully sets the wagon back down. He then turns his attention to the unconscious horse. He's not sure it will work, but he charges his hand up with a jolt of electricity and then touches the horse's side to send the current through it.[2]
With a surprised snort and whinny, the horse's eyes snap open and it flails its legs a bit from the shock. Everett feels a hoof connect with his gut and he's knocked back onto his ass with an grunt.
[1] Gust Thrust [2] Jumpstart
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Post by Mimi on Aug 29, 2024 10:10:04 GMT -5
Mimi was quick to move, staying close to the conscious horse as Everett focused on the one that remained unresponsive. Her hands moved gently over the conscious horse’s neck and sides, feeling for its pulse and checking its breathing. The horse was trembling, its muscles taut with fear, but it was alive and gradually calming down under her soothing touch and the efforts of the guards. She murmured soft reassurances, trying to keep the animal steady.
From the corner of her eye, she saw Everett charge his hand with a spark of electricity, his focus entirely on the unconscious horse. She held her breath, watching as he sent the jolt through the horse’s side. The reaction was immediate and chaotic. The horse’s eyes snapped open, and it thrashed wildly, hooves flailing. Mimi winced as she saw one of those hooves connect with Everett, sending him crashing to the ground.
“Everett!” she called out, torn between staying with the now calmer horse and rushing to his side. She quickly finished her check, reassuring herself that the horse was stable, before darting over to where Everett had fallen.
The guards were already stepping in to calm the once-unconscious horse, but Mimi’s focus was entirely on Everett. She knelt beside him, worry etched across her face. “Are you okay?” she asked, her voice tight with concern as she helped him sit up. She glanced over at the horse, which was now standing with the support of the guards, its legs still shaky but holding.
“You really saved them,” she said, her tone soft but filled with admiration. “But that kick… Are you hurt? It looked pretty bad.” Her eyes searched his face, looking for any signs of serious injury. She began rummaging in her bag until she pulled out a small bottle filled with an amber liquid[1]. "I... made this myself so it might not be the greatest... But it's a healing potion, if you want it." She held out the flask, offering it to Everett.
[1] Minor Health Potion
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Post by Everett Reykas on Sept 14, 2024 20:39:38 GMT -5
Everett groans a bit as he sits up. "Yeah, I've been hit with worse." A horse kick is nothing compared to being slammed repeatedly into the ground by an angry Stormrider. It's still not pleasant though. He pulls himself up onto his feet with Mimi's assistance.
"Thank you," he breathes while assessing the damage. There's no broken skin or bones he doesn't think. His ribs do hurt from the kick, the horse was shod to boot so the kick was pretty comparable to being hit with the head of a warhammer. He'll definitely feel it in the morning. That is until Mimi hands him a small potion.
"Oh, thank you again." He takes the vial and doesn't think twice about drinking it, which might not be the greatest street smarts but his mind is still very much on wrapping up the situation at hand. The liquid goes down smooth and takes the edge off the pain to his guts.
He stands a bit taller after finishing off the potion and then gives Mimi an appreciative pat on the shoulder before double-checking that the guards can take control of the situation from here. With the animals now moved out of the way, the guards are able to actually focus on clearing the debris and getting the crowd moving. It's not long before they file people through the street. They express their gratitude to the pair for their assistance but are quick to return to doing crowd control.
Everett gestures for Mimi to follow him away from the crowd as it starts to move so they're not in the way of many impatient and frustrated travelers and locals just trying to get to their respective destinations.
"That was well done. You have a way with animals. That potion of yours also worked wonders."
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Post by Mimi on Sept 14, 2024 21:29:58 GMT -5
Mimi blushed deeply at Everett’s high praise.
“Oh.. uh.. n-no it was nothing. My potions still taste terrible... and anyone with a little experience could have helped those animals. It really was nothing... anyone could have done that. I was just there at the right time...”
She trailed off, flustered and unsure what else to say. Her eyes danced about, glancing this way and that but only ever briefly meeting Everett’s gaze. Her hands fidgeted nervously with the strap of her satchel and the ends of her hair until she suddenly froze with a sharp intake of breath. She quickly began pawing through the tangled hair on her head. She gently pulled Zeke out of the pink mess and quickly gave him a once over, checking for any injuries or signs of distress. “Promise I didn’t actually forget about you, boy. Are you okay? Did you get scared with all that chaos going on?” Luckily, the gecko seemed utterly unfazed by the whole situation, and just yawned lazily.
Feeling Zeke’s smooth scales in her hand reminded Mimi of another scaly creature she had completely forgotten about, however.
“Oh!”, she looked up at Everett, properly meetings his eyes for the first time since they had left the scene of the crash. “Should we look for that drake? I hope he didn’t hurt anyone while he was roaming free...”
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Post by Everett Reykas on Oct 7, 2024 20:57:16 GMT -5
"Isn't it a saying that the best medicine tastes the worst?" Everett jests, though he does think Mimi should give herself some more credit. The potion worked after all.
His smile softens when Mimi speaks to her skills and actions. He hopes Mimi doesn't make a habit of underselling herself and her skills. She'd gotten the job done, that's what matters.
"Even if anyone could have done what you did, the fact is that it was you who ended up doing it. You could have chosen not to, but that's not the case. Not everyone who is capable answers the call when they are needed. That in itself is a virtue."
He glanced back at the guards who seem to be getting things mostly back under control. Mimi is right that they still have one loose drake to account for and given how it took to the rooftops it wouldn't be trivial for the guards to retrieve without further assistance. Luckily for the guards that Everett is a sky made and Mimi has a way with beasts.
"Yes, best to try and get it back to its owner before anything else can happen." Everett extends a hand - okay, his only hand - to Mimi. "We'll have a better chance at tracking it down from the air."
Should Mimi accept yet another flight on One-Armed Air, Everett would whisk her up into the sky once more and start flying about to find the drake. Thankfully it doesn't take them long as the drake has found itself a particularly nice and sunny rooftop to bask on. It looks like it's settled down and is just enjoying the sunshine and seabreeze.
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Post by Mimi on Oct 14, 2024 13:18:23 GMT -5
This time, Mimi could enjoy her flight with Everett without any of the fear and uncertainty of earlier. Even though it hadn’t been long, seeing the captain in action had instilled a certain trust in him. He seemed like a good man, and he certainly wasn’t about to abduct her.
They were lucky when they spotted the drake basking in the sun on a flat rooftop. There was a small recessed area by the roof’s entrance, that would make a perfect landing spot out of the sight of the drake. Once they landed, she approached the drake cautiously, motioning for Everett to stay back. If they spooked the drake now it might lead to them having to chase it through the entire city, which could cause any sort of chaos in the festival-packed streets. Or, even worse, if it turned hostile Mimi might become its next snack. She gulped at the thought but refused to let the fear take hold. No, you had to be confident but not standoffish with a creature like this.
The mottled brown and green scales of the drake shimmered in the sun’s light and Mimi marvelled at the creature’s strange beauty. Now that she got a closer look, it did look a bit like a really big version of Zeke, smooth scales, a long tail, and a big round snout that hopefully wasn’t filled with rows of sharp teeth...
She came to a stop still several paces away from the drake, making sure to stand to its side rather than in front of it, so it hopefully wouldn’t perceive her as a threat. “Hey there big guy. You really are a pretty beast, aren’t you?” She began murmuring reassuringly, trying to draw the creature’s attention and getting it used to the sound of her voice. The big eye on the side of the drake’s head opened, the slit pupil on an emerald green background assessing her warily, but the fact that it didn’t move to attack or flee right away was reassuring. She took another tentative step forward and was immediately met by a low growl from deep within the drake’s throat. Hurriedly retreating once again she pondered her other options when an idea struck her. After a bit of rummaging in her bag, Mimi retrieved the last of her rations and placed them on the ground between them, stepping back a little further to give the beast more space.
The drake slowly got up, lumbered over, gave the rations a big sniff, and devoured them in a single big bite. Food had apparently been the right answer, for the drake now let Mimi approach, also giving her a curious sniff as she drew closer.
“You are just a cute, big puppy, aren’t you?”, she mused as she let the drake sniff her hand before carefully touching the creature’s snout. She marvelled at the smooth, warm feel of the scales under her hand and was delighted by the drake letting her pet it.
Feeling confident that the drake wouldn’t be a danger now, she turned back to Everett. They just had to find a way to get it back to its owner.
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Post by Everett Reykas on Oct 31, 2024 16:13:39 GMT -5
Everett's not too sure he shares Mimi's sentiment about the drake being 'cute' but at least things are basically under control now. Given how the drake showed interest in food, Everett gives Mimi the rations he has so they can basically make a bread crumb trail of food for the creature to follow back down to the ground.
The sky mage then asks around a bit before locating the drake's owner which he leads back to Mimi and the snacking lizard. The man is accompanied by a particularly annoyed guard who berates him for causing the whole incident in the first place and issues him a fine for damages. Everett might have seen it fit to help the man cover the fine, but given how the man continues to make excuses for his own incompetence in keeping his drake under control while in the busy city streets, it only makes sense for him to face the full brunt of the consequences of his actions.
As the situation resolves itself, Everett turns to Mimi. "Well, I think that is enough excitement for one day. I'm going to head back to the tavern to regroup with my crew. You're welcome to join us."
He starts off down the road then pauses, looking back at Mimi regardless of if she decides to follow or not.
"And that goes for any future stowing away you plan on doing as well. Can't hurt to have someone with your skills aboard should we run afoul any sea critters that need someone to calm them down."
Not much gets by him on his own ship.
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Post by Mimi on Nov 4, 2024 0:59:43 GMT -5
Mimi parted from the drake with a heavy heart, having gotten surprisingly fond of the creature in a very short time. Before they leave, she tried to show its owner the spot under the drake’s chin that it particularly enjoys getting scratched at. The man, however, just stared at her in bewilderment, or as if she’d suddenly grown a second head. Well... not everyone could have a good hand with animals. Though it pained Mimi to leave the drake in the hands of a clearly inept owner. Still, there was nothing more she could do about this right now, but hope that the man sold the creature on to a better life sooner rather than later.
Her eyes grew wide as Everett offered for her to join him at the tavern, and even wider as he revealed that he’d known about her hiding on his ship. She rubbed the back of her neck and shuffled her feet awkwardly. “Uhm... yeah... Sorry about hitching a ride... I wanted to pay for it, really! But...” She lets the rest of the sentence hang in the air unsaid, the single coin in her possession burning hot inside her pocket. It wouldn’t even come close to covering the cost for the trip, and she was too embarrassed about it to reveal that this was all she had. “Maybe you can put it on my tap and I’ll pay ya back next time?” She glanced up at him nervously. Was he mad? He didn’t look mad.
Wait. had he just invited her to join his crew? She froze as the words sank in properly, tears springing to her eyes at Everett’s kindness. She swallowed hard, trying not to dissolve into a blubbering mess right in front of him and instead deciding to deflect. “Y’know you’re supposed to punish thieves and stowaways, not kindly invite them to drink, right? You’re really too nice for your own good.” She grinned up at him, her eyes still wet with tears.
She took a few steps backwards, creating more space between them. “Anyway, while I’d love to join ya for a bit...” oh, just how much she wanted to. The promise of warmth and company called to her and she had to use every ounce of strength to resist, her heart aching. “I really got somewhere else to be. See ya around.” With that she turned and ran. Ran as fast and as far away as she could. Ran from the kind and caring look he had given her, as if she actually deserved any of that. As if she wasn’t a monster just playing at being nice. As if she could actually ever belong.
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Post by Everett Reykas on Nov 5, 2024 19:22:23 GMT -5
"Hey, it's alright," he reassures her. "You didn't cause any trouble."
If Mimi's stowing away had been a problem for anyone on board, Elleon would have been the first to throw the gremling overboard. Everett is a bit more lenient, knowing full well how hard it can be to get around when you have little coin to your name. Last year he wasn't in much of a different position than Mimi after all.
He nods along to Mimi's offer to pay him back. At least that means this would not be the last time they saw one another. "That works for me."
Of course, there was no rush to collect that debt. He wouldn't even put up a fuss if Mimi never paid him back. So long as she did right by other people, that was all that mattered.
He smiles gently at Mimi as he sees her fight back tears. "I'm just paying it forward. I wouldn't be here without the kindness of others. If I can do the same for others, its worth the risk of being taken advantage of."
Mimi's circumstances are her own, and he doesn't expect her to explain her actions. Whatever her situation is, she didn't resort to hurting anyone. Sure, she stowed away, but it was a victimless crime at the end of the day, and Mimi had gone out of her way to help many folks in a situation no one asked her to get involved in. As far as he was concerned, the gremling had proven that she doesn't intend to do any harm and is just someone in an unfortunate circumstance.
He doesn't want to discourage her, and he considers what more he can say to help...
"Oh, uh-" but before he could say much more the young gremling had already ran off at full speed.
Oof. That stung. Did he say something wrong?
He watches her back until she disappears into the city and something familiar stirs in the back of his mind. Standing there in the midst of the busy street, all the noise becomes muted for a moment and the sky itself seemed to darken. The crackle of fire and sounds of panic fill his ears for a brief moment before he snaps back to reality.
By now, Mimi is long gone and Everett is getting some weird looks from the locals for just standing there zoning out. His face flushes in embarrassment and he's quick to turn on his heel and head to the inn to meet back up with his crew.
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